recipephile

Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Balsamic

Roasted Brussels sprouts are amazing.  Actually, Brussels sprouts anything is pretty tasty and this recipe is no exception.  It is easy to prepare and absolutely delicious.

You'll need...

- 30-40 Brussels sprouts, cut in half

- 10 whole cloves of garlic

- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

- 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

- 1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper

- 1 tsp Kosher salt

- 1 tsp lemon zest

- 1 tbsp chopped parsley

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Combine the sprouts, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, black pepper and salt into an iron skillet or heavy sauce pan. Cook for 30 minutes in the oven.  Remove and check for doneness.  If they are al dente and golden brown take them out of the oven and dress with the zest and parsley.  Serve with a hearty meat dish or as a vegetarian main course with cous cous, pine nuts and raisins.

Creamed English Peas With Pancetta

My mother turned 70 today and my father brought all of us to Carmel to celebrate her amazing life.  I have written many times about my mom in the past, but one thing is very true... she is one of the best cooks on the planet.

Most of technique and insight into all things epicurean emanate from my mom and her expertise in the kitchen.  The first time I ever made marinara, my mom was on the phone with me guiding the entire process. To this day, I call her to consult when making a new dish. 

We often differ on our opinions of how something should be done (she is famous for peering over my shoulder and saying... "hmmm... that's an interesting way to do that"), but at the end of the day we share something very special.  The kitchen has brought us closer to one another and so I'd like to dedicate this post to my incredible mom.

When we arrived in Carmel my mother and I headed to the grocery store. As we perused the veggie aisle shelled English peas jumped out at me.  I always jump at the chance to work with peas that have already been shelled. Their flavor is amazing and the work has already been done for you.

So we decided that we would make Creamed English Peas With Pancetta and serve the dish with steak and a simple salad.

These are pretty easy to make:

- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

- 2 shallots minced

- 5 sage leaves minced

- 1/4 lb of pancetta, sliced thin and chopped

- 1/2 cup dry vermouth

- 1/2 pint heavy whipping cream

- 2-3 cups of shelled English peas

- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a saute pan heat the olive oil on medium and add the shallot and sage leaves. Cook until the shallots are translucent and then add the pancetta.  Cook the pancetta until crispy, this will take about 10 minutes and you will need to watch it carefully so it does not burn.  Once the pancetta is cripsy turn up the heat and add the vermouth, let cook down.

Once the vermouth has cooked down add the whipping cream and the peas.  Let cook down for about 10 more minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Slap Chop Chopped Salad

As Vince tried his best to convince me on the tube... "You are going to be in a great mood all day, because you will be slappin' your troubles away."  Hooey... At least that is what I thought until I got my hands on the Slap Chop. $19.95 + S&H and comes with 3-year warranty.

My friend Jeffrey and I were cooking away one day and just as I was about to chop some garlic he swoops in and Slap Chops my cloves.  Within seconds he had diced garlic. Stunned, I reached for an onion and was once again amazed and perplexed.  I took the thing apart, examined its technologic simplicity and played with more veggies, fruits and nuts (Vince actually says on the infomercial "You're gonna love my nuts.").

Immediately, I picked up my Blackberry and logged on to the Slap Chop WAP site.  Yes, they have a mobile site. To my surprise I could order this revolutionary device right from my phone. Within a week I received not one Slap Chop, but two. Yes two. AND... they included the little sister product Graty, a cheese grater.

My sister was the lucky recipient of the second set.  Imagine me racing to the grocery store to buy items for a salad. No really... close your eyes and think about me doing a whirlwind tour through the veggie aisle grabbing every Slap Choppable item I could for a chopped salad.

For the salad...

- 2 heads of romaine (I did not use the Slap Chop for this) chopped up.

- 1 medium red onion, Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

- 5 carrots grated (not with Graty) and Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

- 2 red peppers (seeds removed) Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

- 2 tomatoes (seeds removed) Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

- 2 cucumbers (seeds removed) Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

For the dressing

- 1 French baguette Slap Chopped into bite size pieces

- 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil

- Juice of 2 1/2 lemons

- 2 garlic cloves Slap Chopped

- 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan Cheese

- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

When the recipe says this "Slap Chopped into bite size pieces" note that you may need to cut the veggie or bread or whatever you are Slap Chopping to make it fit into the device. An onion, for example, usually needs to be cut into quarters and each quarter Slap Chopped separately.

Place all of the Slap Chopped veggies and lettuce into a large bowl and mix well.  Cover and set in the fridge.

Preheat the oven to 350.  Put the Slap Chopped bread onto a cookie sheet and place in the oven. Let cook until golden brown (about 10 minutes) and set aside.

Mix the oil and lemon juice with a whisk well. Add the cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Adjust the seasoning/flavor as you desire.  You can add more oil or lemon juice or cheese or salt or pepper.

Toss the bread crumbs into the large salad bowl with the veggies and the lettuce.  Add the dressing, toss and serve immediately.

Roasted Parsnips

Home for the first of two holidays, my brother and I got to spend the day together shopping cooking and taking my lovely little niece to Ali's farm for a ride on a pony.  Our first stop was Costco, where we bought lots of bulk items and some delicious looking shrimp.  Costco never ceases to amaze me when it comes to quality seafood.  They really do carry an incredibly fresh selection of everything from clams and shrimp to lobster tails, salmon and tuna.  We picked up a bunch of shrimp and some prosciut (actually prosciutto, but in Pittsburgh people always drop the last vowel in words -- for example, ricotta is referred to as ricott) with plans to wrap the shrimp with the proscuit and then grill.  Simple and delicious.

Ray decided that he wanted steaks for dinner and could not wait to take me to his new butcher shop.  My father calls this place the butcher in the country and that is pretty much what it is.  I had never been to a full fledged butcher shop in a residential community out in the country, but this is what Cheplic's Meat Packing is all about.  It is kind of odd to be driving through a neighborhood and then turn into a driveway to find this big ol' meat shop. You walk in and right in front of you is a large cold cabinet with huge chunks of meat.  You don't order from the cabinet.  One of the meat men comes out and asks you what you want. Ray ordered three steaks cut very thick (about 2 inches) and we watched the guy go in the back and cut them right from a big slab of beef.  They also had a big case filled with fried chicken that people were lining up to buy as well as a slew of McCutcheons products.  McCutcheons makes fruit Butters, Preserves, Jams, Jellies, Juice Sweetened Spreads, Hot Sauces, Salad Dressings, Relishes, Honey, BBQ Sauces, Baking Mixes and more. They also have a spicy pickled garlic that is one of my favorites (the pungent flavor of the garlic disappears in the pickling process) so we got that too and used it in our salad dressing.

From there we headed over to Trax Farms, the local farm market that has expanded to include a garden center.  They now have a wine store and sell Pennsylvania made wine called Arrowhead.  Curiosity got the best of us and we picked up four bottles including Pinot Grigot, Cabarnet, Rose and Apple Wine (I wanted to compare the Apple Wine to what I had at Graton Ridge the week before). We decided to serve our meal with roasted root veggies and picked up some parsnips and potatoes.

Credit is due to my friend Nick for turning me on to roasted parsnips.  Never really a veggie that I had interest in, he and his partner Dan roasted some for a group of friends the other night and served them with pork.  They are delicious when roasted and kind of taste like a French fry, without all of the grease and fat.

Our meal was incredible and I leave with two recipes today... Roasted Parsnips and Pickled Garlic Salad Dressing -- the dressing will be a separate posting.

Roasting parsnips is pretty easy and a few will go a long way.  Three should be enough to serve four people.  We also included a few carrots, baby red potatoes, onions and celery.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Peel three parsnips and three three carrots, cut into medium sized strips and set aside. Cut baby potatoes in half and set aside. Clean and cut celery stalks into medium sized strips and set aside. Chop onion into small chunks and set aside. 

Place all of the ingredients into a mixing bowl.  Coat lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Add some kosher salt (about 2 tsp) and freshly ground black pepper.

Place evenly onto a cookie sheet and roast for about 35 minutes.

Serve.

Savory and Sweet Pumpkin Seeds

Another post from Jeffrey...

It being a scant two nights before Halloween, my friends Christopher, Jim, & Eric and I carved pumpkins tonight. Two of them ended up as Jack O'bamas.

Being both the stingy New Englander and fiber-obsessed guy that I am, of course I made good use of the pumpkins and baked the seeds.  It's just so easy and seasonal a treat, a great snack, and rich in protein, vitamins and yes, fiber.  Since we carved three big pumpkins and as a result had gobs of seeds, I made them two different ways.

Tip: when scooping out the pumpkin innards where all the seeds are, it's much easier to separate the seeds from the pulp right away instead of later to on in the process.  With the pulp still very moist and the seeds not having had a chance to dry, you can you slide all the seedy goop around in your hands and the seeds will very easily separate from it all.  If you wait until later when things have become a bit dry and crusty, you're in for a lot more work.

Here is a tip from Michael:  As I post this I am watching the Early Show. They are carving pumpkins and the "expert" they have on the show recommends making a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin.  This has a few benefits.  The first is that the seeds and pulp come out much easier that way since they are attached to the bottom.  The second is that it helps to create a flat bottom and the third is that you can place a candle into a holder and set it on the ground and then place the pumpkin over the top.

Savory Pumpkin Seeds:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2 cups pumpkin seeds, cleaned and patted dry a little (they'll still be moist and slimy)
1 tsp. kosher salt (less if you're being really sodium conscious)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 tsp. cajun seasoning (a combination of cayenne pepper, oregano, basil, garlic, and a few other goodies)
olive oil spray

Spray the bottom of a jelly roll pan with olive oil spray. Spread out the pumpkin seeds on the pan. Then spray the top of the seeds with more olive oil spray. Sprinkle with the spices. Gently shake around a bit.

Bake on the middle rack for about 25 minutes, stirring the seeds halfway through the baking process.  Remove, and cool for 5 minutes on paper towels.  Serve right away, or save in a zip-top bag or sealed container for up to a week.

Sweet Pumpkin Seeds:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2 cups pumpkin seeds, cleanied and patted dry a little (they'll still be moist and slimy)
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Spray the bottom of a jelly roll pan with olive oil spray. Spread out the pumpkin seeds on the pan. Then spray the top of the seeds with more olive oil spray. Sprinkle with the sugar and spices. Gently shake around a bit.

Bake on the middle rack for about 35-37 minutes, stirring the seeds twice during the baking process (at 12 and 24 minutes).  Remove, and cool for 5 minutes on paper towels.  Serve right away, or save in a zip-top bag or sealed container for up to a week.

Veggie Shepherd's Pie With Fontina and Reggiano Cheese

This past weekend I headed out to Fire Island for a final trip before this place of beauty closes for the winter. My close friend Courtney joined me and we stayed at the Pines Bluff Overlook for two nights. On the first day that we were there Jim was busy doing home improvements and so Courtney and I took on the task of preparing dinner. 

We decided to make a Vegetable Shepherd's Pie and it turned out to be amazingly delicious and very Autumnal tasting.

This is easy to make, but takes some time.  So pour yourself a glass of wine and enjoy the process.

Mashed Potatoes
- 4 potatoes, peeled and chopped into quarters
- 1 cup Parmeggiano Reggiano cheese
- 1/2 cup of plain yogurt
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Veggies
- 4 leeks (white parts only cut in half and cleaned)
- 2 large sweet onions
- 15-20 garlic cloves
- 5 carrots peeled
- 2 red or yellow peppers (chopped in half with seeds removed)
- 4 roma tomatoes
- 2-3 long sprigs of fresh rosemary
- 5-6 fresh sage leaves
- 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
-  Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 cups of grated Fontina cheese

Start by placing a large pot of water onto the stove on high and boil the potatoes until a knife easily passes through.  This will take about 1/2 hour.  While the potatoes are cooking heat the oven to 350 degrees and place the veggies and herbs (except for the garlic) onto a roasting pan.  Using tin foil, create a pouch and place the garlic in the pouch with a little bit of the olive oil.  Place the pouch onto the pan as well. Drizzle the olive oil onto the veggies. Roast the veggies and garlic for about 30-40 minutes and check periodically to ensure that the veggies are not burning. Turn every once in a while. Remove from oven and set aside.

Drain the potatoes and place back into the pot.  Add the cheese, yogurt and butter and blend with a hand mixer until silky smooth.  Taste and add Kosher salt and pepper to taste.  Mix in the parsley and set aside.

Place the roasted veggies in a bowl and mix well.  Make sure to mash the tomatoes to release the juice.  Add Kosher salt and black peppers to taste.

Cover the bottom of a 12-inch pie pan with the veggies, top and fully cover with the mashed potatoes.  Cover the potatoes with the Fontina cheese and place in the oven for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees until the cheese has completely melted and is golden brown.

Serve

Stuffed Sweet Peppers

This is a post from Jeffrey and I -- Although Jeffrey wrote the majority of this one, I just edited it a little bit.

For our autumn dinner two Sundays ago, we whipped up some stuffed sweet peppers.  This recipe is a bit altered from how we originally made the dish, as we learned a couple things along the way, not the least of which is to always (well, almost always) listen to your mother.

As we were preparing the peppers we could not decide whether or not to par-roast the peppers before stuffing them so we did what any young man would do.  We called our moms and both agreed that we should pre-cook the peppers.

Originally we decided to use Orzo, but were a little dismayed when we tasted the peppers, becuasae the orzo became overcooked.  The recipe below was remade with rice.  In all cases when making stuffed peppers you should be sure to only par cook the rice before stuffing the peppers, because when you toss them in the oven they will continue to cook.

Here is what you will need:

9 medium bell peppers, red and yellow
1 large carrot, peeled
2 each large (or 3 each medium) zucchini and yellow squash
1 large red onion, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
1-2 tsp. lemon zest
3 Tbsp. olive oil
6 Tbsp. fresh chopped Italian parsley
1 cup brown or wild rice, cooked according to package instructions except aborted about 10 minutes before it's fully done.
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 cups tomato juice
salt and pepper to taste

Shred the carrot, zucchini and squash in your food processor (failing that, you can use your cheese grater).  Heat the olive oil on medium to medium-high heat in a large skillet, and saute the onion and garlic.  After about 5 minutes, add the shredded carrots, zucchini, squash, parsley and lemon zest.  Set aside to cool; mix with the cooked rice and parmesan.  (Note: on Sunday, we used orzo pasta instead of rice.  It was ok but not great.)

Slice open each pepper length-wise and remove the core and seeds while maintaining their structural integrity intact.  Roast the peppers (unstuffed) for about 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven.  Remove, and reduce the heat of the oven to 325.  Let the peppers cool enough for you to be able to handle them safely, and then stuff them with the vegetable-rice mixture.  Drizzle some tomato juice into each one (this was a recommendation from Michael's mother, which we couldn't follow because we had no tomato juice. But of course we should have heeded her advice. It would have given the end product more moisture, a bit of acidity and some extra flavor).  Bake for 20-30 minutes, drizzling with more tomato juice halfway through the baking.  Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and then serve right away.

The nice thing about this dish is that it can serve as your dinner's "starch" while also being quite veggie-licious.

Creamed Peas and Onions

Jeffrey and I spent our usual Sunday cooking, cooking, cooking. The two of us work very well together in the kitchen and always have a blast making food.  To compliment our Autumnal dinner party that was served in Courtney's kitchen, we made creamed peas with onions that were amazing.

The idea came to us as we were trolling the farmer's market.  There they sat... fresh snap peas, big, green and tasty looking.  Jeffrey was not happy about the two of us shelling the peas, but the ends, I explained to him, would certainly justify the means.  If you are not into shelling peas then you can buy pre-shelled or frozen for this recipe.

Here is what you will need:

- 1 large sweet onion, sliced and caramelized
- 3 cups of fresh sweet peas
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup of dry vermouth
- 1/2 tsp of nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
- 1.5 cups of heavy whipping cream
- 1.5 cups of Gruyere cheese, grated
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Start off by caramelizing the sweet onions.  Basically, all you need to do is slice the onions and cook over medium heat for about 20-25 minutes until the onions are golden brown.  Toss in the peas and the olive oil and turn the heat up high. Give the pan about a minute to heat up while continuing to stir the peas and the onions.  Add the vermouth to deglaze the pan and let the vermouth cook down until it is almost gone.

Toss in the nutmeg and the cayenne pepper and mix well.  Add the whipping cream and let cook down to about 1/2.  Toss in the cheese, mix well and continue to cook until the cheese has melted and the liquid has thickened.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Fennel, Carrot, Green Onion and Basil Slaw

 The other night my friends Nick and Dan surprised me with a dinner at Range on Valencia St. in San Francisco. I have been wanting to eat at this place for a while and was so excited when we pulled up to the restaurant.  The atmosphere is incredible and the food is even better. The waiter insisted that we try the Slow Roasted Bourbon and Brown Sugar Ribs.  They were amazing and served over a delicious slaw.

So I decided to try my hand at the same ribs the following evening and accompanied them with my own version of the slaw.  My ribs were good.  They slid off of the bone and melted in our mouths, but the sauce was not what I wanted it to be.  The recipe recommended overnight marinating, which I did not do so that may have been the issue.  The slaw however, was amazingly delicious.  I highly suggest giving this a try.

- 2 large fennel bulbs
- 2 cup of Julienned carrots (you can buy them pre-Julienned at the grocery)
- 1 bunch of green onions, chopped, just the green tops (save the white portion for stock)
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- Handful of basil leaves chopped
- 3 tbsps of Olive Oil
- 1/2 cup of unseasoned rice vinegar
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Mix everything in a bowl, taste and add salt and pepper as desired.  Cover and set in the refrigerator for about an hour.  Make sure to stir a few times before serving to ensure even coverage of the dressing.

White Trash Cooking - Pickled Tomatoes, Radishes and Red Onions

Last weekend my friends David, Scott, Matt and Lance invited me to spend the weekend at their trailer in Ukiah.  Yes, a trailer.  I did not know what to expect.  Would it be a portable house on wheels?  Would there be a Barcolounger on the front porch and an above ground pool in the back yard?  I was totally intrigued and could not wait to go.  What would happen if a tornado decided to rip through Ukiah, would
I end up in Oz? When we got there I was amazed. 

My four friends had transformed a tin can house into the W Hotel.  Flip up the hood and this baby is all single wide trailer (FYI - my friend Lance just explained the dynamics of single wide vs. double wide and this is definitely a single wide), but the cosmetics make it amazing and you really cannot beat the beauty of the mountainous terrain in Ukiah.

A few Christmas' ago my very close friend Ronnie got me the White Trash Cookbook.  I have never made anything from this cookbook, but it seemed so appropriate to bring it with me and choose a couple of for dinner one night.  A few liberties were taken with the following recipe, but it is important to note that the dinner we prepared was inspired by my crafty friends, their white trash trailer and this amazing cookbook.

Pickled Tomatoes, Radishes and Red Onion Over Fish

- 12 oz. rice vinegar
- 12 oz. red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp cloves
- 1 tbsp caraway seeds
- 1 tbsp mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 handful of fresh rosemary
- 3 tbsp sugar (optional)

- Three medium sized heirloom tomatoes, quartered (make sure they are not too ripe/too soft)
- Three bunches of heirloom radishes, chopped in half (the heirloom radishes I used were long and thin and pinkish in color)
- Three medium sized red onions, quartered

Arrange veggies in a large Pyrex dish.  Place all of the remaining ingredients into a sauce pan (except for the veggies) and cook over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes or until all of the sugar has dissolved.  Pour over the veggies, cover with plastic wrap and let set overnight.

Serve with Spicy Panko Crusted Tilapia but you can forget the cilantro rach drizzle.  The juice from the veggies will be enough.