Off The Menu

Reader Suggested Dish: Gumbo

noreply@blogger.com (Chef Megs) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:41:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, I asked the facebook crowd for some suggestions as what they would like to see me make. Well, I only got one response, and it was from Ami. She suggested that I make something "cajun and in a crock pot" so I have done just that. I made a spicy crock pot gumbo loaded with Andouille sausage, chicken, and shrimp. Let me tell you, it was tasty, satisfying, and a meal made just for you Ami. So thank you, for your wonderful suggestion.

If you have a dish that you would like to see me make, send me your suggestions, or like Off The Menu on facebook, and leave a comment on our wall with what meal you would like to see. I'd love to make a meal just for you!

Ingredients:

1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 pound Andouille sausage cut into bite size pieces
1 medium onion, pureed (you can chop it if you'd like)
1 green bell pepper, chopped
4 cloves of minced garlic
1 cup of frozen cut okra
1 14.5 ounce can of undrained hunts diced tomatoes
1 small can of undrained green chilies (we went with mild, and it was still plenty spicy)
2 dried bay leaves (be sure not to crush them)
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of black pepper
1 teaspoon Creole seasoning
1/2 pound of cooked and peeled medium sized shrimp

Steps:

**Note-- I prepared everything the night before, then it was all ready to just dump into the crock pot in the morning. I stored my chopped chicken in a container on its own, then everything else went into a different container. It made my morning that much easier.**

First start by making the roux, (pronounced roo) which is made up of equal parts of flour and fat.

So heat a pan over medium-low heat. Add the oil.

Let the oil heat for a minute or two before stirring in the flour.

Use a wisk to constantly stir the mixture for 3-4 minutes.

Turn the heat off, and continue to stir for an additional 2 minutes or so.

Transfer the roux to a air-tight container.

Chop the Andouille sausage into bite sized slices, and add it to the container with the roux in it.

Add the chopped green bell pepper, the pureed (or chopped, I like to puree mine in the blender) onion, and the spices (all expect the bay leaves-- you will add them to the crock pot in the morning) to the roux container.

Seal the container up, and store it in the refrigerator until morning.

Cut up the uncooked chicken breast into bite sized pieces, and store in a different air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Don't add the tomatoes, the green chilies, the bay leaves, the okra, or the shrimp to the prepared containers in the refrigerator--they will be added in the morning.

About 9 hours before your meal, dump the contents of the prepared containers into the crock pot. Add the can of tomatoes, the green chilies, (make sure not to drain either) the okra, and the bay leaves (place the leaves on the top of the mixture--be sure not to crush them, because you will remove them once the gumbo is done.

Simply set your crock pot to low, and cook for 9 hours.

Come dinner-time, load your plate up with some hot and spicy deliciousness, serve it with some rice on the side or some french bread.

Enjoy!

The Perfect Winter Meal: Hearty And Savory Beef Stew

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:14:00 +0000

I love my slow cooker. I mean, who wouldn't? Have your meal all prepared, throw it all in the slow cooker, turn it on, and walk away. This slow cooker recipe is a wonderful, hearty meal with not much in the way of preparation; 30 minutes at the most. The end result will warm you from the inside out!

Ingredients:

3 pounds of cubed stew meat
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon parsley
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup baby carrots
3 large potatoes, cubed
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups of boiling water
1 package of dry onion soup mix
4 teaspoons onion powder
1/4 cup red wine (optional-- I have also used marsala cooking wine, and it was good as well)

Steps:

Combine the flour and the salt together in a large plastic zip-top bag.

Add the cubed stew meat to the bag. Seal bag, and shake to evenly coat the meat with the flour and salt mixture.

In a large skillet, add the olive oil and heat over low heat.

When the oil has heated, add the coated meat, and brown on all sides.

While the meat is browning, peel and chop the potatoes and add them to the slow-cooker, along with the carrots, parsley, and pepper.

When the meat is browned, add it to the slow cooker.

**NOTE--the meat only has to be browned, not cooked completely through. The slow cooker will cook it through.**

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add the dry soup mix, stirring thoroughly to combine.

Add the red wine (if desired) to the prepared soup, then transfer soup/wine mix to the skillet that the meat was browned in. Use the liquid to loosen the meat bits on the bottom of the skillet.

After the pieces are lifted of the bottom, add the mixture to the slow cooker, and mix all of the ingredients well.

Cover stew and cook on the high setting for 1 hour.

Reduce heat to the low setting, and cook for an additional 5 hours.

Serve this delicious and hearty stew with french bread or buttery crackers.

Enjoy!
~ Chef Megs

Project Food Challenge: Shrimp Pad Thai

noreply@blogger.com (Chef Megs) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 23:09:00 +0000

I made this meal at the request of Chef Matt, he simply loves pad thai, and he wanted to see if I was able to replicate one of his favorites at home. To my surprise, I got two thumbs up! I was shocked that I was able to do as well as I did on my very first attempt at this noodly dish. Previous to making this dish, I had never been crazy about pad thai; I just wasn't giving it enough of a chance. I loved every single bite! The wonderful pallet of flavors in the sauce, the crisp carrots, the delicious shrimp... it all made my taste buds so happy. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Ingredients:

Cooked shrimp (you can use chicken, pork or beef if desired)
2 1/2 tablespoons Fish Sauce (I found this at market street)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Thai Tamarind Concentrate (also called tamarind concentrate--I was able to buy this at market street)
4 teaspoons of minced garlic
4 ounces of Rice Sticks (found at market street)
3-4 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 cup of thinly sliced red onion
1 cup of carrots cut into thin sticks
1 cup of green onion cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup of bean sprouts
1 egg
1 cup of roasted, lightly salted peanuts
1 cup of cilantro (if desired for garnish)

Steps:

To make the pad thai sauce:

Combine the fish sauce (you may want to hold your nose--its stinky), brown sugar, tamarind sauce, 2 teaspoons of minced garlic, and the ginger in a small sauce pan, and heat over low stirring until the brown sugar has completely dissolved.

Allow the sauce to cool for a few minuted, and then transfer to an air tight container and store in the fridge until you are ready to use it (of course you can use it immediately if you wish.)

Boil water in a stock pot, add the rice sticks (noodles) and cook for 3-4 minutes.

Drain and rinse with cold water.

Either use immediately, or store cooked noodles in an air tight container in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble your meal.

In a wok or large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat.

While the oil is heating, chop the onions and the carrots. Set aside for later use.

Fry the cooked meat/shrimp for a few minutes, and remove from the pan.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, and sautee the minced garlic, and the sliced red onion for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add the noodles, and stir to completely incorporate the garlic and the onion.

Once the noodles, garlic, and onion are combined, stir in 3-4 tablespoons of the sauce.

Add the shrimp/meat and stir to completely combine.

Push all of the noodles and meat/shrimp to one side of the wok and add the egg.

Use a fork to scramble the egg.

Allow the egg to cook, then mix it with the noodles.

Add the carrots, bean sprouts, and the green onion. Mix well.

Mmmm.... doesn't that look and smell delicious?!

Pile it up on your plate, and garnish with chopped peanuts and cilantro.

There! Now that wasn't too difficult. And the result is very, VERY delicious.

Project Food Challenge: Egg Rolls

noreply@blogger.com (Chef Megs) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 23:35:00 +0000

Egg rolls that aren't made from fresh ingredients (e.g. frozen egg rolls) taste that way: not fresh and manufactured. I've never been a huge fan of egg rolls , and the reason is that I never really had one that was that fresh or made correctly. This past weekend I tried my hand at making these fried rolls of goodness, and I must say, they were delicious. They have been something that has always been on my culinary 'to-do' list for quite some time now. I've always been somewhat intimidated by the huge list of ingredients and all the steps involved. But as I completed this task, I learned that I don't really have any reason to fear this crispy side dish. I will explain every step so that you too can make egg rolls that are savory and packed with so much flavor that you'll never settle for frozen again.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups shredded pork roast
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves minced garlic
2 cups shredded green cabbage
2 grated carrots
1/2 cup bean sprouts
4 baby bella mushrooms, minced
3 green onions, finely sliced
1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
1 tablespoon greek yogurt
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
2 packages egg roll wrappers (these can be found in the produce section, in the refrigerated part where all the pepper and stuff is)
1 egg, beaten

Steps:

Heat the oil in a skillet.

Add the garlic to the heated oil, and cook for a minute or two.

Cut the pork roast up into 1" cubes.

Add the pork to the skillet.

Cook the pork until it is done.

Remove the pork from the pan, and place it on a cutting board.

Add the shredded cabbage and the green onions to the hot pan, and cook it for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes add the carrots, the bean sprouts, grated and the minced mushrooms. Cook for 3 minutes.

Stir in the salt, pepper, and the soy sauce.

Remove the veggies from the pan and put it into a large bowl (such as a pyrex glass bowl.)

Add a few cubes of the pork to a blender. Use the shred feature to shred the meat into small pieces. Repeat until all the meat is ground up. I would suggest only doing a few pieces of meat at a time.

Add the shredded pork and the greek yogurt to the vegetable mixture, and mix well.

That looks so delicious, I could just dig in right now! But resist the temptation. Ok, one little sample won't hurt.

You can either start making egg rolls right away, or refrigerate the filling until you plan to make the egg rolls.

Beat the egg in a small bowl and set aside.

Place one wrapper on a plate so that it looks like a diamond.

Spoon about 2 tablespoons of filling into the center of the wrapper.

Fold the bottom corner of the wrapper up around the filling as tight as you can without tearing the wrapper. If you are able to, roll once.

Then fold each side over like an envelope. Seal each side with a dab of egg.

Fold over the top and secure it with a dab of egg.

Heat up the oil in your frier (these can be done on the stove top as well) to 350 degrees F.

Once the oil is hot, fry the ~~egg rolls~~ spring rolls, 2 at a time, for 4 minutes (2 minutes per side) or until golden brown.

Once fried and delicious looking, place on a paper towel lined baking dish and let excess grease drip off. Allow egg rolls to cool for 5 minutes before digging in.

Serve with you favorite asian dish, or eat as a yummy snack!

**Enjoy these treats in more than one way.

When I was at the store, I picked up some rice paper spring roll wrappers, Banh Trang, at the store, and I rolled some up with my egg roll filling stuffed inside. All I can say is, yummy! This healthier, but still very tasty, version makes a great little lunch or pick-me-up snack. I found these wraps located in the isle where all of the asian items are (e.g. soy sauce.) These wraps are hard and brittle when you first take them out of the package. To soften them up, using a basting brush, brush both sides with water, and let sit for about 30 seconds to a minute. I would suggest only softening up as many as you plan on using. Fill with your filling, roll it up, and eat it up. Quick and easy (and delicious.)

Enjoy!

Breaded Italian Steak

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 23:01:00 +0000

Nothing is more of a comfort meal than meat and potatoes, served it with warm garlic bread and you're all set for a cozy night in. A great compliment to this wonderful Italian steak dish is homemade tomato sauce to dip your steak and bread into. The sauce recipe that I used was the same sauce that can be found in my 3 Recipes in 1- Meat Sauce Lasagna . I did not put any meat into my sauce, however, you could if you wanted. I also cut the sauce recipe in half.

Ingredients for breaded Italian steak:

2 pound serloin tip roast
2 cups of panko Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
1/2 tablespoon milk
olive oil for frying

Steps:

Heat the olive oil over medium low heat in a large skillet. Use enough oil to completely cover the bottom of the pan.

Slice the beef into 1/4" thick slices. The roast that I bought came pre-sliced.

Pound each slice of roast with a Meat Tenderizer.

In a shallow bowl or pie dish scramble the eggs with the milk.

In another dish mix the breadcrumbs with the parmesan cheese.

Dip each slice of the roast into the bread crumbs, then dip the meat into the egg mixture, followed by another dip in the bread crumbs. Make sure that the meat gets completely coated with both the egg and breadcrumbs.

Place the slices of roast into the pan with the heated oil.

Cook for 6-7 minutes then flip.

Cook for an additional 6-7 minutes.

Turn the steaks out into a dish lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

Serve with warm garlic bread, and tomato sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!
~ Chef Megs

Project Food Challenge: New York Style Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 22:40:00 +0000

I know that there's nothing quite like a pizza in New York, but this hot and bubbly version of a New York style pizza that is topped with homemade sauce, cheese, and toppings of your choice (I'm a fan of just pepperoni) is sure to satisfy your taste buds. This pizza takes quite a bit more effort than my quick and easy pizza night recipe, but the extra effort is well worth it!

On a side note, because this pizza is a real challenge and takes a bit more effort than regular pizza like I said above, I'm starting a new category of posts called Project Food Challenge where we showcase nothing less than the most challenging recipes to master. This New York Style Pizza would fit right in. So in other words if you're up to the challenge of making a difficult recipe, look for this category of posts...more coming soon.

**Note: this recipe makes 2 pizzas**

I will begin by explaining how to make a sourdough starter. A sourdough starter needs to be prepared about 3 days before you plan to make your dough, which should be made at least 24 hours before you plan to make your pizza.

Ingredients for sourdough starter:

1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) yeast
2 cups water (I used bottled); make sure that the water is at least room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour

Steps to make sourdough starter:

Mix the flour and the yeast in a large glass bowl.

Slowly add the water, and mix well.

When all of the ingredients are well combined, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel.

Place the bowl in a warm, dry location, and be sure to check on it occasionally (I checked about 3-4 times a day.)

In 3-4 days the sourdough starter will be ready to use.

***Note: DO NOT USE IF MIXTURE IS A FUNNY COLOR; PINK, ORANGE...***

Ingredients for dough:

4 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups water (I used bottled water)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons yeast
sourdough starter

Steps for the dough:

***Note: the dough needs to rest in the fridge for at least 24 hours before you plan on making pizza.***

In a stand mixer, combine 3 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, salt, and yeast.

Slowly add the sourdough starter, and the water.

Mix for 1-2 minutes with the paddle attachment.

The mixture should be thinner than dough, and it should be bubbly.

Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

After the rest period attach the dough hook to the mixer, and add the remainder of the flour: 1 cup of all-purpose flour.

Mix on low for 8 minutes.

Increase speed a little bit, and mix for 1-2 minutes.

This mixture should still not be thick enough to form a "ball"; it should still be quite wet. If it looks like that, trust me, you're on the right path.

Cover the bowl, and let rest for 20 minutes.

This is what the dough should look like after the rest period:

Turn out the sticky dough onto a floured surface, and sprinkle the top of the dough with flour.

Split the dough into two equal pieces, and place into two covered containers, and place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours (the dough can be left in the fridge for up to 4 days.)

This is how the dough should look after it is covered with flour:

You aren't going to want to go to all this effort to top your pizza with store-bought sauce. Make some delicious, you'll-never-go-back-to-jarred-again homemade sauce. To make pizza sauce, simply make this sauce (I cut the recipe in half), eliminate the meat and the water.

When you are ready to make your pizza, turn out your dough onto a pizza peel or a flat cookie sheet (a cookie sheet that doesn't have a lip) covered with cornmeal , and allow the dough to warm up a bit; let it sit for about 10 minutes.

Pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees F.

If you are going to use a pizza stone, be sure to pre-heat your pizza stone as well.

If you don't have a pizza stone, that's ok, your pizza will still turn out tasty! Just bake it on the cookie sheet (no lip.) Be sure to spray the cookie sheet so that your pizza doesn't stick.

When it is all warmed up, pat out the dough into a circle.

The dough should not be elastic (meaning that it shouldn't spring back when you pat it out, if it does that, that adding less flour next time) and very soft.

Top the dough with your pizza sauce, cheese (I suggest sargento mozzarella and provolone blend), and toppings of choice. I like to place a few pepperonis right on top of the sauce, and under the cheese.

Bake in your pre-heated oven for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.

Pizza is such a great treat when having guests over to watch the game, or to unwind on Friday night, or as a fun lunch over the weekend.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

"I'm Bringing The Rolls" Dinner Rolls

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:30:00 +0000

"Is there anything better than butter? Think it over, any time you taste something that's delicious beyond imagining and you say 'what's in this?' the answer is always going to be butter. The day there is a meteorite rushing toward Earth and we have thirty days to live, I am going to spend it eating butter. Here is my final word on the subject, you can never have too much butter."- Julie Powell, Julie & Julia

You guessed it, there is butter--lots of butter--in these rolls, and I must say, they are amazing. They are everything you want in a perfect dinner roll: buttery, doughy, baked to a perfect golden brown, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious! You won't be able to eat just one.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon white sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons yeast
2 cups lukewarm water
10 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup unsalted butter

Steps

Pour the milk, 3/4 cup white sugar, and 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter cut into cubes into a microwave safe bowl.

Heat for 1 minute at a time until the butter is melted.

In another bowl pour water over the yeast, and the 1 tablespoon white sugar.

In another large bowl add the milk mixture, and add 1 cup of flour, egg, and salt.

When the mixture has cooled, add the yeast mixture, and the remainder of the flour one cup at a time.

When the mixture became too thick to stir, I used my clean hands to mix thoroughly.

Once all the flour has been added, kneed the dough until it forms a nice ball.

Cover and let rise for 1 hour.

When the dough has risen, split it into four equal pieces.

Pat one of the pieces out into 1/2" thick sheet.

In a microwave safe bowl melt (you guessed it) 1/4 cup butter.

With a pastry brush, generously brush the sheet of dough with the melted butter.

Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into nine squares.

Gather the corners of each square and bring to the center, and crimp together.

Flip over and use your hand to shape the roll how you would like it.

Place each roll on to a well greased cookie sheet.

Leave a tiny amount of space between each roll (this allows room for rising.)

Cover the finished rolls and let rise for 30 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.

Melt 1/4 cup butter, and with a pastry brush, brush the tops of the rolls.

Once the rolls have cooled, separate them and place them in a bowl (if you're planning to eat them right away, I would recommend making them this way), or into an air-tight container in the fridge.

Bring these to you next dinner party, you'll be the official roll maker from now on.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

A different twist on stew: Sweet Italian Sausage And Pumpkin Stew

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 16:04:00 +0000

This unique take on stew is easy, and delicious! With a chicken broth base, and a wonderful blend of herbs and spices, this stew is loaded with meaty sausage pieces, potatoes, and carrots. This meal is sure to warm your soul on those chilly fall nights. This dish will hold a permanent spot on the menu.

Ingredients:

4 sweet Italian sausage links
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, pureed
1 tablespoon jarred garlic
29 ounces (2 14.5 ounce cans) of chicken broth
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin (make sure that it is 100% pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix)
1 large potato, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 cup baby carrots, cut in half
1 can (15.5 ounces) cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained
2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Steps:

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pan, and add the Italian sausage links.

Brown the links on all sides. It is not necessary to cook the links all the way through.

Remove the browned links from the pan, and place them on a cutting board.

Allow the links to rest for 5-10 minutes.

After the links have rested, cut the links into 1 1/2" pieces.

In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.

While the olive oil is heating, puree the onion by chopping it into chunks, then pureeing in the blender.

Once the oil is hot, add the pureed onion, and the garlic saute for 5 minutes.

Pour the chicken broth into the sauteed onions and garlic.

Add the pumpkin, and mix the pumpkin and the broth well.

Add the carrots, potatoes, cannellini beans, cumin, and parsley to the broth mixture.

Bring the stew to a slow boil.

Once boiling, add the sausage links to the stew.

Reduce the heat to low and cook for 1 hour. This will cook the sausage the rest of the way.

Tortilla chips go great with this stew!

** A great thing about this stew, it is very adaptable. If you wanted to add additional vegetables like yellow squash, you could do that. Want to substitute cubes of chicken in for the Italian sausage? Go for it!

Enjoy!
~ Chef Megs

Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 20:43:00 +0000

At the end of a stressful day, nothing beats a warm cookie (or two, or three) and a glass of cold milk. These soft and chewy oatmeal cookies are packed with raisins and chocolate chips, and are sure to warm your heart, and put a smile on your face.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 cups oats
1 cup raisins
1 cup bitter-sweet chocolate chips

Steps:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cream together the softened butter, the white sugar, and the brown sugar.

Add the eggs one at a time.

Add the vanilla.

Add the flour 1/2 cup at a time.

Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking soda.

Add the oats 1/2 cup at a time.

Add the raisins and the chocolate chips.

Drop teaspoon fulls of cookie batter onto an un-greased cookie sheet.

Make sure that the cookies are spaced at least an inch apart.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.

Allow cookies to cool for a minute or two before removing them from the cookie sheet and transferring them to a plate or cooling rack.

Devour right on the spot, or store in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Meg

Turkey Meatballs With Angel Hair Pasta

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:02:00 +0000

A simple, yet delicious and satisfying meal: good 'ol angel hair and meatballs. In this recipe, the meatballs have been made a bit healthier by using ground turkey as opposed to ground beef. These mouthwatering meatballs are set on top of angel hair pasta, and topped with my homemade sauce.

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground turkey
1 small onion
1/4 cup unseasoned dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons of jarred garlic
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
cooked angel hair pasta (or whatever kind of pasta you prefer)
homemade sauce (Its really not that hard, and it is oh-so-yummy. I suggest making the sauce from the above link minus the meat.)

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9X13 baking dish with the olive oil.

While the oven is pre-heating, place the greased baking dish into the oven to heat the oil.

Chop the onion into large chunks, and place the chunks into the blender.

Puree the onion. You could just mince the onion if you wish, but I like to puree it because I really don't like to find little bits of onion in my food.

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, the pureed (or minced) onion, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, beaten egg, garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper.

With clean hands, mix throughly.

Form the mixture into 2 inch balls.

Remove the baking dish from the oven, and carefully place the prepared meatballs into the hot dish. Remember the dish will be hot, so be very careful!

Place the dish into the oven.

Bake for 15 minutes, then turn them, and bake for an additional 6 minutes or until slightly browned.

Place the meatballs on top of a bed of freshly cooked angel hair pasta, and smother with tomato sauce (use this recipe, and omit the meat.) Be sure to serve some nice bread to go with your pasta and meatballs.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

Easy Roast Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 04:13:00 +0000

Roast chicken is such an easy, comforting, and satisfying meal! Simply prepare the chicken the night before, (or the morning of) then pop it in the oven 2-3 hours before dinner time. Seasoned with an array of herbs and garlic, this chicken is tender, juicy, and delicious. This dish is delicious when served with pan fried potatoes and sweet dinner rolls. Plus as a bonus, cooking this meal will make your house smell wonderful!

Ingredients:

Whole roasting chicken
1 tablespoon of olive oil per pound
2 tablespoons dried basil
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon of jarred garlic
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 small red onion

Steps to prepare the chicken (I like to do this the night before, however it can also be done the morning of):

Slice the purple onion into chunks, and place in a small bowl.

Pour the lemon juice over the onion, and set aside.

Remove the chicken from the plastic packaging.

Remove the gizzards from the inside of the chicken.

With cold water, rinse off the chicken.

Place the rinsed chicken onto a large cutting board.

Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.

Pour 1/2 of the amount of olive oil that you are going to need into a small bowl, and add 1/2 of the needed amount of the herbs minus the lemon juice.

Mix the herbs and the oil well.

Massage the oil and herbs into the chicken. Make sure to get under the skin, and in the cavity of the chicken as well.

Flip the chicken over and repeat the seasoning process.

Put the garlic, and onion, and lemon juice into the cavity of your chicken.

Place the seasoned chicken into a deep bowl (I used the bowl to my stand Mixer) and cover with either a lid or plastic wrap.

Put the covered chicken into the fridge until it is ready to cook.

Steps for roasting:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

While the oven is preheating, truss your chicken.

I know trussing sounds like a intimidating process, however simply put to truss means to tie with string in preparation for cooking.

Here is a simple video to help you to truss your bird:

Simple as that!

Place in a roasting pan just as pictured, and place in the pre-heated oven.

Cook your chicken for 20 minutes per pound, then cook for an additional 10 minutes.

Insert a meat thermometer into the meaty part of the thigh.

When the thermometer reads 165 degrees F, the chicken is done.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and allow the chicken to rest for 15 minutes. Allowing the chicken to rest will re-distribute the juices. If you cut into the chicken before it is allowed to rest, the juices will run out of the chicken.

After the chicken has rested, carve using a sharp knife. The chicken should be very tender, and practically fall off the bone. Be sure to remove the string that you used to truss the chicken before carving.

A wonderful side dish to go with your roast chicken is savory pan fried potatoes.

Ingredients:

6 red potatoes or 4 small russet potatoes
3 teaspoons jarred garlic
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

Steps:

Wash the potatoes and cut them into cubes.

Place the cubed potatoes into a microwave-safe dish with an inch of water.

Cover the pie dish and place it in the microwave.

Cook for 6 minutes or until the cubes are fork-tender.

Heat the garlic in a large sauce pan over medium heat.

Cook the garlic for a few minutes, then add the olive oil, the Italian seasoning, the parsley, lemon juice and the salt to the pan.

When the potatoes are tender, add them to the hot oil.

Stir the potatoes making sure that they get completely covered with the oil and spices.

Serve hot.

Rolls are also a must for this meal.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 package of yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 eggs (use 1 whole egg and 1 egg white)
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup warm water

Steps:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Proof the yeast by mixing 1 teaspoon sugar, the package of yeast, and the warm water and letting it sit for 10-20 minutes. The mixture should get foamy.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

Add the eggs, oil, and yeast and water mixture.

Mix until dough is formed.

Gently knead the dough with clean hands for 2-3 minutes.

Form the dough into a ball, and cover with a warm damp cloth in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

After the dough has risen, form the dough into 2 inch balls.

Place the rolls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.

Place into pre-heated oven, and bake for 10 minutes, or until rolls are golden brown.

If desired, brush the tops of the rolls with butter.

What a perfect meal: juicy roast chicken, Italian pan-fried potatoes, and sweet dinner rolls. There is no better end to a hard work day like a delicious comfort meal.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

The Perfect Side Dish: Crispy Panko Breaded Onion Rings

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 19:30:00 +0000

Onion rings make a perfect companion to go with those savory game day wings! You simply can't go wrong with the good ol' onion ring. They're great along side burgers and hot dogs too. Crispy and crunchy, these onion rings are coated with seasoned flour, then covered in panko bread crumbs, then deliciously fried.

Ingredients:

1 large onion
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cajun seasoning
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk

Steps:

Slice the onion into 1/2 inch slices.

Separate the rings in each slice.

In a small bowl, mix the egg and the milk together.

In another bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and cajun seasoning. Make sure to mix well.

Dip each onion ring into the egg-wash.

Then dip into the flour, making sure to completely cover.

Set each floured ring onto a platter until all of the rings are covered in flour.

Pour your bread crumbs into a medium-sized bowl.

Dip each floured ring into the egg-wash again.

After dipping into the egg, completely cover the ring with the panko bread crumbs.

Place on a platter, and set aside.

In a deep fryer, heat oil to 375 degrees F.

When oil is hot, fry the onion rings for 3 minutes or until golden brown.

Allow the onion rings to cool, and eat up!

Its so easy to make these tasty onion rings at home. They are so good too!

Enjoy!
~ Chef Megs

Game Day: Boneless Buffalo Wings With Buffalo Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 23:20:00 +0000

Nothing goes better with watching a great game on t.v. quite like some nice and spicy buffalo wings. These fantastic wings are battered with seasoned flour, then fried until they are golden and crispy, then covered in a homemade spicy buffalo sauce.

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts
1 1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less depending on how spicy you like your wings)
1/2 teaspoon jarred garlic
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1/4 cup hot sauce (I used Valentina, I found it in the isle with all of the hispanic food, it was nice and inexpensive too. This makes making your own sauce so much more cost-effective than buying pre-made sauce.)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Oil for frying

Steps:

Cut the chicken into strips.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, salt, pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, and paprika. Using a fork, make sure that all of the spices are mixed well.

In a small bowl, combine the egg, garlic, and milk.

Dip each chicken strip into the egg-wash, then coat it with the flour mixture.

Dip the floured chicken back into the egg-wash, then coat it with the flour again.

Place the battered chicken onto a platter, and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.

In a deep fryer (I would suggest using a large Deep Fryer if you have it, we used a smaller one, and it took us quite some time.) heat oil to 375 degrees F.

Fry the battered chicken for 6 minutes.

Time to make the sauce!

In a small, microwave safe bowl, combine the hot sauce and unsalted butter.

Microwave for 1 minute then stir. If the butter is not completely melted, microwave for an additional 30 seconds.

There ya' have it; wing sauce! So incredibly easy to make!

Coat the fried chicken with the buffalo sauce. I found the best way to do this is to put a few pieces of chicken in a tupperwear Containerwith some wing sauce, and shake until the chicken is evenly coated in sauce.

Place on a platter, and serve.

Serve these during the big game on Sunday, and you will be sure to score big!

Enjoy!
~ Chef Megs

Bonus: Chef Matt's serving suggestion for next day leftovers!

Peanut Butter Banana Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 00:42:00 +0000

What a simply wonderful breakfast or snack, banana bread makes. This banana bread has a twist; it has crunchy peanut butter in it. So don't throw out those squishy bananas, make a treat that the whole family will love!

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons oil
4 bananas (make sure that they are nice and mushy)
1/4 cup peanut butter (I like to use crunchy)

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mash the bananas.

Add the peanut butter, and stir until completely combined.

Add the eggs, and milk. Stir until combined.

Stir in the flour 1/2 cup at a time.

Using a spatula, transfer the batter into a Bakeware 9-by-5-Inch Loaf Pan
.

Place the bread in the oven, and bake for 60 minutes or until a toothpick (or a Cake Tester) inserted into the center comes out clean.

What and easy and delicious treat!

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

Budget-Friendly Meals: Peanut Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 19:47:00 +0000

Looking for an inexpensive meal that can be whipped up in a pinch? Well here's a tasty (easy-on-the-wallet) solution: chicken in a delicious peanut sauce over rice.

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breasts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
sprinkle of nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon jarred garlic
1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (I like the crunchy because it has little chunks of peanuts in it, I think it adds something extra. However, creamy would work just fine too.)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons lemon juice (If you don't have lemon juice 2 teaspoons of vinegar can be used as a substitute.)
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup water

Steps:

Heat the olive oil in a medium to large skillet.

Add the garlic, nutmeg, and ginger to the pan and allow to get hot heating over medium-low heat.

While the oil and the spices are heating, cut the chicken into strips.

When the oil is hot, add the chicken.

Cook the chicken completely, stirring occasionally.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce.

In a medium sauce pan add the soy sauce, lemon juice (or vinegar), and water.

Add the sugar and the peanut butter.

Heat over low, using a wisk to stir occasionally.

Heat until the mixture is smooth.

When the chicken is done cooking, mix the chicken with the peanut sauce.

Serve over rice with egg rolls.

This quick and satisfying meal is as good for your taste buds, as it is for your wallet.

Enjoy!

~Chef Megs

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 20:20:00 +0000

If sour cream sauce isn't your favorite topping for chicken enchiladas, then this recipe is for you! This dish includes white corn tortillas stuffed with seasoned chicken and cheese, then topped with a homemade enchilada sauce and more cheese, then they are baked until ooey-gooey perfection.

******

This delicious enchilada sauce can be made spicy or mild, and its not as difficult as you would think it would be. Give it a try, you won't be disappointed.

Ingredients to enchilada sauce:

1/4 cup oil
1 can stewed tomatoes (for an added kick, try using mexican style stewed tomatoes.)
1 tablespoon chili powder (use more or less depending on how spicy you like your enchiladas)
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon jarred garlic
1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Steps:

Heat the oil over medium heat in a medium sized sauce pan.

When the oil is hot, stir in the flour and chili powder, and cook until browned 3-5 minutes stirring constantly.

Slowly stir in the stewed tomatoes and the water.

Add the spices.

Continue cooking the sauce, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes.

Easy! It tastes so much better than store bought too. It has all of those delicious chunks of tomato in there. Mmm...

******

Ingredients for the enchiladas:

12 white corn tortillas
3 chicken breasts (de-frosted if using frozen)
1 tablespoon taco seasoning (I like McCormick)
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I like to use medium sharp or sharp cheddar; add more if you like your enchiladas extra cheesy)
enchilada sauce (you can use store bought if you like, but homemade is so yummy)
oil

Steps:

Fill a large stock-pot with a good amount of water.

Add the taco seasoning, as well as the chicken breasts to the water and simmer for 35-40 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the tortillas. This is also a good time to make the enchilada sauce.

Pour enough oil into a large sauce pan to cover the bottom.

Heat over medium-high heat until hot.

When oil is hot, place two corn tortillas in the pan at a time, and lightly fry: about 15-30 seconds on each side. This will ensure that your tortillas are nice and flexible, so they won't break when you roll them.

Set fried tortillas on a plate lined with a paper towel or a towel.

When chicken is cooked, remove from water, and place on a cutting board, and allow chicken to cool for 10 minutes.

When cooled, shred chicken either using clean fingers (I find this to be the easiest option) or two forks.

Place your shredded chicken in a bowl.

Now its time to assemble your enchiladas!

At the head of your assembly line have your plate of fried tortillas. Next, place the shredded chicken in one bowl, the grated cheese in another, and the enchilada sauce in another.

Brush a tortilla on each side with enchilada sauce.

Add 1 tablespoon of shredded chicken and as much cheese as desired to the inside of the tortilla (make sure not to overstuff the tortilla, this will make it hard to roll the tortilla up.)

Roll the enchilada tightly, and place it into a 9X11 glass baking dish.

Repeat with the remaining 11 tortillas.

Top the enchiladas with the remaining enchilada sauce and top with desired amount of grated cheddar cheese.

Place in a 350 F degree oven for 10 minutes, or until cheese is melty and looks delicious!

Serve with Spanish rice.

Who needs a mexican food restaurant for delicious cheesy chicken enchiladas when you can make them so easily from your own kitchen?! This recipe will surely be one that is requested over and over again.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

Comfort Food: Battered Chicken Tenders and French Fries

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 17:05:00 +0000

Sometimes you just gotta have it at the end of a hard week: warm, delicious, made with love, comfort food. These stick-to-your-ribs chicken tenders are battered, seasoned with Italian bread crumbs, Cajun seasoning, and cayenne pepper, then fried to palate-pleasing perfection.

Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen chicken tenderloins
1 cup of flour
2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
2 eggs beaten
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (if you prefer spicier add 1/2 teaspoon)
1/4 teaspoon Cajun seasoning (I used Old Bay seasoning, however Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning would work well too)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons water
Oil for frying

Steps:

Defrost the chicken. I used the whole bag. To defrost the chicken, I placed the bag in a large pyrex bowl in the sink. Then I ran cold water over the bag until the chicken was thawed. This took about 20 minutes or so.

While the chicken is defrosting, prepare the batter.

In a shallow dish, like a pie dish, pour the flour.

In another dish, mix the bread crumbs, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and Cajun seasoning. Make sure that these ingredients are mixed well.

In a small bowl, beat the eggs and water.

When the chicken is finished defrosting, take one piece at a time, and coat it thoroughly with the flour.

After the chicken has been completely coated with the flour, dunk the piece into the egg.

Let the excess egg drip off of the chicken, then coat with the bread crumb and seasoning mixture. Make sure to coat the pieces well. Flip the piece over several times, and pat to make sure that the mixture gets into every nook and cranny.

In a deep fryer (I have a small one that is great for storing if you don't have a lot of extra counter space) heat your oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once the oil has heated, fry the tenders, 2 at a time for 6 minutes.

Place the tenders in a paper towel lined baking dish, and let cool for 5 minutes.

A perfect thing to do while you are waiting for your chicken tenders to cool is to fry up your french fries!

Ingredients:

2-3 russet potatoes
salt or seasoning of your choice
oil for frying

Peel the potatoes.

Cut the potatoes into fries.

Submerge the raw fries into a pot of water. Make sure the water fully covers the potatoes.

Boil the potatoes until fork tender.

In your deep fryer, heat the oil to 375 degrees.

Make sure that the boiled fries are dry, then fry the fries for 5 minutes.

Remove from oil and place on a paper towel lined plate.

Sprinkle fries with salt or other seasonings.

Serve fries with golden brown chicken tenders and some honey mustard for dipping. Yum!!!

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

The Secret To Making The Best Homemade Turkey Burgers

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 04:20:00 +0000

Turkey Burgers are one of those things, at least for me, that I'm kind of iffy about eating. I'm not really sure if I like them or not because I'm a burger guy after all. Being a burger guy translates to, "Where's the beef?" to borrow a famous ad slogan from the 80's. Turkey burgers just aren't beef, they taste like something else entirely, which isn't bad if you know how to make them taste good. That's just exactly what this post will teach you, and maybe every once in awhile you'll say, "Where's the turkey?" That's because the way we make them aren't your usual run of the mill turkey burgers, they got taste, and a lot of it. Here's how to do them at home using our method.

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground turkey
Small red onion pureed
1 egg white
1 cup bread crumbs
1 1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of pepper
1 to 2 cloves of garlic (jarred)
2 tablespoons soy sauce

Looks like something alien but it's all part of the plan

Step 1: In a blender, place cut up pieces of red onion, garlic, salt, and pepper, and puree until desired constancy. Then a medium sized skillet heat a small amount of olive oil. When the oil is heated, add the puree, and saute for 5 minutes (above).

Step 2: After sauteing for 5 minutes your red onion puree should look like the above image. Then in a large bowl, mix together the sauteed onions, egg white, soy sauce, and raw ground turkey. The best method for mixing these ingredients all together is with your hands. Make sure that they are clean!

Step 3: I choose to make my own bread crumbs (however, you can use store brought if you desire). To make your own, put two pieces of toasted bread in a blender and make crumbs using the chop setting.

Step 4: Add the bread crumbs to the ground turkey and then using your hands, mix throughly.

Step 5: Spray a skillet with cooking spray and heat to medium. Then split the meat into 4 equal parts and fry on the already heated skillet for 5 minutes per side.

If those fries, look kind of good...they are. For the recipe, please see Comfort Food: Battered Chicken Tenders and French Fries

Enjoy these super tasty homemade turkey burgers. Not only are they very satisfying but they're healthy so you can be full yet enjoy a low fat meal. This will entirely feed a family of four and leave everybody completely satisfied. Also, unlike a cooked beef made burger, they stay better in the fridge and will reheat very well (which helps so you don't have to make a mess of a pan again) and will make a quick and great lunch or dinner.

Bonus: Chef Matt's serving suggestion !

The Houstonian Pizza Sandwich: A Tasty Sandwich Invention

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 19:59:00 +0000

An extraordinary sandwich this was. If it had a family, its cousin would be the delicious Italian sub I made the other day. That is because while I was making the Italian sub, I was so inspired by it, that I decided to try something different using some of the same ingredients. However, while this does have some of the same ingredients as the Italian sub, you'd be amazed how different it tastes. Amazing would also be a good word for how it tastes. What do I call this amazing sandwich? I call it the Houstonian Pizza Sandwich named in honor of my beloved home town of Houston Texas. I want everybody to try this awesome creation so here's how to do it...

Ingredients:

French bread sliced thin style
Pepperoni
Salami
Ragu Pizza Sauce
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Black Sliced Olives
Banana Peppers

It's hard not to get sandwich hungry looking at that salami.

Part of what's so great about my Houstonian Pizza Sandwich is it's very easy to make. After all, most sandwiches are, and that's one of the reasons I love me a good sandwich.....

Steps:

Cut your French bread thin style, meaning just like you see in the picture.

Then spread a generous amount of Ragu pizza sauce on one side of the bread.

After of which, you can simply lay out your toppings of several slices of pepperoni, olives, banana peppers on top and whatever amount of shredded mozzarella cheese you desire. For extra flavor in the sandwich, I put some of the banana pepper juice that the banana peppers resided in when they were in the jar. Wow, did it give the sandwich a nice zesty kick!

Finally you can top all those ingredients with at least 3 slices of salami. Then lightly toast the sandwich in the toaster oven until your cheese melts inside and all those delicious ingredients bond together inside.

Pop that sucker out, and take a bite. You're tasting a wonderfully inspired sandwich named after a city that knows good food. I should know because I'm a foodie that grew up there, and that's probably why I am such a foodie. That's my Houston plug but most of all, I plug this sandwich by saying that I bet if you try this at least once, you'll find yourself coming back to it time and time again. It's really that satisfying and you have to taste it to know what I'm talking about. Why wouldn't it be a super tasty sandwich though, after all, every single one of the toppings and ingredients are tasty right down to the salami and pepperoni.

4th of July: Red, White, & Blue Belgian Waffles

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 16:50:00 +0000

Happy 4th of July readers! We just started a 4th of July tradition that you may want to incorporate into your family. You'll probably want to after you try out these delectable raspberry (for the red), white (for the batter), and last but not least blue (for the blueberries). There you have it and they are very delicious raspberry and blueberry waffles.

To make these, you're going to first and foremost, obviously need a Belgian waffle maker. Some people might think you need the most expensive brand but take it from me, you don't. We have a very inexpensive one, this one to be exact:

Like I said, I don't know how the more expensive ones would be any better but that's besides the point because let me show how easy it is to make these waffles the best you possibly can, in 1, 2, & 3 simple steps but first...

Ingredients:

Bisquick (easiest option that we always choose) or do a waffle batter from scratch
Frozen blueberries
Frozen raspberries
Teaspoon and a half of cinnamon

Ok, now you can see why we refer to it as red, white, & blue waffles. Yes, we even have a red mixing bowl.

Steps:

1. Heat waffle iron & make waffle mix as directed on box

2. Add desired amount of blueberries and raspberries to waffle mix (we always use more blueberries than raspberries). Don't forget to add your teaspoon and a half of cinnamon.

3. Add 2/3 waffle mix to now heated waffle iron and cook until crispy and golden brown. Important: use Maple syrup to top and of course butter...you can't forget the butter.

For some reason, these Belgian waffles always hit the right spot. Maybe it's the morsels of blueberries mixed in with the fluffy maple syrup drenched waffles, maybe it's the slightly tart taste of raspberries. However you put it, with all those tasty ingredients you can see why it's hard not to love these spectacular July 4th "even though they are "Belgian" waffles.

French-Canadian Tourtière (Meat Pie)

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Thu, 05 May 2011 19:13:00 +0000

Who doesn't love pie? I know I do, apple pie, strawberry rhubarb pie, cherry pie, pizza pie... I could go on and on. After my latest homemade meal, I have one more pie to add to my list: Tourtière (aka meat pie.) This dish pie can easily be whipped up in about an hour. Tourtière is everything you could want in a comforting, hearty meal: meat and potatoes.

Ingredients:

2 pre-made pie crusts (feel free to make your own if you wish)
2 pounds of ground turkey (or beef)
1 large onion
1 cup of mashed potatoes (about 2 medium potatoes)
2 teaspoons all-spice
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon plus 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 egg beaten (optional)

Steps:

Wash, peel, and cut the potatoes into 2 inch thick slices.

Put the potato slices into a medium-sized microwave safe bowl.

Put enough water into the bowl to slightly cover the potatoes.

Microwave on high for 8 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.

When the potatoes are tender, pour the contents of the bowl into a colander to drain the water.

Put the potatoes back into the bowl with 1/4 teaspoon rosemary and 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.

Mash with a potato masher until creamy.

Place mashed potatoes in the refrigerator for later.

Heat a large skillet with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, all-spice, rosemary, and thyme over medium heat.

While the oil and spices are heating, chop the onion into chunks and place in the blender.

Chop the onion using the mince or chop feature (You could always chop it yourself, but this is a good option if you don't like big pieces of onion in your food.)

Add the chopped onion to the heated skillet and stir.

Saute the onion for 10 minutes making sure to stir occasionally.

Once the onion is finished, add the ground turkey (or beef.)

Brown the meat, making sure that the meat and the onion are mixed together well.

Put in the refrigerator.

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Prepare the pie crust by placing it in a 9 inch pie pan.

Take the mashed potatoes and meat and mix together in a large bowl. Make sure to mix the two together very well.

Spoon the mixture (doesn't it smell delicious?) into the prepared pie dish.

Cover the top with the second pie crust.

Crimp the edges together.

Poke a hole in the center of the pie.

If you would like, brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg. By doing this, the top of the pie will brown up very nicely, this makes for a nice presentation.

Place your pie into the heated oven and bake for 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

After you take the pie out of the oven, let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

What a yummy dinner this was! I know I will be making this again in the future.

Enjoy!

~ Chef Megs

The Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 18:53:00 +0000

I just love breakfast. A huge breakfast on the weekend mornings is always nice, I'll even take the ever popular brinner (breakfast for dinner) every once in a while. This breakfast sandwich is sure to please your morning-time (or anytime) tastebuds: eggs in a nest meets grilled cheese plus bacon for added yumminess!

Ingredients:

2 slices of bread (I would suggest a loaf that has slices that are longer than an average piece of bread)
Butter
2 eggs
1 slice of American cheese (I didn't want it to be too cheesy, however, if you want more cheese, go for it!)
2 slices of bacon (More if you want)

Steps:

Generously spray a medium-sized pan with cooking spray, then put the pan on the stove over medium-low heat.

Cook the bacon (I did mine in the microwave. Place the bacon on a plate, and cook for 3 minutes, flipping the pieces half-way through.)

Cut a hole in each slice of bread. To do this, I used a cup as a "cookie cutter." Firmly press down in the center of the bread with the cup to cut out a hole. Only do one slice at a time.

Butter once side of each slice.

Place both slice, butter-side down, into the heated pan.

After a few minutes, flip the slices over.

Once the pan is nice and warm (this is important, making sure the pan is pretty warm will help the egg-whites to stay in one place instead of running all over the pan) crack each of the eggs, being careful not to break the yoke, and one egg into each one of the holes in the bread (I like to crack the eggs into a bowl first.)

Allow the eggs to cook for a few minutes.

Carefully flip each slice of bread over.

Layer the cheese and the bacon on one of the slices.

After the eggs have cooked for a few minutes (I like my egg yokes runny, so if you want them to be more cooked, leave them on for a few additional minutes) put the two halves of your breakfast sandwich together and serve!

This sandwich is great! It has all the makings of a wonderful breakfast all in one; cheese, meat, eggs, and toast. Serve this sandwich with orange or apple juice and you've got yourself a sure winner!

~ Chef Megs ~

Quick & Easy-To-Do Italian Style Chicken Tacos

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:24:00 +0000

All of us have been in one of those moments where we end up in the kitchen going over everything that we have in the pantry and trying to figure out how we're going to put a meal together. This is exactly how this post came to be. The result? Nothing but extraordinary! Literally putting our creative juices to work, we managed to invent something on the fly that we know we'll be eating again in the very near future.
You read the title right, these are Italian Style Chicken Tacos. For anyone, that loves something a little gourmet now and then, you're going to want to try these out. Also, we can't forget to tell you that it took only about 30 minutes to throw this meal together. You might be asking yourself, what makes these Italian and easy? We'll explain in the recipe.

Ingredients:

Already Cooked Chicken Strips - the quantity is up to you're appetite
Italian Seasoning
Taco Seasoning - this might sound contradictory for Italian tacos but it really added to the taste without making the chicken taste Tex-Mex in the least... just use a little
Minced Garlic In A Jar
Olive Oil
Canola Oil
White Corn Tortillas
Tomatoes
Shredded Cheddar Cheese - or go even more gourmet and try Mozzarella Cheese

Step 1: Heat your Canola Oil on medium in large skillet

Step 2: Yes, you read that first ingredient right, we said these were quick and easy to do and we meant it. Break out those frozen already cooked chicken strips from your local frozen section and zap them in the microwave about a minute. Don't be ashamed! Trust us, you can make this good and you won't even taste the difference. If you want to do more work, and cook your own chicken breasts you can do that as well and still do this recipe. If that's your boat, then it's as easy as leaving Step 2 out and continue the steps after you cook your chicken breasts strips just adding oil and the rest of the ingredients after you cook your chicken strips in the skillet. The result will still be the same.

You can literally see the seasoning at work if look closely enough...

Step 3: Add your defrosted cooked chicken strips to the already heated oil, the oil should be fairly hot to get a good result.

Step 4: Drizzle Olive Oil on chicken in the skillet, add generous amounts of Italian Seasoning, Taco Seasoning and a teaspoon of Minced Garlic.

Step 5: Let the chicken cook turning over occasionally until it looks nice and lightly crispy on the outside just like in the picture. This is very important to get a good result because you don't want the chicken to still be mushy especially if your using the frozen already cooked chicken strips. Warning: doing this step right will actually result in a tasteless frozen already cooked breast tasting like it was made in a gourmet restaurant. Just make sure you get good quality already cooked chicken strips. We used Foster Farms found at Costco. These are nice and plump chicken strips. You don't want to get any in the frozen section that look like they're thinly sliced because that wouldn't work as well. Trust us, we've had those variety.

Step 5: This is very important step and we've left it for last to get the desired result. In the skillet you used to crisp and marinate your chicken strips, throw in corn tortillas and fry them on both sides on medium heat for approximately 2 minutes or until the tortillas look crispy on the outside. Cooking it in the oil you used to marinate your chicken strips you will get the desired result because the Olive Oil, Minced Garlic, Italian Seasoning, and Taco Seasoning will flavor your fried tortillas resulting in a more tasty creation.

Step 6: Dab your tortillas and chicken breasts with a paper towel to get all the excess oil off.

Step 7: Put your tacos together and add your Cheddar Cheese and sliced Tomatoes for extra taste.

You just might be surprised how much you enjoy these tacos. I know we were. The infusion of Italian Seasoning, Olive Oil, Taco Seasoning, and Minced Garlic made these literally taste like we ordered up from a gourmet restaurant. They weren't your typical tacos in that they didn't quite taste like Tex-Mex, and rightly so, because as much as we like Tex-Mex, this was a refreshing change of taste. That's why these deserve to get the title of Italian Style Tacos.

Eat Up!

Chef Matt

Inspiration For Breakfast Part 2: 5 Alarm Sausage, Hashbrown & Cheddar Cheese Omelete

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 12:55:00 +0000

Awhile back when this blog was fairly new, we did a post entitled Inspiration For Breakfast for which that post included an omelet. We are going back to that and again our inspiration for breakfast is another omelet, only this time bigger and better and we'll actually show you how to make it so basically this an updated blog post.

Be warned, this omelet actually features 5 eggs and plenty on the inside so be ready to share with 2 or 3 people or you can always save the leftovers for yourself. Which is a good tip for you, omelets heat up well for leftovers especially the meat and cheese ones.

1. Spray a large over sized pan on medium heat with non stick cooking spray. This is very important because without doing this, you'll be scrapping the bottom of the pan to get an omelet loose. After that easy step, pour 5 scrambled eggs into the pan that should be heated already on medium.

2. We know at this point, you probably have all your ingredients cooked and ready to go. Really, we don't want to tell you what to put in there even though we think sausage, cheddar cheese, and hash browns are a good mix but use whatever makes you happy. As you can see from this picture and especially the next one, we waited for the egg to be slightly cooked underneath before putting in our ingredients on one side of the omelet.

3. After probably 5 minutes since we put the eggs in the pan (this will depend on how warm your pan is and how many eggs you are cooking) we start to fold the omelet up. Take your time because it might require a lot of patience especially if you made one as big as we did.

4. This omelet was so huge that we decided it was best to not completely flip it like most do to cook the side that's been facing up. This is ok but try to flip it if you can, if you can't then just give it maybe a little extra time for the eggs to cook and turn down the pan while your doing this so you won't burn your omelet. Another method you could try to flip it would be to make sure you have both sides folded as you see in the picture and then transfer it to a plate and then transfer it back to pan. This might be easier because you can pick up the pan and let gravity drop it into a plate and then repeat the trick with gravity to drop it back into the pan fold down. That would probably be a lot easier than flipping it in the pan but make sure your ingredients are nice and glued down by the cheese on the inside or they'll fall out if you try it this way.

5. Cliche but true in the cooking world, "you're done". Take that pan off the burner and put that overstuffed omelet on a plate fold down.

A Unique Creation: Margherita Pizza

noreply@blogger.com (Foodies For Life) — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 00:19:00 +0000

Off The Menu is very proud to present to you, our very finest culinary creation to date! The pizza pictured above is not any ordinary pizza, it's a very sastifying to the tenth degree Marghertia Pizza. Some of you may have adventured to try a Margherita Pizza and know that the texture and indgredients can surpass an ordinary pizza, no matter how good that pie may be. To be honest with you, we did not know if our special recipe would accomplish that but now it's safe to say, that it went above and beyond in doing that. It's definitely on our lunch or dinner menu for good and we feel like it will be on yours too. With that being said, we at Off The Menu would like to outline step by step and ingredient for ingredient, how you can make this exceptional Margherita pizza at home.

We've got a bonus for you, this is actually a tale of two pizzas. One is a basic Margherita Pizza (as pictured above) with just Roma tomatoes and basil for the toppings and the 2nd is the beautiful creation at the top that we consider a Margherita Pizza with a twist. Who says you can't have a little fun with the toppings? Nobody! Go ahead have yourself a little fun because that's one of the best parts of making a pizza. However, before you begin, you're going to need to go out and purchase a pizza stone if you don't already have one. This is to truly make a genuine Margherita Pizza because if you use just a regular pizza pan, it won't necessarily cook the same therefore it won't taste the same as a Margherita Pizza.

The Ingredients for making 2 pizza crusts:

4 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast (this amount is equal to 2 packages of yeast)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning

The Ingredients for sauce:

6 Roma tomatoes
2 teaspoons minced garlic from a jar (this is equal to four cloves)
4 tablespoons olive oil
8 fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon sugar

The Ingredients for toppings:

1 lb or 16 ounces fresh mozzarella sliced into 1/4" thick slices (we prefer Mozzarella Fresca that you can find in a l lb package at Kroger in the gourmet cheese section
4 sliced Roma tomatoes
black olives
pepperoni
sausage cooked and crumbled
mushrooms

Extra Useful Ingredient:

Corn Meal (to keep pizza from sticking to the pizza stone as it's cooking)

Step 1:

Mix together 4 1/2 teaspoons (or 2 packages of yeast) with 1/2 cup of warm together in mixing or large bowl

Let the mixture sit until it appears creamy, (as pictured above) usually about 20 minutes

Step 2:

Add 2 1/2 cups of all-purpose, 1 1/2 cups of warm water, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 2 teaspoons of salt and 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning to now ready yeast mixture (as pictured above)

Step 3:

Stir the ingredients using a wooden spoon or electric mixer until it becomes smooth ball (as pictured above) where it doesn't stick to the side of the bowl.

Step 4:

Cover the bowl that has the dough with a kitchen towel and let sit for at least 1 hour at room temperature

Now that you're waiting for the dough to rise, it's a good time to start on the sauce.

Step 5:

Put 6 Roma Tomatoes in a blender and pulse until it's a chunky puree (as pictured on the right)

Step 6:

Put at least 2 tablespoons of Canola oil in saucepan on medium to low heat and add garlic (again we did this with ready to use minced garlic in jar)

Step 7:

After heating garlic and oil together for 2 minutes, add the blended tomato puree to the saucepan, with sugar, little pieces of basil leaves, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and simmer sauce for 35 minutes uncovered and stir periodically until thick

When done with this step, it's probably a good time to get your cooking stone ready by putting it in a oven and preheating it at 450F for at least 20 minutes.

The Tale Of Two Margherita Pzzas

Step 8:

While you're preheating your pizza stone, it's time to get your pizza dough ready by dividing the dough ball evenly to make 2 pizzas (just visually divide it or if you really want to get technical you can always use a kitchen scale)

Step 9:

Shape evenly separated dough balls on a lightly floured cutting board using a roller (or for more of a challenge you can always use your hands) and the dough should come out looking as the picture above

Step 10:

While you still might be waiting for that sauce to be ready, it's a great time to get your topping ready.

Cut the 4 Roma tomatoes into 1/4" thick slices (left) and cut the mozzarella cheese into the same size slices (bottom)

Beautiful slices of fresh mozzarella

Step 11:

Remove your pizza stone from the oven, watch out, and be very careful as it will be burning hot!

Carefully, using 2 spatulas or however you see fit to do it, slide flattened pizza crusts onto the pizza stone that has plenty corn meal on it to keep it from sticking as it is cooking .

Step 12:

That pizza sauce has to be cooked by now so it's time to spread the sauce

To do this evenly around each pizza, eyeball it to split the cooked sauce between the 2 pizza crusts but...

A tip for you first... It's very important to wait until 1 pizza is completely finished, to put the rest of the sauce on 2nd pizza because it needs to be done when it's on the preheated pizza stone or guaranteed your sauce will slide off. To save time and a lot of trouble you can always buy 2 pizza stones and preheat them at the same time. That way you can be ready to put ingredients on the 2nd pizza while the first is cooking or if you're lucky enough to have a double oven, they can cook them at the same time so if you're feeding a larger family there'll be enough pizza to go around right when these delicious pies come out of the oven.

Step 13:

Your finally on the fun part and the home stretch, which is you evenly spreading out the sliced mozzarella cheese on your pizza. The only tip I can give you here, is not to overlap the cheese slices just spread them out with only small gaps between each slice until it covers the entire pizza except the very edge (as pictured above). If you do it evenly like this, you should have plenty of cheese slices for each pizza. If you're doing a 2nd pizza with a bunch of different topping as we did, then it's the easiest part of making this pizza to put whatever ingredients you see fit on you're pizza and spread it out evenly. However, it's highly recommended that you use sliced Roma tomatoes for toppings on both pizza as it really adds a lot of flavor to each pizza.

Step 14:

Congrats, you made it to the last the step besides eating the pizza of course, so put your pizza on the bottom rack in your oven which should be very preheated at 450F by now.

Cook pizza for 20 minutes or until it looks ready as cooking times may vary for different ovens.

If your pizza stone came with a wire rack, leave it ready on the kitchen counter to protect your counter tops from damage when you take the pizza out out of the oven. Slice that pizza right when it comes out of the oven as it will be easier to slice at that time.

Your done! This pizza may look like quite a process to complete but it's well worth it in every regard. Plus, as you see how delicious this was the first time around, you'll want to make this pizza again. With each time you'll probably find that it becomes easier and easier, and consumes less time, leaving you more of it to enjoy these one of a kind Margherita pizzas to the very last piece.

Bon Appetite!
Chef Matt