Jasmines 007 DST ACE'd Chili

You already know that oftentimes I will other corner cooks on the blog. Here is one that can quickly become a down home favorite! I know that many of you look for something to keep you warm during the winter months. So why not couple your warm blanket and hot tea with a delicious bowl of fixed up chili! My beautiful Soror staples this recipe as one of her favorites. We are all fans of quick fix'r up meals so why not enjoy the aroma of smokey spices while you're at it! After I try this wonderful recipe, I will have chili as yet another dish in my repertoire and of course I will add my own flavor and spice to it. That's what us "Real" cooks do at V's Cookin it Real. Enjoy!

1lb of ground turkey
5 slices of brown sugar turkey bacon
1 cup chopped onions
4-5 cloves of garlic
1 cup of green bell pepper
McCormick Chili Powder mix
1/2 cup of brown sugar
salt & pepper to taste
2 cans of beans (black, pinto or kidney - Jazz it up and use all three!)

Start by slightly browning the ground turkey and turkey bacon. Add all of your ingredients into your pot. Pour in a bit of water to slightly cover the top. Give it a good stir, cover and let simmer for about four hours. End result is a bowl of heaven!

Football Finger Food - Fried Pickles

Fried pickles are a fantastic football Sunday, Monday or Thursday finger food. Now before you turn up your nose and frown at the thought of such a thing hear me out! Don't get me wrong, when I first heard of the concept, I could not even fathom the thought of a pickle being deep fried and dunked in sauce. I literally shook at the thought of it. My first encounter was while visiting a friend of mine in Indianapolis. We went out to dinner at this famous restaurant in Carmel, IN. We sat down in the booth and looked at the menu for appetizer. She blurted out, "Mmmmm, fried pickles!". What was my response? "Friend pickles!!!???, HELL no!". Well after much convincing they got me to try a few and while hesitant to admit at first, I loved them! This experience happened in 2007 and when I moved to the Lehigh Valley, I was in search for a place that served fried pickles. While enjoying lunch one day with a coworker, I notice that "fried pickles' was staring back at me as an appetizer options and I had to get them! Since I am a food lover and experimenter, I thought to myself "I can make the same thing at home!" Doing a bit of research on my own I found a few recipes and doctored them to my liking. Remember, don't judge until you have tried them :0)

1 jar of Claussen's Dill Pickle Spears
2 large eggs
2 tbsp of worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp of hot sauce
1/2 tsp of black pepper
1 tsp of garlic powder
1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
1 cup of  flour
 Canola oil (for frying pickles)

 Take the pickles from the jar and let them dry a bit on a paper towel or sheet of wax paper. Take your eggs, and beat them slightly. Add all of your ingredients EXCEPT the flour. Once you have all of your dry ingredients mixed in the egg, mixed well to even distribute spices. This will be your dipping batter. Take a ziploc bag and add the cup of flour to it. Give the bag a shake to ensure the flour is loose and not full of lumps. Take a pickle spear and dip into your egg batter. Place in the bag of flour and give a shake. Take the pickle spear out of the bag and shake the excess flour off. Repeat this process one more time. This will make your pickles nice and crunchy! Use this method for all of your spears. Once you are done, place the pickle spears in the canola oil and deep fry until golden brown. Add your ranch dipping sauce to the equation and you are ready to enjoy some great GB finger foolishness!

V's Tender Loving Mouthwatering Pot Roast

I'm sure that you have many stories of delicious pot roast that you may have had over the years. My stories always involve my mom's delicious pot roast. The flavors of the meat would come through with simple seasoning of garlic onions salt and pepper. Depending on her mood, the coupled veggies would vary between string beans potatoes, carrots and onions. Since I am always trying to reinvent her creations to my own liking and tasting, pot roast was the next task on the list. I've made quite a few trying different methods, but I have found that the oven works the best! Again, one of those "pop it in the oven and let it work its magic" type of meal!

1 package of chuck roast (or choice of beef cut)
1 whole onion (coarsely chopped)
3 whole carrots cut in chunks  (or half bag of baby carrots)
1 can of diced tomatoes (optional)
6-8 baby bliss red potatoes
sprig of cilantro (optional)
1.5 tbsp Morton's Nature Seasoning All Purpose Seasoning (approx)
1 tbsp Paprika (approx)

The cooking of this dish is similar to to the Pot O Gold Corned beef. Its quick and too the point. Take your chuck roast and season it to your liking with the Morton's All Purpose Seasoning and the paprika. Place the seasoned roast to an oven safe glass dish or roaster pan - your choice. Place the onions, carrots, potatoes, cilantro on the tops and sides of the roast. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and place in a 325 degree oven for about 2-2.5 hours (depending on the size of your roast and temperature of your oven). When the roast has cooked half way, add your diced tomatoes over the top. Place the aluminum foil back on the top very tightly and let the roast cook for the remainder of the time. The result should be a tender, juicy and mouthwatering pot roast creation. Enjoy every...single...bite!

V’s Corn Beef Pot-O-Gold

This is for you Irish meal lovers out there and everyone in between! Corned beef was a treasure in my mother's kitchen. We had it maybe twice a year so whenever she made this dish it went fast! Main course meals would be coupled with cabbage and other veggies and leftovers would make a MEAN corn beef sandwich on wheat bread…oh and don't forget the mustard and pickle! While I love a good corn beef sandwich, I often times leave that chore to the deli. For those of you who enjoy a one pot meal like myself, this will be a favorite. It's simple, quick and to the point allowing you to pop it in the oven and finish your weekend chores or make a quick run to the grocery store. Go and get ye pot o' gold!


1 package of corned beef w/ seasoning

1 head of cabbage

6-8 small to medium size golden potatoes

4-6 whole carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped


Remove the beef from the package and wash the excess liquids off. (sometimes corned beef can be too salty to in order to remove the excess sodium you can also opt to boil it on medium low heat for thirty minutes to strip it). Place your corned beef in the middle of a medium to large size pot that is oven safe (I used a versatile iron pot frequently used for camping and stewing). Add about an 2-3 inches of water and place your cabbage, potatoes and carrots around and on top of the corn beef. Tightly seal the top of the pot with aluminum foil and place the lid on top. Place in the oven on 325 degrees and let cook for about 2 ½ -3 (depending on the size of your corned beef). Remove from the oven and be careful taking the aluminum foil off. There you have it folks. Good ole corned beef and cabbage, potluck style!

Hunter Southern Style Black Eye Peas

There is nothing like a nice hot bowl of black eye peas and corn bread to warm your belly in cooling seasonal months. Growing up, my mom would also make a variety of peas/beans including black eye peas, pinto, split pea (ham bone in of course!) and even great northern. Whatever the type, it was always mouth watering with every single bite. Of course you have to have it with cornbread (hot water the best) as it is just not the same without. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy….it will be pealicous :O)

1 bag of black eye peas

4 cloves of chopped garlic

1 onion (your choice of variety) chopped

Smoked meat of choice

1 tsp celery seed

2 tbsp soul food seasoning

*this recipe makes a medium sized pot serving

Note: Before cooking the peas, you must prepare them by soaking them in water overnight. The directions for this should be on your package. You can also use the quick method of placing the peas in boiling water for two minutes and then let them soak for an hour.

Heat your pot to medium temperature. Add your smoked meat to the pot once it heats up (I usually use bacon if I am making a smaller pot. Other options include, ham hocks, smoked turkey, etc). Next add your chopped onions and stir around making sure they don't stick to the bottom of the pan. (you can also take the smoked meat out of the recipe to make it a fully vegetarian meal. In order to obtain the grease that the onions will cook in just add 2 tbsp of canola oil as a substitute). Once the onions are slightly tender, add about 4 ½ cups of water to the pot. Add your peas, dry seasonings and garlic to the pot and bring to a boil. Once the peas are boiling reduce the heat to medium low and allow to cook for about 1hr – 1hr ½. Peas are cooked to your liking/taste so feel free to reduce or increase the timing.

*Note - turning the heat down and allowing the peas to simmer for the last 30 mins allow for a gravy type liquor to form…yummmmy!