Recent Enteries
- Lettuce Wraps
- Mushroom Risotto
- Roast Beef with Au Jus
- Roasted Garlic
- Corned Beef Hash
- Fresh Homemade Pasta
- Easy Shortbread Christmas Cookies
- Cuban Style Roasted Pork
- Dim Sum - Shaomai (Shoe My)
- Turkey Club Sandwich with Chipotle Mayonnaise
Categories
- Appetizers (53)
- Bacon (4)
- Beef (18)
- Bread (21)
- Breakfast (9)
- Cheese (2)
- Chicken (19)
- Chinese (2)
- Cookies (1)
- Delicious (36)
- Dessert (5)
- dough (4)
- Drinks (1)
- Ethnic (41)
- Filipino (1)
- Fish (4)
- Fruit (1)
- Holiday (19)
- Kids (1)
- Meat (85)
- Pasta (11)
- Pizza (5)
- Pork (15)
- Rice (4)
- Salad (12)
- Sandwiches (14)
- Sauce (19)
- Sides (44)
- Snack (58)
- Soup (9)
- Stews (1)
- Thai (1)
- Thanksgiving (8)
- Vegetables (33)
About
Pita Bread
On my pursuit for delicious ethnic food, I wanted to be able to easily, and quickly whip up some bread to go along with two of my favorite dips; baba ghanouj and hummus. Now I have made plenty of breads this past year, as well as dough for pizzas, so this one just came natural. Ok, I admit that you can go to the store and buy pita bread, but you know what, it is not all that good, not only in the texture, but also in the flavor. This pitas are really great, not only because you can eat them warm, but they can be stored for up to a week, or placed securely in your freezer for up to a month.
Ingredients:
- 1 package of active dry yeast
- 1 1/2 cups of warm water
- 1 1/4 tsp of salt
- Pinch of sugar
- 3 1/2 cups of flour
- olive oil
Start by adding the package of yeast to 1/2 cup of the warm water in a small bowl. Add your sugar, and mix with a fork. Let this sit for roughly 15 minutes. You will notice it begins to activate and gets nice and frothy. In the meantime, add three cups of flour, and mix in your salt to a large bowl. Get your one cup of warm water ready, and when the yeast is ready, make a well in your flour bowl and the yeast mixture, and warm water. With your wooden spoon, or paddle, begin to slowly mix this until it forms a soft dough. On your baking board, add a handful of flour and spread it on the board, and flour your hands as well. Now remove the dough and knead for nearly ten minutes.
To another large bowl, add about one tablespoon of the olive oil. Place your dough in the bowl and toss it to make sure you coat it with the oil. Cover and let this rise in a warm area for nearly one hour, or until it doubles in size.
Preheat your oven to 500 degrees, with a baking pan inside.
Once the dough has doubled in size, remove to your baking board, and shape it into a log, cutting it into ten pieces. Flour the board some more, and with each ball, roll out into about a six inch diameter and about a 14 thick. You will also want to make sure your rolling pin is lightly dusted with flour during this process, otherwise it will stick.
Once you have a couple of ready, remove the baking sheet from the oven, and carefully place your dough discs onto the pan. Cook for 4 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Set aside on a baking rack to let cool. Continue this process until all of your pita dough is cooked.
Trust me on this one, of the ten pitas I made, only three remain. That is always a good sign. That and the baba ghanouj is no longer availble due to the mass consumption.
Baba Ghanouj
If there is one thing I miss about Dallas, Texas, it is a restaurant called Ali Baba’s. This place was quaint and the food was killer. I typically ordered the chicken which had this amazing garlic paste, as well as hummus or baba ghanouj. From time to time, my thoughts take me back to that place, and I end up making roasted chicken, and hummus, however this time around I made baba ghanouj. For those that have never tried hummus, or baba ghanouj, they are a must make. Truly delicious flavors of garlic, lemon, and olive oil. Baba Ghanouj is basically grilled eggplant with yogurt, tahini, garlic, lemon, and olive oil. Anyway, lets get started so you can start enjoying this one right away!
Ingredients:
- 1 large eggplant, approximately 1 to 1 1/2 lb
- 2-4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
- olive oil
- salt
- 2 lemons, juiced
- 4 tbsp of tahini paste
- 3/4 cup of greek, or regular plain yogurt
If you have a grill, get it on high heat. With a fork, poke your eggplant a few times so when cooking on the grill it can release the pressure that is building up from cooking. Place on the grill and cook for roughly twenty-five minutes until fully seared and soft to the touch. Remove from the grill and place on a plate to let cool for 15 minutes or so. While the eggplant is cooling, prepare the rest of the ingredients and place them all in a food processor or blender. When the eggplant is close to being cooled, begin to squeeze it over a kitchen sink and try to get the water to come out of it. You will want to do this for a couple of reasons, one to not make the dip so watery, and more importantly, to get rid of the intense bitter taste.
Remove the skin, and place the flesh into the blender. Blend until you have a nice puree of baba ghanouj. You can add olive oil along with the process as well. If the mixture become difficult to blend, simply stop the process, and move the mixture around with a knife, then continue to blend.
Place in a serving dish and serve with pita chips, spread on sandwiches, or eat by the spoonful. Trust me, it is an amazing dip that is packed with garlic and lemon flavor that it will keep you coming back for more.
Frittata with Bacon and Mint
Sunday morning is one morning that I really get to relax and spend some quality time with my wife and kids. It is a special morning where we typically make some pretty darn good comfort breakfast, laugh, and plan out the rest of the day before everyone heads back to school and work. Sunday mornings are special to me. After making the kids french toast this morning, I took a few minutes to investigate my pantry. Backtracking my thoughts, I recall my coworker, Ryan, talking about a frittata that he makes. After a simple review, I thought to myself, that I kind of make frittatas for my wife, with potatos, eggs, and onion, however it comes out like an omellete style, of which, my wife really enjoys. This morning I was taking it to the frittata level, and one that is truly packed with some interesting flavors.
I started by getting a few simple ingredients together, and as I recently purchased Nueske’s bacon (after a conversation about pork with another one of my coworkers), I really wanted to use some fresh mint from my garden, and hence the bacon and mint frittata. Lets get started.
Ingredients:
- 6 slices of your favorite bacon, cooked until crisp, set to drain any fat, then chopped
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 cups of shredded hashbrowns
- 5 eggs
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup of fresh, chopped mint
- oil
Begin by cooking your bacon. Once the bacon is cooked to a nice crisp, roughly 10 minutes, set aside on some paper towel and let cool. With the bacon fat, add your onions and potatoes and cook until they are nice and crisp. During this time, chop the bacon, whisk the eggs, adding a pinch of salt and pepper to them, and add the mint. Mix well. Once the potato and onion mixture is nice and crisp, add them to the egg mixture and mix another time, making sure to combine all of the ingredients.
Preheat your broiler to 500 degrees. In the meantime, clean out the pan that you were cooking the onion and potato mixture in, and then reheat it on medium-high heat, and add about a tablespoon on cooking oil. Add your egg mixture to the pan, and cook for 4-7 minutes, making sure you do not mess it as it will create a nice bottom crust. Remove the pan from the stove and place it in the broiler, allowing to finish the top crust for another two minutes.
With your heating gloves on, remove the pan from the broiler, and slip it out from the pan, and onto a cutting board where you will cut into into pie shape pieces. Serve warm. Trust me on this one, the mint flavor really packs a great flavor with the onion and bacon. This one will be served throughout the year, that’s for sure.
Chicken Raspberry Chipotle Pizza
Based on the title of this post, it is a mouthful. Chicken raspberry chipotle pizza. Not only is it a mouthful to say, but this one is going to have you coming back for more. The true sweetness of the raspberry preserves, along with barbeque sauce and chicken, is a true delight.
This recipe was handed down from my parents, who time after time, insisted that I make it. Well, I did make it and as others might tell you in passing ‘you should always listen to your parents’.
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce
- 14/ cup of raspberry preserves
- Store bought pizza dough, or roll your own
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, deseeded and chopped
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cups of mozarella cheese
- 2 cups of chicken (I used left over fried chicken, skin off) You could use sliced chicken breast
- 2-3 tbsp fresh, chopped cilantro
This one is super easy, so lets get started. Preheat your oven to 425. In the meantime, lightly oil a baking pan and place the pizza dough on top of the pan. In a bowl, mix your raspberry preserves, barbecue sauce, and chipotles. Spread onto the pizza dough. This is your sauce. now, add a bit of the cheese, onions, and chicken. Continue this layering process until the ingredients are gone. Cook for 18-22 minutes until crusts are a nice golden brown and the cheese has melted. Top with the chopped cilantro, and serve.
Stuffed Mushrooms
This past Sunday brought upon us a football game, and as we might recall from any of my previous fall posts, Sunday football brings about good food, whether it be an appetizer or a comfort dish. As we were heading back from a trip to the mall, the obvious question was, ‘What should we have for the game?’. My wife instantly said chili. Chili it was, but I had something else on my mind, as the day before I had purchased a few things at the store, stuffed mushrooms.
On average, I make stuffed mushrooms four times a year, typically when friends or family come over, because they are not only easy to make, but they make a nice and hearty appetizer. For this batch of stuffed mushrooms, I used portabella mushrooms, and pork, however you will note below that I stuff them differently throughout the year.
Ingredients:
- 3 large portabella muchrooms, stemmed and cleaned of dirt
- 1 cup of pork, uncooked and seasoned (see below)
- 2 green onions, finely chopped
- Salt to season
- Pepper to season
- 2 tbsp sherry cooking wine
- Parmesan cheese
Combine your pork with the green onions, sherry, parmesan cheese, and salt and pepper and let it marinate for one hour or longer. In the meantime, clean your mushrooms and set aside. In order to clean the mushroom, I typically lightly dampen a piece of paper towel and gently remove the dirt. You do not want to put them in, or under water.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Once your meat is done marinating, liberally stuff each mushroom with the pork. Place on a baking tray and cook for roughly 15-20 minutes until the pork is cooked through. Sprinkle with some parmesan cheese, and serve warm.
Other stuffing alternatives that I have had success with is warmed cream cheese on the stove top, with chopped garlic and parmesan cheese; this one is really rich, so be careful. Another great one to play with is a heated portabella mushroom and with a dollop of the blue cheese dressing.
Baklava
Growing up, there was always a desert that really caught my attention, and that was baklava. I forgot when that time of year was when the baklava would come around, most likely a local festival in Milwaukee, but I recall that time of year, and I would attempt to always get a triangle of the delicious and flaky baklava.
As I was making a lot of dishes yesterday, I thought that I would make a desert, not so much for myself, but to try something new for the kids. Looking around my kitchen, I noticed a large bag of salted pistachios on the counter. I am not sure what hit me, but I instantly thought of baklava. Now I believe that baklava is typically made with crushed walnuts, however I thought the pistachio would add a nice salty hit to the sweetness of the butter and syrup.
The dish is really quick to make and will keep you coming back for more, which can be dangerous if you are looking to shed a few pounds, fortunately I have some control.
Ingredients:
1 box of filo dough, thawed
2 sticks of unsalted butter, melted
2 cups of crushed pistachios
Cinnamon, to sprinkle
Syrup
2 cups of sugar
2 cups of water
Start by greasing a 9×13 deep baking pan. Taking each layer of filo dough, lightly butter each layer, and sprinkle a bit of the pistachio nuts and cinnamon on each layer. Continue this process until all of the dough is used. Once layered, cut the dough into triangles or squares before cooking. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and cook for 45 minutes, until golden brown. While the baklava is cooking in the oven, add the sugar and water to a pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and cook for nearly 20 minutes. This will reduce down and make a wonderful syrup. Once the baklava is done cooking, drizzle the syrup all over the baklava. This is the hard part; you have to let it cool! Once cooled, dig in. Trust me on this one, not only is it super easy to make, but it is so flaky and delicious, you will want more!
Wisconsin Beer, Brat, and Cheddar Soup
Before summer is over, I wanted to grill brats one last time. I am certain there will be another but just in case, I wanted to give my love and tribute to the bratwurst. For those that are not familiar with the bratwurst, it is truly, in my opinion, a true Wisconsin favorite. They are found on most every grill in Wisconsin during the summer months. You find them at tailgate parties during the Brewers and Packers season. Simply put, they are Wisconsin. Brats are typically served on a bun with the usual suspects of ketchup, mustard, onion, relish, or sauerkraut, however this time around I wanted do do something different. I made a soup consisting of cheese, beer, and lots of great spices and vegetables. This recipe makes probably about 12-16 bowls of delicious soup, and only takes about 45 minutes to get it served. Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
- 4 carrots, minced
- 4 celery ribs, minced
- 1 large onion, minced
- 4 small potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup of flour
- 6 cups of chicken broth
- 12oz can of your favorite beer
- 2 cups of sharp cheddar cheese
- 1 tbsp chipotle adobo sauce
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp mustard powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 cup of milk
- dash of Worcestershire sauce
- 4 grilled brats, cooled and sliced
Start by getting your large soup pan ready by adding the oil and bringing it to temperature on medium heat. Add your mirepoix to the pan (carrots, onion, celery) and cook until they soften, roughly 10-15 minutes. Add in the flour and mix well, cooking for another minute. This builds a nice texture and will create a velvety texture when the soup is completed. Add in your potatoes, beer, and chicken stock and bring this to a boil and cook for 15 minutes until the potatoes are softened. Now, you are going want to take about three cups out and place into a blender and puree, adding back to the soup pan. Next, add your seasonings including dry mustard, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and the chipotle adobo sauce. Add in the two cups of cheese and stir until melted. Add in your milk and worchestire sauce, as well as your sliced brats. Let this continue to cook for 5-10 minutes, and serve. Trust me on this one, it is a must make, not only for the summer months, but great for the fall months.