Chocolate Cookies with Peanut Butter Chips and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Red Sauce

Is there anything more comforting than family food?  It is what we return to when want a taste of home or a acquaintance with our culture.  I am from New Orleans, so the palate is quite extensive but home cooked Italian food is always my favorite.  My great-grandmother made the BEST tomato sauce ever.  Yes, I was lucky enough to get to sample this sauce direct from the source. Some people call it "red sauce," some call it "red gravy."  It is just the best simple sauce, not the quickest sauce as I cooked this one for about 8 hours on the stove, but just really good sauce.  My mother spent quite some time working on this recipe trying to get it as close to "Old Grandmothers" as possible.  I usually make it in a large batch and store several quarts in the freezer so I can have homemade tomato sauce when ever i need it.  Meatballs are best and most authentic, but I have also made chicken spaghetti by cutting up 3 - 4 boneless skinless chicken breast into large chunks and searing them in olive oil salt and pepper.  When they are nicely golden brown add a quart of this homemade tomato sauce and simmer for about 30 - 40 minutes.  Serve over some fresh pasta with grated cheese. 

Sauce:

6 onions chopped fine
8 cloves garlic chopped fine
1 medium eggplant chopped
1 tsp dried basil
2 large cans crushed tomatos
1 large can tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
4 15oz cans tomato puree
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups water

Saute onions, garlic, eggplant and basil in olive oil until tender.  Push the onion mixture to the sides of the pot and add the tomato paste to the center and cook the paste on high stirring for about a minute.  Then mix together with the onions and add the tomatoes, water and sugar.  Simmer on medium heat stirring occasionally for at least 3 hours but the longer the better!  I usually simmer mine for about 6 - 8 hours.

Slow Cooker Pork Goodness

OK...I admit that it did take long enough for me to get these photos online, but I did not want everyone thinking that this past weekends pork-fest was a total failure.  Quite the opposite.  This recipe was a variation on a recipe from the Abita Beer Cookbook, which I highly recommend!  I had to minimize the amount of liquid for the slow cooker.  Only one bottle of beer for the slow cooker, but that means more for me!  Later I will try to write down my variation.

Now for something sweet! - POPS!

I can't say enough about these!  They are fun and DELICIOUS!  My friend Angela (The Queen of Pops) makes these in just about any color combo or style you can dream up.  For Shaw's birthday I ordered Red Velvet and Chocolate cake pops.  The cake is more moist than most full size cakes I have had.  She can ship them anywhere and they are not expensive.   Check out all of her Pops at her Face Book page http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1127016787&ref=ts#!/profile.php?id=1127016787

Salvo's Seafood, Belle Chasse, LA

This happened on a recent trip to New Orleans.

My mother, sister, and Shaw were also involved in this behavior.  Notice the butter cups.

http://www.salvosseafood.com/

Pork Tenderloin and Roasted Vegetables

First I cover the pork with a rub made of mustard, garlic, fresh herbs, salt and pepper.  Let it sit while preparing the vegetables.  I like potatoes, carrots, celery and onions.  Fennel is also really good roasted.  Simply salt, pepper, and olive oil.  Preheat the oven to 425 and roast uncovered for about an hour.  Take the pork out to sit, stir the vegetables and roast them until they are nicely browned and caramelized.  Slice the pork and enjoy!

Chicken with Apples and Onions

This recipe was originally found in the Times-Picayune newspaper by my wonderful friend Miriam a long time ago.  I think she was living in her first college apartment.  I never got a copy of the recipe and we only made it together once but, I continued working on it over the years and finally wrote down my own version.   I did have the joy of using fresh apples that I picked from a orchard in Maryland this past summer, but any nice variety of red apples will work just fine.  This dish is just as satisfying, warm and hearty as it is still light and healthy.

Chicken & Apples
Ingredients:

2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast

2-3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Large Yellow Onion (Peeled & Sliced)

3-4 Cloves of Garlic (Chopped)

1-2 Tablespoons Fresh Minced Rosemary

¾ Cup White Wine

2 -3 Apples (Halved, Cored, Sliced) Leave Skins On

1 ½ Tablespoons Good Dijon Mustard

1 ½ Cups Good Quality Chicken Stock

1 ½ Teaspoon Kosher Salt

1-Teaspoon Pepper

Lightly pound both chicken breast between two pieces of parchment or wax paper to assure even cooking.  Season lightly with a pinch of salt and pepper then roll in flour.

Add olive oil to skillet over medium-high heat.  Sear chicken breast on both sides until nicely golden brown.  Remove from pan and set aside. 

Lower the heat and add the sliced onions and sauté until just tender.  Then add the garlic and rosemary and continue to sauté for about 2 minutes.  Don’t burn the garlic or it will get bitter - not sweet.  

Add the white wine to deglaze the pan scraping all the brown bits, and then bring back up to a simmer.  Add the mustard, salt and pepper.  Stir until the mustard is disolved. 

Add the apples and stir until each apple is completely coated with the mixture.  Add the chicken stock and bring back up to a simmer until the apples are just slightly tender. 

Then add the chicken breast and any remaining juices back to the skillet, cover and let simmer for about 20 minutes until the apples are tender and the chicken is moist. Checking periodically, gently stir and taste occasionally to make any final adjustments. 

A few notes:

I use “Kitchen Basics” stock; it is richer tasting and better for you than most other brands.

You can prep the chicken breast in advance (except for the flour) and store in the refrigerator until ready.

This recipe serves two.  If you want to make 4 servings I would sear them in batches of two first to avoid overcrowding allowing the chicken to brown nicely. 

You can double the recipe but be sure to check the taste before adding the salt and pepper.

Serving Suggestions:

Cornbread is good for dipping in the sauce as in the picture.

Mashed potatoes are also really good.

Brown rice is a nice healthy choice.

Sunday Funday

It was recently brought to my attention that I have been neglecting this blog.  Yes, I have been a bit remiss.  I do need to cook things to write about them.  One of my favorite songwriters once said, "you need to have a life to write about it."  I am dedicating this Sunday Funday to you my blog.  There is a large pork roast in my slow cooker which I do hope to be able to enjoy by the time "The Awards" are on tonight. There is also a nice glass of bubbly to my right, Food Network on the background and two large dogs sitting at my feet.  I already went for a great run this morning so I think I am all set.  I shall indulge.

A thing about the pork roast and the slow cooker.  This is the first use of the new slow cooker.  I have not used one in years!  Not that I am against it, just my former slow cooker sits 1000 miles away in a storage unit in New Orleans.  So on a recent trip to Costco Shaw might have had a impulse buy and I didn't stop him.  For under 20 bucks I got a new kitchen gadget.  The actual roast is pretty large. Possibly too large for the slow cooker, but the nameless person I was shopping with was absolutely certain it would fit.  I have had to alter the Abita Amber Pulled Pork recipe a bit, if it turns out well I am sure there will be a future in depth blog.  If you hear nothing more from me about it, then you can assume it was just as unmemorable. 

Ice Cream and King Cake!

http://www.gsgelato.com/king-cake
This just in from my friend Elizabeth!

Has anyone tried this?  It says "low fat," so does that mean I could have a side of this with the actual kind cake?  Would anyone like to order this with me and join in commentary?  This should be a group effort.

YUM!

Rice.

I have been remiss in posting lately, but life interrupted.  My little 4 legged buddy Baxter got sick, I will spare you the details but lets just say I had to make a lot of rice.  Until now I sucked at making rice.  I have tried every method possible (even a rice cooker) and all I got was fail, fail, fail.  Well...that may be a little extreme, it was edible but not great.  There is nothing worse than "the best gumbo I ever made," or "the best red beans I ever made," ruined by mediocre rice.

It must have been something about making rice for Baxter that made me also crave rice.  I ended up making two pots of rice quite often.  One for him made with chicken stock, and one for dinner made with a slight variation of a recipe in a book my sister gave me for Christmas.  There are two ingredients I thought a bit strange for making simple rice, but still very common to most peoples kitchen.  Bay leaves and olive oil.  Neither ingredient over powered the rice, rather it added a really nice undertone and the olive oil also made the rice just a bit less sticky.   I finally felt like I made a great pot of rice.

 Here is what I did:

1 cup long grain rice

1 1/2 cup water

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons olive oil (less for more sticky)

a pinch of kosher salt

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Reduce heat to very low, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes.  Remove from the heat and keep covered.  Do not uncover!  Remove lid and allow to cool for a few minutes.  Fluff with a fork and enjoy with your choice of goodness.


* Thanks to Susan for the olive oil tip.

* I was going to call this post "Rice Baby Rice"

The Rack of Deliciousness

Is there really anything more comforting than ribs?  My future brother-in-law gave me this recipe for the rub several years ago.  Ribs were not this rub's initial intent if I can remember correctly.  The first time it was introduced to me was in the form of a burger.  Yes, he actually coated a ground beef burger with the rub, then let it marinate before grilling.  I have to say it was DAMN good.

In the 4ish years I have had this recipe I like to call "Emile's Rib Rub," I have used it on almost every grill-able and smoke-able meat.  Beef is good, chicken wings are excellent, but ribs are by far my favorite.

The wonderful thing about this recipe is the relaxing all day event of monitoring the smoker.  Adding wood chips, adding charcoal, trying SO hard not to open it "just to take a look." The smell is amazing, especially in the cold winter!  This process usually involves a beer or three.  It was my recent mini Superbowl party.  Actually, it was a packed house!  People were sitting on the floor, there were lines to bar and lines to bathroom.  OK...it was 5 of us, but we were all in one room.

With all the anticipation leading up to the event, you need apps.  So, marinate the wings in a plastic zip bag with the rub for a few hours, fire up the grill, maybe another beer, and then enjoy some chicken wings.

Of course you need the side of potato salad and homemade Abita Purple Haze BBQ Sauce. 

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Up coming blogs in whatever order I decide:

Rice

Pops (Cake Pops)

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Now for the technical stuff.  I usually make 1 part = 1 tablespoon because it keeps well in a plastic container for a while.  It is also much easier to toss all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor to combine very evenly.

Emile's Rib Rub

8 Parts Brown Sugar

3 Parts Kosher Salt

1 Part Chili Powder

1 Part Black Pepper

1 Part Onion Powder

1 Part Garlic Powder

1 Part Cumin

1 Part Cayenne Pepper

 

Blind-Fold Removed

This is the recipe my friend sent:

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Roasted Butternut Squash Dip

Ingredients
1 (2-pound) butternut squash 
1 small Walla Walla or other sweet onion, trimmed and quartered
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
2 tablespoons crème fraîche or whole sour cream
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membrane. Brush cut sides of squash halves, cut sides of onion quarters, and garlic cloves with oil. Arrange squash halves, cut sides down, on a jelly-roll pan; arrange onion quarters and garlic cloves on pan. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly. Peel squash. Squeeze garlic cloves to extract pulp.

Place squash, onion, and garlic pulp in a food processor; process until smooth. Add crème fraîche and remaining ingredients; process to combine. Serve warm.

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Earlier in the week I made another dish with butternut squash.  I had more than needed so I saved a quart of cubed and peeled squash in a plastic container.  Perfect amount.

Here is how it happened from here after.

Pour a glass of wine.  Your choice red or white.  Taste once or twice.

Cover a flat sheet pan with foil or parchment.  (easy clean-up)

Toss butternut squash, cubed onions and garlic cloves on a sheet pan with a sprinkle of olive oil, salt and pepper.  Place in oven at 375 for about 35 minutes and enjoy wine.

Cool Slightly.  Take another sip of wine.  Why not?

Squeeze the pulp of the garlic in the bowl of a food processor with the squash and onions.  Process until smooth.  Sip wine.  (just a reminder) 

Add the remaining ingredients.  Sip wine and process until combined and smooth. 

Where you take this recipe from this point on is your own call.  Serve with veggies or pita chips.  Most of all, enjoy with heartfelt company.

PS:  I suck at spelling.  Don't hate.

A Blind-fold Recipe

Butternut Squash Dip

My friend Elizabeth sent this recipe to me.  It is so simple and I have to confess I made it even easier.  The dip is basically a big sheet pan with fresh butternut squash, onions, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper roasted at a high temp in the oven then tossed in the food processor with some select winter spices.  A small amount of nutmeg and cayenne pepper with a tablespoon or two of light sour cream or creme fraiche' adds a really nice flavor.  I make pita chips with store bought pita bread toasted in the oven with salt, pepper, and olive oil.  Fresh radishes make a BIG difference!  Keep the green leaves on them, it makes a nice handle for dipping and you can't get the same flavor using pre-cut and packaged radishes.

Eat. Drink. Cook.

I love to eat, drink, and cook.  It's really that simple.  There is nothing better than good company, awesome food and wonderful wine.  It's not hard work as my sister recently said on Facebook.  "I cook with wine, sometimes I put it in the food..."  This is so true.  The cooking part does not have to seem like you are a slave to the kitchen.  There is a wonderful glass of wine, or nice pint of beer, or 4 olive martini that will pair well with the making of every recipe I unfold in this blog space.

Here are a few insights on what to expect in completely random order, but equal significance: 

This is my space and I can say what I want.

Several friends have recently suggested that I make a food blog.  Possibly so that I stop posting photos on facebook of delicious food that I made. 

I live in a box of an apartment on Capitol Hill barely big enough for my two large dogs and other half, so don't think there will be any invitations for large rocking dinner parties flying out of my mailbox anytime soon.  Just saying. 

Several of the first recipes I share will be from close friends and family.  They hold a special place in my heart.  The recipes themselves tell stories.  It's the idea that taste as well as smell can often trigger your photographic memory and bring back that moment in time. 

There will be no set amount of recipes I will be expected to submit within any given time frame.

Expect photos.  Lots of them.

You are more than welcome to share any recipe with me on this space.  It is very interesting to get a "blind fold recipe".... then try to recreate it.  Anyone who reads this will be getting one from me so it seems only fair.

The title of this blog is "That's Delicious!"  It was going to be the title of my first cookbook, but I settled for blog instead.

Please enjoy the recipes to follow.