Recipe Rescue: Asks Questions!

I spend a lot of time in the kitchen and a lot of time in restaurants. I love to discover new tastes, reinvent dishes that I like and create new dishes. My family is always there to taste and critique my latest concoctions. Today, I want to step into your kitchen.When you head to the kitchen is it with dread or delight? Do you plan your meals weekly or wing it? Do you enjoy one protein more than another? What kind of seasonings do you like to use? Are quick meals most important or do you like to take your time? I know I have a lot of questions, but the better I know how and what you like to cook, I can make meal making easier, more exciting and delicious.

I definitely have my favorite spices. I always use garlic powder and ground pepper. I like to use seasonall, but try to limit my use as it has a lot of sodium. I try to make my own spice combination's to fit a certain taste without a lot of sodium and sugar. I bet if we took a picture of my own spice cabinet you would find at least 20 different spices. I try not to stay in one spice profile too long as it makes my meals blend together and not stand out on their own. Sometimes I will open the spice cabinet and just start pulling things out and adding them to my dishes. This technique is a bit dangerous as it almost never fails that the family says the recipe is a keeper or repeat as they say a lot and I am left with that cocked dog head look thinking to myself, now how did I make that? That doesn't happen too often, but enough for my family not to ever get a few things they liked again.

I use all kinds of proteins in the kitchen, but favor chicken because it is so versatile. Chicken can be sauteed in a pan, fried, grilled and boiled. You can broil it and bake it. Add some veggies and rice and dinner is done. It can get boring and I have heard from the dining table, "chicken again"? Colton, my youngest son, will likely follow that question with do we have ranch and can I eat it with a tortilla?! Ahh teenage boys! This is where my love of combining spices to create something crazy comes in handy. What are your favorite things to do with chicken? My favorite favorite way to prepare chicken is to fry it, but then again one of my top 3 favorite foods is fried chicken. My mom was a fried chicken master, sure would love a plate of her fried chicken and potatoes with white gravy. White gravy with chicken is something I have never conquered. I can make a mean sausage gravy, same principle but chicken gravy doesn't work from my hands. Maybe its because mom made is so good.

Another top three favorite is roast, in a pot with veggies, sliced thin, shredded or on a heaping pile of mashed potatoes with brown gravy. Now brown gravy I can cook. Not bragging at all, just watched grandma very closely as I loved her gravy and mine is pretty close, but just like moms fried chicken, I'd give almost anything for one more plate of roast beef and gravy from my grandma. Oddly as I write I am playing Justin Moore's 'If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away'.

So there it is my favorite proteins and spices and some favorite meals. What are your favorites and how can I best help you in the kitchen? And me coming to your kitchen is not completely out of the realm of possibility. Cooking is fun and sharing a meal with family and friends is one of the best ways to commune with people that make you smile, laugh and sometimes cry. I have plenty of healthy recipes up my sleeves and recipes that will insulate you for winter. Let me know what suits your kitchen best and we'll get cooking together.