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Sauteed Onion Beer Bratwurst with Chive Mashers1

Sautéed Onion Beer Bratwurst with Chive Mashers

by The Chubby Cook on 07. Sep, 2010 in Dinner

Just thinking about the idea of making homemade sausage in the next couple weeks got me juiced up. Enough so that at the grocery the beer bratwurst were screaming at me to buy them. Heed the call of the wild when it happens. That’s my advice for the day. Today it was Johnsonville Beer Brats that were calling my name simply because the other brands at this particular grocery store didn’t look like anything to feed my family. Who knows, maybe they would have been better but Johnsonville makes a pretty tasty sausage.

Hopefully in a couple weeks we’ll be working through the recipe on how to make some tasty bratwurst on The Chubby Cook. We’re going whole hog, literally, with the sausage making deal. For the last three days I have been powering through Michael Ruhlman & Brian Polcyn’s book titled Charcuterie, The Craft of Salting, Smoking and Curing. I bought the book at Barnes & Noble, but you can find it at Amazon online just as easily. This book is absolutely incredible. The idea is to use their technique to form a solid technical and safety base and then branch out with my original flavor profiles. To say the least, I can’t wait to get going. Today I bought the curing salt, natural casings, sausage stuffer and some seasonings from Butcher & Packer. You can also pick stuff up from the Sausage Maker, but I found Butcher & Packer to be a little more to my liking. There are some other websites out there that I found, but these look to be the best. Sausage Maker was mentioned several times when I was watching video on how to make sausage on You Tube, so a bunch of other people are using this site as well. Can’t wait until the gear gets here.

So back to the Sautéed Onion Beer Brats with Chive Mashers. We’re going to make about the easiest and most crisp sautéed onions you can imagine. This is a foolproof method. The brats are going to be cooked slow over medium-low heat on the grill to be absolutely juice and delicious. The chive mashers are made with Greek yogurt, so they are a lower fat alternative to other mashed potatoes. These babies are light, fluffy and full of flavor. The Greek yogurt adds a “what is that” flavor component to the potatoes. When you combine the entire plate together, it’ll be sure to make you smile.

Enough to make 4 servings of Sautéed Onion Beer Bratwurst with Chive Mashers

Ingredients for the Chive Mashers:

5 medium sized Russet potatoes, peeled and diced large
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup reserved potato water from cooking
1/4 cup fresh chives, cut in 1/4 inch lengths
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

Ingredients for the Sautéed Onions:

2 medium Spanish onions, peeled and sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt

Other Ingredients:

1 package fresh beer bratwurst, label of your choice
1 package sausage rolls
Whole grain mustard

In a medium sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the sliced onion. Add the salt, stir to break up the onion and cover tightly with a lid. Reduce the heat to medium. Allow to cook for at least 5 minutes before stirring. Keep the pan covered and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring every five. If the onions start to brown fast, reduce the heat. When the onions are browned, remove the lid and cook off any excess moisture.

While the onions are cooking, fill a pot large enough to hold the potatoes with hot water. Make sure to leave enough room in the pot for the potatoes which will be added once the water is boiling. Salt the water- it should taste slightly less salty than ocean water. To prevent boiling over, pour in a one count of olive oil (about 1 tablespoon). Turn your grill on medium-low. When the grill is hot, place the bratwurst on the grill. Turn the brats after about six to seven minutes. Do not pierce the brats, turn with tongs.

When the water is boiling, carefully put the potatoes in the pot. The potatoes will cook for about 15 minutes or until tender. The time will vary on how large your potatoes were to begin with. A good rule of thumb is pierce a piece of potato with a fork. When it separates easily, your taters are done. Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking water and drain the potatoes into a colander. Turn off the burner and put the pan back on the stove.

Add the butter to the pot and return the hot potatoes to the pot. Add the Greek yogurt and 1/2 of the reserved cooking water. Mash with a potato masher. Dependent on the consistency, either add more yogurt or reserved cooking water. When the desired consistency is achieved, toss in the chives, salt and pepper. Mix with a spoon and adjust seasoning according to your tastes.

After 12-14 minutes, your bratwurst will be done. Turn off the grill. This is a great time to grill the sausage buns if you like to do that. Otherwise, take the bratwurst off the grill and allow to sit for a couple minutes. After they have rested, toss them in buns and slater with whole grain mustard. Top the brats with the Sautéed Onions. Looks good, right? Yeah, that’s the ticket. Mound up some potatoes one the plate and you’re in business.

As you can tell from the picture, I enjoyed this meal with a Samuel Adams Octoberfest. I would probably have enjoyed it more with a Dortmunder Gold, but this beer wasn’t bad at all. The snap of the sausage when you bite in with the savory onion and tart mustard make for just about the perfect bite. The light and super chived potatoes clear the palate for the next bite. You’re gonna love this dish, so dig in tonight.

You're gonna love this meal- dig in tonight! Photo by Scott Groth

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Easy Greek Pizza

by The Chubby Cook on 06. Sep, 2010 in Dinner

In the past, we have made a Greek Flatbread Pizza with Grilled Holloumi Caper Sauce that is a recipe you should really try. That recipe is really delicious, but definitely would not fall into the definition of quick or easy. It takes time, but has layer upon layer of flavor. I would recommend that you give that recipe a try when you have a little time on your hands.

The Easy Greek Pizza is just that, easy. We cut a few corners by using all store bought ingredients to get this thing done. For this recipe, we use an original Boboli pizza crust. Could you make your own pizza dough? Yeah, but that would take extra time and this is a meal that from start to finish takes only 15 minutes. Although I am not a huge fan of the Boboli, they get the job done in a pinch. We keep a couple in the refrigerator for when we are a little too tired or frazzled to make dinner. You can make some delicious pie without the headache of dealing with the dough.

For this recipe pick up pitted kalamata olives from your grocery store. You can usually find them at the olive bar. Buy your feta cheese already crumbled- it’s just easier. And we always have a jar of roasted red peppers on hand to throw down on whatever we can. Using ingredients that are ready to use saves time and makes this meal simply enjoyable because there is almost no work to get it ready.

This is not your typical pizza recipe, however. We don’t use any red or white sauce, but simply some olive oil and garlic powder. The cheese and kalamata olive combination give this pizza a salted, savory bite with a little kick of attitude. The intense flavors are mellowed with the addition of roasted red peppers. Basil adds freshness and really applies some depth into the dish. With your first bite, you will be sold on this delicious pizza.

Makes 1 pizza, enough for 2 hungry people.

Ingredients:

1 Boboli Original Crust Pizza
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 Teaspoon garlic powder
1 Cup crumbled feta
3/4 Cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped rough
3/4 Cup roasted red peppers, chopped rough
8 leaves basil (about 1/4 cup) loosely chopped

Turn your oven on to preheat to 450 degrees. Take out a small bowl and add the olive oil and garlic powder. Mix. Using a pastry or silicone brush, lightly coat the entire top of the Boboli crust.

Spread the crumbled feta on top of the Boboli crust. Do the same with the kalamata olives and roasted red peppers.

Pop the pizza directly onto the rack in the oven for about 10-12 minutes, or until it looks done.

Remove the pizza from the oven and top with the chopped basil. Cut and serve immediately.

It’s that easy. I enjoyed the pizza with a glass of Marquis Phillips 2006 Sarah’s Blend and they went very well together.

Quick and delicious with a satisfying crunch. Photo by Scott Groth

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Homemade Ketchup Recipe

by The Chubby Cook on 30. Aug, 2010 in Condiments

When I was growing up, I was forced to try some homemade ketchup at some of the family reunions that we went to. I remember it being watery with a really heavy tomato twang that made me want to run back to my Heinz. An indelible memory was impressed in my head that homemade ketchup would never be as good as the stuff from a jar. Needless to say, since then I haven’t met any homemade ketchup that even tastes as good as Hunt’s, and we all know that Hunt’s is nowhere near as good as Heinz. I’m not sure what Heinz has in it that tastes so good, but it is the standard to which I hold all other ketchup.

It’s time the indelible memory was overhauled. I thought that there had to be a way to make really excellent homemade ketchup, so I started my research. The whole idea came about with the desire to make my own homemade barbecue sauce. Most of the recipes I was researching listed ketchup as the primary ingredient. The easy way is to use Heinz. Unfortunately for me, I watched a program called BBQ Pitmasters on TLC. One of the teams made their barbecue sauce with homemade ketchup and it really stood out to the judges. Why not do the same for my sauce? Onward and upward, or so they say. Heinz is out the door.

My recipe for homemade ketchup makes a thick and rich sauce with lots of depth of flavor. It’s slightly sweet with just a twinge of vinegar that provides excellent contrast with whatever its slathered on. The smell is somewhat intoxicating and makes my mouth water whenever I open the jar. The biggest problem with this sauce is that I didn’t make nearly enough of it. Next time a double recipe is on order.

Makes about 2 cups of homemade ketchup

Ingredients

1 bay leaf, crushed
6 whole allspice dried berries
1 stick of cinnamon, broken in half
6 whole dried cloves
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
5 tablespoons organic kane sugar
1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses
1 large Spanish onion (about 4 inches in diameter)
1 Anaheim chili, seeded and chopped
1.5 teaspoons kosher salt
6 medium (apple sized) tomatoes, cored and chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

For this homemade ketchup recipe, there is a little preparation that needs to happen before we start to cook. I stopped off at Sur la Table and picked up some tea steeping bags to put all my herbs and spices in. You can also put them in a double layer of cheesecloth if you can’t find tea steeping bags. Wrap the bay leaf, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, celery seed and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

Measure the kane sugar and put in a bowl. Add the blackstrap molasses. Mix with a fork until incorporated and set aside. If you don’t have molasses, you can use dark brown sugar instead of the kane sugar and molasses. 5 tablespoons will work.

In a large sauté pan, add a 2 count of vegetable or canola oil. Heat the pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and chili. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and stir frequently for about 5 minutes, or until the onions start to turn golden. Next, add the tomatoes and garlic. Add the remaining salt and stir for another 4-5 minutes.

Add the white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, sugar mixture and spice pouch. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After 45 minutes, remove the spice pouch and discard. Turn off the burner and wait until the remaining ingredients have cooled for about 10 minutes. If you put the ingredients in the blender while they are piping hot, the top may pop off and splash hot liquid. Not fun and not safe. When the ingredients are cooled, blend them at high speed for 5-6 minutes.

Push the puree through a fine mesh sieve over the sauté pan. Turn the heat to low and reduce for another 25 minutes. Pop open a couple canning jars and you’re good to go with a couple weeks of delicious homemade ketchup. The ketchup will be good for about 3 weeks in the fridge. As a quick note, I use a label machine to put the date the sauce was made on the side of the jar. They are easy to remove and look better than masking tape.

Hope that you like the ketchup. You can play around with it as well, adding more heat if you like that or more spice in the spice pouch. One thing is for sure, my impression of homemade ketchup has changed forever. I’m looking forward to making the next batch and sharing with my family. Enjoy!

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Panini Croque Monsieur

by The Chubby Cook on 25. Aug, 2010 in Lunch

Over the last couple days, we had some friends come visit up at the lake. Before they arrived, I asked Caroline what we should make while they were here. One of our guests is into yoga and is a reiki healer, so I wasn’t sure if there would be dietary restrictions. I certainly didn’t want to throw down a steak dinner if she was vegetarian or vegan. When people visit us, the idea is to explore foods that they might not have tried, but not foods that go against eating beliefs or paradigms. Does this classify as a dogma? Awesome. Caroline assured me that we were in the clear to eat just about anything, so we put on our thinking caps.

With the tomato season still pumping out bumper crops, I suggested that we make our Panini Caprese recipe, which is just so fresh and tastes great. Caroline suggested that we change it up, perhaps to make Baguette Jambon Fromage recipe that is a family favorite. Then she suggested that we make Croque Monsieur in the panini press. I thought it sounded like a great idea, particularly when paired with the Effing Delicious Mustard Sauce. The plan was made.

This recipe is an exploration of the senses. The crispy bread cracks to reveal the melted savory Gruyère cheese and sweet saltiness of the ham. The tangy and rich mustard sauce adds moisture and ties all of the flavors together. When the buttered bread first meets the hot grill plates on the panini press, the sizzle and resulting toasted bread aroma are intoxicating. I hope that you enjoy this sandwich as much as we do.

Makes 4 six inch sandwiches

Ingredients for the Effin Delicious Mustard Sauce

3 tablespoons mayonnaise
3 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
2 tablespoons whole grain Dijon mustard

Ingredients for the Croque Monsieur

2 batards or baguettes (any hard crust bread with soft interior will work) about 18″ long
Spreadable butter or margarine
1 pound shaved or thin sliced ham (smoked or double smoked is preferable)
1/2 pound of sliced Gruyère cheese

Serve with Maille Cornichon (French mini-pickles)

Special Equipment: This recipe is most successful when using a panini press. I use the Villaware Panini press in my kitchen, but anything will work, including a George Foreman grill.

Let’s make the mustard sauce first. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Mix well and set aside.

Turn on the panini press to high heat.

For the sandwiches, I slice off the top and bottom of the bread very thinly to expose the bread surface. This lets the panini press do its work and adds that delicious crunch to the sandwich. Once the top and bottom are sliced off, I carefully slice down the middle of the bread to create the two halves of the sandwich as shown in the picture below.

Slice the top and bottoms off, then cut down the middle. Photo by Scott Groth

At this point, get out the ham and Gruyère cheese. A trick that I use to ensure that the sandwich is heated all the way through is to microwave the ham for 40 seconds before putting it in the sandwich. Take about 1/2 of the ham and warm it in the microwave. While it is warming, move to the next step.

Using the spreadable butter, lightly coat the top and bottom (not the part where you will be putting the meat and cheese) with the butter. Place the bottom piece, butter side down, in the panini press. My panini press is only large enough to make 2 sandwiches at once, so this is how many I typically make. You will hear a sizzle when the butter hits the hot grill plate.

With a spoon, smear a dollop of the mustard sauce on the bottom half of the bread. Do this carefully so you don’t burn yourself on the grill plate. Layer on some ham and then about a piece and a half of the pre-sliced Gruyère cheese. Coat the top piece of the sandwich with the mustard sauce and place on the cheese and ham. Carefully close the panini press.

After 3-4 minutes, check the progress on the sandwich. The cheese should be starting to melt and the bread should have some nice grill marks. Leave the sandwich in for another minute or two until the desired level of crispness is achieved. Remove from the press and serve immediately. If you have them, the Maille Cornichon pickles are delicious with this sandwich.

This Panini Croque Monsieur pairs wonderfully with a Stella Artois or a Pilsner Urquell. This is one delicious panini baby!

Yum. Crunchy and delicious. Eat it up. Photo by Scott Groth

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Tastes like Homemade Baked Pasta

by The Chubby Cook on 24. Aug, 2010 in Dinner

Today I was rummaging around in the refrigerator and ran across some mild Italian sausage and some shredded mozzarella cheese. I started to think about the Rustic Baked Pasta dish that we made in January. Normally I wouldn’t make a dish like this in August, but today it is cool outside and tomorrow is supposed to be in the very low 60′s around dinner time. I don’t think that is grilled vegetable or cold soup weather, particularly when we are all used to temperatures in the high 80′s for the last several weeks. Maybe a baked pasta dish would be good.

The dish that I made today is different than the one made in January. This version is also semi-homemade but has less calories and is faster to make. When you serve this recipe, everyone will think that it took you hours to make the sauce alone but you can get all the prep work done in less than thirty minutes. The smell of the cooking garlic with fresh oregano, rosemary and sage will make your mouth water and your house smell like your grandmother was there cooking all day. For this recipe, we use a little wine so there will be a lot left in the bottle- be sure that you pour yourself a glass and enjoy making this baked pasta dish.

Makes enough for 8-10 large servings

Ingredients for the Sauce:

1 package of mild Italian Sausage (six links)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic (about 6 medium cloves)
1 can (6 oz) large black olives
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1/4 cup red wine (Chianti or Merlot)
1 jar (24 oz) Four Cheese pasta sauce
1 jar (24 oz) Vodka pasta sauce
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh sage
Salt and fresh cracked pepper

Note: To prepare the black olives, drain them and then chop them roughly.

Ingredients for the Pasta:

1 sprig of fresh Rosemary
1 box (16 oz) penne or other pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt

Additional Ingredients:

1 bag (2 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated parmesan cheese

For this recipe you are going to need a few items at hand. The first is a large mixing bowl. This bowl will need to be large enough to hold all of the ingredients. You will also need either two 9-inch baking dishes or one 9X13 inch baking dish.

Start this recipe by heating the grill to high heat and preheating your oven to 400 degrees. You will also need to fill a large pot with hot water for the pasta. Salt the water until it tastes like sea water. Add the sprig of rosemary and the tablespoon of olive oil. Set this pot over high heat (covered) and bring to a boil.

When the grill is hot, cook the Italian Sausage for about 8 minutes, turning throughout the cooking process until cooked through. Allow the cooked sausage to rest for 4-5 minutes, then cut into 1/4 inch wide coins. Add to the large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a large sauce pan, heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the minced garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes. Add the black olives and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring to prevent burning. Add the red wine and tomato paste. Stir until the tomato paste has incorporated into the wine. You will know this has happened because the sauce will start to thicken.

Add the jars of pasta sauce to the pan. Stir for about a minute and then add the oregano, sage and rosemary. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 15 minutes.

While the sauce is simmering, add the pasta to the salted water. Cook for about 9 minutes. You want slightly undercooked pasta for this recipe because we will be baking the dish. When the pasta is cooked, drain in a colander. Move the cooked pasta to the mixing bowl.

Pour the sauce over the pasta and cooked sausage in the mixing bowl. Mix together. Grab either you two 9 inch baking dishes or one 9X13 inch baking dish. Spray with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Spoon in about half of the pasta mixture. Use 1/2 of the shredded cheese and the parmesan, coating the pasta in the dish entirely. Spoon the remaining pasta mixture over the top of the cheese. Coat the pasta with the remaining shredded cheese and parmesan.

Place the dish, uncovered, in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown. Serve immediately.

I would serve this with some Chianti, Shiraz or Syrah. It goes great with some fresh made garlic bread as well, or take the faster route and heat up some premade Texas Toast. A nice side salad with Italian dressing would be a winner as well. However you serve it, this dish will taste like it took you all day. Your guests or family don’t need to know that it was ready in under an hour.

Wine and baked pasta make a great meal. Photo by Scott Groth

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Grilled Thick Cut Pork Chop with Balsamic Reduced Onions

by The Chubby Cook on 22. Aug, 2010 in Dinner

Last night it was hard to cook this meal because I was torn between eating what is good for me and what is bad for me. We had pork chops planned for this week, but Caroline wanted stromboli from Guppy’s Tavern instead, which is just plain delicious. I am trying to be more healthy and made the hard decision to make the dinner that was planned come hell or high water. When I picked up her stromboli from the restaurant, my plan was almost shot. The smell of the stromboli was intoxicating in the car for the drive home. Pork chops, I kept thinking, pork chops. After the fact, I am glad to have made the chops. They turned out really well, perfectly cooked and seasoned.

To make this meal a little more appealing, I thought that some reduced onions would be good. Then I thought that some balsamic reduced onions would be even better. I had a fresh zucchini from the farm stand staring me in the face, so I thought that would go well with the whole dish. A little balsamic on it would pair it well with the onion. With a plan formed, it was time to execute.

Remember that you really do need to let your meat proteins sit on the counter to come to room temperature so they cook all the way through, particularly if there is a bone in them. I can’t tell you how many times I have rushed this step and found that the meat around the bone was raw. It’s always a huge disappointment to have to put the uncooked portion of a dinner into the microwave to finish it off. I season the meat while it is coming to room temp which imparts good flavor as well.

Makes 2 thick cut chops and fixings

Ingredients:

2 thick cut, bone in pork chops
1 red onion, peeled and sliced crosswise very thin
1 zucchini, washed and sliced lengthwise into 4 slices
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Salt & Pepper
Fresh thyme leaves for garnish

Brush the zucchini on both sides with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle a sparse amount of balsamic vinegar on the zucchini. Set aside. Take the meat out of the fridge, rinse and pat dry. Brush with olive oil on both sides. Coat with a light dusting of salt, pepper, onion and garlic powder on both sides. Allow to come to room temperature. Turn on the grill to high heat. When the grill is hot, add the chops and zucchini. Grill each side about 4 minutes, turning at the 2 minute mark. When the pork is cooked, allow to sit for 5 minutes before eating to let the meat rest.

For the reduced onions, add 2 tbsp olive oil to a pan over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, add the sliced onion. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Mix and cook for 5-7 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook for another 5-7 minutes. Add 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, stir constantly for 1 minute. When absorbed, remove onions from heat.

Serve the pork chop over the sliced zucchini with reduced onions on top. Garnish with some thyme leaves.

You’re gonna love this pork chop. I enjoyed it with a glass of Michael Cosentino’s “The Zin.” It was pretty darn good.

Succulent pork chops with reduced onions and grilled zucchini. Photo by Scott Groth

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Grilled Vegetables & Hummus on Flatbread

Grilled Flatbread with Hummus & Summer Veggies

by The Chubby Cook on 20. Aug, 2010 in Dinner, Lunch

Last week I was working to figure out what to do with some left over vegetables from my Char Grilled Summer Vegetables over Penne Pasta recipe. I went through a bunch of ideas an ended up making a Soup of Pureed Summer Vegetables, which was really delicious. In the thought process, I came up with an idea of putting the vegetables with some hummus on a pita. We have vegetables with our Best Hummus Recipe all the time, so it seemed like a natural pairing to put some grilled veggies with it as well. It just seemed a little too blah for us though, so I thought that a sauce on top might be the differentiation factor that was needed.

Typically I would make a sauce for it with some cilantro since that is my favorite summer herb, but our cilantro in pots have bolted to seed and the cilantro we had inside was a little too passed its prime. Caroline suggested that we use some of the chives we had in pots, so that is what we made. A lemon, chive, shallot and caper sauce that really added a lot to the dish. It’s simple to make, just add lemon, chives, capers, shallots and some olive oil together and mix. Put in some salt and pepper for good measure and you’re off to the races.

We changed up the pita for some flatbread that we had in the freezer from when we made our Greek Flatbread Pizza recipe. If you haven’t tried that one, it is really delicious. I would call that a vegetarian delight. So full of flavor that it’s hard to stop with just one. The hummus flatbread that you are reading about today is really terrific, but on a more subtle level. The flavors don’t punch you in the face like they do with the Greek Flatbread. All told, either one is great. Try them both and you decide.

Makes enough for 4 flatbreads

Ingredients for the hummus:

2 cans garbanzo beans (chick peas) drained and rinsed
2 lemons, juiced
1 head roasted garlic
1 tsp ground cumin seed
1/3 cup good tahini paste
1/3 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt
1/3 or more cups olive oil (more if the consistency is too thick. Or add water if you are avoiding adding more oil.)
Small handful of Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Ingredients for the Summer Veggies

1 summer squash, washed and halved lengthwise
1 zucchini, washed and halved lengthwise
1 green or red pepper, washed and quartered
2-3 scallions, washed
Olive Oil
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

1 large tomato, washed and sliced thin. Set aside.

Ingredients for the Caper Sauce

1 tbsp chopped chive
1 heaping tbsp capers, drained
Zest from 1 lemon
Juice from 1 lemon
1 shallot, minced

The first thing to do is roast the garlic for the hummus. Turn a toaster oven or oven to 400 degrees. Trim the top off a head of garlic and place in a ramekin. Coat in oil and sprinkle some salt and pepper on. Cover with aluminum foil and make a tight seal. Put in the oven for 40 minutes to an hour. If you choose, skip this step and use 4 cloves of minced fresh garlic instead. If you roasted the garlic, when it is done squeeze the cloves from the head into a food processor.

To the food processor, add in all remaining ingredients for the hummus with the exception of the olive oil. Start to process and drizzle the olive oil into the hummus. Allow to process for 4-5 minutes. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. If it is too thick, add some water or some more Greek yogurt. Too thin, add some more tahini as it is a thickener. The hummus is ready to go!

For the vegetables, turn on the grill to medium high heat. Coat the vegetables in olive oil, but leave the tomato set aside. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill the vegetables for about 4 minutes a side or until cooked through. Remove from the heat. Place the flatbread on the grill and turn every 20-30 seconds until both sides are slightly crisp. Remove from the heat. With the vegetables, slice thin, half-moon coins from the squash and zucchini and slice the pepper thin. Set aside.

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the Caper Sauce. Set aside.

Spoon some hummus on each flatbread and spread evenly. Layer the thin tomato slices over the hummus. Add on the sliced grilled vegetables and spoon some of the sauce over the top. This dish has it all- great flavor as well as tons of proteins and vitamins. It’s a great lunch or dinner option. Chow down on this grilled flatbread pizza recipe as soon as possible.

Grilled veggies over some hummus makes a great meal. Photo by Scott Groth

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cabrilla in lime sauce with grilled corn

Spotted Cabrilla (Mexican Sea Bass) with Cilantro Lime Sauce and Grilled Corn

by The Chubby Cook on 18. Aug, 2010 in Dinner

When I was at our local Wegmans grocery last week, I took a swing through the seafood department to see what was available. They had this pale pink fish that I have never seen before. It looked really tasty and you could tell it was fresh just by looking at it. I asked the fishmonger what this Cabrilla was all about. He didn’t have a whole lot of answers, but said that they had it earlier in the week and sold out within hours. I asked how it was best prepared and he told me however, but don’t go overboard because the fish is delicate and flaky. He suggested that I put some salt and pepper on it and make a sauce. Sounded like a good plan so I bought two fillets and thanked him as I walked away.

Cabrilla is typically found in all Mexican waters and can grow as large as 50-60lbs. It looks like a grouper which means that it is just ugly. Unfortunately, I did not realize that this striped fish is not on the shelves mainly because it has historically been heavily fished. I can understand why, it is absolutely delicious. It is also known as Pinto Bass or Spotted Grouper in the event that you see it on the shelves somewhere.

I love cilantro with fish. I don’t know why, it just tastes good to me. Add in some lime, lime zest and olive oil and I think you have a pretty good and quick sauce. The dish needs something to give it some body, so I tossed on some grilled corn. The cilantro and corn combination is killer, particularly when you add in some lime. For the topping on a delicate and sweet fish, I thought it would be a winner that wasn’t overpowering. Caroline said it best, “The fish tastes great, you can still taste the flavor of it even with the lime sauce. The corn gives it a nice crunch.” We enjoyed this delicious fish with a fresh side salad with garden tomatoes and a homemade Dijon vinaigrette. Just delicious.

Makes enough for 4 entrees

Ingredients:

4 fillets of Spotted Cabrilla or other flaky, thick white fish
Zest from 1 lime
Juice from 1 lime
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 bunch of cilantro
2 ears of corn, shucked
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Light the grill and set to high heat. Lightly coat the corn with olive oil or cooking spray. Place on the grill and cook about 5-7 minutes, turning occasionally. Bring inside and slice off the kernels. Break up the kernels in a large bowl and set aside.

In a small food processor or a blender, combine the lime zest, lime juice and cilantro. While the machine is running, drizzle in the olive oil until the sauce emulsifies. Keep the machine running and add a pinch of salt and some fresh ground pepper. Set the sauce aside.

Heat a large non-stick frying pan. Add a four count of olive oil. Salt and pepper the fish. Add to the pan and cook, without moving, about 3-4 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillet. Carefully flip with a spatula and cook to desired temperature. I like my fish more well done, so would cook for another 3-4 minutes. Most people would probably cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Plate the fish. Spoon some of the lime sauce over the fish and top with the grilled corn kernels and a piece of cilantro for color. The pan searing should have made a crisp exterior to the fish and the corn adds a nice sweetness and crunch. The cilantro lime sauce ties everything together for a great main dish. This would be wonderful with some grilled asparagus or some sautéed green beans with garlic and lemon zest. It went great with our salads and come to think of it, would probably have gone great with some fresh tomato topped iwth a pinch of salt and cilantro. Whatever you pair this with, keep it light and fresh.

Pour some of your favorite Chenin Blanc or a Viognier in a wine glass and enjoy. I know we did.

Delicious. Photo by Scott Groth

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Soup of Pureed Grilled Summer Vegetables

by The Chubby Cook on 17. Aug, 2010 in Soup

This idea for this soup was concocted simply because we grilled way too many vegetables for the Char Grilled Summer Vegetables over Penne Pasta meal that we whipped up over the weekend. We had a lot of summer squash, zucchini and grilled red peppers left over. There was a little grilled fennel and scallion in the mix, but not enough to make anybody stand up and notice. When I was looking at the bowl of chopped goodness, I got to thinking what I could do with it. We could easily whip up some pizza crust and make a summer veggie pizza, but the oven would have heated the house way up and I wasn’t interested in doing that. I thought about making some hummus from my Best Hummus Recipe and then spooning it over some pita. I thought I could slice the cooked vegetables thin and make a cold pizza. Unfortunately, the veggies were already chopped into pieces and they were really quite soft, so it would have been a huge effort. Idea #2 scrapped.

Instead, I settled on whipping up a soup. How to make the soup was the only question in my head. Should I make it a clear vegetable broth and add in some cannellini beans and some noodles to make a vegetable noodle soup? That sounded pretty good to me, but I didn’t think that the squash would have made it through the process and it would have come out a little stew looking, which isn’t what I was going for. I needed to make these veggies into a puree. Done and done. With a full wine glass it was time to get to work.

I knew that I would have to do something for the base, so I pulled out a Spanish onion and diced it up. Next I blanched a huge beefsteak tomato to remove the skin and chopped that roughly. I made up some garlic paste (minced garlic with a pinch of coarse sea salt, mashed together either in a mortar and pestle or on the cutting board with the edge of a knife blade) and brought in a handful of fresh thyme from the container garden. In my head, this soup was coming together quickly. I looked in the fridge and found about an inch and a half of the goat cheese log that I used in the pasta from the night before. That would make this soup really have some good depth. In the pantry I found a box of organic vegetable stock and I knew we had a winner. The soup has a lot of layers of flavor. Here’s the recipe:

Makes enough for 6 large bowls of soup

Ingredients:

2 summer squash, washed and halved lengthwise
2 zucchini, halved lengthwise
2 red peppers, cored and quartered
1/2 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut in half
3-4 whole scallions, washed
1 large beefsteak tomato
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and medium dice
4 cloves garlic, peeled, minced
10 fresh sprigs of thyme, stripped
1 box organic vegetable stock
1/4 cup goat cheese
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and Fresh Cracked Pepper
Fresh Basil, sliced chiffonade

Fire up the grill. While the grill is heating, bring some water to a boil in a pot large enough to cover the tomato you are using. While the grill and water are heating, prep the squash, zucchini, peppers, fennel and scallions. Lightly coat all in olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper. When the grill is hot, place the veggies on the grill, turning every couple minutes for 6-9 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked through. Remove from the grill and chop into large pieces for the soup. Set aside.

In a stock pot, heat a three count of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the onion. Sprinkle with salt. Cook the onion for 5-7 minutes, or until translucent and slightly golden. While the onion is cooking, blanch the tomato to remove the skin. Kitchen Tip: Cut an X in the bottom of the tomato prior to placing in the water. It allows the skin to be removed more easily. Take the tomato out of the water after 20 seconds. Remove the skin carefully as it will be hot. Core the tomato and chop into large pieces. Add the chopped tomato and minced garlic to the onions and sprinkle with salt. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Add the grilled vegetables to the onion mixture. Add the vegetable stock and thyme. Bring the soup to a boil. Once the soup has boiled, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20-30 minutes stirring occasionally. Check the soup for seasoning. Adjust salt and pepper. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup for 5-7 minutes or until the soup has reached a fine puree stage. Add in the goat cheese in chunks and puree again. Taste and adjust seasoning again. Let the soup sit for about 30 minutes prior to serving to allow the flavors to develop further.

Ladle into bowls and top with a pinch of the basil. I think that a dollop of crème fraiche would be perfect in the center of this soup with the basil on top. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any nor did we have any sour cream. Nonetheless, the soup was fantastic and all takers went for seconds. I served this with some toasted, thick cut whole wheat bread with some butter. The soup with the bread was a real winner. The next day Caroline enjoyed the leftovers with a grilled cheese which paired perfectly. This soup is versatile enough to serve as a starter or as the main meal. It really feels great to take advantage of the summer’s harvest with the last couple recipes that I have posted up. Tomorrow I am headed back to the farm stand to get some more. That vegetarian hummus pizza that I was thinking of making really sounds delicious to me. Maybe it’ll be up here in the next couple days. In the meantime, enjoy this soup. I know you and your family will love it.

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Beefsteak Tomatoes with Basil Oil, Goat Cheese and Char Grilled Corn

by The Chubby Cook on 16. Aug, 2010 in Appetizers, Sides

I was tired after a long day and unfortunately didn’t get the camera out to take a picture of this quick and fresh little dish. It is a fast recipe to make and everyone’s plates will be clean after they dig into it. The key here is fresh tomato and basil. Also, buying corn while it is in season is critical for optimal sweetness. There’s nothing quite like grilled corn in my book. The sweetness is enhanced when the kernels caramelize and pick up that great grill flavor. Yumm.

To make the basil oil, simply toss the basil and the oil into the blender. If you don’t want the pulp in your oil, you can strain it through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth. At the lake, I don’t have a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth, so we enjoyed it with the pulp and it was great. Not as refined as I would have like, but flavor is king around this house.

Make as much or as little as you would like. I like my tomato sliced relatively thin, but if you like it thick cut just make sure that you buy additional tomatoes so that everyone can have some.

Makes enough for 4 side dish portions.

Ingredients:

2 large beefsteak tomatoes
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/3 cup or thereabout crumbled goat cheese
2 ears corn, shucked
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Fire up the grill to high heat. Lightly spray the corn with oil or cooking spray. Place on the grill, turning every 2-3 minutes, for 8-10 minutes. When the corn is done, bring it inside for prep. When it is cool enough to handle, cut the kernels off the cob. Break up into individual kernels. Set aside.

Place basil leaves and olive oil in a blender. Blend until fully emulsified- about 4 minutes. Set aside.

Wash the tomatoes. Slice to whatever thickness you like. Place the tomatoes on a platter. Spoon the basil oil over the tomatoes. Crumble the goat cheese over the tomatoes. Sprinkle the corn kernels over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. You’re ready to go.

Be sure when you are serving that everyone gets a good dose of the basil oil and corn. Nobody wants to get the short stack, so be proactive or serve them on individual plates to begin with.

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Char Grilled Summer Vegetables over Penne Pasta in Tomato Jus

Char Grilled Summer Vegetables over Penne Pasta with Whole Wheat Garlic Bread

by The Chubby Cook on 15. Aug, 2010 in Dinner

Over the weekend, we had some guests up to the house who have less than carnivorous tendencies. What exactly does that mean? No meat, fish or eggs. I learned this weekend that milk is typically off the list as well, but cheese is given the green light. At first I was thinking that a salad would be the easiest way to achieve mealtime nirvana. I was thinking that we would get some fresh greens and have it salad bar style where you pile on what you would like. Caroline gave the idea two big thumbs down saying that I had more imagination and creativity for our good friends than to make a salad bar. She’s right, I do. Time for some thinking. Next idea: ratatouille with a fresh crumb topping. Then I thought about the house and how hot it gets with the oven going, so that idea went out the window. Maybe I could make a swanky salad like fennel with watercress and a light lemon vinaigrette dressing. Make some fresh croutons which I would coat with fresh herbs from the container garden. Problem is that we are at the lake and watercress is really hard to find up here.

So, I thought that we would make up some penne pasta in a tomato jus topped with some grilled fresh garden vegetables. I decided that I would wait to see what looked the most fresh at the store and road side markets and work from there. On my trip for groceries, I was extremely fortunate. I found mini-plum tomatoes, fresh summer squash, zucchini still warm from being in the field and local red peppers that just looked amazing. For the finishing touch, I found some huge local beefsteak tomatoes which I would have to figure out what I was going to do. At the grocery I picked up some fennel because it was still on my brain from the salad idea and some organic scallions.

The colors in this dish are vibrant and it is extremely easy to make. I went a little overboard purchasing the vegetables simply because they were so fresh. It worked out in our favor though when I whipped them up into a delicious soup the following night- that recipe will be posted up soon as well. I made three medium zucchini, three bell peppers, three summer squash, one fennel bulb and an entire bunch of scallions. I could have made one of each and we would have had plenty of food. For this recipe, I have scaled the amounts back from what I made in the event you aren’t interested in making something from the leftovers.

The key to this dish is appropriate prep. Just because the veggies are fresh doesn’t mean they don’t need to be washed. I say wash them all first, then slice. After they are sliced, you can oil and salt them and leave them on the counter until needed. They don’t need to go on the grill right away.

Summer squash and scallions ready to grill. Photo by Jamie Ginsberg

Makes enough for 4 people

Ingredients for the Penne with Tomato Jus

1 box of penne pasta
3 cups of cherry or other small tomatoes, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, minced and crushed with salt
1/2 tsp fresh lemon zest
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese (optional)
Salt & Fresh cracked pepper

Ingredients for the Char Grilled Summer Vegetables

2 summer squash, washed and sliced lengthwise
2 zucchini, washed and sliced lengthwise
2 red bell peppers, washed, cored and quartered
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and quartered
1 bunch of scallions, washed
Salt & Fresh cracked pepper

Ingredients for Whole Wheat Garlic Bread

1 loaf rustic whole wheat bread (hard crusted)
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic paste from ingredients for the Tomato Jus (robbing Peter to pay Paul?)

Salt a large pot of water and get it heating up to a boil. Remember that it should taste like sea water. Fire up the grill to medium-high heat. Wash all the vegetables and get to slicing. Once they are all sliced, you can either use a basting brush to oil them up or put about 1/2 cup of olive oil into the bottom of a work bowl. Hold the vegetable over the bowl and use your hand to coat. Once the veggies are oiled, make sure they are laid flat on a work surface and sprinkle salt and fresh cracked pepper over them. You do not need to take the roots off of the scallions- they can go on the grill just as they are.

Slice the rustic whole wheat loaf on the bias, about 3/4 inch slices. Brush with the olive oil on both sides. I don’t have a brush at the lake, so I drizzle some oil on each and spread around with the back of a spoon. On one side, smear some garlic paste. Remember that a little goes a long way! You’re ready to grill after the veggies are done.

When the water is boiling, toss in the pasta and cook according to the instructions. About 2-3 minutes after the pasta has gone in the boiling water (unless you are using fresh pasta, in which case you should cook that AFTER you have taken the veggies completely off the grill) put your vegetables on the grill. My suggestion is to put the red peppers on a shelf if you have one because their skins burn so quickly. Cook the vegetables about 5-7 minutes, turning and rotating throughout the cooking process. When the veggies are done, put them on a large platter.

Char grilled squash and zucchini. Delicious. Photo by Scott Groth

Reduce the heat to low and begin grilling the whole wheat garlic bread. Grill each side about 1 minute or until perfectly toasted. I start grilling with the garlic side up. You will like this garlic bread for sure.

To make the tomato jus, once the pasta is done cooking be sure that you reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid (pasta water). Pour off the pasta into a colander. Return the pasta pot to medium heat and add the olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. As they begin to break down, add in the garlic paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Return the pasta to the pot and stir. Add in the lemon zest and goat cheese if you are using. Pour in 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and stir. If the pasta looks dry, add more cooking liquid. Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a warm serving platter.

Slice the vegetables crosswise so they are in large sized chunks. I say mix the chunks all together, but you could keep them separate if you wanted. Move to a platter and serve family style alongside the pasta.

We served this meal in bowls that were layered first with the pasta, then the veggies and topped with the garlic bread. Everyone loved the dish and left the table completely satisfied, which is always a good thing. Upon reflection, I agree with Caroline that a salad bar would have been kinda lame. Thanks for pushing me a little bit- we got some great meals out of it!

Who says vegetarian can't be delicious? These are good eats. Photo by Scott Groth

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Lemon Chicken over Goat Cheese and Tomato Pasta

by The Chubby Cook on 12. Aug, 2010 in Dinner

In this dish, we cheated a little bit by using chicken breasts that were marinated from the grocery store. Typically I would not do this, but they were from Wegmans so they just had to be good, and they were. If you don’t have a Wegmans around, I’ll see if I can unearth a good lemon marinade to post up for this recipe in the next week or so. Until then, this one is a little semi-homemade.

This dish is best made in August and September when the tomatoes are at their peak. We visited a market in Canada just north of the border which was really incredible. I was completely shocked at the depth of the market for kinda being in the middle of nowhere. The people there were extremely nice and the produce was just fantastic. We made our way around the entire market sampling as we went. Here’s a shot of one portion of the market. Reminded me just a little bit of the Marché Provençale- just a wee little bit. It was a nice feeling to be there, that’s for sure.

Tons of fresh produce at this Farmer's Market. Photo by Scott Groth

So the key to making this dish is to let the goat cheese and the juices from the tomatoes do their work on the pasta. It’s critical that you reserve some of the pasta water- you will be amazed at just how much liquid the cooked pasta will soak up. The one thing you don’t want to have is dry pasta- trust me on this one. This recipe comes together quickly and is best served family style in shallow bowls. It’s really delicious, so just give it a shot.

Makes enough for 4 hungry people

Ingredients:

1 box penne pasta
3 cups yellow or red cherry tomatoes (or get a mix)
1/2 cup crumbled semi-soft goat cheese
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp lemon zest
About 20 good sized basil leaves
3 tbsp good olive oil
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
fresh cracked pepper
4 chicken breasts, preferably lemon marinated

Start the water boiling on the stove- make sure that the water is nice and salty. It should taste like ocean water. Fire up the grill after you have the water on the stove and let the grill get good and hot. While you are waiting, slice all the cherry tomatoes in half and set aside. Mince the garlic and prepare the lemon zest. Be sure that you have cleaned the lemons really well. Don’t cut the basil until everything else is done- it should be added at the absolute last minute.

When the water is boiling, toss in the pasta and give it a quick stir. Take the chicken breasts out to the grill and cook them for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through. They should be done about the same time the pasta is done. When they are cooked, bring them inside and let them rest while you are prepping the pasta.

For this recipe, you want your pasta cooked pretty well through. When the pasta is ready, reserve 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta but do not run cold water over. Put the pasta pot back on the burner and turn to medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. Add the garlic and stir for 1 minute. Add the cherry tomatoes and salt. Stir for 1 additional minute. Remove from the heat and toss the pasta back in the pot. Add the goat cheese crumbles and lemon zest. Stir. If the pasta looks dry, add in the pasta water in quarter cup increments while stirring until it looks as though the pasta has a light coating on it. Adjust seasoning to taste. When it tastes right, move the pasta to a serving bowl.

Slice the chicken into rough strips. Chiffonade the basil quickly and mix into the pasta with a couple stirs. Lay the chicken strips on top of the pasta and serve family style. This is light and tastes fresh. You can lighten the dish by using whole wheat pasta or other types of pasta (for example Soba noodles would be great). I like this recipe simply because it shows you don’t need to have tons of oil or fat to make a dish taste great. I hope that you guys enjoy it as well.

Family style is the only way to serve this meal. Photo by Scott Groth

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The Best Mango Salsa

by The Chubby Cook on 11. Aug, 2010 in Sides

Mango salsa is one of my favorites. I made it recently to top off some fish taco’s that we were making to enjoy with some good friends who were visiting for the weekend. The taco’s didn’t turn out exactly how I would have liked due to my under seasoning the fish and then cooking every last drop of moisture out of it. The only saving grace was the mango salsa which imparted good flavor and at least a little moisture back into the dish. The flavors are bright and lively and it doesn’t have the heavy thud of being overly packed with onion.

You can use this salsa on so many different things. It is great by itself with some chips or you can put it on chicken, pork or even a turkey sandwich instead of the mayo. About a week after I made the fish taco’s, I made up some shrimp taco’s with this salsa on them and it was delicious. The recipe for my shrimp taco’s is forthcoming. Whip up some of my Grilled Corn with Cilantro as a side dish or just go with some grilled corn on the cob with a little cilantro lime butter on it. I think that if you made a jerk chicken or pork that this Mango Salsa would be an incredible complement to the spice of the dish. If you put this salsa on other stuff and like it, be sure to leave a comment so that we can try it as well.

The Best Mango Salsa Recipe

Makes about 3 cups of salsa

Ingredients

1 ripe mango, peeled, medium-small dice
2 scallions, white and green parts, chopped medium
1 shallot, diced fine
3 tomatillos, chopped
1 large tomato, diced medium
1 poblano, seeded, diced fine
1 jalapeño, seeded, diced fine (optional)
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
1.5 limes, juiced
3 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper

Chop and dice everything. Put the tomatillos into a food processor and pulse 2-3 times. Add to a large bowl along with all the other ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper. Taste. If it tastes like too much citrus, add more salt. If you want some more heat, add in some hot sauce or more jalapeño. If it is too hot, add in more mango if you have it or a pinch of sugar to level out the heat. If it tastes just right, leave it alone.

Let the salsa sit for about 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Give it a quick stir before you serve and one last taste. Slap it onto whatever you are eating and enjoy. It’s just really good stuff.

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Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes with homemade syrup

by The Chubby Cook on 28. Jul, 2010 in Breakfast

This morning I awoke to a feeling of dehydration. We had sushi last night and the soy sauce must have done a number on my system. Anyhow, I wasn’t feeling the urge to be in the kitchen. My head hurt a little and the motivation just wasn’t there. It came across in my cooking- sorry to my Dad, Caroline and Jack for having that happen. My head just wasn’t in the game and it was reflected in my food.

That being said, I forgot to put the salt into my batter for the pancakes. Salt makes a huge difference between great tasting food and blah blah crapola food. I forgot the damn salt. Additionally, this morning it was pretty humid and we had the windows open. My egg whites were hit pretty hard and wouldn’t fold into the batter properly. They were way too wet feeling and there wasn’t much I could do about it. So, without salt and with wet egg whites, the cakes tasted a little flat and were too dense. I am confident, however, that if they had the appropriate ingredients and those ingredients decided to work properly that this would be a great recipe.

The blueberry and raspberry syrup was really good, however. That recipe will be made again in this house, that’s for sure. I made it with agave to keep it lower on the glycemic index, but because it is already a wet ingredient (as opposed to granulated sugar) it needs some time to reduce. It is a concentrated taste of deliciousness.

Although mine didn’t turn out quite right, this is a recipe to try at least once. Put the Bisquick back on the shelf and try something new- right?

Makes enough pancakes for 4 people

Ingredients for pancakes

1 cup ground organic yellow cornmeal
1 cup organic whole wheat flour
1 cup organic milk
1 cup organic Greek yogurt (next time I am going to try vanilla rather than plain)
1 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tsp baking soda
1 tsp good vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
Pinch of fresh grated nutmeg
3 tbsp agave syrup
1/2 lime, juiced
3 egg whites
1.5 cups fresh, rinsed blueberries

Ingredients for Homemade Syrup

1.5 cups fresh, rinsed blueberries
1/4 pint organic raspberries (remember that raspberry flavor will overpower the blueberry easily)
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup agave syrup

Let’s get the syrup going first. In a VitaMix or other high powered blender, toss in the blueberries, raspberries and water. Liquify. Pour into a sauce pan with the syrup. Place over medium heat until bubbling, then reduce to a simmer. Stir frequently to avoid burning. Reduce for 30 minutes. It’s just that easy.

Mix together all the dry ingredients. Don’t forget the salt. Add the vanilla, agave, milk and yogurt. Mix. The mixture will be thick- don’t worry about it. The egg whites will thin it out. In a separate bowl, mix the egg whites until stiff peaks form. If you put in a pinch of salt it will help. Once you have the whites ready, add them and the blueberries to the cornmeal batter. Fold the whites and blueberries into the batter.

Heat a cast iron skillet or griddle over medium heat. Butter the surface and drop 1/4 cup of batter. Spread around lightly. Cook for about a minute plus or minus on each side until the cakes feel firm. Place them in a warmed oven or toaster oven until the batter is cooked.

Serve with some fresh berries and the homemade blueberry syrup.

The syrup really makes these pancakes. Photo by Scott Groth

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Chilled Cucumber Soup

by The Chubby Cook on 23. Jul, 2010 in Lunch, Soup

There is a debate going on in my house as to whether I should post this recipe up or not. I made this yesterday for lunch and although it has great flavor, it was a little thin. The picture does the soup no justice. What looks like a thick soup is really just some thick foam from being blended in the Vitamix. I know what to do to make the soup thicker and still taste great, but have not tried it yet. Caroline says that I should try it first and then post. Well, I am stubborn and am going to post anyway.

Like I said, this soup has some great flavor. That comes from the pan roasted garlic and the watercress. If you haven’t used watercress in a while, it is really delicious. Here’s a quick recipe that I’ll post up later: avocado with bacon, watercress and lemon. Wow, it’s a flavor combination that makes your head ring. Watercress has a subtle spiciness about it that offers this soup some layered flavor without ever cooking it. If you can find watercress that still has the root bundle, toss it in a glass with cold water and it will last on your windowsill for about a week or more. Remember to keep watering it though.

The reason this recipe was so thin is that I juiced all the cucumber rather than blending some of it. So, for the revised recipe which I will post up, I added that step into the mix. Give this a shot on a hot afternoon as it is so refreshing. I think that this soup would go great with a mojito personally. I watched a show yesterday where they made a French Mojito- make the mojito as you would normally, but leave some room in the glass to top with champagne. Haven’t tried that either, but it sounds good to me.

Makes about 4 cups of chilled soup

5 organic cucumbers, washed
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 bunch watercress (including stems), rinsed
1 lemon, juiced
1 lime, juiced
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil

This recipe needs a juicer, but if you don’t have one you can still give it a whirl in a high-powered blender and then strain out the solids. Make sure you mash them around a bit with a wooden spoon to get all the goods.

I like to roast my garlic, so today we will do a bit of pan roasting. In a small sauté pan, add a 1 count of olive oil. Turn the pan to medium-low heat. When the pan is warm, add the garlic. Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes or until the garlic turns golden brown. Be careful not to burn as the garlic will taste bitter. If you smell bitterness, start over on a lower heat setting.

Take 2 large cucumbers and cut them lengthwise. Using a spoon, remove the seeds and discard. Chop the cucumber into large dice.

Take 3 of the cucumbers and juice them. You should yield about 3 cups of juice. Add cucumber juice, watercress, citrus juices, sea salt and garlic to the high speed blender. Blend for 2-3 minutes on high (or the super high on a VitaMix) until the watercress is completely incorporated.

Add the remaining cucumber dice and blend on low or medium low for about 45 seconds to a minute. The result should be a deliciously refreshing soup. If you like, put into the refrigerator for 20 minutes to cool down after the blending process. You could add some creme fraiche in the middle of the soup or a dollop of sour cream would add some unctuousness to the dish as well.

If it isn’t thick enough, let me know and I will have to figure something else out. Sounds pretty good to me though! Hope that you enjoy.

This soup has excellent flavor and depth. Photo by Scott Groth

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The Best Hummus Recipe

by The Chubby Cook on 18. Jul, 2010 in Appetizers, Sides

I have been trying to make a good hummus recipe for years. My baseline is the hummus at Taza in Eton Collection. Their hummus is smooth, rich and delicious. My hummus has always turned out a bit too textural. Also, I tend to go outside the traditional hummus recipe sphere. I like to add different ingredients in to change the experience. Red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, feta cheese or load it up with cilantro and lime juice. Sometimes cannellini beans make it into the processor rather than the chick peas. I made a black bean hummus once that was more like a bean spread than hummus. Doesn’t really matter as long as you are having a good time doing it, right?

This time I really wanted to come as close to a traditional hummus as I could. However, there are a few things that I can’t change when I make my hummus. I roast the garlic before putting it in the blender. Raw garlic tends to stick to me for a week, so I roast it up which always adds a savory component to the hummus that we really like. Also, I have to put some type of green element into the hummus. I believe that it really gives it a more lively flavor. For this recipe, I tossed in a small handful of only the leaves from Italian Flat Leaf parsley.

Another change that I made this time around was to process the hummus in my Vitamix rather than the food processor. I also processed it for several minutes rather than the minute I had always done in the Cuisinart. But, the secret to this creamy batch of hummus was something that I had never thought of before. I had some sour cream in the fridge and thought that it might really enhance the flavor. Not only did it enhance the flavor, but it added a level of moisture to the hummus that had always been lacking previously. Finally, I figured out the key missing ingredient after all these years: sour cream. Quick kitchen tip: if you don’t have sour cream on hand but do have fresh lemon and heavy whipping cream, try this- 1 tsp lemon juice in 1 cup heavy whipping cream. Mix thoroughly. Let sit on the counter for 15-20 minutes and you now have sour cream. It’s that easy.

The topping that I came up with was inspired by some hummus that my friend Jamie and I found while on a trip looking for hydroponics equipment. We stopped at this dumpy little market near Stow, Ohio and both got a big batch of hummus with some type of green topping on it. It tasted like green pepper infused oil, with small bits of roasted green peppers in it. I figured I would give it a shot and it turned out great when we kicked it up with some cayenne powder. In addition to the roasted green peppers, we added some fine dice red peppers for crunch and some toasted sesame seeds as well. You could easily toast some pine nuts, which are delicious on hummus, but I didn’t have any in the pantry.

This recipe takes a little time with garlic needing a roast as well as the green pepper, but it is most definitely worth it. I made a double recipe for the party that we were attending. This will make a lot of hummus, but it will hold in the fridge for a while if it lasts that long.

Makes a lot of hummus.

Ingredients for the hummus:

2 cans garbanzo (chick peas) drained and rinsed
2 lemons, juiced
1 head roasted garlic
1 tsp ground cumin seed
1/3 cup good tahini paste
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 or more cups olive oil (more if the consistency is too thick. Or add water if you are avoiding adding more oil.)
Small handful of Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Ingredients for the hummus topping:

1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/8 cup sesame seeds
Cayenne powder to taste
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Ok- let’s get to roasting because that takes the longest amount of time. I use the toaster oven to roast my garlic because it comes up to temperature faster than a standard oven and uses less energy. Set the temperature to 425 degrees. To roast the garlic, first trim the top to expose the cloves. Put into a ramekin root side down and coat with oil. The ramekin should be about half way full with oil. Top with salt and pepper. Wrap the ramekin tightly in foil and toss into the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. After about an hour, take the garlic out of the oven. Cut the top of the foil off with a knife- it is going to be extremely hot so be careful!! The garlic should look golden. Here’s a quick tip: take some tongs and turn the garlic over in the oil. It will bubble, so please do this carefully. I do this while the ramekin sits on the stove. Let it stay in the oil until you need it. Because you cut the tops off the garlic before you started, getting the cloves out is really easy. Simply squeeze the garlic head from the bottom and the cloves will all pop out easily.

If you are making the topping, now is a great time to start on it. You can either grill the green pepper or roast it over a gas burner on your range. Once it is charred all over, toss the pepper into a brown lunch bag, fold over the top and let sit for about 7-10 minutes. Once the pepper has cooled, remove from the bag. Cut off the top and remove the seeds. Slice off the bottom so you have a cylinder left. Slice the cylinder open and trim down the ribs with your chefs knife. Turn the pepper over and scrape the skin off gently with the back side of your chefs knife. Dice the pepper evenly and put into the olive oil. Sprinkle in however much cayenne or paprika you would like with some salt and cracked pepper. Sauce done.

Toasting sesame seeds takes about 3 minutes. Heat a pan over medium high heat. Toss in the sesame seeds. After about a minute, shake them around the pan. Continue to shake until they have turned golden brown. Voila! Toasted sesame seeds.

So let’s make the hummus now. In a blender or food processor, toss in the chick peas, roasted garlic cloves, cumin, tahini, parsley leaves, lemon juice and olive oil. Begin to process. Toss in the sour cream and process until smooth. If it is too thick, add water by the tablespoon- it will thin the hummus quickly.

Serve in a shallow dish in which you can spread the hummus easily around. I made a shallow impression in the center for my green pepper sauce. Sprinkle the chopped red pepper, sesame seeds and some chopped flat parsley leaves around the dish. Grab some pita, baked pita chips, vegetables or flat bread and scoop up the goodness.

This is restaurant quality hummus. Photo by Scott Groth

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Simple Sausage Appetizer with Effin Delicious Mustard Sauce

by The Chubby Cook on 18. Jul, 2010 in Appetizers

The last few days have been filled with visits in and out of medical facilities for my family. It’s been stressful and has left very little time to get a whole lot accomplished. Unfortunately, it does not stop the clock for other events in your life which are important to you as well. We had a birthday party to go to over the weekend which was an event that we did not want to miss. And, an event that I volunteered to make some appetizers. At 8A the day of the party, I still had nothing going. I needed a couple apps that are quick to make and tasty to eat. Out of necessity was born the Simple Sausage Appetizer.

The hardest part to this recipe is slicing the cheese, and I have a tip for helping us through that. For this dish, I used two cheeses: gouda and fontina. Gouda goes great with sausage and fontina is just cheesy and delicious. They are, however, both relatively soft cheeses. They like to stick to the knife at every turn and don’t really like to be sliced uniformly. If you have a wire cheese slicer, you’re doing great. I don’t have one, so the tip to slicing this cheese is to toss it in the freezer for a while. It will firm up and you can slice it on the bias with your chefs knife.

Please be sure to read the info after the recipe about the Effin Delicious Mustard Sauce. I use “effin” here because I would like to try to keep this blog as family friendly as possible- but you get the point, right? The father of one of our hosts at the party looked at me and said “man, that is *uckin delicious mustard sauce.” That was one of the highlights of my day. Hilarious.

Makes about 25 appetizers

Ingredients

1 package of Johnsonville bratwurst
1 wedge of good gouda cheese
1 wedge of good fontina cheese
3 tpsb mayonnaise
3 tbsp Bertmans Ballpark Mustard *
2 tbsp Roland’s Moutarde a L’Ancienne *
1 fresh baked, crusty baguette
Olive Oil
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

Turn your grill onto high heat. Turn the oven onto 350. Take out a large baking sheet. Cut the baguette on a slight bias rather than just straight across (this makes a nicer presentation.) Arrange the baguette slices evenly on the baking sheet and brush lightly with the olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and put in the oven for 5 minutes.

Grill the bratwurst according to the package instructions. I turn the heat down to medium to reduce flare-ups from the fat in the bratwurst. When the brats are done, let them cool on the counter while you prep the rest of the recipe.

Take the baguette out of the oven when it is slightly browned on the edges.

In a bowl, mix the mayo and both kinds of mustard. Add salt if you would like, but you do not need to. Take the cheese out of the freezer and slice about the width of 2 pieces of american cheese. Cut the slices in half and place on the baguette slices.

Slice the bratwurst on the bias to cover as much of the baguette as possible. Place on top of the cheese. When all of the baguettes have cheese and sausage on them, place them back in the oven for 5-7 minutes, or until the cheese has a good melt going.

Remove from the oven and give a little dollop of the Effin Delicious Mustard Sauce. Watch as they get devoured by all your friends within minutes.

You can really use any kind of sausage for this recipe. I burned one of the brats and didn’t want to serve it, so I used some andouille sausage that I had on hand. I did warn people that the andouille’s would be hot.

** Mustard information ** For those of you outside the Cleveland area and don’t know what Bertman’s Ballpark Mustard is, I am sorry. There really is no better stadium mustard out there. As a substitute, you can use any type of brown mustard that your grocery has. I would avoid Dijon for this part of the application as the whole grain mustard we used has wine in it already. You can order Bertman’s online or send me some dough and I will ship it to you.

I bought the Moutarde a L’Ancienne at Gallucchi’s Market in Cleveland, but have seen it at the West Side Market and some high-end grocery stores. This mustard is wholly unique being a whole grain mustard with wine and seasonings in it. It is fantastic on just about any sausage and delicious with lamb. You can find it online at MexGrocer for about $16 which is what I paid for it as well. It is a huge amount of mustard and is really unique. Sixteen bucks is a lot to pay for mustard, but you will get a lot of enjoyment out of it. As a substitute, buy some whole grain Dijon, not the country Dijon. It is close in flavor and easier to find.

Maybe I need to write a blog about mustards. There are so many delicious ones out there. Food for thought.

Appetizers that get demolished at any party. Photo by Scott Groth

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Grilled, Dry Rubbed Pork Loin

by The Chubby Cook on 16. Jul, 2010 in Dinner

For some reason this past week I have had this nagging urge to purchase paprika. Not sure why or where the urge came from, but it was definitely there. At Whole Foods I picked up some organic paprika and at Miles Farmers Market some Hungarian Paprika. Mind you, I have not used paprika in probably five years and the canister that I had in my spice cabinet was probably 25 years old. Yes, when I left home twelve or thirteen years ago some spices came with me. My guess is at the time there was a lot of cottage cheese being eaten. Just a guess though.

With 2 kinds of paprika in my grocery bags, something was needed to put it on. Well, since paprika hasn’t been in the rotation for so long my mind was drawing a blank. Oh well, I thought, it’ll come to me eventually. That night I pulled out a 2lb pork loin from the fridge. I thought it would taste good on the rotisserie over the grill. Great idea, but then I couldn’t find the rotisserie forks. What next? Dry rub with paprika. Yeah baby.

So the amounts are not exact in this recipe because I didn’t measure. A regular dinner plate was used as the base to create the spice rub on. So, a light dusting would be just that, a light dusting all over the plate. A medium dusting is slightly more than a light dusting and so on. A pinch is still a pinch- capiche?

Lastly, before we get to the meat of this post, I have no idea if this is how you are supposed to prepare a loin on the grill. I have always either indirectly grilled and basted them or prepared them on the rotisserie. What can be said is that the loin came out perfectly moist inside with a nice crust on the outside with this preparation. There may be other, more proper, ways to make this dish but you should have success with this recipe.

Makes one 2lb loin enough for about 4 people with sides.

Ingredients:

2lb pork loin at room temperature
paprika- Hungarian, Spanish- whatever you have on hand
ground white pepper
mustard flour (ground mustard seeds)
ground cumin
cayenne powder
onion powder
garlic powder
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper

If you are using a gas grill, turn on only one side of it. We will be cooking mainly over indirect heat. For you charcoal grillers out there, heat up your briquette pile until smoldering and then move them to one side to create your indirect heat zone. You are going to want the temperature between 275 and 300 degrees inside the grill. Remember that if you have the thermometer on the hood that the actual temperature on the grill surface will be higher.

On a plate, dust the paprika, lightly dust the ground white pepper and cumin. Medium dust on the mustard flour, onion and garlic powders. Toss on a pinch or two of cayenne powder. Mix around on the plate with a fork. Take the room temperature loin and coat on all sides with salt and pepper. Roll the loin through the spices on the dish until it is completely coated.

Place a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil on the counter. Put the loin on the foil. Wrap the foil half way up the loin. Pour in the 3 tbsp of oil (can be canola, olive- whatever). Wrap the loin up allowing some room near the top for steam, but making sure that the loin is completely enclosed. We wrapped the top of ours down like a brown lunch bag.

Slap the loin on the part of the grill with no heat under it. It should cook here for about 45 minutes like this. After that time, open it up and give it a poke. It should still feel a bit rare, but not too rare. You will see a lot of liquid in the foil, save that for now. Remove the loin and move the foil over the direct heat and let it come to a quick boil to cook off any nasties that might be in there. It is pork, so we have to be careful. Move the foil with the liquid in it either off the grill or back to the indirect heat zone.

Now place the loin over the direct, medium heat. Give turn the loin every 2-3 minutes and give a quick baste with the juice from the foil. Poke the meat, it should still have some give but not feel mushy. Take the loin off the grill and cover with a piece of foil for 5 minutes to let the meat rest. It should have a nice crust and be ready for eating. Slice however thick you like it and serve with the juice. If you want, you could make the juice into a quick brown gravy or increase the volume by adding either pork or vegetable stock and reducing. That’s up to you and however much time you have on your hands.

Serve this dish with a light red, perhaps a Malbec. We enjoyed it with a Bordeau that was not really any good and completely overpowered the meat. Oh well, there is always next time. Hope that you guys like this one.

Tender, juicy and delicious with a nice crust. Photo by Scott Groth

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Char Grilled Artichoke Update

by The Chubby Cook on 15. Jul, 2010 in Sides

Okay. So I needed to post up an update to my previous Char Grilled Artichoke post because I made this dish again the other night. Man it is a tasty recipe. I know that a lot of you have been reading that one and enjoying the results which is great. There are a few updates that I needed to throw down to take it to the next level.

The first update is in the prep of the choke. When taking out the fine hairs, I used a grapefruit spoon this time rather than a regular spoon. So much easier. Really cut down on the preparation time. So use that and then follow the prep as previously posted. Make sure you use the acidulated water and boil the chokes for about ten minutes.

At this point, I changed the recipe to use lime instead of lemon. In a big bowl, we tossed the choke halves with salt, pepper, the juice from 1 and 1/2 limes and a three count of olive oil. Cook them leaf side down on a hot grill and I poured the lime juice mixture left in the bowl onto the cooking chokes. When they are done, pile them on a platter leaf side down. To finish them, drizzle some high quality extra-virgin olive oil over the chokes. It is a small touch that made a big difference. Wow, these are really good.

I served these chokes up with the Grilled Dry Rubbed Pork Loin. The chokes went pretty well with this dish, but in the future I would serve them with something else. Perhaps a pork chop with grilled herbed potatoes or something. That sounds pretty good to me. Might have to make that sometime soon. Anybody interested in dinner?

These are lip smackin good. Photo by Scott Groth

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Black Bean Enchilada’s with Flank Steak

by The Chubby Cook on 13. Jul, 2010 in Dinner

Every Mexican restaurant that we have ever visited has some type of enchilada on the menu. After making them for the first time, I now know why. It is because they are cheap, easy and can pack a lot of flavor. You can make an entire meal to serve four people for under ten dollars, and that is using all organic ingredients. If you go with conventional ingredients, I bet that it would be under seven dollars. An onion, some garlic and a couple cans of beans is really all you need. For this recipe, there are a few additions made to really pack in some flavor, but you can make this without all the bells and whistles and still have a very satisfying meal.

The enchilada has everything that you need in it as well. You have protein and folate in the beans, starch and thiamin in the tortilla, calcium in the cheese- it’s a power packed meal. When you add in the flank steak, you get more proteins plus iron, magnesium, vitamins B-6 and B-12 as well as some zinc. Top it off with the Super Green Guacamole with avocados that are packed with Vitamins A, B and C and the tomatillos which are chock full of Vitamin D and your meal is turning into a real nutritional powerhouse.

Please keep in mind that this meal can be made to all go together or separately as their own components. The enchiladas would be great just with a dollop of sour cream. The flank steak can stand on its own with a few potatoes if that is all you have on hand. The Super Green Guacamole can go on just about anything, or served with some tortilla chips or fresh sliced green or red peppers for a refreshing snack. Whatever you decide to do, it’s going to taste great.

Now since this meal does take a little time, I always suggest finding some good music and opening up your beverage of choice. For this meal, I was drinking my No Hangover Margarita which really made the prep and cooking of this meal an absolute pleasure. Nothing wrong with having a really good time while you cook, and for me that includes some music and a good beverage. On with the recipe.

Makes enough for 4 large people, or 4 regular people with some leftovers.

Ingredients for the Enchiladas:

1 red onion, peeled, medium dice
3 cloves garlic, diced fine
1 poblano, seeded, medium dice
1 jalapeno, seeded, medium dice
2 cans black beans (preferably organic)- 15oz each
1/2 cup vegetable or chicken stock (preferably organic)
6 oz goat cheese (1/2 of a Silver Goat log- you can get at Trader Joe’s really cheap)
1 bag of shredded Mexican cheese
1 package of flour tortillas

Ingredients for the Flank Steak:

1.5 Lbs Flank Steak, brought to room temperature
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
Salt & Fresh Cracked Pepper
Cayenne Powder
Garlic Powder

Click here for the Super Green Guacamole.

Okay, so let’s start by turning the oven on to 425. Then turn your grill on high heat. Next, get out a large plastic ziplock bag and pour in the lime and orange juice, the brown sugar and cilantro. Let’s go ahead and trim up the flank steak and score it in a diamond pattern on both sides. Liberally apply salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add cayenne powder to accommodate your palette. Let sit for 3 minutes and then put into the bag to marinate. Allow 15 minutes to marinate.

While the beef is marinating, let’s get to gettin on the enchiladas. In a pot, heat about 2 tbsp canola oil over high heat. Drop in the red onions and cook for about five minutes. I like to get just a little brown on the onions to add some flavor. Next, reduce the heat to medium and add in the garlic and the peppers. Let these cook for about 3 minutes. While these are cooking, drain the beans in a colander and rinse.

Add the beans to the onion mixture and heat for about 2 minutes. Using a potato masher, mash up the beans to a rustic texture. Add the stock and stir. Reduce heat to simmer and cook until the bean mixture is thickened, about 8 minutes. Once it is thickened, add the goat cheese and stir until fully incorporated. Take the beans off the heat.

Spray a 9X13 baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon some of the bean mixture into a tortilla shell, roll and place in the dish. You should be able to fit between six and eight in the dish dependent on how big you make them. Cover the whole shootin match with the shredded Mexican cheese and toss into the oven for about 15 minutes.

While the enchiladas are cooking, you can start the flank steak on the grill. Take the meat out of the marinade and place on the hot grill. Pour some marinade on the meat and come back in about two minutes. Flip the meat and pour the rest of the marinade on. Come back in 2 minutes. Flip twice more until the meat is medium rare. Remove from the heat, place on a cutting board and let rest for at least five minutes.

During the resting period, make the Super Green Guacamole. If you made it earlier, make another batch of the No Hangover Margarita or just enjoy the music and your beverage. When the cheese on the enchiladas is golden brown and crusty, it is time to take them out of the oven.

Slice the flank steak on the bias, against the grain. Your slices should be pretty thin. Plate the enchilada, cover with some Super Green Guacamole, top with some flank steak and a dollop of sour cream. You’re off to an excellent start for the evening. I guarantee that you will feel satisfied after this meal. Enjoy.

enchilada recipe with flank steak and guacamole

This Mexican feast is a vitamin packed powerhouse. Photo by Scott Groth

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Older Entries »

The Chubby Cook

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The Best Hummus Recipe

Simple Sausage Appetizer with Effin Delicious Mustard Sauce

Grilled, Dry Rubbed Pork Loin

Char Grilled Artichoke Update

Black Bean Enchilada’s with Flank Steak

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