Robin Carr

“I’ll get pretty creative with a recipe–sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t,” said Robin Carr of Bruce.
“I don’t think I ever go back to a new recipe exactly how it says,” she said, and, “most of the time I replace the seasoning, or if I don’t have something on hand, I’ll replace it with something I do have.”
She likes to try recipes that save time and are delicious without using a lot of ingredients.
“As most people love to do these days, I love to scroll through Pinterest and find different dishes with ingredients my husband, Eric, and I love,” she said.
“I try recipes and if I find one that works and we love it, I stick it back for future use!”

Robin says she is working on making her own personal recipe book with dishes she knows they love.
She learned about the Instant Pot, a programmable pressure cooker, from social media and she uses hers a lot. “It is totally a time saver!”
“I love to cook BBQ ribs in my Instant Pot! They fall off the bone and it takes very little time to prepare and cook them,” she said.
Pasta is her favorite comfort food.

“I love any kind of pasta,” she said, mentioning Cajun as a favorite.
“I learned to cook different things from each of my grandmothers (June Davidson and Nettie Bumgart), my mother (Norma Davidson), my great grandmother (the late Ruby Howell) and my mother-in-law (Pat Patterson). They each have their own ‘specialties’ and techniques.”
Her mother-in-law’s chicken salad is a favorite.

“My grandmother (Nettie) made the chocolate gravy when my mom was growing up, and my mom made it for us almost every Sunday for breakfast. There is nothing like warm biscuits and chocolate gravy served with crispy bacon!”
Robin prints inspirational t-shirts packaged in Mason jars, called “Gospel in a Jar”, that she refers to as mission in a jar, based on II Cor. 4:7, “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves,” adding that, “even when we are broken, we are to share God’s love.”
When asked about having plenty of Mason jars on hand, she did say that learning to can is on her list.

Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs
1 rack of baby back pork ribs
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp each: salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup BBQ sauce
Remove lining from bottom side of the ribs by running a butter knife under the skin and then using a paper towel to grip and remove completely. Combine brown sugar, chili powder, parsley, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne pepper in a small dish and rub all over the ribs. Place the rack in pressure cooker and place ribs inside the pot, standing on their side, wrapping around inside of the pot. Pour in water, apple cider, being careful to not wash off any of the seasonings. Secure the lid, making sure vent is closed. Press Meat button and set to 25 minutes. Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest of the way. Carefully remove ribs from pressure cooker and set on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush down with your favorite BBQ sauce, and pop under the broiler for five minutes, but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.

Chocolate Gravy
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoon cocoa
1 1/2 cups water
Bring to a rolling boil and then simmer a few minutes. Serve with warm biscuits.

Instant Pot Chicken Spaghetti
2 cups chicken stock
1 can Rotel (green chiles and diced tomatoes)
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon black pepper
8 oz (1/2 block) Velveeta cheese (cut into small chunks)
(1) 8 oz. package of thin spaghetti
In Instant Pot, add chicken stock, chicken, Rotel, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and black pepper. Place lid on Instant Pot and set to seal. Cook on Manual High heat 15 minutes. Naturally release pressure. Remove lid and use forks or tongs to shred chicken and mix together. Mix in cheese and stir to combine. Break up thin spaghetti into smaller pieces and mix into pot with chicken and cheese mixture. Turn to saute mode, and allow to cook an additional 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. May add more chicken stock if sauce is to thick for preference. Serve with Parker House style rolls. Serves 8.