Hi all,
So far no one is able to comment on the meal we have had. Too full to comment. The various pizzas prepared were delightful... each and every one. Never had sage on a pizza before but it was great. All of the pizzas were prepared right before our eyes with fresh rolled crust. Bob is a culinary genius.
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Beef Paprikash
I made this dish because I had a bunch of sirloin tips leftover from trimming out a couple of whole sirloins. The sirloin is certainly nice stuff to work with, but regular stew meat would work just as well. I picked this dish probably because I've been making Beef Bourguignone a little to much and I was looking for a different flavor. Mission accomplished.
3 oz. veg oil
1 green pepper diced
2 yellow onions diced
3 cloves garlic
chicken stock or water, enough to just cover all ingredients
4 TB. paprika
3 lbs. beef stew sized pieces
flour for dredging
Salt and pepper to taste
In a heavy bottomed braising pan or stock pot heat 1 oz. veg oil, add the green pepper and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook till onion is softened and slightly translucent. Add stock or water and reduce heat to simmer.
In a separate saute pan, over med. heat just enough oil to cover bottom of pan and brown the dredged pieces of beef. It will take about 4-5 batches to cook it all. After each batch is browned on all sides, add to pepper and onion mixture. when all the beef has been cooked and added to the pot, cover and simmer for about 2 hours or until beef is very tender.
I first served this dish over egg noodles. Since then I've had it over rice. It can also be served with mashed potatoes. Feeling ambitious? It would be great over gnocchi.
Well this dish, that I don't make often enough, was so enjoyable, I don't really know what to say, except, try it and enjoy.
Ciao for now, Garlichut
3 oz. veg oil
1 green pepper diced
2 yellow onions diced
3 cloves garlic
chicken stock or water, enough to just cover all ingredients
4 TB. paprika
3 lbs. beef stew sized pieces
flour for dredging
Salt and pepper to taste
In a heavy bottomed braising pan or stock pot heat 1 oz. veg oil, add the green pepper and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook till onion is softened and slightly translucent. Add stock or water and reduce heat to simmer.
In a separate saute pan, over med. heat just enough oil to cover bottom of pan and brown the dredged pieces of beef. It will take about 4-5 batches to cook it all. After each batch is browned on all sides, add to pepper and onion mixture. when all the beef has been cooked and added to the pot, cover and simmer for about 2 hours or until beef is very tender.
I first served this dish over egg noodles. Since then I've had it over rice. It can also be served with mashed potatoes. Feeling ambitious? It would be great over gnocchi.
Well this dish, that I don't make often enough, was so enjoyable, I don't really know what to say, except, try it and enjoy.
Ciao for now, Garlichut
Monday, April 9, 2012
Just for kicks
So, Ever since the Super Bowl party that I went to, I've wanted to make the breaded chicken tenders that I made in the place of traditionalchicken wings. I particularly enjoyed the tenders with Franks Redhot sauce. So, what pops into my mind? Well I just finished having the breaded chicken fingers on a tortilla with a little melted Monterey jack cheese, sliced avocado, some citantro, a little lettuce and a liberal splash of hot sauce. It might not exactly be health food, but OMG it was good. Try it and enjoy.
Ciao for now, Garlichut
Ciao for now, Garlichut
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Easter is coming
With Easter coming this week, I've turned my thoughts towards the flavors of the Easter feast. The main portion of Easter feasts often being the great stand alone flavors of turkey, ham, or lamb, I started to think about complimentary flavored side dishes.
Some of the side dishes I've made to complement holiday meals are:
String Beans with olive oil garlic mushrooms and thyme
Brussels sprouts lightly browned and simmered in chicken stock
Broccoli blanched with some melted butter and bread crumbs
Sweet potatoes baked peeled sliced and glazed
A glaze can be simply some brown sugar and balsamic vinegar simmered to thicken. Or add one of your favorite spirits to the glaze, such as cognac, Bourbon, jack Daniels or whatever
Scalloped potatoes are one of my favorite sides
Whatever your holiday meal consists of, always remember to keep it simple and enjoy
Have a great holiday and Ciao for now, Garlichut
Some of the side dishes I've made to complement holiday meals are:
String Beans with olive oil garlic mushrooms and thyme
Brussels sprouts lightly browned and simmered in chicken stock
Broccoli blanched with some melted butter and bread crumbs
Sweet potatoes baked peeled sliced and glazed
A glaze can be simply some brown sugar and balsamic vinegar simmered to thicken. Or add one of your favorite spirits to the glaze, such as cognac, Bourbon, jack Daniels or whatever
Scalloped potatoes are one of my favorite sides
Whatever your holiday meal consists of, always remember to keep it simple and enjoy
Have a great holiday and Ciao for now, Garlichut
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Spinach and feta
Some neighbors were over for dinner last night. I made spinach and feta stuffed mushrooms as an app.. I had more filling than I needed, so as usual, I put it into a ramekin and saved it for today. Today while I was heating up some leftover potatoes in the toaster oven, I put the Spinach and feta mixture in the oven also. I enjoy that little dish of spinach and feta so much, I decided that I had to share it with whomever might want to make it. It would make a great and unusual vegetable to accompany just about any main course.
1 bag cleaned and washed spinach
1/2 bunch green onions, white part only finely chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1 tsp. olive oil
4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1 egg lightly beaten
1/4 cup romano cheese
fresh ground black pepper to taste
Cook spinach in a pot with a little water till wilted. Set aside in a colander to drain and cool. In a small saute pan heat the oil, onion, and garlic until softened. Squeeze out as much moisture from the spinach as you can.Transfer the spinach to a cutting board and chop it fine. Put the spinach, onion mixture and the rest of the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir well to combine. Divide the mixture evenly in 4 small ramekins. Bake for 20- 25 minutes at 350. If you need more servings or want to cut down on the cheese just either add another bag of spinach at the start, for more or, use only 2 oz. of feta. You could use frozen chopped spinach, but there's no substitute for fresh. It's like OMG. Enjoy
Ciao for now, Garlichut
1 bag cleaned and washed spinach
1/2 bunch green onions, white part only finely chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1 tsp. olive oil
4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1 egg lightly beaten
1/4 cup romano cheese
fresh ground black pepper to taste
Cook spinach in a pot with a little water till wilted. Set aside in a colander to drain and cool. In a small saute pan heat the oil, onion, and garlic until softened. Squeeze out as much moisture from the spinach as you can.Transfer the spinach to a cutting board and chop it fine. Put the spinach, onion mixture and the rest of the ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir well to combine. Divide the mixture evenly in 4 small ramekins. Bake for 20- 25 minutes at 350. If you need more servings or want to cut down on the cheese just either add another bag of spinach at the start, for more or, use only 2 oz. of feta. You could use frozen chopped spinach, but there's no substitute for fresh. It's like OMG. Enjoy
Ciao for now, Garlichut
Monday, March 12, 2012
Chowder cookoff
Well, I was a judge over the weekend for the Oriental Womens club anual chowder cookoff. My fellow judges were, local TV personality, meteorologist Skip Waters, and food writer Eddy Browning. Samples of chowder were tasted blindly, with the only identification being letter association. ABCD. It was fun to analyse and discuss all the different flavors and textures.
There was certainly a wide variety of styles. Most were cream based. Afew were southern style with clear broth. About half of the entries had a specific dominant flavor, be it tarragon, dill, sherry, bacon, red pepper. allthough there were some good examples, all judges agreed that there wasn't any that clearly stood out.
In the course of conversation, I mentioned a corn salad that I used to make. So for Eddy Brownings' interest in it, here is the recipe.
Mexican Corn salad
2- 15 oz. cans corn drained - or
4 cups fresh cooked corn, cut off the cob
4 oz. diced green chilis
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
2 tbs. lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic, sauteed in 1 tbs. olive oil to soften the flavor
salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and mix well
Enjoy
Ciao for now, Garlichut
There was certainly a wide variety of styles. Most were cream based. Afew were southern style with clear broth. About half of the entries had a specific dominant flavor, be it tarragon, dill, sherry, bacon, red pepper. allthough there were some good examples, all judges agreed that there wasn't any that clearly stood out.
In the course of conversation, I mentioned a corn salad that I used to make. So for Eddy Brownings' interest in it, here is the recipe.
Mexican Corn salad
2- 15 oz. cans corn drained - or
4 cups fresh cooked corn, cut off the cob
4 oz. diced green chilis
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
2 tbs. lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 clove garlic, sauteed in 1 tbs. olive oil to soften the flavor
salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and mix well
Enjoy
Ciao for now, Garlichut
Saturday, March 3, 2012
New flavor search
Hello Foodies,
During this past week, I was having trouble getting into my freezer, because it was so stuffed. So I took a good look and realized I had two containers of tomato sauce and three containers of chicken stock taking up most of the space. The solution: use something up. Easiest way, make some risotto and get rid of one of the containers of stock. So, yesterday, on my way home, I stopped at the market and stood in the vegetable isle trying to figure out what to put in my risotto. Mushrooms were sounding good, but what to combine with them. I've kind of done mushroom spinach to death, so I wanted something else. I stood there looking and looking, but nothing was hitting me. Then I thought about things I had at home that I might use. Then it hit me. Pancetta, mushrooms, parsley, and fresh basil was the flavor of the day. With a plan in mind and my mushrooms in the bag, I was on my way.
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup diced pancetta
8 oz, cremini mushrooms
1 small onion diced
1 cup arborio rice
3 cloves garlic minced
1 cup white wine
3 cups simmering chicken stock (approx.)
1 cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 Tbs. chopped fresh basil
In your favorite risotto pan, heat 3 Tbs. olive oil. Add onion and rice and heat through till the edges of the kernels of rice begin to turn slightly translucent. (about 3-4-min.) Add the wine and stir frequently. Keep cooking till almost all of the liquid has been absorbed. Then add a ladle full of stock and stir occasionally till it also has been absorbed. In the mean time in a separate saute pan, in the remaining oil, heat the pancetta and cook till golden brown. (just like bacon) Then add the mushrooms and cook till the mushrooms have softened. (You might need a little more olive oil if the mushrooms seem too dry) Finish adding stock to the risotto a ladle full at a time till the rice is cooked through, but kernels are still a little firm. Usually this takes about 30-35 min.. Add the pancetta and mushrooms and heat through. Remove from heat and remaining ingredients . Stir well and serve.
The result was a great dish of risotto.
Try it and enjoy.
I had a little Montepulciano D'abruzzo to go with it. Delightful!!!
Ciao for now, Garlichut
During this past week, I was having trouble getting into my freezer, because it was so stuffed. So I took a good look and realized I had two containers of tomato sauce and three containers of chicken stock taking up most of the space. The solution: use something up. Easiest way, make some risotto and get rid of one of the containers of stock. So, yesterday, on my way home, I stopped at the market and stood in the vegetable isle trying to figure out what to put in my risotto. Mushrooms were sounding good, but what to combine with them. I've kind of done mushroom spinach to death, so I wanted something else. I stood there looking and looking, but nothing was hitting me. Then I thought about things I had at home that I might use. Then it hit me. Pancetta, mushrooms, parsley, and fresh basil was the flavor of the day. With a plan in mind and my mushrooms in the bag, I was on my way.
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup diced pancetta
8 oz, cremini mushrooms
1 small onion diced
1 cup arborio rice
3 cloves garlic minced
1 cup white wine
3 cups simmering chicken stock (approx.)
1 cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 Tbs. chopped fresh basil
In your favorite risotto pan, heat 3 Tbs. olive oil. Add onion and rice and heat through till the edges of the kernels of rice begin to turn slightly translucent. (about 3-4-min.) Add the wine and stir frequently. Keep cooking till almost all of the liquid has been absorbed. Then add a ladle full of stock and stir occasionally till it also has been absorbed. In the mean time in a separate saute pan, in the remaining oil, heat the pancetta and cook till golden brown. (just like bacon) Then add the mushrooms and cook till the mushrooms have softened. (You might need a little more olive oil if the mushrooms seem too dry) Finish adding stock to the risotto a ladle full at a time till the rice is cooked through, but kernels are still a little firm. Usually this takes about 30-35 min.. Add the pancetta and mushrooms and heat through. Remove from heat and remaining ingredients . Stir well and serve.
The result was a great dish of risotto.
Try it and enjoy.
I had a little Montepulciano D'abruzzo to go with it. Delightful!!!
Ciao for now, Garlichut
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