Idiotdad Cooks

The Wonderful World of Disney Waffles!

2015-02-21T18:13:00.000-08:00

First I would like to disclaim that in no way am I affiliated with Disney Corp., I am just a huge fan and lover of Disney Culture. There are quite a few websites and blogs that have the "Official Mickey Waffle" recipe, listed below. Also I know there is a Disney World Cook Book I have yet to purchase (and will, believe me I will), that will have this recipe as well. Research sites I used for today's entry are:
http://www.thedisneychef.com/2012/06/mickey-waffles.html
http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2009/04/25/mickey-waffles/

At the risk of exposing how truly spoiled I am let me tell you that some of the greatest memories I have took place at Walt Disney World. My whole family adores WDW and most everything it has to offer; whether it's the great rides, shows, character experiences, made on site candy, unique and outstanding food offerings, or the great opportunities for family bonding, WDW has something for everyone all of the time.

If you're staying 'on campus' or just plain arrived early enough for breakfast, most Disneyphiles go ape over the waffles. But not just any waffles, they go ape over Mickey Waffles! People who haven't experienced these gems before most likely are saying "So what, they're waffles". I can say to the skeptics you won't feel that way after you've tried them.

Most waffles you will experience are pretty much glorified one note carbohydrate receptacles for butter, syrup, whipped cream, fruit, or whatever other topping you wish. Great waffles on the other hand should have flavor and texture that they bring to the party. Mickey Waffles are great waffles with the added benefit of being the shape of every Disney Nerd's favorite mascot.

For those who do not own, and/or do not plan on purchasing a Mickey Waffle Iron, this recipe will absolutely make outstanding waffles for you and yours. I will say though, Mickey Waffles really do bring an element of fun to the meal for the whole family. Yes I am 33, no I am not ashamed, yes I will always be excited to have Mickey Waffles whether I am at home or WDW. Deal with it.

For this recipe you will need:

Ingredients:
4 Separated Eggs
2 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Cup Milk
1/4 Cup, Or 1/2 Stick Of Butter Melted And Cooled
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract (Not Imitation)
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Equipment:
Two Mixer Safe Bowls
Whisk
Electric Hand Mixer
Measuring Cups, And Spoons
Ladle
Non Stick Spray
Waffle Iron (Mickey Shaped)

Begin by plugging in your waffle iron of choice, closing it, and letting it get nice and hot.

After you've started your waffle iron's preheat it's time to separate your eggs. For this recipe we will actually use both halves of the separated eggs, so it is important that you take your time and keep both halves as pristine as possible. Put the whites, and the yolks in to two separate mixer safe bowls. (If you don't know how to separate eggs here is an older tutorial of me separating eggs.)

Now we have cleanly separated eggs we are going to cream our yolks with the sugar. Add the sugar to the yolks and whisk vigorously (yes, really) until the yolks come to what is called the "ribbon stage". Their appearance will be a lighter color, and will drizzle off your whisk in thick 'ribbons' back to the bowl.

Now to the yolks add the cooled melted butter, milk, and vanilla extract and whisk to combine. Once you've done this add your flour, baking powder, and salt. All websites note at this point not to over combine, which I believe I did while making this. The batter should look slightly lumpy, yet combined. It should not look too smooth. I will also say at this point this batter will appear waaaaaay thicker than you thought it would at this point, chillax it will loosen up before we bake.

Next grab your hand mixer, and egg whites because we need to whip them to what is referred to as 'stiff peaks'. When you begin mixing make sure you start at the lowest setting possible, otherwise you will end up wearing your egg whites. After some air has finally been whipped in the to the whites and it appears almost soda-ish, put the spurs to it a little more. After a minute or two go full bore and turn your mixer up to it's highest setting. When the eggs are done they will have a pearl sheen to them, and when you stop, turn off, and pull up your mixer two 'peaks' will stick straight up off your blades. It'll take between 3 to 5 minutes depending on your mixer, time, date, altitude, state, and attitude.

Now we have both parts of the waffle batter made, we are going to combine them using the 'folding' method. Folding is NOT stirring. To fold you must put about a third of the egg whites in to the yolk batter, cut through the middle with a spatula, stir around the bowl once, then repeat gently until the white is incorporated. Then take another third of the white and repeat, and finally the last third doing the same. You will notice the batter is now lighter in color, and has finally loosened up in to a recognizable 'waffle batter consistency'. It will still be more sticky than you expected.

Before you bake your waffles, make sure you spray some non-stick spray on both sides of your waffle iron.

In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger "NOW VE BAAAKE"!

Using a ladle and spatula (because this is some sticky junk) gently ladle the the batter in to the center of the iron. If you are using a normal square or round waffle make just slightly swirl around a little to help with even spreading. If you are using a Mickey Waffle Iron do the same, and make sure you get a decent amount of batter in the ears. I wish I could give you some kind of exact measurement of batter to ladle, but it really does depend on your individual waffle iron. You'll have to experiment. As a hint though, it's always better to start with too little than too much.

For my Mickey Waffle Iron it take exactly four (4) minutes to get the perfect bake. Your waffle iron (regardless of shape) may differ, again you'll have to experiment. This batter does rise decently, so you will see a gap start to appear as the batter bakes, as pictured below.

Finally when your waffles are golden brown (and delicious) take a fork and nudge under a corner of your waffle so you can pick it up. On your plate now will be one of many fine Mickey Waffles you will make!

The batter we made will make 6.5 waffles using my Mickey Waffle Iron. These taste exactly like the Mickey Waffles you will get at WDW, and are sure to bring back memories of sunny days and great family adventures! Yes the iron is different, that's because currently Disney does not sell the 'official' Mickey Waffle Irons. If you like the looks of what you see, I bought my iron at Kohl's (http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-1851881/disney-mickey-mouse-waffle-maker.jsp?skuId=Mickey+Waffle+Iron&search=Mickey+Waffle+Iron&submit-search=web-regular). There are many Disney waffle irons you can get, so do your research and purchase what you wish!

I hope regardless of the shape I've brought you a great weekend waffle recipe you and your family will love for years to come! If you're a Disney Nerd or Junkie like I am, I hope this brings back all the wonderful memories you have and will have at WDW! Eat well everyone!

*Side Note: Upon reflection I would recommend using a piping bag, or cut off ziplock bag to pipe in the batter instead of using a ladle. That should reduce some of the slop and trouble with the stickiness of the batter!

FIRE HAZARD BACON

2015-02-21T11:21:00.000-08:00

So my girlfriend and I are in the grocery store and notice that some seriously thick cut bacon is deeply discounted. Being bacon lovers OF COURSE we are going to purchase said lovely bacon, despite the encroaching expiration date (the reason for the sale presumably).

A week later she reminds me we need to hurry up and use the bacon. I was grilling that night, and knowing how thick cut it was I decided to try grilling it. The result was a HYSTERICAL grilling experience with a great finished product (seriously, it redefines bacon, sort of).

For this recipe you'll need:

Ingredients:
1 Package of Premium Thick Cut Bacon

Equipment:
1 Grill (Gas or Charcoal)
1 Grill Pan
Grill Tongs
Water Hose, or Fire Extinguisher

At some point I will blog about grilling in depth, especially concerning charcoal, but not today. Right now you need to heat up your grill, and get it ready for normal use.

Not all bacon is equal. Regularly sliced mass produced bacon is too fragile, and doesn't bring enough flavor to stand up to the grill. You will end up with extremely salty carbon. The bacon you want to use is the absolute thickest cut you can find, and will have an apple wood, or pecan wood flavoring to it. That way the bacon will survive cooking, and the flavor will be able to survive the additional smoke flavor it's going to receive.

I didn't get to document my first crack at this, so I recreated it for your reading pleasure. I'll admit the original Hormel product show below turned out better, though the Wright certainly was tasty when finished.

If you've never used or even heard of a grill pan, it's pictured above. Basically it's a pan with a bunch of holes in it, to let the smoke get to your food. It's quite versatile, and if you don't own one, I'd recommend you get one. You can pick them up almost anywhere, and typically they're between $13-$30.

This by far is not the most complicated dish I've made, because basically you just make bacon. You put the pan on the grill, let it heat up, and carefully put the bacon on the pan. You'll hear the stereotypical crackling and popping, and the bacon will start to become translucent.

Where the entertainment comes in, is when the fat starts to drip through the pan.

Dinner Quickie 1 - Bacon BBQ Chicken Breast

2015-02-15T18:36:00.000-08:00

Traditionally I would credit a website, chef, or cookbook at the top of my blog. This time around this is an invention my better half and I came up with on the fly when we were sick of the 'same ole, same ole' and didn't have the cash to eat out. So great job Suzi!

As you probably guessed by the name of my blog, I'm a dad. I love being a dad, really it's one of the highlights of my life. BUT (as all parents reading this know) with being a dad comes all sorts of stresses, responsibilities, and tight schedules I would have never conceived of as a younger man.

I know other parents read the above paragraph and nod their head in agreement. Such is the life of the modern American. Like other Americans one of the casualties of the war that is parenting many times is dinner. Sometimes it seems like there is just not enough time to work, pick up the kids, and get a decent dinner on table. Fortunately there are some short cuts you can take that won't sacrifice budget, time, or flavor. I am constantly on the prowl for such short cuts. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!!!

For this recipe you will need:

Ingredients:
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast - Enough to feed your family
Thick Cut High Quality Bacon - Enough for two strips of bacon per chicken breast
Pre-made BBQ Sauce - Whatever is your favorite, I use Famous Dave's
Emeril's Original Essence Seasoning
Pre-Shredded Cheese - Whatever is your favorite, I used Sargento Mexican Shred

Equipment:
Tin Foil
9x13 Baking Pan
Non-Stick Frying Pan
Oven
Microwave (gasp!)
Plate Lined With Paper Towels

Before We Begin:
I love cooking. I love making things from scratch and learning new skills, I actually pride myself on that quality. I believe we as a society should get back in the kitchen more often and learn to make 'real food' the way our grandparents used to, because it's just that much better tasting, and better for you. BUT I work 50-60 hours a week. On average I don't get home until after a certain time of day. I help clean the house, I help with homework, blah blah blah. SO though this recipe may not require you to toast, grind, and mix spices or make home made BBQ sauce, it will taste pretty darn close. So don't "be hatin'".

Please pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

While the oven is heating up go ahead and get your tin foil and 'line' your baking pan with it. Basically just tear off a piece of foil longer than the pan, and push it down until it looks like the pan above.

Take your chicken and put it in the lined pan. Liberally sprinkle Emeril's Original Essence (or your favorite poultry seasoning or rub) on the chicken, and rub it in. Flip the chicken breasts, and repeat on the other side. I will note that I am not using any non-stick cooking spray, it's not necessary for oven baked chicken as it tends to be pretty juicy on it's own.

Once your oven hits 350 degrees put your chicken breasts in on the middle rack, for 30-45 minutes depending on your oven, barometric pressure, humidity, and the mood of the chicken. You are looking for the chicken to be cooked through, but not crispy crittered being as you're going to microwave this for a minute or two later on. Personally my oven usually takes 38 minutes for 6 chicken breasts.

While the chicken is in the oven let's turn our attention to the BACON.

I've always been a proponent of using higher quality bacon, which of course will hit you up for a higher price. BUT I have discovered recently at Kroger, Meijer, and a local grocer that the 'case bacon' (you know the bacon in the butcher's case you've been ignoring for years because "surely we can't afford that") IS ACTUALLY FREAKIN' CHEAPER THAN THE GOOD STUFF VACU-SEALED IN THE REFRIGERATED SECTION WITH THE REST OF THE BACON!!! BY UP TO A BUCK A POUND!!! So I've been using that lately.

Cooking bacon is not difficult though it can be rather harrowing on the pan with all the popping and splattering that can occur. To minimize smoking, splatter, and traumatizing experiences I recommend cooking with a flame no higher than the "medium" setting. Simply put the offending pig candy in the pan, brown one side until the bacon has reduced in size, flip, and repeat. When the bacon is done to your liking take it off and put it on a plate lined with paper towels. Now wait for your chicken to finish baking!

Tip: You can do this bacon a day or two before. Point of fact I've made this dish once using bacon I had made for a Sunday breakfast I cooked for the family and had left over.

Once the chicken is done take it out of the oven, and allow to rest for roughly five minutes.

Now all we left is assembly, which is a snap. Put the offending chicken on a plate, and cover with as much or as little BBQ sauce as your wish. Then put the bacon on top of the sauce, then cover with as much or little shredded cheese (mmm cheese) as you want. Microwave for 30-90 seconds, and you've completed this dish!

Other than the taste and ease of cooking, and assembly of this dish, the best part is this literally took 45 minutes from fridge to table. That's it. Even better the predominance of the time it takes to make this is oven time, so you have down time to clean or help with homework while it's doin' it's thang.

I will also say I've yet to see an unhappy face about this one. Picky eaters, not so picky eaters, and everything in between seem to love it.

I hope I've helped everyone reclaim dinner time for at least one night a week, and I hope everyone enjoys this easy and relatively cheap dish with their loved ones! Eat well everyone!

Key Lime Pie... An Addiction Story

2014-07-13T09:14:00.001-07:00

The original recipe for Key Lime Pie can be found on FoodNetwork.com at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/key-lime-pie-recipe1.html courtesy of Joe's Stone Crab Restaurant.

I love Florida, it's my favorite place on this planet. I also love pie, it is by far my preferred dessert above all else. The first time I tried Key Lime Pie was in Florida (fitting), and since then I have been hooked on this cool, creamy, tart lovely. I love how it's so contradictory to itself, yet it works. Sweet versus tart, the lime screams refreshing while the texture screams decadence and luxury, then the graham cracker grounds everything and makes you think "homey".

Sadly many people have had a tenuous relationship with this treat. Often when you talk to people about Key Lime Pie they constantly talk about the large swing of awesomeness versus suckatude they've experienced. Frustratingly this is caused by the usual suspects in food, odd preservatives, fake flavoring, and fake coloring easily ruin something that is supposed to be simple and balanced. If you've had a bad experience with Key Lime Pie I ask you to remember one thing, any food can be ruined by such things... give it one more try.

For this recipe you will need:

Ingredients:

For the Crust:
1/3 of a pound of graham crackers
5 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup of sugar

For the Filling:
3 egg yolks
2 teaspoons key lime zest (1 teaspoon key lime zest)(will discuss later)
1 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup of fresh squeezed key lime juice

For the Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream (chilled)
2 tablespoons confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar)
(1/2 tablespoon or more vanilla extract)(will discuss later)

Equipment:
Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
Food Processor (optional but recommended)
Disposable (preferred) or Reusable Pie Tin
Hand Juicer or Squeeze Juicer (preferred)

Before you begin pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

I want to get something clear before we go too far in to this process; Key Lime Pie is NOT supposed to be green. I said it. It's true. Deal with it. If you see Key Lime Pie that is actually green, I would steer clear of said product. Now we may begin.

Step one is the crust, being as it's hard to have a pie without it.

Begin by setting up your food processor, and putting your graham crackers in whole. Your going to pulse the crackers about 10-12 times until they are broken up pretty well. My food processor only has "pulse" and "on" as options, so go ahead and give your graham crackers a spin until they are a uniform consistency. Be careful not to OVER process them though, we are not trying to make a 'graham flour'.

Should you not own a food processor fear not, for you are not screwed! You can process your graham crackers by getting a gallon size Ziploc bag, and crushing them with a rolling pin until you are satisfied with the consistency. The reason I use a food processor? Pure, laziness.

(picture above is after pulsing, you want them more consistent and smaller for end product)

When your graham crackers are the proper consistency you may now add your melted butter and sugar. I would recommend if your using the food processor that you pulse the ingredients together before you take them for the final spin. Also you may need to manually mix the ingredients slightly from time to time with a spatula. Once combined go ahead and let the processor mix it for another minute or so, and you'll be ready to poor your mixture in to your pie pan.

If your not using a food processor, simply poor your crackers, sugar, and butter in to a bowl and mix with a spatula or spoon until everything is combined well. Once combined, go ahead and poor the mixture in to a pie pan as stated above.

OK so I'll admit this is the first time making a scratch made graham cracker crust actually turned out well for me. Starting from the middle start to press down the graham cracker, and make sure when you start to spread out you concentrate on getting the graham cracker in to the corners well. Think more 'squish' as opposed to 'spread' as you do this. Take your time, don't force it, keep squishing, and you'll get to the end product desired.

Now it's time to put your pie crust in the oven. Make sure you put it in the middle rack of your oven, do not put it too high or too low. Set your timer for 8 minutes, and when it goes off take out the crust and put it to the side to cool.

Now we get to work on the 'meat' of the pie, the filling! As with many things in life this is much simpler than it appears, but if you're not careful you can make a serious mess of things.

Start by doing all the foot work prior to trying to mix things. I tend to try and get things that are a pain the butt out of the way first, so I started by separating my eggs. If you want a tutorial on separating eggs, please refer to my Creme Brulee post. There is a video that will guide you step by step.

Next you can zest your Key Limes. Above I mentioned I would talk about the amount of zest that goes with the recipe. When I made this, I stuck to the recipe, and found the Pie was kung pow tart. Yes yes I know it's supposed to be tart I don't need to hear the lecture, but it's also supposed to be somewhat balanced. I actually had to use more whipped cream after all the pictures had been taken, so if you LOVE LOVE LOVE tart Lime flavor, proceed with two teaspoons, for me, I'm going to cut it in half next time. Also remember when you zest try not to zest so much from one spot your putting pith (the white stuff under the green) in with your zest.

Next you can juice the Key Limes you just zested. If you're using a hand squeezer like I do, make sure you cut off the tip of the Key Limes, and aim the hole downward through the juicing hole. That way you wont have a potential Key Lime bomb every time you squeeze. When you have the amount of juice you need, you can poor the juice back through the juicer in to a container so you can get any seeds out while keeping the genuine pulp in with the juice.

Now that all the ingredients have been prepped we can move on to mixing the filling. As stated before this is actually quite simple, but if you don't pay attention to detail you can make a real mess of things.

Start by setting up your stand mixer (use your wire whisk attachment), and gather your sweetened condensed milk, Key Lime juice, Key Lime Zest, and Eggs in reaching distance. If you're not using a stand mixer, make sure you have a hand mixer and a mix-safe bowl. Why am I using a stand mixer instead? Again, pure laziness, and more power.

Start by putting your Lime Zest and Egg Yolks in first. Start your mixer slow and quickly build up speed until you're basically at full power. The goal here is to mix until the eggs and zest start to turn into a lighter yellow color, and will almost double in size. This is going to take about 5 minutes. Once you've whipped your Eggs long enough go ahead and start to slowly poor your Condensed Milk in to the mixture (I'd recommend turning down the speed to about half way for this, just until the Condensed Milk has been poured). Turn your speed back up, and keep whipping the mixture for another 3 to 4 minutes (I went with four). Over the course of the whipping you'll see yet again the mixture will lighten slightly in color and expand in size. Turn your speed down by half again, and slowly pour in the Key Lime Juice into your proto-pie mix. DO NOT turn your speed up, and let the two liquids combine. Once the Key Lime Juice has been incorporated, stop. You do not want to over whip once the Juice is in.

Pour proto-pie filling in to your now cooled graham cracker crust, and again put your pie in to the middle rack of your oven. Set your timer for 10 minutes and DON'T STARE AT IT WHEN IT COOKS! Once you pull it out it will look barely cooked (perfect), and you can set it to the side and let it completely cool.

Once the pie has been out of the oven for a bit, and is cool to the touch on the underneath, put it in your fridge (Key Lime Pie is supposed to be cold after all). I'm not entirely sure how long it needs to be in there before completely chilled, personally I left it in over night.

The next day I decided to do a touch of decorating before I served this pie up. You can decorate this however you see fit, or not at all. If you want whipped cream but hate piping, just make the whipped cream and put a dollop on top, or on the side when you serve.

Using the same stand mixer with the same wire whisk attachment, put the aforementioned Whipping Cream, Confectioner's Sugar, and if you follow my recommendation the Vanilla Extract (the original recipe does not call for the Vanilla Extract, but it's a personal preference for me, otherwise you just taste sugar). Start your mixer on slow, let it work some air in to your proto-topping, then continually build speed until your are on high. Leave it on high until the topping basically doubles in size, and you can dip the whisk in and get something called "stiff peaks".

("Stiff Peaks" means you can take your whisk attachment off, dip it in the whipped cream, and when you bring up your whisk the Whipped Cream's point or "Peak" will only dip slightly if at all, not droop over. Be careful though, whip it too long and you'll make butter.)

I happen to own quite of a bit of piping equipment, and enjoy such things, so I decided to bust out a piping tip and decorate my Pie. I was out of piping bags so I simply grabbed a Ziploc bag and cut off a corner. You can pipe like this too, even without a piping tip if you wish. Pictured below is the final product.

If you wan the clean cut look you see above, freeze the pie for 20 minutes before you slice. This will make sure it keeps it's shape.

I love this recipe, and more importantly this Pie. The texture is bang on, it's delightfully tart, sweet, and the graham cracker crust absolutely rounds everything off perfectly. I for sure will make this again, probably a couple times, this summer alone. Make this for your friends and family and you'll impress for sure. Everyone will think this took hours upon hours to make, when in reality it only takes about a hour and a half. Eat well everyone!

(By the way, notice... no green except for the actual Lime)

Creme Brulee (Krem-BroolAy)

2012-06-09T18:33:00.001-07:00

The original recipe for Creme Brulee can be found on FoodNetwork.com at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/creme-brulee-recipe/index.html courtesy of one of my food heroes Alton Brown.

Creme brulee is a dessert that most of us have heard of, fewer have tried, and fewer still have attempted at home. Why is this? Because it's at the top of the pantheon of French desserts. We've been lead to believe this is a highly complicated dessert that only the most skilled chefs could hope to conquer (like most of French cuisine). How would you feel if I told you creme brulee only requires four ingredients to cook it? Yes you need a couple skills maybe some cooks don't know, and yes you need a couple pieces of new equipment. BUT this dish is attainable to even a newer aspiring home cook. I will also tell you I've had creme brulee a few times at some seriously nice restaurants, and this was better. Does that mean I'm a great chef... NO. It means that sometimes things are just better when they're made at home. This was the first time I've ever made creme brulee, and I was ecstatic with how easy it really was to pull off. So pull out and put on your fancy pants, because tonight we are having creme brulee for dessert!

For this recipe you will need:

Ingredients:
1 quart heavy cream (carton may say heavy "whipping" cream)
1 vanilla bean
6 large egg yolks (no whites)
1 cup sugar

Equipment:
6 7-8oz ramekins
1 quart water
1-2 2" deep pans
Blow Torch

Before you begin set your oven to 325 degrees.

In a medium sauce pan pour in the entire quart of heavy cream. Set up your cutting board and get out your favorite knife. For this job I used my paring knife. Place the vanilla bean down on the board, and cut in half lengthwise. Take the back of your knife and scrape the vanilla bean's innards out. Put the vanilla innards in to the heavy cream, including the half of the bean that has been gutted, and repeat with the second half. Turn your flame on high, and heat until the cream starts to boil regardless of stirring. When the cream comes to a boil, fish out and discard the two vanilla bean halves, leaving the innards in the cream. Take the cream off the heat, and cover for 15 minutes.

Now that you're finished with the cream, get out your whisk and favorite whisking bowl. You need to separate the egg yolks from the whites. For this I actually cracked the eggs over a separate bowl, to ensure I didn't get any white in my whisking bowl. Once you've cracked all 6 eggs and have all 6 yolks in your whisking bowl, take 1/2 cup of sugar and pour that over your yolks. Whisk the yolks and sugar until your eggs become a pale yellow (this will take a little effort).

*Note: Most recipes will not tell you this, but let your eggs come up to room temperature. Most French recipes actually assume you will do this, because most French people do not keep their eggs in the fridge.

In case you don't know how, I've included an older video of me separating eggs.

While you're waiting for the 15 minutes to expire for your cream, set up your ramekins in your 2" deep pans. You need to pour hot water (doesn't have to be boiling) in the pans, NOT IN THE RAMEKINS, about half way up the side of the ramekins. After you've done this be careful, these pans will be awkward to lift in to the oven.

Once your timer has gone off, and you've set up your ramekins, you need to temper your eggs with the cream. It is crucial you do this properly, because if you don't you'll end up with scrambled eggs in cream... yuck.

Set up your bowl on a non skid surface (a rubber glove, or oven mitt with silicone is perfect). Start to whisk your eggs, very fast. While you whisk, ladle a small amount of the cream (which is still very hot) in to your whisk (WHILE STILL WHISKING! DO NO STOP ONCE YOU'VE STARTED THIS PROCESS). Once that first ladle of cream has been completely worked in, do another. Then another. Keep doing this until the whole of the cream has been worked in to your eggs. If you've done as I've instructed, and whisked fast and never stopped, and added the ladles slowly, you should have perfectly combined the cream and eggs with no scrambling. Once you've combined your cream and eggs, ladle the mixture in to all 6 ramekins until you've used it all, and put the pans in the oven. Set your timer for 45 minutes.

Once the timer goes off take both pans out of the oven, and get the ramekins out as soon as you can, set them on a towel to cool off for a moment and dry. Once they've cooled off for about 10 minutes move them to the fridge, for a minimum of 2 hours.

After the creme brulee has had a chance to chill for a couple hours at least, you can get them ready to serve. Place one on the counter, and with a spoon lightly shake a layer over the entirety of the surface. Take your blow torch and work the flame over the entire surface of the creme brulee. I'll give you this warning, it'll seem to take forever. Then out of no where it will melt down, and even get scorched if your not careful (yes, it happened to me). Let the creme brulee cool off for about 5 minutes, and serve!

Yes as you probably figured, this week's video is the blow torch portion of this. Yes as you probably figured, it was my favorite part!

Creme brulee is fun to make, and excellent to eat! This turned out perfectly, which shocked me because this was the first time I have ever even attempted this dish. You guys are gonna love this, I know my little corner of the world did! Eat well everyone!

Chicken & Dumpling Classic

2012-06-03T17:45:00.000-07:00

The original recipe for Chicken and Dumplings can be found on FoodNetwork.com at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/chicken-and-dumplings-recipe/index.html courtesy of one of my food heroes Paula Deen.

When you think of "southern cookin'" or "country cookin'" most likely the first dish you think of will be Chicken and Dumplings. This dish has become an American staple over our short history, and I'm willing to bet most people love some version of this dish (and there's a good chance it's a family's tradition).

This dish, actually this recipe, was one of my first real expeditions into the cooking world. My family history being what it is, I absolutely considered this an important dish to master. I made it according to the recipe, and though it wasn't really what I expected, it was tasty regardless. Over the years I've refined this recipe a touch to suit my purposes, and I'm happy with the result. Though certainly I give props to Paula Deen and her family's recipe, what your receiving today is actually a hybrid Paula/Idiotdadcooks version.

For this recipe you will need:

Chicken Soup:
1 Whole Chicken in 8 pieces (2-3.5 lbs)
4 ribs celery
1/2 large onion
2 bay leaves
2 chicken bouillon cubes
1 10 3/4 ounce can Cream O' Celery soup
3 quarts water
1 Teaspoon (Red Robin Seasoning)

Dumplings:
2 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup ice water

Thickener:
2 Teaspoons Cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water

*Note: If you wish to use Paula's original recipe simply follow the link above. The most noticeable differences between what you see there and here, are the following:
1. I only use 1/2 an onion, not a whole.
2. I use 3 not 4 quarts of water, otherwise in my opinion it's too soupy.
3. I use Red Robin's fry seasoning instead of Paula's "House Seasoning" because I don't feel like making house seasoning, and I think the Red Robin's seasoning is more flavorful.

If you aren't a fan of "exact science cooking" you're going to adore this dish. The first step you want take is get all your vegetables cut. Once this is done simply put all the chicken soup ingredients in the pot, flip your stove on high until it comes to a boil. Once it starts to boil turn your heat down to medium, and simmer for 40 minutes.

Make sure you're stirring the soup portion pretty often as it cooks. You don't want anything sinking to the bottom and getting burned. You also don't want any spices or whatnot being stuck on the bottom or flavoring only one piece of chicken.

While your soup portion is cooking, get your dumplings ready. This is easy as heck. Get one cup of water and throw a couple ice cubes in it. Stir your AP flour and salt with a fork in the bowl, and make a little hole in the middle. A couple teaspoons at a time, add the water to the hole while working it in to the flour. By the time you've used all your water all the flour should be used, and make a pretty stiff ball. If you have to, add a touch more water if you can't get it all to act as one stiff dough. Let the dough rest a few minutes, then flour your surface and rolling pin, and roll it out. It should be about 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch thick. Take a pizza cutter, and cut 1" squares (or as close as you can) out of the dough. Let that rest for a while, while you finish your soup.

When your timer goes off to end the simmering of your chicken soup, take out all the chicken pieces, and throw away your bay leaves. Let your chicken cool down for a few minutes before your proceed. Peel off the skin (discard it), and pick all the meat off the chicken and put it back in the soup (discard the bones). Bring your soup back up to a boil. Add your Cream O' Celery soup, also at this time mix up a 1/4 cup of cold water and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch and throw that in too.

Once the soup has been boiling for a few minutes again start to carefully put your dumplings in the pot. Let them boil for 5 minutes, once this is done remove the pot from the heat. Allow this to cool for about 15 to 20 minutes and plate however you wish! I heated up some store bought mashed potatoes and poured the chicken and dumplings over them in the bowl, which was awesome! This will be a crowd pleaser, which is good because it will feed a crowd!

*Note: While cooking this I started to think about experimenting with the dumplings. I didn't have time to do it for this blog entry, if you wish you could put a couple teaspoons of baking powder in your flour via a sifter before you make your dough. That would make the dumplings puff up a touch, for a lighter fluffier dumpling. I may revisit this dish in the future. Until then, Eat Well Everyone!

Grandma's Plantation Puffs

2012-05-29T19:15:00.002-07:00

Normally at the beginning of my blog I give credit to whatever website I pulled the weeks recipe from. This week we are very fortunate to be using my Grandmother's own recipe for Plantation Puffs, which I will be providing all of you to enjoy.

I have something insanely special to share with all of you today. This recipe is actually my grandmother's recipe for Plantation Puffs. These little frittery doughnutty gems are fantastic for anyone of any age. They are fast, they are economical, and best of all they taste far more complicated than what they actually are. This can be used for an appetizer at a party, as a desert, or as a special breakfast item on the weekends (which is what my family used them for mostly). Regardless of the time of day or event these will be a show stopper for all who try them.

For this recipe you will need:

For the Puffs
2 cups AP flour
1 tbsp. sugar
2 rounded tsp. baking powder
milk
1tsp. salt
1 tbsp. melted butter
1 large egg

For the Coating
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon

Before we get in to the nuts and bolts of this recipe I'd like to address frying. I do not have a lot of experience in frying, as you will find out later on. It produces fantastic results when done right, and it actually quite quick compared to other forms of cooking. Frying is also inherently dangerous due to the fact you are essentially cooking in napalm, and will feel like it if you get splashed. I urge everyone to please be careful when frying anything.

Basically you can fry two ways. If you are fortunate enough to have an actual "Fryer" it is much easier and less messy. The Fryer will actually maintain your heat for you, and you usually can just cap off the fryer when done and leave the oil in. Personally I do not own a Fryer so I use my cast iron dutch oven to do the job, which is quite common. The cast iron will help maintain heat for you, and is durable enough to withstand long exposure to high temperature without damaging the pot. Using your dutch oven will require a fry or candy thermometer, and a metal spoon or a "spider" to fish out your product (pictured below). There are also many oil options you can use. The recipe called for shortening (Crisco), which I did not use (I didn't have enough). I usually use Peanut Oil when I fry, mostly because of the flavor it provides.

Similar to baking the first step to frying is starting to heat up your oil. For this recipe I found it's best to keep your oil in the 360-380 range. Make sure you monitor your oil temp regularly to ensure you don't under cook, or over cook your puffs.

While your oil is heating up go ahead and get out a mixing bowl and put your sifter in the center of it. Put the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in your sifter and sift until it's all in the bowl (yes... I know normally sugar is technically a "wet" item but for this recipe it's not necessary). At this time put your egg in, and about a half cup of milk to start.

*This is where my grandmother starts to make this a lookin' thing. You have to realize she didn't measure many things while cooking, a lot of it was purely by eye. You have to add your milk a little bit at a time until you get the right consistency. The right consistency should be a sticky dough that appears kind of furry, almost like a tuna salad. After you have the right consistency, add your butter and stir it in.

Another item to complete before frying is getting your coating ready. This is extremely simple, just put your 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tbsp. of ground cinnamon in to a bowl, and mix well.

Now as long as your oil is at the right temp, we are ready to fry. I set up an assembly line to make things a little more organized for my self (pictured below). First the bowl of batter, next the oil, next the cinnamon mix, and finally a plate (with a paper towel on it) to put the final product.

Using two kitchen table spoons dish out a ball about 1 maybe 2 inches (max) across in to the oil. Fry for about 4 minutes, until you have the right color and ensure it's cooked thoroughly. Trust me on the 4 minute minimum, I actually screwed up the entire first batch I made by not frying long enough. They were raw in the middle. Also the smaller the puff, the less fry time it requires. Trust ya boy on this. This weeks video shows an example of this assembly line, and I will admit I did not fry the puff in this long enough.

After the puff is fried put it in the cinnamon bowl and roll it around. If you need to, spoon the coating over the puff to ensure full coverage and put on the finishing plate.

I will warn all of you, these suckers are addictive. The end product is a cross between a fritter and a doughnut, and you can't eat just one! I have to admit this was actually a very satisfying recipe to cook. I have many memories of my grandmother cooking, and in many ways she is one of the biggest inspirations I have had in the kitchen. This is a recipe that will always be in right in the front of my folder, and I hope you all enjoy these as much as I have. Eat well everyone!

*Note: I wanted to present my grandmother's Plantation Puffs per recipe, and they are fantastic without any fiddling around. I will admit in the future I'll be trying a batch with cinnamon in the batter (maybe some nutmeg too), just to see how it would taste. Just an idea ;)

No Joke Hamburgers Plus+

2012-05-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

The Original recipe for these Hamburgers can be found on FoodNetwork.com at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/burger-of-the-gods-recipe/index.html and is courtesy of one of my food hero's Alton Brown.

Is there anything better than a great hamburger? I don't mean some dime a dozen fast food cookie cut burger that is exceptionally done, I mean an honest to God burger someone took time and put individual effort in to. Thick and meaty, it resembles more of a steak slightly tenderized and put in to burger form than some disgusting grease puck. Personally fantastic hamburgers are a food weakness, and sadly these delicassies are becoming more and more rare (yes pun intended).

Thus the search began for a truly fantastic burger recipe to share with you, which is more challenging than you would think. When it comes down to it, it's the meat that is most important here. Most grocery store grinds are overly fatty, and contrary to popular belief in burgers more fat is not necessarily "more better". It causes "shrinkage" for your patties, promotes grease fires, promotes obesity, and worst of all it adds little to no flavor. Certainly there are "extra lean grinds" you can purchase, and in the case of a party that is what I personally buy. But for some reason that still leaves a small something to be desired...

That's when I stumbled upon the recipe I used, one that actually requires you to grind your own meat in a food processor! You can control the texture of your burger, AND control exactly what goes into it! Perfect! Yet I still wanted to do something extra special for the Blog and do something I've never really done before, then it came to me... the Juicy Lucy! The Juicy Lucy is a smash hit in Minneapolis and St. Paul in Minnesota. Essentially it's a burger stuffed with cheese, and I've got to tell you the final product I came up with was outstanding! So I hope you enjoy these as much as I did, because these are potentially the best burgers I've ever made!

For this recipe you will need:

Equal Weights of Both:
Chuck Steak (I used 10oz)
Sirloin Steak (I used 10oz)
Kosher Salt (salt to taste)

This recipe truly is quick and easy, even if your on a time crunch you'll have time for this.

The first thing you do is bust out your cut board and favorite knife (as usual pictured is my santoku). Lay out your two steaks and cut them in half. It's best to work in smaller portions when doing this, so you don't overload your food processor later. Also to help along your food processor, you're going to cube these four portions.

Before we go on I want to touch a little on food processors. These are truly awesome kitchen tools to have laying around. You can buy them for as little as $50 or for as much as $500 (maybe more). I went with this attractive Food Network model about 3 years ago, and it is pretty basic though powerful. All food processors will come with a minimum of three settings usually on, off, and pulse. Others will come with anything from 10 to 75 settings. This is all a matter of personal need and preference.

From this point you will take one of the loads of cubes and pulse them in your food processor. It's important you don't just turn your processor on in a continuous spin because eventually you will wind up with cow paste if your not careful, which is not a good thing. Use the pulse setting, and your going to press and hold for 1 to 5 seconds 10 times. This weeks movie is actually on how to do this process, enjoy!

You're going to do the same to all of your portions you've made and and combine them in a big bowl. I recommend using your hands to combine to the two different meats. Otherwise they won't be mixed well enough and will not make the proper texture we are going for. From here take whatever size portions you want to make in to burgers, and make them in to balls by rolling the meat between your hands.

I decided to make mine about 3.3 ounces per burger, which is pretty decent sized. From here you can either mash them down into the proper disc shape (yes they will be irregular), OR you can take another moment to contemplate stuffing them with cheese, which is what I did next. I decided to try a new cheese I hadn't used on burgers before, apple smoked cheddar.

Simply mash your burger down so it's thin and very wide, and put the cheese in the middle of the disc. Then fold the burger over the cheese, and message until there is no cracks or holes in the disc. This is important otherwise your cheese will leak through while being cooked. Sprinkle some kosher salt over your patties and you're ready to cook!

For the cooking method I used a two burner griddle plate (great for big breakfast cooking btw). You want your flames to be at medium heat so you don't burn the hell out of the outside while the inside remains raw. Also these burgers will take longer than your used to due to the density of the meat, the lack of fat, and the hardness of the cheese (if you use a hard cheese). Try not to flip your burgers too much, generally the fewer times the better. For me, on my griddle, on my stove, it took about five minutes per side. Yours maybe more or less time depending on many factors.

Once they're off the griddle your good to go! Put on your favorite buns and enjoy! You'll find these burgers are meatier than you're used to (which is fantastic), and if you used a smoked cheese like I did, you'll find the smokiness of the cheese actually was infused throughout the meat! I actually enjoyed these so much, the first burger I ate was plain (something I've never done before in my life). Plate with your favorite chips or french fries as pictured below. Eat well everyone!

I Love Bread Pudding

2012-04-06T18:35:00.000-07:00

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The original recipe for Bread Pudding can be found on a web page called MomsWhoThink.com at http://www.momswhothink.com/easy-recipes/bread-pudding-recipe.html (Which is funny because I'm a Dad and the blog is Idiotdadcooks)

Simply put, I love Bread Pudding. It's a dessert that fits almost any occasion and any entree`. It can be dressed up or dressed down, simple or complex. Really I can't think of a setting that bread pudding would be an inappropriate dessert to serve. In the pantheon of sweets, bread pudding is most definitely in my top 3.

You'll love this recipe because truly it's a budget friendly dessert that packs a sophisticated wallop when it's finished. When I was considering what to make this week I was trying to think of a dessert that would mostly incorporate what I already had in the pantry (again, no budget) and used many ingredients we have used together on this blog. It turned out I already had every ingredient required save two, the french bread and half N half. Six bucks and a trip to the grocery store later I was ready to rock.

I have to say I've had some pretty rave reviews about this bread pudding so far. I myself and a conniseur of sorts concerning bread pudding, and I must admit (even though I made it myself) this is among the best I've had.

For this recipe you'll need:

For the Bread Pudding
2 cups Half N Half (hnh)
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup brown sugar "packed" (light or dark depends on your tongue)
3 large eggs (size Large eggs are standard size for baking)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups of bread (french bread is what I used) torn up in to little pieces
1/2 cup raisins

For the Sauce
1 cup Half N Half
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup granulated (regular) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon flour
dash of salt

Set your oven to 350 before you do anything else. You want to make sure it's good and ready for this so the pudding will cook properly.

A lot of bread pudding recipe's will require you to let your bread go stale. This makes sense because the invention of bread pudding was a means to figure out how to utilize stale bread. This recipe thankfully does not require that step, and can be made in a pinch.

Start off by taking a 1.5 quart casserole dish and lube it well with butter. Simply cut a stick in half and rub the interior of the dish well until you've evenly coated the inside. After you've done that tear apart your bread until you have 3 cups worth. You're going to want the pieces to be relatively small, though size variation is expected. Place the torn up bread pieces evenly in the dish, and set it aside. Now we need to concentrate on making the custard for our pudding.

To make the custard you're going to want a non stick sauce pan (my preference), and a whisk or large spoon. Poor your half N half in to the sauce pan, and set your heat to medium. Let the half N half come up to a boil, and add your butter, stirring relatively constantly until the butter is melted. Take the half N half/butter combo off the burner and set aside.

*A Side Note: Dairy on heat tends to be somewhat volatile. It will bubble up quick and over flow if not attended. Don't ignore dairy on heat. Thank you.

Next you're going to combine in a "mixer safe" bowl the eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, and brown sugar. Take your hand mixer and mix for about one minute. Make sure you start slowly with a few pulses, you don't want to wear the mixture.

This is where you have to wait for your hnh/butter combo to cool down to a lukewarm state. Realize the eggs will turn in to scrambled eggs if your not careful, so make sure you can completely comfortably touch the hnf/butter mixture before you add it to the bowl.

Once you can comfortably touch your hnh/butter mixture start your hand mixer again. While mixing start to drizzle the hnh/butter mixture to the bowl. Keep doing this until both mixes are completely combined. Once this is done simply pour this mixture over the bread. Add your raisins to the top, and with a large spoon gently mix the bread, custard, and raisins. Make sure all the bread has absorbed a good amount of the custard mixture, and put it in the oven (please make sure your rack is dead center of your oven). Bake for 50 minutes, and prepare to fend off small children, animals, and spouses. The smell will take over the house, and you will love it.

The video this week is a tad long, but will show you the general assembly of the custard and the combining of it with the bread.

While your bread pudding is cooking, go ahead an wash the sauce pan you used for the hnh/butter mix because you'll need it for the icing like glaze we will be making next.

I would hold off on starting this glaze until about 10 minutes before you are due to take the pudding out of the oven. This stuff is fantastic but will set up quickly, and you'll want the liquid factor to be in full play when you pour it over your pudding. Actually, you may even want to wait to start the glaze after you take the pudding out, it depends on how well you multitask.

This glaze is actually pretty easy to make, but does ABSOLUTELY REQUIRE YOUR ATTENTION THROUGH THE ENTIRE PROCESS! Simply put all the ingredients listed above in the the sauce pan, turn your heat on to medium. (*Note: for those concerned with a loose term like "dash of salt" just shake a normal salt shaker about two times over your glaze, that will suffice) With a whisk simply stir, and keep stirring the entire time it's on the heat. When it starts to boil regardless of your stirring set a timer for 4 minutes. Continue to stir until the timer goes off. Turn off your heat at this point, and let the glaze rest for about 2 minutes. After the rest time, simply take the entire sauce pan over to your bread pudding and evenly distribute the glaze over the entire dish.

*Note: Below there is a picture of a spoon coated in the glaze with a wipe mark on it. To test your glaze to see if it's the right thickness you can dip a spoon's backside (yes a clean one) in to the glaze, and take your finger and wipe a strip off. The glaze should basically stay still, as seen below.

Below you'll see a few pictures of the finished product, in the casserole dish and plated.

This bread pudding is AMAZING. Not too sweet, certainly far from bland, not soupy, yet certainly a bread pudding. This is a wonderful, cheap, simple, yet sophisticated tasting dish. You'll love it, as will anyone you allow to touch this (and yes, you'll be tempted not to share). This certainly is a favorite of mine, and my family as well. Eat well everyone!

P.S.
This is fantastic reheated. Cut off the offending portion you wish to consume, put it on a small plate and microwave on high for 1 minute. The glaze will remelt, and the pudding will now lose much moisture at all.

Baked Fish and Chips Gubna?

2012-03-31T17:15:00.001-07:00

The original recipe for Baked Fish & Chips I used can be found on Food Network's page at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/baked-fish-and-chips-recipe/index.html Courtesy of Food Network Magazine.

OK so thus far on Idiotdad we've covered a wide spectrum of items. From Frite's to Gumbo to Carrot Cake. This week I wanted to concentrate on reusing some ingredients I had used on the blog before, and stay on the healthier side. It's fun to cook with tons of butter and sugar and Frank's Red Hot sauce and things, but like everyone else I do need to concentrate on keeping things lighter these days. The blog is called Idiotdad not Fatdaddy. Thus we stayed on the lighter side by doing a Baked Fish and Chips recipe I found on Foodnetwork.com. This recipe uses the Frites I posted before, as well as many other ingredients we've used in the past. I also liked the idea of this recipe because it's an entire meal, not just one dish.

A note or two before we begin. We will be working with fish today. Fish while healthy, has crazy potential for food born illness. Please Please PLEASE wash your hands often when handling raw fish, and please make sure you cook it thoroughly. Bake times swing wildly from oven to oven, I will give you the times and temps I used but keep your own oven in mind.

For this recipe you'll need:

Frites:
3 Medium Sized Russet Potatoes
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
Pinch of Cayenne
(if you are offended by cayenne you could substitute Old Bay Seasoning, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, or any other flavored savory powder your heart desires)
Kosher Salt

Fish:
Olive Oil Cooking Spray
2 3/4 cups of Rice Krispies
Kosher Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper
3 large egg whites
1 1/2 lbs. boneless skinless Cod (any white firm fish will do though)
Tartar sauce

Before you do anything set your oven to 475, line your frite pan with foil and put it in the oven. Also make sure your racks are on the top, and bottom rungs in your oven. Proceed with making your frites.

We've already covered how to make frites in the past. Click here <http://idiotdadcooks.blogspot.com/2012/02/easy-oven-frites.html> for in depth instructions on how to make them. I will say this time we are using less olive oil, and we are actually whisking in a pinch or dash of cayenne to the oil before coating the frites. DO NOT BE SCARED OF CAYENNE! It's very tasty and will NOT burn you if used in moderation and evenly distributed. Below are some pics of the frite making process used for this dish today.

Feel free to pop these in the oven while you work on your fish. 15 minutes on the top rack, rotate, and another 15 minutes after that. Make sure you salt your frites after you take them out of the oven, your final product should look like this.

While your frites are in the oven line another baking sheet with tin foil, and put two wire racks on it. Spray liberally with Olive Oil Spray (Pam makes a great version of this) and set that to the side.

We now are going to learn how to do what's called a dredge. Measure out your Rice Krispies in to a bowl, and crush them. Crush them well, and actually make them more fine then what is pictured ahead. I learned this too late in to the process, a finer crush will coat the fish better than what you'll see. Salt and Pepper this mixture to your liking, and mix thoroughly. In a different bowl, separate 3 eggs and keep the whites in the bowl, you can discard the yolks we will not need them for this recipe. Put a dash of salt in the whites, and whisk until frothy. Set the two bowls aside. For those who do not know how to separate eggs, you're in luck, that this week's video!

Now you can set up your cut board and cut your fish in to roughly 4"x2" portions. Once you've cut them to size dip the fish in the egg solution, then put it in to the breading bowl. Coat the fish in the Rice Krispies well, and put it on the wire rack. I would like to point out, you really should use a two handed approach to the dredge process. One hand picks up the cod, puts in the egg, and rolls it around and puts it in the breading mix. The other rolls and coats the cod in the breading, and transfers it to the wire racks. This will help reduce "club hand". Repeat this until all your fish is well coated, and on the wire racks.

Now for my oven it took about 14 to 18 minutes to cook this fish and get it right. Watch yours closely but do not open the oven too often. The final product should look like what is below. The fish should have some give when you poke it but be relatively firm. Plate the frites and fish together, and dish out the tartar sauce baby!

This is a very nice dinner for any couple or family (fish and chips usually does well with kids). It's light, but it certainly is filling as well. It's also relatively low in fat, and has a lot of good nutritional value. Also it's quick, this whole thing would have taken me a half hour to prep had I not been wrestling around with the camera! All in all this should take about one hour start to finish. Give this try some time, I'm certain you'll enjoy it! Eat well everyone!

Mmmmmm... Wings.

2012-03-24T19:47:00.000-07:00

Normally at the top of every blog I would credit any websites or chefs that invented the recipe I used for that day. Today I actually invented the recipe we will be using from my own experience and research over the course of my cooking past time.

I love Buffalo Wings. Period. There are very few entree`s and fewer appetizers I love more than wings. Thin sauced, thick sauced, a lot of sauce, little sauce, it doesn't matter. I love good wings. Today's goal was to try to create a quality wing recipe from my head and experimentation, and I believe I succeeded. This recipe is a very basic wing recipe, that can be either be made straight up or bent to serve your own creativity.

For this recipe you will need:

1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
1/4 cup melted butter (salted or unsalted depends on you)
1 tsp. Worcestershire
1/8 tsp. Cayenne
Approx. 3lbs. Chicken Wings

Before we get to the down and dirty I want to address some food safety here. We are using raw chicken. I'm not paranoid but I am intimately aware of the crazy stuff that can come from handling raw chicken. Please pay attention to what you are doing, and touching. Also PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE wash your hands often.

OK the first thing you'll need to do is set your oven to 375. (I realize most wings are fried, but honestly I didn't want the mess and hassle this time around) You'll also want to set up your cut board and get a good knife ready, because you'll likely need to perform some surgery.

The wings I bought came packaged as below. Unlike in your grocers freezer section or how you see wings in restaurants they come as whole wings. This is not really a big deal. You simply take a wing and cut off the "tip" section at the joint. You can discard the tip, we will not be using them. Then I found it easiest to stand up the wing joint down, and cut into the joint attempting to get your knife in between the bones. Once you've got the process down, this will go quickly. Just set them on a plate on the side until you've completed the surgery portion of this dish. I hope the pics down below help, it's difficult taking super helpful pics on your own while working with raw poultry.

Before the next step, please take out your sheet pan and cover it with aluminum foil, then spray it down with Pam. Don't be scared to be liberal with the Pam by the way, chicken stuck to a pan is never fun. Set the pan by your sink.

After you've cut up all your wings, take your plate to the sink and run cold water over them, trying to get a decent rinse on all the pieces. Have a few paper towels handy, and one by one dry off the chicken, after which set them on the pan. Continue this process until you've washed, dried, and placed all your chicken.

Place your wings in the oven and set your timer for 10 minutes. After your timer goes off quickly flip all your wings over, and put them back in the oven for an additional 10 minutes. Now, on the nectar of the gods, BUFFALO SAUCE!

For as good as buffalo sauce is, it's dumb how simple it is make. In a bowl simply mix the all the ingredients listed above. Use a whisk to combine everything, and simply dip a spoon in and taste. If it doesn't taste "deep" enough, use more Worcestershire sauce. If it's not hot enough use more cayenne (CAREFULLY). As mentioned before the recipe I came up with is very basic and can be customized very easily to suit your individual wing craving experience.

Pretty soon your wings should be done baking. They should appear pretty similar to the picture below.

Now the fun part of making wings is "coating" the wings with sauce. This is done with a bowl, preferably metal. Simply put your wings in the bowl, add the sauce, and toss. I included a video of this process to illustrate how it should be done.

Now as I said in the video that CAN be your finished product if you wish. Just please be sure the chicken is cooked thoroughly and you're good to go!

IF you like a more baked in flavor, set your oven to "Broil" and let it heat up for a few minutes. Finish coating all your wings and set them back down on the pan. Once your oven has heated up, put your wings under the broiler, for about 6-8 minutes. Longer if desired. The finished product should look like the picture below. (on a side note: you can also toss them in sauce a second time after you've broiled, which is what I plan on doing the next time I make this recipe)

The smell is fantastic. When I plated as you'll see below I kept some wing sauce for additional dipping, and put some celery and bleu cheese on the dish as well. Believe it or not, that's it. That's all it takes to make wings at home, about 1 hour front to back. They're simple, they're delicious, and best of all they're easy. Eat well everyone!

Carroty is the Cake

2012-03-18T21:16:00.000-07:00

The original recipe for Carrot Cake that I used can be found at Food Network's page at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/grandma-hiers-carrot-cake-recipe/index.html Courtesy of one of my food heroes Paula Deen.

I'm absolutely sure I will lose some Foodie points for saying this, I am not a big cake fan. I said it, Mark is not a fan of cake. Generally it's from a box (which is understandable, Mark is not hatin'), the frosting is too sweet with almost no flavor, and it has a texture like your chewing on nothing. It wasn't until about a decade ago when I started experimenting with home made frostings and batters that I started to appreciate what cake can be. BUT even before that, Mark did have a cake weakness that persists to this day, one of my absolute favorite desserts ever, and vice, Carrot Cake.

"Mark why carrot cake?" Well for starters, carrot cake is actually not a cake. It's a muffin (which admittedly is another food weakness of mine). That's right you read it correctly, the batter is actually a muffin batter. Thus not only does this cake have flavor it has body and texture as well. The icing most people associate with carrot cake, cream cheese icing, is also extremely flavorful and extremely quick to whip up fresh any time you want it.

I'd like to talk equipment before we get in to the down and dirty. The official recipe calls for 3, 9" cake pans. I used two. You'll find my cake turned out well in the end, if not a little uneven. Either way you go will be fine. I personally use Aluminum cake pans, not the dark coated. I've met people on both sides of the argument "dark v. aluminum". I will say this, I've been baking my own cakes since I was 14. I have never burned a cake in aluminum, and have burned almost every one in dark pans. Use what you prefer. Also we will be using a "hand mixer", and a "mixer safe" glass bowl. Also as you will see I used an icing spatula, and cake turn table (optional). Also I used a 4 sided grater.

For this recipe you will need:

BATTER:
2 level cups AP flour
2 level cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1 1/2 veg oil
3 cups grated carrots
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans (yum!)
(Mark Addition to this recipe)
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup golden raisins

ICING
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 stick SALTED butter
16 ounces powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans

OK so first things first. Get the 2 packages of cream cheese and stick of salted butter out of the fridge and set them on the counter or table to get up to room temp while your working. Also set your oven to 350 degrees (universal baking temp).

One of the cool things about this recipe is that you can really just throw everything in to the bowl, mix, dump in to the pans, and bake. There isn't much of an order you have to follow, which is rare in the dessert world. BUT I always like to get everything prepped before I start combining things in to the bowl. So we will start with the prep.

Start with the pecans, because they're a pain if you have to chop them. I bought whole so I could show you how to chop them of course. Get out your cut bored and set the prescribed amount of pecans on the cut board. Your going to simply pile them up as well as you can, put your (if your right handed) left hand over the tip of the knife, and use your right hand to go up and down through the pile. DO NOT ACTUALLY "CHOP", you don't want pecans flying all over your counter top. Simply run the knife through the pile cutting as nicely as you can, when the pile gets messy scoop it up in to a nice pile again, and repeat until it's to the consistency you require.

Set those aside, and while your in the pecan mood do it again for the pecans you'll need for your icing later. Once that's finished, wipe off your cut board, and prepare to GRATE!

The process of grating is actually quite simple. Wash your carrots in cold water, then use a peeler to peel them prior to grating. Set up your grater on your cut board, and use the medium grate side. Keep doing this until you have the required amount of grated carrots. Yes this will take some time, yes your arm will be tired.

Once the carrots have been grated and your pecans chopped you can go ahead and throw all the ingredients in to the bowl for the batter. Flour, sugar, carrots, pecans, oil, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, eggs, raisins, etc. all go in the bowl.

Just an aside on the next step. The recipe calls for a hand mixer at this stage, which I used. I regret it. I own a KitchenAid stand mixer, as well as my hand mixer. Certainly there are times I actually prefer my hand mixer over the KitchenAid and vice versa. This batter is well defined as sludge. It is thick, it is hearty, and may actually kill your hand mixer if you aren't careful. If you have a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment, and follow the below directions. Otherwise, be careful as I had to be.

When all the items are combined start to mix the concoction on the lowest setting possible at first. I say this because you have a lot of flour and sugar in there, and if you put the spurs to it too quickly you'll be wearing your batter not eating it. If your mixer starts to sound like its struggling, don't be afraid to give it rest, grab a spoon, and hand mix for a second to give it a head start. Eventually the batter will loosen up and start to come together. Increase speed as it does. The last picture in the series below is how you want it to look when you're done.

The original recipe calls for butter to lube up your pans with before you bake, so it will come out easily when it's done. Call me lazy, but use Bake Easy. It's a canned baking lube that actually has flour in it, and it turns out perfectly every time.

Simply spray your pans, and put the batter in. Done. Too easy? Maybe, but I'll take it. After you've distributed the batter between your pans you'll want to lift one about a foot off the counter, and drop it. Yes drop it. Make sure it doesn't flip or anything, make sure it lands flat. This will remove most air bubbles and make your cake have the proper texture. Repeat for each other pan you filled. Once this is done, put your cakes in your oven on the middle rack side by side.

You'll bake these for 40 minutes total. Do me a favor though, set your timer for 20 minutes. When it goes off, switch your pans around. That will help reduce the effects on any hot spots you may have in your oven.

While your cakes are baking take this time to make your icing.

BEST. ICING. EVAR.

Use again a mixer safe bowl. Put the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in to the bowl. Again set your mixer to the lowest level possible and slowly combine. Once everything is mixed up a little and not "powdery" give it some juice and start to stir while the mixer beats. Pretty soon you'll have a smooth creamy icing fit for any cake you could possibly want to whip up. There is also a movie tip below for those of you with little or no experience in this matter.

Once you've mixed your initial icing, dump the remaining pecans you chopped earlier in to the bowl. Use a regular spatula to mix them in well. This really will put your carrot cake over the top once you've completed it.

Once your cakes are done baking you need to take them out of the oven and put them on cooling racks immediately until they are completely cooled.

Finally we are on the last step. Icing the cake. I have a turn table for this, but it is not necessary. Then again, it does make things nice and they are only about $20.

Put on cake down on your cake board or whatever you intend to keep this on. Put a relatively thin layer of icing on the top only. Then put the second layer on top.

After that put a large dollop of icing on the top of the cake. Smooth the icing around the top of the cake until it looks to be about the right thickness. Put another dollop on top of the cake, and work it down the sides. Continue until the cake is completely covered.

After you've covered the cake evenly take a wet paper towel and wipe out any excess icing that may be on your board. This will help it look a little more professional and less like a hack job.

Below is the finished product both uncut, and cut.

Simply put, this carrot cake is awesome. I hate to say it that way especially since I made it. But it's true. Thick, flavorful, this carrot cake is everything you could ask for in a dessert. It simply tastes far more complicated than what it really is.

"But Mark it's not piped and all beautiful!" True it's not. It's rustic, and home made. Piped and beautiful only goes so far, it has to taste great too. I tend to prefer ugly cake (no offense to those with wicked piping skills, you're awesome) over most "pretty" cakes you'll find. But that's me. Try this, you'll love it. Eat well everyone!

Gumbo.

2012-03-10T09:04:00.000-08:00

The original recipe for Shrimp Gumbo can be found at Food Network's page at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/shrimp-gumbo-recipe/index.html Courtesy of one of my food hero's, Alton Brown.

Gumbo. The first taste of Cajun cuisine I ever had. And I was hooked. I mean really hooked. This prompted me to endeavor to taste anything from that culture I could. It's been a great culinary journey with Cajun cuisine, and I continue it to this day.

To begin with I'll be honest, this was expensive to make. The next time won't be so bad, because I'll have the equipment, and spices already. I skipped the Blog last week so I could save up to make this dish. This is a dish I've wanted to make since I went to Louisiana for the first time 10 years ago. Yes people this is the first time I have made Gumbo. Thankfully it did turn out, because I took my time and researched it thoroughly.

For this recipe you will need:

4 ounces Veg oil
4 ounces (by weight) All Purpose Flour
1 lb. Shrimp (you can use whole or prepped, regardless get raw)
1 carton Seafood Stock
1 cup diced Onion
1/2 cup diced Celery
1/2 cup diced Green Pepper
2 Tbls Minced Garlic
1/2 Cup diced Tomato
1 Tbls Kosher Salt
1/2 Tspn Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 Tspn Fresh Thyme
1/4 Tspn Cayenne
2 Bay leaves
1 lb. Sausage (smoked is great, Andouille is better)
1 Tbls File` powder

This dish is complicated due to the amount of steps it takes to complete, not from the skill level required. That said you want to make sure you pay attention to what you're doing, and do not have anything else more pressing than Facebook going on during this process.

Let's talk equipment first. Gumbo is traditionally a one pot stew (which is a lie). In order to create this wonderful dish you will need a cast iron, dutch oven.

Pictured above is my cast iron dutch oven. It's versitile, heavy, tough, and distributes and retains heat better than any other vessel you most likely own. It can be used stove side or as an oven vessel, which you will soon see. Other than this, a whisk, and long handled spoon (plastic is best for this kind of Dutch oven). Everything else you'll see we have used in the past.

The first step to making Gumbo is the roux (Roo). This is an equal mix of flour and fat that is used to thicken all kinds of soups and sauces. When you first mix a roux it is at it's thickening potential max, but low on flavor. As you cook a roux, you maximize flavor while reducing thickening power. The most flavorful roux you can produce (the one we will use) is called a Brick Roux. It's difficult to get unless you use the oven method which we will do. This... will... take... time. Preheat your oven to 350 F for a minimum of 10 minutes.

Combine your 4 oz. of veg oil with your 4 oz of AP flour in your dutch oven using a whisk.

This is a Blonde Roux. Almost no flavor, but a very powerful thickening agent. This is not what we want. Put your dutch oven in your oven, middle rack, uncovered for an hour and a half. During this time you must whisk your roux 3 times. Try about every 15 minutes or so. What we are going for is a dark reddish brown color. Which you'll see in a moment.

While your roux is baking it's time to cut up your ingredients. What we will be using veggie wise in this is referred to as "The Trinity" and sometimes "The Holy Trinity". Onion, Celery, and Green Pepper. This is the Louisiana version of a Mirapoix.

To cut the Onion we will be cutting it in half, take off the outer shell and the core. Lay the onion on it's side a cut multiple times about 1/4" apart starting at the front of the onion. Then do the same on the top. Then cut horizontally on the top of the onion, and you'll get perfectly diced onion, shown below.

Once you've finished your onion, move on to the Green Peppers. Simply cut them in half, take out the core and seeds, and lay them down cut side down. Then cut them similarly to the onion, shown below.

Next your Celery. This is simple, just cut the celery in to 1/4" peices.

While you're using the cutting board, get out the sausage you bought and cut that in to 1/4" pieces as well. Shown below. Again any smoked sausage will do, but if you can find Andouille (an-doo-ee) that would be the most legit for this dish.

Also (and I apologize for no pics) make sure you dice your tomatoes and mince your garlic as well.

Set all those items to the side, and get ready for your roux to get finished.

While you're waiting for your roux, you can add a little flavor at the expense of a dirty pan. Simply brown your sausage over high heat for a few minutes, your work will be rewarded.

Once your roux is finished, set the dutch oven on your stove top and set the flame to medium high. Add in your Trinity and cook for 8 minutes, constantly stirring. You want the onion to start to turn translucent. Notice the color of the roux in the upper left hand side of the dutch oven. This is proper brick roux.

Once the 8 minutes have passed add the all the seasonings and spices EXCEPT the File` (fee-lay) powder. Also add the tomato and garlic at this point as well. Cook another 2 minutes.

Now slowly start to add your carton of Seafood stock. Try to add just a 3rd or so at a time. You don't want to splash.

After adding the entire carton of stock stir well, and cover the gumbo. Set the heat to a medium low and cover. Let the gumbo simmer for about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally. At this point, add your File` powder and stir well.

After the 35 minutes have passed uncover the Gumbo, and add your shrimp and sausage. Stir well, and cover the pot again. Turn the heat off, and let the pot sit undisturbed for about 10 minutes. Don't worry about the shrimp being raw, they wont be. Shrimp cook WAY QUICK with only a little heat. They'll cook all the way through.

Once your 10 minutes is up you should have a product that looks like this.

I cooked some rice, just simple "rice in a bag" type rice, and served it over that. The finished product looking like the picture below.

I was very pleased with the results of this recipe, and will certainly make this again in the future. The old saying "Anything that flies, swims, slithers, or crawls" does really apply to this. We could've used chicken, snake, gator, crawfish, or just about any other meat you can think of, it's super versatile. I highly recommend this dish to anyone. It's relatively healthy, flavorful, and not terribly complicated. Take your time, and you'll have a great Cajun feast! Eat well everyone!

HOLY CREPE'S BATMAN!

2012-02-17T21:01:00.000-08:00

The original recipe I used for crepes can be found on http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/crepes-recipe/index.html which is the official Food Network Website, courtesy of one of my food hero's Alton Brown.

I actually had a request from a Facebook friend that I do crepes this week. For those who don't know, crepes are a like a French pancake that is used like a taco. Unlike tacos and pancakes crepes are delicate, thin, tender, and very intimidating to the average American home cook. Why? Because we are dumb enough to believe you need a machine or "special crepe pan" or even real skill to make this little delights. You do need certain equipment, you do need a little practice, maybe some patience, but you CAN make you're own crepes at home. Husbands/Boyfriends, if you can pull this off use this on your significant other for special occasions, you will be considered AWESOME!

This recipe calls for:
2 Large Eggs
3/4 Cup O' Milk
1/2 Cup O' H2O
1 Cup O' Flour
3 Table Spoons Melted Butter
Butter to coat the Pan with.

Equipment:
Blender
Pan
Maybe a Spatula

Start by putting all the properly measured ingredients in to the blender. (Easy right? No proper order, no "muffin method", just one big pile O' stuff) Remember for the flour you want a LEVEL cup. This can be achieved by scooping up way too much, and leveling off with a knife. Remember also to melt the butter. Butter usually comes with "cut lines" that will tell you how much to cut off to get a tablespoon or multiple tablespoons.

Once all the ingredients are in the blender, pulse for 10 seconds. That's it. That's all. 10 seconds. You don't want to over work this batter, or gluten will start to form and you'll have elastic crepes, not cool.

After you have blended this for 10 seconds you need to put this mixture in the refrigerator for a MINIMUM OF 1 HOUR. But awesomely enough this will hold for 48, so you can actually do this almost two days in advance. The reason the hour wait is vital is because it allows air bubbles to escape, making the batter stronger and less likely to tear.

Now that you have allowed the batter to rest for an hour get out your pan. Now, there are "crepe pans" available in stores. They range from $20 to $80. You don't need it. If it makes you feel better or more French, be my guest. BUT if you have a pan with rounded edges that is about 8" or 9" wide you actually have a perfect crepe pan.

You'll want to heat your pan and rub the left over butter stick all around it to make sure you have enough lube so the crepe wont stick. This also provides some flavor to the crepe. Do not melt the entire stick, a thin coat all around the pan will do wonderfully.

Here is where the work begins. Poor the batter, about a little less than a half cup in this pan's case, in the middle of the pan. IMMEDIATELY START TO TILT THE PAN IN A CIRCULAR MOTION! This will evenly distribute the batter and ensure thinness and shape.

Eventually the batter will no longer spread, and it will start the actual cooking process. Watch the edges and look for them to start to dry and curl back a bit. The middle should start to look dry as well. It's time to flip. You can either pancake flip it (my preference) or you can use a spatula. *NOTE: The pancake flip will preserve the shape better, and is way less likely to tear.

After that you will simply slide the crepe off the pan on to a cut board, or appropriate surface to cool off and dry. I decided to make a movie of this process in case it became confusing for anyone, also it helps to actually see the process, not just read it. I will cover storage and toppings after.

I hope you all enjoyed my first shot at Food Stardom! Now you know how to make a crepe, what do you do with it? That's the awesome thing about crepe's, ANYTHING GOES! There are savory crepe recipes that use herbs, veggies, even meat. Mostly in the US you see sweet crepe recipes, and the following is actually an idea I got off another food hero of mine, Paula Deen.

This is very simple. You take Nutella, smear it around the entire middle. Then you add a line of cut bananas, and fold the crepe as pictured below. Then you simply cut some more banana on top, and drizzle some chocolate syrup.

Very fancy looking, very simple. This is a great treat anytime. You are not limited to chocolate though. Personally my favorite crepe's have been simply filled with a vanilla custard and assorted fresh berries, with whipped cream on the top. The sky is the limit for fillings and toppings with crepes.

If you have left over crepes, you can either refrigerate or freeze them. After they've cooled and dried off a bit simply stack them and put them in to a Ziploc bag.

Thus concludes my French American revolution of crepes! I hope this has inspired some of you to explore this versatile little food, and showed others it's not as difficult as it would seem. Most importantly, have fun with it, that's what food is actually for you know! Eat well everyone!

Easy Oven Frites

2012-02-11T17:16:00.000-08:00

The original recipe for Easy Oven Frites can be found on http://www.family.go.com which is the Disney Family website.

For the first post I decided to make Easy Oven Frites, a relatively easy recipe for Frites (fancy word for French Fries) that my daughter and I are wild over! It also utilizes a few very basic skills, and has a great turn out for minimal work.

The Recipe calls for:

2lbs Russet Potatoes (Idaho's most people know them as)

Approximately 2 cups of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO for you Rachel Ray fans)

Kosher Salt (sea salt is great too)

1 tbsn of Parsley

1 Clove Garlic (I do not use this, because it doesn't spread evenly or easily enough)

Preheat your oven to 500 degrees F.

Bring some water to a boil in a steamer pot as well.

For those who have not done a lot of veg prep, the first thing you do before cutting is wash the potatoes very very well. This is important so you don't accidentally spread food born contagions. Put your potatoes in a strainer and wash thoroughly with cold water, make sure you dry them afterwards.

Here is a tip for everyone! Before you use your cut board, take a small paper towel and wet it down, wring it out, then lay it flat on the counter top. Then lay your cut board on top of it. I guarantee your board will barely move, if at all. It makes it much more stable, and enjoyable.

Now this is the toughest part of this entire enterprise, the cutting of potatoes in to fry shape. It's not terribly complicated but you need to be careful when doing this. I recommend a santoku knife for the job (pictured cutting the potatoes), though a chef's knife is just as effective. The reason I say santoku over the chef's knife is because I personally feel I have more control over the cut with the santoku when cutting vegetables. Use your preference or whatever you have. Since potatoes are round cut a small slab off of what will be the bottom, to give yourself a flat stable surface to work with. Then on the "side" of the offending potato cut in about 3/4 of the way through, about a quarter inch apart. Make sure the potato is still attached to itself on the other side.

From here you're going to turn the potato back to the flattened side down, the cuts you made will be on the right hand side, and the "top" of the potato will not have any cuts yet. Start to cut all the way through the potato from the top down. You'll notice immediately the cut off potato pieces will magically be in the proper shape for frites, fries, whatever.

When you've cut through most of the potato you might have a chip sized slice left not in fry form. Go ahead and just put it down and cut it length wise, no one will know the difference.

Once you have cut all your potatoes put them in to your steam pot. Do not overload your steam pot like I did, if it takes three batches that's fine. Smaller loads will help maintain the shape of the fries. Steam them for 12 minutes per load, I wouldn't steam them less because the final texture would be odd, too much longer and you'll be making very complicated mashed potatoes.

Once you've completed the steaming put the fries in a bowl (I recommend doing this per load) and drizzle (DO NOT DUMP) Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the fries. Gently flip the fries around by bouncing the bowl forward and then up a few times to evenly cover all the fries. If you use the right amount of oil you should not need to strain the oil out. Once you've coated the fries put them on a pan that you have sprayed well with Pam (do not use tin foil, I did the first time and it was not good).

After all the loads of steaming and coating have been completed put the pan in the oven (preheated to 500F) for 15 minutes. When 15 minutes have passed take it out, stir or flip the fries with a spatula, and put them in for another 10 minutes. This will help ensure crispiness and color. Keep in mind also this is my oven I am talking about and not yours. I don't encourage (actually I discourage) constantly opening the oven to check on food because you lose your heat, but this is also more of a "lookin' thing" not an "exact science".

While your frites, fries, whatever are in the oven we go back to the cutting board. Because we are not shifting food types you don't REALLY need to wash your knife and board in between (it just depends on how paranoid you really are). Take out about a palm full of fresh parsley (a full palm full) and put it on your board. Make sure you keep your fingers curled in and start to very finely chop the pile until it starts to lose it's bulk. Then make it in to a pile and start to chop it more finely, and repeat until it reminds you more of a pepper grind than shrubbery. It's difficult to describe the technique, but I will say after the initial chop you should be able to keep the tip of the knife on the cut board and go to town. No you don't have to have the fancy little glass Pyrex bowl, but it sure looks Food Network doesn't it ;)

Once your frites, fries, whatever are finished in the oven take them out, and IMMEDIATELY season with the Kosher salt and the fresh cut parsley. IT IS IMPERATIVE YOU DO THIS WHEN THE FRIES ARE SCREAMING HOT OR ELSE THE FLAVORS WILL NOT MIX! IF YOU'VE EVER HAD CRAPPY MCDONALD'S FRIES THIS IS WHY. Also remember before you take the fries out of the oven, the phrase "Golden brown and delicious" (thank you Alton Brown) should apply to the fries.

Above we have the finished product :)

These frites, fries, whatever will ABSOLUTELY change your opinion of Fries for the better. They are lower fat, lower cal., and actually have health value. They are salty, herby, and have a great crunch to them. I even made soup to go with them instead of a burger (though burgers are EXCELLENT with these).

All in all this is a very easy, very family friendly dish to make. It takes about an hour or so if you have all the ingredients on hand. I wasn't very careful with the first batch size so unfortunately many of my fries lost shape, but I figured out the problem in time to preserve the second steam batch. This is the second time I have made these, and it was WAY easier than the first time, and the first time was pretty dang easy already. I highly recommend this to anyone, for any occasion. This tastes like a 3 hour dish, with way less work and way less clean up.

Let me know what you think, I'm very interested. Give me ideas for the next challenge! Eat Well Everyone!

In the beginning... there was an idiot.

2012-02-11T09:48:00.000-08:00

Introduction to IdiotDad Standards:

Hello to all who decide to visit this Blog. I'm IdiotDad sometimes referred to as Mark or ID.

I decided to start this Blog because I know there are a lot of parents out there who would love to give cooking a shot, but tend to shy away for a miriad of reasons. No "equipment", no training, no time, never cooked before, no good recipe's, etc. So I figured I start this Blog show step by step how it's done, with what, and what the finished product looks like. As the writer of this blog I promise:

I will always be devastatingly honest, even in the event of epic fail.
I will always tell you if I've prepared the item before, or if this is the first time.
I will provide as many tips and pics as I can think of.
I will always tell you where I got the recipe so you can find it at it's source.
If you request more detail I will do my best to provide it.

A little about myself as far as cooking. I am NOT professionally trained in ANY way. Not by restaurant, not by college. The ONLY training I've had has been my mom, Food Network, and my many attempts. Most people like my food when they try it. I have a very eclectic tongue, there are very few foods I do not enjoy (a blessing and a curse), and only a very select couple of foods I will not touch. My food heroes are Alton Brown, Paula Deen, Gordon Ramsey, Emeril Lagasse, and my grandmother. I've cooked with quite a few methods including frying, pan frying, baking, grilling, broiling, and slow roasting. I also have dabbled with candy making including pralines, suckers, caramel, chocolate projects, and home made marshmallows.

To say cooking is a passion for me would be accurate, though I do not get to do it as much as I'd like. I hope this Blog will inspire, entertain, and educate anyone who hopes to take up "the way of the spatula". I hope people of all sorts get involved in this with me from parents, to singles in big cities, to bored grandma's and grandpa's on the farm. If you have ideas or recipes you'd like me to try feel free to submit them and I might just make that the next post! I'll do as many projects and post as often as possible.