Ham and Yellow Eye Beans

A sunny cool day here in Ohio; light frost this am & 60 in the afternoon. I had a 3 ½ pound bone in butt end smoked ham from my butcher, Kahs and some yellow eye beans. I would have them over rice and sides of cornbread and Brussels sprouts from my garden.

I thought the yellow eye beans were a popular southern bean but after researching they are more popular in the New England states, grown and eaten there. In my opinion they are milder and sweeter than most beans you would cook with ham.

I coated the face of the ham with molasses and some Penzey’s Cajun seasoning. I put it on the smoker; 45 minutes smoke mode 175 deg. I eased the temp to 275 deg. When it hit 105 deg. IT I foiled it then went to 300 deg. Total cook time was just over two hours for an It of 150 deg.

While the ham was on I decided to harvest my Brussels sprouts; they were not getting to size, too late planting, and I had covered two of the four plants through 4 frosts. Now don’t laugh; I ate a year’s crop in one setting! There were just enough for me, my wife does not like them. I call them sautéed baby Brussels sprouts.

I also mixed up a box of Miracle Maize sweet cornbread and baked in the oven in a cast iron skillet.

I had soaked the beans overnight. When the ham had cooled some I trimmed some of the good meat off and got the bone and beans on to cook, brought to a boil, then down to a simmer. For yellow eye beans they say to use the soaking water to cook in.

The grandson came home from school at 3:00. I gave him a piece of cornbread, he asked for another. I gave him a piece of ham and he asked for a second. He said it was good, at least my harshest critic like the cornbread and ham. I sent some home with his Mother and him.

I got some rice on to cook. I sautéed onions, garlic, and celery in a little olive oil and juice from the ham. I added salt pepper and thyme then added it to the beans after removing the ham bone to cool. I picked the ham from the bone and added it to the beans along with a little more of the ham.

I diced a slice of bacon and browned, removed from the skillet and added a little olive oil and the Brussels sprouts, stirred to coat added salt & pepper. I sautéed a few minutes, added a little chicken broth, covered and cooked another 7 or 8 minutes. I spooned them into a bowl with the bacon bits.

My wife had some sliced ham, rice w/cinnamon & sugar and corn bread, no beans. I had the ham & beans over rice. The Brussels sprouts were great, my wife had a bite then three more bites, and she doesn’t like Brussels sprouts. Fresh from the garden are a lot better than you can buy from the grocery or frozen. Next year maybe I can get them out early and have a bigger crop!

Printable ham & bean recipe

My years crop!

The ham

Hams done smoking

Sliced ham

Ham juice

Cornbread

Onions, celery and garlic sauteeing

Soups On

My Plate

Smokin Don

Carolina Grits, bacon and eggs

Sunday, Oct 14th

I know I said I was going to give my smoker a rest today. I had some good yellow, stone ground grits from Palmetto Farms, S. Carolina to fix & have with bacon and eggs for my brunch today. The bacon was thick sliced from my butcher and was just going to fry 3 or four slices. The grits I bought from Amazon.

Then I got to thinking; the bacon sure tastes better when done on the smoker.

So at 9 am I fired up the smoker and put 6 slices on. I did them at 275 deg. and took 45 minutes to get to the crispy stage I like. While it was cooking I cooked the grits. I added 1 Tbs. of bacon grease and 4 pats of butter to the pan to cook the grits. My glass top stove does not cool down fast so I get the grits & water boiling then move to another burner on low to finish simmering them. I fried two eggs and had a toasted slice of ciabata bread to have with it. My coffee was Newman’s Own from my Kurig.

It sure tasted good; I don’t have this very often so I was really hungry for it.

I did not get them as thick as I like; I like them so a spoon will stand up in them. The leftovers will be thicker.

The grits

Bacon is done

Texture of grits

My Brunch

Update: 10/17/12
At my favorite pellet smoker forum, pellet heads, a fellow member always commented I needed to make red eye gravy for my grits; whenever I posted about grits. I had some leftover ham and some leftover yellow grits from my last two cooks so I made some ham & eggs with red eye gravy for my lunch today.

I have made this in the past a lot but haven’t had it for a long time and it sure tasted good. Redeye gravy is basically made by browning up some ham then deglazing the skillet with some strong coffee and sometimes some water is also added. I used half coffee and half water. Wiki has a good definition of it with variations.

My lunch

Smokin Don

Stuffed Italian Meatloaf

Sat. Oct 13th
Today was a mild fall day, good for cooking out. I had a recipe for a stuffed Italian meatloaf I followed, changed some ingredients and added some and changed the baking process to do on my smoker.

After mixing up the meatloaf I formed it into a rectangle on a baking sheet. I left the center third, which was the bottom, a little thicker. I used 6 slices each of ham and provolone laid two thick down the center. I had a little trouble folding over the outer edges. Using a gallon bag to form like you make a stuffed fatty may work better.

It went in the fridge until ready to smoke. I got to wondering how I would get it from the cookie sheet onto the perforated stainless grill sheet and keeping it in one piece. A thin plastic cutting sheet worked well. I sprayed it with a little cooking spray and it slid under easily and then lifted it onto the grill sheet.

I got it on the smoker then peeled 3 potatoes and 2 carrots, cut up. I precooked them, boiled 5 minutes. I placed them in a wire basked, sprayed with some olive oil and seasoned with Penzey’s sandwich sprinkle; we use it as an all purpose seasoning.

The meatloaf had been on a half hour when I put the potatoes & carrots on. At 45 minutes I started easing the temp up to 275 deg. At 1 1/2 hours the veggies were done so pulled them and went to 300 deg. At 2 hours I went to 325 deg and was at 155 IT in another 15 minutes; so I pulled the meatloaf. I tented it with foil for 20 minutes; then cut in half and in the fridge. I would reheat it for our supper.

Meatloaf was great, moist and slight smoke taste. I had a slice of ciabata bread with a little butter with mine. I used 80/20 mix hamburger and fresh Italian sausage from my butcher. One link of sausage was enough for the meatloaf so threw the other on for a snack. The wife & I finished it off quickly.

Today was my d-i-l’s birthday and tomorrow is the grandsons. We are going down for a little party tomorrow afternoon. I will give the smoker a rest tomorrow. Bacon, eggs, and Carolina stone ground yellow grits for brunch then I am making a batch of quinoa veggie chili for my daughter in law.

Printable Meatloaf Recipe

Ingredients

Peppers, onions and garlic

Meatloaf mixed

Adding the ham and cheese

Meatloaf formed

Ready for the smoker

Potatoes and carrots added

Potatoes are done

Meatloaf and snack are done

Meatloaf sliced

My Plate

Smokin Don

Applewood Smoked Gouda and Cheddar

I am not looking for winter to come but was happy to get cool enough weather to cold smoke some cheese. I had a new toy, the Amazin Tube Smoker, to try out. It was made to give added smoke to pellet smokers. I used it for hot smoking a couple of times but too early to say if it actually made the meat I did any smokier tasting. I also installed a manual fan switch on my Traeger 07E so I could run the fan only. I use it when shutting down and just new it would also be great for cold smoking.

I had 2 pound each of Dutchmark Gouda and Vermont white cheddar I bought at Sam’s Club. I cut the Gouda in 3 pieces 1 inch thick and the cheddar in 6 pieces 1 inch thick and set it out 2 hours before smoking. I planned to do some for a single smoke of 2 hours. Then I would double smoke the rest for another 2 hours after a 2 hour rest.

I was using some Smokin Brothers 100% apple wood pellets that my brother had given me. I filled the tube smoker with the pellets and got it lit. I laid it across the back and placed the cheese on a frogmat, turned the fan on. After 15 minutes I was not getting any smoke from the stack, just some at the top of the lid. I turned the fan off and within a minute I got smoke from the stack. It smoked well the whole two hours, nice blue smoke coming from the stack and some from the top of the lid. Whenever I opened the lid the barrel was full of smoke.

After the two hours I took the cheese inside and covered with saran wrap to rest for two hours. I had to go out and empty the tube smoker to stop the fire and refill for the second smoke. When I went inside I smelt the sweet smoky smell of apple wood; and my smoking deck never smelled so good before. I tasted a small slice from each, a mild smoke taste; I cut the 3 pieces of Gouda in half so I had six. I saved out 2 pieces each of the Gouda and cheddar to vacuum pack for a single smoke; so I ended up with 4 pieces each for the double smoke.

After the 2 hours I relit the tube smoker, placed it across the back and put the cheese on. After 15 minutes was not getting much smoke so had to relight the tube. The trick is to get it lit right the first time. All went well for the second smoke. All the cheese is now vacuum sealed and in the fridge for two weeks to mellow out, if I can wait that long!

Note: One tip is after lighting the tube smoker and you want to move it do not grab it in the middle but on the opposite end or use some tongs to move it! Never too old to learn, even the hard way!

Link to Tube Smoker Site

The Cheese

Sliced & ready to smoke

Smoke after turning the fan off

The pit temp

The smoke I was getting from the tube

The first smoke

After the second smoke

All vacuum packed

Smokin Don

Brunswick Stew and Smoked Korean Crackers

The past week-end was busy for me. In between cooking I was trying to keep tabs on the pellethead BBQ team, on live video, competing at the American Royal in Kansas City, the largest in the world. They finished in the top third overall and had a third place in ribs.

The rest of us pelletheads on the home front were cooking a lot of comfort food with the cooler fall weather starting. We have had frost here in Ohio the last three mornings getting down close to freezing.

The other day when measuring out Korean red pepper flakes I thought I have to try this in my Cajun crackers. Yesterday I mixed up two sleeves of crackers and soaked them over night in 3/4 cup olive oil, 1/2 package Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix and a good Tbs. of the Korean red pepper flakes. This am I smoked them to have with some Brunswick stew. The smoked Korean crackers came out with a very mild heat. I thought they would be hot but the US red pepper flakes are a lot hotter.

My wife liked the Korean better, our d-i-l said maybe a little better but she liked the Cajun too. To me the Korean flakes are complex. Eating Kimchi cold they are very hot to me, in a sandwich it becomes mild and on the crackers they are subtle.

I mowed grass then about 3:30 I started my Brunswick stew. The stew can be made with
squirrel, rabbit, chicken, pork or beef. Fellow pellethead, charray made some and his recipe is very close to the one I used. I had already saved one from my favorite southern cook Mary, at Deep South Dish blog. He had some Cajun crackers with his.

I used 3 slices of Kahs bacon for the stew; I had 4 slices left from a ½ pound. In between sautéing and simmering the stew I cooked the 4 slices of bacon on the smoker to use on top of the stew. Mary called for a cup of smoky BBQ sauce, I used ½ cup of Kahs which is sweet & tangy with just a touch of heat. Tasting mine at the end seemed a little sweet so I added a Tbs. of cider vinegar, could have used two.

The stew hit the spot on a cool fall day, my wife liked it and the Korean crackers were a compliment to it.

Link to Mary's recipe

Printable cracker recipe

Olive oil with seasonings

Crackers w/oil

After setting overnight

On my smoker, 1 1/2 hours at 170 deg.

The stew ingredients

Peppers, onions, celery and diced bacon

Bacon and veggies simmering

1/4 inch diced potatoes

Stews ready

My Bowl and Smoked Korean Crackers

Smokin Don

Pulled Pork Sandwich w/Kimchi and a potato side

This was my Saturday supper using my cider injected butcher paper wrapped pork butt. I am getting behind in my posts. I was used to cooking for 5 and since the kids moved out, just over a week ago, this is my second cook just for myself. My wife went out to eat with girl friends then to see the Lennon Sisters, so I was home alone!

I fixed some cheese and caramelized onion scalloped potatoes, I concocted from several recipes. Basically it was about 2 lbs of russet potatoes peeled and sliced thin. I caramelized two thinly sliced onions in butter until just turning brown. Layerd half the potatoes in a buttered dish, sprinkled some Wondra flour. Spread half the onions over, then 4 oz. of shredded Colby jack cheese over that. Then a ¼ cup of buttermilk poured over. I repeated the layer and poured ½ cup buttermilk over the top. In a 365 deg. oven covered for 45 min. removed the lid and baked another 30 minutes.

I toasted my COWB, cheap ole white bun, in a skillet w/olive oil. Added a good portion of my reheated pulled pork and topped it with some of my home made Kimchi. I also heated some Freshlike canned small red beets for a side w/butter and salt. I find the Freshlike brand about as good as doing fresh beets and much easier to prepare. The older you get the more you look for shortcuts!

My sandwich hit the spot, loved that Kimchi on top. I didn’t notice the heat from the Kimchi being as hot as eating it plain. The potatoes & beets were good with it.


Caramelizing the onions

Layering the first layer of potatoes

Second layer added and ready to bake

Potatoes are done

My Plate

Smokin Don

Italian Meatballs and Cheesy Pull Bread

Friday was a big cook day for me. I was up at 1:00 am and got an 8 ¼ lb. pork butt on to smoke. I decided to have Italian meatballs and spaghetti along with some cheesy pull bread for supper.

For the meatballs I used a lb. of ground sirloin and a lb. of Bob Evans Italian sausage. I chopped a ¼ of a red and ¼ green pepper, two slices of onion chopped, and a garlic clove minced. I mixed in an egg, a ¼ cup of ketchup and 1/3 cup of Italian seasoned bread crumbs. That’s pretty basic and you could add seasoning if you want.

After I made enough meatballs I had about a pound left so I formed it into a mini meatloaf I could take to my Mother. At 3:00pm I pulled the pork butt off and in the oven to rest before pulling. At 3:30 I put the meatballs and meatloaf on smoke for one hour, then went in and pulled the pork. The pork went in a covered bowl and in the fridge.

At 4:30 I went to 225 deg for a half hour and then pulled the meatballs. I went to 300 deg to finish the meatloaf to 160 deg. IT. The frogmat worked good for the meat, came off nice & clean.

I browned the meatballs in a little olive oil then added a jar of Clasico tomato & basil spaghetti sauce. While it was simmering I made the cheesy pull bread. It all tasted pretty good.


Meatball ingredients

Onions peppers and garlic

Meatballs after smoking

Mini meatloaf

Meatballs and sauce simmering

Bread ready to bake

Breads done

My Plate

Smokin Don