Cheese Stuffed Sweet Peppers with Marinara Sauce

If you are not a member of Justapinch.com and love to cook, you should be.  This marinara sauce is, "Hands-Down," the best I have ever made.  This would also be an EXCELLENT pizza sauce!  The recipe came to me through Justapinch.com weeks ago.  I bought the ingredients last week then got busy and forgot about it until cleaning out the fridge for Easter and said, "Oh yeah...that's why I bought that!"  Funny thing is, I had forwarded it my Mom in New Mexico.  So I called her yesterday afternoon on my birthday and I tell her what I'm making for dinner.  She starts giggling and I know something is up!  She's making the same thing at the same time and has also changed up her recipe a little!  HA!  Also, for my vegetarian friends, there is no reason you need to add meat to this dish.   It would be just as good without meat.  The original recipe called for ground turkey.  I didn't want turkey, I wanted the Isineros (I know I'm spelling that wrong) organic Italian Chicken Sausage.  That was a great substitute!

We both agree that the recipe needs to be served over pasta!  She has whole wheat penne and I have the regular...check!  We used a different mix of cheeses, but we both agree this one is a keeper!  When I make this again....and I will, I would add mushrooms to the list of ingredients.

This is what you will need, don't freak out, I know it looks like a lot, but it's really manageable and easy to prepare.

Sauce:
1 lb. Isineros Italian chicken sausage
8 cloves of garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. dried basil  (HA!  I used my own home-grown Queen of Sheba basil)
1 tsp. Mrs. Dash Tomato and Basil (I did buy this and use it and am glad I did)
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. black pepper
2 cans (15 oz) diced tomatoes with oregano, basil and garlic
4 oz can tomato paste
2 cups fresh, diced tomatoes
1 TBSP sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste

Stuffed Peppers:
about 14 mini bell peppers (I get them at Sam's Club)
16 oz light ricotta (I used 15 oz. of Greek yogurt)
8 oz shredded provolone cheese
6 oz grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg

Dice your onion and garlic.  Cook garlic and onion with the chicken sausage in a Dutch oven pot with about 1 TBSP olive oil.  Cook until onions are tender.  Add tomatoes, tomato paste, and fresh tomatoes.  Add the dry seasonings, sugar and lemon juice.  Simmer 45 minutes.









Now mix together the yogurt or ricotta, provolone and most of the Parmesan and egg (save about 1/2 cup of asiago or Parmesan to top AFTER it has baked. 

Cut off the tops of the peppers and remove the seeds and veins.  Stuff with the cheese mixture.

Ladle 1/2 of the marinara on the bottom of a baking dish, top with stuffed peppers, ladle the other 1/2 of marinara on top of that.  I always have left over cheese mix....just dollop that on top of the marinara and spread it over gently...a little more cheese never hurts and who wants to waste?  Bake at 375 degrees F for 45 minutes.  Now cook your penne pasta.  Reduce the heat on the peppers to 350 and continue cooking for another 20 minutes or until peppers are soft.  The pasta and peppers will be ready at the same time.

 By the way, this isn't important, but this is my FAVORITE kitchen tool!  I bought it over 25 years ago at a store in Alamogordo that doesn't even exist anymore.  It's the most useful tool in the kitchen and I'd be lost without it.

Halibut Corn Chowder

So I made some Halibut Corn Chowder from a recipe originally published in "Alaskan Halibut Recipes" by Cecilia Nibeck ISBN: 0-9622117-0-2 and everyone loved it.  Don't be intimidated!  This chowder can be made in under an hour!  The recipe seemed a bit blah for my taste and I wanted to kick it up a notch by adding more ingredients.  First off, I want more potatoes!  Jim loves his potatoes and I love my moms clam chowder that is chock-full of them!  Well if you have more potatoes, shouldn't you have sour cream, chives and garlic?  Since it's halibut it needs to have lots of dill weed.  I also think potatoes and bacon are best friends, so don't skimp on the bacon---and while you're at it, make it that thick-peppered stuff!

1 lb. halibut, skinned and cut into 1-inch cubes
4 slices thick, peppered bacon, diced
1 small onion, chopped
1 TBSP flour
4 good sized potatoes, peeled and diced (I like about a 1" chunk)
1 cup water
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp. dill weed
1 can whole-kernel corn (I use what I pressure can from the summer.  Nothing beats Olathe corn!)
2 cups half and half
1 cup milk
2 TBSP. chopped parsley
1 TBSP. garlic powder
2 tsp. chives, dry or diced
1/2 cup sour cream (at the end)
*If you REALLY want to be decadent, slide 2 TBSP of butter in the pot to melt before you serve it!

Cook bacon until crisp.  Saute onions until tender, stir in flour.  Add potatoes, water, salt, pepper and dill weed.  Bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer until the potatoes are tender.  Add halibut, parsley, garlic powder and chives.  Cover and simmer until fish flakes easily.  Add corn, half-and-half and milk.  Do not boil.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add 1/2 cup sour cream to stir in and serve.

I love this with oyster/saltine crackers!

*for grins and giggles and if you want even more for this chowder you can finely dice a carrot and celery with the potatoes to add color and taste!

Tuna Fish vs. Salmon fish Sandwich Spread Revisted

My mom made the best ever tuna sandwiches.  I don't know where she learned to do that but they were very unusual.  She chopped up pecans, lettuce, boiled eggs and combined the tuna with mayo and the other ingredients.  I had a wild hair a few years ago about this and began using my left  over salmon in place of tuna.  It has been a wild ride depending on the seasoning and method of cooking salmon.  This time I coated my salmon with southwestern spices like chipotle and cilantro.  Cook the fish, pick out the bones...then add the ingredients

Cooked salmon: about 2 cups
4 boiled eggs, chopped
1 cup mayo
salt, pepper to taste (I use hickory smoked salt)
1/2 cup mesquite smoked pecans, diced
Add 2 cups of shredded lettuce

Mix all together....serve up on sandwich bread.....oh my goodness .....nothing better.

Jims Idea of Dinner----Meat, Potatoes and Saurkraut

So that cute hunky hubby can't get enough potatoes.  I secretly think he views our own home-grown cabbage and potatoes from our own garden as a gold/treasure trove and that he MUST indulge and partake of these products of our work whenever possible.  I have to say that I agree...but not to the extent that he does.  Potatoes, potatoes, potatoes..... So tonight we are having Hot Reindeer Sausage with Red, White and Blue Potatoes we grew in our garden.  I didn't plant or get many blues but I will in the future...these babies pack a powerful punch with flavor, are beautiful to serve and are the crem-de-la-crem of tubers.

You need:  about 2 lbs of potatoes, 1 1/2 pints of sauerkraut I canned last year from our green cabbage, a 1/2 a red onion, 6 reindeer sausages cut into large chunks (he likes it hot) and some black pepper to taste....I did add a little salish (smoked salt)...but the sausage and sauerkraut is salty enough don't add too much.  The blue potatoes are a prized possession....I didn't get many, but they are the BEST!

People at work hear me praise the use of what I call endearingly "Crock Pot Condoms"...Simply put....they are turkey roasting bags or slow cooker bags that keep the dish free from scrubbing.  I am all about less scrubbing and moist food so this works for me.  I could make some crass jokes here but will refrain.  The bag keeps the moisture inside and clean-up is a snap....throw away the bag!

Place all of the ingredients into a bag, sprinkle with some course ground pepper, tie off the bag, shake to distribute ingredients, place back in the baking dish and bake at 300 DF for 1.5 hours.

Taters, Sauerkraut, Onions, Sausage, Pepper....really?  That's all?  Yep!

You are now a hero and it didn't take but 15 minutes of prep time!

Black Bean Salsa

Game day!  What is better on Super Bowl Sunday than easy peel shrimp with lemon wedges and cocktail sauce, tequila-lime hot wings, and a cold beer?  Spicy salsa and chips of course!  This is a "no brainer" and comes together so easy.  I'd be willing to bet that you already have all the ingredients in your pantry.

The original recipe comes from Ro-Tel, but I added a few more ingredients to kick it up a little more.

Black Bean Salsa

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes with green chile
1/2 cup whole kernel corn, drained
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
1/4 cup diced cilantro
1/2 lime, juiced
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 jalapeno, seeds removed and diced

Mix all ingredients together cover with plastic wrap and allow the flavors to marry for an hour.  This would also be a great vegetarian taco filling with some cheese to top it off.

Game On!  Go 49rs!!!

Pedro's in Gallup NM Carne Advoda

Carne Adovada ingredients you need

Carne Adovada!  Gallup, NM style.  Is there any other way?  I think not!  Don't give me this fancy-smansy FoodNetwork wannabe that calls for foo-foo ingredients like bell peppers and white bread.  Oh please!  Let's get back down to brass-tax dollars and the real-McCoy....the whole enchilada...the primo of Prime...NO ONE did it better than Pedro's Restaurant in Gallup, NM.  My Aunt Bubbles worked there for years and years and had an inside avenue to the cooks.  Here is the recipe as she gave it to me over 25 years ago.  Pedro's (the original Pedro's closed down a few decades ago.)  Be prepared to make it ahead of time and wait, and wait and wait some more until you can finally bake and eat.  Once you make this, there is no going back!  It is so good it will make you cry!  Next, I will try to get the recipe for the Nightmare.  Don't blame me, I am just forwarding on the process.

5 lb. boneless pork roast, trimmed and cut to 1 1/2" cubes
2 - 14 oz. tubs of frozen red chile
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Mexican oregano (YES!!! There is a difference!)
1/4 tsp. cumin
*ME!!! I added a TBSP of red chile flakes...I like it hot!
2 TBSP vinegar

Mix all the ingredients together and allow to sit undisturbed in the fridge for 48 hours.  Place in a baking dish, top with about 1 cup cold water and bake SLLLLLOOOOOOWWWW at 250 degrees F. for at least 4 hours or until done....it will literally fall apart.  At this point you can serve it up with other yummies like beans and rice.

OK....I added this second part....it is not a part of Pedro's Carne Adovada as they served it as a main dish with beans and rice....I use it for tacos...see the following for my rendition.

Sherry's Take on This: 
Serve with warm, corn tortillas, some cilantro, diced and seeded Roma tomatoes, thin slices of red radishes, avocado and slices of lime.....and, yes, I still want beans and rice!

P.S.....a good beer doesn't hurt....Pacifico anyone?

Hubbard Squash Soup or Hubbard Squash Curry

Hubbard Squash Soup

I've been anticipating the day when I could finally use the Hubbard squash and the last of my carrots I grew in the garden this year and what better day than on Thanksgiving when we are reminded to be thankful. I am thankful for the bounty of vegetables we grew this year.

Most of the recipes I researched included brown sugar or maple syrup and I knew I didn't want something sweet. Luckily I found a recipe posted by Jillian Bedell at http://www.fromaway.com. This soup is brilliant! I knew just from the aroma wafting from the oven door that this squash was going to be one of my favorites to grow and eat from now on. Although I did change up the recipe a little by adding yellow curry to kick it up a notch.

Blue Hubbard Squash Soup

1/2 pint heavy cream (I'll use coconut milk instead next time if using curry)
1 bay leaf
1 TBSP ground sage
1/2 stick butter
3 finely chopped carrots
2 finely chopped celery stalks
1 diced onion
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cayenne
2 cups mashed Hubbard squash (NOTE: 1 squash will make 2 recipes--Freeze the other 1/2)
2 oz. brandy (I used one of those miniatures)
1/4 cup flour
32 oz. chicken broth
salt and pepper
3 TBSP yellow curry

Preheat the oven to 350F. You don't even need to take the seeds out until after it is baked. Cut the squash in 1/2 and roast in the oven for 1 1/2 hours or until tender when pricked with a fork. Remove and allow to cool, then remove the seeds and the pulp is easy to remove from the skin. Steep bay leaf and sage in the cream or coconut milk by bringing to a boil, then reducing the heat to as low as it can go and allow to simmer while you prepare the rest of the soup. In a soup pot, melt butter and cook onions, carrots, and celery until soft. Add nutmeg and cayenne, salt and pepper to taste. Pour in the brandy and stir in squash and flour. Add chicken stock and curry, cook for 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and add the cream/coconut milk.

Kale Chips!

Summer at its peak and my plot at the community garden is bursting with produce.  A few years ago I read about the remarkable health benefits of eating kale and decided to grow and pressure can this wonderful, leafy green God of the Brassica family (cabbage).  I read in "The World's Healthiest Foods" http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38 that kale is one of the most beneficial, if not the #1 veg-of-choice for warding off 5 different types of cancers, detoxifying the body and lowering cholesterol. 

Certainly my pressure-canned kale (similar consistency to any other canned greens) is a staple on my shelf that I can easily access all year long, however, kale chips are a treat that I only enjoy in the summer (unless I want to buy the fresh stuff at the store---and, truthfully, I don't even know if we can get kale in winter.)

These crunchy chips are positively addicting and much healthier than snacking on potato chips or other processed foods.  In addition, they are so easy to make that it's almost embarrassing that I bother to dedicate a post on this.  However, because I am a firm believer in sharing the wealth when it comes to good food and even better, food that is good for you, here it is.

Kale Chips

Preheat the oven to 350.  Wash kale, remove the rib and stem, break the leaf into desired size (I like about the size of my palm).  Toss with a little olive oil and a seasoning of your choice (*go easy on the salt--it's very easy to over-salt these babies).  Here are some seasoning suggestions:  salt, season salt, bbq seasoning, lemon pepper, garlic salt, onion powder/salt and the list is endless.  Place loosely in a single layer on a baking tray and bake until crispy, about 10-15 minutes.  You will want to store them in a breathable container and eat fairly soon.  I wouldn't worry though, they will disappear from sight almost immediately.  Enjoy them while you can!

P.S.  Send me your seasoning ideas too.

Homemade Poptarts!

Who doesn't love poptarts?  I personally do not care for the glazed kind.  Just try and find some that are not glazed or filled with unrecognizeable ingredients.  While perusing my cookbooks for berry recipes I accidentally came across a recipe for Blueberry Toaster Pastries found in "The Joy of Blueberries" ISBN: 1-59193-012-X, page 99.  There is no logical reason why you couldn't substitute any kind of jam for the blueberry jam...I am envisioning Apricot, Raspberry, even Pineapple Marmalade.  Keeping a lookout for anything new and unusual, I currently have on my shelves a Spanish Grapefruit Marmalade, Lemon Curd and even a Fig Jam.  I should label these "Adult Poptarts!"

This recipe wasn't that difficult and the dough is super easy to work with.  This would be an easy-do project to do with students.  This is what you will need:

Dough:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Filling:
Blueberry Jam or any preserves of your choice


Egg Wash:
1 egg white, beaten with 1 TBSP milk
Sugar

Preheat the oven to 355.  Beat sugar and shortening until light and fluffy.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  In another bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt.  Stir this into the mixture to form a dough.

Divide dough into 16 equal parts.  Use a plastic wrap over the top of a part and roll out to a 3 1/2" x 5" shape.  Spread preserves on dough leaving about 1/4" crust around the edge.   Roll out another part of dough and place over the top of the dough with preserves.  Use a sharp knife to cut away the rough edges (save the dough to make more).   Crimp all sides with the tines of a fork.  Place on a greased cookie sheet.

Beat egg white with 1 TBSP milk.  Brush the tart with egg white wash and sprinkle lightly with sugar.  Prick the top of the tarts with tines of a fork.  Place in oven and immediately turn down to 350.  Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven and prick again with a fork.  Bake 15 more minutes (edges will be brown).  Remove from baking sheet, to a flat surface.  Cool and wrap in plastic.  Store in the refrigerator.

I got 10 poptarts out of this recipe and used 1/2 pint of blueberry jam.

Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salsa

 

Nothing screams of summertime more than watermelon, garden tomatoes and piping hot corn on the cob smeared with melted butter.  Naturally, I was in heaven when Fred Meyer advertised 10 ears of that yummy ripeness on sale for $5 and I immediately bought up 30 ears and processed into pints of creamed style corn with my friend Cory G. and Karen D's help.  Then my friend Karyl posted her photos of corn salsa and I knew I had to try this.  This salsa can stand alone with a bowl of tortilla chips, spoon over tacos, roll up in a burrito, or even add to a Mexican-Style Soup!  The recipe I created is probably a little spicier than most people would care for, so use your own judgement as to how spicy you want it.

Safeway is now advertising a sale of 3 ears for a $1.  Now I know my friends and family are cringing at this "sale" and get twice that in the lower 48--but to us in Alaska who are deprived of long-season fruits and veggies, this is a steal!  At the encouragement of my friend Karen D. I chose white corn over yellow this time and it came out great. 

I did not follow the recipe Karyl sent but added and pumped it up instead.  The original recipe, should you care to download it is at: http://www.naturalhomeandgarden.com/cooking/home-canning-recipes-corn-salsa.aspx

I love the smell of green chile and corn roasting on the grill.  When I read over the list of ingredients for this salsa I knew that one modification I would make right off the bat would be to roast the corn rather than boil it on the stove.  Anyone who has eaten corn on the cob both boiled and grilled knows there is a difference.  Not to say that one method is better than another, but considering the outcome I wanted (smell and texture)---grilling was the only option I would consider.

Grilled Corn and Black Bean Salsa

Ingredients:

12 ears of corn, shucked and cleaned
3 cups distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup sugar (corn is naturally sweet--original recipe called for 1 cup.  Cut that in 1/2)
2 TBSP ground cumin
1 TBSP salt
8 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 14oz. can diced tomatoes
***NOTE:  If you do not care for hot, spicy foods, you may want to eliminate or cut down on the jalapeno and Seranno
3 jalapeno peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
3 Anaheim green chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
1 red Serrano pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded and diced
1 large white onion diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup cilantro, chopped (Added LAST)

Grill the cleaned corn and peppers.  The skin on the peppers should toast--allow them to rest/sweat in a bowl covered with plastic until cool enough to skin, seed and dice.

In a large bowl, cut the kernals of corn off the cob.  Combine vinegar, sugar, cumin and salt in a large stockpot and bring to boil.  Add tomatoes, jalapenos, peppers, onion, garlic, beans and corn and return to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.  Stir in cilantro and return to boil.  Remove from heat. 

Ladle hot salsa into sterilized canning jars leaving 1/2" headspace.  Use a plastic knife to remove any air bubbles, wipe the rims clean of any juices, secure with sterlized lids and screwbands.  Process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes.  Remove jars to sit for 24 hours. 

NOTE:  Use within a year.  Don't forget to add an expiration date to your jars.

This recipe yielded 10 pint jars.

Sea Bass with Lemongrass and Chili in Puff Pastry

Still trying to clean out the freezer so we can re-load it with salmon within the next 30 days, halibut in the next 60 days and, hopefully moose within the next 120 days.  I had full intentions of making some beer battered deep-fried halibut tonight but found some sea bass from 2008 that begged to be used first.  I remembered a recipe for a Thai-style fish and thought to revise it a bit to fit my needs--it's healthier than deep frying in grease.  I had the lemongrass and chili on hand and had recently attended the Dutch Oven cooking class this last weekend and was inspired to try a recipe that involved puff pastry and baking instead of frying.  Why can't I marinate the sea bass in a mix of spicyness and then wrap them in puff pastry and bake in parchment paper?   So here we go....a nice salad made of my own garden veggies, sea bass baked in a puff pastry, and rice mixed with fumi feritaki.  For dessert, Blueberry Cheese Cake Delight.

This is what you need:

1/4 cup lemongrass

3 TBSP fish sauce

2 TBSP lime juice

3 tsps garlic chili sauce

1 TBSP packed brown sugar

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup peanut oil

2 lbs white fish (halibut, sea bass, orange roughy etc) deboned and skinned

1 sheet Puff Pastry, thawed and rolled out to 1/4", cut into two equal parts

Mix together the lemongrass, fish sauce, lime juice, chili sauce, brown sugar, garlic and peanut oil---then emulsify in a blender, food processor or with a whisk.  Cut fish into two equal parts and marinade in the above mix for at least 45 minutes.  

Lightly roll out puff pastry and divide into two equal portions.  Place fish portion in the center and wrap with pastry crust.  Pinch seams shut and place in a parchment bag or parchment paper.  Cut two big slits to allow steam to escape.  How much fun is this?????

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until puff pastry is lightly browned.

Pizza and my new toy!

I have a new toy for making grilled pizza.  I'm re-posting my favorite pizza crust recipe (look in 2009 for the original post).  Tonight I am making just a meat lover's pizza with traditional toppings.

Jamie Oliver's Pizza Crust:

5 cups bread flour
2 cups semolina flour
1 TBSP sea salt
mix this together.......

5 tsp. yeast
1 TBSP. raw sugar
4 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 1/2 cups lukewarm water (make sure it is not so hot to kill the yeast, but hot enough to bribe the yeast---about wrist temp)

Mix the flours and salt, let the yeast, sugar EVOO and water sit in a bowl or measuring cup for a few minutes (until frothy and happy)...add to the flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until kneadable (is that a word?)

Knead until soft, elastic and pliable...you might need to add a little more flour. Let sit in a bowl until double (an hour or two). This recipe makes a whopping 6-8 medium pizzas...or in my case 2-3 big ones.  No worries about using it up all at once....this crust freezes well!  Just wrap the leftovers into individual pizza dough balls and freeze.

Now for the stone for the grill.  Place stone on the grill and turn on low for 5 minutes.  Increase to medium temp for 5 minutes.  While it is heating lightly dust a pizza skin or a cutting board with cornmeal.  Place the thinly rolled out crust on top of cornmeal dusting and add ingredients you want.  Slide the pizza onto the stone on the grill.  Close the lid and check after about 3-4 minutes...use tongs or a large spatula to turn.  Allow the crust to get crispy and the toppings to melt.  Take off heat with a pizza skin and allow to rest for 3 minutes before cutting.

If using the oven:  Preheat the oven to 475 degrees, get a stone really hot in that oven and slap down your pizza crust on that hot stone. It will begin to bake immediately and give you the next best thing to a wood fired oven baked pizza. Start putting on your toppings and you'll be a hit in 25 minutes! Pizzas should usually bake for 18-20 minutes at that temp....let them sit for 5 minutes out of the oven before slicing (I know it's hard to wait!)

Blueberry Syrup

I made a Blueberry Cream Cheese French Toast Casserole for a short overnight camping trip last weekend.  The recipe was passed onto me from a parent at our school who made this for staff appreciation week.  The recipe for the casserole can be found online at allrecipes.com and by typing in:  Overnight Blueberry French Toast.  The REAL reason for this post though is for my friend Marie Brooks whose husband Roger loved the Blueberry Syrup that is poured over the creation hot out of the oven and  is ready to serve.

NOTE:  In the casserole portion of the recipe I would increase the number of eggs to 18, add another 1/2 cup of milk and increase the maple syrup to 2/3 cup (I thought it was a little dry.)

BLUEBERRY SYRUP

1 cup white sugar
2 TBSP cornstarch
1 cup water
After the above ingredients have boiled for 3-4 minutes then add:

1 cup blueberries
1 TBSP butter

Combine sugar, cornstarch and water.  Bring to a boil and, stirring contantly, allow to boil 3-4 minutes.  Mix in the blueberries, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes or until the blueberries burst.  Stir in the butter.  We like to serve this warm over pancakes, waffles, French toast or I suppose one could even serve over ice cream or a white cake.  This sauce/syrup will keep in a jar in the fridge for a week or two.

German-Style Potato Salad

Bacon?  Really can any recipe that includes bacon be wrong?  This recipe comes to you from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, 75th edition.  I wasn't pleased with the Ruralite recipe and have tried others...this one is yummy.  Moist, has that bacon element, and a mustard taste too.

1 1/2 lbs red potatoes, boil until almost soft about 30 minutes
4 slices of bacon, fried crisp and chopped (I am in an organic stage and use only organic bacon)
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 TBSP flour
1 TBSP sugar
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. celery seeds
1/2 tsp. hearty mustard
dash of good black pepper
2/3 cup water
1/4 cup white vinegar

Boil potatoes until almost soft.  Peel and cut into a 1/2" dice.  For the dressing:  Cook bacon until crisp.  Crumble bacon and reserve oil.

Add onion to the bacon fat and soften (about 5 minutes).  Stir in the flour, sugar, salt, celery seeds, mustard and pepper.  Now stir in the water and vinegar and allow to thicken...you may want to add a little more water if needed.  Add potatoes and bacon...Cook for 1-2 minutes or until heated through.

I'm serving this tonight with charcoal grilled Moose Brats and some of our 2011 saurkraut!

Garam Masla Halibut with Watermelon Curry

Damn Supertramp!  "It's Raining Again"....that song has stuck in my head for the last 3 days...but how appropriate!  I can't get outside to garden, clean up the yard or even target practice.  It's a little chilly so what to do but cook something really decadent!  Perusing my freezer I find I have one lonely package of halibut left.  I also have a shelf full of watermelon jelly that never jelled.  What does one do with watermelon jelly that did not set? Last year, after making a batch of watermelon pickles (made of the rind), I was left with 3 large watermelons and happened upon a recipe for watermelon jelly. Sounded good at the time, but it did not set and I was left with this delicious watermelon "syrup". I've thought long and hard about what to do with these jars of ruby-colored treasures. It makes sense to pair this sweet confection with something that has a bite! Chile or curry is an obvious choice...but how and with what? I took out the last package of halibut today and knew I wanted to do something different and use that watermelon jelly.

I am using a recipe from Thailand but changing it considerably by using my watermelon syrup and adding halibut. The original dish does not include meat but tofu.  I've also changed the ingredients in that I am using garam masala heavy with cinnamon and cumin. By the way...the ONLY place I have found you can purchase whole okra is the Asian Market in the Aurora subdivision. These vendors are very friendly and helpful....it's the only place I have found kafir (lime leaves for Pad Thai and Lau Lau).  Ask me for watermelon jelly as I you wont be able to buy it anywhere. 

For the reluctant chef, I advise skipping this recipe....This is for the intermediate to advanced chef. Newbies will hate just shopping for the ingredients, much less the time it takes to prepare and cook.

Let's get started.

4 halibut fillets, skinned
garam masala, to coat both sides

Bake halibut in a 375F oven until almost done (10-15 minutes). Debone and chunk into bite-sized pieces and set aside.

Watermelon Curry:
Watermelon (peel, seed and chunk the red(**Set aside, this goes in last), cube the white peeling to cook like you would a potato. Zucchini cut diagonally
Eggplant, peeled and diced into 1" dice
10 okra, wash and slice off the head but leave intact or whole
2 sweet peppers siced
3 green chiles, sliced
Thai green curry paste (use to your preference--we like it hot)
1/2 pint of watermelon jelly
1 can Coconut Milk
1 tsp. fish sauce
Sesame Oil

**Watermelon chunks are the last to add.

Heat oil in a wok or large skillet. Add white watermelon rind, zucchini, eggplant, okra, and peppers. Cook until tender and add green curry. Add watermelon jelly and simmer for 5 minutes. Add water to simmer and reduce heat for 5 minutes. Add coconut milk, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add chunked halibut, fish sauce and the red part of the watermelon. Mix lightly and serve over rice.

Texas Caviar

Thank you Shanna and Tommy for the Everything Tex-Mex Cookbook. I am making the Texas Caviar tonight to go with the La Posta Green Chile Enchiladas. I LOVE black eyed peas, and the addition of red tomatoes, red onions, and jalaneos appelaed to me. So I am giving it a try.

This book was a gift this year for my birthday present. www.eyerything.com or ISBN 13-978-1-59337-580-5.


1 (15 oz can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 TBSP. seeded and minced jalapeno
3 green onions, sliced
1/4 cup chopped red onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 TBSP minced cilantro
1 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. salt
18 tsp. cayenne

Combine all ingredients, blend well, cover and refrigerate 2 hours. Serve with chips.

Alaska Blueberry Special Cake

While clearing out some of last year's salmon to make room for this years supply I noticed that I haven't used many blueberries this year. I took out a pint and pondered what to do with them. I've already made pies, jams and syrups. Turning to a cookbook on the shelf, "Best of the Best from Alaska Cookbook", I found two recipes that competed for my attention. Alasks Blueberry Special Cake and Blueberry-Rhubarb Pie (which I WILL try later). ISBN 18936062-42-2 about $11.82 if purchasing in Alaska....$16.92 elsewhere.

This cake does take a bit of preparation but uses few ingredients and was fairly easy to prepare.

1 yellow cake mix
1 large package lemon pie filling (I like the cook and serve best---but if short on time go ahead and try instant)
1 (12 oz.) carton Cool Whip (I used 8 oz. just because I don't like whipped cream)

Mix cake according to package directions. Bake in a 9 x 13" pan. Cool. Mix lemon pie filling accordi9ng to package directions. Top the cooled cake with the lemon pie filling; let cool, cover with Cool Whip. Serve with Blueberry Sauce (see below).

Blueberry Sauce:
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 TBSP corn starch
dash of salt
2/3 cup water
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (yes, there is a difference between wild and farm-raised blueberries)

Cook all ingredients except the blueberries until thick. Add blueberries, return to boil, chill completely and serve over the cake.

Buttermilk Biscuits

I love breakfast probably more than any other meal of the day and what is better than hot, homemade biscuits and gravy on a crisp morning? I'd love to take credit for this recipe, but the credit goes to Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman Cooks, Recipes From An Accidental Country Girl ISBN:978-0-06-165819-8). This book is on the #1 New York Times Bestseller list and I highly recommend it. You can find this book as well as her equally excellent previous cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks, Food From My Frontier ISBN: 978-0-06-199718-1 almost anywhere (I purchased both at Sam's Club but have seen it in Fred Meyer, Safeway, and all bookstores. The humor Ree inflects in her cookbooks actually makes it a pleasure to read! Both are reasonably priced and packed full of delicious, step-by-step visually appealing photographs and instructions for honest-to-goodness down-home food.

The author is right when she says that making biscuits can be tricky. I think the secret to a light and fluffy biscuit is in not overworking the dough. These biscuits have an excellent flavor but I had to cut the recipe in half which still made 8 good-sized biscuits. She is feeding a family of six, where it is just Jim and I. Also note that left-over biscuits can also be used for strawberry shortcake with whipped cream.

You won't be able to resist the urge to slap some butter on this treat immediately out of the oven!

4 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/3 cup shortening (I used butter-flavored crisco)
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. Next add the shortening and cold butter pieces, use a pastry blender or fork to form crumbs. Here is the tricky part: Pour in the buttermilk and mix only until combined. Lightly flour a cutting board, turn out dough and roll to desired thickness (I like about 1/2"). Use a biscuit cutter or an inverted glass dipped in flour to cut biscuits. For years, before I got a biscuit cutter I used an old green beans can that had both ends cut out--ha! I still use that stupid can when I make Grandy "G" bread--Something about old habits are hard to break.

Place biscuits on a cookie sheet and bake for 11 minutes or until golden. HINT: These biscuits brown very quickly at 450 degrees, so check them after 8 minutes.

Enjoy!

Go to this website for more information on The Pioneer Woman Cooks. http://thepioneerwoman.com/

Crab, Shrimp and Scallop Guyere Casserole with Lobster Newburg Sauce

The inspiration for this dish came from a lunch with my dear friend Carla at Pikes Landing. I had a toasted sandwich of crab, scallops and shrimp. While eating this wonderful lunch I couldn't help but think of my mushroom strata and how well these flavors would marry. My silly mushroom strata dish calls for a final topping of cream of mushroom soup. How obscene would that be with scallops, crab and shrimp! No way would I even consider this putrid combination. As a matter of fact, I wouldn't even consider the 1 lb. of swiss and thought Guyere would be better instead. In place of the "Cream of Mushroom Soup"...a Lobster Newburg sauce would be much better....Okay, so realistically, if I were to place this decadent dish on my menu and serve to others, we are looking at over $50 a plate....still interested?

Cooks beware. This is a bitch to put together.

Ingredients:
1/2 lb shitake mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb oyster mushrooms, broken apart and sliced
1 lb white mushrooms, sliced
1 medium onion, dioced
2 cups chopped red, yellow, and orange bell pepper
2 TBSP butter
1 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 lb. crab
1 1/2 lb. raw shrimp, cleaned and peeled
1 lb. scallops, raw and quartered
2 TBSP parsley
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. Restaurant grade pepper
1 lb. swiss cheese, cubed
1 lb. Guyere cheesecubed

6 slices thick white bread
margarine or butter to spread

4 eggs
1 cup whole milk

Lobster Newburg Sauce: (See again this list below....)
1 1/2 lbs lobster tail meat
4 egg yolks
1 Cup Heavy cream
1/4 cup Madeira
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter
cayenne
nutmeg

To begin:
Slice the mushrooms, peppers and onions. Saute in butter until softened, remove from heat into a separate dish. Butter bread and cut into 1/2" cubes also set aside in a large bowl.

Melt 4 TBSP butter on low heat and add scallops and shrimp. Cook until the shrimp is almost pink. Add the cooked crab and set aside.

Divide the cheeses into three equally cubed portions.

In a deep dish baking pan, line the bottom with buttered bread. Top with some of the mushroom/pepper, a 1/3 of the seafood and top with 1/3 of the cubed cheese. Continue layering process.

Mix eggs and milk, pour over the top. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Bake covered with foil at 350 for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Meanwhile make the Lobster Newburg Sauce.

Lobster tails should be premade before baking the casserole. Do this. On the underside of the lobster (the belly) cut up the side using a pair of kitchen shears. Do the same to the other side. cut the membrane near the tail to remove the belly casing. Next remoe the tail meat from the shell leaving it yet intact. Now lightly salt, squeeze lemon juice over the tail meat and place a slice of butter on the tail and wrap in foil. Bake tails for 15 minutes at 425. Remove tails and roughly chop and set aside.

Lobster Newburg:
4 egg yolks
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup madeira
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter melted
cayenne
nutmeg
1 1/2 lb. lobster meat, chunked

Melt the butter, mix the yolk/cream/madeira together and add to the butter. Stir constantly until thickened. Do NOT boil this....add cayenne and nutmeg to taste. Add lobster to heat through...we are not overcooking the lobster here! Pour over the casserole and serve immediately with a glass of chilled Chardonnay. If you really love the person that you made this for, clean up your dishes and follow up with some sliced fresh strawberries and champagne.

Baked Potato Salmon Chowder

I really didn't expect anyone to ask for this recipe.....But when I posted my dinner plans on FB I was enundated with requests for a recipe. This one is easy...kind of. You need to poach the salmon ahead of time, debone and flake it.

My Uncle Melvin loved this soup (then minus the salmon).

SALMON:
Poach 1 lb. salmon for 8 minutes on simmer, allow to sit for 10 minutes. Drain, skin, debone, flake and set aside.

4 large baked potatoes
2/3 cup flour
1/4 cup chives
2 cups bacon, fried crisp and crumbled
2/3 cups butter
1 1/2 qts. half and half
1 cup sour cream
5 oz. cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste.

Bake potatoes. Skin and cube them to 1" cubes. Melt butter blend in flour, add half and half whisking contantly until thick. Add salt, pepper, potatoes, chives, cheese sour cream. Now add potatoes and deboned salmon heat through and serve.

Serving Suggestions: Crusty bread, salad, and Chardonnay