Ree's Recipes- Part 2

In my last post I shared some of Ree Drummond's (AKA The Pioneer Woman) recipes for sweets.  I've also tried several of her other recipes for side dishes.  I haven't tried anything that hasn't been good. I'm convinced all of her recipes are awesome.  She is definitely worth checking out.

For Christmas I made Soul Sweet Taters.  You will never want to touch another can of sweet potatoes/yams after eating these!  The pecans are optional, I left them off, but I think my husband would have preferred them.  Of course, lots of butter is included, which makes them even better!

Another awesome potato recipe are Ree's Smashed Potatoes.  My husband loves to make these.  We like to make mashed potatoes but they never were just quite right.  Something was always off, no matter how much butter, milk, or salt we put in.  Ree’s recipe calls for bacon and sour cream- of course they are going to taste better!  We’ve made this recipe several times and always add in something different.  She uses green onions (not a fan), so we add in what we have.  Cheese, bell peppers, whatever goes and it is always fantastic!

 

Speaking of my husband, I think his favorite recipe we have tried is the Skillet Cornbread.  I grew up on Jiffy cornbread mix and have always used it to make cornbread muffins.  We had some beans simmering in a Crock pot a couple weeks ago and no Jiffy mix!  Have no fear- I have a recipe for it!  This recipe was a total change for me because you make it in a cast iron skillet.  My husband loved it!  It was amazing, but I like sweet cornbread so next time I think I’ll add some sugar.  (Horrible I know- not at all healthy).   I will warn though, it does not taste the same the next day re-heated.  Keep that in mind. 

A recipe we tried that my husband liked, but I wasn't a fan of were granola bars.  I've never attempted anything like this before and probably won't again.  It is a long process, most of Ree's recipes are easy and quick, this one has numerous steps, and I just wasn't a fan.  I think it's partly because I'm not a huge fan of granola bars in the first place.  But I will say, this is excellent if you are allergic to a certain type of nuts or if you can't find the specific kind of granola bars you like because you can customize them any way you want with different grains, nuts, or berries.  Also, make sure you coat the bottom of your baking sheet VERY well- over half of mine stuck to the pan.  I tried to save as much as I could and my husband ended up eating the remains as cereal. 

I think the recipe of Ree's I have made the most and will forever make is her Perfect French Fries. I remember my mom making homemade fries when I was younger and they were great, but nothing like these, close though (sorry, mom!).  You can pretty much use any type of potatoes (we've tried several kinds and they always turn out great), but you do need to plan ahead.  After peeling and cutting the potatoes (I've just been using a knife but we are about to invest in a potato cutter since I've been making fries so much lately), you let the fries soak in water for at least an hour, but you can even do it overnight.  It helps remove starch so when you go to drain the water it will be really cloudy.  Then you fry them in oil once at a low temperature, then up the temperature and fry them again.  They are AMAZING.  Truly.  And what takes them over the top for my husband is fry sauce- mayonnaise and ketchup mixed together.  Oh goodness- amazing!  Can't say enough about them.  Delicious! 

Like I said before, I have a whole list of her recipes to try.  I think my next big goal is going to be making Easter lunch using recipes from her holiday cookbook.  

I know these last few posts are different than my 'regular' posts but hey, when you find something worth sharing, you should share.  This is after all, Miranda's Great Finds, I never said the great find couldn't be food related. :)