Mushroom Soup Without Cream

   Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup peeled and sliced carrots
1 cup sliced onions
1 cup sliced leeks (optional)
1/2 cup sliced celery
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
2 pounds sliced fresh brown or white mushrooms
6 cups chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped green onion

   1. Melt the butter in a stock pot over medium heat. Add carrots, onions, leeks and celery. Cook and stir until tender, but not browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in thyme and mushrooms, and continue cooking until mushrooms are soft, about 5 minutes.
   2. Pour chicken stock into the pot and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes. Ladle into bowls and serve with green onions sprinkled on the top.

Crusted Salmon with Honey Mustard Sauce

   Ingredients
1 (1.5 pound) skinless center-cut salmon fillet, cut into 4 pieces
1 cup milk
1/4 cup fine bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
1 tablespoon honey

   1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray.
   2. Place the salmon fillets in a baking dish, pour the milk over the fillets. Allow the salmon to soak in the milk 10 to 15 minutes.
   3. Stir the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese together in a wide, deep bowl. Beat the egg in a separate bowl until frothy. Remove the salmon fillets from the milk, shake the excess milk off the fish. Dip each fillet into the beaten egg and then gently press into the bread crumb mixture to coat, gently shake to remove the excess.
   4. Bake in the preheated oven, turning once, until the salmon flakes easily with a fork, about 15 minutes.
   5. While the salmon bakes, stir the butter, mustard, and honey together in a bowl, drizzle over the baked salmon to serve.

Stovetop Yankee Pot Roast

   Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1 (3 pound) beef round tip roast
flour for dredging
3 medium onions, sliced
3 large carrots, peeled and cut into small chunks
3 large stalks celery, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 whole allspice berries
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup dry red wine
2 (12 ounce) cans beef broth
2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in a small amount of water

   1. Heat the oil in a heavy, cast iron pot over medium heat. Dredge the roast in the flour, shake off the excess and brown in the hot oil on all sides. Stir in the onions, carrots, celery, garlic and allspice, cook till lightly browned. Pour in the red wine and bring to a simmer before pouring in the beef broth. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until the beef is tender, about 2 to 3 hours.
   2. When the meat has finished cooking, remove to a cutting board and allow to rest for 10 minutes. While beef is resting, thicken the cooking liquid with the cornstarch. Slice the beef and serve with the gravy.

Mile High Green Chili

   Ingredients
4 fresh tomatillos - husked, peeled, and halved
3 Anaheim chile peppers - seeded and halved
3 jalapeno peppers - seeded and halved lengthwise
1 medium onion, halved
1 green bell pepper, seeded and halved lengthwise
1 tablespoon olive oil, or as needed
salt to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 cups pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch chunks
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 tomatoes, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 beef bouillon cube
1/2 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle lager style beer
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

   1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
   2. Arrange the halved tomatillos, Anaheim chiles, jalapenos, onion and green bell pepper on a baking sheet. Drizzle the vegetables with 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
   3. Roast the vegetables in the preheated oven until they begin to show brown spots, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool, then chop vegetables into bite-size pieces.
   4. Heat 1 more tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat and pan-fry the pork until browned, sprinkling the meat with salt and black pepper as it cooks, about 12 minutes. Transfer the pork cubes to a slow cooker and stir in the roasted vegetables. Mix in the tomatoes, garlic, beef bouillon cube, beer, oregano, parsley, cumin and chili powder. Set the cooker on Low, cover and cook until the pork is very tender, 4 to 6 hours.
   5. About 1/2 hour before serving, place the cream cheese into a bowl and stir in about 1 tablespoon of the chili liquid until thoroughly combined. Continue stirring in chili broth, a tablespoon at a time, until the cream cheese is almost a liquid. Stir the cream cheese mixture back into the chili.

Hangtown Fry

   Ingredients
12 oysters, such as Bluepoint or Fanny Bay, shucked
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup flour
7 eggs
1/2 cup bread crumbs
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
4 strips cooked bacon, crumbled
2 scallions, thinly sliced
Hot sauce, for serving

   Pat oysters dry and season with salt and pepper; set aside. Put flour, 1 beaten egg and bread crumbs in 3 separate bowls. Dip each oyster in flour, then egg, then crumbs; place on a floured plate. Heat butter in a 12" nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add oysters; fry, flipping once, until golden brown, 6-8 minutes. Whisk remaining eggs in a bowl; season with salt and pepper. Add eggs to pan with half the bacon and scallions. Cook until eggs are just set, about 3 minutes. Smooth over top; cover, and cook until top is set, about 5 minutes. Transfer omelette to a plate and garnish with remaining bacon and scallions.

Quick Mexican breakfast

   Ingredients
3 ripe tomatoes
2 roasted red peppers from a jar
4 spring onions
?–1 lime
extra virgin olive oil
1 x 400 g tin of black beans
olive oil
8 small flour or corn tortillas
4 large free-range eggs
1 knob of butter

   1. Make a fast and simple salsa by chopping the tomatoes, peppers and spring onions together on a big board.
   2. Squeeze over the juice from half a lime, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and season, then use the knife to chop and mix it all together. Taste and add more lime juice if needed.
   3. Drain and pour the black beans into a small saucepan, season, drizzle with olive oil and heat through gently.
   4. Meanwhile, heat a frying pan, toast the tortillas one at a time on both sides until charred, then keep warm under a clean tea towel or foil.
   5. Fry the eggs in a little butter and oil, keeping the yolks nice and soft.
   6. Pop 2 tortillas on each plate and top with beans, salsa and an egg. Serve with salsa verde fresco for a bit of attitude.

Old Fashioned Ozarks Meatloaf

   Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
1 pound pork sausage
3 eggs
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1/4 cup ketchup

   1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
   2. In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, sausage, eggs, 1/2 cup of ketchup and bread crumbs until well blended. Pat into a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
   3. Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes in the preheated oven. Drain off some of the fat once in a while to keep spattering to a minimum.

Black Bean and Corn Salad

   Ingredients
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 avocado - peeled, pitted and diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
6 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

   1. Place lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt and cayenne pepper in a small jar. Cover with lid and shake until ingredients are well mixed.
   2. In a salad bowl, combine beans, corn, avocado, bell pepper, tomatoes, green onions and cilantro. Shake lime dressing and pour it over the salad. Stir salad to coat vegetables and beans with dressing and serve.