Mile High Super Bowl Party
February 9, 2010 at 3:03 pm | In Appetizers, Sandwiches | 15 CommentsTags: Jambalaya, Muffaletta, Super Bowl Party
I like everything about Super Bowl Sunday, the hype, the food, the commercials and most of all the excuse for good friends to come together over food and beverage. A good football game is the icing on the cake and the Saints and Colts did not disappoint. I’m so glad to see the Saints win.
Our house was the scene for the big game gathering this year and here’s the recap of our evening.
Let’s start with the finger food and the recipe “find” of the century.
We all love Kathy’s Jalapeno Shrimp appetizer. L-O-V-E love it. We beg Kathy to bring this to all of our gatherings and it’s devoured within minutes of being plated.
It’s simply a slice of jalapeño tucked into the crook of a shrimp, wrapped in bacon and then broiled. If all of those flavors aren’t wonderful enough you dip this appetizer into a delicious sauce. I’ll post the recipe below. It’s worth cutting and pasting it into your database and giving it a try.
No party would be complete without relish plates and no relish plate in this house is ever void of pickled beets and hot pickled okra.
Mandatory Super Bowl party dips, chips and crackers. Starting top left and continuing clockwise, Maralee’s delicious guacamole, and her home-made Sun-dried tomato hummus and olive hummus. Cauleen brought some wonderfully sinful warm crab dip that we gobbled down on some crackers and toasted baguette rounds. Thank you ladies!
Teri brought this WONderful salad. She said it’s very easy to make and it’s definitely going into my database to serve again and again. I don’t have the recipe. When she gets it to me I’ll make and post the recipe.
Since Cajun/Creole foods are some of my favorite dishes, how could I resist not serving a couple of traditional classics for my party.
Let’s start with my Muffaletta Sliders.
First of all, I was so proud of this idea. And I must admit they turned out pretty good.
How many of you have ever been to Central Grocery in New Orleans and had one of their world-famous Muffalettas? I’ve never found another as good. But, if you do it just right you can come somewhat close.
I’ve made my own olive relish before, but this time relied on a local speciality and fine meats grocer, Tony’s Market. Tony’s is a wonderful place and one of these days, I’ll dedicate an entire post about some of the items you can find there. We’re lucky to have such a fine market in our area and you can click on the logo if you want to take a quick look.
Tony’s makes a good Muffaletta, so when we purchased the deli meat for my sandwiches, we asked the deli guy what he would recommend for the tapenade. He recommended the same that they use for their Muffalettas. It’s pictured above, and it really was quite good. What I really liked about this brand is that pickled cauliflower is included in the ingredients. I can’t find pickled cauliflower in Denver to save my life. Thanks Deli Guy at Tony’s!
I really like Sara Lee Classic Dinner rolls for any slider recipe that I make.
My Muffaletta sliders were built with alternating two layers each:
- Mortadella
- Smoked Ham
- Cotto Salami
- Provolone Cheese
- Swiss Cheese
I topped the each sandwich with 1/2 Pepperoncini pepper, veins and seeds removed, and a slather of the olive tapenade.
On to the Jambalaya. I’m naming my Jambalaya, “Who Dat Jambalaya”. The reason it’s Who Dat is because it’s a combination of three recipes. My Jambalaya consultants are:
Chef From Hell, my Blogger Consultant. If you’re at all a fan of Cajun/Creole cuisine, his blog is a must read. Some mighty fine recipes are posted over there.
His latest post is about the Muffaletta. If you want to read about the real deal, head on over and take a look. Click HERE.
I not only consulted Chef Paul for the Jambalaya but also made his Creole Sauce that he recommended be served as a topping to Jambalaya. Easy, delicious and I’m glad I took the time to make that sauce.
And then John Besh’s My New Orleans was a great source for the Jambalaya.
I’ve had my share of gumbos and etouffees, but I don’t think I’ve ever tasted jambalaya. What I made up was pretty darn good if I don’t say. Thanks to all these Chefs for the great recipes. And no photo, every photo I took was absolutely horrible.
Did I mention the beverages? I guess I didn’t.
The beer. A collection from local brew pub, Breckenridge Brewery Beer…thank you to Greg.
The wine. Dan brought a 2007 Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet Sauvignon (right). The H3 stands for Horse Heaven Hills. A highly rated Washington Cab and an excellent bargain at $13 or $14. Our Superbowl tradition is to start the game with a sparkly. This year we served a sparkling Prosecco (left) and then the filler (center), a good Black Box Shiraz
Happy Super Bowl..here’s the crew. From left:
- Greg who brought the beer
- Maralee, hummus and guac queen
- Bob the hubby,
- me, the blogger
- Tom, the only Colts fan
- Kathy, the Jalapeno Shrimp maven
- Teri the salad guru,
- and Dan wine connoisseur and chief heckler
This photo was actually taken at Christmas at Dan and Teri’s house, so we’re minus Greg, Cauleen and Conner.
As with any of our gatherings, Bad Santa is always looking over us. And of course, he’s a Saint’s Fan. Here’s the shrimp recipe.
Kathy’s Jalapeno Shrimp
-
24 medium shrimp — shelled, deveined
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
24 wood toothpicks
12 slices bacon
24 pickled jalapeño slices
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbs chili sauce
1 Tbs sweet pickle relish
1 Tbs minced red pepper
1. Place shrimp and balsamic vinegar in a large resealable plastic bag. Refrigerate for about 15 min. Soak toothpicks in water while shrimp is marinating. Cut bacon in half, crosswise. Remove shrimp from marinade, reserving marinade. Put 1 piece of bacon on work surface, place on shrimp at the end, place one slice of jalapeno in the crook of the shrimp, roll and secure with toothpick.
2. Stir together mayo, chili sauce, pickle relish, red pepper and 1 T. water. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. Broil shrimp brushing with marinade 2-3 minutes. Turn, marinade again and cook another 2-3 min.
Servings: 8
My Muffaletta Sliders are on their way to paradise to Deb in Hawaii for Souper Sunday. Is there a Pro-Bowl joke in there somewhere? I know, I know, it wasn’t in Hawaii this year Her Souper Sunday segment is chock full of great soups and sandwiches. Thanks for hosting this Deb.
Wild Boar Sausage
February 6, 2010 at 11:52 pm | In pork | 29 CommentsTags: hot dogs, Marczyk Foods, wild boar sausage
Ever eaten Wild Boar? I’ve never eaten Wild Boar. Anyone ever seen a Wild Boar? I’ve never seen a Wild Boar. I read, that in the United States they live in the Southeast…Go Razorbacks???
I mean look at it! A face like that doesn’t quite invoke that same wrenching tug at the heart as when you see a photo of an adorable lamb or a cute wittle wabbit.
I vote for “let’s eat it”. Well, somebody can kill it and I’ll eat it. Again, if I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again, “If I had to kill my own food, I’d be a vegetarian”.
I just read a post over at Chez What about hot dogs. It seems that New York officially consumes the most hot dogs in the United States. Great post, and you can click HERE if you haven’t had a hot dog in a while and feel like getting tortured. His photos of hot dogs were salivatingly and ravenously good and made me want a hot dog sooner than NOW.
I didn’t have any hot dogs on hand, but if you remember a few weeks ago, I went on a field trip for some veal stock at Marczyk Fine Foods in Denver. I purchased the stock along with some other speciality items and one item I couldn’t resist grabbing were these Apricot and Cranberry Wild Boar Sausages and some really cool little New York Style buns.
I threw both in the freezer for just the right moment and after reading Chez What’s New York Dog post, the moment had arrived and ran as fast as I could to thaw them.
Well, these sausages were wildly delicious. I loved the texture of this meat. I’ll have to read up and see if that’s one of the characteristics of this animal, or if it had something to do with the first-class facility that processed the meat.
I served this with some yellow mustard and a side of sauerkraut heated with some brown sugar chopped apple and butter which made for a delicious meal. Next field trip to Marczyk’s I’ll definitely pick up another package, or two, of these sausages.
Thank you Marczyk Fine Foods and thank you Christo for reminding me that I was craving a hot dog.
My First Award – And I’m Honestly Honored
February 5, 2010 at 12:52 am | In 1 | 22 Comments
I’m so excited to announce that I’ve just received my first ever blogging Award. EVER! Honest! Scouts Honor!
I’ve been blogging since May and I’ve seen many awards passed between food bloggers, but none were ever sent my way.
Just when I was starting to feel like the Susan Lucci of blogdom, Kristi over at Mother Rimmy’s sent me this Honest Scrap Award!
Even though I don’t see Kelly Ripa or Oprah openly sobbing for joy in the audience, I’m totally enjoying the virtual standing ovation from my fellow bloggers (that I’ve dreamed up).
I’d like to accept this award and let you know how honored I feel to be recognized by Kristi. I love Kristi’s blog. I think I’ve bookmarked more recipes from her blog than any other and one of these days I’m going to give them all a try! Honest! I promise!
So, without further ado, the rules of this award are to tell you 10 honest things about me and pass the award on to 10 deserving recipients.
- I’m honestly very honored to get my first ever blogging award from one of my peers.
- I love waking up early in the morning. It’s so peaceful and the sunrises are spectacular.
- I love Big Macs and McDonald’s fries and when I allow myself a once a year indulgence I sit in the car and eat them like a starved wild animal.
- I’m very patriotic and tear up almost every time I hear the National Anthem.
- I’d honestly love to move to Oregon, but can’t imagine living without those majestic Rocky Mountains in my back yard.
- I love to cook so much that we have to practically force ourselves to go out to a restaurant.
- Two of my favorite movies are those Quintin Tarantino Kill Bill Movies – honest!
- I treat my two little Yorkshire Terriers like they are my children.
- I honestly love our big snow storms and love being snowed in.
- I’d love to open up that Foodbuzz Top 9 and one day see one of my recipes, and I think I’d faint if Tastespotting actually accepted one of my photos.
And here are the 10 bloggers I’d honestly like to pass this award to:
Katherine, Smoky Mountain Cafe (Go Saints)
And since I received this award, Dave over at Year on the Grill gave me another award where I’m suppose to lie…stay tuned! Thanks Dave.
Lemon Delight Cake
February 2, 2010 at 2:00 pm | In 1, dessert | 30 CommentsTags: Cake, dessert, Lemon
Can you believe I’ve actually baked something???
Well you’re going to be seeing more because Santa brought me a beautiful Corvette red KitchenAid Mixer for Christmas. After turning out two miserably failed loaves of bread, I decided to keep my spirits up by making this ridiculously easy cake.
I’ve had this recipe since I was a kid. I’m pretty sure this was a 4-H baking project and can even remember entering this cake into the 4-H fair along with a delicious chocolate cake that I’ll make and share one of these days. I haven’t made this cake for over 20 some years, but you know…it was just as delicious as I remember.
This is super easy if you use a cake mix but even more delicious if you use your favorite cake recipe from scratch. This turns out to be a super moist dessert that never fails to please.
My favorite part of this recipe is the versatility. I’ll explain that part later.
Here’s how easy this is:
- Bake your favorite white cake.
- While the cake is baking, dissolve two small packages of lemon jello in 2 cups very hot water. Stir until dissolved.
- When the cake is done and has cooled, take a toothpick and poke deep holes all over the cake.
- Gently pour the dissolved jello over the cake so that the liquid seeps into the holes and into the cake.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Top with a thin layer of lemon pudding.
- Top that with whipped cream.
Ok, here’s where the fun comes in. Lots of flavor combinations available, just browse the Jello isle and pick your potion.
How about: Chocolate Delight Cake with Black Cherry Jello, vanilla pudding, topped with whipped cream and top each slice with a cherry…
or Strawberry Delight (white) cake with strawberry Jello, vanilla pudding, whipped cream and topped with a fresh strawberry…
Surely there’s a butterscotch idea hiding somewhere on that shelf…
Slow Roasted Pork Achiote
January 31, 2010 at 9:50 pm | In Meican Food, pork | 36 CommentsTags: Achiote, Crock Pot, Dinner, Mexican Food, pork, Rick Bayless
I’m a huge Rick Bayless fan and a big fan of real Mexican Food. By real Mexican food I mean authentic dishes from south of the border as opposed to our Americanized versions of dishes we call “Mexican Food”
Slow Roasted Pork Achiote steaming hot out of the oven
I was browsing through his cookbooks last Saturday and this jumped right off the page and right onto my dinner table. This is simply delicious.
Rick tells us in the introduction to this recipe that this type pork recipe would normally be served at a large celebration using a slow pit roasted whole pig. Since most of us don’t have pits in our back yards, Rick assures us a slow cooker or dutch oven and a bone-in pork roast will deliver much of the same flavors. It’s just up to us to provide the celebration.
The major flavor to this dish is Achiote. Achiote is a spice used in cuisine in Mexico and South America. The paste is clay red in color and clay-like in texture. It does turn your fingers red when you crumble the paste.
It’s made of crushed achiote seed, vinegar, salt, garlic and spices and is typically formed into a small block. The paste is then diluted and added to stews or used as a rub for meats. It adds a salty and bittersweet tangy flavor. It is a traditional ingredient used to make Ricado, a rub for suckling pig and other meats.
For this dish, I’ve diluted the paste in fresh lime juice.
Line a Dutch oven or crockpot with banana leaves. Make sure you place the banana leaves so that you can fold them over to surround your pork roast.
Pour the diluted achiote seasoning over the roast, top with rings of sliced onions and pour a little bit of water on the sides of the roast. Fold the banana leaves over to surround the meat and onions. Put the lid on and slow roast the meat either 6 hours on high in a crock pot, or 3 hours in the oven at 300 degrees.
Serve with Roasted Fresh Chili Salsa (photo above, recipe below), some good quality warm corn tortillas and a fresh green salad and you’ve got a beautiful and delicious meal. A note about corn tortillas. Hopefully you can find a good hand-made brand like the one I found at Marczyk Fine Foods. They don’t even resemble the rubbery cheap brands that you find at Safeway. NO comparison.
Slow-cooked Achiote Pork:
- 2 oz. achiote seasoning
- 3/4 C. lime juice
- Salt
- Banana leaves
- 3 pound bone-in pork shoulder roast
- 1 large white onion, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
- 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 C. roasted fresh chile salsa
- Place the achiote seasoning in a small bowl. Pour in 1/2 C. of the lime juice and 2 t. salt. Use a fork to work the mixture into a smooth thickish marinade.
- Line your slow cooker with banana leaves. Lay in the pork and pour the marinade over and around the meat.
- Scatter the white onion over the meat.
- Pour 1/2 C. water around the meat.
- Fold banana leaves to roughly cover everything.
- Cover and slow-cook on high for 6 hours, until the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender. If you roast this in the oven, 300 degrees for 3 hours.
- While the meat is cooking, combine the red onion with remaining 1/4 cup lime juice in a small bowl. Sprinkle with salt and set aside to marinate, stirring from time to time..
- Use tongs to transfer the meat and onions to dinner plates. Spoon off any rendered fat that’s floating in the juices. Ladle brothy sauce into a saucepan and boil it down to about 1/2. Season with salt and spoon it over the meat. Top with the lime-marinated red onions and serve with the salsa and warm corn tortillas.
Roasted Fresh Chile Salsa:
Makes 1/2 Cup
- 4 ounces fresh hot green chiles (4 medium jalapeño, or 10 medium Serrano, or 12 orange Habanero) I used the jalapeño
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled
- 2 T. fresh lime juice
Turn on your oven broiler and adjust rack to highest level. Break stems off the chiles, cut them in half lengthwise and lay them, cut side down, on a small baking sheet. Scatter the garlic cloves among the chiles. Broil until chiles are soft and blotchy black. Remove skins. Scrape the chiles and garlic into a blender and add the lime juice and 1/4 C. water. Process until nearly smooth.
I ate this like a soft taco. Warm the tortillas, lay some of the tender pork on top, drizzle with the Fresh Chili Salsa and some cilantro and red onions. Roll it up and enjoy. I can’t wait to serve this at my next dinner party. Rick Bayless has done it again!
Just Grilled, My Year On The Grill
January 30, 2010 at 11:27 pm | In Just Grilled - A Blog Interview | 17 CommentsI like to refer to Dave over at My Year On The Grill as the “hardest working man in blog business”.
Welcome to this month’s Just Grilled! So far, I’ve been presenting my Just Grilled Bloggers in the order in which I found them when I first started following food blogs. But after Dave, it’s a free for all, because one day while layed up in bed in a pain-killer drug-induced state due to a back injury, I wildly added about 30 blogs to my RSS feed and who knows in what order.
I love Dave’s blog. Not only is he the hardest working guy, he also brings a Cecile B. DeMille production quality to our cooking lives. Flamboyance and showmanship, self-confidence, ambition, passion, artistry and gutsiness come to mind when thinking back of some of his posts. I think my favorite post of his involved potatoes. Need I say more?
Dave, on the other hand, likes to compare himself to P.T. Barnum. In his own words “I prefer to think of myself as the PT Barnum of blogdom. He took lots of little bits and made a life of it. I am not and never will be the best cook blogging, nor the best griller, nor the best writer. But little bits do seem to add up, and I think the whole is worth a read.”
So let’s learn some more about Dave and My Year On The Grill:
Name: Dave Scott
City: God’s Country, Shawnee, KS (Suburb of Kansas City)
Blog url: http://yearonthegrill.blogspot.com/
How long have you been blogging? Just since June, 8 months.
Four words to describe the food you like to cook: Meat, Cajun, Challenging, Panache.
Six words to describe you: Shy, unassuming, quiet, unpretentious…nah, those aren’t right…Truthfully, I am Confident, Adaptive, Inventive, Fun, A tad obsessive (alright, a lot obsessive), and after 5 decades on this earth, I am in a very HAPPY place in my life.
Proudest moment in the kitchen: I still pee my pants just a little when I make a loaf bread (I am old, my bladder is not what it used to be), and that first loaf I am still stunned over. But, Jackie (my wife) and I were going to be alone over Christmas, no family or friends around, and KC got hit with a bad snow storm, so we were going to be socked in. what could have been a little depressing turned into a very romantic fun event. Each hour, for 12 hours we recreated memorable dishes from our past. Restaurant recreations of dishes that were special to us. Either because of the setting, or the taste or the presentation. It was a great day in the kitchen, and very memorable.
Here’s the link to the 12 dishes… http://yearonthegrill.blogspot.com/search/label/Christmas%20%2709
Most embarrassing moment in the kitchen Well, I am sure you are thinking that post that shall never be mentioned (but you can follow this link:
http://yearonthegrill.blogspot.com/2009/10/stuffed-penis-potatoes-and-crab-balls.html to find it, but I don’t mention that ever again). But truthfully, I am embarrassing proud of that post, so it doesn’t count.
I would have to pick one of the three times that my stove has been on fire (only had to use the fire extinguisher once, do the other two really count???), so I would pick that time.
Rules of conduct in your kitchen: I actually prefer to be alone when I cook. But, my wife prefers to clean as I go along. So, I have to walk carefully about the rule of alone. But, here’s one, Don’t open my oven. Amazing how many people want to take a look.
Favorite Ingredient: Garlic…hasn’t been a vampire around since I started cooking.
Most over-rated ingredient: Salt. I add salt to very few dishes. I am sure it is used much too often, and in far bigger quantities than needed. I want to taste the food. I challenge you to NOT add any salt to your dishes for a month. After that time, you will taste every grain (as it should be), and it is special. My pet peeve is when someone salts my food without tasting it. Trust me, my food has lots of flavor. If you think it needs salt, fine, but at least give me a chance first.
Favorite local ingredient: Kansas gets GREAT sweet corn in the summer.
Weirdest thing you ever eaten: One man’s weird is another man’s delicacy. But I did sample the heart of a bear once (tasted like chicken.
Favorite kitchen gadget: I have a mini-chopper that makes chopping and dicing very easy.
Everybody loves it when I cook: They do, they really do. I have a bit of a reputation as a party host and party food cook, so everyone does love when I cook. If you are asking for one dish, Pulled Pork. I miss summer.
Favorite all-time restaurant You know, this is the hardest question you have asked. My tastes have changed, and honestly, since I have been cooking 100% of the family meals, with an emphasis on quality, I am less and less impressed with the restaurants I used to think were special. But, I guess my all time favorite is Paul Prudhomme’s Louisiana Kitchen.
Favorite Cookbook: I cook from internet blogger posts mostly. The only cookbook I use is HOW TO GRILL by Steven Raichlen.
What music do you like to cook by: Aren’t playlists on iPods fantastic? I have a playlist with 187 songs that I labeled DAVE COOKS. Mostly 50’s and 60’s, peppy numbers, and an embarrassing number of show tunes. Truth be told, I cook to the soundtracks of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, OKLAHOMA, MUSIC MAN, the PRODUCERS and WICKED than anything else (and no, I am not gay, not that there would be anything wrong with that).
If I owned my own restaurant, I would name it: Something different every day. Really. There used to be a restaurant in Decatur, Illinois. Ran by a great couple, he cooked, she waited tables. It was in an old 100 plus year old house, and they just added a few tables in the parlor. Seated no more than a dozen people a night. She cooked only 2 or 3 main courses. Something different all the time. I am sure zoning and safety issues have closed it down, and it could never be opened again, but that would be the only restaurant I would consider…and even that, no way. If you can time it right, and TRADITION from Fiddler is on when you are kneading your bread, you know it’s going to be a great day!
What famous person would I love to invite over to lunch (living or deceased): Sally Field, Maureen McCormick, Annette Funicello…and Tom Selleck.
If I were President who would I appoint as my Chef: Bobby Flay.
In my opinion my best blog post was: My next one….Is the truth, I do try to write a bit better each post. Sometimes it shows, and I can honestly only think of a few that I just went through the motions to get something up. My most popular post was… Raspberry Chipotle Spiral Cut Pork Loin with a Chorizo Sausage stuffing wrapped in a Bacon Lattice. But I think my best post was when I was challenged to GRILL an all vegetarian meal for a friend…It’s a Party – I am a Vegetarian Cook.
Hurrah For Bloggers!
January 27, 2010 at 3:12 am | In Breakfast, Salads, eggs | 40 CommentsTags: Breakfast, Potatoes, Salads
One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to actually cook some of those recipes I’ve bookmarked from your blogs. I promised myself that I would incorporate your offerings into my weekly menu and so far I’ve not fallen off the wagon and pretty much stayed the course.
Here’s the latest:
First up is a delicious recipe I found over at Nod and Wink. Slow Scrambled Eggs With Rosemary and Capers. I have to admit, I was a little leery of the flavor combination of rosemary and capers in eggs, but I have to tell you this was delicious. Loved it. You can find the recipe by clicking HERE. I did exactly what George said not to do; I overcooked the eggs a bit. I rushed it at the end by putting a lid on the pan for the final 30 seconds and left the lid on about 30 seconds too long. :-) Even though the texture wasn’t perfect the flavor sure was. I served this on top of English Muffins. This recipe is now in my permanent database. Thank you so much George for posting this on Nod and Wink and my apologies for that photo that doesn’t do your wonderful recipe justice.
I served these eggs with Potatoes O’Brien (also in the photo above). I found this recipe over at Cooking Tip Of The Day. I have been known to buy Oreida Potatoes O’Brien every once in a while and I have no idea why I’ve never made them myself. I didn’t have any green pepper, so used a yellow bell pepper. And of course these are delicious. To view her original post click HERE. Thanks to Linda for this good solid recipe.
And last, but not least, look at this beautiful salad. I found this idea over at Mango and Tomato. Thanks to Olga I was reminded to use up the last of those Hearts of Palm I had in the fridge. This was a delicious and very healthy mid-week lunch for me. I did add a splash of Seasoned Rice Vinegar to the olive oil dressing. You can view the original post and a much prettier photo by clicking HERE. Thanks Olga!
So thank you my friends for these wonderful recipes. They’ve all gone from “bookmarked” to a permanent record in my recipe database.
Hurrah for bloggers!
Crabby Uncle Louie
January 26, 2010 at 4:31 pm | In Breakfast, eggs | 24 CommentsTags: asparagus, Breakfast, Crab, Eggs Benedict, English muffins
I have a terrible obsession with the Benedict family, but if you’re a regular reader you already know that.
Before I introduce you to Uncle Louie, I need to come clean about something. I fake it when it comes to Hollandaise Sauce. I’m not afraid of using butter, but a stick and a half in the morning just doesn’t sound good. So here’s what I do:
My (fake) Hollandaise Sauce
- 2 egg yolks, beaten
- 1/2 lemon, squeezed
- 1/8 cup 2% milk
- 2 T. butter
- dash of cayenne pepper
Heat a non-stick sauce pan over medium heat. Add two slightly beaten egg yolks and heat until almost hot. Watch carefully as you don’t want them to scramble. Add the milk and stir. Melt in the butter and squeeze in the lemon juice and keep warm until ready to use. In my humble opinion this turns out to be a creamy lemony lighter version and one I prefer for my Benedict breakfasts.
OK, so back to the Benedict family. Remember the Spanish-speaking neighbor Chipolte Eggs Benedict? And his rich Aunt Mushroom Cream Sauce Benedict? Well I dreamed up Louie through a photo I saw of a steak topped with crab, asparagus and sauce. So without further ado, please welcome Crabby Uncle Louie into the family.
Louie Benedict
On toasted English muffins crisscross tender ends of steamed asparagus and top with some steamed and crumbled crab meat (I just steamed one leg for the two of us).
Disclaimer: I don't eat my eggs this raw, these are only about half done and on their way to perfectly poached
Top with your perfectly pod-poached eggs
Drizzle with Hollandaise Sauce, serve with some fresh fruit. Wearing your old slip-on style Uncle Louie slippers, fetch the newspaper, grab a cup of coffee and you’ve got a beautiful Sunday morning breakfast.
Meet The Soup and The Salad
January 24, 2010 at 3:09 pm | In Salads, Soup, Vegetables | 31 CommentsTags: salad, Soup
We all know we have to do it everyonce in awhile. Get those noses out of the cookbooks and eyes off the food blogs. We have to stop looking for our next great creation and walk over to that refrigerator, drag out all that unused produce and use it up before it goes bad.
Meet The Soup and The Salad. This is how I use up all of those vegetables. The soup is just a good old healthy vegetable soup and the easiest thing in the world to make and so flexible and variable. All you need is brothy liquid of your choice, tomatoey liquid, seasonings and vegetables.
Here’s what I had in the fridge:
- The rest of enoki mushrooms and ginger that I used for Pho earlier in the week
- A half a bell pepper left from a salad from Wednesday
- Carrots and celery left over from who knows what last week
- The partial onions left over from this and that
- And you know me, I always have cilantro in the house
- The remainder of the long beans used in a mid-week stir fry
- I buy those plastic containers of tomatoes from Costco to keep on hand for salads, and they’re starting to look a little sad.
And by the way, can we all have a moment of silence for those summer fresh tomatoes out of the garden…..Thank you. Boy am I missing those right now.
Chop the beans in 1-inch pieces
In your favorite soup pot heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, add carrots and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and sauté, stirring often for another five minutes.
Add a few cups of stock and seasonings of your choice. I like to add a few shakes or so each of savory, cumin, fennel, basil, thyme, sage, oregano, rosemary and marjoram. And always some chopped garlic.
I even added some lemon zest from the lemons that were supposed to go into my next batch of limoncello that I never made.
And ALWAYS some of this. Pickapeppa is a wonderfully flavored sauce somewhere between Worcestershire Sauce and a steak sauce. I always have a bottle in the fridge for soup.
Simmer for about 15 minutes.
Chop up a bunch of those tomatoes, throw most of them in the simmering soup and save a few for your salad. If you don’t have fresh tomatoes you can always throw canned tomatoes into the soup.
And the same theory for the salad. Use those greens that are sitting in the produce bin in the fridge. I’m going to give you the recipe for my 1 minute dressing. I make this a lot and it’s delicious.
Lea Ann’s 1 Minute Dressing
- 4 T. Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 T. Toasted sesame oil
- Salt and pepper
Please in a container that you can shake well to blend and pour over your salad. Can anything be any easier?
I like fruit in my salads so I even used up a couple of the Cuties that are on my counter, and I always, and I mean always, have avocados on hand.
So there you have it, a delicious and healthy dinner in about 30 minutes.
A note on salads. I always have items on hand for salads. A trip to Costco will fill your refrigerator with a sack of avocados, a bag of romaine hearts and a bag of red, green, and yellow bell peppers. I buy a large container of tomatoes that I place in a decorative bowl on the kitchen counter. I eat salads almost everyday for lunch and a quick salad makes a great side dish at dinner.
So there, healthy, easy and my refrigerator is cleaned out and ready for my next week’s menu. Let the fun resume.
I’m sending this over to Deb at Kahakai Kitchen for her Souper Sundays feature.
Sun-dried Tomato Hummus
January 23, 2010 at 5:05 pm | In Appetizers | 16 CommentsTags: dip, hummus, Superbowl recipes
The Superbowl will be here before you know it, so I’m starting to test some Superbowl festive recipes just in case we get invited to a party. (Hint hint).
This recipe comes from Colorado Classique. I’m loving this cookbook. Full of great sounding recipes and beautiful photographs.
This is so easy and full of flavor and I mean FULL of flavor. I was a little afraid to use one full teaspoon of cayenne pepper, but I’m glad I did, as it added so much to the recipe. The reason I was afraid is because I use good quality spices from our local Spice Shop named Savory Spice. A fabulous little store in downtown historic Littleton, Colorado. Their cayenne is really fresh and really full of zing, zip, and zap. You can visit their website by clicking HERE. Any spice you can dream up can be found in this store.
Anyway, back to this recipe. I’ll be making this over and over. Easy as can be. We started out eating this with crackers and then switched over to corn chips. Very good either way.
Sun-dried Tomato Hummus
- 1 1/2 ounces dry sun-dried tomatoes
- 6 cloves garlic, crushed (next time I’ll use 4 cloves – a little too garlicky for me)
- 1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
- 1/2 C. mayonnaise
- 2 T. lemon juice
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 t. dried basil
- 1 t. cayenne pepper
- 1 t. salt
Blanch sun-dried tomatoes in boiling water for 4 minutes or until softened and drain. Chop garlic in a food processor with a metal blade until finely minced. Add rehydrated tomatoes and process until chopped into small pieces. Add garbanzo beans, olive oil, mayonnaise, lemon juice, Parmesan, basil, cayenne pepper and salt and process until smooth. Serve with crackers, toasted pita wedges or raw vegetables. Serves 12.
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