Category: MISC

BACON BALSAMIC GREEN BEANS & CARROTS

BACON BALSAMIC GREEN BEANS & CARROTS

3 large carrots, cleaned and sliced (about 2 cups)
1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut bite sized (about 2 cups)
1 bunch green onions, sliced
3 tablespoons almond slivers
4 slices thick bacon, chopped
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • Cook the carrots and green beans in boiling water for 3-5 minutes until crisp tender.
  • Rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process.
  • Drain and set aside.
  • In a hot skillet brown bacon until crisp.
  • Remove with slotted spoon to drain on a papertowel.
  • Add green onions and saute’ until tender.
  • Add almonds and saute a minute more.
  • Remove almonds and onions with slotted spoon to drain on papertowel also.
  • Add brown sugar and vinegar to skillet and blend well until sugar is well dissolved.
  • Add green beans, carrots, onions, almonds and bacon.
  • Toss until well coated.

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PEACH BBQ RIBS

3 pounds cut spareribs

1 can Peach Comstock*

1 cup Sweet Baby Ray’s hickory smoke BBQ sauce**

Juice of 1 lemon

salt and pepper 

1 tablespoon Frank’s hot sauce

  • Sprinkle ribs with salt and pepper; rub well. 
  • Place in baking dish and top tightly with foil, shiny side in.
  • Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour, reduce heat to 375 degrees for an additional 30 minutes. 
  • Pour off any excess liquid. 

  • In the meantime pour peach Comstock into a food processor and puree.
  • Add BBQ sauce, hot sauce and lemon juice. Pulse until well blended.
  • Remove from oven, brush meat with sauce, turn, brush sauce on other side. 
  • Bake at 375 degrees with foil loose and open 30 minutes.

*Cherry works great too!

**or any other favorite brown sugar based sauce – I’m allergic to mustard so Sweet Baby Ray’s is about the only prepared sauce on the market I can use.  I really prepare to make sauce fresh.

Fireday Friday: Beef And Swiss Meat Pies

This is a savory meat pie that is based on one of my favorite childhood meals. I love this because it is easy to make, it is easily adaptable to a variety of ingredients, and you can even get the kids involved.

Don’t worry if you don’t have a Big Green Egg or grill, you can easily do this one in your oven too.

Beef & Swiss Meat Pies
Ingredients

1 pound Ground beef

1/2 ea Vidalia onion chopped fine

1/4 ea Green bell pepper chopped fine

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

2 ea Cans of refrigerated biscuits

10 slices Baby swiss cheese

Instructions

In a preheated skillet, brown the meat, onion and bell pepper. Drain well.

Flour a surface, take two biscuits, overlap them and then roll them out into a figure 8.



Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the meat mixture onto on half of the dough and top with sliced cheese.

Pull and stretch the empty side over and onto the mixture. We find it helps to slightly moisten the edge of the dough with water first. Then crimp the pie closed with a fork.



Bake the pies at 425 for 8-10 minutes each, until golden brown all over.

If you’re using the a ceramic cooker like the Big Green Egg, set it up with the plate setter LEGS DOWN with a pizza stone on top. If you’re using an oven, a pizza stone would help but you can use a baking sheet if that’s what you have. If you don’t preheat the stone, the bottom of the pies will be a bit doughy, so take your time and preheat!

Other versions:

Cheeseburger turnover: meat, onion, & American cheese

Taco turnover: meat, onion, taco seasoning, and pepper jack cheese. Dip in taco sauce.

Gyro Turnover: gyro meat (google Alton Brown gyro), red onion, & feta cheese. Dip in tzatziki sauce.

Club Turnover: ground turkey, bacon crumbles, small diced tomato. Dip in a flavored mayo.

Polenta with Talegio Cheese ala Year on the Grill via “the Long Quiche Goodbye”

Good Morning…

I’m older than dirt, but learning every day.

But, I am too lazy, too unfocused and too undisciplined to go back to school (don’t really know what I want to be when I grow up, but that’s another story).

I am a BIG fan of murder mysteries and what I like to call “Gentle Learning”.  here’s what I wrote just a couple days ago…
(3 is a magic number).

There is a NEW murder mystery series just released.  I can’t imagine anything more exciting than an authors first published book.  Avery Aames has authored, “The Long Quiche Goodbye”.  That’s the first in a planned series of books set in the cheese shop (Fromagerie Bessesse is the actual name, but everyone in town calls it “The cheese Shop”).

I was very excited when I first heard of Avery’s book.  First, she is “one of us”.  Some of you may know her as one of the Six merry murderesses from The Mystery Lover’s Kitchen.  All six of the contributing authors of the blog are published authors, all mysteries, and all their books have food themes, most with recipes included in their books.  The blog posts daily, with recipes and glimpses into their lives.  Fun daily read (and for contest whores fans among us, they have more give aways than any other blog I know of… but I digress).  My fellow bloggers out there, if/when you get a book deal, sign me up as the first to buy.  We should support our own!

But my new found blog buddy’s setting for the series really turned my crank.  I am pretty good with basic cheese knowledge.  I no longer buy bags of shredded cheese (the more air that gets to the cheese, the faster it losses it’s taste and goes bad, shredding adds surface area, so more air gets to the cheese… buy the bricks and shred yourself, cheaper, tastes better and stays fresh longer… but I digress).  I also buy “real” cheese, and not the low fat versions (half the amount of “real” cheese will add a fuller flavor than twice the amount of the less tasty substitute.  Half the amount is the tastiest way to cut the calories, not pretending you are getting the same taste… But now I am ranting and digressing… Back to “the long Quiche Goodbye”).  But aside from the basics, I still buy most of my cheeses from the tiny cheese section of my store.  My knowledge of better quality cheeses is lacking.  Much the way people of my generation still hum “3 is a magic number”, soft education is a great way to learn without the burden of schooling (extra points if you caught the “Schoolhouse Rocks” reference.  That’s where I was gently educated about math, while watching the Wonder Twins powers activate.  

Do you think the “Cheese Shop Mystery series” will do for cheese what Schoolhouse Rock did to teach me how a bill becomes a law???).  

And sure enough, in one of the recipes Avery provides in the book, I traveled to the only cheese shop on the island and found a new (well, it is at least 11 centuries old, but new to me) cheese… Taleggio Cheese 

And WHOOP de DO, do I ever LOVE Taleggio Cheese!  Think Brie with an attitude. Taleggio melts like brie, so I imagine just about any recipe you have for brie you can sub Taleggio.  But where Brie is a mild gentle cheese, Taleggio will take you down, slap you around and leave you begging for more.  I did a little research (see, learning every day) and found that Taleggio is more related to Limburger (the stinky one) than Brie.  While this doesn’t stink, it certainly does have an oder.  Strong earth scents, makes for a strong nutty taste.

Hunting the cheese down was surprisingly easy.  There is one and only one specialty cheese shop on the island. Center shelf, center of the shelf, and there it was!  I asked the cheese monger for a sample, and was in love. Surprisingly cheap, $16 for a pound, I only needed a small amount (the recipe calls for a garnish of the cheese, so no more than 1/8th pound really needed if you follow the recipe (of course, I didn’t)).  I bought 1/2 a pound, planning to use it for several recipes during the week.

Aren’t cheese shops wonderful places… Just ask, and they will happily slice you off a sample of something that sounds interesting.  I feel a little guilty that it has taken so long for me to leave the safety of the big grocery store here, with their sampling of maybe 7 or 8 cheeses.  Be a cook, don’t be intimidated… Find something new!

OK… Time for the recipe…

First, here’s Avery’s version from The Mystery Lover’s Kitchen.
POLENTA AND TALEGGIO-BASIL
[6-8 portions]
4 cups water

1 tsp. salt

1 cup polenta corn meal

1 cup fresh basil leaves separated

2-4 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil

8 oz. Taleggio cheese, thinly sliced
Bring water and salt to a boil.
Add polenta corn meal in a thin stream. Keep stirring until corn meal pulls away from sides of pan. (No lumps)Turn down heat to simmer for 25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so.
While it is cooking, stir-fry the basil in olive oil until crispy, then drain on paper towels.
Spoon hot polenta on to each plate. Lay a couple of slices of Taleggio cheese on each portion and finish with the fried basil.
I just couldn’t resist…

Here’s my changes, I LOVE polenta.  But, on it’s own, it doesn’t have much of a taste.  Looking over the recipe, the polenta Avery puts out is unflavored.  She is more generous with the slices of cheese.  It does melt fast and well, so her polenta will certainly have that strong earthy taste I talked about.

But I wanted my flavor in the polenta, not topped…

First, I wanted a stronger Basil taste than just a garnish.  Here’s a Bobby Flay trick to slice thin strips of basil leaves…

Gather a half dozen basil leaves…

Lay them one on top of the other and roll into a tight tube.

Slice the tube lengthwise in half.

Cut thin strip from the end and in less than a minute, nicely cut thin strip of Basil that goes right into the polenta as it cooks…

I also wanted a stronger taste of the cheese.

It melts just fine.

So I added 1/4 pound of the cheese right into the cooking polenta (see top left photo).

I continued to stir during the cooking process… And it all mixed perfectly!

One other suggestion, Polenta cuts nicely.  If you have cookie cutters, they can be used to make nice shapes.  Or, if you don’t have cookie cutters, I just used a glass to get nice round shape.

I served this on a bed of OHIO PESTO, made with walnuts.  This also has a stronger, earthier, nuttier taste than pine nut pesto.  Complimented the cheese perfectly!



I served this up with some Sea Scallops wrapped in Mango Glazed Bacon…

Oh MY!

Dave here from MY YEAR ON THE GRILL. It really is just this easy!  

 … I CAN COOK THAT! 

And so can you!
…

Cabbage Salad with Peanuts- Quick and Easy

I usually keep a bag of shredded cabbage in the refrigerator.  It is versatile enough, to come up with lots of good recipes.  It is delicious with the peanuts, as it is with any kind of nut.  It adds a nice crunch to the slaw.
Cabbage Salad with Peanuts
Ingredients:
4 cups of shredded  cabbage
Dressing
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
dash of pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
……………
1/2 cup peanuts
Method:
Place cabbage in a large bowl and set aside.
Mix all dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
Combine cabbage and dressing.  Mix to coat all of slaw.
Add the peanuts and presto, you have cole slaw.
Quick and easy….
Share your meatless recipes at My Sweet and Savory.  The link stays open throughout the week.  Many people are cutting down on their meat meals.  Share with them. 

BOHEMIAN PORK CHOPS aka PORK CHOPS IN BEER GRAVY

This was from another scrap of recipe I found in gram’s things.  I don’t know if she ever made it, but pork chops and beer in the same sentence got hubby’s interest and so we had some fun experimenting with this recipe.
BOHEMIAN PORK CHOPS aka PORK CHOPS IN BEER GRAVY
4-6 thick boneless pork chops
1 small onion, cut into thin rings
1 stalk celery, chopped
3 tablespoons flour
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup water
1 beer ~ your favorite flavor
  • In a large skillet, melt butter.
  • Brown pork chops, generously salting and peppering.
  • Remove pork chops, keep warm.
  • Saute’ onion and celery until soft and translucent.
  • Add flour, stirring until golden.
  • Add water, stirring until well blended.
  • Add beer and simmer until begins to thicken.
  • Add pork chops back in and heat through.

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HOMEMADE DING DONGS, HO~HO’S or what we like to call CHOCOLATE HEAVENS

3 squares unsweetened chocolate

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 Jumbo eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup apple juice
2 teaspoons orange juice
2 cups flour
1 jar marshmallow cream
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 bag milk chocolate chips
  • Heat oven to 325 degrees.
  • Generously grease a 9×13 pan.
  • Melt the chocolate in the microwave. Then add 1/2 cup of the sugar, the cinnamon and 1/2 cup of the apple juice, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Cool.
  • Mix the baking soda into 2 teaspoons of orange juice.
  • In a large mixing bowl cream the butter with 1 cup sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
  • Alternate the milk and flour, sifting the flour into the cream mixture and blend until smooth.
  • Add the baking soda mixture and blend well.
  • Add the cooled chocolate mixture and blend well.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
  • Level pan by dropping on counter top to remove air bubbles.
  • Bake until springy 55-60 minutes.
  • Cool thoroughly and then invert onto platter.
  • Cut into desired shapes and sizes.
  • Slice each in half.
  • Spread marshmallow cream over bottom half and replace tops.
  • In a small sauce pan melt chocolate.
  • Whisk in heavy cream and heat until thickened.
  • Pour over tops of cakes.
  • Cool.

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Try a New Recipe: Crepes

Don’t forget to visit me at The Bad Girl’s Kitchen for more fabulous recipes!

Bonjour!!!

As this recipe posts, my family and I will be flying over the ocean, on our way to….
PARIS!!!
We’ll arrive today just before noon, Paris time, which means only one thing: It will be Time To Eat!!! I’m very excited. But I just want you to know, I’m not kRaZy enough to post recipes while I’m actually in France, so these next few weeks I’ve done my best to come up with some recipes for French-ish food we love.
When I return, I’ll fill you in on all our luscious culinary adventures. (and it’s possible I’ll sneak in a comment or two while I’m abroad, but don’t count on it!)
So let’s start with crepes. I am looking forward to eating some of these for sure. We love crepes! They are easy to make, and so delicious. This recipe makes quite a lot of them.

We serve ours with several different toppings, depending on what we’ve got: sliced strawberries, peaches, cottage cheese, Mexican crema (table cream), maple syrup, and bananas sauteed in butter, brown sugar and a splash of rum.


Crepes
1 cup milk
6 eggs
1 stick butter, melted
1 cup flour

In blender, mix milk and eggs, mix in flour, then blend in melted butter. Cook on greased medium hot crepe pan. Pour about 1/3 cup batter quickly onto hot crepe pan, quickly tilting pan to cover the entire surface. Cook on one side until beginning to brown, then quickly flip and cook for a few more seconds. This is a fast process that you will need to practice to get the hang of, and the first few crepes never, ever turn out quite right. Just keep after it, and they’ll start to turn out. Serve right away, or you can refrigerate or freeze them for another time.

Serious Food for Thought

The world bursts at the seams with people ready to tell you’re not good enough. On occasion, some may be correct. But do not do their work for them. Seek any job; ask anyone out; pursue and goal. Don’t take it personally when they say “no” ~ they may not be smart enough to say “yes”.
~ Keith Olberman, an American journalist and former sportscaster

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SALMON FILLETS with TANGY MUSTARD SAUCE

Sorry no pictures – just posting the recipe for a new friend!
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 
4 tablespoons FRESH minced tarragon
Four 6-ounce salmon fillets with skin
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2/3 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons creamy prepared horseradish
  • Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
  • In a bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of the olive oil with 2 tablespoons of the tarragon and rub it over the salmon. Let stand for 5 minutes, then season with salt and pepper.
  • Spray baking dish lightly with PURE.
  • Bake salmon fillets for 15-20 minutes or until just barely done (varies with thickness).
  • Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the whipping cream, mustard, horseradish, the remaining olive oil and tarragon. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  • Spoon over the salmon and return to oven for 5 minutes.

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How to replace Campbell’s condensed soups from scratch

I am not supposed to eat processed and preserved foods on a normal basis so have been working on replacing creamed condensed soup with “scratch” ingredients.  The following  recipes make perfect substitutes for 1 can of soup.
BASIC
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup milk 
  • Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Whisk in flour and salt and cook until bubbly. 
  • Remove from heat and gradually whisk in liquid. 
  • Return to heat and cook, stirring, until smooth and thickened to desired consistency.
CREAM OF CHICKEN
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup chicken stock

  • Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Whisk in flour, poultry seasoning and salt.
  • Cook until bubbly. 
  • Remove from heat and gradually whisk in liquid. 
  • Return to heat and cook, stirring, until smooth and thickened to desired consistency.
CREAM OF CELERY
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup chopped celery  
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 cup milk 
  • Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Add. chopped celery and  finely chopped onion. Saute’ until tender.
  • Whisk in flour and salt and cook until bubbly. 
  • Remove from heat and gradually whisk in liquid. 
  • Return to heat and cook, stirring, until smooth and thickened to desired consistency.
CREAM OF MUSHROOM
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
1 tablespoon finely chopped onion
1 cup milk 
  • Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Add. chopped mushrooms and  finely chopped onion. Saute’ until tender.
  • Whisk in flour and salt and cook until bubbly. 
  • Remove from heat and gradually whisk in liquid. 
  • Return to heat and cook, stirring, until smooth and thickened to desired consistency.
CREAM OF TOMATO
2 tablespoons butter 
3 tablespoons flour 
1 cup pureed tomatoes
1 1/2 cups milk 
dash each of garlic salt, onion salt, basil, and oregano.
  • Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
  • Whisk in flour and seasonings and cook until bubbly. 
  • Add tomato puree’ and blend well.
  • Remove from heat and gradually whisk in liquid. 
  • Return to heat and cook, stirring, until smooth and thickened to desired consistency.

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