Algonquin cook keeps mealtime exciting

Evelyn Dubbs' friends have only one complaint about her cooking: They never see their favorite dishes again. Ever.

Even before she serves a dish to company the Algonquin woman pitches the recipe into the garbage with the carrot peelings and onion skins, only to be retrieved by the most desperate of guests.

"I call them 'one times,' " says devoted fan and friend J.R. Perez of Freeport. "It drives me insane. She is a wonderful cook, upscale and very meticulous."

But when he asks Evelyn to repeat a recipe she just says, "It'll come around again." But it never does.

Evelyn pleads guilty as charged. Her own mother served good, one-dish meals, but "we ate the same things over and over."

"My theory is, there's always another recipe coming down the line, so I pitch it," she says.

Even when Evelyn tries to make something again she can't resist tinkering. She plays with the seasonings, alters vegetables or protein or changes the cooking method.

"It's just the creative bug in me that says you can always do it better," she says.

A real estate agent for Coldwell Banker for 15 years, Evelyn became personal chef last year for the three priests at St. Margaret Mary Church in Algonquin, a part-time, weekday job. Accustomed to cooking for herself most of the time, Evelyn, who lives near the church, was overjoyed to have extra mouths to feed at dinner. In the year she's been cooking, she hasn't duplicated a meal.

"There's another kind of creativity that is more hands-on with cooking," says Evelyn, a parishioner for more than 20 years.

As devoted to healthy ingredients as to new recipes, Evelyn almost always cooks with fresh, hormone-free meats and produce.

She and a friend buy a whole cow and pig each year and split the meat. She sources some of her produce from farms near her friend J.R.

Evelyn's urge to cook can be linked to generations of relatives in the food industry. Uncles, aunts, grandmothers and her father all owned or worked in restaurants, butcher shops and grocery stores.

Given her "never repeat" style of cooking, Evelyn struggled more than most to assemble recipes for us.

"Tater Tachos" were inspired by a dish she tried with friends at the relatively new Tap House Grill in St. Charles, a variation on nachos using Tater Tots, your favorite, thick chili recipe and homemade black and corn salsa.

After purchasing her latest side of beef Evelyn created this easy, crock pot cube steak recipe made with fresh vegetables and jarred chili sauce.

Her pineapple jam and red bell pepper jelly glaze works with pork, chicken or fish. The proportions shown are the best estimates she could recall -- go ahead and tinker with it yourself.

Then toss it. We'll have more recipes next week.

To suggest someone to be profiled in this column,send thecook's name,address andphonenumber toLaura Bianchi c/o Cookof theWeek, Daily HeraldFood section, P.O. Box280, Arlington Heights, IL60006 or e-mail us atfood@dailyherald.com.

Tater Tachos with Black Beanand Corn Salsa

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and

finely chopped

1 cup frozen yellow corn, thawed

1 cup canned black beans,

drained and rinsed

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried cilantro

1 bag (28 ounces) tater tots

1 jar or can (about 19 ounces)

prepared or homemade chili

1/4 cup cheddar, or more to taste

1 Roma tomato, diced

Shredded lettuce for garnish

Sour cream for garnish

Heat oven to 450

degrees.

For the salsa: Combine

olive oil, green

onions, garlic, red bell

pepper, jalapeno pepper,

corn, beans, salt,

pepper and cilantro.

Set aside.

For the tachos:

Spread tater tots on

baking sheet and bake

at least 20 minutes or

until very crisp. Transfer

to an oven-safe

serving dish and mound tater tots into a pile.

Using a teaspoon, drop chili over the top of the pile as desired. You probably

won't use the entire jar. In areas without chili, spoon on salsa. Sprinkle

cheddar cheese over all. Return to oven for 2 to 3 minutes or until

cheese is melted. Sprinkle with tomato and lettuce; top with a dollop of

sour cream.

Serves six to eight.

6 g fiber, 7 g protein, 5 mg cholesterol, 480 mg sodium.

Glazed Pork Chops With Sweet Onions

#189; cup pineapple jam

#188; cup red bell pepper jelly

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

#188; teaspoon horseradish or to taste

#188; cup dried apricots, chopped

4 boneless loin pork chops (about 1 pound total)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 sweet onion, very thinly sliced

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

In a medium bowl, Combine pineapple jam, bell pepper jelly, mustard, horseradish and apricots; set aside.

Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper on both sides.

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and thyme. Cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Push mixture to edges of skillet and add pork. Brush with glaze and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring onion mixture to prevent burning. Turn and brush again with glaze, cooking 5-7 minutes more or until done. Keep stirring onion mixture. Serve with smashed potatoes.

Serves four.

Cook's note: This recipe works with boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs, or fish fillets (1-inch thick). Salmon is a favorite, but halibut, swordfish or tuna are good too. Cooking times will vary.

Nutrition values per serving: 470 calories, 22 g fat (6 g saturated), 36 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 33 g protein, 95 mg cholesterol, 100 mg sodium.

Slow-cooker Swiss Steak

4-6 cube steaks (about #189; pound each)

Salt and pepper

Garlic powder

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

#189; cup flour

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 jars (about 12 ounces each) chili sauce

2-3 cups mixed fresh vegetables, chopped (carrots, celery, bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini)

Sprinkle cube steaks with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brush one side with Worcestershire sauce. Put flour in plastic bag and add one cube steak at a time, shaking to coat.

Heat olive oil in skillet, add cube steaks in batches, cooking until brown on both sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.

As meat finishes, transfer it to a crock pot. Sprinkle vegetables over steaks; pour chili sauce over all. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Serve with broad egg noodles.

Serves four to six.

Nutrition values per serving: 610 calories, 24 g fat (8 g saturated), 37 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 63 g protein, 195 mg cholesterol, 230 mg sodium.