Sunday, September 25, 2011

Kalamata Aioli


I use to make this a lot and then forgot about it until recently when the Bake had it with a side of hot french fries. Wow, this is great as a dip or a spread for sandwiches.

2 1/2 cups Best Food mayo
1/2 cup roasted garlic puree, mashed
1 fresh clove garlic
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup pitted Kalamata Olives
salt and fresh pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350F.
Cut the top off a whole head of garlic, drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil and roast for about an hour.
Puree olives and the fresh garlic clove in the food processor. Place in bowl and add garlic puree, lemon juice, and mayo, mixing well with a whisk. Add salt and pepper, to taste.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Portobello Mushroom Pizza


3-4 portobello mushrooms, wiped and gills removed
1 pound ground Italian sausage
favorite Marinara sauce
sliced red or yellow peppers
Mozzarella cheese, grated
sliced fresh tomato

Preheat oven to 350F.
In a saute pan, lightly grill mushroom in garlic flavored olive oil and place on foil lined baking sheet.
In another pan, cook sausage until done. Using a slotted spoon, spread sausage onto mushrooms. Top with Marinara sauce, sliced peppers and cheese. Bake in oven about 15 minutes until cheese is melted and heated throughout. Take out of oven and top with fresh tomato and fresh basil if desired.
Can be used with your own favorite pizza topping, add a salad and use for lunch or dinner.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Stuffed Jalapenos


Football games and tailgating got me to thinking of cheese, bacon and jalapenos.
1 dozen jalapenos, cut in half, seeds removed
1- 8ounce package cream cheese
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 slices applewood bacon, cooked and chopped
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix cheeses, garlic, bacon and worcestershire sauce together well. Stuff into jalapenos.
Bake for 20 minutes.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Roasted Garbanzo Beans


1- 15ounce can Organic Garbanzo Beans, rinsed and drained
1 Tablespoon olive oil
sprinkle of Alfie's seasoning
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400F.
Rinse and drain beans, dry with paper towels and take off skins.
Put on baking sheet and mix with olive oil. Sprinkle with seasonings. Bake for about 40 minutes until beans are crunchy and golden.
Remove from oven and toss with grated Parmesan.

These are a crunchy high protein snack, could be used in place of croutons for gluten-free diet.
The seasonings can be changed up to anything, with your favorite potato chips in mind!

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Gyoza with Orange Sauce


This was quick to make as I used Trader Joe's Thai Shrimp Gyoza, right out of the freezer.
Orange sauce:
1/2 cup chicken stock
4 Tablespoons fresh orange juice, or white wine
1 Tablespoon oyster sauce or soy sauce
1 teaspoon hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon Chinese chili sauce or 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons orange peel, grated

Pan fry gyoza in 1 Tablespoon peanut oil, until bottoms are browned and crispy (about 2 minutes). Whisk all sauce ingredients together and pour over gyoza and cover. Let steam about 4 minutes until gyoza is soft and sauce is reduced.
Put on serving dish, spoon with sauce and serve.
Quick and easy! This is would also work with other types of gyoza.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Corn Guacamole


1 whole avocado, diced
1/2 cup sweet corn, shuck and roasted
1/4 of a red pepper, finely diced
1/4 cup black beans, rinsed
1/4 cup white sweet onion, finely diced
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed, finely diced
1/4 cup cilantro , chopped
1/2 whole lime, juiced

Roast corn in pan for a couple minutes with a little Alfie's seasoning and set aside.
In a bowl toss avocado, corn, red pepper, beans, onions, salt, jalapeno and cilantro with lime juice. Put into a lightly greased ramekin and turn out on platter, serve with chips.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Caramel Apples


The weather turned cool today and we picked some apples off the tree. Along with fresh apple juice, apple crumble, thought we would try caramel apples for a treat.
4-6 apples, washed and dried well
16 ounces caramels, unwrapped
1 Tablespoon water
chopped nuts (I used toasted pecans) or chocolate (white or semi-sweet chocolate) melted
wooden skewers

In a double-boiler over medium heat melt the caramels with water. Put skewer through core of apple and dip into caramel mixture and cut off excess with a knife. Dip into nuts and put on greased wax paper. Drizzle with melted chocolate and put in refrigerator to cool.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Twiced Baked Potatoes


8 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
2 Tablespoons butter
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese (prefer sharp), divided
4 Tablespoon chopped chives
4 baking potatoes (Russet)

Heat oven to 400F. Bake potatoes until tender (about 1 1/2 hours) Let cool enough to handle. Cut 1/4 off top of potato and scoop out inside leaving 1/4 inch pulp all around potato.
Mash potato with 2 Tablespoons butter until smooth. Add 1 cup sour cream, 1 cup cheese, bacon, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and mash until smooth. Spoon back into shells and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese. Bake at 350F until hot and cheese is melted (about 15 minutes)

This is a good base recipe, cheese and meat can be changed up, also roasted vegetables.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Avocado Half-Shell with Marinated Shrimp


1/3 cup vegetable or olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons capers
1/2 teaspoon dill weed
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
dash cayenne
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound small fresh cooked shrimp
3-4 avocados, halved and peeled

Combine oil, lime or lemon juice, vinegar, capers, salt, dill, mustard, and cayenne. Toss with shrimp and chill, covered, several hours, stirring occasionally.
Brush avocado halves with marinade. Arrange on lettuce and fill with shrimp. Serve with remaining marinade.
Serves 6

Monday, September 12, 2011

Hummous


This is a base hummous recipe that has no tahini in it, this makes it lower in fat (and I often don't have tahini in my cupboard!) It can be used as an appetizer with fresh vegetables or chips (I currently like the new TJ Soy and Flaxseed Tortilla Chips) or as a spread for a sandwich.
More garlic or lemon can be added to taste. The addition of roasted vegetables or nuts can be added to the base for variety.
1 can chick peas, rinsed and drained
2 cloves (or more) of garlic,
3 Tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
3-4 Tablespoons of hot water
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Kalamata olives and paprika to garnish

Place chick peas in food processor. Add garlic, lemon juice, water, Tabasco, sesame oil and cumin. Black pepper can be added but I did not use salt because of the chips.
Puree until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with olives and paprika. In addition, a few drops of sesame oil or olive oil can be drizzled on top.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Scalloped Mushroom Dip


6 slices of bacon, cooked until crisp and chopped
1 Tablespoon of butter
1 Tablespoon reserved bacon fat
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 Tablespoon flour
pepper to taste
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into pieces
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup sour cream

Saute onion and garlic in butter and bacon fat, until soft. Add mushrooms and cook lightly. Add flour, pepper, cream cheese, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and mustard and cook over low heat until cheese is melted. Remove from heat. Stir in sour cream and bacon. Put into a shallow baking dish. Cover and refrigerate. Bake at 350F. for about 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly.
Sprinkle with sliced green onion or parsley or more bacon and serve with crackers or sliced baguette.

Monday, September 5, 2011

No Alcohol Summer Sangria


Traditionally, Sangria is a Spanish wine with different fruits. This is an alcohol- free version, pretty and thirst quenching.
1 Large bottle cranberry cocktail, well chilled
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
Juice of 1 lemon, and 1 lime
Thinly sliced each, whole orange, lemon and lime
fresh strawberries, washed and halved
1 small apple or fresh peach thinly sliced (or both)
2 Tablespoon sugar
1- 26 ounce bottle of Pellegrino or club soda, well chilled
Strawberries, citrus fruit slices, or apple/peach slices for garnish

In a large pitcher, combine cranberry cocktail, orange juice, lemon and lime juice, sliced citrus fruits, strawberries, peaches and apple with the sugar. Stir and refrigerate 2-3 hours for flavors to meld.
To serve: fill glass with ice, pour in juice cocktail, and add the chilled soda. Garnish each glass with fresh fruit.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Tomato Sandwiches on Rosemary Bread


This is really not a recipe but one of the simple treats of summer.
Sliced Rosemary bread that is broiled and rubbed with cut garlic and smeared with a little mayo.
Sliced tomatoes layered on top with a pinch of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Fresh basil that is torn and sprinkled on top of tomatoes and shredded Parmesan on top of that. Pop it back under the broiler for about a minute and voila, it says summer!

Friday, September 2, 2011

Truffle Butter Popcorn


To some this would not be a meal but when the Bake is out of town, this is my go to dinner.
Since the popcorn machine burnt out, I have been using a brown paper lunch bag and putting it in the microwave.
1/3 cup popcorn in paper lunch bag, edge folder over once
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
1/2-1 teaspoon truffle oil
sprinkle of truffle salt
fresh grate of Parmesan cheese
drizzle of Cholula hot sauce

Put popcorn in bag and microwave on high for 1 minute 30-40 seconds.
Pour from bag into a bowl.
Meanwhile, put butter and truffle oil in small pan and heat until melted. Pour over popcorn, sprinkle with salt, cheese and hot sauce.
Wash and cut up an apple and dinner is served!