Asian Marinated Rack of Lamb

During my career with IBM, we were lucky enough to spend the last year or so living in Sydney Australia. Sydney is a beautiful city, situated on perhaps the most scenic harbor in the world. Here is a painting that my boss gave us when we left Australia. 

It pretty much duplicates the view from our living room and patio. We looked directly through the harbor bridge at the Sydney Opera House and the city skyline. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful setting. 

The food and wine in Australia were also really interesting and beautiful. As you might expect, seafood is abundant, very fresh and prepared in many delightful ways. Pork and chicken were not typically as good as what we got in the U.S., while beef was plentiful and quite good. The biggest surprise to us was lamb. We typically had not eaten a lot of lamb. Growing up in the midwest it was not readily available or very popular. We learned that in both Australia and New Zealand, lamb is very popular, widely available and really very very good. I brought home several recipes for lamb with this one being my favorite:

Ingredients:  (serves four)

Enough rack of lamb for 3 chops / person
4 Cloves Garlic - crushed
1 TBSP Sugar
1 TBSP Chopped Fresh Ginger
2 TBSP Ketchup
2 TBSP Soy Sauce
2 TBSP Dry Sherry
3 TBSP Hoisin Sauce
1 TBSP Honey
1 tsp Chinese Five Spice Powder

Preparation:

Using a boning knife, remove some of the thick layer of fat from the back side of the rack of lamb. Using the same knife, seperate the rack into 4 single chops and four double chops each. Each serving will be three chops, with two of the chops still joined and the third a single chop. Arrange chops in a single layer in a non reactive dish. Combine all remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour over the chops and cover. Marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours, turning occasionally. Grill chops over medium high heat until medium rare. To serve set the double chop on the plate with the two ribs pointing to the ceiling. Place the single chop back to back to the double chop with the single rib inserted between the ribs of the double chop, so that all three chops are standing with the ribs in an upright position. I like to place the chops on a serving of mashed potatoes and also generally serve with roasted asparagus. Serve with a "Big" red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon or an earthy French Burgundy. Salute !!

Cookbooks - Traditional or Online ?

This is a photo of some of our cookbooks. Some might say, "Thats a lot of cookbooks" while others may remark, "That's not so many. I have way more." As we have moved over the years, we continue to pare down our collection, but the truth is, there are some of these books that we have never used and there are two or three that we use very frequently. You will notice that the Joy of Cooking, by Irma Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker, sits in a prominent position on the left hand side of the top shelf, where it is readily available. Not only do we use many recipes from this book, but it is a source of a great many how-to's as well. I think this particular cookbook is an essential for anyone seriously interested in cooking. Others we use frequently are the good old Betty Crocker's Cookbook, some of the Junior League cookbooks from the various places we have lived, and some of our old church cookbooks.  

We have quite a few Celebrity Chef cookbooks as well. For Example, The Barefoot Contessa(Ina Garten), Giada De Laurentiis, Tyler Florence and Lidia Bastianich. We use them for specific recipes, but certainly haven't worked our way through any of them. And of course we have the two volume set of Julia Child's masterpiece, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. 

Other cookbooks in our collection hold special memories of places we have visited. For example we have a salad recipe book that we got at the Charlotte Lane Cafe in Nova Scotia. It is a terrific source for many different salads and dressings but more importantly, it brings back memories of that special trip every time we use it. Another example is Savoring Italy by Robert Freson. This is a beautifully illustrated Italian cookbook that features at least one restaurant ( Miranda Minucci"s La Villa Miranda) that we ate in during our trip to Italy. 

I guess the debate is, do you need any cookbooks at all ? You can Google Mac and Cheese or Bearnaise Sauce and get more recipes for each than you can possibly make or even read. Alternatively, you can belong to any number of different websites that have recipe collections. Some examples that I follow are Allrecipes.com, Taste of Home and New York Times Cooking. The downside of these sites is that all charge an annual fee. 

When I do get a recipe from the internet, I always make a printed copy of it, as I like to have the recipe "in hand" as I am using it. I also like to make notes on the recipe such as "Keeper-save" or "cut the salt in half". 

That leads me to the most important book in our collection of recipes. Over the years, we have collected recipes from a number of sources such as newspapers, gourmet groups, classes we have taken and recipes we have gotten off of the internet. Here is our collection of recipes.

This is a 4" thick, three ring binder, that holds all of those collected recipes. We have over 350 recipes in this binder and it is probably the most well used cookbook in our collection. I keep the index in my computer and every few weeks I go through any new recipes I want to add to the collection and update the index. Then I add those recipes to the book. Each class and each gourmet group has it's own section and then there is a section for salads, soups, appetizers, etc. etc. The best part of this book is that I know I like every recipe in it!! It is a compromise between getting all of your recipes from online and your Grandma's recipe box. 

I guess you can tell that I lean toward using actual recipe books as opposed to getting recipes off of the internet. Even when I find a good one on the internet I keep a hard copy in our collection. I still love to hold a beautiful recipe book and thumb through it, looking at all of the wonderful photos of the food and the places the recipes came from. I like to set the cookbook in a holder on the counter and refer to it as I prepare the dish, making sure that I haven't left any ingredient out or missed a step. 

Whether or not you like an old fashioned cookbook or following a recipe off of your smart phone, I hope you will try many different recipes and get into cooking as a great hobby. Bon Appetite. 

The great meatloaf Debate

Who doesn't love meatloaf ? Especially served up with mashed potatoes, gravy and maybe some green beans. Every diner, truck stop and family dining restaurant from Cracker Barrel to Chili's seems to have their own version. In fact, one my favorite meatloafs was served in the Boone High School cafeteria some 55 years ago.  

Over the years we have tried a number of different recipes for meatloaf, ranging from Martha Stewart's mother's meatloaf (which is very good) to meatloaf prepared on the grill outdoors. Our go-to recipe for over twenty five years, came from of all places, the inside lid of a box of Quaker oatmeal. We try other recipes and keep coming back to this old standard. What kind of meatloaf do you make and why do you love it?  I would love to hear from all of you and collect some of your recipes to try. Feel free to respond in the comments section of this blog. 

The main ingredient in any meatloaf is the ground beef or blend of ground beef and perhaps pork or veal or all of the above. I love the blend that our local meat market sells, which is predominantly beef, a little ground pork and a small amount of ground veal. Unfortunately they went out of business this week. The owner retired and sold out to Fareway. Fareway is an Iowa grocery and meat market that started in my home town of Boone. I know they sell quality meat and I am hoping they will continue selling the Mcgonigles blend for meatloaf. Short of getting a blend, I recommend using lean ground beef, like the 93% lean sold in most groceries. If you use ground beef with a higher fat content your meatloaf ends up swimming in a pool of grease. Most recipes I have seen for meatloaf call for between 1.5 Lbs to 2.5 Lbs of meat. The recipe we use calls for 1.5 Lbs, but I often make a 2 Lb meatloaf and just proportionally increase the other ingredients by about 25%.  It isn't science, like baking, where the proportions of the ingredients are important to the outcome. Here is the recipe from the Quaker oatmeal box, that we have been using for over 25 years. 

Ingredients:

1-1/2 Lbs. Lean Ground Beef
1 Cup Tomato Juice (I use V-8)
3/4 Cup Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned - uncooked)
1 egg-lightly beaten
1/4 Cup Chopped Onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients and mix lightly but thoroughly. Press into 8x4 inch loaf pan. Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes or until meat is no longer pink and the juices run clear. Drain excess fat and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.  

Although not part of the recipe, I like to mix about a 1/2 cup of catsup and a TBSP of brown sugar and paint the top of the meatloaf before I put it in the oven. 

If you like mushrooms or peppers or both in your meatloaf, feel free to add them or whatever else moves you. Enjoy

Pasta Sauces

There are as many different kinds of pasta sauces as there are chefs, but I would like to cover a few and give you the recipes for the way I make them. 

Marinara Sauce:

Let's start with a basic Marinara. Marinara, as the name implies is thought to have originated with sailors plying the Mediterranean as early as the 1400's. It is a fairly quick sauce to make and was made by the sailors along the shore, when they didn't have a lot of time to spare. Marinara is tomato sauce made with garlic, oil, basil, red pepper flakes and oregano. Some cooks add a little red wine. I like to use sauteed onion in my Marinara, but that is non-traditional. Many people start their sauce with whole canned San Marzano tomatoes and crush them by hand. I am not quite that traditional as you will see from my recipe. I like Marinara that is savory, not sweet. Sweetness would be my main complaint with most store bought Marinara. If you read the label they will almost always have sugar added as well as a lot of preservatives. It is so easy to make your own Marinara and the flavor so much better, that there is no excuse for not making your own sauce every time. 

Ingredeients:

2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Medium Onion - finely diced  
6-7 Cloves Garlic - peeled and finely diced
2 - 28oz. Cans Crushed Tomatoes (crush your own if you can get                                                            canned San Marzano tomatoes,                                                          including all liquid)
2 - 15 oz. Cans Diced Tomatoes
Italian Seasoning (or fresh oregano and basil) to taste
Red Pepper Flakes - to taste
1 tsp Fennel Seeds - crushed
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Heat the olive oil in a soup kettle over medium low heat. Add the onion and cover. Let the onion sweat until it is translucent. Add the garlic once the onions are translucent and continue cooking until the garlic becomes fragrant and tender. Don't let the garlic brown. Add the crushed and diced tomatoes. If you are using dried Italian seasoning, start by adding a couple of tsp. to your sauce. Remember it is easy to add more herbs, but hard to take them out. If you are using fresh herbs, add about 2 tsp. of chopped oregano leafs and a couple of whole sprigs of basil. The basil sprigs will be removed before using the sauce. Add salt and pepper and red pepper flakes to taste. Sample the sauce and adjust herbs and seasoning as desired. I like to add a teaspoon of crushed fennel seeds. Fennel is the flavor used in Italian sausage and it gives the sauce a savory and earthy flavor. Let the sauce simmer for 20-30 minutes, until it is hot and the flavors have all had time to merge. Remove the basil sprigs if using the fresh herbs. Serve over Spaghetti, Ziti or Rigatoni, liberally dusting with grated parmesan. 

If I want a meat sauce, I cook a pound or so of loose Italian sausage, drain and add to the sauce. If you want to combine the Italian sausage with some ground beef that works too.  Alternatively you can add whole cooked Italian sausage or cooked meatballs to the sauce and let them simmer in the sauce. Sometimes I add both meatballs and sausage so that guests can have a choice when the sauce is served with the pasta. When I want a red sauce for making lasagna, I thicken the sauce by adding another can of diced tomatoes and about two pounds of cooked loose Italian sausage. If you want a red sauce that is a little less acidic and has a pink color rather than the traditional dark red, add a little whole cream.  That makes a great sauce for chicken or eggplant parm. Feel free to be creative. Experiment. Maybe you want to add some sauteed mushroom or sliced olives to your sauce just to mix it up once in a while. As you can see, there is a great deal of flexibility once you have mastered making your own basic Marinara. 

Sage Brown Butter Sauce:

I love to use this sauce when making a vegetarian ravioli, like butternut squash ravioli.  It is very simple to make and is delicious over certain types of pasta or boiled new potatoes. 

Ingredients:

8 TBSP Butter
2  tsps. Minced Garlic
8-10 Fresh Sage Leaves - coarsely chopped
Bittersweet Chocolate

Preparation:

Melt butter over low heat in a large non-stick skillet. Add garlic and cook until fragrant and white. Do not brown garlic. Add sage and cook until sage is crispy and butter just begins to brown. To serve, add cooked raviolis such as butternut squash or mushroom to the skillet and toss to coat. Serve in a pasta bowl and grate some bittersweet chocolate over the pasta.

Alfredo Sauce:

This sauce is generally used for Fettuccine Alfredo, and is made with the cooked pasta in the pan.  In that respect it is different from the previous recipes,  

Ingredients:

1 LB. Fettuccine - cooked per package directions
1/2 Cup (one stick) Butter
1 Cup Heavy Cream
1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Preparation:


Cook Fettuccine per package directions. Just prior to the fettuccine being done, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Add the cream and the grated cheese. Toss to coat the pasta and season to taste with salt and pepper. This sauce can be taken up a notch by adding 4 OZ. of cut up smoked salmon or grilled chicken and some roasted asparagus cut into 1/2" pieces. 

Spaghetti Carbonara:

This is another sauce where you create the sauce with the cooked pasta in the pan, so I have included the spaghetti in the recipe. 

Ingredients:

1 LB. Spaghetti - cooked per package directions
2 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
6 Slices Bacon - Chopped
1/3 Cup Dry White Wine
3 Large Eggs
Salt and Black Pepper to taste
2/3 Cup Grated Parmesan or Romano Cheese

Preparation:

Cook spaghetti per package directions. While the spaghetti is cooking, combine the olive oil and bacon in a small skillet and cook until bacon is crisp. Add wine to skillet and cook until wine has evaporated. Beat together the eggs, salt and pepper and the grated cheese. Drain the pasta and return it to the hot pot. Quickly add the cheese/egg mixture and the hot bacon and oil, stirring to coat the pasta. The heat of the pasta and bacon will cook the eggs. 

Puttanesca Sauce:

I love to serve this sauce over sauteed fish fillets or swordfish steaks but it is more commonly served over pasta.

Ingredients:

3 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 Garlic Cloves - peeled 
3 Anchovy Fillets - diced finely
1/4 tsp.Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 TBSP Tomato Paste
1 28 Oz. Can Whole Italian Tomatoes with juices - crushed by                                                                                             hand
1/2 of a 15 Oz. Can Diced Tomatoes with juices
2 Basil Sprigs
1/3 Cup Chopped Kalamata Olives
1 TBSP Capers
Salt and Black Pepper

Preparation:

Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add garlic, anchovies, and crushed red pepper. Cook over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook while stirring for another minute or so. Add the canned tomatoes with all of their juices. Stir in the basil sprigs, olives and capers. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about thirty minutes until sauce is reduced to about three cups. Remove the basil sprigs and garlic cloves from the sauce. Serve over pasta or fish as suggested. 


Garlic and Oil Sauce for Seafood:

I use this sauce to cook seafood such as shrimp, clams or mussels. You can serve the seafood in the sauce with toasted garlic bread as an appetizer or over pasta as a main course.

Ingredients:

8 TBSP (1 stick) Butter
1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Shallot or 1/2 small Onion - finely diced
4-6 Cloves Garlic - peeled and finely diced
1 Cup Dry white Wine
8 Fresh Sage Leaves - finely chopped
1/2 Cup finely chopped parsley leaves
Leaves from 5-6 sprigs of fresh thyme - finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Pinch Red Pepper Flakes

Preparation:

Melt Butter over medium low heat in a large non stick skillet. Stir in Olive Oil. Add Shallot and Garlic and cook until they are translucent. Add wine, parsley, sage and Thyme. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer for a few minutes and season to taste with salt, pepper and the red pepper flakes. Add seafood to sauce as desired. Clams will take longer than mussels or shrimp, and chunks of fresh fish require even less time, so if combining, add the clams first and then the other seafood adding any fish last.  Serve over pasta or as an appetizer directly out of the sauce.  

This should give you some idea of the many types of sauces and some of the ways they can be used. I hope you will try several of these suggestions. Don't be afraid to experiment. Season as you like and subtract or add ingredients if you prefer. Get creative. It will be fun!! 

Happy Valentine's Day !!!

Well, another Valentine's Day is upon us, so I have copied a couple of posts from the past, encouraging all the guys out there to make a special dinner for your Valentine. There are two simple menus below, with shopping lists and step by step instructions. Give it a try. I know you can do it !!

Happy Valentine's Day

Post from 2018

Come on fellows, you can do it ! Here is the easiest valentine dinner menu you will ever see and if you make it for your sweetheart she will be thrilled!! 

Step one - order flowers and have them delivered. 

Step two - buy a heart shaped box of assorted chocolates.

Step three- Prepare all ingredients, i.e. peel potatoes, chop parsley, trim asparagus, etc.

Step four - preparing Alaskan king crab legs with drawn butter, new potatoes with parsley, and roasted asparagus. This is a menu anyone can prepare with minimal practice or work. For dessert share some chocolates from step two above. A little champagne or nice crisp white wine goes well with the crab.

Alaskan King Crab Legs

Ingredients: 

2 - 3 Lbs. King crab legs(available at Costco or any large food store)
8 TBSP butter

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Crab legs are only sold pre-cooked. They are steamed on the boats immediately after the crab are caught, so all you have to do is heat them up in the oven. Lay the crab legs out on a cookie sheet with sides and put into the 375 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. While the crab is reheating, place the butter in a microwave proof dish and melt the butter in the microwave on high heat for about thirty or forty seconds. Once the butter is melted, use a spoon and skim the froth off of the top of the butter. Place the melted butter into two ramekins or other small dishes to serve. When the crab is hot remove from the oven and serve. You will need a couple of crab or nut crackers to help get the crab out of the shell as you eat it. 

New Potatoes with Parsley

Ingredients:

8-10 small potatoes, about 1" in diameter. I like to use a mix of red                                                                      and yukon gold.
2 TBSP butter
1 TBSP finely chopped fresh parsley leaves

Preparation:

Before putting the crab in the oven peel about half of the skin off of each potato. I generally peel around the middle of the potato and leave the skins on the ends. Remove the leaves from a fistful of fresh parsley and using a chef's knife chop the leaves finely. Put the potatoes into a small pan of cold water. Add a pinch of salt. After the crab has been in the oven about ten minutes, bring the potatoes to a boil on the stovetop over high heat. Reduce the heat slightly but keep the potatoes at a boil, but don't allow them to boil over. It will only take ten to twelve minutes to cook small potatoes. Check them by poking with a fork. You will be able to tell when the potatoes are done as the fork with easily pierce the potatoes. When the potatoes are done drain them by placing a colander in the sink and pouring the contents of the potato pan through the colander. Dump the hot potatoes back into the pan you cooked them in and add the 2 TBSP of butter. Stir until the butter melts and covers all of the potatoes. Add the parsley and stir until the potatoes are nicely coated with parsley. Salt and pepper as desired. Cover with a lid and hold on the stovetop on low heat until the crab is done. 

Roasted Asparagus:

Ingredients:

1 LB fresh asparagus
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Course ground sea salt

Preparation:

Before putting crab into oven, trim asparagus. Hold one piece of asparagus in the middle with one hand. Using the other hand snap off the bottom of the piece of asparagus where it naturally wants to break. Lay the piece of asparagus down next to the rest of the asparagus and using a chef's knife trim the rest of the asparagus to the same length as the piece you snapped by hand. Lay the asparagus into a 9 x 13" glass baking dish in a single layer. Drizzle the asparagus with extra virgin olive oil and shake the baking dish so that the asparagus gets evenly coated with the oil. Salt lightly with the coarse ground sea salt. After the crab has been in the oven for about 15 minutes put the asparagus into the oven as well. The asparagus will take about 10-12 minutes to cook. 

If you follow the steps above everything will be done at the same time and you will be able to serve a dinner to your Valentine that looks like this:  

 Post from 2017

I read somewhere recently, that Valentine's Day is the second busiest day of the year in restaurants, only surpassed by Mother's Day.  Why not just stay home and make a simple but elegant dinner for your sweetheart?  Even if you don't ordinarily cook, here is a simple menu that will be delicious and sure to please.  You can do it.  It's easy.  Here is the menu we will make:

Greek Salad

 Filet Mignon and Lobster Tail with Drawn Butter

Baked Potato with Sour Cream and Chives

Roasted Asparagus 

Purchased Chocolate Dessert

I have purposely designed the menu using lots of store bought ingredients, so that even a novice can do this meal. Just follow along step by step and you will be surprised how easy it is. 

Step one is to make a shopping list and I have done that for you.  Here you go.

For the salad:

One head Romaine lettuce

Some Greek salad mix from the olive bar at your local grocer.  This will be a mix of olives, and feta cheese.

4 pepperoncino's (spicy peppers form the olive bar)

Greek seasoning mix

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

For the main course:

2 small lobster tails

butter

2 5-6 Oz. filet mignons

Course ground sea salt and ground black pepper

2 medium baking potatoes

sour cream

Fresh chives

1 Lb. asparagus



For Dessert:

Purchase any type of chocolate dessert that you think your Valentine will enjoy. 

To Prepare your dinner just follow these easy steps:

1.5 hrs. before you want to eat, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Scrub the potatoes with a brush and water.  Dry them with paper towels. Using a fork, poke holes in the skin of the potatoes all over the outside.  With a paper towel, rub a thin layer of butter over the entire outside of each potato and then salt with course sea salt.  Lay a sheet of aluminum foil on the middle rack of the oven and set the potatoes directly on the foil.  The potatoes will take about an hour to an hour and twenty minutes to bake.  Test them by squeezing with an oven mitt.  When they feel soft and give to the touch they will be done. 

While the potatoes are in the oven get the asparagus ready to roast.  Take one spear of asparagus and break off the bottom with your fingers.  It will snap at some point that is the natural break.  Once you have snapped the bottom off of one piece, lay it down next to the remaining pieces of asparagus and using a chef's knife cut the other stalks to approximately the same length as the piece that you snapped.  Lay the asparagus in a glass baking dish and drizzle it with some extra virgin olive oil.  Salt it with course ground sea salt and set aside. 

Chop the chives into 1/4" pieces and set aside.

Cut the bottom 2 inches off of the bottom of the head of romaine.  Separate the leaves and wash each leaf in cold water, discarding any leaves with bad spots. Lay them out on paper towel to dry for a few minutes.  Cut the lettuce leaves into 1" square pieces.  Put the cut-up lettuce into a plastic bag and refrigerate until time to mix up your salad.  Make dressing by mixing 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil with 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar.  Season to taste with the Greek seasoning.  Set aside. 


Split the belly of each lobster tail length wise with a sharp scissors.  Lay the lobsters on a baking sheet and brush them with melted butter. 

Brush each filet mignon with melted butter and season with salt and  pepper. Put the filets in an oven proof skillet. Here are the steaks, lobster tails, asparagus, chives and salad dressing after following the steps above:

Twenty minutes prior to eating, sear the filets in the skillet over high heat on the stove top.  Sear each side for about two minutes.  Fifteen minutes prior to eating turn the oven from 400 degrees to Broil.  If the potatoes are done, take them out of the oven and hold them on a plate that you cover with foil.  If they aren't quite done yet, leave them in the oven.  Ten minutes prior to eating, put the skillet containing the steaks and the baking sheet with the lobster tails into the oven on the top rack.  Put the asparagus in the oven on the middle rack. Broil for ten minutes.  Check the steaks for temperature.  120 degrees is medium rare.  Ten minutes should do the trick.  

While the steaks and lobster tails are in the oven, put the chopped lettuce leaves into a salad bowl. Top with the Greek salad mix and the pepperoncinis.  Dress the salad with the dressing you made and using a tongs, toss the salad until well mixed.

Heat the Hollandaise sauce on low heat until just warm.

Cut a stick of butter into two pieces and put them into a microwave proof bowl.  Cover with a paper towel and heat on high for about thirty seconds or until the butter is liquid. 

Serve the salad on a salad plate.  Put a steak, a lobster tail, a baked potato and some asparagus on  each of two plates.  Slit the baked potatoes and top with a dollop of sour cream and some of the chopped chives. Divide the melted butter into two small ramekins or bowls for dipping the lobster.  Serve with a nice Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir and enjoy your Valentine's Day. 

 

Steamed Mussels

I love to serve steamed mussels as an appetizer. I serve them family style in a large pasta serving dish garnished with wedges of baguette that have been toasted with olive oil and garlic. It makes a beautiful presentation for accompanying cocktails, and will keep your guests clustered around the bowl sharing mussels and conversation. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

3-4 Lbs. Fresh Mussels
8 TBSP Butter
1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Shallot - finely diced
6 Cloves of Garlic - finely diced
1 Cup Dry White Wine - I use Chardonnay
1/2 Cup finely chopped parsley leaves
8  Fresh Sage Leaves - finely chopped
Leaves from 5-6 Sprigs of Fresh Thyme - Finely Chopped

Preparation:

Rinse Mussels in cold water and remove any seaweed that is caught up in the shell. Discard any mussels that are cracked or opened and don't close when you handle them. Melt Butter in a large skillet. Add olive oil and stir in well with the butter. Add wine, shallot and garlic and cook over medium heat until shallot and garlic are translucent. Add Parsley, Sage and Thyme and stir well into the liquid. Add mussels and cover the pan. Let the mussels steam in the liquid until they open. This will take just a few minutes. Don't overcook. Transfer the mussels and all of the liquid to a large Pasta serving bowl, or individual bowls if you prefer. Garnish with garlic toast around the entire edge of the bowl. Set out where your guests can gather around the bowl. Be sure to have a large bowl for the empty shells and lots of napkins. The herby broth is quite tasty and dipping the garlic toasts into it is not only allowed but is very much encouraged. 

Perfect Egg Salad

My wife Jan had some surgery on her foot yesterday and so I have been trying to come up with simple meals that don't take too much time, as I am spending quite a bit of my day acting as a caregiver. 

Last night we had some homemade mac and cheese and a Greek salad. Today for lunch, I did some egg salad sandwiches and it got me thinking about what makes a perfect (in my view) egg salad. I guess for people who don't like egg salad nothing makes it perfect, but for those of us who love a good egg salad sandwich, the first key ingredient would be perfect hard boiled eggs. 

For something as simple as boiling an egg, I think I have heard of at least a dozen approaches. After experimenting over the years with different methods, I have settled in on one way which gives me perfectly cooked eggs every time. Start with a medium size pan and fill it with enough very cold water to just cover the eggs.  For this example we will do 6 extra large AA eggs. Place the pan on the stove top over very high heat. Once the water starts to simmer, watch carefully and as soon as the water reaches a rolling boil, remove the pan from the heat and cover.  Let the eggs stand in the hot water for 14 minutes. I have experimented with the time and 14 is the magic number for what I think is a perfect hard boiled egg. Leave in the hot water too long and the yolks start to turn green, Not long enough and you have soft boiled eggs. After 14 minutes, remove the cover and place the pan under cold running water. Let the cold water run over the eggs until the cold water has replaced all of the hot water and the eggs are sitting in cold water. Let them sit for a couple of minutes and then begin to peel the eggs. I like to peel them under cold running water as it helps to remove all of the shell fragments. 

You might wonder why some eggs peel very easily and others seem almost impossible to peel. I recently read a study on this. It seems that the PH of the membrane inside the egg shell is what dictates how the egg peels. The more acidic the membrane the easier the shell comes off. That is probably more than most of us need to know, except that the study did recommend that you add a little vinegar to the water when boiling eggs. This will increase the PH and make the eggs easier to peel. If the shape of the peeled egg is important to you, for example when making deviled eggs, then by all means add a tablespoon of vinegar to the water before boiling. Not really all that important if you are dicing the eggs for egg salad.  Here is how I make egg salad:

Ingredients:

6 Hard boiled eggs- peeled (See above )
About 1 tsp mustard - either Dijon or Yellow
About 1/3 Cup Mayonnaise
1/4 tsp Paprika
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

If you have an egg slicer, slice the eggs, then turn the sliced egg 90 degrees and slice again. Place in a small mixing bowl. Then mash pieces with a fork, leaving eggs somewhat chunky. Otherwise just mash the eggs with a fork or a potato masher to the desired consistency.  Add the mustard. Use less if you are not a mustard fan, but it does provide nice color and a bit of a tangy taste to the egg salad. Begin to add the Mayo a little at a time and fold the mixture together. Add Mayo until you like the consistency of the egg salad. Season with the Paprika and salt and pepper. For variety feel free to experiment and add any of the following ingredients: minced onion, minced celery, curry powder, diced olives, capers or even crumbled bacon. Let me know if you come up with any other ingredients that you think work well in the mix. 

Pork Cutlet Limonata

I like veal limonata, but Jan doesn't like to eat veal, so I use pork instead.  I buy boneless center cut pork chops, trim off any fat on the edge, and lay the chop on it's side and split it into two thinner pieces. Then I use the tenderizing side of a meat mallet and pound the two pieces of each chop until they are about 1/4" thick. Follow the recipe below and you will have a tasty dinner for two. 

Ingredients:

2 Boneless center cut pork chops, sliced longitudinally and tenderized (see above)

2 Large eggs

2 TBSP Milk

6 TBSP Flour-divided

Sea Salt

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs

6 TBSP Butter-divided

2 TBSP Vegetable Oil

11/2 Cup Dry White Wine (I prefer Chardonnay)

Juice of 2 lemons

2 TBSP Capers

Preparation:

Slice and tenderize meat as described above. Season four TBSP of the flour with salt and pepper and put in a small flat pan. Crack the eggs into a second small flat pan and using a fork mix the eggs with the milk until well blended. Add the panko bread crumbs to a third small flat pan. Dredge the pork pieces first in the egg and milk mixture, then coat with the seasoned flour on both sides. Return to the egg and milk and then dredge each piece of pork in the panko, until well coated. Place a large non-stick skillet on med high heat on the stove top. Add three TBSP of the butter and the vegetable oil to the skillet. When the butter and oil are hot, saute the coated pork cutlets until they are browned nicely on each side and cooked through. It will only take a few minutes on each side. Don't overcook or the pork will be dry. Remove cutlets and hold.

Deglaze pan with the white wine, scrapping up any brown bits from the pan. Add the remaining butter to the wine and heat until melted and incorporated into the sauce. Add Lemon juice. Shake the remaining 2 TBSP of flour with a 1/2 cup of water in a jar to dissolve flour and then add to the sauce. Bring to a boil and whisk till sauce thickens. Reduce heat and add capers. Return cutlets to pan, just long enough to reheat. Serve cutlets with sauce ladled over them. I like to serve with a side of orzo, seasoned with sauteed mushrooms and parmesan cheese. 

Tip:

Here is a picture of the set of pans I use to dredge. They are 6"x 8.5", and actually have an interlocking lip that holds the three pans side by side. They are the perfect size for dredging most meat or eggplant slices or any other thing you want to coat before cooking. 

Minute Steaks with Gravy

I love minute steaks (cube steak) cooked in a rich gravy with some onion, pepper, carrot, a hint of garlic and maybe some mushrooms.
This is an easy dish to prepare and the aroma as it cooks in the oven will fill your kitchen with a delightful smell. 

Ingredients:

4 Cube Steaks
4 tablespoons flour - divided
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1 Can Beef Broth
2 Carrots - peeled and sliced into 1/2" pieces
1/2 of a Large Onion - sliced
1/2 of a Red or Orange Pepper - cut in thin slices
2 Cloves Garlic - Diced
4 Large Baby Bella Mushrooms - sliced

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put two tablespoons of the flour in a gallon zip lock bag. Add a liberal amount of salt and pepper to the bag and shake well. Drop one cube steak at a time into the bag and shake well, dusting the steak with a fine coat of the seasoned flour.  Pour the oil into a large ovenproof skillet with a lid and place on a burner at med high heat. Brown each of the minute steaks on both sides. Remove from pan. Deglaze pan with the can of beef broth, scraping up all of the brown bits in the pan. Shake 2 TBSP of flour in a jar with about a pint of water. Add the water and flour mixture to the beef broth and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens. If you want thicker gravy add a little more flour and water. Season the gravy with salt and pepper to taste. Add the steaks back to the pan as well as the carrots, onion, pepper, garlic and mushrooms. Cover the pan and put in the 350 degree oven for about thirty minutes or until meat is fall apart tender and vegetables are well cooked. I like to serve with mashed potatoes and ladle the gravy over the meat as well as the potatoes.