Steaks and Corn Relish
Gorgeous weather outside. Perfect for firing up the grill.
I grilled a couple of steaks with the Gates Kansas City BBQ Sauce and topped them with a bit of the gorgonzola cheese I picked up the other day. The cheese is great and it went well with the spicy-hot BBQ sauce.
Sitting under the steaks is a corn relish. I had an ear of corn, a yellow squash from our next door neighbor, and some odds and ends that needed using up. And deep-fried potato-tots.
There are no right or wrong amounts for the relish. Use what you have and have fun with it! The yellow squash we had was not a typical summer squash. It was quite hard and needed cooking to make it tender.
Corn Relish
- corn cut from 1 ear, cooked and cooled
- 1/4 red onion, diced
- 1 tomato, diced
- 1 yellow squash, diced, cooked, if necessary,and cooled
- 1/4 cup sliced olives
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
- salt and pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients, cover and refrigerate.
We're getting ready for the onslaught. Our niece is down visiting from North Jersey so we're going to make homemade ice cream with her - and whatever other family members make it over.
It should be fun!
Farro, Eggplant, and Buffalo Mozzarella
Dinner tonight was slightly different than I originally envisioned. I planned on making farrow cakes/patties, frying them, and topping them with the eggplant and tomato sauce. Alas... the farrow just didn't want to hold together in a patty shape.
No matter. It came out pretty good, nonetheless!
I had a homegrown eggplant from our neighbor up the street that I definitely wanted to use tonight. She's cute. She just leaves an eggplant or a zucchini on the table by our back door now and again. I have told her for years that I will take any and all homegrown produce she wants to send our way, but I think she's a bit embarrassed and doesn't want to be seen as the neighbor everyone hides from when they see her with her bounty. Nope. Not me. You grew it, I'll cook it. Bring it on!
So dinner tonight was actually vegetarian. Not unheard of, but not the most common for me, either. But it worked.
Because I planned on making patties from the farrow, I added an egg to help bind it. Because I added the egg, I had to saute the mixture to cook it. This recipe is for making it as a side dish without the egg, because I'll never try and make farrow patties, again.
Farrow with Gorgonzola
- 1 cup farrow (or brown rice)
- 2 oz gorgonzola
- 2 tbsp minced parsley
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- salt and pepper, to taste
Cook farrow (or rice) according to package instructions. Drain completely. Stir in gorgonzola, parsley, garlic powder, and S&P.
Serve
The eggplant and tomatoes were another simple saute.
Eggplant and Tomato Sauce
- 1 medium eggplant
- 6 plum tomatoes
- 1 small yellow onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 cup button mushrooms
- 1/4 cup red wine
- 1/4 cup chopped mixed fresh herbs (I used basil oregano, rosemary, and sage)
- salt and pepper, to taste
- buffalo mozzarella
Peel and dice eggplant. Sprinkle with salt and put in colander to drain - about 30 minutes.
Coarsely chop onion, garlic, tomatoes, and mushrooms. Add onion to skillet and cook until translucent. Add garlic and then mushrooms. Add wine and cook until it is almost evaporated. Add eggplant and tomatoes and cook until they release their juices and begin to break down.
Continue to cook until slightly thickened.
Stir in fresh chopped herbs and check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper, if desired.
To assemble:
Plate farrow. Spoon tomato and eggplant sauce on toip and top with slices of fresh buffalo mozzarella.
Brussels sprouts are probably my most favorite vegetable. A lot of folks don't like them because they think they're too bitter. Slicing them really thin and sauteing them with a bit of olive oil, garlic, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar makes them a really delicious vegetable and they're not in the least bit bitter.
Really.
Chicken Stuffed with Gorgonzola
I did a real hit-and-run shopping trip on Monday. Other than fresh produce, we just didn't need a lot. But as I was walking through the cheese section, I espied an Italian gorgonzola that really looked good. Very soft - almost runny - with a really subtle aroma. I picked up a piece with no idea what to do with it other than slather it on bread.
So... I decided to use it to stuff chicken breasts!
Traditionally, when stuffing chicken breasts, I make a slit in the thickest part of the breast, put a bit of stuffing in it, and close it up with either toothpicks or kitchen twine. If it's a cheesy stuffing, it all oozes out and it really doesn't hold all that to begin with. The other option is to pound the breast thin, put a scoop of stuffing in the center, and then fold and/or roll it up like a softball. Neither option was what I was looking for tonight.
Instead, I made my slit in the thickest part of the breast and then laid it open on its side. I filled the cavity with lots of filling, doused it liberally with panko bread crumbs, and then baked them off at 425° for about 25 minutes.
What a concept! No pounding, no tooth picks, and lots of stuffing!
Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Spinach, Walnuts, and Gorgonzola
- 2 chicken breasts
- 6 oz fresh spinach
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 3 oz gorgonzola
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
- salt and pepper, to taste
Wilt shallots in a hot skillet with a bit of olive oil. Add garlic, then spinach. Remove from heat when spinach is cooked and add gorgonzola. Mix well, add salt and pepper to taste, and refrigerate until cold. When chilled, add walnuts.
Make slit in chicken breasts, lay on side and open. Stuff with spinach and gorgonzola mixture.
Place panko bread crumbs on plate and carefully place each stuffed breast in the plate to coat the bottom with crumbs. Place on a well-oiled baking pan, and sprinkle liberally with additional panko.
Bake in a preheated 425° oven for about 25 minutes.
I wanted to make Israeli couscous with dinner tonight but - shock and horror - I was out! I did have the Sardinian couscous which worked out perfectly. (Note to self: Next shopping trip is not a hit-and-run!)
The Sardinian couscous cooks up pretty much the same was as the Israeli, but needs to be rinsed before cooking and can take a bit longer to cook. I also used up the last of the homemade chicken stock I had, but packaged broth will work just fine.
Couscous with Currants
- 1 cup Israeli or Sardinian couscous
- 1 shallot, minced
- 3 oz button mushrooms, quartered
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1/4 cup currants
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp minced Italian parsley
- salt and pepper, to taste
Wilt shallot in medium saucepan with a bit of olive oil. Add mushrooms and cook a minute or two. Add couscous, broth, currants, and garlic powder. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and cook 15 or so minutes until couscous is done.
Remove from heat, stir in minced parsley, and add salt and pepper, if desired.
This was one of those meals that looked - and tasted - like it took forever to prepare, but everything was done in less than an hour.
Fried Hot Peppers
One of my most favorite things to have in the refrigerator -at all times- is a big container of fried hot peppers.
They go on everything, from burgers and sandwiches to stirred into pasta or baked into bread or on top of pizza.
A juicy cheeseburger with mayo and fried peppers is to die for. Or on a turkey sandwich. Scrambled into eggs. They go on everything. Really.
I usually use a mixture of Italian peppers and long hot peppers, or sometimes cubanelles. Today I added some anaheim peppers into the mixture. It's what's at the produce store and what looks good.
The concept is pretty simple:
Clean and seed the peppers, fry them in olive oil, and eat.
I start with a really big skillet and coat the bottom of the pan with olive oil. In go the peppers and I keep the heat up for a while, moving and stirring the peppers around.
As they start to wilt, I turn down the heat and let them start to brown a bit.
I add a bit of salt and pepper, but that's pretty much it.
When they're nice and cooked, they go into a resealable container and into the fridge where they get eaten quite quickly.
A couple of huge words of caution:
- Do this on a day you can open windows.
- Wear gloves.
I have come close to dying inhaling the cooking pepper fumes. Eyes watering, sneezing and coughing like there's no tomorrow... It can be extremely painful.
Which shows you just how good they are if I'm willing to put myself through all of that!
Fresh Peas
Tonight's dinner came about because I had fresh peas that needed to be shelled and consumed. I had picked them up a few days ago without a real plan for them - they just looked good.
Victor's all-time favorite meal is meatloaf, mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy, and peas. I had the ingredients but thought a salisbury-type steak was in order instead of the meatloaf. Much, much quicker, too. I minced some onion, added it to the beef with garlic, salt, and pepper, and then grilled them. I then simmered them in the gravy while doing the peas and potatoes.
Fresh peas are the best. They don't even remotely resemble their frozen cousins - and I actually like frozen peas.
And they do take time to shell. Each pod has maybe 5 or 6 peas in it. And it takes time to get them open and out. It's not difficult. It just takes a bit of time. But it is definitely worth the effort.
I boiled them in a bit of water and then drained them and added a bit of butter, salt, and pepper.
They didn't need anything else.
Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
I've been dreaming of Sweet Potatoes. They're one of my favorite foods - yet, like a lot of things, they tend to get overlooked. They're almost always in the house - and almost always just get popped into the oven and baked. Until tonight.
I actually peeled one, sliced it thin, and made a sort of galette out of it. I'm going to eventually fry some sweet potatoes, I know. But not tonight.
Sweet Potato Galette
- 1 large sweet potato
- 3 tbsp butter, divided
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- salt and pepper, to taste
Peel potato and slice thin. Mix potatoes in bowl with brown sugar, spices, and flour. Mix well. Add 2 tbsp melted butter and mix.
Melt 1 tbsp butter in an 8" skillet and layer potatoes evenly, overlapping in concentric circles.
Press down, cover with foil, and place a 425° oven for about 45 minutes. Remove foil for last 15 minutes of cooking.
The cicken was marinated in olive oil, red wine, garlic, salt, pepper, and herbs d'Provence and then grilled over indirect heat for about 45 minutes.
I made the bean salad yesterday.
Fresh Bean Salad
- 1 1/2 cups shelled cranberry beans (or a can of beans of your choice, rinsed and drained)
- several ounces of fresh green beans, trimmed
- 1/2 red onion, sliced
- 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- fresh basil
- fresh oregano
- salt and pepper, to taste
Cook beans until soft. Blanch green beans. Place both in ice water to stop cooking and quickly chill.
Drain. Mix in bowl with remaining ingredients. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
And I used up the last of the bread dough in the 'fridge for a fresh loaf of bread.
Time to mix up a new batch tomorrow!
The Birthday Boy Gets Fried
Thirty years ago, the statement would have been the same, but the means would have been quite different. My, how things change!
Last night, Victor gave me a brand new deep fryer. All because I had made an offhand comment that if I could have but one commercial piece of kitchen equipment at home, it would bee a deep fryer.
Now... we have a standing rule that we don't buy each other birthday presents and we don't buy single-use kitchen gadgets. He broke two rules. I am quite pleased! I was also quite oblivious. Victor wrapped the present while I was in the office and placed it right in the middle of the living room. I walked right through the living room into the kitchen and didn't even see it.
Clueless.
My first thought after opening it was to fry some chicken. But I quickly changed my mind. Onion rings, zucchini, jalapeños stuffed with cheese, and shrimp ended up being the menu.
We made a really classic batter of cake flour, beer, salt, pepper, and chopped parsley - the same recipe Victor used when he owned his restaurant on South Street. I floured the items before battering them, and used corn flour on the onion rings.
Yum.
Everything was crispy-crunchy. I had actually forgotten just how good - and not greasy - fried foods can be. Hot oil is the trick, and it's hard to manage on a stove.
Everything came out perfect except the jalapeño poppers. I put them in too fast and they stuck together a bit. Patience has never been one of my strong points. Oh well. They tasted fantabulous and that's what matters. Just hollowed out peppers with monterey jack cheese. As basic as one can get.
This has been one of the most fun presents! I'm thinking there's just a bazillion things we can make. I love fritters - corn, apple, peach... Fried calamari... Definitely more jalapeño poppers . I'll probably come up with a different batter for those. There's a lot of fun experimenting in store.
But tonight the final piece is something I am making once and will probably never make again.
A Deep-Fried Snickers Bar.
Because it's my birthday.
Rib Eye Steaks
Actually... It's a rib eye steak topped with shoestring fries topped with Bearnaise sauce.
Really.
The concept came from Gourmet magazine a few years back. They used a fast-food-style french fry. I almost did, too - we usually have some shoestring fries in the freezer - but then decided a really skinny shoestring fry was in order. Out came the trusty mandoline and in mere moments I had a lovely mound of perfectly-slivered potatoes.
I fried them off in grapeseed oil, a few at a time.
The steaks were grilled outside and while they were cooking, I made the Bearnaise.
Blender Bearnaise
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tsp heavy cream
- 1/2 cup hot melted butter
- 2 tsp white wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp tarragon
- pinch chervil
- 1 tsp minced shallot
- pinch salt and pepper
Add egg yolks, heavy cream, shallots, and spices to blender. Mix really well. With blender running, add half the hot butter. Add the vinegar, and then finish adding the remaining butter. Blend until smooth.
It is just too easy. And so good.
A bit of steamed broccoli for balance, and dinner was served.
This is one of those meals that just works on so many different levels. Everything blends well, every taste plays off the other, different textures in every bite. Creamy...
My stomach is smiling.
Chicken Soup for the Soul
Ah... ah... ah... AH-CHOO! {{sniffle::sniffle}}
Victor has come down with it, now... I'm in the waning mode while he is waxing. I guess it's nice that we weren't both down and out at the same time, but this just drags it on. And on. And on... Yuck.
So... It's time for some Jewish Penicillin. Chicken Noodle Soup. There's just nothing better.
I do have to admit that I cheated. I used boxed chicken broth, but my not even remotely Jewish Mother would have approved. A boy's gotta do what a boy's gotta do.
I'm actually feeling pretty good. Still hacking a bit, but I feel okay. Victor is in the early feels-like-hell stage.
This, too, shall pass.
In the meantime, we're drinking our gallons of fluid and doing all the right things. Back to normal in 7-10 days.
Gates Kansas City BBQ Sauce
When our friend Luigi said she was sending us a bottle of Gates Kansas City BBQ Sauce, I knew right away I was going to like it. Our taste buds are really in sync. (Actually, so are our political beliefs, humor, outlook on life - and she was partly responsible for Victor and me getting together in the first place.) If she says I'll like something, the odds are pretty good I will.
So, while it was no great surprise that I was going to like the Gates BBQ Sauce, it was a bit of a surprise to find that it may just be my favorite bottled BBQ sauce - ever. I actually just went to their website and ordered more. Another bottle of Classic Original, and a bottle each of Extra Hot and Sweet and Mild. Experiment time!
And I especially like that it is made with real ingredients. It totally packs a wallop and there's no crap in it!
Bold, sweet, smoky, spicy... everything a BBQ sauce should be.
I've had a lot of BBQ sauces in my time. Yellow sauce from South Carolina, compliments of Mike and Barbara, Memphis, Texas, Kansas City... and I've made BBQ sauce for years, including Strawberry and Root Beer. I actually don't buy a lot of bottled sauces anymore because I don't care for the ingredients, so getting this is an extra-special treat.
I was feeling adventurous (gluttonous?!?) and wanted to try it on a lot of things at once, so I cooked pork ribs, beef tips, and chicken breast.
The ribs I baked in the oven for about an hour with nothing on them at all. I then slathered on the sauce and placed them on the top rack of the grill and just let them slow-cook.
The beef tips and chicken were marinated in the sauce and then grilled over medium heat.
I'm not sure which of them I liked best. The flavor was most pronounced on the chicken breast, the beef was smoky-spicy rare, and the ribs... they were fall-off-the-bone tender with flavor that just exploded. No choosing necessary. It goes with everything.
Potatoes were done in a grill basket with a splash of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic.
And Grilled Pineapple, too!
I marinated the pineapple in rum, brown sugar, and sambal oelek. Sweet and spicy. Onto the grill it went.
The only thing that wasn't grilled was the corn.
We have friends coming down from Boston for July 4th weekend. I'm thinking bacon burgers...
Thanks, Luigi!
Oh! I almost forgot... Today's weigh-in... down a pound and a half!
Sausage and Peppers
You know the warning about wearing gloves when dealing with hot peppers? I do. Quite well, in fact.
Did I heed that warning when cleaning that pound-plus of long hot peppers today?!? Of course not. I don't have any gloves in the house! Several hours later, I can still feel a bit of burn in my hands. The only good thing about it is it's keeping me focused to keep from rubbing my eyes.
I would die.
I almost died cleaning them. I have never coughed and sneezed so much doing anything. Ever. They were totally overwhelming. Non-stop sneezing and coughing. Rivulets of water pouring from my eyes.
I loved every minute of it.
I usually get long Italian peppers to mix with the hots, but the produce store was out of them this morning. Plan B. Red and green bells, cut into strips.
Now... Victor usually does the peppers. He's the Italian. He knows his peppers. But he was working today and I wanted them with dinner. Time to do it, myself.
I mixed about 2 pounds each of red and green bell peppers with the pound and a quarter or so of the hots. Into a really large skillet with olive oil and eventually, some salt and pepper.
Just before they were done, I shredded 3 cloves of garlic into them. The garlic gets bitter if ya put it in too soon.
90 degrees outside and I opened windows and turned on the exhaust fan to fry them up. The breeze blowing through kept me from keeling over in the kitchen. Those peppers are wicked!
The peppers keep for a really long time in the 'fridge (not that we allow them to stay around long...) They go with just about anything, from sausages to sandwiches, steaks to salads.
And speaking of peppers... here's a recipe I used to make all of the time and haven't in a few years. Red Pepper Relish. This one really lasts forever in the 'fridge. It's from Chris Leishman's cook book Recipes From The Heart. It's one of those things you end up finding a million and one uses for. It's especially good on a cold flank steak sandwich on a crusty french roll. Find some red peppers on sale and go make a batch!
The fried peppers made the perfect accompaniment to dinner tonight. Grilled Italian sausages, grilled polenta, broccoli rabe, and a loaf of crusty Italian bread.
For the polenta, I used 2 cups of non fat milk, 3/4 cup of polenta, salt & pepper, and about 2 ounces of asaiago cheese. When it was cooked, I put it into a well-buttered 8"x8" pan and when it was relatively cool, cut it into quarters and each quarter diagonally. Onto the grill for a few minutes.
The broccoli rabe was sauteed with onions in olive oil and a splash of red wine vinegar.
It really was a simple dinner with some really awesome flavors.
For dessert, we have more Boston Cream Pie.
There's also fresh peach ice cream, but, really... One dessert at a time.
Corn Dogs and Chipotle Baked Beans
I've had a hankerin' for a corn dog for a while now, and decided a couple of weeks ago that I was going to make them today. I think the last time I had a real corn dog was at the Iowa State Fair in 1993. That's more than a few years ago.
They really are easy to make but not something that is on the normal meal rotation. Deep-frying anything is not on the normal meal rotation. I would absolutely love to have a commercial deep-fryer, but I'm not going to get a counter-top home version.
But I digress.....
I couldn't tell you the last time I made a corn dog, but I'm sure it was long before Iowa.
I don't have a deep-fryer, so I took a 9" braising pan and filled it halfway with oil - about 2" - and cooked them without sticks and added the stick after the fact. I more or less made up the batter recipe, but used Alton Brown's suggestion of rolling the dog in cornstarch to keep the batter on the dog. (His online recipe looked really good, but I was wanting something more traditional today...)
Perfectly crusty exterior, a soft cornbready interior, wrapped around one of my more favorite foods - a hot dog. How could it be bad?!?
Corn Dogs
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 2 tbsp buttermilk powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup milk (about)
- pinch salt
- 8 hot dogs
- 8 sticks (popsicle sticks would work just fine)
Heat oil in pan or deep fryer to 350°.
Mix dry ingredients together. Add eggs and enough milk to make a fairly thin batter.
Roll hot dogs in cornstarch and dip into batter. (You need to work it a bit - the cornstarch doesn't want to stick right away.)
Carefully add to hot oil. If using a pan, flip over after a minute or so.
Drain on apper towels and serve with mustard.
The baked bean recipe came from my sister, Phoebe. I've shared this recipe many times. I love 'em!
Phoebe's Baked Beans
The original recipe comes from Cooking Light magazine. Phoebe made these at their housewarming “Open House” and nary a bite was left!
These are now the only baked beans I make.
- 1/2 cup minced shallots
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 cup tomato puree (I use tomato paste – I never have puree in the house!)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 chipotle chiles, canned in adobo sauce, seeded and chopped
- 2 (28-ounce) cans baked beans
Preheat oven to 300°.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add shallots; sauté 4 minutes or until golden. Add cumin and garlic; sauté for 1 minute. Add tomato puree and oil, and cook for 2 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Add remaining ingredients (except beans.). Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Combine beans and shallot mixture in a 2-quart baking dish. Bake at 300° for 1 hour or until thick and bubbly.
The potato salad is like my mom used to make. It seems everyone I know has a potato salad recipe like their moms. This one is actually pretty simple... potatoes, onion, celery, carrots, pickles, hard-cooked eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, ketchup, salt, pepper, garlic powder. There's a bazillion and one ways to make a potato salad, but this one is my favorite.
Chicken on the grill with Memphis BBQ sauce.
There's more Poppy Seed Cake for dessert later on this evening.
Right now, I'm ready for a nap.