Texas Cookin' at Home

Lamb Burgers, with all the extras

2011-10-18T16:18:00.000-05:00

Looking for something tasty and different? Skip the hamburger; embrace the Lamb Burger! These were served along with pickled red onions, home made tzatziki sauce, and a Greek relish. You can buy ground lamb in most major supermarkets, but if you have the choice, purchase whole lamb meat and ask them to grind it for you at the time, it will be much fresher.

Opa!

Ingredients

Lamb Burgers
1 pound ground lamb
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon olive oil,
1/4 tsp dried oregano
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

Tzatziki Sauce
1 medium cucumber, halved and seeds removed, then grated
1 cup Fat free, plain Greek yogurt
2 garlic cloves, Crushed
1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Salt & Black pepper to taste
2 teaspoons olive oil

Pickled Onions
½ red onion, thinly-sliced
½ cup cider vinegar
½ cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon unrefined light brown sugar

Greek Relish
1 cup coarsely chopped roasted Italian red peppers
1/4 cup pitted and chopped marinated Kalamata olives
2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup fresh crumbled Feta cheese
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Method

Preparing the onions:
The thinner you can slice theonions, the better this will be. Unfortunately, I was in an hurry and theonions in the picture below are away too thick. Mix the vinegars and sugar together, submerge the onions in the mixture, and set in the fridge to marinate. By the time you are finished with the burgers, these will be ready.

Preparing the onions:
Prepare the cucumber as stated above. Using a food processor, puree the garlic cloves with the salt & pepper. Add the cucumber, yogurt, olive oil and dill, the pulse it and give it a taste. Add seasoning if needed, then remove to a bowl in the fridge until needed.

Preparing the relish:
Prepare the peppers, olives, cilantro and garlic as stated above. Mix them well in a large bowl with the Feta, salt & pepper. Add in the lemon juice and olive oil, then mix to coat. Give it a taste test and adjust salt & pepper if needed.

Move the finished relish in a bowl, and put it in the fridge with the other condiments until the burger is finished and ready to assemble.

Now for the burgers:
Next comes the main act. The main concern here is not to overwork the meat. The more you squeeze and mix it, the more tough it may end up. Start off by taking all of the ingredients for the burger (except the meat) and mixing well in a bowl. Crumble small pieces of the ground lamb mixture into the bowl, lightly stirring together until all is loosely mixed. Now you will divide the mixture in half, and loosely form each half into a patty. These will shrink some on the grill, so if you make the patty just larger than your bun it will work out perfectly.

I left them in the fridge for about 20 minutes to firm up, and then it was off to the grill. Grill these over medium coals, turning only once. Now, as they cook, they are going to lose a lot of grease, so you are going to have to keep an eye out for flare-ups. Just don't overcook them - these were done to 150° internally as was read on a digital thermometer.

Here you see the finished product, assembled and ready to be consumed. The buns were toasted to help keep the burger together when all assembled. From the bottom up, there is tzatziki, pickled onion, the lamb burger patty, and finally the relish. Layers and layers of flavor.

Halfway through it, and boy that lamb is tasty! Notice that it is not pink like a hamburger might be, but trust me, it's not overcooked...

Mexican Rice

2011-10-09T23:21:00.001-05:00

...adapted from Diana Barrios

Ingredients
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups chicken stock, divided
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup white rice
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1/2 green bell pepper, minced
1/4 onion, sliced very thin

Method
Blend first 3 ingredients until smooth, Add 1 cup chicken stock, blend again. Heat up the remaining chicken stock in a microwave oven, but do not boil.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan on medium heat, and when hot, add in the rice. Cook the rice, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown. Add the peppers and onions, cook for a few more minutes, and then drain off any remaining excess oil.

Add the tomato mixture to the pan, stir and cook for 3 minutes, then add in the remaining hot chicken stock. Reduce heat again, stir and cover, then cook until the rice has absorbed all the remaining liquid and is done.

Fresh Tomatillo Salsa

2011-10-09T21:59:00.000-05:00

...inspired by Lisa Fain

Simple, crisp and green, vary the heat by varying the pepper count. Two jalapenos makes for a pretty mild salsa.

Ingredients
3/4 lb tomatillos, smaller is better for taste (11 oz can may be used)
chiles - 2 jalapeño (mild) (or 2 Serrano [warmer], or more if you like)
6 cloves chopped garlic
1 1/2 tablespoon lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro, packed
salt and pepper to taste

Makes approximately 1 pint

Method
Bring a 4-5 quart pot of water to boil over high heat. Peel the husks from the tomatillos and discard; and rinse the sticky coating off the tomatillos. Boil the tomatillos for 5 minutes or so to soften, remove and drain.

Add the tomatillos, garlic, peppers, cilantro and lime juice to a blender. Blend until smooth and add salt and pepper to taste. After it sits, you may need to add a bit of water as it may thicken.

Oldies but Goodies

2011-10-07T17:40:00.000-05:00

I recently stumbled across a couple of old cookbooks - 40 to 50 years old. These are small limited distribution books, published by small companies and just plain Courier type on paper. Paging through them, it appears that they contain just what the covers promise - simple authenticity. I'll be exploring these and maybe post some of the recipes I attempt from them.

Lone Star Stroganoff

2011-10-07T00:46:00.001-05:00

Another one of those dishes that everyone has a recipe for, this has a couple of twists that drag it south of the Mason-Dixon line and west of the Mississippi. It has some fiery components, but is mild enough for all to enjoy.

Serves 6, or 4 really hungry folks. Even less if you 'sample' it all afternoon... just sayin'.

Ingredients

3 lb chuck, top round or flat iron steak, trimmed of fat and gristle
2 medium onions - short julienned
1 1/2 lb Cremini (or button) mushrooms, cut into 1/2" thick slices
1/2 cup decent red wine
1 can consommé ( in soup aisle)
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1 large fresh jalapeño, minced fine
1 chipotle in adobo pepper, minced fine
1/2 cup chicken stock (can use water)
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
8 oz. wide egg noodles

Method
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Work your way through the the sliced mushrooms without crowding, this will take a few batches - see Beginning Mushrooms 101 for all you'll ever want to know about cooking mushrooms in a skillet. When they are all done, remove them to a good-sized bowl for later.

While the mushrooms are cooking, it's time to prepare the meat. Since you've lost all the fat and gristle, cut the meat into manageable strips, and then into smaller somewhat thin pieces. This will help them both cook faster and be more tender. Here you see me slicing across the grain at an angle, also helping to tenderize them.

Dry the meat well with paper towels, and season liberally with salt and pepper. If you don't dry it, it won't brown. Set this aside for a few minutes while we do the onions.

The peeled onions ate cut into strips and the halved. Put them into the skillet with a little olive oil and let them become translucent and a bit caramelized.

When done, remove the onions to a bowl and set aside. Now we go back to our seasoned beef and add it to the pan a little at a time, taking care not to crowd it. This will take a few batches to get it all done. When you start to see the edges brown, you can start stirring it about. It doesn't have to cook completely here, just brown.

As each batch finishes, place the browned meat in with your mushrooms and pour out any liquid from the pan - it is the enemy of browning.

After all the meat is out, the onions head back in one last time, along with the wine and flour. Whisk this together so that the flour is dissolved. Add in the consommé.

Then whisk in the tomato paste, and slowly, the cream cheese. Most recipes for stroganoff call for sour cream, but I like the thickness that this brings to the sauce. Whisk until this becomes uniformly smooth.

Retrieve your chipotle pepper dripping with adobo. You will want to mince this very fine so it will melt into the sauce as it simmers. Same goes for the jalapeno.

Time to go all in. Add the meat and mushrooms into the sauce and stir well to incorporate. Then add in the minced peppers and mix again.

You'll probably have to let this simmer for a couple of hours. If it's too thick, add in the chicken stock to make sure all the ingredients get incorporated. This will allow the meat to get really tender, and allow the sauce to thicken even more. Of course, you'll have to sacrifice and actually taste a piece occasionally to make sure it is getting tender...

When it is about done cooking down, it is time to cook the noodles. I prefer using the extra-wide egg noodles as their surface area can carry lots of sauce with each fork-full. Cook them until al dente, then drain and plate them, then adding the stroganoff mixture. Top it all with a dollop of sour cream, some sliced green onions and a sprinkle of chile powder.

¡Muy Sabroso!

Fajititos

2011-10-05T13:10:00.000-05:00

Tired of the same old tacos, I figured it was time for an upgrade.

Are they fajitas? Maybe burritos? The verdict?

Muy yummy!

Ingredients
1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2" strips
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1 1/2" strips
1/2 small to medium onion, cut into 1 1/2" strips
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 large or 2 small jalapeños, short julienne

1 lb.- 1 1/2 lb. beef, such as skirt steak, flank steak, top round - sliced thin for Asada cooking
kosher salt, coarse ground pepper
olive oil

4 fajita-size flour tortillas (reduced carb)
1/4 lb Mexican melting cheese, such as queso quesadilla or queso asadero, shredded

home-made red and green salsas

Method
Gather your ingredients. Prepare all the different items by doing the slicing and mincing before you start cooking - see "mise en place". Here's the starters...

Preheat your oven to 350°. Add all the vegetables to a skillet, and sautée in a bit of oil until they soften and the onions become slightly translucent. Remove to a plate and cover. Now cut the beef into strips across the grain, season with pepper only and add them to the empty skillet with a touch more oil. Cook until just browned - about half-cooked. Lightly sprinkle with salt and then add the vegetbles back into the skillet and mix together. Oh how wonderful it would be to have a flat top at home!

Now take 1/4 of your meat/vegetable mixture and roll it in a flour tortilla that has been warmed slightly in the microwave to soften. Repeat for the remaining filling. Place these rolls seam side down in an oven proof dish lightly sprayed with your choice of a Pam-like product. This will help them release for service.

Once the oven is hot, slide the dish onto the upper rack, and bake until the tortillas just start to brown. At this point, kick the oven up to low broil, and pull the dish out to finish.

Top the rolls with the cheese you should have already shredded, and back on the top shelf they go, oven door left cracked open. Watch carefully until the cheese starts to spot (like picture below), and remove from oven. Turn the oven off - it's done it's duty for today.

Plate the Fajititos, two per hungry person, one if served with several sides. Finish off the Fajititos with alternating stripes of red and green salsa, freshly made if available. Serve with an appropriate side dish, here seen with refried beans with jalapeno bits added and topped with shredded cheese. Serve hot!

Savory Texas Meatloaf

2011-09-20T16:45:00.000-05:00

Everybody has a recipe for meatloaf. Many people aren't happy with theirs, but are stuck in a rut. Consider giving this one a try - there are a few tasty differences that make it mighty good. And even better, it makes plenty, so there's lots left over for meatloaf sandwiches the next day!

Ingredients:
1 large onion, cut in small dice
1 carrot, cut in small dice
1 Poblano pepper, cut in small dice
3 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons pepper
5 teaspoons minced garlic

2 lbs. ground beef, 80/20
1 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground lamb

1 cup breadcrumbs, unseasoned, fresh preferred
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup ketchup
3 eggs
1/2 cup (compressed) of finely chopped cilantro
1/2 cup chopped cooked bacon

1/2 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper

Method:

Combine the breadcrumbs and milk together to create a mush. Prepare the vegetables as directed above.

In a large skillet, add the first 5 ingredients and sauté until the vegetables soften. When soft, add the garlic and stir in well, cooking 1 more minute. Remove from stove and allow to cool. Gather your defrosted meats - clockwise from left, beef, pork lamb:

In a large bowl, separate and scatter the meats evenly in the bowl. You don't want to over-mix the meat mixture, as that will make your meatloaf tough. Add in the cooled vegetables, milk /breadcrumb mush, ketchup, cilantro and the eggs. Heat your oven to 350°.

Mix until all parts are evenly distributed and then let it rest. Divide the mixture evenly between two loaf pans, taking care to make the center a little lower than the edges. This will help to cut down on the tendency for cooked meatloaf to have a large center bulge.

Finally, scatter half of the bacon across the top of each loaf. Now pop the loaf pans into your oven, and set the timer for 45 minutes. Combine the last 4 ingredients into a Texas Tang sauce so that it will be ready for the next step.

After an hour, remove the loaf pans and set on a cooling rack, and remove the loafs from the pans. Place the loafs on a larger rimmed pan, and divide the ketchup sauce evenly over the tops of the two loaves. Below you see the loafs after having been sauced, and ready for the oven again.

Below is an oblique shot, and you can make out how relatively flat the tops are. This will help a lot with making meatloaf sandwiches later!

Pop them back in the oven for another 45 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 155°. Don't overcook or it will start to dry out! The jalapeño garnish is, of course, optional as are the Pintos-n-Pico on the side.

Finally!

2011-09-19T14:32:00.004-05:00

Help for those counting carbs - whether for weight or diabetes.

I try to avoid eating a lot of carbohydrates (except on special occasions), as they induce a pretty psychotic effect on my blood sugar. I do okay at dodging most of them, but the lowly flour tortilla has been my Achilles heel. I still eat them occasionally, but I need to do better. This brings us to the present.

After looking around a bit at the grocery store this past weekend, I came across this pair of offerings. Now, I've had low carb and wheat tortillas before, and to be blunt they were all pretty horrible - dry, stiff, pasty and coarse. It had been a while, so I thought I'd try again. Both of these offering were good enough that I'd even served them to company. They are both made from wheat flour, although only the Mission brand tortillas appear a little tan. The texture is wonderful, being soft and supple and not at all like cardboard. Compare these carb numbers to the flour tortillas in your pantry and see how all that fiber reduces the net effective carbohydrates in these guys..

Santa Fe 'Carb Chopper' 7" tortillas:
70 calories - 2.5g fat, 7g carbs, 3g fiber, 4g net effective carbs, 4g protein

Mission 'Carb Balance' 6" tortillas:
80 calories - 2g fat, 13g carbs, 10g fiber, 3g net effective carbs, 3g protein

These will cost you more than regular store brand tortillas, but the quality you'll taste is worth it. I still say that if you don't have to worry about carbohydrates, then seek out 'Mi Casa' tortillas, as they're about hte best sore brand torts I've found.

DIY Meat, anyone?

2011-09-10T21:45:00.005-05:00

On our last trip to Restaurant Depot, I was looking for something to replenish our dwindling beef supply at home. This trip, the nod went to to a whole untrimmed Inside Top Round. To quote from the the IMPS guide;

"This boneless item consists of the semimembranosus, sartorius, adductor, gracilis, and pectineus and is separated from the bottom round and knuckle through the natural seams. The iliopsoas may remain if firmly attached. All bones, cartilage, and exposed lymph glands shall be removed."

Here's what it looks like in a cryovac bag, on a full size 33" wide sheet pan. It's a big chunk of Choice grade Certified Angus Beef:
After removing the fat cap, I found that the clod was easily separated along the natural seams into a several large cuts and a few smaller trim pieces. Here is a shot of the large sections after reduction:

It's hard to tell from the picture, but there was a nice amount of intramuscular fat, so it should be fairly tender for such a typically lean piece of meat. I have already used some of the small trimmings in some carne asada, beef and some green chile and bean burritos. Very tender, very tasty, and can't wait to dive into some more!

Chicken Fricassée with Portobellos & Pasta

2011-09-10T21:35:00.000-05:00

Ingredients:

3 lb of mixed boneless skinless chicken breasts and thighs
2 qt chicken stock
2 bay leaves
½ t ground thyme
½ t rosemary leaves, finely chopped
1 tsp black peppercorns
¼ lb bacon, chopped
4 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
½ lb. button or chestnut mushrooms, trimmed and large ones halved
½ t rosemary leaves, finely chopped
12 oz. dry white wine
12 oz. double cream
1 ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
1 lb fresh rotini, tagliatelle or similar complex pasta
Handful of flat leaf parsley, leaves chopped
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:
With a sharp knife, remove the excess fat from the thighs, cut them into large chunks, approximately 1" cubes.

Put the chicken stock, bay leaves, thyme and peppercorns in pan with a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and add the chicken thighs. Gently poach until the meat is tender. Remove chicken from the pan with a pair of tongs and let cool slightly. Strain the poaching stock and save 1 1/2 cups for later use.

Heat a large frying pan with a little olive oil. Season the breasts and add to the pan. When the meat is three quarters cooked, add the poached leg meat and cook for a few more minutes until golden brown.

Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate. Add the bacon and shallots to the pan with a little more olive oil, if necessary. Sauté for 3-4 minutes over medium heat until the shallots are translucent and the bacon is lightly browned. Stir in the mushrooms and rosemary and sauté for a few more minutes. Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to deglaze. Let the liquid boil until reduced by half.

Add the previously set-aside stock and reduce again by half. Finally, pour in the cream and simmer for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened to a desired consistency. Stir in the mustard and season to taste. Add the browned chicken into the sauce to warm through.

Meanwhile, blanch the pasta in a pot of boiling, salted water for 1 ½ - 2 minutes until al dente. Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce to coat. Divide amongst warmed plates and arrange the chicken over the pasta. Garnish with a sprinkling of chopped parsley and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve immediately.

Stuffed Portobellos with Prosciutto-wrapped fresh Asparagus

2011-09-08T23:09:00.003-05:00

Ingredients
• 2 Portobello mushrooms
• 1 T plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 6 oz. ground lamb
• 2 oz. Mexican chorizo
• 1/3 cup combined finely chopped onion & bell pepper
• 2 t minced garlic
• 1/3 cup combined bread crumbs & grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
• 1/2 t BBQ rub
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling

• 1 lb. fresh asparagus
• 1 Portobello, stemmed, gilled and cut into strips
• 2 slices thin Prosciutto de Parma
• kosher salt & fresh ground pepper

Method:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare the Portobello mushrooms by removing the stem and then gently scraping out the brown gills. Clean and finely mince stem; discard gill material. Rub each Portobello mushroom down with a bit of olive oil.

Lightly salt and pepper the lamb and cook in a small skillet until just browned. Remove to a bowl. Next, cook the chorizo until just cooked, say 4-5 minutes. Add the lamb back in, as well as the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and mushroom stems and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

Transfer sausage-vegetable mixture to the bowl of a food processor. Add half of the breadcrumb/ cheese mixture, 1/2 the cilantro, the rub, and the remaining olive oil. Pulse until mixture is finely chopped and comes together slightly, about 30 seconds. Transfer the mixture back to your bowl, add the egg, and stir until well combined.

Divide the filling among the mushroom with 1/2 for each mushroom. Place the filled mushrooms on a baking sheet.. Divide the bread crumb/ cheese mixture evenly among the tops of the mushrooms. Bake until golden brown on top and the mushrooms are tender, about 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

While the above is cooling, snap the asparagus to length and cook along with mushroom strips on a plate in microwave for 45 seconds. Remove to counter, divide into 2 portions. Fold each slice of Prosciutto in half lengthwise. Wrap each bundle of asparagus and mushrooom strips in one slice of Prosciutto, season with salt and pepper, and place in a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat. As you see the edges of the Prosciutto start to turn, flup the asparagus bundles carefully to cook the other side. This may only take like 2 minutes per side.

Remove the asparagus to your plates, then add the stuffed mushrooms tot he plates. Garnish them with remaining tablespoon of cilantro, drizzle with olive oil and vinegar and serve warm or at room temperature.

Chevré Eggs with Portobellos

2011-09-05T09:42:00.005-05:00

For the kickoff of Portobello mushroom week at Casa Gordita, the following breakfast. Quick and easy to prepare, tasty and filling to devour!

Ingredients:
2 Portobello mushroom caps
2 eggs
2 T butter
2 oz chevré (goat cheese)
2 oz chopped bacon bits
kosher salt & fresh cracked pepper

Method:
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Remove the stems form the mushroom caps. Trim off stem ends and set aside. With a spoon, gently scrape off all of the brown gills from the underside of the mushroom caps. This is necessary on the Portobello because the gills will become a brown mess once the start to cook.

Once the butter is hot, place a mushroom cap in the butter gill side up. Cook until you see the edges just start to turn color, then turn over. Cook until tender. Repeat with other mushroom cap.

While you are cooking the caps, dice the reserved stems. Once the mushroom caps are done and plated, toss in the diced stems and cook int he butter until browned.

On top of each mushroom cap, I place an egg, sunny-side up. This is topped with the crumbled chevré and stem pieces. Pop under the broikler just long enough to melt the cheese, and add the bacon. Salt and pepper to taste.

Breakfast Bites - 'Bacon and Eggs To Go'

2011-09-04T12:47:00.001-05:00

Here's to a different, but very tasty take on the lowly egg. There are thousands of recipes out there for evening finger foods and hors d'oerves - but what about breakfast? If you don't want pastry, you're out of luck - until now. Try these little babies, they're almost like breakfast tacos without the taco!

Ingredients:
12 eggs, hard boiled, prepared as in this post.
3 Tablespoons light canola or vegetable oil
4 Tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
2 Tablespoons sour cream
4 Tablespoons cooked and chopped: bacon bits, breakfast sausage or chorizo
salt & pepper
finely shredded mild cheddar cheese

Method:

Round up the reshaped eggs and a very sharp knife. Sure, you can make this recipe with round eggs, but they are less stable, and where's the fun in that?

Cut the above boiled eggs in half, around the largest diameter with a flat spot on each side. Remove the yolk form each half to a bowl. If you miss a little bit, it's not an issue.

Smash up the yolks and mix in the oil, water, onion powder and sour cream. Make sure this is well integrated. Once well-mixed, chop up and stir in the bacon bits.

Sample and adjust for salt and pepper to taste. Remove yolk mixture to quart sized zip bag.

Service:

Lightly warm the egg whites in microwave, and then warm the bag containing the yolk mixture. Snip off a small corner of the quart bag, turning the bag into a makeshift pastry bag. Use this new tool to pipe the yolk mixture into the waiting whites.

Lightly sprinkle the cheese over the eggs, and heat briefly in microwave until cheese just starts to melt. Serve immediately.

See... breakfast tacos without the taco!

Slenderize Your Eggs

2011-09-02T09:19:00.011-05:00

Everyone has their favorite recipe for boiled/deviled eggs, but this isn't about that. This is about technique, not taste. What I find really annoying is that when you fill them, they get top heavy, and unless you want to put them into a fancy holder, the tendency is to for them to fall over.

Well, no more. If you add a few hours of resting time into your preparation planning, you can have very unusual yet stable eggs for your guests. What's fun is to see if anyone even notices...

Ingredients:
one dozen eggs (at least a week old makes for better peeling)

Method:
Place the eggs into a pot and cover with cold water. Over high heat, bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let lightly boil covered for 10 minutes. When time has elapsed, carry pot to sink and run cold water into pot to displace the hot water and cool the eggs.

Finally, I put the eggs into water and ice until cool. This not only cools them faster, but makes them easier to peel.

Peel the eggs carefully, removing all the shell but leaving the surface unblemished. Place the peeled eggs on a plate with a raised edge, so they don't skitter away. I leave them wet from the peeling process so that they can easily move around a bit.

Next, use a sturdy flat pan of some type or an inverted plate to cover the eggs. Weigh down the top plate with containers equaling 4-5 lbs. or so, placing them on top of the upper plate and checking to see that the weight is evenly distributed.

Over the space of a few hours, the matrix of the cooked egg whites will relax and allow the steady pressure to change the shape of the egg.

Give it 5 or 6 hours. Once you remove them from the fridge, they will be flat on both sides - just enough to keep them stable. Now when you prepare your eggs, deviled or otherwise, they will sit nicely and not roll or fall. Let everyone else figure out how you did it...

Italian Wedding Soup, another rendition

2011-08-17T17:33:00.008-05:00

Zuppa Di Matrimonio

There are as many recipes for Italian wedding soup as there are mothers-in-law in Italy. Most of the ones I have seen or sampled are quite tasty, but yet thin and watery. With this version, I have corrected that little problem and still kept the calorie count down. Buon appetito!

Ingredienti

2 qt. chicken stock/broth
1 tablespoon basil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 10 oz. box frozen spinach
1/2 cup Parmesan or Parmesan/Romano mix grated cheese
2 eggs
1 medium to large onion
1 lb. meatballs
8 oz. orzo pasta
salt & pepper

Instruzioni
Place the chicken stock, basil, bay leaves, garlic and about a teaspoon of pepper in a large dutch oven. Bring to a low boil over medium heat. Once boiling, add in the thawed chopped spinach and stir to incorporate.
Ina 2-cup measuring cup, add the 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Add the 2 eggs on top of the cheese (without any shell), and add enough water to bring the amount to 1 cup. Using a whisk or fork, thrash the resulting concoction until well mixed.
While stirring the pot vigorously, slowly drizzle in the egg/cheese mixture, a little at a time stirring it in well. We are trying to avoid having lumps of scrambled eggs here.
Take 1 medium to large onion, peel and give it a rough chop, as below. Add the onion and the meatballs into the pot, stirring a bit to have them evenly distributed.
Let's talk about meatballs. I have a few good recipes for meatballs, but I didn't have all I needed here to make them. I defaulted to using frozen Italian meatballs I had purchased from Costco. They are certainly not fresh, but they're pretty good. Next time I'll make the meatballs and post the chosen recipe on here for you all. In the mean time - experiment!

What you have now is something that should look like the picture below. Add in the 8 oz. of orzo pasta, mixing it in well. Bring to a boil, stir well, then reduce heat to low and cover. Let simmer 15-20 minutes until pasta is cooked through.
While you are waiting, chop up about a cup of parsley. I used curly leaf, but flat leaf is fine too.
Once everything is ready to eat, taste for salt and pepper, adjust,add in the chopped parsley and serve immediately.

Chicken & Sausage Cacciatore Carbonara

2011-08-15T15:22:00.011-05:00

There’s a pretty decent little Italian restaurant on San Antonio’s far north side that has some very tasty offerings. In particular, I like their take on sausage cacciatore. After taking some home and having it for lunch the next day, I realized that I could probably do a pretty fair job of it myself. So here we go with an enhanced version…

INGREDIENTS
4 chicken thighs, boned, skinned, cut into chunks
4 links Italian sausage, about 12-16 oz. total; 2 wholes, 2 crumbled
2 green bell pepper – stemmed, seeded cut into half-strips
2 red bell pepper – stemmed, seeded cut into half-strips
1 lg. red onion, cut into strips
1 lb mushrooms, cleaned, cut in 1/3” slices - prepared
tomatoes 28 oz can, crushed, or 1 each 15 oz.r can of stewed & puree
4 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
1Tbsp Oregano
1 Tbsp basil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp rosemary
1/2 cup red wine – Marsala, Chianti, etc.
1/2 cup cooked and chopped bacon

Optional Garnish:
chopped flat-leaf parsley
s&p
Parmesan cheese, grated

METHOD
See Mushrooms 101 for mushroom instructions.

Set a large skillet over medium heat.I quickly put together a simple tomato sauce by adding some olive oil and minced garlic in a large skillet and adding the tomatoes. To this I added some salt and pepper and and the herbs let that simmer.

After simmering and reducing for a while, the sauce will thicken and darken, like this. Stir occasionally so that it doesn't scorch. Now's the time to add the wine and stir all together, then let simmer some more.

Remove cooked mushrooms from their pan. Fry the crumbled and the link Italian sausage until the grease has rendered and the sausage is just starting to brown. Remove the sausage and drain the grease.

Slice the link sausages into 1/4" slices and finish cooking the pieces. When done, drain the grease and reserve the sausage pieces with the crumbled sausage.

Next, take the cut up chicken thighs and pepper both sides lightly. Place the chicken in the pan, waiting until it is lightly browned to turn.

When both sides are finished, remove from the pan and drain. Remove meats to plate/bowl and reserve.

Reheat the pan and add about 1-2 tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the peppers, onions and garlic.

When the vegetables are soft and start to brown, add the sausage stirring to incorporate it. Cook the vegetables and the sausage together for a few minutes. Once all incorporated, add in reserved cooked mushrooms and stir well.

By this point, the tomato sauce ought to be nice and thick.

Add your marinara sauce to the pan vegetables and sausage pan a little at a time while stirring, until the dish reaches desired consistency.

Finally, add in the bacon and mix it all well. Serve hot over pasta. I used whole wheat fettuccine, as it's a little better for you than the regular type.

Shredded Beef Enchiladas

2011-08-11T08:36:00.009-05:00

Tired of the old hamburger meat filled enchiladas? This is a nice filling and tasty and hearty alternative. Chop up one medium onion into maybe half-inch pieces. Toss the pieces with a little spray oil (Pam), and sauté them over medium heat in a nonstick skillet until barely translucent.

Gather enough shredded beef for your filling, and mix it together with the onion, stirring until well- heated. Add one 4 oz. can of diced green chiles, mixing well to incorporate. As you prepare the filling, be sure to pour off most of any water or liquid that may accumulate, as you don't want this too soupy.

While this is heating, prepare your tortillas for filling and rolling. Once they are ready, select one tortilla and put a couple of tablespoons of filling down the center. Then roll it up fairly snugly, all the while corralling any filling that may sneak out the ends.

Place the enchilada seam side down in your baking dish and snug against one side. Repeat this for each remaining tortilla.

Once you have them all made, pour your desired enchilada sauce equally over the enchiladas. You can make your own quite simply (not covered here) or use a can of store-bought sauce, whichever you choose. Top that sauce with a nice layer of shredded cheddar cheese and pop it in a 350° over for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is all bubbly and barely starting to brown. Remove the pan to the stove top and let sit 5-10 minutes for heat to even out.

Serve as desired. In this picture you see a nice trio of enchiladas, topped with some fresh shredded cilantro.

Finally, a close up shot of the exposed filling. How could you not want to eat these?

Heck, you can even slide a couple under some eggs for breakfast!

Lower-calorie Soft Corn Tortillas

2011-08-11T07:45:00.004-05:00

Usually when making dishes using corn tortillas, you are faced with some issues inherent in the tortillas themselves. When cold, they are kind of brittle and if bent very far will snap in half. If you heat them up, they become so soft that they fall apart, either immediately or when moving them around. The two methods most often suggested to help with this are to slip them in hot oil for a few seconds and then drain, or to dip them in hot enchilada sauce or the like.

I have found an easy way that you can make them stronger for use in recipes like enchiladas, without getting them either tough or hard and crunchy. It also has the benefit of not adding any fat, oil or calories to the process. It's really two steps - heating and tempering. Start off by heat ing a cast iron comal, or medium to large frying pan on the stove over medium heat.

Heat up your corn tortillas in the microwave - fast and easy. I use a tortilla warmer, but you can wrap them in a damp kitchen towel which will work fine. Once you take them out, they will be hot, but you'll see that they are also very soft and fragile.

One at a time, take out a hot tortilla and heat it on the comal, maybe 20 seconds, then carefully turn it over. You may need to repeat this. You will feel when you have heated that 'steamy' moisture out of the tortilla - it will be flexible but not weak. If you heat it too long this way, it will become like leather - toss it and try again. After a little practice you will get just the right consistency, and they won't be oily or soggy either. Give it a try!

Shredded Beef

2011-08-11T07:03:00.012-05:00

Easy, inexpensive, juicy and full of flavor!

There are many cuts of beef used for making shredded meat, from top round to chuck roast. Hardly anyone uses brisket, because of its reputation for being so tough. Well, like so many other things, it’s more how you cook it. Brisket is not only full of beefy flavor, it is usually about the cheapest large cut of meat available. Let’s work some magic on it.

First you have to prepare the brisket for cooking. You can’t just take it out of the package and throw it in a pot. Remove the unwanted fat and other stuff, as described here. Then you’ll want to season the meat on all sides fairly well with fresh ground black pepper. We aren’t using any salt at this point for a couple of reasons. We are going to be reducing the cooking liquid, which would tend to make it saltier and saltier. Also, salt will draw moisture out of meat, that’s even an ancient technique for preserving it, so we don’t want to dry it out. Finally, we can always add it later, but you can’t take it out if you overdo it.

Next, you want to identify the grain direction in the meat. In the picture above, you can see that it runs from the upper left to lower right. You will then want to cut the meat in strips directly across the grain, each strip being a little wider than you want the final shredded meat to be. It is a lot easier to cut to length now than after it is cooked when it is so loose. Below you see pictures of both a brisket flat (top) and point (bottom) which have been peppered and sliced against the grain.

Now you can get out your 10” or larger Dutch oven, and add 16 oz. (one can) of beef broth, using reduced or no sodium if available and the same amount of water. Turn the heat to medium or medium-low. After that, into the pot goes the meat. It is okay if it’s not completely submerged, you’ll be moving it around later.

Cover the pot and let it cook at a low boil / simmer, rearranging the meat and adding liquid as needed about once an hour. After 3 to four hours, you will find that the meat has become quite tender, similar to a good pot roast. After 5 or 6 hours, you’ll find that the meat is falling-apart tender. Time to carefully fish it out.

Using two forks take out the pieces of meat one at a time and shred them. Continue this until the meat is all shredded. You will end up with a large pile of goodness like this:

As you shred each chunk of meat, put the finished shreds back into the cooking liquid to keep it moist, because once shredded it can dry out fairly quickly. One of the advantages of de-fatting the meat prior to cooking is that you don't end up with all that grease in the broth that remains. You will eventually end up with a nice big pot of shredded goodness. Use it from here, or you can prep to refrigerate or freeze it in portions, liquid included. Whatever you do, just be sure to keep it very moist, or you’ll end up with shredded jerky.

Brisket Prep 101

2011-08-11T07:03:00.005-05:00

This is a tough topic to discuss. For some it will be far more than they want to know, and for some it will be old hat and nothing new. That doesn't make it any less valuable or worth going over one more time. Today’s topic is brisket – popular in many ethnic schools of cooking worldwide, and the pride of Texas BBQ masters. Brisket is known as the most difficult meat for BBQ smoking this side of a whole hog, and frustrates many a home and competition cook. Picking a brisket involves a lot of variables, including weight, shape and grades. All these things may have an affect on your final result, regardless of how you choose to cook it. Brisket is usually available three way: as a whole or "packer" brisket, found sealed in a heavy cryovac bag; as a brisket flat, or less often as just the deckle or point. I always buy packer briskets, as they are usually significantly less expensive per pound and I can prep them how I like. They also have a longer refrigeration/freezer life and less of a chance of contaminants as they are handled fewer times. The packaged flat and points are generally made up at the market, which means they are packaged and handled locally and not as sanitary as the factory anaerobically-bagged ones. Here is a 10 lb. typical ‘packer’ brisket:

On top of all that, I’ve seen briskets from as small as 7 lbs. to as large as 16 lbs. This raw weight can’t be directly used as a measure of how many portions you will end up with, because there is significant loss when cooking a packer brisket. Between all of the excess fat and some shrinkage in cooking, you can only expect to end up with between 50%-60% of the raw weight when you are done.

Brisket, like other cuts of beef, is also available in three grades: Select, Choice and Prime. This is determined primarily by the amount of marbling, or intramuscular fat, which is present in the beef, but also to some extent by the age of the animal. This type of fat equals flavor, tenderness and juiciness, so Prime beef is the most-marbled – and most expensive grade of beef. In most cuts, it is also the most difficult to find as a great deal of it goes straight to restaurants, and only 2% of beef is graded Prime. Choice is the next highest grade, and is perfectly acceptable for cooking. Select is third-highest grade, and usually the lowest grade found in stores. Meat that is not shown as graded is usually Select, but may be even lower. In my experience, It is worth buying Choice over Select, but except for a few great steaks, the price premium you’ll pay for Prime over Choice is rarely worth it. Try and buy Choice briskets if you can. Notice the imprint (below) on the cryo bag – the ink color is different depending on the grade of the meat. If present, this will either say USDA Select (black ink), USDA Choice (blue ink), or USDA Prime (red ink). If you can’t find the grading stamp on a cryovac bag, go elsewhere. Remember, this system is for beef. There is no comparable grading system for pork, you just have to use your eyes and your experience.

So, let’s get it out of the bag and look at what we have. The first thing you'll notice is that the brisket cut is roughly a long triangle. The brisket is actually parts of two different muscles, held together by connective tissue, and it comes from the breast area of the cow - one on either side between the front legs. Think chest muscle. The wider but thinner part is referred to as the 'flat', and the thicker, more pointed end is known as the point or deckle end. It is important to understand the difference between these two muscles, as you will see shortly. There is also a considerable amount of fat on the surface and within the brisket. One side of the meat (the top) seems to be entirely covered by fat, and the other side (the bottom) usually has some spots and one giant hard knot of fat. If you examine this fat more closely, you’ll see that there are three different ‘types’ of fat on the brisket. The two large muscles are held together by connective tissue and considerable fat. If you have ever had a large slice of brisket, chances are you’ve noticed a strip of fat running down the middle lengthwise – this is that layer.

The first type is a white very hard fat. The second type is like regular deposits or layers of a softer fat, and the third is a thin, membranous fat. You can see examples of these pointed out in the pictures below. The red circles outline some of the hard fat, and the blue circles some of the regular type fat. Once you identify the different types on your meat, you’ll be able to recognize it anywhere it occurs on the brisket.

Top (point side up)	Bottom (point side down)

Trimming a brisket for cooking really depends on the demands regarding how it will be prepared. When it comes to me, however, I always trim it very closely, discarding almost all external fat. This is a source of some amusement to some of my BBQ friends, as it flies in the face of the conventional wisdom. The mantra of cooking brisket low & slow is to cook untrimmed and fat side up, so that the melting fat cap “bastes” the meat below. Apologies to all, but that's hooey.

In my experience, the only way in which the exterior fat enhances the moisture in a brisket is that it hinders moisture from escaping, like a waterproof ‘blanket’. Unfortunately, if you are putting it on a smoker, the fat will also prevent the smoke making it’s way into the meat, and will keep any mop or rub you use from actually penetrating and seasoning the meat. As a result, I trim my briskets rather drastically, regardless of how I’ll be preparing it. As long as you pay attention to your cooking methods, you shouldn’t have an issue with drying your brisket out.

First I check to see if there is any patch of old brown surface (shoe leather) on the brisket. This is an artifact from the processing / aging process and is definitely not good eats. This usually occurs along the side, and you’ll want to remove this from your brisket wherever you find it.

Next, I remove all of the hard fat and large globs of regular fat from both surfaces of the brisket. These two pictures below correspond to the two smaller pictures above – same meat in the same position, just with the fat removed. In the pictures below, there are some patches circled in blue. Here you see some thin, light fat areas – this type of stuff is fine to leave behind.

Top (point side up)	Bottom (point side down)

Top (point side up) after trimming off the fat:	Bottom (point side down) after trimming off the fat:

Next, I remove all the hard fat I can from the area between the flat and point. Usually, I actually separate the two pieces completely for cooking, even if I am putting them on the smoker. The point end has much more marbling in it than the flat, and they tend to cook at different rates. Furthermore, the grain in the point runs at an angle of about 45° from the grain in the flat. This is important because brisket is something that you always slice across the grain to serve, just because of all the fibers. If the grain is running in two different directions, that is rather hard to do. Here you can see that I have hem separated, and all the large fat in between removed.

I know this is a lot of trouble, but if you pay attention you will have delicious meat without all the extra fat involved. If you are planning on removing the fat after you cook, I suppose you can, but it will be soft and much more difficult, in addition to all the other negative aspects of cooking with it intact.

Native Supper

2011-08-06T21:41:00.000-05:00

A simple dinner tonight, taking our foods from the First Peoples in the western hemisphere. From the Táino peoples of the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean, we have the origins of the sweet potato. Also, from the plains we have the Great American Bison.

And finally from the Four Corners area, we have Anasazi beans and the three sisters of beans, squash and corn. Before the Navajo, there were the Anasazi, who somewhere around the 8th century began to rely more and more on cultivated crops. These included squash, maize (corn) and beans. Although their civilization mysteriously vanished in the 12th and 13th centuries, their food heritage has not.

I baked the sweet potato just like you would a regular potato - you can use either the oven or a microwave, just don't over cook. I also put together a Three Sisters Succotash, and grilled up some bison filets on the super-hot rocket grill. We had a simple, easy to prepare and nutritious Native American supper, with about as few artificial ingredients as there can be in a meal.

Yá'át'ééh, shik'is.

The Three Sisters

2011-08-06T21:30:00.000-05:00

Naa'ołi, Naadáá' dóó Naayízí

Succotash is probably *the* original American food. Corn, beans and squash have been and remain the principal foods of many Native American tribes. They are called the sisters because they are often used in companion planting, helping each other to thrive. The corn grows tall strong stalks, but has relatively shallow roots. The beans can use the corn for climbing support, and their roots fix nitrogen in the soil for the corn to use. And finally, the squash provides good ground cover, it's large leaves shading the corn's roots and retaining moisture.

Try this as a vegetable dish whose roots go back a long time. The idea is to make it quick and not to overcook the vegetables.

Ingredients
1 unpeeled zucchini/summer squash, medium dice
2 fresh ears (stripped) or 10 oz frozen corn
1 cup cooked beans (Anasazi, Tepary or any variety of heirloom beans), liquid reserved
2 Tablespoons diced red pepper for color
1/8 teaspoon ground sage
fresh ground black pepper to taste
salt to taste

MethodHeat a large, nonstick skillet (or cast iron) over medium high heat.
If using fresh corn, strip the kernels off of the corn cobs - be prepared to chase a few.

Lightly spray the hot pan with an aerosol oil, like Pam. Toss the stripped (or frozen) in the heated pan, stirring constantly so as not to burn them.

Once you smell the roasted corn and see the kernels starting to brown a bit, add in the drained beans and stir to mix well and heat up. Here is an example of dried heirloom beans.

Once the beans are warmed, add in the diced squash, peppers and the sage. Add in enough of the reserved been cooking liquid to adjust the consistency, then taste and season to as desired with salt and pepper. Stir until all is hot and serve immediately. You still want the squash to be a bit firm, not soggy.

Optional: Add some mutton and make it a stew!

Chimney Grill - fast, good, cheap and easy

2011-08-06T20:24:00.006-05:00

I had two small 2" thick bison filets to grill for tonight's dinner, and it is such a waste to fire up a big old Weber kettle for these two small, quick cooking beauties. A good steak ought to be cooked fast over a hot fire, leaving a nice firm crust (a la Ruth's Chris) and still a nice juicy interior. Can you accomplish this in a fast, easy and inexpensive way? Absolutely! Make sure your meat is at room temperature before putting it on this grill.

Like many people who use and appreciate the subtle excellence of charcoal grilling over propane, I use a chimney for starting my coals instead of *ugh* lighter fluid. They work very well, very quickly, and don't leave any funky tastes behind like petroleum. The best way that I have found to start the chimney is to take 3 paper towels, fold them into the size of one, and drizzle some cooking oil in the center.

Stuff this lightly into the bottom of the chimney, and add the desired amount of charcoal in the top, depending on how much you will need. Once you light the paper, the oil will keep it burning much longer than say, the frequently-used newspaper. The paper towels will also completely disappear, unlike newspaper which leaves a big nasty bunch of ashes behind.

Follow the above instructions for starting the chimney, but you only need to add 15 - 20 briquettes. Told you this would be fast and cheap! Light the paper towels, set the chimney on your regular grill, and let it be for a few minutes until your coals turn gray.

CAUTION:
Do not under any circumstances use this technique and set the chimney on any type of concrete or cinder block (CMU) Concentrated heat like this produces can superheat the moisture in the concrete, and cause it to fracture violently or explode.

The way the chimney works, it draws air up through the bottom and the hot air from the coals shoots out the top. This burns much faster and hotter than in an open grill, and we can take advantage of this.

When this happens, set a small grate on top of your chimney - this will be your new rocket grill. You won't believe how well and quickly this works.

On go the fillets. You will see and smell the goodness almost immediately. Monitor the cooking constantly, this isn't something you can walk away from. Turn after 2-3 minutes. Repeat until both sides are done. Personally, I use a Thermapen from Thermoworks to make sure my internal temps are right - about 125°-130°. You may actually have to move them on and off the fire so as to not overcook the outside while finishing the inside - it's that hot.

Once you pull them off, cover the steaks lightly with foil and let rest for 5 minutes to let the juices redistribute. If you cut it open now, all the nice juice would run out, and leave the meat more dry. If you wait, you get this:

The best part is that what's left f the coals will soon die out, and you have a much easier cleaning up job than if you fired up the whole grill.

Enrollado de Pollo Picoso

2011-08-02T19:49:00.007-05:00

"Zesty Rolled Chicken"

I just couldn't face making another fattie right now - time for something different. Well, this turned out to be very tasty, and thought it takes a few steps, it's worth making! This is a two-day recipe, as it requires some freezer time.

Ingredients
2 lg chicken breasts
2 oz Mexican chorizo, cooked
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
4 oz pepper jack cheese, cut in slices
1 12oz package of bacon slices, straight and even

Served with peppers and onions.
Served with Cilantro-Lime cream sauce.

Day One
First, we need top pound out the chicken - everything else comes after that. Trim all visible fat and other material from the breasts. It can be very easy to get carried away and tear the breasts as you pound them if you aren't careful, so take your time. If you aren't up on this, here's how I do it.

First tip - place the breast between two pieces of plastic wrap with a little water sprinkled on it. This will encourage the breast to spread rather than tear. Start from the middle as you are pounding, working your way out toward the edges. You can use a special meat hammer, but some folks even have been known to use a small cast iron pan or even a can of food! Whatever works for you is what works. If the breast tears a little, in this recipe it's not as critical as it could be in other ones.

Once the breasts are pounded out to about 1/2" thick, lay out a fresh piece of plastic wrap with the long direction running front to back. Place the breasts in the center of the plastic, overlapping the thinnest portions.

For this iteration, I decided to keep the filling simple. I used crumbled bacon, cooked Mexican chorizo, pepper jack cheese and of course, cilantro.

Next, layer the slices from end to end across the chicken plateau. On top of that, place a mix of the bacon and chorizo, followed by sprinkling the cilantro. Liberally grind pepper over the chicken, there's plenty of salt in the bacon and chorizo.

At this point, I'd slide it into the freezer for 30-45 minutes to firm up the chicken - it'll be easier to roll. Just don't freeze it too solid! Once out of the freezer, use the plastic wrap to pull the chicken into a tight roll. Should fillings try to escape out the ends, tuck them back in.

Once it's rolled up tight, twist the ends up tight to firm the shape and back in the freezer. You can try and do the next step now, but without practice, it will be a study in frustration. It's a lot easier if you put the tightened roll in the freezer it goes until solid, probably overnight.

Day Two
Time for the finishing touch. Get the package of bacon out of the fridge, and now jump to the section on making the Bacon Weave. I'll wait for you right here.

So, now you're back and your bacon weave is perfect, right? Don't worry if it's not, it takes practice and you always get to eat the mistakes. If you need to, this is a perfect place in the recipe to freeze this if you so desire. Sometimes it's easier to make more than one, and thaw them out when the mood strikes you. Let's just make sure that the whole roll is defrosted before we approach the grill.

Crank up the fire in the grill using an approved method (a chimney, no fluids!) and when the coals are gray, build a two level fire.

Set up your fire all on one side of the grill under the grate, with no coals under the other side. This will give you the option of a hot fire on one side and a medium fire as you move away, allowing you to control your cooking times and temperature.

Once you get the fire established, on goes your Enrollado de Pollo. Now, you can't just walk away, this will require some babysitting. Sear the roll for 3 minutes on each of the four sides while cooking over the hot coals, replacing the cover after each quarter-turn. Once the bacon is crisped, repeat the quarter turns, but for four minutes per side and off to the side of the fire, again withthe cover down between each turn.

As the filling is already cooked, basically all you are doing is cooking bacon and half an inch of chicken, so it won't take long. When you're done, it should look something like this. I hope that I wouldn't need to remind you, but for my lawyer's sake - remember to remove all the toothpicks you used on the bacon before serving!

I served this dish with grilled onions and red, yellow and green bell peppers. As a dressing, I used a simple Cilantro-Lime cream sauce to complement the bacon/chorizo spiciness. Here's a closeup of the finished slices - they were extra juicy!

OCD Bacon Weave

2011-08-02T19:41:00.003-05:00

On occasion, you have to step a little outside the box. If you have been through the other posts on this site, you will have seen some interesting creations, like the fattie and FrankenSwine. Well, unlike them, my newest recipe isn't pork, but like the fattie, it needed that something extra. So, it's time to apply a bacon weave to my latest grilled wonder.

You can find many different ways to make these, and frankly, this is one of the more complicated, but the results look much better. The bacon shrinks a bit as it cooks and makes a nice tight coating. Instead of just making a weave out of bacon and wrapping the food, I actually weave it around the food. Yeah, there's probably a little OCD in the process...

First I measure the roll. In this case, it was about 7" long and 8" in circumference.

I take a long sheet of parchment (or wax paper), and put two parallel creases in it lengthwise that are 7" apart.

Next, I start laying out the bacon slices with about an inch hanging over each crease. Note that by running them at an angle, you still will have full coverage plus a little on each end to tuck up and pin covering the ends of the roll.

Once you've laid out a running 8" of slices, go back and interweave another set running the opposite direction. The ones on the ends will be really long, but you will weave these together after the roll is in place.

Place the roll in the center of weave, and take one end of the parchment and pull the weave over the roll.

Repeat the same with the other end, eventually weaving all the loose ends together, and pinning the bacon ends over the roll ends

Baked Onions

2011-07-30T05:21:00.004-05:00

Ingredients
2 large sweet onions, Vidalia, 1015 or the like
4 tablespoons butter
fresh ground black pepper

Method
Slice the last quarter inch off of both the root and stem ends of each onion. Peel the onions, then slice in half through the 'equator' so you have four portions.

With a small knife or grapefruit spoon, remove a little of the inside center of each onion half to create a well. Place 1 tablespoon of butter in each well and top with fresh ground black pepper.

Set each onion half in the center of a large square of heavy duty aluminum foil, and carefully wrap the foil up and around the onion, twisting the top together to create a sealed package.

You can cook these either in the oven or on a grill for about an hour. The cooking will remove the noxious onion fumes and tastes, greatly increase the sweetness of the onion, and make it exceptionally tender. Beware of hot butter spillage when opening the packages, but save what you can. Remove to your plates and eat while hot.

Wild Sage Bread

2011-07-30T05:14:00.003-05:00

Ingredients
1 package dry yeast
1 cup cottage cheese
1 egg
1 tablespoon melted lard/bacon grease
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons crushed dried sage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 cups flour

Method
Combine sugar, sage, salt, baking soda and flour. Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup warm water. Beat egg and cottage cheese together until smooth. Add melted shortening and yeast. Add flour mixture slowly to egg mixture, beating well after each addition until a stiff dough is formed. Cover dough with cloth and put in warm place until double in bulk (about 1 hour).

Punch dough down, knead for one minute and place in well-greased pan. Cover and let rise for 40 minutes.

Bake in a 350-degree oven for 50 minutes. Brush top with melted shortening and sprinkle with crushed, roasted pine nuts or coarse salt.

Beginning Mushrooms 101

2011-07-28T19:49:00.008-05:00

You do have a choice - there is such a thing as eating good mushrooms and eating really poor mushrooms. I am no mycologist, and far from being an expert, but I have learned a few things about cooking with mushrooms that I don’t often see anywhere, so here goes. While this all works for the common button or Cremini mushrooms most often used, it may not apply to a lot of the more exotics, like morel, chantarelle, oyster or shiitake mushrooms.

The advice I see most often about cooking mushrooms is to put them in a pan with oil or butter, sliced or whole, and let them cook until they are all soft and have shrunk up a bit. Sautéeing mushrooms like this produces repeatable results - soft, slimy slippery and pretty tasteless little things that have shrunk up into little greasy lumps. Yet this is the way we are all shown to do this. Why? It’s fast and easy.

You don’t need to give away all the taste in your mushrooms just to have them cooked, though. Although doing them this way takes a few extra minutes, the effort will pay off in big mushroom flavor and aroma, and still give you something big enough to bite into. First of all, you should select mushrooms that are of a decent size. Getting them 2"-3" or so is the perfect size for what we are going to do. You usually not only get a better price buying mushrooms out of the bulk bin as opposed to those handy pre-packaged plastic bins, but you get to pick out exactly the ones you want, for both size and freshness.

All mushrooms are not the same as they age. Look at the picture below, for example. Most often, the underside of mushrooms look like the one on the left. Notice that the gills are clearly visible between the mushroom cap and the stem. The one on the right shows that the veil or 'vellum' still in place, covering the gills The veil is the tissue that connects the stem and the cap before the gills are exposed and the fruiting body develops. While present in the common white or button and Cremini mushrooms, it is not present on all varieties. Anyway, if present, it is proof that the mushrooms are fresher than those with exposed gills.

Next, cut́ them at least 1/2" to 3/4" thick. I know that seems like a lot, but the mushrooms will shrink by about half while they cook.

Here they are, all ready to go:

Heat a 12" skillet over medium heat. Lay the mushroom slices out in a single layer in the bottom, it's okay if they touch but they shouldn't overlap.

Now comes the hard part - leave them alone. Depending on your stove, it may be 5 or 10 minutes before you need to flip them. You can tell when most of them look like the picture below. Notice the good quantity of liquid that has escaped from the slices. This water, along with what has already evaporated, leaves behind all the flavor, concentrating it in the now smaller slices.

Flip them over, and let them continue to cook undisturbed. Now is when you will see them shrink down. When ready, you'll see that they are quite a bit smaller than when raw, but still of a good size. If you sliced them thin before cooking, they would have only been paper-thin by now.

Now, all of the flavor of the raw mushrooms, enhanced by heat, has been concentrated into the smaller remaining pieces. In addition, they have gained an almost meaty texture, like a nice Portobello. Give this technique a try!

Festa Italiana per la mia Bella Moglie

2011-07-11T20:39:00.022-05:00

Pollo Galliano,
Peperonata con Bruschetta,
e Patate al Forno

The main course, Chicken Galliano, is derivative of several recipe versions found online, and changed up by me. It gets it's special flavor for vanilla, anise and a couple of dozen other herbs and spices. Often seen as an aperitif or a mixer, it really brings a nice balance to the sauce for this dish. It really is a requirement, and the dish won't be the same without it. The bottle is very distinctive, and therefor easy to find. It looks like this:

Main Ingredients:

3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 oz. herbed goat cheese, softened

6 thin slices prosciutto

1 tbsp. finely chopped tarragon

1 tbsp. finely chopped dill

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, chilled, divided

1 lb. Cremini or button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced 1/4" thick

Flour, for dredging

4 tbsp. olive oil, divided

1 1⁄2 cups chicken broth

1⁄4 cup Galliano liqueur

Pepper Ingredients:

extra-virgin olive oil

1 sweet red bell pepper, topped, cored, seeded and cut in large chop

1 sweet orange bell pepper, topped, cored, seeded and cut in large chop

1 sweet yellow bell pepper, topped, cored, seeded and cut in large chop

2 oz. port wine

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

salt & pepper

Bread for bruschetta (optional)

Potato Ingredients:

10 red potatoes, quartered , or russet potatoes cut in 1" chunks

sea salt

olive oil

Black pepper, freshly cracked

3 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

Method:

Heat the over to 375°. Toss the cut up potates in olive oil, salt and pepper and spread out on an oven-proof dish or pan. place them in the oven to roast, turning occasionally, for about an hour.

Take each chicken breast, and slice it in half for thickness, as shown below. You want to end up with pieces about the same size as the original, only half as thick. It isn't easy to see, but in the picture below I am halfway through cutting one of the breasts in half thickness-wise, with the top part folded back:

Next you will then be pounding each half-thick breast portion out to 1⁄8" thick. The best way to do this is to use a large piece of plastic wrap, and a little water, placing the chicken in between. By gently pounding this assembly, you can thin the chicken evenly without tearing or shredding it. Here's what one piece looked like before pounding:

...and here's what it looked like after pounding. See how much larger it is? much easier to roll and will cook more evenly, too.

The better the goat cheese you can buy, the tastier your dish will be. The tangy tartness of the the cheese will be both moderated by the cooking process and the inclusion of the Galliano liqueur, so don't be put off by how it tastes alone. You are also going to make this easier if you take the time to cut a dozen pieces of kitchen twine about 10"-12" long. It is better to have them ready in advance instead of trying to cut them while you are busy rolling chicken. The prosciutto must be of the very thin variety - see how well you can easily make out the pattern on the plate below through 2 or 3 layers of it:

These flattened breasts will be filled with the goat cheese and prosciutto, topped with a bit of the dill and tarragon, and then rolled and tied.

Tie each breast once near each end. This will help to keep them from unrolling and need not be excessively tight. Place the tied breasts on a plate and salt and pepper them on all sides.

In a large 12" skillet, place a couple of tablespoons of butter and one of olive oil and allow to coat over medium heat. While this is heating, dredge the chicken rolls in flour, coating all sides and the ends. Tap them lightly to remove any excess flour, but make sure the entire thig is coated.

Brown these chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each of four sides, for a total of 12-16 minutes, and they will be fully cooked. Remove the cooked breasts from the pan to a plate and let cool. Wipe out the pan, and add the rest of the butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil, stirring until melted. Add in the mushrooms, stirring until coated, and then stirring occasionally until they are sauteed:

Once the mushrooms are done, remove them to a separate plate and then add the chicken broth and Galliano to the pan, de-glazing it as you go. Keep on the heat until the liquid is reduced by half.

In a second large saute pan, add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and the peppers, tossing liberally to make sure they are coated. Saute these over meduum heat, tossing frequently, until they start to soften and tint at the edges:

Add in the wine and the vinegar, and mix well to get everything coated. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep cooking over medium heat until liquid is gone, then remove from heat.

Once the potatoes are done, remove from oven and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Mix together well to coat all the potatoes.

Once the chicken sauce has reduced by half, add the stuffed chicken back to the pan and roll to coat liberally. Add the mushrooms back in and heat all together.

Plate the chicken, and add any remaining butter to the pan to thicken the gravy, stirring until incorporated. Now start spooning mushrooms and gravy over the stuffed rolls. Plate up the potatoes, adding salt and pepper if needed and maybe a little chives if desired. Finally serve up the roasted peppers, over bruschetta if desired:

You had better be hungry, because this is a good-sized meal, but is so tasty it's hard to stop! Left overs make excellent lunches...

In case you are wondering, the title of this post translates to "Italian Feast for my Beautiful Wife".

"Indian" Tuna Salad

2011-06-20T16:58:00.010-05:00

Why "Indian" tuna salad? See below . . .

Although we had this in the house often when I was a child, the main ingredient has gotten harder to find lately. Seems like you have to be lucky to come across it any more. I am talking about Heinz India Relish - there is nothing you can use that will replace it, it's that critical.

This recipe is very simple, and is multiplied easily. My mother makes hers with diced celery, but as I am NO celery fan, I leave it out and up the amount of onion. Occasionally, if I am feeling nostalgic, I might toss in a couple of pinches of celery seed, though.

One jar of relish takes care of 5 regular cans of tuna. Assembling this in the order described below will help to minimize breaking up the tuna and egg too much. Also, it may seem a bit 'dry' once put together, but you know how it is, the next day it will be a lot more moist. Make it wet now, it'll be GOOP tomorrow!

INGREDIENTS:
2 oz. Heinz India Relish (1/5 of a jar)
2 level tablespoon real mayonnaise (never Miracle Whip or low fat)
1 scallion (green onion)
1 7 oz. can of tuna in spring water
1 egg
salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

MISE EN PLACE:
Open tuna, and drain well removing all water and oil.

Chop each scallion in thin slices, both green and white parts. Discard root ball and any withered tips.

Hard boil egg and let cool. Peel, then rough chop. If you multiply this recipe to use a whole jar of relish (and 5 times everything else), toss in a 6th boiled egg.

OPERATIONS:
Mix together the India relish, chopped scallion and mayonnaise until well-incorporated. Gently fold in tuna, without breaking up the chunks excessively. Once well incorporated, gently fold in chopped egg. Taste and add salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.

Refrigerate until well-chilled, allowing flavors to combine. Serve on toasted bread, and to add just a bit more tasty decadence, add a layer of potato chips to the sandwich!

Oh by the way, Heinz India Relish works great in making egg salad as well.

Quasi Osso Buco

2011-06-15T20:40:00.010-05:00

When Veal Shanks are too pricey...

Ingredients:
2 oz olive oil
1 cup flour
4 each beef shanks, about 10-12 ounces each
1 lb large whole white button or Cremini mushrooms, sliced 1/2" thick
Salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 medium or one large diced onion
1 lb carrots, medium diced
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
3 bay leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 cup red wine
2 quarts beef stock

Method:
In a large stock pot or braising pot, add the olive oil. Season the shanks with salt and pepper. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to flour and mix well. Dredge the shanks in the seasoned flour, coating each side completely. When the oil is hot, sear the shanks for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until very brown on all sides. Remove the shanks and set aside.

Image courtesy of wildgirl-inthekitchen

Add the onions to the pan and sauté for 2 minutes. Season onions with salt and pepper. Add the carrots and continue to sauté for 1 minute. Stir in the garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Cook for 1 minute. De-glaze the pan with the red wine, scraping the bottom and sides to loosen the browned particles.

Add half of the stock . Bring the liquid up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the shanks and slowly add enough more stock just to cover. Continue to cook, covered, for about 2 hours, or until the meat starts to fall of the bone. Season again with salt and pepper if needed.

Remove all the meat and bone from the pot and set aside. Remove the vegetables from the pot and set aside as well, leaving only the gravy that has been created from the cooking.
Bring the pot to a good simmer and add the reserved mushrooms. Cook until the liquid thickens, either until it nicely coats the back of a spoon or until it is reduced by half in volume.

While this is reducing, place your sliced mushrooms in a single layer in a large flat pan over medium heat. Add no oil or water - just let them sit. after 5-10 minutes, you will notice that they have released a bit of moisture and have shrunk in size by almost half. At this point, turn the mushrooms over and cook on the other side for another few minutes. This works to concentrate the flavor without adding oil or making them soggy, and you might have to do them in batches so that you don't crowd them. Remove from heat and reserve mushrooms.

Once the sauce is ready, add the meat back in to the liquid to reheat. Add in the reserved mushrooms. Serve with or over pasta, with a nice risotto, on gnocchi. Ladle sauce over meat and vegetables after plating. Here I served it with gnocchi.

A moment of silence...

2011-06-13T12:45:00.003-05:00

R.I.P.

I have searched high and low, and apparently this is the LAST of the home-made sausage from the freezer. The bratwurst is all gone; the Polish sausage is all gone; the breakfast pan sausage is all gone - above is I believe our last package of home made chorizo. Mourn with me as it is slowly devoured here at Casa Gordita over the coming days, and rejoice that the planning for the next sausage day is in the works!

Poblano Chicken

2011-06-08T20:14:00.006-05:00

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
6 carrots, peeled and cut in large bite size pieces
12 new potatoes, cut in large bite size pieces
pearl onions
1 qt chicken stock
8 oz. low fat cream cheese
2 poblano peppers,l peeled roasted, seeded and chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
salt & pepper
parsley for garnish

Method:

Boil the chicken breasts in the chicken stock until just cooked - do not overcook. Remove them when done and let cool.
Next place the prepared vegetables in the chicken stock and cook until al dente. Remove them when done and let cool.
Bring the chicken stock to a boil, reduce to simmer and reduce liquid by half. Next add the cream cheese and stir until melted into the chicken stock.
While this is reducing, chop/pull apart the chicken into large bite-sized chunks.
Add minced jalapeno and roasted poblanos to the cream sauce, and taste for salt & pepper, and adjusting as needed.
Once sauce has reduced to desired thickness, add and reheat the chicken. Once well- incorporated, serve over vegetables. Garnish. Four servings.

FireCrackers

2011-06-06T08:02:00.011-05:00

Don't blame me for perspiration or weight gain!

These things are far too delicious and addictive - when you make them be sure to give most of them away or you'll weigh 500 lbs. These simple little fiery nuggets are based on a recipe I got from my dear friend Nanette - I just tweaked it.

Ingredients:
1 box (4 sleeves) 100% wheat saltine crackers (wheat is important)
1 envelope of dry Hidden Vally Ranch Dip / Salad Dressing mix.
1 1/4 cup of light canola oil
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons dried red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon caraway seed (recommended but optional, but really fills out the taste)
6 tablespoons dried parsley (optional, but makes a nice addition)

Method:
Basically, you combine all the ingredients except the crackers and whisk them into a frenzy to combine well. I cheat and use my stick blender (immersion blender) in a mason jar - it's much faster and easier. Next, you pour it over the crackers and make sure they are all evenly coated.

I do this by using a large rubber spatula in a large plastic bowl, turning them over gently for a while until the oil is all absorbed. She puts them in a seal-able plastic cake box and shakes them like crazy. Whatever floats your boat, the idea is to just get them all coated so the spices coat the crackers. I use wheat crackers as as barely-noticeable nod to healthiness, but you can use the regular crackers if you like. You may have to let them sit and go back and re-stir them a couple of times to get everything absorbed. Let them sit for a while before you dive in, and they will be less greasy.

I recently took a double batch of these to a church get-together, but I made them with only half the listed amount of red pepper flakes. Most folks still thought it was too hot!

Let me know if you try these and especially if you tweak the recipe to make it better!

Medallion Masterpiece

2011-05-31T21:49:00.006-05:00

It's What's for Dinner:

Tonight we shared Medallions Four Ways. Beef fillet, pork tenderloin, chicken breast and large sea scallop - each bacon-wrapped and grilled, served over a grilled Portobello mushroom cap and accompanied by sautéed mushrooms, peppers and onions. Well, at least there's no carbs...

Pulled Pork / Hatch Chile Enchiladas

2011-05-31T12:52:00.018-05:00

American Cross-Cultural Cuisine

This easy to make and yet very satisfying dish combines arguably the some of the best food contributions from North Carolina and New Mexico, and in very little time, makes a creamy and delicious meal.

Ingredients:
1 lb pulled pork, already smoked and shredded
6 each Hatch chiles, roasted, seeded and peeled (can substitute 2 each 4 oz. cans)
12 corn tortillas
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced fine (can substitute 1/2 tsp granulated garlic)
1 pint green enchilada sauce (recipe follows) (can substitute 1 can sauce)
12 oz. shredded queso quesadilla cheese (can substitute mozzarella)
4 oz roasted red pepper, peeled, chopped and seeded

Method:

First, here's a look at some raw materials. Below is one fresh-off-the-smoker pork butt:

One pound of pulled pork and the diced up peppers, all getting acquainted in the pan. Here's where the ground pepper and garlic are added.

This paragraph below is good info:

Tortillas - a new process. Corn tortillas are notoriously fragile when new. Try and fold them too much and they crack and crumble. The common solution is to pass them through either hot oil or simmering sauce to make them pliable without tearing. There's a better, faster, easier and calorie-free way to do this. Take the corn tortillas and put them in a tortilla warmer, and run them in the microwave for 30 seconds. Turn them over and run again for another 30 seconds. This in effect 'steams' them, making them easily rolled without tearing. Don't have a tortilla warmer? Take a clean dish towel, wet it and then wring it out well. Wrap your tortillas loosely in this instead, and follow the above directions.

Preheat your oven to 350°. Next, pour a bit of your enchilada sauce in to the bottom of your baking dish and tilt to cover the entire bottom.

Divide your filling into 12 equal little bundles in your pan. One at a time, distribute a bundle evenly across one of the steamed tortillas as shown below. Now roll it up away from you just snugly enough to keep it all together.

Here's what they look like in the pan after all 12 have been rolled:

Top with the rest of your enchilada sauce and a good layer of the shredded cheese:

Twenty minutes later, the oven has worked it's magic and the the taste buds are working overtime:

Here you see a serving of 3 enchiladas, plated up and accented with some chopped roasted red peppers. This dish has a little tang to it but is certainly not loaded with heat. this has been given the Kathy seal of approval to be added to the "make it again" list.

Salsa Verde for Enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 pound tomatillos, husked, rinsed, coarsely chopped
4 Hatch peppers - roasted, peeled and seeded (can substitute Poblano)
1/2 cup cilantro, without stems
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon lime juice
chicken broth
Salt

Method:
Add the first 5 ingredients together in a blender and pulse together.

Add chicken stock (if necessary) a little at a time just so it will blend. Once smooth, remove to a sauce pan and heat to a low boil.

Reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes or so, check consistency, and adding chicken stock as needed to thin. Add salt to taste.

Right before serving, stir in lime juce to incorporate.

Depending on chicken stock used, makes about 4 cups.

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-09T17:25:00.008-05:00

We are both fortunate enough to both have our parents living so close that we can all get together on occasion. Mother's Day 2011 was one of those occasions A good time was had by all, and most importantly no one went away hungry. There are much fewer pictures of this occasion than I usually have, because either I was busy cooking, or we were busy eating!

Here are a few that sneaked in... and the recipes will soon follow.

Roast Leg of Lamb

Garlic Sesame Snow Peas

Spaghetti Squash with Mushroom & Onions

Home-made Buttery Rolls

We also had prosciutto-wrapped melon balls for an appetizer (only surviving prep picture)...

... and a choice of Key Lime or Strawberry pie for desert (no surviving pictures).

Easy Buttery Dinner Rolls

2011-05-09T17:20:00.003-05:00

Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 (1/4 -oz.) packages active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
1 1/4 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)
1 large egg, slightly beaten
8 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons butter-flavored vegetable shortening

Method
Place 2 cups flour in a large mixing bowl. Add yeast, salt, sugar and dry milk.

Set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine water and egg and stir to blend. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour water mixture into the well. Mix by hand, beating 150 strokes and frequently scraping bottom and sides of bowl. Add 1/2 the melted butter and beat to incorporate. Add remaining flour, about 1/3 cup at a time, beating to incorporate each addition. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Set dough in a warm, draft-free place such as oven with pan of hottest tap water on rack below. Allow batter to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Coat cups, bottoms and sides of a 12-cup muffin pan (or two small round pans) with butter-flavored vegetable shortening. Punch down batter (batter will be extremely soft and sticky). Drop by hand or spoonful into prepared muffin pan cups to make 12 rolls (if in pan, each roll touching the next). Brush dough with 1/2 remaining melted butter.

Let rise, uncovered, in warm, draft-free place until almost doubled in bulk, about 30 minutes. In preheated 400-degree oven, bake rolls on middle rack 16-18 minutes. Brush tops of cooked rolls with remaining melted butter. Serve immediately.

Spaghetti Squash

2011-05-09T17:19:00.006-05:00

Ingredients
2- to 2 1/2-pound spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cups finely chopped onions
2 cup thinly sliced mushrooms
4 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Method
This can be prepared in 45 minutes or less instead of baking forever, using a microwave oven.

Wrap the squash half in microwave-safe plastic wrap and microwave it, cut side up, at high power (100%) for 10 to 12 minutes, or until it feels soft when pressed. Let the squash stand for 5 minutes. In a small microwave-safe dish combine the butter, the onion, and the mushroom and microwave the mixture at high power (100%), stirring once, for 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender. Discard the squash seeds, scrape the flesh with a fork into a bowl, and toss it with the mushroom mixture, the parsley, the chives, the Parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste.

You can use this as a side dish or as a pasta replacement (without all the added ingredients) in Italian dishes to drastically reduce the carbohydrate counts.

Yield: Serves 4

Garlic Sesame Snow Peas

2011-05-09T17:18:00.006-05:00

Garlic Snow Peas
Prep Time: 5 mins
Total Time: 5 mins
Servings: 4

Ingredients
2 C fresh snow peas (washed, dried, and trimmed)
2 T vegetable oil
2 T sesame oil
3 minced garlic cloves
sesame seeds
salt & pepper

Method
Heat wok over medium-high heat. Add oil until it is shimmering hot, then dump in the peas. About 1 minute after stir frying, add garlic and seasoning. Quick fry just till bright green and still crisp.

Cooking time is an estimate -- do not over cook or they will turn dull green and limp.

Remove and serve while still hot.

Quintissential Leg of Lamb - Mother's Day

2011-05-09T17:16:00.004-05:00

BONELESS LEG OF LAMB
serves 8 - 10
• 1 (5 lb) leg of lamb - boneless
• 3 cloves of garlic - crushed
• 2 teaspoons of dry oregano
• 2 teaspoons of dry thyme
• 2 teaspoons of dry rosemary
• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• 1/2 cup of lemon juice - fresh squeezed
• 2 cups of dry red wine
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
Combine in a small bowl the garlic, dried oregano, thyme, rosemary and 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper. Rub the garlic and spice mixture all over the lamb. Put the lamb in a large plastic bag and pour in the olive oil, lemon juice, and red wine. Squeeze out as much of the air as possible from the bag and seal it closed. As a precaution against the bag leaking, wrap a second bag around marinating lamb. Set the bag in a dish and let the lamb marinate in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
Remove the lamb from the refrigerator at least 1 hour before cooking.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. (After 20 minutes of cooking the oven temperature will be lowered to 325 degrees). Remove the lamb from the bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Discard the marinade, it is no longer usable. Combine the 2 teaspoons of salt with the remaining 3/4 teaspoons of freshly ground pepper. Season the lamb with the salt and pepper.
Place the lamb on a rack in a roasting pan.
Roast the lamb for 20 minutes at 450 degrees then lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Continue cooking until desired internal temperature is reached – approximately 135 F - 140 F. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Slice the lamb into 1/2 inch thick slices across the grain.

Citris Tilapia with Wild Rice/Mushroom Combo and Steamed Vegetables

2011-04-19T20:00:00.009-05:00

Really tasty but far too healthy!

Ingredients
1 lb. tilapia fillets (4-5)
juice from one large orange
zest of the entire orange, separated into two portions
2 tbsp. butter
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried cilantro (can use basil)
1/2 tsp. tarragon
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup wild rice
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup chopped wild mushrooms
assorted uncooked vegetables

Directions
Preheat oven to 425°F.

Roll the orange around on the counter under pressure to loosen the inner membranes and release the juice inside. Zest the entire orange, reserving it in two equal halves. Oh, and if you don't have a Microplane, get one. No other grater, 'zester' or other tool works this well! After zesting the orange, squeeze out all the juice you can, and discard the hull. Here you see a half-zested orange and the collected zest so far:

Bring rice and chicken stock to a boil, cover and reduce heat and cook for 20 minutes, or following the package instructions, or until just under done.

Put the OJ, half of the zest, butter, red pepper flakes. cilantro and tarragon in a bowl; heat in microwave for 20 seconds at a time until butter melts.

Rinse fish and pat dry; lightly spray the oven-proof baking dish with Pam to prevent sticking and then lay the fish in the baking dish.

Season to taste with fresh ground pepper and sea salt. Whisk the orange sauce well, and pour evenly over fish, and immediately put it in the oven.

Steam vegetables until just done, do not overcook.

Set the timer for 7 minutes so you can start checking on the fish. It needs to bake for 7-10 - check every minute - until fish reaches 150°F on an accurate instant-read thermometer. Here it is all cooked:

When the rice is just about done, add the chopped mushrooms to the rice and mix well; cover and turn off heat.

Plate the cooked fish, vegetables and rice. Distribute remaining orange zest over cooked fish. Drizzle remaining sauce in cooking dish over vegetables. Serve. Prepare to wish you had made more. See picture at the beginning...

Makes 4 servings.

Remember Me!

2011-04-01T15:00:00.007-05:00

Well, the lady of the house is off this weekend to attend a women-only retreat, so I had to make something tasty so she'd remember to come back! Just kidding, she'll probably come back... but it WAS tasty. Very low carb for us types needing that.

Ingredients
2 Rib-eye steaks, bone-in
extra virgin olive oil
cracked pepper
kosher salt
1 lb. cremini mushrooms
1 medium onion
2 Poblano peppers

Advance Preparation
Remove the steaks form the packaging and pat dry. Using your hands, apply a very light coat of oil to the steaks, followed by some fresh half-cracked black pepper and kosher salt. Apply liberally to both sides. Leave uncovered in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours to evaporate some of the moisture and concentrate the meat's flavor - sort of mini dry aging.

Method
Start a nice charcoal fire in your Weber grill, or other animal cooking device. Let it burn down until the coals are about half nice gray ash, about 20-30 minutes.

Slice the mushrooms about 1/4" thick. In a large dry non-stick skillet (preferably cast iron), brown a single layer of the mushrooms over medium low heat without crowding them. Stir frequently, making sure to get both sides. You want to be toasting them and drying them out, not burning them.

While you are doing this, top and remove seeds and cores from peppers. Cut the peppers and onion up into pieces about 2" by 3/4" or so in size. Using very little oil, saute them in a separate pan from the mushrooms. You can easily control a very light oil application by using PAM or the like to spray them rather than pouring oil into the pan. Saute the vegetables over medium low until the onions become translucent.

Now get your steaks on the fire. Depending on thickness, they won't take long, so you can't just forget them out there.

Once nicely cooked (to about 130°), load them up and bring them in. Lightly cover them with a sheet of foil to rest for 10 minutes or so, to let them cook a bit more and redistribute the juices. Don't skip this step!

As soon as the mushrooms are browned and have reduced in size by almost half, the flavor has really concentrated and they are ready to mix into the onion/pepper mix. Stir it all together, adding a bit more oil (or use the PAM trick) just so they are barely coated.

Once these veggies are about as yummy as they'll get and you can't keep away any longer, plate up the steaks and veggies. Salt and pepper the veggies if you desire, and dig in!

Enchiladas Montadas, Verde y Colorado, en estilo de Nueva Mexico

2011-03-19T23:15:00.010-05:00

That's "New Mexico style Red and Green Stacked Enchiladas" for you gringos! This will feed 2-4 people, depending on hunger and side dishes. It's very filling - no pun intended.

Some comida from New Mexico. I know there's a girl in Austin that misses this yummy stuff, so this one's for you, Jana Po!

This is the New Mexico variation complete with over easy egg. íSalud!

Ingredients
6 Hatch green peppers - seeded, stemmed and roasted, skin removed
(you can use 2 4oz cans if you must)
8 oz. shredded queso quesadilla - goes in green stack
6 oz (or 1/2 small jar) of nopalitos (cactus cut in small strips), rinsed WELL and drained
2 chicken breasts or 4 thighs - boneless & skinless, trimmed of fat (thighs taste better!)

red chile sauce
(I was in a hurry so used enchilada sauce)
8 oz. shredded cheddar - goes in red stack
1 lb ground beef

8 corn tortillas
Oil
2 eggs
2 Tbsp cilantro, minced

Directions
Place peppers in food processor and whiz it until a chunky sauce ensues. If it is a too little thick, blend some more, and even add a little water, but do not completely puree.

Put red enchilada sauce in a small saucepan over medium low heat. If it is too thin, the authentic way is to add a little corn meal for a thickening agent.

Bring 1 quart of water to boil in a medium saucepan. Crumble the ground meat into the boiling ware, and boil until cooked, which will only be a few minutes. Remove from heat, let cool a bit and strain out water, reserving one cup.

Add taco seasoning to ground beef (or use your own favorite seasonings), stirring in well. Add back water as needed to make the meat mixture a good consistency. Once well mixed, add a fourth of the meat mixture to the red sauce, and set the rest aside.

Season the chicken with salt, pepper and garlic. Cook in an un-oiled skillet until browned, then flip and repeat with other side. You can also of course grill it outside if you like. Once the chicken is cooked, let cool and shred the meat. Set aside.

All of the above can be done a day in advance.

Next, we'll prepare the tortillas. Heat a scant quarter-inch of cooking oil in a skillet over medium heat. Slide a corn tortilla into the oil and leave just long enough to see small bumps start to rise on it, then remove it with tongs and drain on paper towels. Repeat for the seven remaining tortillas. This will make them both softer and tougher against tearing.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Time to build the stacks. I made these on the same platter, but it may be easier to do it on two separate plates. We'll do the green one first. Ladle a little bit of the sauce on the plate and then lay down a tortilla. On this goes about a fourth of the queso quesadilla cheese and about a third of the nopalitos, and about a third of the shredded chicken. Repeat these steps two more times, so that you have 3 layers. Finally, top with a tortilla and the rest of the same cheese.

Next, we will do the same for the other enchilada. First, take about 20% of the seasoned beef and mix it in with the red chili sauce. Now, repeat the steps above with the cheddar cheese, the meat-enhanced red chili sauce and the remaining seasoned beef. Top with the last tortilla and the remaining cheddar cheese.

Slide these babies into the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes - you want everything melted but not starting to brown. you're just gonna have to watch them. You can do them under a low broiler as well, but you can't do ANYTHING else but watch them, that works really fast.

Once out of the oven, it's time for the "montada" part of the dish, so top each stack with a nice over-easy egg. This will break and run down through the enchilada, adding both great flavor and texture to the dish. I finished off the dish with minced cilantro, both for color and because I like the taste.

You can also use shredded lettuce and chopped tomato, pico de gallo, olives, or other garnish. Here is a picture of the enchiladas having been cut:

And here is a closeup showing the layers and fillings:

Hot Roast Beef Delight

2011-03-10T18:42:00.008-06:00

I was cruising through the freezer the other day as part of my loss prevention program. I'm tired of not knowing what's in there and losing track of stuff. So, I came across an eye of round roast that was about 2 lbs worth. This is a more challenging cut of meat than most, because there is so little fat that it will very easily end up tough when cooked. What to do?

Open-faced Roast Beef Sammies!

Ingredients:
2 lb. eye of round
2 lg. onion
2 pk. McCormick brown gravy mix (yes, I got lazy)
8 slices thick dark bread
garnish

Method:
Remove your roast and remove all exterior silver skin and visible fat. It should look something like this. Notice the obvious grain - we will be cutting across this later.

Heat the oven to 275°. In a heavy Dutch oven, brown the eye of round well on all sides. Place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven and cover. Cook until internal temperature gets to 125° - start checking after 30-40 minutes (depends on the meat temperature at the start).

Remove meat from Dutch oven and let cool. Our next goal is to slice it across the grain and very thin - 1/16" or less. I accomplished this by freezing the roast, and when almost completely frozen, I loaded it into the slicer. I know that not everyone has one, so you might have to carefully do this by hand. If so, you won't want it frozen!

Here's a shot of the finished product. You can see how the carryover heat ended up cooking the roast to a perfect medium rare. All sliced:

Now, prepare the gravy as directed, in a medium to large pan. Reduce heat to just below a simmer, and mix in all the sliced roast beef, stirring to coat well. Keep this on a medium low heat for now.

While this is heating, peel and then slice the onions into 1/4" slices. Separate the onions into rings, and place in a large covered skillet with a little water. Cook until they become translucent and start to caramelize. Turn down burner and keep warm.

Now it's time to put it all together. Add a little of the gravy on top of the bread, then pile on the sweet caramelized onions. Top this with a nice pile of the roast beef, and finish with a little garnish. Repeat this for the other 3 sandwiches and devour.

Spooky's Scallion Chicken

2011-03-07T18:33:00.013-06:00

Okay, Spooky tossed me up a challenge for a low-fat healthy meal by asking, "You don't post anything in the way of heart friendly, diabetic food do you? Stupid question, but I had to ask." Well Dave, here you go, but don't be scared - that tiny bit of bacon won't kill ya!

Ingredients
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 boneless skinless chicken thighs
4 scallions
4 strips of bacon (yeah, I know, but it isn't much)
unbleached brown / wild rice
1 head of broccoli
previously made pico de gallo
low sodium soy sauce*
Maggi Sazon seasoning*
a few common seasonings from your cupboard*

*use your own discretion and supplies

Method:

Remove all fat and silver skin from the chicken, then clean the chicken pieces under running water and dry. Trim both of the ends off of the scallions, then cut them into about 5" pieces.

Lay out each breast, and trim off the triangular pointy tail and fat round end of the breast, leaving a thick and vaguely rectangular piece of chicken. Cut that piece in half lengthwise.

This effort brings us to here - scallions top, breasts left, thighs right:

Next, butterfly each piece lengthwise, cutting almost but not quite all the way through so that it opens up like a book. Next lay one piece of each end of the scallion in the vee of the breast:

Next, trim a thigh piece and cut two long thick strips out of each thigh. These strips you will lay on top of the scallions thereby surrounding them with chicken. This neat little chicken bundle you will wrap snugly in a spiral with a strip of bacon, securing the ends with toothpicks. Repeat this for all half-breast pieces, and lay them in a vessel that you can use for marinade:

The seasonings for this are pretty much up to you and defined by your taste and what you have on hand. I used EVOO, low-sodium soy and Maggi sauces along with coarse ground pepper and a dash of Montreal steak seasoning. Thinking back, I should have added ginger, but oh well. Try what you like but don't overwhelm the meat with strong flavors.

You could cook these in any number of ways, the only critical items being not to burn the bacon and to make sure the chicken is cooked to a a safe temperature. Or this trip, I took them out of the marinade and cooked them under a low broiler, turning as necessary to get a nice exterior. I checked the inside temps with my Thermapen, and it still needed a little heat, so 60 seconds in the microwave made it perfect. I can't wait to try this over a nice hardwood fire on the grill!

I prepared the rice as normal, but also stirred some pico de gallo into the cooked rice, to add visual appeal, extra veggies, and a nice additional flavor. In addition, I trimmed the broccoli florets from the head and steamed them to retain color and flavor, Instead of butter or cheese, I seasoned it with a light sprinkle of Tony Chachere's Cajun seasoning and a dusting of paprika. Here's a final look at the plate, with the chicken cut open for you to see. You can see the scallion in the middle, and easily differentiate the darker thigh meat form the lighter breast meat in the cross-section. What was a nice bonus was that the chicken picked upa hint of the scallion flavor during cooking, too.

Everything got good reviews from the esteemed panel of critics!

Taco Triple Threat

2011-03-04T19:34:00.005-06:00

Another excursion through the fridge. It's amazing what you can produce with a few raw materials! Anyway, it produced a rare mammal-free dinner that was pretty tasty.

Random Stuff:
6 corn tortillas
avocados
tartar sauce
leftover red bell pepper
lettuce
flour
Panko bread crumbs
eggs
frozen shrimp
leftover raw fish
chicken thigh meat

Putting it together:
I breaded the fish, shrimp and chicken pieces and lightly fried them. Off to a good start!

Then I took the tortillas fro a little swim in the oil, just to lightly fry them too. I let them drain in these handy little racks.

Getting closer to done, and I'm getting hungrier. I made some guacamole from the avocados, and tossed together the home-made tartar sauce. Next came shredded lettuce and julienned red pepper.

Time to get it all together: I laid outthe tortillas, applied a nice schmear of guacamole, and a layer of red peppers. On to p of this went the fried goodies - shrimp, fish and chicken, each in it's own taco. I topped this with the tartar sauces and a little lettuce, followed by salt and pepper to taste.

It turned out to be a nice filling meal, and quite a change from the ordinary. Muy yummy!

Pepper Loins

2011-02-28T19:00:00.007-06:00

Another adventure - the product of "what's in the fridge"?
Bear with me and you'll soon see what I mean...

Random stuff from fridge and pantry:
1 pork loin
half-cracked peppercorns
1 lb Crimini mushrooms, sliced (reserve in two parts)
1/2 cup sherry
1/2 cup port
1/2 t tarragon
1/4 t dill

1 Roma tomato, diced
mozzarella cheese, diced
vinegar & extra virgin olive oil
Peccorino Romano cheese
salt & pepper

1 lb red potatoes
sour cream
garlic powder
parsley flakes

Method
Put about a pound of red potatoes in water and start them to boil until soft. Or use a package of instant mashed red potatoes, your choice.

In a small saucepan, combine the wines, tarragon and dill and bring to a fast simmer. The goal here is to reduce it by 2/3.

Heat a large cast iron skillet to medium-hot. Add in one-half of the sliced Crimini mushrooms and toast to cook in the dry pan - do not add oil. you will see them shrink, be sure to turn halfway through the process when the mushrooms just start to color. Once they are done, mix them in with the reduced wine sauce and cover over low heat to keep warm.

While all that is underway,

Set the oven to 350°. Trim all silver skin from the pork loin, and section out two nice 4 oz. portions. Reserve the rest for another use. Roll the pork loins in cracked peppercorns until lightly crusted, then sear them to a nice light crustiness.

Place the loins on a pan on the center rack, for about 10 minutes, or until your Thermopen registers an internal temp of 135°. Remove from oven, cover with foil, and rest for 10 minutes.

Once you drain your cooked potatoes well, mash them, leaving skins on. Mix in a couple of tablespoons of sour cream and a dash or two of garlic powder, incorporating well. Let sit for flavors to meld.

While all this is going on, take you sliced your Crimini mushrooms, Roma tomato and mozzarella cheese and mix together with the vinegar and oil and salt and pepper as a dressing (you can also use Italian dressing). Once mixed, plate and lightly top with the Romano cheese.

Plate the potatoes, then plate your rested pork loin and top with the mushroom & wine reduction. Voila!

New ways to use leftovers - tasty and thrifty.

Brother-in-Law Ribs

2011-02-27T23:05:00.005-06:00

We hadn’t seen Kathy’s brother Larry in a couple of years, so when he made it down to the Hill Country the other day, I wanted to put up something yummy.

We had seared and oven braised ribs, a nice sausage potato salad and a mixed greens salad with chopped veggies. Come back any time!

Flounder en Papillote

2011-02-27T22:22:00.014-06:00

A truly fast, easy and healthy way to cook, “en papillote” simply means “in paper”. In this method, the food simply steams/braises itself, and the clean up is really easy as well. You can really use any good vegetables you like – this time it was red bell pepper, carrots, sugar snap peas, onions and mushrooms. Frozen mixed vegetables work well here too.

Also, you really have to use parchment paper – wax paper won’t work. In the oven, the wax will melt out and the paper fail, but parchment paper uses silicone instead of wax, so it hangs in there just fine.

Ingredients

zest of 1 entire lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
parchment paper
2 cups of fresh veggies, cut as you would for stir-fry
1/4 cup good white wine
2 tbs lemon juice (not from the zested lemon, above)
2 tsp olive oil
2 (5-ounce) flounder fillets (you can use any fairly thin fresh fish)
4-6 thin slices, center cut from the zested lemon
1/2 cup rice, your choice (I used basmati)
1 cup water

Method

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a small bowl mix together 2/3 of the lemon zest, salt, and pepper and set aside. Save the other third.

Prepare the parchment paper. Lay the paper out in landscape orientation, and then fold it in half like a book. Using scissors, cut out half of a wide heart shape, so that when you finish and it is opened, it will resemble the picture below. Repeat for the second sheet.

Put half of your veggies on one half of your open heart, in the middle top-to-bottom and near the centerline. Drizzle one tsp of olive oil and half of your reserved zest, salt and pepper mix over the veggies.

Lay your piece of fish over the veggies, and layer 2 or 3 lemon slices over the fish.

Drizzle a couple of ounces of wine over the fish stack, fold the empty half of the heart over the food, and start sealing the pouch. Starting at the top of the “heart” (away from the point), fold the paper over about an inch. Move down and repeat, making sure to have each fold overlap the previous fold.

Doing this makes each fold hold the earlier ones shut. When you get to the pointy end, you are left with a “tail” like in the picture below. Notice how all the folds are locked together.

This tail you have left at the end you will tuck under the pouch when you put it on the baking sheet.

Now is a good time to start your rice. Make it as you normally would, but add the raw unsalted lemon zest to the rice when it comes to a boil. Once you set your rice timer for 15 minutes, get the fish in the oven on the middle rack. It needs to spend about 13 minutes in the oven, so when the rice is almost done, pull out your fish. Plate the rice, add butter and garnish as desired. Next plate the pouch. Pierce the paper and pull it back, being careful of the steam. Here it is served alongside the basmati rice mix.

Sausage and Potato Salad

2011-02-09T13:51:00.008-06:00

If you want a change from the typical mayonnaise or mustard based potato salads, give this a try. Potatoes, sausage and a vinaigrette mix together to make it filling, tasty and fresh. This makes 4 healthy servings.

Times:

Prep

10 min

Inactive Prep

10 min

Cook

35 min

Total:

55 min

For Salad:

1 pound potatoes
a couple teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
half-pound Polish or similar sausage, sliced into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
4 chopped scallions, use all green and white parts

For Dressing:

1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

crumbled bacon bits for garnish (optional)

Method:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the potatoes; boil about 25 minutes or until tender. Drain and let cool. Cut potatoes into 1 – 1½” chunks and place in a large bowl.

In a large skillet, heat the 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high heat. Brown the sausage slices. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Add the sausage to the bowl with the potatoes along with celery and green onions.

For the dressing, in a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, garlic, salt, pepper and vinegar, and then slowly whisk in oil. Add this and the scallions to the potato mixture and toss to combine. Add bacon bits if desired as topping. Serve warm or at room temperature. this is also very tasty with red potatoes.

Let Them Eat . . . Oil?

2011-02-09T11:06:00.006-06:00

Everyone who cooks more than frozen pizza has occasion to cook with oil. From Pam in a spray can to $80 per gallon extra-virgin cold-pressed olive oil, there is a place for it somewhere in the cooking panorama. That's no t to say that you can't make your own flavored oils. Things like rosemary, dill, tarragon or garlic oil can really add to salads and dishes from your kitchen. Here's another one - chile oil. In the picture above, I have bottles of canola oil, extra virgin olive oil, chile oil and garlic oil in the kitchen. Yum!

Ingredients:
12 oz fresh oil †
6 Tbsp dried red chili pepper flakes ‡

† use olive oil for a fuller taste, or a light vegetable oil to let the infusion flavor be prominent. Also, if making chili oil for Asian cooking, you can also add a teaspoon of sesame oil in the mix.

‡ you can also use dried chiles of many varieties, like japonais, cascabel, or Thai. Just pulverize them and use them instead of commercial flakes.

Method:
Heat the oil in a sauce pan over medium heat to 180°-200°. While this is heating, add the chile flakes to a heat-proof glass container that you can seal. A one-pint mason jar works great for this. Once the oil is hot, slowly add it to the mason jar on top of the flakes.

Add the top to the jar, and being careful with the hot jar, agitate the oil to mix well. Let the jar sit for at least an hour for the flavors to meld. Once cooled, strain out the chile flakes and pot the oil into a fresh and clean bottle for use. You can save the oily chili flakes for use in cooking too - it's a win-win!

Burgundy Beef & Mushroom Stew

2011-02-02T05:11:00.006-06:00

Ingredients
2 lb. boneless beef shoulder roast
1 lb. fresh button mushrooms
1 lb. fresh cremini mushrooms
1 each medium onion, cut into thin slices
1 lb. carrots, washed, unpeeled, cut into abut 1-1/2" chunks
2 oz. cooked, chopped bacon
2 tsp. Herbs de Provence
1 c. burgundy wine
kosher salt & fresh ground pepper

Method
Place a heavy skillet over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until nice and hot. Toss in the chopped bacon and fry until cooked well. Remove the bacon, leaving the fat in the pan, and drain and reserve.

Trim all fat and silver skin off of the roast, cut into about 1-1/2" chunks, and place in a large bowl. Season liberally with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, and toss / stir to evenly coat. Put the chunks of meat in the still-hot skillet with the bacon fat until it is brown on all sides.

In this order, load up a slow cooker with: beef chunks, mushrooms, onions, herbs de Provence and carrots. Sprinkle the reserved bacon pieces over the top of the food, and then pour in the wine.

Put the top on the cooker and let it go on low for about 8 hours. Try really hard to ignore the lovely smells, and give it at least 8 hours to finish cooking.

Serve in a bowl or over rice or noodles.

Camarones con Mojo de Ajo

2011-02-01T12:20:00.004-06:00

This size shrimp seems to give the best balance between cost and size. Frying the garlic not only infuses the oil, but makes the resultant slices mild and crispy. Frying the shrimp shells just pours more flavor into the oil, which we'll enjoy later.

Ingredients

1 lb raw shrimp, with shells (size: 31-40 count)
1 cup milk
1 cup cooking oil
10 cloves garlic, peeled, sliced thin (more is always better!)
1 cup AP flour
salt & pepper
fresh cilantro
2 limes

Method

Peel the shrimp, reserve shells and tails. Soak peeled shrimp in the milk for an hour. Now peel all your garlic and slice it up:

Heat the oil in a large skillet using medium heat. When hot, add in the sliced garlic and fry. Stir the garlic around, cooking it until it just stars to brown around the edges. Remove the garlic from the oil and save. Dry the shrimp shells and tails well, then add them to the hot oil.

Stir the shells around, turning them over once, so as to infuse the oil with all the 'shrimpyness' of the shells, about 3 minutes. Remove and discard all the shells and tails.

When done, remove all the garlic and shell pieces from the oil with a slotted spoon, then return skillet to heat. Reserve the garlic slices, and discard shrimp shells.

Put the flour in a shallow dish, mixing in salt and pepper to taste. A few at a time, remove the soaked shrimp from the milk and dredge in the flout to coat well. Cook all the shrimp in the hot garlic/shrimp oil until done, about 90 seconds per side.

Remove cooked shrimp and serve with prepared rice, drizzling some of the cooking oil over shrimp and rice.

Below it's garnished with the fried garlic slices and fresh cilantro. Serve with quartered lime sections.

Makes four servings of shrimpy goodness.

Tomatillados de Barbacoa

2011-01-04T19:48:00.007-06:00

Thanks for joining me on another foray into "Tex-Mex", my favorite portmanteau. Almost everyone knows about enchiladas. All that means is something that has had chiles added to it.* These are almost like enchiladas, but not quite - a different twist on a familiar face.

Ingredients
3/4 lb barbacoa (recipe elsewhere)
1/2 white onion, finely diced
8 corn tortillas
1 lb tomatillos
8 oz queso quesadilla cheese
1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
salt, pepper, garlic powder

Method
Warm up the barbacoa in a skillet, and season with salt, pepper and garlic to taste. Add in the onion, stirring to incorporate. Remove from heat and set aside.

Warm the tortillas to make them flexible without breaking. Here i am keeping them in a tortilla warmer, heating them on a comal, and spooning in about an ounce and a half of the filling into each one. Then I roll them up snugly and start laying them in an 8x8 casserole dish. Continue until dish is full.

Remove the stems and husks from the tomatillos, place them in a food processor or blender with a little salt and whiz them until relatively smooth. Pour a decent layer of this tomatillo sauce over the tortillas

Grate the queso quesadilla liberally over the tortillas in an even layer. This Mexican cheese is very much like mozzarella, but has a more pronounced and unique taste.

In the picture below, you can see the cheese nicely distributed. I had a little of the filling left so I just tucked it into the unused corner of the dish.

Pop into a 350° over for 20-25 minutes. You don't have to cook anything, just get it all nice and hot. After it comes out, top with chopped cilantro, or a nice fresh salsa. Momma was hungry, so I didn't get a 'complete' finished pic:

Here is the final product, along with some Spanish rice and refried beans:

*Enchilada is the past participle of Spanish enchilar, "to add chile pepper to," literally to "season (or decorate) with chile." - Diccionario de la Lengua Española, Vigésima segunda edición. Real Academia Española. 2003.

Albóndigas

2011-01-03T16:10:00.011-06:00

Sometimes a Sunday family meal, these little Mexican-style meatballs are simple, tasty and filling.

Ingredients
3 lbs ground beef
2 eggs
1 cup minced onion
1/2 cup white rice
salt & pepper
1 1/2 lbs of ripe tomatoes (6 lbs, 2 or 3 cans)
3 cloves garlic

Method
Using your hands, mix together the first five ingredients. Form this mixture into 1" meatballs.

Place them one layer deep in a large Dutch oven and brown, turning gently to keep them from falling apart, browning them for about 15 minutes.

While these are browning, combine the tomatoes and garlic in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth.

Pour the mixture into the Dutch oven over the browned meatballs, and simmer for an additional 30 minutes, until rice is done.

Carne Guisada, #2 style

2011-01-03T13:20:00.004-06:00

Carne guisada, is Spanish for “stewed meat”, but it is tastefully so much more. Thick, delicious and hearty, there are many variations on the dish depending on where you are and who's making it. Here's a good solid slow-simmered version that always comes out tasty, and it's easy to remember. Pretty much 2 of everything...

Ingredients
2 lb chuck or similar, trimmed, 1" cubes
2 T flour in gallon zipper bag
2 T vegetable oil
2 each small onions (or 1 medium), sliced into 1/4" strips
2 each poblano peppers, stemmed, seeded and sliced into 1/4" strips about 2-3" long
2 each roasted red peppers, stemmed, seeded and sliced into 1/4" strips about 2-3" long
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans beef stock
2 T chili powder
2 T cumin
2 T double-concentrated tomato paste, or 4 T regular tomato paste

salt & pepper to taste

Method
Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to a heavy Dutch oven, and turn the heat to medium. While this is heating, trim approximately 2 lbs of chuck, loin or other roast-type beef of all fat and silver skin, and cut into approximately 1" cubes.

Add 2 tablespoons of AP flour to a gallon plastic zipper bag. Next, about half-pound at a time, add the cubes to the bag and shake to completely coat lightly with flour. Add these coated cubes to the hot oil, turning to brown on all sides. You don't want to add too much at once or the oil temperature will drop.

Repeat this with the remaining meat cubes.

While meat is browning, chop up the vegetables as described above. Once all the meat has all been browned, toss the vegetables in to the Dutch oven and cook until softened. Below are the onions and poblano peppers; the red peppers and garlic haven't made it in the pool yet:

Once the vegetables have softened, it's time to add the meat back in and stir it all together. Next, you add the beef stock, remaining spices and the tomato paste. Stir well to incorporate all, then reduce to a simmer and continue cooking for two hours, stirring every 20 minutes or so. When meat reaches desired tenderness, season with salt & pepper to taste. You can also continue to simmer over low heat to make the sauce thicker if you desire.

You end up with a product that is rich, hearty and yet not too spicy. You can always jack the heat up in your own preferred method. I like to eat my carne guisada in flour tortillas for tacos, with some fresh cilantro and hot sauce as toppers. On can also serve it up on a plate with Spanish rice and refried beans for a nice Tex-Mex meal.

New Year's Day '11 - Canned home made Barbacoa

2011-01-01T18:46:00.005-06:00

Well, today is the first chance I got to use my Christmas goodie, a 23 qt. pressure canner. Now I can safely put up lots of things, and not just high-acid foods. It will also see some use as a pressure cooker, but canning will be it's forte. I decided that I would combine this device's maiden voyage with a real family favorite around here - home made barbacoa. If you've ever made it you know there's a bit of hand work in it, but the results are so satisfying, and you know exactly what's in it and haven't paid $5.00 - $8.00 a pound for it!

Here's what the canner looks like:

In this part of the country barbacoa de cabeza is traditionally made from a cow's head. However, the vast majority of the stuff actually comes from the cheek muscles which are quite large, because as you know, cows are chewing almost all day long. That being said, beef cheeks are not that hard to find around here unless you are looking only at the national chains. Hit up an ethnic or an independent grocer, or maybe a butcher, and you might find them pretty reasonably priced. This next shot shows about 10 lbs of the 18 lbs of meat I picked up for the barbacoa:

Traditionally, barbacoa is cooked in a hole dug in the ground and sandwiched between banked layers of coals. If you have been to my place, you know that it's solid limestone, so that just isn't happening. Instead, I lightly salt the meat, then wrap it in a double wrap of heavy duty foil, taking care to make sure that all seams are sealed tight and that nothing can escape. Here's the start:

... and the next shot shows the finished capsule. Just for scale, that roasting pan is about 18" wide!

This goes into a preheated 300° oven for six hours. Yes, six hours! there's no need to check anything, turn anything or take it's temperature, it will always come out fine if you have sealed the foil well. Next, you'll want to open the package carefully so as not to burn yourself, and as Pablo Menudo would say, "let it BREATHE!" What we need to do is to let it cool down enough to handle, without getting too cool to separate. Notice that the texture and appearance have changed quite a bit, and that there is a lot of liquid in the foil pouch as well:

Now comes the work. There is a lot of connective tissue in beef cheek meat, and quite a number of other goodies as well. You will find that much of the fat has rendered, and it is this special type of fat that gives barbacoa it's unique flavor, consistency and umami (LOL). You will need to carefully go through all of the meat, removing the un-rendered fat, connective tissue, and depending upon your desires, perhaps the nerves, blood vessels, and random glands and lymph nodes. If you take all of that stuff out, it's referred to as 'all-meat' barbacoa and commands a premium price. Up to you. I also drained out all the liquid juice and grease, and stuck it in the freezer to separate. I saved both of these things; a bit more on this later. Here's what 18 lbs of raw product was reduced to - about 9.5 lbs of finished goodness. That's about right, like a good brisket, you'll lose about half the weight during cooking.

Following good canning practices regarding cleanliness et. al., I loaded up nine one-pint jars with my freshly made barbacoa and got the air bubbles out, I then added back some of the reserved and separated cooking liquor up to 1" of head space in the jars. Into the canner for 75 minutes at 11 psi per specs:

Well, the time finally passed, and God smiled upon me, as all of the jars sealed well. They are now out and cooling, so we will not know the longing of being without next time we are struck by the need for some barbacoa breakfast tacos!*

*Barbacoa served on corn tortillas, topped with chopped onions and cilantro, and a squirt of lime. Salt & pepper and a little hot sauce to taste are optional, but never flour tortillas, guacamole, cheese or God forbid - SOUR CREAM!

¡La comida mas fina!

Happy 2011, Y'all!

2011-01-01T17:57:00.000-06:00

Greetings, all, and Happy New Year! ¡Prospero Año Nuevo!

It's been forever since I have posted here and for that I am sorry. Sometimes life is a busy time, in can be insidious as to how it creeps into your day. But it's a new year with new intentions, I hope that this New Year's Day finds you with faith in the future, and more importantly, faith for the future.

Wrap them Loins!

2010-07-29T08:56:00.005-05:00

Momma's home, and hungry. Need some quick and tasty eats. I decided to pull together ideas from three different dishes and produce some eats.

I started with a pork tenderloin, all silver skin and fat removed. It was wrapped in a spiral bacon weave, with the bacon woven all the way around, not just wrapped, with toothpicks holding the ends down. It was then seasoned with a commercial seasoning which I received in a Brethren trade. Very nice stuff! Here it is pre-seasoning:

On the grill, doing all sides until the bacon is cooked. After that, it was moved to the cooler side to finish cooking.

Resting on the cutting board. It was pulled at an internal temp of 138°. Final internal was 146°.

A sliced pic (blurry - sorry). Very juicy, hard to keep from eating it right off the board!

Served up with a baked potato carrying butter, bacon salt, pepper and minced cilantro:

Here's the seasoning I used. It has a terrific flavor profile, but not really any heat. This is a good thing, as you can add chili/cayenne powder to make your desired heat level. It's just hard to find!

Bacon Cheeseburger - for FOUR

2010-04-20T15:24:00.013-05:00

So I was thinking of food - big surprise - and missing the great places that have gone on to that restaurant retirement in the sky. One of the San Antonio greats was Little Hipp's Gimmedraw Parlor, home of Shypoke eggs, mega-sized cheeseburgers, and Willard the turtle. Just down the street from Hipp's Bubble Room, located on the corner and possessing a criminally undersized parking lot, it was impossible to have a bad time there.

Back to the burgers. They had these giant burgers you had to cut like a pizza to eat, but beside being huge, they were mighty tasty. So I figured what the heck, even though I don't own a flat top or have access to those giant buns, I'd try and crank one out to honor the old place. So in tribute to the Hipp family, I present the Bacon Cheeseburger for Four.

First, I readied eight slices of Buckboard bacon,made from pork shoulder rather than bellies. It's much leaner and more flavorful. This was made them into a weave, pre-cooked on a comal, drained and set aside for later.

Next I took 1.5 lbs of ground chuck, and added my seasonings to the meat. You never want to mix fresh ground meat too much, as it will make it tough. This I divided into two very large but thin patties. I trimmed my bacon weave to a bout an inch smaller than the burger meat, and placed it on one patty.

These two patties were then stacked and had the edges crimped together securely. A final round of seasoning, and off to the Weber it went.

Once done, it was topped with sliced cheese and peeled Hatch peppers. The bun was split and grilled as well for a bit of crunchiness. Adding a little catsup & mayo, sliced onion and cilantro, and we were ready to roll!

Note: That little dot on the plate below is a quarter, just for an idea of scale.

Here's the presentation pic - with a clear view of all the goodies and the hidden bacon. The bread loaf I chose for this effort was a multi-grain one, and was a little chewy and heavy. Probably a home made pan frances type of loaf would make a better bun.

MOINKS & Grilled Asparagus

2010-04-02T18:41:00.004-05:00

Most of you may not know what a MOINK is. It is a treat that was created by BBQ Grail, a frequent and skilled poster on the BBQ Brethren online forum. Basically, a MOINK is is an all-beef meatball (the "MOO") which is then wrapped in bacon (the "OINK"). Put them together, you have MOINK.

These were done on a Weber grill, but I usually do them in the smoker. Either way, tasty stuff! Here are my ingredients: pre-made beef meatballs, fresh bacon, some Hog Waller rub, and a BBQ sauce I created from tomato sauce, honey, Worcestershire sauce, Sriracha, and a few other tasty goodies.

Each MOINK was made up using a half-piece of bacon, pinned around the meatball with a toothpick.

The MOINKs were put on the grill with indirect heat from an offset fore in the Weber kettle.

Once they were flipped, I added the fresh asparagus coated with olive oil, salt and cracked pepper.

Finished MOINKs!

Plated MOINKs, along with grilled asparagus and Bernaise sauce.

Different? Yes. Tasty? You bet!

First hot-fast brisket - amazing results!

2010-03-15T14:26:00.004-05:00

I just finished my first hot & fast CAB choice brisket today on the WSM 22 at about 300 degrees. It was an eye-opening experience (thanks, Konrad!). One thing I tried which was a bit of extra work was to separate the point and flat and trim of all the excess fat. These I panned separately. I flipped them over and foiled the pans as each got to 165. In the pans was the au jus that the brisket had created to which I added some water and flavoring liquid.

Without having to heat up all that fat must have made an immense difference! The panned point was at 200 after only 3 hours, and the flat was at 185! Half an hour later I checked the flat at 200, and pulled it as well. They rested for an hour in a 170 degree warming oven, swimming in the juices. Doing the pieces separately made it easy to control consistency without it being a compromise. Both had a great smoke ring as well. I saw no issues from having removed all that fat cap and the stuff surrounding the point. It was still very juicy, very tender and had a great flavor.

That's going from into the pit to into the stomach in less than 5 hours, including resting, for a 14+ lb. brisket.

Pomegranate Glaze/Sauce

2010-03-14T17:59:00.009-05:00

Here is a terrific glaze for chicken and pork. Using the base of pomegranate juice makes for a tasty but hard-to-identify flavor that makes you want more. This recipe is easily doubled for more glaze/sauce. See note at the end of the recipe about the listed hot sauce. For use as a glaze, double the brown sugar and glaze the meat 1/2 hour before removing from the smoker. For sauce, use as-is.

Ingredients:
6 T pure Pomegranate juice
4 T ketchup
2 T Búfalo jalapeno hot sauce
2 T brown sugar
1/2 T apple cider vinegar

Method:
Add all ingredients to a saucepan over medium low heat. Whisk together well.
As bubbles start to form, reduce to a slow simmer and let reduce by half, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. It will thicken into a delicious sauce.

Note:
The hot sauce listed is one of Mexico's best-kept secrets, and is the best selling sauce there. It is very thick, like ketchup, and doesn't run all over the place like the more popular sauces do, and it isn't overpoweringly vinegar-tasting. It is widely available at H.E.B. stores and Wal*Mart, and get the sauce with the red plastic safety seal around the cap - it has carrots listed as an ingredient.

Pork SmokeLoins

2010-03-14T17:50:00.012-05:00

Another BBQ treat for those of you who want a good, fast, tasty meal from your smoker. They can be grilled as well, but won't have the great smoky flavor.

Ingredients:
2 pork tenderloins, each around a pound
8 slices of regular bacon
BBQ rub mixture, your own or store bought.
Pomegranate sauce (click for recipe)

Method:
Open the tenderloin package(s) and rinse off the loins. Trim off any silver skin. Cut each tenderloin in half, so you have two loinettes about 6" long form each.

Next, coat each loinette lightly in your favorite BBQ rub. This doesn't need to be very heavy, pork tenderloin is a very mild-flavored meat and you don't want to overdo it. Next, you'll notice that one end of each loin tapers to a point. You'll want to fold that over so it cooks evenly with the rest of the meat. It is easily done, starting like this:

...and finishing like this:

Next comes the bacon. Using a toothpick, secure one end of a strip of bacon to the meat near one end. Wrap it in a spiral around the meat - it ought to go about halfway:

use another toothpick to secure the end and start another slice of bacon. Continue spiraling around the meat until covered and finish with a third toothpick. Two slices of bacon ought to to cover one loinette. Repeat this wrapping for the for other loinettes.

Here I put them on the smoker alongside a panned brisket point. The smoker is running about 300 degrees, you can choose to do them down around 225 if you like.

Finally done! They were smoked to an internal temp of 140, with carry-over heat taking them to 145. Before you get all riled up, I know the USDA says to cook pork to 165, but that would ruin the tenderloins. That old bugaboo trichinosis is killed by 141 degrees, so not to worry.

Here is a loinette sliced through with a nice pomegranate sauce. You can see the light smoke ring just inside the bacon layer. Very tasty!

Chicken Myronnaise

2010-02-05T00:06:00.006-06:00

People gain inspiration for new dishes from many sources, and sometimes they aren't sure where it comes from. I must think about cooking all the time, because this one came to me in the shower! The name comes from two sources - Myron Mixon, a master BBQ pitmaster who uses muffin tins for his competition chicken, and the Bearnaise sauce used in the dish.

I started out with six large chicken thighs. I selected thighs over the more oft-used breasts, because they stay much more moist and have more flavor. I skinned and de-boned them myself, removing as much fat as practical.

Then I went to my inside freezer and pulled some compound butter I had made a while ago. This particular butter is combined with cilantro, lime juice and garlic. Killer stuff! I put about 1/2 tablespoon of the compound butter in each muffin well.

Next, I formed the boneless thighs into a nice smooth ball and wrapped them with bacon. These were placed upside down in the muffin wells on top of the butter. You can run these either in the smoker or the oven, but count on about 45 minutes at 275 degrees. These I had to cook in the oven, as the weather was not conducive to running the smoker, unfortunately. Remember, thighs won't turn white like breasts, so you can't go by color - a good instant thermometer is your friend here.

I then selected some nice slices of home made smoked Canadian Bacon and brought the slices up to room temperature. Okay, there actually were more than six, but I sampled a couple for quality control purposes.

Now comes the most challenging part of the dish, especially if you have never made Bearnaise sauce before. It can be very challenging if you aren't good with a whisk. There are many different recipes for this delight, so I'll leave it up to the reader to find one they are comfortable with. If you absolutely can't do it, Knorr makes a packaged mix that can be substituted, but it won't be quite the same. Either way, this is a very rich sauce and definitely not low-calorie - about a third of it is butter.

Now to plate it up. I used well-toasted English muffin halves as a base, and applied a "light" layer of Bearnaise followed by a slice of Canadian Bacon.

Next I removed a wrapped chicken thigh from the muffin tin, inverted and drained the butter from it, and centered it on the Canadian bacon. Although not shown below, another coating of Bearnaise was spooned over the final product.

I didn't get any finished and sliced pictures, as we were hungry and they disappeared before I thought of it. These were very delicious, and although very rich will by popular demand be on the regular rotating menu here at Casa Gordita!

Can You Be?

2010-01-23T15:06:00.002-06:00

POGO

1995 - 2010

I've had worse days in my life, but I can't recall when the last one was that was worse than today. Our beloved Keeshond, Pogo, has been having serious problems the last several months. He had lost most of his hearing, could not see for the large cataracts in his eyes, and has spent most of his time sleeping. We went out of our way to care for his needs and pay attention to him when he was up and around. Of late, however, he began to worsen and was having balance and bowel control issues. Finally, he decided that he wasn't interested in food anymore like he was. Kathy and I knew the day would come when he could not function any more, and that we would have to put aside our wants and desires in order to do what was right in terms of his daily suffering. Today was that day.

At 10:00 am this morning at the Bandera Veterinary Clinic, Pogo departed this world for whatever follows for beloved pets and family members. He left without pain and is suffering no more. It has been an exasperating and tear-filled day here at Casa Gordita, and I expect that to continue for some time to come.

Pogo was found as a young dog wandering in the country, wet and mud-coated, with no clue as to his origins. After a trip to the vet and a good cleaning up, several attempts were made to locate his owners, and then to find him a good home, as we already had a dog. None of these efforts panned out, and so we decided that he would make his home with us. He was a smart, active and playful guy, and a source of much pleasure and love for our family.

I encourage any of you who knew him to remember him fondly for who he was, and know he is better off now than he has been of late. In response to the question posed in the title of this piece:

"Can you be the kind of person your dog thinks you are?"

WSM Short Ribs & more

2010-01-18T21:27:00.006-06:00

Another piece of heaven from the 'Black Capsule'. I happened to see some particularly meaty short ribs at the store the other day, and couldn't pass them by. Although there are but two of us, I figured that 7.5 lbs. was a reasonable amount!

I gave them a good rub down with olive oil, and then applied some kosher salt and fresh ground pepper...

I used 8 lbs. of charcoal, and 3 hunks of mesquite, lighting it off with a half-chimney of lump. After getting the smoker up to temp, on went the ribs. There was a little extra space, so 4 bratwurst and a couple of kielbassas hit the grid with the ribs.

Finally done! I used the hyper-accurate green Thermopen to make sure they were right where I wanted them - rare to medium rare.

It was really difficult not to just dig in, but I let them rest in a warm oven a bit.

Here's the sausages that accompanied the ribs - nice looking group!

These came out just the way we like them - tender, juicy and no where near overdone.

Hope you like seeing them as much as I liked eating them!

Happy New Year from the Family

2010-01-02T22:09:00.004-06:00

Years back, I fried my first turkey, and DW told me that she didn't want to do any more turkeys in the oven. Well, after today, she doesn't want those either. Looks like it's smoked turkeys from now on! I did my first turkey smoke today, with a couple of 12 lb.'ers on the WSM. Kinda gutsy as all the kids and grandkids were going to be here for chow. The birds were brined overnight, and run at 275 degrees until the breast was at 170. They were very juicy and quickly consumed!

Loading up the Black Capsule:

Ready to go:

Finished, and peeled back some skin to check the goodness:

Nothing but smiles from the "customers":

We also had mashed baby red garlic potatoes, sweet potatoes, cornbread casserole, and a big pot of fixed-up black-eyed peas.

New Weapon in the Arsenal

2009-12-26T19:12:00.006-06:00

Santa Claus was good to us this year, a 22.5" Weber Smokey Mountain bullet arrived just before Christmas. Of course, the weather was damp very windy, so it was the centerpiece of the living room for a couple of days. It sat there, unmoving, like the monolith in the movie "2001". In preparation for the first fire, Christmas Day was spent cranking out 10 lbs. of bratwurst. Nine lbs. was vac'ed for freezing, and the rest refrigerated for the big day.

Started off with a medium sized load of briquets, using a chimney full of lump in the center for the starter. This is one version of the Minion Method - allowing the charcoal to catch over time rather than firing it all at once. Four chunks of mesquite (not shown) were placed throughout the load to start sequentially as the charcoal burned.

Next, two gallons of water were added to the water pan to keep the humidity up and to act as a "thermal flywheel" in helping to regulate the temperature over time. The racks were added, and I topped it off to let it come to temperature.

Once the smoker hit 235 degrees, on went the four reserved brats (with a leftover spud) and a rack of spares in a Kansas City trim. the other small pieces of meat shown below represent about half of the trim from doing the KC trim. Some people, unbelievably throw this stuff away. These pieces cook much faster than the ribs and were reserved for "cook's treat". There has to be a reward for all the hard work, after all!

These ribs were done "Texas style" - i.e., without saucing or foiling. Here's the way I do it. After trimming the rack to it's final form, the meat is dried well with paper towels. At that point it is liberally coated with Worcestershire sauce, and rather than a traditional rub, I use Bolner's 'Fiesta' brand Fajita Seasoning. There are no red pepper or sugar components, it's almost like a steak seasoning with extra garlic. Give it a try!

The WSM maintained 225 to 235 degrees throughout the smoke session. The temperature was about 55 degrees and there was a 5-10 mph wind. I only had to adjust the lower vents once during the course of the smoke.

Notice the Thin Blue Smoke - just like it ought to be...

Below is the result - four perfectly smoked brats and a great rack! The little sausage spud and the "cook's treats" didn't survive the afternoon, however. They were consumed in the course of "quality control".

The WSM cranked out an excellent smoke ring on the ribs, as shown below, which was great to see as these were very meaty spares. All in all the first smoke on the new cooker was a great success!

Mary Travers - R.I.P.

2009-09-16T23:48:00.004-05:00

"Mary Travers passed away today. After successful recovery from leukemia through a bone marrow/stem cell transplant, Mary succumbed to the side effects of one of the chemotherapy treatments."

That's how the home page for Peter, Paul and Mary leads off today. She has been fighting leukemia for a number of years, and the last time I saw her a few years ago she was a bit shaky, but cranky and determined as ever.

Peter, Paul and Mary played a large role in my early life in learning about music. Maybe their messages and presence have helped contribute to the tempering of my generally conservative outlook. Whatever effect they have had on my life, it's been instructive and integral.

It's going to be very strained and difficult evening at the Kerrville Folk Festival the next year we celebrating Peter's birthday.

This one's for you, Mary.

VERY LAST DAY (Noel Paul Stookey & Peter Yarrow)

Everybody gonna pray - on the very last day
Oh when they hear that bell a-ring the world away
Everybody gonna pray to the heavens on the judgment day.

Well you can sing about the great king David
And you can preach about the wisdom of Saul
But the judgment falls on all mankind
When the trumpet sounds the call.
All equal and the same
When the Lord he calls your name
Get ready, brother, for that day.

Well one day soon all men will stand
His Word will be heeded in all the land
Men shall know and men shall see,
We all are brothers and we all are free
Mankind was made of clay
Each of us in the very same way
Get ready, brother, for that day

Oh well the law is given and the law is known,
A tale is told and the seed is sown,
From dust we came into dust we’ll go,
You the know the Lord once told us so.
Each brother takes his hand,
Heed the meaning of the Lord’s command
Get ready, brother, for that day.

Everybody gonna pray - on the very last day
Oh when they hear that bell a-ring the world away
Everybody gonna pray to the heavens on the judgment day.

A better path to Mexican ground beef?

2009-05-18T20:33:00.007-05:00

Do you like simple Mexican food, but sometimes the grease is overwhelming? Dislike the sometimes harsh taste of pan-fried ground meat? Well, here's a little-experienced method usually found in tiny hole-in-the-wall cocinas and neighborhood Mexican restaurants.

Have you ever considered making tacos, etc., with boiled ground meat? Done in this method, you retain all the great taste and you lose almost all the nasty grease - and on top of all that it has a different almost velvety mouth feel. It even freezes well. La comida mas fina!

Here's one way:

2 lb. ground chuck
2T chili powder
1t cumin
1t garlic powder
1t paprika
1t salt
1/2 bell pepper
1/2 onion

Put the meat in a pan and add seasonings (plus more to taste). Add water to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer for about an hour. Every 15 minutes or so break up the meat so it isn't lumpy. Just make sure you don't run out of water - keep just enough to cover meat. Once done, add finely-diced onion & bell pepper and simmer like another 20 minutes or so. It will be pretty finely textured, like this:
Remove from stove pour into strainer. Let the meat sitting the strainer for 10 or 15 minutes to make sure all grease drains out, pressing it if need be. You want to keep the liquid, but get rid of the grease. Put the liquid in the freezer for a few minutes. When grease separates and starts to harden on top, take a spoon and remove all of it. Save about a cup of the cleaned liquid - the rest can be saved towards a soup, or poured over the dog's food for a treat, a little at a time.

Place the reserved liquid in a small pan bring to a boil. Dissolve 1 teaspoon of corn starch in about 1/4 cup of cold water add to liquid, simmer 4 or 5 more minutes. Dump the reserved meat into the pan and mix liquid well into meat. Now we have tasty moist taco meat, but grease free. It can be used for so many things, but here I demonstrate the simple taco:
I mixed up some fresh Pico de Gallo, and put it in the fridge to chill:
Then it was time to assemble the tacos. Atop the meat is a light shred of cheddar cheese, and the entire plate dusted with chile powder before topping with the Pico de Gallo. I didn't have any, or it might have been treated to a few avocado slices as well.

Every bit as good as it looks!

Better Garlic Bread

2009-05-05T20:18:00.008-05:00

Nothing sours a good Italian meal faster than soggy, drippy garlic bread. A great garlic bread topping would have a good consistency and texture, adding to the bread and not just soaking it.

My father came up with a concoction that works pretty well. I changed the mix a little, and here's what I am using nowadays. I realize that this recipe make a lot, but it freezes well and keeps in the fridge for a long time too. This way, you don't have to make it too often, but it is always available.

INGREDIENTS
1 lb unsalted butter
1 cup real mayonnaise
3/4 cup grated Parmesan (or Parmesan & Romano mix)
5 T garlic powder

METHOD
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Do this over low heat so it doesn't burn, it may take a while.
Once melted, mix in the mayonnaise and garlic powder. The mayonnaise adds a nice consistency without affecting the taste. Continue mixing occasionally until combined. I used a stick blender (what Emeril calls a 'boat motor'), which will make it really smooth.
Pour the mixture into a glass or metal bowl, and place the bowl in the freezer until the mixture starts to thicken up. You will see that it has separated.
Next, grab a spatula and mix it into an even consistency. You'll have to do this again, so don't wash it just yet. After it sets up spme, mix a final time until uniform, then back in the freezer it goes. This time it will remain mixed, but still be spreadable. Now stir in the grated cheese.
At this point I fill half-pint Mason jars for the fridge. Now, on to the tasting! You will want to pull this from the fridge a while before you use it, because it will set up hard, just like butter.

Spread the mixture on your bread. I didn't have any great breads on hand for the photos, so I used a light rye for these shots.
Pop the bread in under the broiler until it just starts to turn a golden light brown. Notice that the spread has formed a nice coating, instead of disappearing into the bread. Just enough soaks in to make the bread tender from the oven. You can also spread this on fresh hot bread or freshly made toast.

Sprinkle with a dash of parsley, and eat!
This spread can be used for other things as well, and you'll see some of that next time.

CURRY PIES

2009-04-24T06:45:00.012-05:00

I picked this up from Diane, who grew up in the vicinity of the Java Sea. She has lots of good stories, and shared some good food ideas. I have changed it little - mostly just quantifying the ingredients. Tasty and addictive, they are darned good when fresh from the oven, and pretty tasty even from the fridge. The filling even freezes and keeps well. The quantities below are what I used for this batch, but the recipe scales very well, so you can make as much as you like. You'll never want to make just a little...

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 lbs* bottom round steak, diced into 1/4" pieces
white onions, diced into 1/4" pieces, equal volume to amount of meat
potatoes, diced into 1/4" pieces, equal volume to amount of meat
canned biscuits (not the flaky type)

*(you can scale this recipe to about any amount - makes about 20 per pound of meat)

For each pound of meat, you will need:
1/2 tsp butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp oil
1 tsp Malaysian hot curry powder, vary amount to taste

salt & pepper

METHOD
Clean your meat well of all fat, gristle and connective tissue.
Dice it into even cubes, about 1/4" in size. Form this into a pile on a clean plate or cutting board.
Next, cut potatoes to the same size, 1/4" dice. Keep doing this until you have a pile equal in size to the meat. Repeat for the onions. You want to end end up with three equal-sized piles - meat, potatoes and onions.
Add oil to large frying pan over medium heat, then when at temperature, add meat and brown. Reduce heat and cook until tender. When done, remove meat and set aside.
Next, add butter, onions and potatoes to frying pan, stirring occasionally until onions are translucent and potatoes start to soften. Below is a bad pic of the curry powder I use. There are many kinds available, but the Malaysian has a unique balance of heat, sweet and flavor that work in this dish. The others don't seem to have the same effect.
Add the meat back to the frying pan, add the curry powder, and stir to incorporate. Turn heat down and stir occasionally, letting the flavors meld.
Remove curry filling from pan, set aside, and let cool. Then refrigerate until ready to assemble the puffs.

MAKING THE PIES
You can make the dough yourself, and roll it out to make these. I know how good they are, and don't want to wait that long to eat some. After all, the dough is only the delivery vehicle for the main event. I find that cheap 'whomp' biscuits work out well for this, and are always the perfect size. Just don't use the flaky kind.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Open up a can of biscuits and separate them out. The following works best if you keep them cold. Pull, stretch and flatten the biscuits out to about a 5" diameter. Try and do this without creating holes, as they can be difficult to close back up successfully.
Drop a heaping tablespoon of cold filling in the center of the biscuit, taking great care to keep it away from the outer inch of the biscuit round.
Carefully fold the biscuit in half, pinching the edges together. Try and get the air out of inside as you do this.
Repeat the above until you have enough to space out on a greased baking sheet. Actually, I use a Silpat, so there's no oil and no sticking. Place the pan in the oven and bake them until they start to turn a golden brown on top. You know what biscuits are supposed to look like - they should look like that. I started peeking at these after about 15 minutes.
Pull them out, move them to a rack to cool and repeat the process until you have made as many curry puffs as you like. Freeze the remaining filling -it keeps well for a long time. Finally, the reward!

Chicken & Dumplings - Thick, Rich and Simple

2009-04-19T15:29:00.010-05:00

There are probably more recipes for chicken & dumplings than anyone can count. Some are very simple, and some are just exhaustive. This recipe is very simple, but it takes a fair amount of time, start to eat, about 3-4 hours. Although simple, it comes out nice and thick and rich.

INGREDIENTS
3 1/2 -4 lbs of chicken, either one whole bird or several parts
1 1/2 lbs of white onions, about 3 medium onions
2 oz. (1/2 stick) butter
2 t salt
1 t ground black pepper
1 t garlic powder
1/8 t cayenne pepper
32 oz. chicken stock (I used low-sodium boxed stock)
'whomp' biscuits (more on this later)

METHOD
In a large dutch over or heavy pot with lid, melt the butter over medium heat. Coarsely chop the onions, and add onions and salt, pepper, garlic powder and cayenne to butter. Stir occasionally until onions are translucent.
Raw fresh chicken almost always needs to be cleaned well before being cooked. There is inevitably a lot of excess fat and skin to remove:After you get it all cleaned up, you can see all the trash you wont have to eat:
If you are using a while bird, you'll find a lot of removable stuff at the rear opening - just cut off all the loose skin and fat, and the tail. You can really see the difference with all the junk removed form your chicken:
Place your whole trimmed bird (or trimmed pieces) in the pot on top of the onions, and add chicken stock. Add water if needed to almost cover chicken.

Cover the pot and let simmer for at least 45 minutes and check chicken for being done. Once done, remove chicken pieces and let cool somewhat on a rack.
Now comes the time-consuming part. Once the chicken pieces are cool enough to handle, get a large pan and start picking. You'll be pulling all the meat off of the chicken with your fingers. This is the best way to get all the pieces - fingers are the best tools. Once you get all the meat together, discard the remaining bones, fat and skin. Now, using your fingers, go through the meat again, shredding it as you go.
This also gives you another chance at catching and pieces of fat, gristle, bone or other junk that sneaked by the first time. You don't want to serve this with little pieces of crap in it. Dump the shredded chicken back into the pot of onions and broth.

"Whomp Biscuits"

Time for the dumplings. There are dozens of ways to make and add dumplings to your dish. They pretty much all involve the same ingredients, and frankly, it's not worth the extra time to me to make the dough, etc. So for this dish, I take an idea from a friend. I get one can of the cheap biscuits from the refrigerated case at the store. I was told they are called 'whomp' biscuits because you whomp them against the counter edge to open them. Good enough for me.

More tedious work ahead. Separate the biscuits and lay them out. Now, take each biscuit and tear it into little pieces, rolling each into a rough ball shape. In the picture below all those little pieces are from one biscuit. You really do need to make these small like this, because they really plump up in once they hit the pot, as you will see below. Toss all of these little balls into the simmering dutch oven, and when done, stir well.
You will notice that no matter what you do, they will stay floating on the top, just floating and mocking you.
Cover the dish again and let them simmer for another 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. When you can stir the pot and they remain all mixed in, and no longer rising to the surface, they are done. Now it's time to taste and adjust salt & pepper and seasonings as you see fit.
You'll see how thick and rich this turns out, considering the short list of ingredients and simple preparation!
Served up and ready to go...