The Rain In Spain
Makes Stew that's not plain. Or something like that...
Tonight's salute to the Olympics was Spanish Beef Ttew. I know it was Spanish because that's what the recipe said. Had the recipe title not had the word "Spanish" in it, though, i would have been hard-pressed to find the Spanish connection. Actually, I ate it and had a hard time finding the Spanish connection. Maybe it was the 1/4 cup of olives the recipe called for.
I mean - it was really good... Nice, rich gravy, tender chunks of beef... but... not Spanish.
Because the recipe didn't call for potatoes, or noodles, or anything, I boild a couple of potatoes in their skings, and then coarsely mashed them into a skillet with some butter and fried them up.
They went into the bowl, and the stew went on top of that.
It was actually really good. It just wasn't quite Spanish.....
Italy - and the Garden
Day Two of the Olympics took us to Itally. No real plan in mind, but I knew chicken and polenta were going to play a role. And Victor had made sauce a few days ago, so that was taken care of.
We have a bazillion tomatoes ripening as I type, so tomato definitely had to play a role, as well.
So.....
I grilled th chicken. Onto the plate went a bit of sauce, polenta, the chicken breast on top of that. Two thick slices of tomato went on top of the chicken, and they were topped by a thick slice of fresh mozzarella.
Under the broiler for just a minute to melt the mozzarella a bit - and one of the plates cracked from the heat!
I looked, said a couple of words that would have made my mother wash my mouth out with soap (yes, my mother really did wash my mouth out with soap - more than once...)
But I digress...
Fortunately, the platte cracked, it didn't explode or shatter, so there were no teeny-tiny shards of glass to worry about. I removed the chicken breast with the tomato and cheese (leaving the polenta and sauce for after-dinner cleanup) and replated slightly differently.
The presentation wasn't quite as dramatic, but it sure did taste good.
The tomatoes this year may just be the best we have grown, yet!
Olympic Chicken
The perfect way to start off the Olympic Games!
- General Tsao's Sauce
- Bell peppers
- Onions
- Broccoli
- Celery
- Pineapple
- Maraschino Cherries
- Chicken
And served over Black Rice.
And the Opening Ceremonies?!? Magnificent!
Pesto Pasta Salad
I came home today to find Victor in the kitchen making a pasta salad for dinner! (It is so much fun being engaged to a great cook!)
I couldn't even begin to list all of the great things he put in it. Okay, not true. I can begin. I'll probably miss a few, but that's the way it goes...
- Penne pasta
- salami
- sundried tomatoes
- hard-cooked eggs
- kalamata olives
- red onions
- fresh mozzarella
- shaved parmesan
- fresh basil
I had made pesto a while back from the vast quantity of basil we have growing, so it became the dressing.
Damn, it was good!
And fror dessert?!? A Cinnamon Swirl Cake! I am so spoiled.....
Susanne's Raw Cauliflower Salad
You just know it's a good day when customers bring YOU in goodies from home!
Susanne is one of our regular customers. Whenever she comes in, we chat for a bit about food, recipes, the latest whatever... She has mentioned a raw cauliflower salad she makes, and today, brought some in for me! Can we say "yummy" boys and girls?!? I shared some with a couple of the folks at work, but wanted to bring enough home to get a picture to post here. I shouldn't have eaten so much before taking the picture! Alas, it was too good to just let sit...
It's actually quite an easy recipe, and Susanne says that the only really necessary ingredient is the cauliflower! Use what you have or what you like!
Here's the recipe she gave me:
Raw Cauliflower Salad
- 1 head cauliflower
- 1 or more fresh tomatoes
- 3-4 fresh carrots
- 1 cucumber
- 4 tbsp salsa ("3 pepper salsa")
- 3 tbsp fresh minced garlic
- 4 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar (or any other flavorful one)
- 2 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 2 tbsp Olive oil (or more)
- Parsley
- Dill
Make a dressing of the vinegar, salt, oil, and salsa.
Dice the cauliflower. Cut the tomatoes in small cubes. Dice the carrots and cucumber in food processor.
Pour the dressing over the vegetable mix.
Let rest a few hours in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh for at least 4 days becvause of the vinegar.
That's it! Give it a try. Play with it. Adjust ingredients to your liking.
No matter how you do it, it's bound to be good!
Happy Birthday, Me!
Tomorrow is the 35th Anniversary of my 21st Birthday! It's been a fun birthday weekend, we saw Mamma Mia - the stage musical - yesterday, today was Farmer's Marketing, meeting the folks behind Happy Hal's Jalapeno Relish, coffee with Nonna, a great homecooked dinner, and a totally decadent birthday cake!
Victor got the cake recipe from watching TV and embelished it with a Banana Caramel Sauce. OMG!
Here's the recipe. make it, tonight! :)
Chocolate Cracked Earth
(Flourless Chocolate Cake) Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence
1 pound bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
1 stick unsalted butter
9 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
2 cups heavy cream, cold
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan.
Put the chocolate and butter into the top of a double boiler (or in a heatproof bowl) and heat over (but not touching) about 1-inch of simmering water until melted. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a mixing bowl until light yellow in color. Whisk a little of the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture to temper the eggs - this will keep the eggs from scrambling from the heat of the chocolate; then whisk in the rest of the chocolate mixture.
Beat the egg whites in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form and fold into the chocolate mixture. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until the cake is set, the top starts to crack and a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with moist crumbs clinging to it, 20 to 25 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, then remove sides of pan.
While the cake is cooking, make the whipped cream. Whip the cream until it becomes light and fluffy.
Serve at room temperature dusted with confectioners' and the whipped cream.
Happy Hal's Jalapeno Relish
Those who know me well know that I seldom gush about something. I can be enthusiastic, I can be positive, but gushing doesn't happen often.
Allow me to gush.
A few weeks back, I received a jar of Happy Hal's Jalapeno Relish at work. A gentleman had dropped off a jar in hopes that the company might carry it. We don't do new product acquisition at the store level, and my boss, knowing my love of different (and spicy) foods, asked me if I wanted to take it home. Boy, am I glad I said "yes!"
I brought it home and placed it up in the cupboard with who knows how many other relishes and condiments we have. I collect food like other people collect stamps or coins. There's always another one out there that's waiting to be tasted, and I'm just the guy to taste it!
The other day we were having hot dogs (old-fashioned, skin-on REAL hot dogs, thankyouverymuch) and decided to try the new relish on them. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but what I didn't expect was such an explosion of just-hot-enough flavor! The stuff was good. Damn good! It played tricks on the tongue - naturally sweet without being sweet; a spicy and flavorful pepper with a hint of vinegar that enhanced the pepper without overpowering it. You know it's there, but you don't know where it comes from.
The following day it went on burgers. On a roast beef sandwich; Happy Hal's Jalapeno Relish is better than horseradish on beef!
I started thinking of a bazillion different ways to use it as an ingredient; in tuna and egg salad, in potato salad, a dollop on cheese and crackers... Baked into bread, in soups and stews... I use Sambal Oleck a million and one different ways. I can see myself using this in as many ways, as well.
And with that in mind, I went to their website on Friday to see if I could buy more. Alas, there were no online sales from the site (more on that, later...) but it did say it could be purchased at the Whole Foods Farmer's Market right down the road from us, today, between 11am and 3pm. I put a reminder in the calendar, and right at 11am, there we were.
I spied the booth right away, and to my delight, got to meet Suzanne and Joe Spurlock, who founded and own the company! I stood there and gushed. They're a fun couple, passionate about their product, and really putting their heart and soul into every jar produced. It shows. We all chatted away like long lost friends. It's amazing how food - good food - brings people together.
Surprisingly, Happy Hal's is made right here in Pennsylvania! In Lancaster County, just down the way a piece. One usually doesn't associate this part of the world with spicy foods... This is Scrapple Country, home to a minimal use of salt and even less black pepper! But it is home to good growing. And with just two ingredients - jalapenos and vinegar - they have to be the best in order to work. And, as with any good recipe, the secret is in the quality and ratios. They nailed it with both!
Happy Hal's Jalapeno Relish is available in select stores in PA, NJ, DE, and VA. Right now, one cannot order online from the Happy Jalapeno website. However, it IS available online at http://www.peppers.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=5937. If the gods are willing, Happy Jalapeno will be selling online, soon!
Buy some, today!
(And for those of you concerned about jalapenos and the latest food scandal, rest assured that Happy Hal's is completely and totally salmonella-free. The jalapenos are cooked when making the relish.)
What Are They Doing To Our Food?
And Why Doesn't Anybody Care?
I received an email newsletter from a friend of mine this morning and it really brought home the absurdity of what it is they are selling to a downright fat, lazy, and stupid population.
It's no secret that I am an outspoken critic of processed foods, but this stuff really takes the cake.
Read the ingredients.
WHY ON EARTH ARE THEY PUTTING HYDROLYZED BEEF AND PORK PROTEIN IN HOT COCOA?!? And why are people buying it?
What is wrong with the American Public that they will accept this sort of crap as food and feed it to their children??!?
In her newsletter, Jessica reminded me of hot cocoa and hot chocolate:
“There is a difference between hot cocoa and hot chocolate. The terms are often used interchangeably, but technically they are as different as white chocolate and bittersweet chocolate. Hot cocoa is made from cocoa powder, which is chocolate pressed free of all its richness, meaning the fat of cocoa butter. Hot chocolate is made from chocolate bars melted into cream. It is a rich decadent drink.
The original hot cocoa recipe was a mixture of ground cocoa beans, water, wine, and peppers. It didn't take long for Spaniards to begin heating the mixture and sweetening it with sugar. After being introduced in England, milk was added to the after dinner treat.
The word chocolate is said to derive from the Mayan word xocoatl; cocoa from the Aztec word cacahuatl. The Mexican Indian word chocolat comes from a combination of the terms choco ("foam") and atl ("water"); as early chocolate was only consumed in beverage form. Chocolate has been drunk as a beverage for thousands of years.”
Drunk as a beverage for thousands of years, and then the Frankenfood Scientists at ConAgra decided to add pig and cow protein, and a host of chemicals.
From the ConAgra website:
Created with a blend of rich, dark European cocoas for real chocolate taste and flavor, Swiss Miss is America's preferred brand of hot chocolate. It is available in regular and no-sugar-added formulas, with or without real marshmallows. Warm up with Swiss Miss any time.
America's "preferred" brand. "Real" marshmallows. Made with pig lips. No, thank you.
What I really fail to understand is how so many people can be so unconcerned with what they eat. When did we - as a society - give up eating real food for supposed convenience? When did we start allowing our food to be taken apart and then have the parts remanufactured as something else? And then willingly buy it?!?
This isn't food, It USED to be food. Now it is a secret chemical formula supposedly guaranteed to taste great and then kill you.
Back to Hot Cocoa for a minute... My grandmother made The Best Hot Cocoa. She used Hershey's cocoa and made a mixture of cocoa powder, sugar, and hot water. She added that to hot milk (from a glass bottle delivered to the house) and then marshmallows or whipped cream on top. I guarantee the marshmallows weren't made with pig lips - and the heavy cream wasn't ultra-pasteurized to have a shelf-life of 50 days.
Partially hydrigenated soybean oil. Definitely not an ingredient Grandma was putting in her cocoa, but ConAgra puts in in theirs.
And ya know what?!? They put it there because people don't pay attention. They actually think that there are government rules in place to keep food manufacturers from poisoning us. Guess what?!? The Food Industry - and the chemical industry - write the legislation.
The ONLY way to get rid of it is to STOP BUYING IT! If there is no market for this crap, they will stop making it.
If you want good food, start buying good food.
It really is that simple.
Stuffed Pork Loin
Before heading off to work Friday morning, I pulled a pork loin out of the freezer to thaw. I didn't have a plan, but there's enough food in the house to feed a medium-sized developing country right now. I have options!
And when I walked back in the door Friday afternoon, Victor had taken the pork loin, butterflied it and pounded it, made a stuffing of bread crumbs, sundried tomatoes, garlic, garden herbs, and goat cheese.
I made up a batch of cheesey grits (Thanks, Mike!!) and cooked up the last squashes from Pam with a bit of onion, garlic, and more garden herbs.
WOW! There is nothing better than a well-stocked kitchen! :)
Peach Upside Down French Toast
We were watching one of the many cooking shows on TV yesterday, when one of them (Tyler?!?) came up with an upside-down apple french toast. It looked fabulous.
I didn't really pay too close attention to what he was doing, but one thing I did notice was he put heavy cream into the brown sugar and butter mixture to bring it together. GREAT idea! Today, decided I wanted to make something similar for dessert tonight with the fabulous peaches we bought yesterday. Into the kitchen I went.
I melted a cube of butter in the pan and added about a cup of brown sugar, made a nice caramel. I then added the heavy cream and it looked perfect! I pulled it off the heat and added walnuts, and then thick pieces of peach all around.
I topped it with slices of bread dipped into a basic French toast batter (eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon) and layered them on top.
Into the oven for 45 minutes and out it came, looking fabulous!
I inverted it onto a plate and woooosh - a gallon of caramel ran all over the place! Where Tyler's apple was kind of sticky-gooey and all held nicely together, mine was a runny mess.
I got a deeper rimmed dish and replated it, sauce and all.
It may not look like the professional version on TV, but I can guarantee it will taste fantastic!
So what went wrong, you ask?!?
I think I just made too much caramel. I could have easily made the sauce with a half-cube of butter and less sugar and cream. That, and the peaches are definitely juicier than apples...
What the hell... It's gonna be great!
I was right. It was GREAT!
Sweet Pea Fritatta
We did our quarterly trek out to Wegman's yesterday. There's a reason I usually shop alone. It's a LOT less expensive! :)
We bought more than we needed but not a lot of anything that will go bad any time soon... I just won't have to shop for a while.
One thing I did decide to use up right away, though was a basket of fresh peas.
For those of you who have never tasted a fresh pea - it is light-years away from anything canned or frozen you may ever taste. They're just wonderful.
So I used them to make a fritatta for lunch today!
I sauteed a quarter of a large sweet onion in a bit of butter and olive oil and added the peas. I cooked them about 6-7 minutes and added 6 eggs I had whipped up with fresh mint, oregano, thyme, and basil from the yard. A bit of salt and pepper, and then added about 3 ounces of ricotta salata.
I placed it under the broiler until lightly browned, and luncheon was served. I had a half-loaf of a great Italian Pane I had also picked up yesterday, and it made great toast!
My stomach is smiling!
Blackbeard's Pork Chops
Mike was busy cooking this weekend! A good thing, because I always like to see what others are doing - the brain cells tend to go on strike every now and again, and need something fun to get them recharched. Here's a perfect example of getting the creative (and gastronomic) juices flowing!
Blackbeard’s Pork Chops
Mike Amason
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2 tbsp vegetable oil
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8 ½ inch thick pork chops
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3 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped finely
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1 (15 ounce) can sliced pineapple packed in juice
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1 large banana, sliced
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½ cup raisins
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6 oz can tomato paste
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¼ cup red wine
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1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch
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½ tsp cayenne pepper
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½ tsp black pepper
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1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
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¼ tsp ground cinnamon
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1/8 tsp allspice
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1/8 tsp ground cumin
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salt and pepper
1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Salt and pepper the pork chops lightly and fry on each side until browned, about 3 minutes per side. Remove and drain.
2. Drain pineapple slices and reserve juice. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a covered skillet (stovetop) or a covered baking dish (oven) and add chopped garlic with 2 tbsp pineapple juice. Let cook 5 minutes until garlic is soft.
3. Into a bowl pour pineapple juice, red wine, and tomato paste. Stir cornstarch, pepper, cayenne, ginger, cinnamon, cumin, and allspice into liquid. Place a layer of pork chops into pan or dish with a slice of pineapple on each. Add half the banana slices and raisins, pour ½ the liquid from the bowl over them sprinkle lightly with black pepper. Create a second layer covered with the rest of the fruit and liquid. Cover and cook on medium heat (stovetop) or bake at 325 degrees (oven) for 45 minutes until chops are fork tender. Serve over rice.
