Tag: gravy

Food ‘n Flix – August: Osage County (Biscuits and Gravy Casserole)

Well Dined | Biscuits and Gravy Casserole

It’s Food ‘n Flix time again!  Where we watch a movie and then make something inspired by that movie.  This month’s flick is August: Osage County, hosted by Elliot’s Eats, and boy is it a doozy.

Well Dined | Biscuits and Gravy Casserole

I could tell immediately  from the dialogue that this was a play adaptation, and I was right.  The movie portrays the funeral of the patriarch of an extremely dysfunctional family, set in the desolate plains of Oklahoma.  The cast (including Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Juliette Lewis) acted the crap out of some very dark and intense material – addiction, depression, suicide, abuse, and incest.  This is not a feel good movie (you know it’s bad when incest is the best scenario), but it is very good and it will make you think.

Well Dined | Biscuits and Gravy Casserole

As for the food inspiration – there was a ton!  Many of the most tortured scenes revolved around food, including the horrible funeral dinner and the infamous “eat the fish!” scene.  The moment that I was drawn to was Meryl Streep’s character talking about her last interaction with her husband over biscuits and gravy.  She must have said the phrase “biscuits and gravy” ten times.  I’m not even that big a fan of biscuits and gravy, but that was what I wanted to make.

I wanted to make something special, not basic, so I went to Pinterest thinking I would find an herbed biscuit recipe or something.  But what came up were a ton of recipes for biscuits and gravy casseroles.  I had never heard of that before and it sounded awesome!  Some were just biscuits, gravy, and cheese; but I liked the look of one that included eggs (kind of like a strata). (more…)

Holiday Round-up

If you are starting to panic because Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate) is closing in and you don’t have a dinner plan yet, fear not – I have you covered!  I have a round-up of all of my holiday recipes, from protein to sides to dessert, and even breakfast!  So please enjoy and Happy Holidays!

Well Dined | Holiday Meal

Perfect Roasted Turkey, Apple Sausage Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Cider Gravy

Well Dined | Brined and Roasted Pork

Brined and Roasted Pork

Well Dined | Slow Cooked Cider Ham

Slow Cooked Cider Ham

Well Dined | Dr Pepper Glazed Ham with Prunes

Dr Pepper Glazed Ham with Prunes

Well Dined | Garlic and Herb Crusted Rib Roast with Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus

Garlic and Herb Crusted Rib Roast with Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus (more…)

Thanksgiving 2014

Well Dined | Thanksgiving Dinner 2014

You know, I tried to be good and blog about Thanksgiving stuff before the holiday so that it might actually be useful to somebody.  I even made a few dishes in advance, but I didn’t post about them in time.  Oh well!  Prepare for a lot of Thanksgiving type posts!

Anyway, we don’t have any family where we live so we normally travel for Thanksgiving.  But this year we decided to switch it up and travel for Christmas, so we were on our own for Turkey Day.  We had originally planned to stay at the Inn at Little Washington (!!!), but Jasper got sick and we had to cancel.  So then I had to figure out what to make at the last minute for 2 people – initiate panic mode.  But I got my menu together on Monday, went to the grocery store on Tuesday (which was surprisingly not that crazy), and prepped on Wednesday.

Well Dined | Thanksgiving Dinner 2014

I tried to cut it down to just the basics – turkey (breast only), stuffing (half recipe), mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce (bought), and rolls (bought).  It was still way too much food for 2 people so there are lots of leftover sandwiches in my future.

Well Dined | Thanksgiving Dinner 2014 Turkey Breast

First up, the star – turkey.  There was no way I was going to roast a whole turkey for 2 people, so I bought a whole breast on the bone.  I definitely could have gone with a half breast, but now we have lots of sandwich meat!  And guys, I don’t want to brag or anything, but I am SO GOOD at turkey.  Brined, air dried, stuffed with sage butter, rubbed with avocado oil, and started at a high temp – this baby was PERFECT.  It was juicy and tender with crispy skin and super crazy flavorful.  Love it.  It’s also really easy to carve – you just cut along the breast bone until the meat is released, then turn it on its side and slice. (more…)

Classic Pot Roast

Well Dined | Classic Pot Roast

Pot roast is a pretty standard American meal.  Many folks have their own recipes that they love.  But just in case you don’t, here’s mine!  An herb crusted beef roast goes into a pot with potatoes, veggies, red wine, and beef stock until it is super tender – yum.

Well Dined | Classic Pot Roast

First step – rub that beef.  Combine kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning to make a rub.  Sprinkle over and press into the meat.

Well Dined | Classic Pot Roast

The you are going to brown those veggies and sear that beef.  Heat olive oil in a heavy dutch oven until very hot.  Then add an onion and carrots and cook until really browned.  Remove the veggies temporarily, add more oil, and sear the beef on all sides.  Then take that out, too, because you need to deglaze. (more…)