"How I learned to Cook" - Introduction

I am an Ohio born, self-professed foodie of Appalachian decent, which means I was raised on the Midwest staples of meatloaf and beef stroganoff along with the mountain dishes of pintos and cornbread, sausage gravy, and chicken and dumplings. Being the baby of a large blended family , I was never explicitly taught "how to cook". There was always so many wonderful cooks around, it was a bit like living in a diner. An Aunt, sister, cousin, or even my brother , was always willing to cook me up a "mess of something".

Now don't get me wrong , I could master the "Heat-n-Eat" meals, boxed cake mix, doctored up* frozen pizza and of course, the staple of my teens and early twenties; Ramen Noodle Soup. But for actual intuitive cooking, I was seriously lacking in the skills department. Adding sliced Kraft cheese to a bowl of Ramen was as culinary creative as I went. Then I went to College.

* doctored up- Appalachian-ism meaning to "Fix or otherwise improve on something", usually food. Doctored up pizza usually meant adding random bits of other leftovers to the pizza to add flavor and make it more filling.

  College: Where the lack of funds, equipment, hunger and creativity come face to face. Born out of necessity ( and hunger) I started to branch out. I discovered that freshly ground black pepper perks up a simple bowl of ramen to the point it seems positively gourmet ( especially while studying at 3a.m.!) . A splash of Hot sauce and a scrambled egg made it seem like haute cuisine.

Ramen became my canvas; and for the majority of my dorm years, I experimented and through trial and error , concocted some tasty recipes, I even won a round of my University's Ramen Noodle Cook-Off! The dean of my college was one of the Judges and liked my dish so much, he actually asked for the recipe. Later when I had an academic issue to deal with , he remembered me and it made a world of difference!

I've included my winning recipe below, in case you would like to try it.

Tawna's CSR Bowls. ( Cabbaged , Sausage, and Ramen)

This recipe serves 3-4 as a side dish or 2 generous meal size servings.

1/2 head of Cabbage- finely chopped,  roughly 2-3 cups ( Reserve the whole outer leaves)

1 pack of Ramen noodles - any flavor. (discard  packet)

1/2 c. Shredded cheese (I prefer Parmesan.)

1 lb. of Good Quality ground Italian Sausage ( I use Bob Evans)

1 tsp. of Dried/fresh parsley for garnish ( Optional)

 

Carefully remove the large outer leaves of the cabbage. There should be 2-4 very tough leaves that are slightly bowl-shaped. trim the stem area of these leaves, rinse and set aside. These make great "bowls" for presentation of the final dish.

Chop the cabbaged head in half. Slice and chop into small bite size pieces, avoiding the "core" of the cabbage, as it is much stronger flavor. Set aside.

In a  saucepan: Add 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Slightly break up the ramen noodles (discard the seasoning packet or save for another dish). Add Noodles to boiling water. Cook for 3 minutes. Drain all liquid and set aside.

In a medium skillet , add the ground sausage and cook on medium until  the sausage is only slightly pink. The sausage should contain enough fat that added oil or butter is unnecessary but feel free to add it.

Break up the sausage into bite size pieces and add the chopped cabbage.  Cover pan. Cook for approximately 3-5 minutes or until the sausage is no longer pink and the cabbage is nearly tender. Mix in the noodles and toss until hot throughout.

Ladle the mixture into the reserved Cabbage leaves, top with Shredded Cheese and Parsley. Serve Immediately.