A yeasty breakfast treat, a certain caffeinated beverage, and a cattle ranch classic. The Pioneer Woman can whip up just about any dish, but only certain foods regularly make it to her dinner table.
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00:00A yeasty breakfast treat, a certain caffeinated beverage, and a cattle ranch classic.
00:05The Pioneer Woman can whip up just about any dish, but only certain foods regularly make
00:10it to her dinner table.
00:12Rae Drummond may be a huge television celebrity, but one of the reasons why her fans love her
00:16so much is that her culinary tastes are simple and relatable.
00:20Case in point?
00:21Drummond has gone on the record saying that her absolute favorite food is cheese.
00:26She eats cheese every single day, and even has more than 800 recipes on her blog that
00:32contain the word cheese in the title.
00:34As for how she gets her daily allotment of cheese, she's not picky.
00:38Drummond has explained that she loves macaroni and cheese, she craved cheesy quesadillas
00:42when she was pregnant with all her children, she adds goat cheese and feta cheese to salads,
00:48she loves the way Swiss cheese melts, and she'll snack on cubes of white cheddar straight
00:52up.
00:53If you're a cheese lover like Drummond, you'll probably enjoy recipes on the Pioneer Woman
00:57website like fried goat cheese with marinara, cheese straws, and fancy mac and cheese.
01:01The only reason I grew as a child, because I ate macaroni and cheese.
01:05If these cheesy recipes can quell Drummond's daily craving, they should be good enough
01:09for you, too.
01:11There's comfort food, there's meatballs, and then there's the Pioneer Woman's comfort meatballs.
01:16Rae Drummond has said she's loved them since she first sunk her teeth into them years ago,
01:21which is as ringing an endorsement as they come.
01:23Drummond's meatballs are seasoned simply, with just salt, black pepper, and onion, adding
01:27flavor to a mixture of ground beef that's held together with oats and milk.
01:31Then they're browned on the stovetop and baked in a homemade barbecue sauce that's equal
01:34parts sweet and tangy.
01:36These aren't the only meatballs in Drummond's life.
01:38She also has a recipe for spaghetti and meatballs on her website.
01:41They're more classically Italian, made with ground beef, ground pork, fresh herbs, and
01:45some cheese for extra flavor.
01:47Though Drummond says she almost can't tell if she likes making or eating spaghetti and
01:51meatballs more, at the end of the day, she says that never eating spaghetti and meatballs
01:55again in my life would be pretty devastating.
01:59While Oklahoma is landlocked, that doesn't stop Rae Drummond from saying that sushi is
02:03still on her list of favorite foods.
02:05It helps to know that Drummond hasn't always lived on the ranch in Pahuska, Oklahoma.
02:10She went to college in Southern California, and now that she's a big star, she travels
02:14quite a bit, too.
02:15As such, she's been exposed to food from all over the country and the world.
02:19Luckily, just because Drummond lives in the middle of the country doesn't mean that she
02:22can't get her sushi fix.
02:24Her husband had a sushi chef come out to the ranch one year for her birthday to teach her
02:28how to make perfect sushi at home.
02:31She says that, other than a pug, it's the one thing he figured she'd want.
02:35Needless to say, at the end of a long, tiring day on the ranch, everyone in the Drummond
02:39family is famished.
02:41And for them, nothing hits the spot quite like meat and potatoes.
02:46Rae Drummond has said,
02:47"...I cook the way I eat."
02:48Meaning, hearty comfort foods that contain meat and potatoes are often on the menu both
02:51on her show and at her home.
02:53The potato component of this duo might be Drummond's specialty, given that her potato
02:57recipes are famous.
02:58In fact, when she went up against Bobby Flay during a Thanksgiving-themed episode of Throwdown
03:03with Bobby Flay, she beat the famous chef thanks to her creamy mashed potato recipe.
03:08Drummond's secret ingredients make for mashed potatoes that are extra creamy and full of
03:12flavor.
03:13She serves her spuds with cream cheese and Laurie's seasoned salt.
03:17As for meat, Drummond's recipes, like Sunday night stew, are rich, satisfying, and hearty
03:21enough to satisfy any carnivore.
03:24If Drummond had to name one of her recipes as better than all the rest, it would be her
03:28cinnamon rolls.
03:30About her mom's cinnamon roll recipes, she stated,
03:32"...I can say that these cinnamon rolls are the best in the world."
03:36Drummond shares the recipe, of which she states on her website,
03:38"...I've made these cinnamon rolls approximately 89,745 times in my life, give or take 89,000."
03:47Though the recipe started out as something Drummond and her mom made to share with loved
03:50ones around Christmas, you can make them at any time of the year.
03:54The combination of soft and flaky dough, buttery cinnamon sugar filling, and pour-on maple
03:58icing make for a sweet treat that's just as good as dessert as it is a morning accompaniment
04:03to a hot cup of coffee.
04:05Marie Drummond isn't just a television star, cookbook author, and business owner.
04:10She's also a mom, and she's the one in charge of making food for her family most nights.
04:14So what does an international culinary celebrity feed her family on a regular basis?
04:19According to Drummond, one of her family's favorite meals is chicken parmesan.
04:23Drummond explains that,
04:24"...it's not the best authentic Italian version.
04:27It's very Americanized."
04:29But regardless, the recipe still sounds plenty tasty to us.
04:32As promised, there isn't anything about the Pioneer Woman's chicken parmesan recipe
04:36that's overtly complicated.
04:38Chicken breasts are dredged in flour and fried until crispy.
04:41They are then added to a skillet of homemade tomato sauce and topped with cheese.
04:45The dish is cooked until the cheese is gooey and melted and the chicken is warmed through.
04:49Serve it over linguine and you've got a Drummond family favorite on your plate.
04:53If it's good enough for the Marlboro Man and the Pioneer Woman, surely it's good enough
04:57for us.
04:58Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
05:03In fact, the Pioneer Woman loves breakfast so much that she often makes breakfast for
05:07dinner for her family.
05:09And while you may envision her table loaded up with steak and eggs or her signature cinnamon
05:13rolls, her favorite breakfast food is actually migas.
05:17Migas is a Tex-Mex dish that's basically like all the best parts of a breakfast burrito
05:22turned into a breakfast scramble.
05:24But you can forget about the flour tortilla.
05:26According to Drummond, fried, chopped corn tortillas are essential to the dish.
05:31She says that though some people will just serve migas with warmed or grilled tortillas,
05:35she likes it best when the tortillas are fried in oil until they get a bit crispy and are
05:39all chopped up and added to the eggs.
05:41The egg mixture softens them up a bit, but thanks to the fry, they still retain some
05:45texture.
05:46The result is a dish in which each mouthful contains a combination of creamy eggs, peppers
05:50and onions, melted cheese, and those satisfying fried corn tortillas.
05:54If you want to taste what makes migas so special, you can even order it from the menu
05:58at Drummond's restaurant, Mercantile.
06:00She loves the dish so much that she added it to the menu.
06:04Though Ree Drummond is usually the one behind the wheel when it comes to the kitchen, her
06:07husband Lad has also made his culinary influence known.
06:11It was under his insistence that their restaurant began selling a family favorite, a flat strawberry
06:16rhubarb pie.
06:18Lad worked closely with Mercantile's executive chef to put the pie on the menu.
06:22Unlike the traditional double-crust pie, the flat strawberry rhubarb pie is made on
06:26a single round of dough, with the crust folded over the edge like a galette.
06:29The family likes the style of pie so much that they even served it at the Drummond family
06:33reunion hosted at Mercantile in 2017.
06:37The pioneer woman's husband comes from a family that's been ranching cattle since
06:40the late 1800s, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that one of the most requested foods
06:45in the Drummond household is steak.
06:48After all, when you raise cows for a living, beef is on the menu fairly often.
06:53In fact, the Drummonds are so devoted to steak that the very first recipe on Ree's blog was
06:56titled How to Cook a Steak.
06:59Yep, it's that foundational to the pioneer woman's empire.
07:02For the best steak, Drummond recommends choosing well-marbled, boneless ribeyes.
07:06She sears the steaks on an oiled cast-iron skillet and seasons them with Lawry's seasoned
07:11salt and McCormick lemon and pepper seasoning salt.
07:13Drummond, who likes her steak medium-rare, tells her readers to remember that you can
07:17always add a rare steak back to the pan to cook a little bit longer.
07:21But once it's overcooked, it's overcooked for good.
07:24Now that simply cooked ribeye sounds delicious, but the pioneer woman doesn't just stick
07:28to plain steaks.
07:29For example, another Drummond family favorite is the Marbled Man's Sandwich, which is
07:33made with pan-fried steak cube.
07:35You can find even more variations on the classic steak on the pioneer woman's website.
07:40When you're as busy as Ree Drummond, you need a little something every now and then
07:43to keep you going throughout the day.
07:46After all, with a packed filming schedule, lots of travel, and her family obligations,
07:50the pioneer woman's calendar is quite a bit hectic.
07:53Luckily, a reprieve for Drummond comes in a very tasty form — coffee.
07:58Fortunately, I don't have to dream about coffee and scones.
08:01I can just make them myself at home.
08:03Drummond has gone on the record saying that coffee is her life.
08:07As such, it's safe to say that she is very passionate about her daily brew.
08:11Drummond prefers her coffee iced, but she has plenty of other coffee recipes on her
08:14blog too, including Dulce de Leche and homemade Frappuccinos.
08:19But the pioneer woman doesn't only deal with coffee at home.
08:22She also sells it at her restaurant Mercantile.
08:24In fact, she was so committed to making sure that the Merc sold quality coffee that she
08:29worked with Topeka Coffee Roasters in Tulsa, Oklahoma to come up with a custom-blended,
08:34custom-roasted coffee to serve guests.
08:36Drummond says that the real motivation for launching such a sophisticated espresso and
08:40coffee menu at the restaurant was that it would give her another opportunity to enjoy
08:44a daily cup of quality coffee.
08:47Chicken is certainly a staple in most households.
08:49It's mild, so even picky eaters like it, and it's versatile enough that even the
08:53most creative cooks can have fun with it.
08:55And what's one of the pioneer woman's favorite ways to enjoy this pleasing poultry?
08:59Barbecued, of course.
09:01A good barbecue sauce can turn chicken from something that may be a little bland and boring
09:05to a complete showstopper.
09:08Drummond loves barbecue chicken so much that she has several different variations of the
09:12recipe on her blog, from classic baked barbecue chicken with homemade sauce to versions made
09:16with peach preserves.
09:18Barbecue chicken as a dish reminds us of what makes Drummond's style of cooking resonate
09:22so much with her fans.
09:24She takes a staple like chicken and turns it into a familiar dish, like barbecue chicken,
09:29but she always adds a twist that sets it apart from the run-of-the-mill fare a lot of families
09:32have gotten used to.
09:33Her recipes are accessible yet adventurous in a way that most people can pull off, even
09:38if they don't own an expensive oven or have access to a Whole Foods.
09:43The pioneer woman is on the record saying that she loves all kinds of foods, but if
09:47you pay close attention to interviews or even take a quick scan of the recipes on her website,
09:51you may notice one ingredient she doesn't give much love to — bananas.
09:56Drummond has said in interviews,
09:57"'I don't like bananas.
09:59I like to drive that point home.'"
10:00"'You all need to eat your banana immediately!'
10:03"'What the hell for?'
10:05"'Eat the banana, we have to put you down!'
10:07"'Ahhhh!''
10:08She's not alone.
10:10Apparently, her dad and one of her brothers also loathe bananas, leading her to wonder
10:14if it's a genetic preference.
10:16Drummond says that she's hated them since she was a kid, and that she's never eaten
10:20a whole banana in her life.
10:22That being said, she does have a certain delicious-sounding banana recipe on her website — banana bread.
10:28The banana bread is her mother's recipe, which Drummond did once eat after coming off
10:32of the diet.
10:33But apparently, she was just in a carb frenzy and hasn't enjoyed bananas before or since.