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Category Archives: Breads

Super Simple Stromboli for Sunday

With the big game coming on Sunday, many people are having different types of parties. I have posted different snacks that are good for football parties in previous posts, but this is something I just made this week for dinner but would also be great not just for football parties, but for any party. The basis of the recipe is from Scott Conant of Scarpetta restaurants and Food Network’s Chopped. I found this stromboli recipe on Food Network’s site and altered it a bit to fit what I had on hand. In his recipe, he makes the pizza dough himself. I don’t have the time or space to make dough, so I used store-bought pizza dough and I think it turned out fine, so do what you like best. You could use any pizza dough recipe you have I think and get good results.

Stromboli

1 pound store-bought or homemade pizza dough

2 cups mozzarella cheese

1/2 bunch fresh basil, chopped

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Freshly ground black pepper

4 meatballs, pre-cooked and sliced

2 Italian sausage links, cooked through and sliced

1 small onion, sliced and sautéed until soft

Extra-virgin olive oil

Salt

1/4 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

Tomato sauce, warmed, for dipping

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature. Lightly brush a baking sheet with olive oil. Lightly flour your countertop and the pizza dough and roll the dough to a rectangle.

Place half the cheese, the basil, garlic powder, pepper, meatballs, sausage and onion in the middle of the surface of the dough. Fill two-thirds of the surface, leaving the bottom third and a little of the sides empty. Top with the remaining cheese and salt to taste. Roll the sides of the dough over the filling and then seal the ends and edges with your palms to make a loaf. Transfer to the oiled tray. Rub a little olive oil over the top of the dough. Place the tomatoes, salt and pepper on the top. Cover the tray with plastic and let it sit for 15 minutes to rest.

Place the tray in the oven and bake for a total of 45 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn the pan 180 degrees. Bake another 20 minutes, then turn the pan again and bake the remaining 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cutting board to allow the loaf to cool. Slice and serve with tomato sauce on the side for dipping.

There are dozens of different ways you can go with this recipe. You can fill the stromboli with anything you like really. You can use different meats, vegetables or cheeses depending on what is to your liking. I saw many recipes that use salami, provolone, eggplant, peppers and more, so use whatever you like best.

It can make a nice dinner with a simple salad or will be great for any party that you may have. It is even better as something to bring to party you are going to.

That’s it for today. As I have said, I do have a stockpile of recipes of things I have made recently that I have not had a chance to post, so I hope to get to some of them over the coming days. until next time, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on February 2, 2013 in Appetizers, Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Pizza, Snacks

Tags: Chopped, food network, homemade pizza dough, Scarpetta, Scott Conant, stromboli

A Taste of Dublin, Part 3

09 Oct

Tonight I am going to cover the Irish breakfast we had on our second day in Dublin. We woke up early that morning with the intention of getting to breakfast, since it was included in our package of the trip from Guinness. We went down to the dining room early, about 8 AM, and were seated in the dining room. As soon as we sat down, we were offered coffee or tea and some toast. I was little surprised by the toast, but hey, I like toast, so why not, we accepted. The waitress came back with a pot of tea for Michelle, a pot of coffee for me and a rack of toast, about 6 pieces, 3 of which were white and 3 other three were the brown bread that is made especially by the Brooks Hotel. The Hotel actually supplies the recipe for the bread, which is made with Guinness of course. Here it is if you want to give it a try. Keep in mind that when I got the recipe, the measurements are all in metric because it is European, so you’ll have to make some adjustments.

Brooks’ Homemade Guinness Brown Bread

600 grams Wholemeal Flour
150 grams Plain Flour
75 grams Oatmeal (porridge oats)
2½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2½ tablespoons brown sugar
40 grams butter

480 millilitres milk
200 millilitres black treacle
½ pint of Guinness

Preparation:
Mix the butter with all the dry ingredients until the dough develops the consistency of breadcrumbs.
Add the milk, black treacle and the Guinness and mix until you reach a wet dough.
Bake in a greased bread tin for 40 – 45 minutes at 170°C in a pre-heated oven.

Black treacle is what they call molasses in the UK and Ireland. The bread tasted very good and it seems very simple to make, so I may have to give it a try sometime. Michelle and I both liked the Irish butter that was served every day as well. it had a much better flavor than the butter we have here in the States.

For the rest of the breakfast, you have a choice. They serve a simple breakfast which is a buffet breakfast of simple things like scones, croissants, cereal, fresh fruit and yogurt. The yogurt was very tasty as I had it on other morning we were there. it had fresh raspberries in it and tasted quite good. You could also order off the menu, and the menu offered a full Irish breakfast. Now, I had heard about the fill breakfast before and knew it was going to be quite large, but we both figured that we wanted to give it a try. When else were we going to have the opportunity to try this anyway? So Michelle and I both ordered the breakfast with scrambled eggs. I wish I had taken a picture of what we actually got, because when it came out on a plate we were both shocked. Here is what was on the plate:

Irish sausage – which was absolutely delicious, by the way

There was bacon, but not in the way we think of bacon in the United States. It was much more like a piece of ham, but it was better than any ham I had eaten. i am not a fan of ham myself. The hame we get here seems way too salty and usually has some kind of curing on it that makes it too sweet for my liking. This tasted much cleaner and purer with little fat. It was delicious.

A very large pile of scrambled eggs in the center – traditionally it is served with fried eggs, but we both opted for scrambled for some reason.

Underneath the eggs was a slice of potato bread, which seemed more like a potato pancake with a nice crust on the top of it. I had never had anything quite like it before and it was pretty tasty.

A fried tomato – it was half of a small tomato

Sauteed mushrooms – these were really good

Black and white pudding – Okay, I knew what it was before I tried it and this was something a lot of people shied away from or warned me about but I wanted to try it. Heck, if millions of people have eaten it for hundreds of years, how bad could it be? It’s also known as blood pudding for those who may not know and is made from onions, oatmeal, pork fat and other spices, much like a sausage, but it also has pig blood in it, hence the name. I have to admit, it’s not something I would go out of my way to get again, and it has a very distinct flavor to it, but I am glad I tried it. The white pudding is the same ingredients without the blood, and there is a taste difference. The white tastes more like a sausage that you would find here, except the oatmeal adds a certain texture to the meal.

I did find a recipe for blood pudding if you want to give it a try to make it yourself. Finding the pig’s blood might be tough, but if you can get it give it a try.

Blood Pudding

1 quart pig, lamb or goose blood

16 ounces milk

salt and pepper
1 pound shredded suet
2 large onions, minced
1 ounce oatmeal, toasted

Bring a large stew pot 3/4 full of water almost to a boil. Pour the blood into a deep bowl.
Add 1 teaspoon of salt, stirring constantly. Strain with a sieve. Add milk, mix well.
Add suet, minced onions, toasted oatmeal, 1 teaspoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of black pepper and mix well. Pour the mixture into an oven-safe pan and cook in the oven at 350 degrees for about an hour. Remove from the oven and slice into one-inch squares or rounds. Fry the rounds in a saute pan with a pat of butter until crisp on the outside, about 1-2 minutes per side.

Give it a shot and see if you like it.

Tomorrow, I will post the recipe for the dinner we had on the second night, which was a traditional Irish stew that we had at the Hairy Lemon in Dublin. Check back tomorrow and see how it is. until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on October 9, 2012 in Breads, Breakfast, Cooking, Pork

Tags: black pudding, blood pudding, Brooks Hotel, Brown Bread, full Irish breakfast, potato bread, white pudding

Making Good Use of Those Extra Meatballs

13 Aug

Yesterday I made a big try of meatballs so Michelle could use some in her Italian Wedding Soup. Since we still had a lot left to use, we decided to put some in sauce and simmer them and then make some meatball sub sandwiches. Sean opted to have just spaghetti and meatballs, but I made a sub for myself on some garlic bread.

Meatball Sub Sandwiches

For the meatballs:

2 slices of white bread (use good white bread for this)

1/3 cup buttermilk

3/4 pound ground beef

1/4 pound ground pork

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1 large egg yolk

1 garlic clove, minced

Salt and pepper

For the sauce:

3 tablespoons olive oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes

3 tablespoons minced fresh basil (if you’re using dried basil, cut this in at least half)

1/4 teaspoon sugar

Salt

For the garlic bread:

1 loaf Italian bread or French bread

4 tablespoons butter, softened (use less if you like, I often do)

2 teaspoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (or other cheese of your liking, or no cheese at all, it’s optional)

Fresh mozzarella, sliced for the sandwiches

For the meatballs, remove and discard the crusts from the bread, then tear the bread into small pieces. Mash the bread pieces and buttermilk to a smooth paste in a large bowl, using a fork.

Add the beef, pork, Parmesan, parsley, yolk, garlic, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper to the mashed bread. Stir the mixture gently until combined and uniform. Gently form the mixture into 1-inch round meatballs ( I made them smaller this time for the soup we made).

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the meatballs on a wire rack in a cookie sheet or roasting pan. Cook for approximately 20 to 30 minutes or until well browned.

For the sauce, cook the oil and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring often until fragrant but not browned, about 2 minutes (don’t scorch the garlic, it tastes pretty bad when you do. As soon as you can smell it, you’re ready for the next step). Stir in the crushed tomatoes and diced tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in the basil and sugar. Season with salt to taste. Add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer until the meatballs are heated through, about 10 minutes.

For the garlic bread, preheat the broiler. Cut the loaf of bread in half lengthwise. In a small bowl, mix the butter, oil, garlic and oregano. Spread the mixture evenly on the bread. On a baking sheet, place the bread under the broiler for 3-5 minutes, or until slightly browned. Check frequently to make sure it doesn’t burn. Remove from the broiler and serve, or, if using the cheese, sprinkle cheese over the bread and place under the broiler for another 2 minutes, or until cheese is melted and slightly brown.

To assemble the sandwich, place as many meatballs as you desire on the bread. Cover the meatballs with some extra sauce and add some slices of fresh mozzarella. Place the sandwich back under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes until the cheese is melted.

Of course, there are always variations on this. I don’t eat cheese, so my sandwich went without. Michelle only wanted a small sandwich so she could have some pasta too, so she only had a half sandwich. You could also add some Italian sausage to the mix and have them on the sandwich as well.

It’s a great use of some leftovers. Everyone loves a good sub sandwich, and having this one on the toasted garlic bread makes it even better.

I think I am going to make some shrimp tomorrow, although I am not sure how I am going to do it just yet. Check back and see what I come up with. until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

1 Comment

Posted by MikeG on August 13, 2012 in Beef, Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Sandwiches, Sauce

Tags: garlic bread, italian wedding soup, meatball sandwich, meatball sub, meatballs, tomato sauce

My Sous Chef Takes Over For the Night

28 Jun

I had planned on chicken all week for dinners, but I had also taken out some pork chops to make for dinner one night. I thought tonight would be a good night to do that and I thought it would be an even better night to have Sean take over in the kitchen. He is planning on taking a cooking class later on this summer so I figured tonight would be a good night for him to do some of the cooking while I just supervised. He chose this recipe of skillet barbecued pork chops as his first test. You don’t have to do the brining of the pork chops if you don’t have time to do it, but it does help to add to the meal by making the pork chops more moist.

Skillet-Barbecued Pork Chops

1/2 cup salt

4 bone-in rib loin pork chops, 3/4 to 1 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat

4 teaspoons vegetable oil

For the spice rub:

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the sauce:

1/2 cup ketchup

3 tablespoons light or mild molasses

2 tablespoons grated onion

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon liquid smoke

Dissolve the salt in 2 quarts of cold water in a large bowl or container. Submerge the chops in the brine, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

For the spice rub, combine all the spices in a small bowl. Measure 2 teaspoons of the mixture into a medium bowl and set aside for the sauce. Transfer the remaining spice rub to a large plate. For the sauce, whisk the ingredients in the bowl with the reserved spice mixture until thoroughly combined; set aside.

Remove the chops from the brine, rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Use a sharp knife to cut 2 slits, about 2 inches apart, through the outer layer of fat and silver skin of each chop (don’t cut into the meat of the chops). Coat both sides of the chops with the spice rub, pressing gently so the rub adheres. Shake off the excess rub.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until just smoking. Place the chops in the skillet in a pinwheel pattern, with the ribs pointing toward the center, and cook until browned and charred in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip the chops and continue to cook until the second side is browned and the center of the chops registers 130 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 4 to 8 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the chops to a plate. Lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 teaspoons of the sauce.

Wipe the pan out with paper towels and return it to medium heat. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil and heat until just smoking. Add the chops to the pan, sauce side down, and cook without moving them until the sauce has caramelized and charred in spots, about 1 minute. While cooking, lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 more teaspoons of sauce. Flip the chops and cook until the second side is charred and caramelized and the center of the chops registers 140 to 145 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 1 to 2 minutes.

Transfer the chops back to the plate, cover loosely with foil, and let rest until the center of the chops registers 150 degrees on an instant read thermometer, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add the remaining sauce to the pan and cook over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits, until thickened and it measures 2/3 cup, about 3 minutes. Brush each chop with 1 tablespoon of the sauce and serve, passing the remaining sauce separately.

Sean handled most of the prep and the actual cooking pretty well. The only thing I really did was take the chops out of the pan. He also made some oven roasted potatoes, corn on the cob and skillet cornbread to go along with the meal. Again, he did most of the work himself, including the chopping of the potatoes, mixing everything for the sauce, the rub and the cornbread. All I handled was the hot cast iron skillet for the cornbread. I have to say I was quite proud of how well he did with everything. Now if I could just get him to clean his room, all would be wonderful!

That’s it for tonight. It might be back to chicken tomorrow night, or maybe some burgers, i haven’t quite decided yet. We’ll see what I feel like doing. Enjoy the rest of your evening and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on June 28, 2012 in Breads, Cooking, Dinner, Pork, Sauce, Spices

Tags: barbecued pork chops, pork chops, skillet barbecued pork chops, skillet cornbread

Father’s Day Brunch, Part 3: Having Your Cake and Eating Banana Bread, Too

20 Jun

Okay, after posting most of the meal that we had for Father’s Day Brunch, here are the dessert-like items that I made. I made a blueberry coffee cake, banana bread and a fruit salad. None of these are hard to make and they all tasted really good!

Blueberry Coffee Cake

Topping

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled

Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups buttermilk or plain yogurt

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs

7 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, rinsed and dried

For the topping: Mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon and melted butter together in a medium bowl until the mixture resembles wet sand. Set aside.

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously coat a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

For the cake: Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk the buttermilk, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs and melted butter together in a separate bowl until smooth. Gently fold the egg mixture into the flour mixture with a rubber spatula and stir until the batter looks smooth and well combined. Stir the blueberries into the finished batter.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the batter. Bake until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. about 40 to 45 minutes. Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before serving.

You could also substitute dried apricots, dried cherries or dried cranberries for the blueberries if you prefer. The cake comes out perfectly and tastes great even the next day or two later with your morning coffee.

The banana bread is just as easy to make. I’ve tried a few recipes and this one, from Tyler Florence, seems to work out the best with the best banana flavor.

Banana Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 overripe bananas

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted and cooled

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan. in a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork in a small bowl so they still have a bit of texture. With an electric mixer, whip the remaining bananas and sugar together for 3 minutes; you want a light and fluffy banana cream. Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla; beat well and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated; no need to over blend. Fold in the mashed bananas with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Give the pan a good rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.

Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool the bread in the pan for 10 minutes or so, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.Dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve.

You could add some nuts to the bread when you mix the mashed bananas in if you like the nuts. Pecans or walnuts would work pretty well. My family doesn’t care for the nuts, so I left them out. You could also toast the slices lightly in a buttered skillet over medium heat if you want to give them some crunch when serving.

Finally, I also made a fruit salad to go with the brunch. You can pretty much do what you want with fruit salads, that’s one of the great things about them. Add more of the fruit you like, change out some fruit, add some fresh mint, do what you want.

Fruit Salad

1/2 seedless watermelon

1 mango, peeled and diced

1 fresh pineapple, peeled and diced

1 pint fresh strawberries, halved

1 pint raspberries

1 pint blueberries

1 can mandarin oranges, drained

Using a melon baller, hollow out the watermelon and set the balled watermelon aside. With a knife, cut away any excess in the watermelon shell, and, if necessary, flatten out the bottom of the outside of the shell so it rests comfortably on a flat surface. Add the watermelon, mango,pineapple,strawberries,raspberries,blueberries and oranges, arranging the fruit in layers. Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving.

You can add any fruit you like. I often top it with a sliced banana, or add some plums, peaches or apples, whatever happens to be in season.

Tomorrow I will post the recipe I made on Monday for an oven roasted trout and potatoes, and I am planning to make a flank steak with salsa verde on Friday, so check back for that one as well. That’s all for tonight. Enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

1 Comment

Posted by MikeG on June 20, 2012 in Breads, Breakfast, Cooking, Dessert, Picnic Fare, Salad

Tags: banana bread, blueberry coffee cake, fruit salad

Down Home Cooking: Sloppy Joes and Cornbread

11 Apr

Michelle has been asking me to make Sloppy Joes since before we got back to Charlotte, so tonight is the night. I was trying to come up with a good side dish to go along with the meal, and I tweeted America’s Test Kitchen to see if they had a recommendation. They suggested I make some cornbread to go along with the meal, so that’s what I am going to do. I’ve never made cornbread before, but the recipe looks as easy as the sloppy joes, so we’ll give it a try.

Sloppy Joes

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 medium onion, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

3/4 pound ground beef

1 teaspoon brown sugar

Salt and pepper

1 cup tomato puree

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup water

Tabasco

Hamburger buns

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onion and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and chili powder and cook for 1 minute. Add the beef, brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, breaking the meat into small pieces, until the meat is no longer pink, about 4 minutes.

Stir in the tomato puree, ketchup and water. Cook until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with Tabasco and salt and pepper to taste. Spoon 1/2 cup of the meat mixture into each hamburger bun.

Trust me, making your own sloppy joe sauce is so much better than using anything out of a can or a spice package. Homemade doesn’t require a lot of ingredients (the only thing I didn’t have in the house is the tomato puree) and it will taste far better than anything you can buy.

Now for the cornbread. As I said, I’ve never made it before, but the recipe from America’s Test Kitchen seems pretty basic and I had all the ingredients on hand, so let’s give it a shot.

Skillet Cornbread

4 teaspoons bacon drippings or vegetable oil

1 cup yellow cornmeal

2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup rapidly boiling water

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Adjust an oven rack to the lower middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Set a cast-iron skillet with the bacon drippings or oil in the oven while it heats. Measure 1/3 cup of the cornmeal into a medium bowl. Whisk the remaining 2/3 cup of cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda together in a small bowl and set aside.

Add the boiling water to the 1/3 cup of cornmeal and stir to make a stiff mush. Gradually whisk in the buttermilk until smooth, then whisk in the egg. When the oven is pre-heated and the skillet is very hot, gently fold the dry ingredients into the mush mixture until just combined.

Carefully remove the skillet from the oven. Pour the bacon fat or hot oil from the skillet into the batter and stir to combine. Quickly pour the batter into the skillet. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Flip the cornbread out of the skillet and onto a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

According to the recipe, baking the cornbread in a greased and pre-heated cast-iron skillet will give the cornbread a brown, crunchy crust, which is what I like. If you don’t have a cast-iron pan, you could use a cake pan (round or square) or a regular skillet, but it may not be as crunchy. Just a quick note on this recipe. I didn’t have buttermilk on hand, but it’s very easy to make your own buttermilk at home. For 1 cup of buttermilk, stir 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or fresh lemon juice into the milk and let it stand for 5 minutes until thickened.

That’s all there is to it. I do have a menu for the rest of this abbreviated week. It is:

Thursday: Apple and Prune Stuffed Pork Loin

Friday: Roast Chicken with Oven-Glazed Carrots and Warm Parsley Sauce

Saturday: Snacks for Dinner (This is a Sean favorite, so you’ll see what it is Saturday)

Sunday: Roast Beef with Au Jus

Some good meals to look forward to this week. The apple and prune stuffed pork is a Michelle favorite, and I need the chicken to make some stock this week, so it works out pretty well. Check back tomorrow to see about the pork loin recipe. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!

5 Comments

Posted by MikeG on April 11, 2012 in Beef, Breads, Cooking, Dinner

Tags: cornbread, skillet cornbread, sloppy joes

A Couple of Extra Recipes For the Day

15 Mar

I am posting a couple of extra recipes tonight since I had a request for them. One is for a Potato-Leek Soup that I make, and the other is an early St. Patrick’s Day recipe for Irish Soda Bread. First, the Potato-Leek Soup:

Potato and Leek Soup

2 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil

3 medium potatoes, any type, peeled and cut into small cubes

3 leeks, white and light green parts only, washed and sliced into thin rings

Salt and freshly ground pepper

4 cups chicken, beef, or vegetable stock, or water

1/2 to 1 cup heavy cream, sour cream or yogurt

Put the butter or oil in a large, deep pot over medium heat. When the butter melts or the oil is hot, add the vegetables. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, until starting to soften, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the stock, adjust the heat so it gently bubbles, and cook until the vegetables are very tender, about 20 minutes. Allow the soup to cool slightly and then carefully puree the soup in a blender or food processor or with an immersion blender. Return the soup to the pot you cooked in. Stir in the cream, sour cream or yogurt and re-heat gently; do not let it boil if you use yogurt. Add more salt and pepper as needed and serve.

If you prefer not to deal with the leeks and the cleaning they need, you can substitute a large sliced onion instead. If you want the soup even thicker, you can always add in more potato to thicken it. If you want to make this a Vichyssoise, don’t re-heat the soup. Instead, chill the soup thoroughly before serving. You can also garnish the soup with some minced chives or some crumbled bacon (Sean’s preference, of course). This is a great one pot dinner and even better the next day for lunch or dinner.

Now, for the Irish Soda Bread. I am no bread expert, but I can make this one. A lot of what you can get in the stores I find to be too dry. I know people who can make this better than I do, but this is still a good recipe.

Irish Soda Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter

1 cup cake flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 cup raisins

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray generously with vegetable oil spray.

Whisk the flours, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt together in a large bowl. Work 2 tablespoons of the butter into the dry ingredients with a fork until the texture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the buttermilk and raisins with a fork just until the dough begins to come together. Turn out onto a lightly floured counter. Knead just until the dough becomes cohesive and bumpy, about 30 seconds (Do not knead until smooth).

Pat the dough into a 6-inch round about 2 inches thick. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Cut an X into the top of the loaf using a serrated knife. Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached, 40 to 45 minutes.

Remove the loaf from the oven and transfer to a wire rack. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and brush it over the top of the bread. Let the loaf cool for 1 hour.

This bread is great not only to go along with your St. Patrick’s Day meal, but also as an accompaniment to soups, like the potato leek soup above, or any stew. It also makes great toast the next day.

I think that’s the end of my posting for today. If you have any questions or comments, or there is a recipe you would like to see or are looking for, just leave a comment, send me an email at IguanaFlats@msn.com, visit my Facebook page, or send me a note on Twitter @IguanaFlats. You can get the links to my Facebook or Twitter pages on the right. I hope you all have a great evening!

2 Comments

Posted by MikeG on March 15, 2012 in Breads, Cooking, Potatoes, Soups & Stews

Tags: irish soda bread, leeks, potato leek soup, recipe for irish soda bread, recipe irish soda bread, soda bread, St. Patrick's Day

Slow Cooking Some Stew

27 Feb

Tonight’s dinner has been cooking all day and it smells terrific. Beef stew is one of those meals that you can make all day in the slow cooker or all day on the stove, and it makes the whole house smell great. You don’t need a lot of ingredients to make it and you can always add other vegetables to it if you want.

Beef Stew with Bacon

4 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped

3 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon salt, plus more, to taste

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more, to taste

2 pounds boneless beef chuck, trimmed of excess fat and cut into chunks (I am actually using a london broil instead this time)

3/4 cup fresh mushrooms, halved if large

1/2 pound baby carrots

4 to 5 small red potatoes, scrubbed and quartered

1/2 pound frozen pearl onions (you can use 1 large yellow onion, chopped, instead)

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup dry red wine

1 cup beef broth

2 tablespoons tomato paste

In a large fry pan over medium heat, cook the bacon, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Pour off the drippings into a small heatproof bowl, leaving about 1 tablespoon drippings in the pan. Set the pan, reserved drippings and bacon aside.

In a sealable plastic bag, combine the flour, the 1 teaspoon of salt and the 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Add the beef chunks and shake to coat evenly with the flour mixture. Return the fry pan to medium-high heat. When the drippings are hot, add half the beef chunks and cook, turning once, until well browned, about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the beef to the slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining beef chunks, adding the reserved drippings if needed. Scatter the mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, onions, and garlic on top.

Return the pan to medium-high heat and add the wine, broth and tomato paste. Mix well, bring to a boil and deglaze the pan, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the pan bottom. Pour the contents of the pan over the vegetables and beef. Cover and cook on the high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours or the low-heat setting for 8 to 9 hours. The beef should be very tender. Stir in the reserved bacon. Cook, uncovered, on the high-heat setting for 10 minutes more to thicken the sauce slightly. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Of course, the stew is great served with some crunchy bread, rolls or biscuits. If you would like to see a simple biscuit recipe, just check here for a previous blog entry that included the biscuits. You can always freeze any leftovers to save to be re-heated on a later day or use it for lunches during the week.

This was a pretty simple slow cooker meal, which is ideal for a Monday night. Tomorrow night, I’ll be making Bacon Chicken Ranch Quesadillas and we’ll be having the leftover black beans and rice and mango pineapple salsa, both from Sunday’s dinner. If you have any questions or there are any recipes that you might like to see or if you have some ideas for the blog, please feel free to leave a comment. Until tomorrow, have a great evening and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on February 27, 2012 in Beef, Biscuits, Cooking, Dinner, Slow Cooker Meals, Soups & Stews

Tags: beef stew, biscuits, london broil, slow cooker, slow cooker meal, slow cooker recipe, stew

Belly Up to Some Black Bean Stew

22 Feb

It’s our meat-free meal for this week and today is some Black Bean Stew. This is a hearty and healthy dish, full of fiber with the black beans and butternut squash.This is a vegetarian dish, so you don’t have to make any alterations if you are trying to keep it as a vegetarian meal. I am planning to make some biscuits to go along with this meal as well. I’ve made the biscuits before, so if you would like to see the recipe for them, you can check here.

Black Bean Stew

1 cup dried black beans

4 cups water

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 small butternut squash (about 1 pound)

1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 cup lager beer, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon salt, or more, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Pick over the beans, discarding any misshapen beans and stones, and rinse well. In a large pot, combine the beans with cold water to cover by 3 inches. Soak for at least 4 hours or overnight. Alternatively, for a quick-soak method, bring the beans and water to a rapid simmer (but do not boil), then simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 1 hour.

Drain the beans, place in a large saucepan and add the 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer gently until almost tender but still quite firm, about 1 hour.

Add the onion and garlic to the beans, re-cover and continue to cook over low heat until the beans are tender, about 30 minutes more.

Cut the squash in half. Remove and discard the seeds, then peel the flesh. Cut the flesh into 1-inch cubes. Add the squash, pepper, oregano and beer to the pan. Raise the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, until the squash and beans are soft but still hold their shape, about 30 minutes. Stir in the salt and pepper. Ladle the stew into warmed soup bowls and serve immediately.

If you have the time to do the beans overnight, that’s probably the best way to go about it so they are ready to use the next day. This stew takes some time to cook, but I think it’s worth the effort for the taste you will get. It’s filling, tastes great, and makes the whole house smell good. Serving with the biscuits round out the meal nicely, but you could also serve this with a salad if you wanted to add something else to the meal.

There weren’t a lot of ingredients in today’s meal, but tomorrow has quite a few. I’ll be making Jambalaya tomorrow, and the recipe I use has 23 different ingredients in it, so I have my work cut out for me! It doesn’t take long to cook, it just has a lot of items in it so there is quite a bit of prep work involved. Check back tomorrow to see what’s in it. It is definitely worth it! Enjoy the rest of your day!

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Posted by MikeG on February 22, 2012 in Biscuits, Cooking, Dinner, Soups & Stews, Vegetarian

Tags: black bean stew, black beans, butternut squash, meat-free meal, vegetarian dish, vegetarian meal

Calling For Some Cauliflower Soup

15 Feb

After last night’s elaborate meal (which was very tasty by the way; there’s not much left in the way of leftovers- a little bit of soup and steak, that’s it), we get back to an easier meal today. Today’s Cauliflower Soup is our meat free meal of the week and promises to be quite delicious. This recipe is very easy and doesn’t have a lot of ingredients to it. You can make it in about 30 or 40 minutes as well, so it works well as a mid-week meal when things can get busy.

Cauliflower Soup

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 cups chicken broth

1 head cauliflower, trimmed and coarsely chopped

1/4 cup heavy cream

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1/2 tsp. paprika

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until nearly translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the broth and cauliflower, increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer gently, uncovered, until the cauliflower is tender, about 20 minutes. Using a food processor or blender, process the soup to a smooth puree. Return the soup to the pan. Place over medium heat, stir in the cream and re-heat to serving temperature. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls, sprinkle with the paprika and serve immediately.

This recipe doesn’t make a lot of soup (this one serves 4), so if you want more, you can always double the recipe. You could also easily use broccoli in this one instead of the cauliflower, if that’s your preference. The biscuits we made the other night would go well this meal, or a nice salad of some mixed greens to add to the soup and fill out your meal. Either would go well with this dinner.

Wow, that was a really quick entry today. One pot, quick cooking and easy clean up – just the way I like it! Tomorrow’s dinner will be Oven-Fried Catfish with rice and an Herbed Salad with a Champagne Vinaigrette. I plan to go to get the fish in the morning tomorrow, so hopefully they have catfish, or we’ll be changing up the meal tomorrow night with a different fish. We also be talking about the meal plan for next week tonight, so hopefully I will be able to put that up as well. If you would like your own meal plan to follow, print out the one I use right here:family_meal_planner. We’ll be making some good hearty meals over the next few days as we have Pot Roast on Friday and Roast Leg of Lamb on Sunday, so make sure you check in for those. They are going to be good. If you have any questions or comments or something you would like to see a recipe for, please leave me a not here or feel free to send me an email at IguanaFlats@msn.com. I hope you all have a wonderful day (it’s a little gloomy here in New York today, but not cold) and enjoy your meal, whatever it may be, this evening!