We make the queso dip with Mexican Velveeta and a can of Chilli Man No Bean chili. Haut cuisine it aint but damn if it don't go well with a cold beer on the 4th of July on my aunt's patio:)

LTH,

I thought we had a You Ate What? thread somewhere, but since cheese whiz and velveeta are mentioned in this thread it seemed a good place.

Pretty much nothing to eat in the house, wife is out of town and I'm 3/4 done with a home project that been "about to be finished" for a couple of years. So, even though I was hungry, I did not want to go out.

Rummaging through the frig all I could find were hot dogs*, no not the good deli kind, the kind 8-year-old kids like, and a few packs of udon noodles.

I present my use up stuff in the frig Masterpiece.

Udon Noodle w/Hot Dog and Open Pit BBQ Sauce


Enjoy,
Gary

*Leftover from house guests last week

Gary,

Not bad. Shows what desperation, rather than necessity, can do for invention.

When I was in China, long ago, one of the all time faves, both in homes and in the Foreign Experts' & Teachers' canteen, was noodles in brown sauce, a recipe based upon the local version of "canned pork meat product". Hot sauce--again the local version-- improved it mightily.

Of course, your remarks fail to address the most important point: how'd it taste??

Geo

Geo wrote:Of course, your remarks fail to address the most important point: how'd it taste??

Geo,

There's a reason why most adults, in particular those who read LTHForum, don't eat Oscar Meyer hot dogs. Otherwise, not bad, sub pulled smoked chicken or pork for the OM dogs, add some type of shredded crunchy veg, amp up the Open Pit and you might just have something. Either way, I'm (mostly) of the school if you add enough hot sauce to anything it becomes edible.

Enjoy,
Gary

LTH,

As penance for lunch time sins I went with an all veggie dinner. Fresh sweet corn, crunchy pickling cucumbers, warm from the sun tomatoes, farmers cheese and a bit of raw baby squash. All from a Michigan road side stand my wife stopped at on her way home.

I should have taken a picture, dinner looked a lot more attractive on the plate than lunch.

Enjoy,
Gary

Did Mz. Gwiv know what you ate for lunch, while she was shopping for all those healthy, natural, pre-industrial foods??

What'll you pay to keep it a secret??

Geo

So was it better, or worse, than the beige worms* at Ed's Potstickers which seemed to have been cooked in Sweet Baby Ray's sauce?

*Chopped pork Beijing style, see here.

waderoberts wrote:The Cheez Whiz goes into a hominy casserole (along with cans of condensed cream of mushroom and cream of celery soup , shredded cheddar, and crushed Frito topping)....

Alas, I long ago lost the detailed recipe, but it's damned easy to reproduce:

Canned hominy
can(s) condensed cream of celery soup
can(s) condensed cream of mushroom soup
Cheez Whiz
crushed Fritos

After several preparations, I ended up just eye-balling the proportions to my sight/taste (I had already been adjusting them). I think I've been using about three large cans of hominy, two cans each of the soups, and two jars of the Whiz.

Drain and empty hominy. Stir in soups straight from can. Fold in Whiz (easier if you microwave it to soften up a bit) (I love using terms like "fold in" in recipes such as this one). Top with finely crushed Fritos. Bake in casserole dish at 350 degrees about 30 minutes (until you see bubbling and browning at the corners. Serve.

In a displaced-Texan equivalent to grape-stomping for wine, I usually pour the Fritos into a freezer bag and crush them by foot. The Frito-foot-stomping highly impresses particularly refined guests!

It is admittedly full of sodium and preservatives and such, but highly picky health-obsessed acquaintances have raved about this dish.

ronnie_suburban wrote:
waderoberts' hominy casserole by LAZ

I made this dish for the first time for the LTHForum 1,000-Recipe Potluck. It actually turned out better than I thought it would, given the ingredients. I note, however, that although several people made a point of coming up to tell me how much they enjoyed it, there was a lot of it left to take home. I don't know whether that means that people didn't try it at all -- scared of hominy? put off by Cheez Whiz? (not that it seemed as if too many people had looked up the recipes ahead of time) -- or they tried it and didn't like it.

However, it makes a huge portion, filling a half-size steam-table pan to the brim. I made it almost exactly as Wade directed, including foot-stomping the Fritos, which startled Cathy2. Giles, who sampled the dish without realizing I had made it or what else was in it, was somewhat aghast that anyone would make a dish with Fritos in it for an event like this.

When I was stirring it together, though, I decided it needed something to add punch. I didn't have any chilies in the house, so I "Chicagoized" it by throwing in half a jar of giardiniera. Frankly, I think it could have used the whole jar, but I didn't want to take it too far beyond Wade's original. Himself, tasting the leftovers, thought it was better the second day, by which time the giardiniera had more fully flavored the dish.

In general, I think this casserole would be more popular with a Southern/Southwestern audience that's used to hominy and/or one that's more of a hotdish crowd. I actually found the hominy the best part of this dish and making it has interested me in trying other hominy dishes. (By the way, I looked for canned hominy in the canned vegetables department of the supermarket and couldn't locate it, but ultimately found some in the Mexican foods aisle.)

As for this recipe itself, it was too gloopy for me, and if I were to make it again I would cut down on the proportion of soup. I don't, however, think you could improve it significantly by making homemade cheese sauce with bechamel.

Here is the version I made.

Chicagoized hominy casserole

Cooking-oil spray
3 29-ounce cans hominy, drained well (from the Mexican foods aisle)
2 10-3/4-ounce cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 10-3/4-ounce cans condensed cream of celery soup
2 15-ounce jars Cheez Whiz
1/2 16-ounce jar hot giardiniera, drained
1/2 pound extra-sharp cheddar, shredded
1/2 9-3/4-ounce bag corn chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a half-size steam table pan (10.5 x 12.75 x 2.5 inches) or 4-quart casserole with cooking spray. Add the hominy. Using a rubber spatula, scrape soups out of the cans into the dish.

Remove the lids from the jars of Cheez Whiz and microwave on high for 2 or 3 minutes, until melted. Scrape into the dish and mix thoroughly. Stir in the giardiniera.

Sprinkle with grated cheese. Transfer the corn chips to a heavy-duty plastic zipper bag and seal, pressing out most of the air. Crush until the chips are large crumbs. Sprinkle over the top of the casserole.

Bake until the mixture is bubbly and starts to brown at the edges. 20 to 30 servings.

Reheating notes: I decided to see if the chilled leftovers could be fried into a kind of hominy cake, like polenta. The Cheez Whiz is too melty for that, but cooked in a bit of melted butter in a nonstick pan, the casserole developed a tasty crust. That makes me think that broiling the top a bit would be an improvement on the original.

G Wiv wrote:

LAZ, here's a special Geo breakfast-hominy recipe, just for you:

3 slices bacon, chopped
1 can golden hominy, drained and dried a bit
1 smallish clove garlic, sliced thin on the diagonal
1/2 sweet red pepper, chopped to 1/4-inch size
1 serrano (or similar) chopped fine
2 scallions chopped relatively fine
handful or so of cilantro, chopped
salt, pepper

Sauté the bacon until the desired level of crispness is reached, remove from pan. Add garlic and swish around briefly until golden. Add the hominy, prepare yourself for some spatter, depending on the level of remaining wetness. Sauté until you can smell it pretty well, or it begins to explode, whichever comes first. Add peppers and cook a bit, until softened, stirring so as to mix in the chili. Add scallions and mix in well. Salt, pepper and remove from pan. Top with sprinkled cilantro. Serve.

The kitchen smells soooo good, and things taste soooo good. Great way to begin a Saturday. Or a Sunday, for that matter.

I learned how to do this in my ill-spent Calif youth-hood.

Enjoy!

Geo

LAZ, as I mentioned at the event, it reminds me a bit of of an old guilty pleasure in which we used to indulge: Velveeta and pico de gallo from the RIP Supermercado Morelia, nuked together, eaten with tortilla chips.

I'd agree, bechamel would improve the texture - but starchy hominy covered in goopy mild cheese with a bit of a kick from giardinera does have a comforting, if sedating effect on one - just the thing if you're settling in to a long movie somebody else picked for you - or maybe election coverage. Would I make it, myself? IDK - while I did enjoy my foray into the land of pimento cheese, I think I'd be daunted by a dinner-size portion.

As I was trying my best to get to everything, I had only one or two bites and missed the Frito topping - but we top our mac and cheese with panko, cheese, and crushed potato chips; sounds like a good use for Fritos to me! I've always wanted to bring Velveeta Fudge to an LTH event, myself!

Velveeta FUDGE, Mhays??!

Do tell!


Geo

I admit I didn't look at the recipe beforehand and had no idea (until I ate it) of the inclusion of Cheez Whiz. I guess it is a guilty pleasure and, as such, wasn't that bad, but I definitely detected that artificial cheese texture which is not a favorite of mine. I didn't even notice the giardinera, but I could have tasted it right after GWiv's Spicy Peruvian Dip thereby negating all other forms of heat.

Agreed that the hominy was my favorite part - Geo's recipe looks very tempting.

I thought LAZ's hominy was very tasty, in an old-fashioned, creamy, comfort-food sort of way -- except with the surprise kick from the giardiniera, which caught me off guard only because the texture was so comforting, but definitely lifted the dish from kiddy land to adult guilty pleasure. However, though it was very nice, there was so much "wow" stuff that it didn't draw me back for seconds. But since LTHForum covers the whole range of culinary pleasures, from high end to funky to foreign to comforting memories, I thought it was a fun addition to the line-up.

Geo wrote:Velveeta FUDGE, Mhays??!

Do tell!


Geo

I got this from a fellow LTHer who can out themselves if they want: Paula Deen's Velveeta Fudge Haven't tried it, though.

IMHO, the giardinera is to keep you awake enough that your fork continues to make the trip up from your plate.

Man, I just don't get it. Velveeta, Cheez Whiz, canned cream of anything soup. I just couldn't.

Well rzbry, I'll just have to tell you the same thing Sister Mary Mary used to tell me in the 3rd grade: "Some things are just a mystery, they're not for explaining."



Geo

As a little kid, I wouldn't touch cheese of any kind.

Then, at some point, I discovered Velveeta, and I can dimly remember that I loved it. It was probably the salt.

Thus encouraged, I gradually moved on to other cheese. Last week, I got a piece of truffle-enhanced sheep's-milk cheese at Whole Paycheck. It is $36.00 per pound. It was a very small piece. I may go back to Velveeta.

In my defense, though, I never stooped so low as to eat Cheez Wiz.

However, Our Texan daughter-in-law sprung the classic Velveeta-RoTel-chopped green chile dip on us a few years ago (she just said it was a Taxas specialty without naming the ingredients) and I blush to admit that my wife and I lapped it up with great gusto. It was probably the salt.


On the subject of salt...

"Canned hominy
can(s) condensed cream of celery soup
can(s) condensed cream of mushroom soup
Cheez Whiz
crushed Fritos"


How much added salt is called for in this recipe?

MikeLM -- Somehow, I don't think you can claim moral superiority for preferring Velveeta to Cheez Whiz.

I added no extra salt. It is a pretty salty dish. I think less soup would improve it that way as well.

Geo -- Thanks for the recipe. Is there a significant difference between golden hominy and white hominy, besides color? What I used was actually labeled "maiz blanco" and "Mexican-style hominy," but it was the only hominy I could find.

I expect waderoberts' casserole could be improved by adding bacon, too, but almost anything can.

Hi LAZ--no, I don't think there's any taste difference between the two colors of hominy. I just prefer the yellow color--it is offset so nicely by the bits of red sweet pepper and the green onion.

Heh-heh, yeah, the LTH Bacon Principle crossed my mind as well: "Everything IS better with bacon!"

Geo

Mhays wrote:

Geo wrote:Velveeta FUDGE, Mhays??!
I got this from a fellow LTHer who can out themselves if they want: Paula Deen's Velveeta Fudge Haven't tried it, though.

Hm. Was that me? I love Velveeta fudge.

LAZ said

MikeLM -- Somehow, I don't think you can claim moral superiority for preferring Velveeta to Cheez Whiz.


Laz, I gotts seek out some moral superiority wherever I can find it! I don't have many opportuniries.

I've not tried the Velveeta fudge either, but I did see Paula on an Iron Chef special of some sort near the holidays where she made it. The judges seemed to like it. I just stuck to my regular old fudge recipe. But I have to admit I'm a little (morbidly?) curious.

Sometimes, a love of food is all about the morbid curiousity...I mean, consider first person to eat Durian....

Another guilty pleasure mentioned above, Pimento Cheese, is big in my wife's past in South Carolina. After having a little on a Tasso sandwich today at Big Jones, we are looking to pick some up to use on our own. Has anyone found good pimento cheese in the Chicago-land area?

Velveeta and cheese whiz are NOT cheese. They are CHEESE FOOD.

What is cheese food? You'd know if you had a pet cheese

msmre wrote:Another guilty pleasure mentioned above, Pimento Cheese, is big in my wife's past in South Carolina. After having a little on a Tasso sandwich today at Big Jones, we are looking to pick some up to use on our own. Has anyone found good pimento cheese in the Chicago-land area?

You may want to consider making it yourself. While there are many variations, the essence is: grating sharp cheddar cheese, grate in pimento and meld it altogether with (Duke's) mayonnaise. Southern Foodways Alliance had a pimento cheese competition with the top three linked.

Regards,

Pimento cheese? This is what we always had in my family (talk about your guilty pleasure!):



You can get it on the web for *only* $35 a case!!!

Geo

Cathy2 wrote:

msmre wrote:Another guilty pleasure mentioned above, Pimento Cheese, is big in my wife's past in South Carolina. After having a little on a Tasso sandwich today at Big Jones, we are looking to pick some up to use on our own. Has anyone found good pimento cheese in the Chicago-land area?

You may want to consider making it yourself. While there are many variations, the essence is: grating sharp cheddar cheese, grate in pimento and meld it altogether with (Duke's) mayonnaise. Southern Foodways Alliance had a pimento cheese competition with the top three linked.

Regards,

I took your advice and made my own, but as a fall back, I found Price's and a jar of the Kraft. Making your own is so easy and, in my opinion, beats the commercial stuff. Granted, I didn't grow up eating it, so I have no ties to sentimentality. To further show my Northern side, it is remarkable with thick cut smoked ham toasted.

There may be a Velveeta shortage, fear not because Modernist Cuisine has come to the rescue!

Melty Queso Dip recipe

Regards,

Does anyone else feel like taleggio cheese is Italy's (better and more refined) version of Velveeta?