How to make Basic Homemade Gravy
Every year, people buy those nasty packaged or canned gravies because they are terrified of having to make it from scratch. I'm here to tell you, gravy is one of the simplest, and cheapest, things you can make (although, admittedly not one of the healthiest). All you need to make any basic gravy is OIL, FLOUR, and WATER. That's it! Of course, it wouldn't taste very good without salt and pepper. So here goes:

Step 1: Use the grease drippings from any meat that you cooked- from your roasted turkey, from your breakfast sausage patties, etc. You only need about 4 tablespoons of oil for about 8 servings of gravy, so chances are you already have too much drippings… but try to get as much of the leftover meat in with the oil, because it will make the gravy better. If you don't have any drippings, just use canola oil!
Step 2: Heat the oil over medium to medium-high heat
Step 3: After oil is hot, add 4 tablespoons flour, and STIR constantly for 2 minutes. You want the mixture to end up a brown color, but you don't want it to burn (so stir.)
Step 4: Here is where you can get creative. Either add 3 cups of water, or 3 cups of any kind of broth. Continue to stir.
Step 5: You'll want to salt and pepper your gravy. Be aware that if you added a salty broth, you probably don't want to add too much salt at this point.
Step 6: At this point, your gravy is probably very watery. Don't fret! Keep that heat up, and keep stirring, and it will thicken! Cook and stir until you're happy with how thick it is!

Congratulations-- you just made homemade gravy!

The time has come when vegetarians no longer need to be relegated to the side dishes. This vegetarian chili recipe is very easy and very hearty, with lots of fiber and protein!

Vegetarian Chili
1 pound dried beans (I use a mixed-variety bag), rinsed 3 times and soaked in water for 8 hours
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves minced garlic (alternatively, season with garlic powder near end of cooking)
1 large bell pepper, diced
1 can tomatoes (28 oz can; some people prefer crushed, I prefer whole)
1 small can tomato paste
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp cumin
4 dried bay leaves (only need two if they are the huge kind)
salt & pepper
EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1 package of Boca ground crumbles (basically, fake ground beef- look for it around your frozen veggie burger section, any brand will work)

Start by boiling your rinsed, soaked beans in plenty of water. You'll want to add at least 2 tbsp of EVOO to keep them from boiling over. Important tip #1: whenever you cook any kind of dried beans, add dried bay leaves at the start– they do wonders for the flavor. Important tip #2: whenever you cook any kind of dried beans, -never- salt them until they are fully cooked-- it will change the texture for the worse. Cook the beans until they soften; make sure that you don't cook all of the water out, but you also don't want too much water in the pot when they are finished. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add tomatoes, tomato paste

Sautee the onion, garlic, and bell in EVOO. As the onion begins to soften, add the ground crumbles; heat them through.

Add the sautee to the beans. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper to taste. I often end up adding extra cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder, just depending on where my tastes lie that day. If you think the chili is too thick, you can add water; if on the other hand you find it too thin, cook it a bit longer and consider adding some more tomato paste. If you want to give it an extra kick, add a dash of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes. You shouldn't eat the bay leaves, but I often leave them in, especially if I'm going to be saving leftovers for a few days. The longer the leaves stay in, the more flavor you get.

Serve hot, with a dollop of sour cream or a dollop of plain nonfat yogurt! Yum!

I made this recently and my guests loved it:

Fig & Lemon Chicken
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup brown sugar (recipe calls for this, but I put a little less, because it can be a little sweet)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 pounds dried figs
1 lemon, sliced
12 chicken thighs (I used 6 chicken breasts instead of 12 chicken thighs)
salt to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried parsley

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, brown sugar, vinegar and water; set aside.
3. Place figs and lemon slices in the bottom of an 11x16 inch baking/roasting dish. Arrange chicken thighs on top, then pour vinegar mixture over chicken. Finally, sprinkle with salt and dried parsley to taste.
4. Bake/roast at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 50 minutes, basting frequently (turn figs if they begin to brown).
5. With a slotted spoon, remove chicken, figs and lemon slices from baking dish and place on a warm platter. Skim fat from cooking juices, then pour over chicken as sauce. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.

Yum!!

1)Cowboy Cum-shot

1 part Butterscotch Schnapps
1 Part Irish Cream
Large dollop of whipped cream
Mix together with crushed ice, garnish with mint

2)Hot BUTTered Rum

1 stick unsalted butter, softened 1 stick = 1/4 pound
2 cups light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
Pinch ground cloves
Pinch salt
Bottle dark rum
Boiling water

In a bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Refrigerate until almost firm. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the butter mixture into 12 small mugs. Pour about 3 ounces of rum into each mug (filling about halfway). Top with boiling water (to fill the remaining half), stir well, and serve immediately.

These 2 are now separated into 2 entries into the contest ~ leatherbear

Can we add a category for drinks? People can submit their favorite holiday COCKtail recipes

Toasted Cheesy Brussels Sprouts (you say you don't like Brussel Sprouts?? Just try it once– you'll change your mind!)

Very simple recipe. Requires only:
Fresh Brussels Sprouts (1-2 pounds)
3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
Kosher salt
Black pepper (optional)
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional but extra tasty!)

Make sure the sprouts are clean. Cut them in half, toss them with the EVOO, a little salt, and the pepper. Spread them out on a baking sheet (flat side up). Roast in the preheated oven at 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) for about 30 minutes, shaking pan every 10 minutes. You basically are trying to lightly brown the sprouts. Then, sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on the sprouts (doesn't require much) and put back in the oven just until the cheese is melted. This makes for an excellent finger food, especially once they cool. Very tasty and very easy to make! Enjoy!

I'd like that very much my avatar is my real pic.

Thanks for letting me know CumeaterNC. By the way, I'm in Durham. You near there? HOT avatar

Since a lot of torrents are still missing screenshots, I was wondering if there are any plans to increasing the number of files you can upload at once. Clicking through several screens just to upload one image at a time can take a while, so if you could upload something like 5 files at a time per torrent, it would really save time. Just a suggestion. Thanks!

yum yum yum!