The Pioneer Woman Cooks!

Butter Chicken, Valentine’s Day, and Other Matters

Ree — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:20:39 +0000

Several vitally important matters this morning. Hunker down; this could get ugly.

(I seriously don’t know why I say things like that. Some residual need to grab the attention of my entire family back from when I was four, I guess. Kind of like the time I walked into the house and announced that a cockroach had just crawled out of my eyeball, just to see what everyone would say.)

1. Today on the Tasty Kitchen Blog, I posted a step-by-step recipe for an evil dish called “Butter Chicken”. Ever try Butter Chicken? Then you haven’t lived. It’s nuts.

Butter Chicken on the TK Blog

WARNING: Recipe contains heavy cream, which has been proven to make people smile and groan. Enter at your own risk.

2. Valentine’s Day is this Sunday, so we featured this cute newlywed cooking couple yesterday. They’re sweet and upbeat, and the interview’s a fun read:

Two Peas and Their Pod Interview

I’ll post a Valentine’s Day-friendly dish tomorrow, and I promise to lay off the onions.

3. Speaking of Valentine’s Day, here’s an idea for you.

* Make a couple dozen heart-shaped chocolate heart cookies (I have a recipe I’ll share if I can fit it in this week, but any rolled chocolate cookie dough would work fine!).

* Let the cookies cool.

* Lay alphabet stencils on top of each cookie, spelling out whatever you’d like: “Happy Valentine’s Day”, “I Love You, Harvey Wallbanger”, or even the traditional candy heart messages like “Be Mine” or “Gimme a Big, Wet Kiss” (?) would be cute.

* With the stencils in place, use a fine mesh strainer or a sifter to cover the cookie with powdered sugar.

* Using tweezers, carefully lift off the stencils to reveal the letter!

This is a fun, playful Valentine’s gift, and you can use regular (the letter is in powdered sugar) or inverse (everything but the letter is in powdered sugar) stencils to create different effects. Fun for kids, too, if they can spell.

I did this in high school and delivered cookies to a band geek I was in love with. I spelled out his name in heart cookies and arranged them in a little wicker basket filled with bright pink tissue paper wadded into neat little balls.

Geez, Ree. Forward much?

4. Marlboro Man took the kids and went on a large supermarket trip for me last weekend. On my list was “garlic, lots of garlic”, and he came back with both a produce bag filled with large bulbs and a bag of pre-peeled garlic cloves, which I’d never tried before.

The brand he grabbed was Melissa’s—four cloves at a time are peeled and wrapped tightly in individual plastic bags, and one bag comes with several packages inside. I was dubious since I don’t care for pre-minced garlic in a jar at all…but I have to tell you, I LOVE this product. I do so much cooking, both for the family, the cookbook, and of course, you guys here, and there are times when I just want ready-to-chop garlic without having to peel off the pesky paper, smash the cloves, and peel. This garlic obviously isn’t ideal for roasting, but for general cooking, it’s great. The garlic flavor is really there! This is revolutionizing things for me.

But then, I’m easily excited.

5. Finally: Raise your hand if you’re making doughnuts this week.

C’mon. Lent is fast approaching.

You know you want to.

Love,
The Temptress

Homemade Glazed Doughnuts

Ree — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:37:34 +0000

Let me begin this post by saying how excited I am to share this doughnut recipe with you. What can I say? Doughnuts are exciting. They thrill me to the bone.

Second, let me lay one thing out on the table: Making good, raised doughnuts at home is not as easy as you’d think. For years (yes, you heard me) I tried in vain to make the perfect homemade doughnut—not just a fat, bready wad of fried dough with a sweet glaze, but a delicate, light ring of love with a slightly crispy surface and a wonderful flavor. Like “those doughtnuts”, and I don’t mean Krispy Kreme.

I mean the doughnuts sold at the tiny doughnut dive in our small town. They’re the best raised doughnuts in the world. The shop is owned by an older resident of our town whose temperament can range from kind, welcoming, and gracious to a complete mirror of a certain soup purveyor in a certain long-running series starring a certain man with the last name of Seinfeld. Think I’m kidding? The doughnut guy in our town once made my summer babysitter, fresh-faced and home from college, cry. Stuck working cattle, I called her one hot July morning to beg her to run to the doughnut shop and bring the working crew a few dozen. The doughnut man didn’t like her request, for some reason—I think he took it personally that she wanted to buy so many at a time after he’d worked so hard, and so early, to make them—and by the time she left the store she was in tears. She immediately called me and said, “For the sake of my emotional health, I don’t think I can buy doughnuts for you anymore.” And I chuckled, knowing exactly what she was talking about.

The flip side is this: if you catch the doughnut man on a good day, he’s a complete delight. And his doughnuts…they’re perfection. He sinks his whole life and passion into them; I can completely understand why Haley wanting to rip several dozen out from under his wings would upset him. They’re his babies.

Long story short: the doughnuts I’m sharing with you today are pretty darn close. Keep in mind, though, that it might take a time or two of making them before the process feels totally comfortable. I tried to keep the instructions below as specific and precise as I could. The printable recipe at the bottom of the page has numeric instructions so as to leave no doubt. But yeast, as we all know, can have a mind of its own sometimes—so can the weather, with its humidity or dryness. So if at first you don’t fricassee, fry fry a hen…okay?

But do give them a try sometime. Doughnuts are fun to make!

Begin by measuring 1 1/8 cup of whole milk. Just go between the 1 cup and 1 1/4 cup lines.

Yes, I’m aware you didn’t need me to explain that to you.

Warm up the milk so that it’s warm to the touch, but not hot. If you have a thermometer, make sure the milk is between 105 and 115 degrees F. I usually err on the side of too warm, but that can be a little dangerous.

Add 1/4 cup sugar to the milk. Stir it around a few times.

Now, you can certainly use active dry or rapid rise yeast…but I have had great success with this SAF Instant Yeast, which is sold at my local smalltown grocery store. It’s good stuff, guys, and as I was reading about it on the internet recently, I discovered that SAF yeast is the only yeast used in the King Arthur Flour test kitchens. And this one-pound bag, which could make around 90 to 100 loaves of bread, costs about six dollars.

Again, though, if you’d like to use whatever yeast you have in your house, feel free to substitute active dry or rapid rise.

Measure 2 1/4 teaspoons of the yeast granules into a bowl. This is the same quantity that comes in one individual packet of yeast, so the two can be easily interchangeable.

Pour the warm milk/sugar mixture into the bowl with the yeast.

Stir it around just a couple of times, then let it sit for several minutes while you prepare the other ingredients.

NOTE: It is NOT necessary to dissolve instant yeast before adding it to the dry ingredients. I like to do it in this recipe, just to maintain a consistent process should I ever have to use a different variety of yeast…and the recipe simply works this way.

Next, add 1 1/4 sticks of unsalted butter to a separate bowl.

*This is one of the rare cases I use unsalted butter. It just seems to work better in this recipe.

Melt the butter in the microwave until it’s just barely melted, then stir the butter to finish the melting process. The reason I do it this way is that I don’t want the melted butter to be too hot. I’m going to add it to beaten eggs in a sec.

Crack a couple of eggs into a separate bowl…

Then beat them senseless with a fork.

Next, making sure the butter’s not overly warm first, pour the beaten eggs into the butter.

Stir the mixture with the fork until it’s all combined.

Now, pour the egg/butter mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer, with the mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Turn the mixer on speed 3 (if it’s KitchenAid), or medium-low.

*NOTE: If you do not have an electric mixer/dough hook attachment, just pour this into a regular large mixing bowl.

With the mixer running, grab the yeast/milk mixture, which, eight minutes later, is now totally freaky and bubbly and weird looking.

Freaky, bubbly, and weird: when it comes to yeast, these are all very desirable attributes.

Carefully pour the mixture into the bowl of the mixer…

Plop.

Allow the mixer to gently stir the ingredients together.

*NOTE: If you aren’t using a mixer, just stir the wet ingredients gently with a whisk for about a minute.

Let the mixer run and keep stirring up the wet ingredients while you measure out 4 cups all-purpose flour. This is where I’ve really done some experimenting (with cake flour, self-rising flour, etc.) and wound up coming back to the regular stuff. Sometimes simple is best, baby.

Add 1/4 teaspoon salt to the flour and stir to combine.

I seriously can not explain the freaky pink alien hand in this photo. It’s the lens…or the lighting…or maybe I really am just a freaky pink alien and I’ve tried to deny it to myself all these years. Either way, try not to be disturbed. Focus on the doughnuts.

Make sure the wet mixture looks nice and combined, then begin adding the flour mixture in 1/4 to 1/2-cup increments…

Mixing for several seconds after each addition.

Keep this up…

Until all the flour has been added.

*NOTE: If you’re not using a mixer, just add flour to the wet ingredients in increments, stirring and/or kneading after each addition.

Next, just let the mixer go for a good 8 to 10 minutes. You’ll hear the satisfying sound of the dough slapping against the sides of the metal bowl…ahhh. There’s not a more satisfying sound in all the world.

Except maybe those grunting sounds a newborn baby makes for the first two or three weeks of his life.

But I can’t let myself go there. That’s more dangerous than a doughnut.

Stop the mixer, then scrape the bottom of the bowl and turn the mixer back on for one more minute. Then turn off the mixer and remove the hook attachment…

…Leaving the dough in the bowl for a few minutes.

*NOTE: If you’re not using a mixer, just knead the dough gently for about 5 to 8 minutes, then let it sit and rest.

And THAT’S IT for the dough. All you do now is put the dough into a lightly greased (with a little canola oil or butter) bowl, toss it around to coat the surface of the dough, then cover with plastic wrap (not foil; important!) and keep in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.

This is the next morning.

Now, right away, while the dough is still cold (so it can easily be rolled and handled), lightly flour your rolling surface…

Then plop the dough upside down onto the surface.

Then flour the top and roll out the dough to between a 1/4 and 1/2 inch thickness, lightly flouring as you go along if the pin starts to stick.

Now, lightly flour a baking pan. You can line it with waxed paper or a baking mat first, but you don’t have to.

Now, ideally you would now use a 3-inch (maximum) doughnut cutter, which is a single cutter that also cuts a hole in the middle of each round. I used to have one, but I’m afraid it’s now living at the bottom of our pond, right along with my favorite slotted spoon and about a hundred other household items my boys have used in their various attempts to catch sea monsters.

I don’t want to talk about it.

Next, finding that I was also missing my smaller (1.5 inch) biscuit cutter, I had to choose between these two little fluted numbers.

Buttheads.

My boys, not the cutters.

**I’m missing a couple of sequence shots here because…well, because I’m a freak, but basically here’s what went on:

1. Cut a center hole in the larger rounds using a 1 to 1.5-inch cutter.
2. Transfer the doughnuts and the doughnut holes to the floured baking sheet
3. Repeat with the dough scraps until all/most of the dough has been used.
4. Cover the doughnuts and holes with a large tea towel and LET RISE IN A WARM PLACE FOR AN HOUR-PLUS.

IMPORTANT

I can not emphasize enough the importance of providing the doughnuts with a warm, draft free place to rise. The dough has started out cold, so you really need to aggressively make sure they have the proper environment for rising. My kitchen is extremely drafty—I have four large windows that have seen better days—so I have to go on the offense by heating up my large griddle, then turning it off, then placing my pans of doughnuts on the warm griddle. Now, you don’t want the pan on which the doughnuts are sitting to actually heat up at all—that would mess up the bottoms of the doughnuts. But you do need to really create a warm environment so the doughnuts will rise adequately. How much the doughnuts rise over the next hour is directly related to how light and fluffy they’ll be…so do what you can!

This is after one hour of rising in a nice, warm place.

Compare the difference:

Risen, the doughnuts should not appear “solid”, but should really look light—as if they’d collapse if you breathed on them. Feel free to let them rise an additional 15 minutes or so if you think they need it. Just always keep them covered with a light towel so the tops don’t dry out.

Once the doughnuts are risen, heat a pot of canola oil until it reaches 375 degrees. You’ve really gotta have a deep fry thermometer for this, as the temperature of the oil is extremely important.

Ideally, the oil will remain between 375 and 380, 380 being a little on the hot side.

While the oil is heating, make a quick glaze of powdered sugar, salt, vanilla, and cold water or milk—or a combination of both. Whisk it together until totally smooth.

NEXT: Make a nice, big bed of several paper towels stacked on top of one another. We’ll need to use these to quickly absorb the oil after we cook the doughnuts.

When the oil has reach its temperature and evened out (i.e. isn’t getting hotter by the second) drop in one doughnut first, just to get comfortable with the process. Notice the little “smushed” area: this is where I very gently looped my finger through the hole of the doughnut to drop it into the oil—you can see how light and fragile the dough is. That’s good!

Let it fry and bubble for about 45 seconds…

Then use a slotted spoon to flip it over. See how brown it got in a very short time? That’s why it’s best to start out cooking one at a time. And keep monitoring your oil temp!

I’m bossy when it comes to doughnuts. I should go into business with our doughnut guy in town. I think we’d be very happy together.

45 seconds into the second side, remove the doughnut with a slotted spoon, allowing as much oil to drip off as you can.

Place it on the stack of paper towels. Count to five, then flip it over onto a clean part of the paper towels.

Continue doing this over the first 30 seconds or so of the doughnut’s life, trying to get as much oil onto the paper towels—and off of the doughnut—as you can.

Think of it this way: whatever oil winds up on the paper towel does not wind up on/in the doughnut. It’s a mathematical certainty.

Continue this process, frying one to three doughnuts at a time…

Until they’re nice and golden brown.

Drain them on the paper towels immediately after removing them from the oil.

Then, after the doughnuts have been drained, drop them one by one into the glaze. Submerge them a little more than halfway deep, then remove them and turn them over. (Note: you may dip the doughnuts twice if you like; see examples below.)

Let them sit on a cooling rack for a little bit. The glaze will drip down and start to set a bit, and the doughnuts will just get more delicious by the second.

The “chocolate” doughnut you see in the back row is actually a regular doughnut that cooked a little too long because I let the oil get too hot. It happens.

Next, after all the doughnuts are cooked, throw in several doughnut holes at a time, turning them over after about 25 to 30 seconds.

Okay, that’s it. I’m officially hungry.

Now that is one yummy-looking doughnut.

But doughnuts are not about looks.

Ahhh. Behold the beauty of a plate of doughnuts.

And back to the glaze: this doughnut was dipped once.

This doughnut was dipped twice. A little gloopier and messier, but very sticky and delicious. Whether you single- or double-dip the doughnuts is strictly a personal preference.

And whether you eat one doughnut or seven is matter to discuss with your maker.

And your doctor.

Enjoy these!

Homemade Glazed Doughnuts

3"x5" Cards | 4"x6" Cards | Full Page | Print

Prep Time: 25 Minutes

Cook Time: 2 Minutes

Difficulty: Intermediate

Servings: 18

Ingredients

Doughnuts
1-⅛ cup Whole Milk, Warm
¼ cups Sugar
2-¼ teaspoons (one Package) Instant Or Active Dry Yeast
2 whole Large Eggs, Beaten
1-¼ stick Unsalted Butter, melted
4 cups All-purpose Flour
¼ teaspoons Salt
Canola Oil
GLAZE
3 cups Powdered Sugar
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Vanilla
½ cups Cold Water Or Milk

Preparation Instructions

To Make the Dough:

1. Make sure milk is nice and warm, but not overly hot.
2. Add sugar to milk. Stir to dissolve.
3. Add yeast into a small bowl.
4. Pour milk/sugar mixture over yeast. Stir gently, then let sit for 10 minutes.
5. Melt butter in separate bowl until butter is almost melted. Stir to finish melting so butter won’t be overly hot.
6. Add beaten eggs to melted butter, stirring constantly to make sure the butter’s not too hot for the eggs.
7. Add the egg/butter mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook.
8. With the mixer on 3 or medium-low speed, pour in the yeast mixture.
9. Allow the dough hook to stir this mixture for a couple of minutes, making sure it’s thoroughly combined.
10. With the mixer still going, add helpings of the flour mixture in 1/4 to 1/2 cup increments until all the flour is gone.
11. Stop the mixer, scrape the bowl, then turn the mixer on the same speed for five whole minutes.
12. After five minutes, stop the mixer and scrape the bottom of the bowl.
13. Turn on the mixer for 30 seconds.
14. Turn off the mixer and allow the dough to sit in the bowl undisturbed for 10 minutes.
15. After 10 minutes, transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Toss the dough to coat, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place straight in the fridge.
16. Refrigerate dough for at least 8 hours, or overnight.

To Make the Doughnuts:

1. Remove bowl from fridge and turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface.
2. Roll out to 1/4 to 1/3-inch thickness.
3. Using a 3-inch cutter, cut as many rounds as you can, then roll out remaining dough and cut as much as you can, etc.
4. Cut holes out of each round using a 1 1/2-inch cutter.
5. Place both doughnuts and holes on a floured baking sheet.
6. Cover with large tea towel and place in a warm place in your kitchen; my kitchen is very drafty, so I have to briefly warm the griddle, then turn it off and set the sheets on top to keep warm.
7. Allow doughnuts to rise undisturbed for at least 1 hour; 1 hour 15 minutes if necessary. Doughuts should be visibly puffier and appear to be airy.

To Fry the Dougnuts

1. Heat plenty of canola oil in a large pot until the temperature reaches 375 to 380 degrees—do not let it get hotter than 380 degrees! 375 is ideal; keep the thermometer in the pan to continually monitor.
2. One to two at a time, gently grab doughnuts and ease them into the hot oil. Allow them to cook 1 minute on each side; they will brown very quickly.
3. Remove doughnuts from the oil with a slotted spoon, allowing all oil to drip off.
4. Place doughnut immediately on several layers of paper towels. Count to five, then flip it over onto a clean part of the paper towels. Count to five, then flip it over again; the purpose, obviously, is to drain as much grease as possible before it soaks into the doughnut.
5. Repeat with remaining doughnuts and holes. The holes will cook more quickly than the doughnuts; about 30 seconds per side.
6. Allow doughnuts to slightly cool.

To Glaze

1. Mix all glaze ingredients in a bowl until completely smooth.
2. One by one, dip doughnuts into the glaze until halfway submerged. (Note: completely submerge doughnut holes, then remove with slotted spoon.)
4. Remove from glaze, then turn right side up on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet (to catch dripping glaze.)
5. Serve warm if possible, or room temperature.

A Brief Superbowl Rundown, and Le Creuset Winners

Ree — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 20:45:36 +0000

The winners for the Le Creuset French ovens are listed below.

Meantime, I’ve made the shopping list for our Superbowl feast. After all is said and done, I thought I’d come clean and tell you once and for all what I’m making 48 hours from now for a sweaty room full of football-crazed humans.

Well, maybe four or five football-crazed humans.

But only if the weather holds up.

Restaurant Style Salsa. I made it last night in 2 minutes, 47 seconds. I timed it.

Drip Beef Sandwiches. Meat. Bread. Make ahead of time. Gooooood.

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeno Thingies. I can’t promise I won’t slap a couple on top of my drip beef sandwich. I do things like that. I blame my parents.

Mexican Layer Dip. We’re gonna party like it’s 1983.

Oh, and I’m sorry. But I have to make a big, fat plate of Guacamole. It’s the only way it’ll get me through an entire day of my life being devoted to a football game.

There will also be brownies of some sort. Mark my words.

Speaking of Tasty Kitchen, If you’re sick of me and want to look for some other Superbowl ideas, here’s a long list of appetizer/munchie wonders:

Appetizers/Munchies – Tasty Kitchen

Like these, by bell’alimento—a positively prolific recipe contributor on Tasty Kitchen. Seriously—the woman’s a machine. Wow.

Smoky and Spicy Black Bean Dip by Active Foodie. This sounds so good…and so simple. I might make this and use it as the refried bean layer on my Mexican Layer Dip above.

Okay, I quit.

I always do this.

I wind up making 57 things.

Probably three people will come over to our house for the Superbowl.

I need more mouths in my life.

THE LE CREUSET WINNERS

And now for the fun part.

The winners of yesterday’s Le Creuset giveaway are:

(And let me take this moment to note that I think, not sure but think, this contest set the record for winding up with the lowest randomly selected winner number ever [see first winner below] AND the greatest divide between the two randomly selected winners’ numbers. I could be wrong, but I think that’s right. This is a serious divide!)

#41 Afton “Pretty darn good — I got hitched.”
#31932 Loquin – “I need a hug.”

Congrats, winners! Contact prizes@thepioneerwoman.com to claim your loot. (Feel better, Loqin!)

THE RESULTS

Statistician Don, the fastest data organizational gun in the West, was nice enough to send me this chart, which represents all of the answers received in this quiz.

Thank you for sharing, everyone!

The Flame of Love

Ree — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:44:17 +0000

I haven’t had a giveaway here on The Pioneer Woman Cooks for quite awhile. Since the first of the year, I’ve had most of my cooking-related giveaways over on the Tasty Kitchen Blog (Please see Jaden’s post on Compound Butter this morning. Perfection.) and besides that, I’ve been busy cooking, eating, and padding my abdomen. Whoever said abdomens were supposed to be taut, anyway? Abdomens weren’t taut in biblical times and as far as I’m concerned, that’s good enough for me.

Did they have Coffee Haagen Dazs in biblical times? Conundrum wine? Jimmy Belasco candles? Because if they didn’t, I don’t want to know about it.

Today, because I love ya, I’m giving away two (2) sets of two Le Creuset round French ovens, in the classic red-orange color known as “Flame”. I’m not sure I could cook without Le Creuset—the heat conduction, the heaviness, the versatility. I love them as much as a forty-year-old woman can love cookware.

Here’s what’s included in each prize:

* One (1) Le Creuset 5.5-Quart Round French Oven with Cover
* One (1) Le Creuset 9-Quart French Oven

TO ENTER

To enter the giveaway, just answer the following multiple-choice question in the Comments section of this post:

“How would you describe your 2010?”

a) Absolutely Fantastic
b) Purty Darn Good
c) I Can’t Complain
d) Could Be Worse
e) Could Be Better
f) Purty Darn Lousy
g) I Need a Hug

Hey, we’re all a community here—and you don’t have to give details. Just briefly shout out your choice and you’re automatically entered to win.

THE RULES

One entry per person. Strictly enforced with a cattle paddle.

No entries after 10:00 pm Pacific Time Thursday.

Winners will be selected at random and announced here Friday morning. Prizes will be sent to winners by the end of the day Friday.

Good luck!

Contest sponsored by Pioneer Woman, with cooperation from the wonderful CHEFS Catalog.

Drip Beef, Two Ways

Ree — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:53:09 +0000

Drip Beef. To me, the name means Scumptious. Hearty.

Drip Beef. To me, the name means Crowd pleasing. Yummy.

Drip Beef. To me, the name means Hyacinth.

Well, so many things mean Hyacinth to me—not just this flavorful, slow-cooked shredded beef slapped on a buttered bun and dipped in the cooking juices…though the significance of such beauty should never be underestimated. But Hyacinth is so much more than Drip Beef. How can I adequately describe her? Sweetness and Light. Goodness and Kindness. Selflessness and Generosity. Cracks up at her own jokes if she has two sips of wine.

You’d love Hyacinth if you met her.

Anyway, Hyacinth’s family is really big on Drip Beef. They eat it at their family gatherings. And since I happen to think Drip Beef the perfect Superbowl food, I adapted her recipes to share with you this week. Because here’s the thing: Drip Beef couldn’t be easier to make. You literally spend five minutes (maximum) slopping some ingredients together in a pot or a slow cooker. Then you cook it for six or so hours, until the meat is positively falling apart. Then you shred the meat and let it sit in the juices until you’re ready to serve it up on toasted, buttered deli rolls to a hungry roomful of rabid football fans. What could possibly be better?

Here’s a bonus, though: you can make the meat the day before, then pop it in the fridge overnight. This is actually my preferred method for two reasons: one, you don’t have to worry about it on game day. Two, the next day when you pull the pot out of the fridge, you can easily remove the hardened fat that’s risen to the top of the pan. Then you just reheat it on the stovetop and go for it! And I actually think the meat winds up being even more flavorful and tender that way.

Here are two different approaches:

The First Cast of Characters: chuck roast, beef consomme, pepperoncinis, water, Italian seasoning, and salt.

I received this as a gift recently. It’s awesome. But you can use any combination Italian seasoning—Hyacinth’s recipe uses a Good Seasons Italian Dressing packet!

Throw the chuck roast into a pot.

Then pour in the can of consomme. Beef broth can also be used.

Note: You can read all about the difference between beef broth and consomme in this post.

But I’ll just go ahead and tell you the most important difference as it relates to this dish. Now, listen up, because this is vital:

I had beef consomme in my pantry. I did not have beef broth in my pantry. So I used beef consomme. The end.

Now, add in about 15 or so pepperoncinis, along with half the juice of a 16 ounce jar.

Dump in 3 or 4 tablespoons of Italian seasoning. Depending on whether or not the seasoning contains salt, you’ll need to add a little of that, too.

Stir around the liquid and seasonings a bit. And that’s it!

Now cover the pot and stick it into a 275 degree oven for 5 to 6 hours. Don’t even worry about checking on it; just let the magic happen. You can also use a slow cooker if that’s your preference, or (as we’ll see in the next recipe) you can simmer it on the stove. Versatility galore!

Next, let’s get the other one started. This is a little more basic, a little less risky (it doesn’t contain spicy peppers), and produces quite a bit more liquid than the first.

The Second Cast of Characters: chuck roast, onion, garlic, cooking sherry, soy sauce, and water. And butter. And salt.

Amen.

Heat a big dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Slice up an onion. Thick slices, not too thin.

Melt a half a stick of butter…

Throw in the onions and stir them around…

Cook them for a couple of minutes.

Next, just throw the chuck roast right on top.

Pour in the soy sauce.

The sherry…

And the water. Throw in a little salt, too.

Finally, throw in a few peeled cloves of garlic.

Put on the lid, then stick it on the stovetop over simmering heat. Let it go for about 6 hours without giving it so much of a thought.

**FAST FORWARD: SIX HOURS**

By the time the meat was done, it was dark in my kitchen and I don’t know how to use my flash so please forgive the lighting…but yum. Here’s what the first one looks like when it’s done.

And just look at those beautifully curious green goblins in there.

Make sure the meat’s nice and tender (if not, return it to the oven for 30 minutes or so), then use two forks to pull the meat apart.

Keep going until it’s totally shredded—no big chunks at all. Now just cover it and keep warm until you’re ready to serve it…or stick it in the fridge overnight.

Here’s the other pot. As you can see, there’s a lot more liquid in this one.

Shred this meat up too, then cover the pot and keep warm until serving.

Really, though, the beauty of this meat is that it can be made the day before, then refrigerated overnight.

And if you do that…

This is what it looks like the next day. All the fat has conveniently risen to the top and hardened for your convenience. Isn’t that nice of the fat?

So just take off as much as you want.

I usually leave a little bit. It’s the kinda gal I am.

Yum! Hardened fat!

Just go ahead and throw this away. It’s the right thing to do.

Now grab some deli rolls. Bakery fresh if you live in civilization; Earthgrains if you don’t.

I don’t.

Cut ‘em down the middle…

Then smear them with butter and brown them on the griddle. You want ‘em buttery, golden, and crispy. If you’re doing a huge batch and trust yourself to watch them, you can do them under the broiler.

But I don’t trust myself to watch them.

I just make a big ol’ basket of these earlier in the day, then keep ‘em covered with a towel until the game starts.

When it gets close to game time, just simmer the meat to warm it up. Here’s Pot 1.

Here’s Pot 2.

I had a terribly important decision to face yesterday, and that was this:

Which meat should I eat for lunch?

I had the whole world in front of me.

I chose the one with the peppers.

To serve, just heap some meat on the toasted bottom half of the roll.

Then, while you could just stick the other half of the roll on top and chow down…I like to go one step further. Mozzarella, Provolone—heck, use Cheez Whiz if you want.

I won’t tell anyone.

Stick it under the broiler to melt.

Serve up little bowls of the juice, too. It’s an absolute treasure.

Oh, yum. The best thing about this sandwich is that the meat is so moist, it seeps into the roll on the bottom and fills it with such flavor.

And the peppers. Don’t get me started on the tangy wonderfulness.

Dip it into the juice…oh, man.

Heaven on a plate.

This is the meat from Pot #2. I went ahead and took the liberty of tasting this one as well.

It’s for the art, man.

And they were both delicious. The Italian recipe is fabulous, and the peppers add a wonderful edge. The more basic recipe was delicious, too, and could be adapted with whatever herbs and spices you’d like to add.

Have a Drip Beef fest for Superbowl Sunday! Men will propose, women will moan and groan with delight, and children will gather ’round your feet with their empty plates.

Enjoy!

Here are the two printable recipes:

Italian Drip Beef

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Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cook Time: 6 Hours

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 10

Ingredients

1 whole Beef Chuck Roast, 2.5 To 4 Pounds
1 can Beef Consomme Or Beef Broth
3 Tablespoons (heaping) Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon Salt
¼ cups Water
½ jars (16 Oz) Pepperoncini Peppers, With Juice
Buttered, Toasted Deli Rolls

Preparation Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a heavy pot or dutch oven. Stir lightly to combine seasoning with the liquid.

Cover and bake in a 275 degree oven* for 5 to 6 hours, or until meat is fork-tender and falling apart. **If meat is not yet tender, return to oven for 30 minute intervals till it’s tender!**

Remove from oven. With two forks, completely shred all meat, leaving no large chunks behind. Serve immediately, or keep warm over a simmer on the stove.

May make the day before, then store in the refrigerator. Remove the hardened fat from the top before reheating.

Serve on buttered, toasted rolls. Top with cheese and melt under the broiler if desired. Serve with juices from the pot.

Basic Drip Beef

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Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cook Time: 6 Hours

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 10

Ingredients

1 whole 2.5 To 4 Pound Chuck Roast
¼ cups Butter
1 whole Large Onion, Sliced Thick
3 cloves Garlic, Peeled
½ cups Soy Sauce
1 cup Sherry (cooking Sherry Is Fine)
½ teaspoons Salt
4 cups Water
Toasted, Buttered Deli Rolls
OPTIONAL: Rosemary, Thyme, Other Spices

Preparation Instructions

Heat butter in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions for a couple of minutes, or until starting to get brown.

Set chuck roast on top of the onions. Add all remaining ingredients. Cover pot and simmer (very low heat) on the stove for 6 hours, or until beef is fork-tender and falling apart. **If meat is not yet tender, return to oven for 30 minute intervals till it’s tender!** Shred meat with two forks until all large chunks are gone. Serve immediately or continue to simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

*Mixture can be refrigerated overnight. Remove hardened fat from top of pan before reheating.

Serve on top of toasted, buttered deli rolls. Top with cheese and place under the broiler if desired.

A Tasty Recipe and Other Matters

Ree — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:43:13 +0000

This is a numeric list.

I just love numeric lists. They satisfy my deep psychological yearning for order.

My pantry sure isn’t going to satisfy that need. It’s a royal mess these days. Someone please come help. Thank you.

THE NUMERIC LIST

One. I made this blessed soup last night:

Because it’s Tuesday, I posted the step-by-step photos on the Tasty Kitchen Blog. Here’s the link:

A Tasty Recipe: The Mushroom Soup

I absolutely loved it. It warmed my pancreas.

Two. Speaking of the Tasty Kitchen Blog, yesterday we featured this guy.

He’s an award-winning grilling expert and has a fun food blog called Patio Daddio. Aside from that, he’s just a nice guy, dad, and husband. Here’s his Tasty Kitchen interview:

Patio Daddio Interview

Three. Last week the lovely Jaden from Steamy Kitchen post this delicious step-by-step recipe on the Tasty Kitchen blog:

Here’s the link to the deliciousness:

Scallops ‘n Pasta

Can I get an amen for scallops?

Amen.

Can I get an amen for Jaden?

Amen. I love that girl.

Four. Many of you asked about this new cast iron pan:

I’m working on getting you a resource; I know CHEFS Catalog has them, but I’m not sure if the pans are listed on their site yet since they’re brand new. But I’ll post a link just as soon as I have one.

That was kinda like when someone asks “Do you have a pencil?” and you answer “Yes. At home.” Helpful!

Five. The Superbowl is this Sunday.

If you’re planning on having a bunch of sweaty, hungry, screaming football fans over to your house, here are all my recipes for appetizers/munchies/finger foods:

P-Dub’s Appetizer Recipes

Note: 1983 references aside, I recommend this Mexican Layer Dip:

Finally, speaking of Superbowl grub, this is in my oven right now.

I’m making two versions of this crowd-friendly grub and will post them both tomorrow for side-by-side comparisons.

To quote the famous trail cook in the epic masterpiece City Slickers:

“The food’s brown…hot…and plenty of it!”

I just love City Slickers. It speaks to me on so many levels.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Ree — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:26:24 +0000

This is an exceedingly yummy, decadent pasta dish with chicken, vegetables, and lots and lots of scrumptious carbs. It’s a cinch to throw together, and if you don’t have prepared Cajun spice in your cabinet, you can just throw a few spices together to make your own combination. Different Cajun spice mixtures use different combinations of ingredients, but if you stick to basics like cayenne pepper (important!), paprika, white pepper (plenty, to help the spice factor), and garlic or onion powder, you’re doing just fine. And you can add Cajun extras to this dish—things like Andouille sausage, crawfish, or shrimp. Play with it…have fun!

Just remember: part of the deliciousness of this pasta dish is the spicy kick. So don’t wimp out on me, baby.

Here’s how you make it.

The Cast of Characters: boneless, skinless chicken breast, olive oil, butter, Cajun spice (make your own or buy the prepared stuff; whichever you prefer), salt, pepper, red onion, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, garlic, fresh parsley, low sodium chicken broth, white wine, and heavy cream.

Oh. And pasta would come in handy. Fettuccine is best for this one.

Start by slicing the veggies: Lop the top and bottom off of the red pepper…

Then slice the pepper down the middle.

Rip out the innards…

Then make slices—not too thick, not too thin.

Do the same with the green bell pepper…

Then slice the red onion in half from root to tip.

Lop off the top and peel off the outer skin…

Then slice up half of the onion.

Cut three or four Roma tomatoes in half lengthwise.

Make three or four slices…

Then slice in the other direction to create a dice.

Now peel three or four cloves of garlic…

And mince them up nice and fine.

Finally, cut the chicken breast into cubes.

Sprinkle the chicken with Cajun spice.

Be generous! Don’t skimp! Go for it! Lay it on thick, brother!

Get my drift?

Now, heat a heavy skillet over high heat. This is my new pan, and I think we’re going to be very happy together.

It’s pre-seasoned cast iron. With a lid, ladies and gentlemen.

Could life be any more exciting than this?

The sad thing is, I’m not exaggerating when I say that.

I’m excited by cookware: that’s the gospel truth.

Begin by adding a little olive oil and butter to the skillet.

When it’s very hot, add half the chicken in a single layer. Don’t stir it right off the bat; let it get really hot/black on one side.

Cook it for about a minute, then flip it over to the other side and cook for another 30 seconds or so. You want to get the chicken as brown as possible in as little time as possible.

Remove the chicken to a plate.

Repeat with the other half of the chicken…

And remove it to the plate when it’s brown.

Leave the pan on high heat, then add in a little more olive oil and butter.

Throw in the onions, peppers, and garlic.

Then sprinkle on some more Cajun spice.

Note: be aware of whether or not your Cajun spice contains salt. If it does not, you’ll need to lightly salt both the chicken and the veggies. If it does contain salt, be careful not to overdo it; stop a little short, then just add more cayenne to make sure you get enough spice without oversalting.

Over very high heat, cook the vegetables for a minute at the most. Like the chicken, you want to get them as brown as possible in the shortest amount of time possible.

Throw in the chopped tomatoes…

Then stir it around and cook it for 30 seconds.

Add the vegetables to the plate with the chicken.

Now, set the pan back over high heat.

Then pour in the wine…

And the chicken broth.

Stir the liquid around with a spoon or whisk, scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the bits off the bottom.

Cook it on high for a few minutes, allowing the liquid to reduce by about half. It should get slightly thicker, and will be nice and deep brown in color.

Yum.

Reduce the heat, then pour in the heavy cream.

Whisk it around to combine, then cook the cream sauce over medium heat for a few minutes until it thickens.

Just look at that deep golden color! Be sure to taste the sauce at this point; add a little cayenne and whisk it around to give it a little more kick.

Once the sauce has thickened a bit, go ahead and add the chicken and vegetables.

And be sure to add all the delectable juices from both the chicken and the vegetables.

This is like liquid gold, my friends. Don’t waste a drop of it.

Allow the sauce to bubble up and continue cooking…

Stir the chicken and veggies around in the sauce, then add freshly ground black pepper. Don’t skimp on the pepper!

When the sauce is done, drain the pasta, which should be nice and al dente.

Dump the pasta right into the pan with the sauce.

Then toss the whole delicious mess together.

Make sure to get all the pasta coated. The sauce will slowly thicken over the next couple of minutes.

Sneak a bite, because you’re a pasta addict and can’t control yourself.

Then sneak another bite, this time with peppers and chicken.

Then get a hold of yourself and sprinkle on a bunch of chopped fresh parsley.

Then take another bite.

Then, when your twelve-year-old daughter does the same thing, shriek, “Quit! It’s not dinnertime yet!”

Then sit there and relish all the beautiful double standards in parenting.

Enjoy!

Cajun Chicken Pasta

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Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 6

Ingredients

3 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, Cut Into Cubes
3 teaspoons Cajun Spice Mix, More To Taste
1 pound Fettuccine
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 whole Green Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
1 whole Red Bell Pepper, Seeded And Sliced
½ whole Large Red Onion, Sliced
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
4 whole Roma Tomatoes, Diced
2 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
½ cups White Wine
1 cup Heavy Cream
Cayenne Pepper To Taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
Salt To Taste
Chopped Fresh Parsley, To Taste

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain when pasta is still al dente; do not overcook!

Sprinkle 1 1/2 teaspoons Cajun spice over chicken pieces. Toss around to coat. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a heavy skillet over high heat. Add half the chicken in a single layer; do not stir. Allow chicken to brown on one side, about 1 minute. Flip to the other side and cook an additional minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a clean plate.

Repeat with remaining chicken. Remove chicken, leaving pan on high heat.

Add remaining olive oil and butter. When heated, add peppers, onions, and garlic. Sprinkle on remaining Cajun spice, and add salt if needed. Cook over very high heat for 1 minute, stirring gently and trying to get the vegetables as dark/black as possible. Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 30 seconds. Remove all vegetables from the pan.

With the pan over high heat, pour in the wine and chicken broth. Cook on high for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in cream, stirring/whisking constantly. Cook sauce over medium-low heat for a few minutes, until cream starts to thicken the mixture. Taste and add freshly ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, and/or salt to taste. Sauce should be spicy!

Finally, add chicken and vegetables to sauce, making sure to include all the juices that have drained onto the plate. Stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until mixture is bubbly and hot. Add drained fettuccine and toss to combine.

Top with chopped fresh parsley and chow down!

Life by Chocolate

Ree — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:24:00 +0000

Enough of this talk of death. Chocolate is a life-giving elixir! Without it, where would we all be?

Oh…we’d all be skinny, you say?

Well, I guess you have a point. Without chocolate, we’d all be skinny. But you know what? We wouldn’t be happy. Did you know that studies have proven that consuming a very small amount of dark chocolate once a day has a more profound affect on mild to moderate depression than prescription serotonin inhibitors? Now, I wouldn’t necessarily advise anyone to stop taking his meds in favor of the dark stuff. At the very least, it suggests to me that somehow, somewhere in the history of humankind, our bodies did once require chocolate in order to maintain psychological homeostasis. Then, over a period of centuries, we drastically departed from the food chain and started eating things like chicken nuggets and Chester’s Puffcorn, and it completely confused our bodies.

I’m here today to take one step back toward where we were meant to be.

Plus, skinny is highly overrated. Who ever said sternums should be visible, anyway?

Although…although I would like to see my hipbones again before I croak. I miss them so.

The Cast of Characters (for the cupcakes): flour, sugar, butter, salt, vanilla, buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, and cocoa. (Forget the mint extract I stuck in there. I was going to flavor the batter slightly with mint—which you certainly can do—but decided against it this time.)

Pure and unadulterated goodness.

Oh, and Hershey’s kisses. Don’t ever forget those.

Begin by bringing 1 cup of water to a boil.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, then add heaping tablespoons of cocoa powder.

Stir the mixture till it’s combined…

Then pour in the boiling water.

Let it bubble up for a second, then turn off the heat and set this mixture aside.

In a separate bowl, mix flour…

Sugar…

And salt.

Stir to combine.

In a separate container, mix 1/2 cup of buttermilk, 2 eggs…

(News Flash: if you don’t have buttermilk, just measure a little less than 1/2 cup milk, then top it off with white vinegar. Instant buttermilk!)

Add 1 teaspoon baking soda…

And 1 teaspoon vanilla.

Mix it all together, then set it aside.

Now it’s time to combine it all! Pour the chocolate mixture over the flour mixture…

Stir it gently to slightly combine the mixture, and to cool the chocolate before adding the egg mixture.

Now pour in the egg mixture…

And stir it gently to combine.

What you’re looking at here is my standard Chocolate Sheet Cake recipe. We’ll be doing a different icing for these cupcakes, but I’ve simply found no better batter when it comes to chocolate cake. It’s moist and chocolaty and versatile…and extremely difficult to mess up, which means it’s right up my alley.

Spray a muffin tin with baking spray.

Add 1/4 cup of batter to each cup.

Then peel a bunch of Hershey’s Kisses…(of course, it would help to do this ahead of time.)

Then lightly set a Kiss in the middle of each cupcake.

Don’t press; just let it naturally sink.

Now bake the cupcakes for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Yum…

Yum! Set them on a rack to cool.

Just for fun, here’s another little variation.

Plain, pitted cherries—not cherry pie filling.

Place three cherries in the bottom of each cup…

Then just pour 1/4 cup batter right over the top.

Bake them for 21 to 22 minutes. (The cherries add a little moisture, which sometimes requires a slightly longer baking time.)

Most importantly: when this happens, don’t fret…rejoice!

Then lick it up.

And now, for the serotonin-inhibiting part: we’re going to make ganache!

It’s easy as pie. Measure 1 cup of heavy cream. No substitutions; the fat is essential.

Measure 5 to 6 tablespoons of corn syrup…

And add it to the cream. Bring the cream to a simmer.

Now, chop up about 8 ounces of dark chocolate. It’s for your mental well-being.

Throw it into a bowl, and just look at it for awhile.

Now, add vanilla to the warm cream, and stir it to combine.

Finally, just pour the warm cream mixture over the top of the chopped chocolate.

And whisk it together until the chocolate’s melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy.

Now, just dunk the cupcakes upside down in the ganache.

You could certainly just pour ganache over the top of them…but I hadn’t eaten enough dark chocolate yet to have the psychological fortitude to clean up the mess. But if you’re working with a layer cake or something with a larger surface area, pouring the ganache is the best method.

After you dunk them, just turn ‘em back over and set them on a cooling rack to set. Notice my reflection in the cupcakes? That’s the beauty of ganache; it’s like a mirror!

Now, you can just stop here if you’d like. I sort of like leaving the bottom uncoated; you’re getting plenty of dark chocolate flavor from the ganache on top, and it’s less effort. But it you’d like to dunk the bottom half, just allow the ganache on top to set a little bit…then dunk the bottom. Just keep in mind that you’ll have to warm up the ganache a bit so it won’t be too gloopy.

An alternate method is to dunk the base first…

Then spoon the ganache over the top.

These are the cupcakes with the cherries inside. They’re a little lumpier.

Lumpy = delicious.

And that’s it, my loves. Just a simple, beautiful chocolate cupcake with comforting, life-giving properties. They can be an after-school treat or a fancy dinner party dessert. Serve one of these warm on a plate with coffee ice cream or a big pile of freshly whipped cream with a little mint leaf for garnish, and you won’t know what hit you.

Enjoy!

Here’s the handy-dandy printable:

Life by Chocolate Cupcakes

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Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 20 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 18

Ingredients

CUPCAKES
2 cups Sugar
2 cups All-purpose Flour
¼ teaspoons Salt
½ cups Buttermilk
2 whole Eggs
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 sticks 1 Cup Butter
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa Powder
1 cup Water, Boiling
18 whole Hershey's Kisses, Unwrapped
Canned Pitted Cherries (optional)
GANACHE
8 ounces, weight Bittersweet Chocolate
1 cup Heavy Cream
6 Tablespoons Corn Syrup
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 18 muffin cups with baking spray.

To make the cake batter, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Set aside.

In a separate container, combine buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir to combine and set aside.

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and stir to combine. Add boiling water, allow to bubble for a few seconds, then turn off heat.

Pour chocolate mixture over flour mixture. Stir a few times to cool the chocolate. Pour buttermilk mixture over the top and stir to combine.

Pour 1/4 cup cake batter into each muffin cup. Lightly set one kiss in the middle of each cupcake; do not press down.

(Alternately, you can add 3 canned, pitted cherries to each muffin cup before adding the batter.)

Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove cupcakes and allow to cool on a baking rack.

To make the ganache, heat cream and corn syrup over medium heat. Chop chocolate and add to a bowl. Add vanilla to cream mixture, then pour cream mixture over the top of the chopped chocolate. Whisk together until melted, smooth, and glossy.

Dunk cupcakes in ganache. Allow to cool and set before serving.

Restaurant Style Salsa

Ree — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 13:07:50 +0000

Okay. Here’s the situation:

I am completely high maintenance when it comes to salsa.

Now, I’m not talking about Pico de Gallo. I’m high maintenance there, too…but that’s not what I’m making today.

What I’m making today is salsa. The kind they serve in restaurants with chips. The kind they sell in jars. The kind you eat during a football game. The kind that’s replaced ketchup as the number one condiment in America.

As ubiquitous as it is, you’d think salsa would be a pretty straightforward thing. But it isn’t. It’s tricky. Crafty. Mischievous. There’s a lot of bad salsa out there, and I’m about an inch away from completely giving up on the stuff that’s sold in jars. When it comes to a good salsa, here’s my list of demands:

No big chunks, man! Big chunks are good when it comes to the fresh tomatoes in pico de gallo. But when it comes to regular salsa, which is generally made from canned tomatoes, I prefer more of a pureed, thin consistency.

No vinegar, dude! At all. Vinegar does not belong in salsa, which is why I’m not a big fan of salsa from a jar. Most of it contains vinegar as a preservative.

Must have cilantro, holmes! Lots and lots of cilantro.

Who knew I had such deeply felt principles?

Salsa…it just brings it out in me.

My whole point is, if you have a good blender or food processor, making salsa at home is a total snap. It’ll keep in the fridge for as long as it’ll last (which is never very long, in my experience) and is absolutely worth every second of effort.

The Cast of Characters: Whole canned tomatoes, Rotel (tomatoes and chilies), onion, fresh jalapeno, salt, sugar, garlic, and cilantro.

Dice up a little onion. You won’t need much.

Throw the canned tomatoes, juice and all, into the bowl of a food processor.

Next, dump in the two cans of Rotel.

That I used one can of Mild and one can of Original was purely an accident…but strangely, the balance of spice turned out to be just right.

Add just 1/4 cup chopped onion to the bowl. This doesn’t seem like a lot, considering that in my Pico de Gallo recipe, I preach and preach about how important it is for the onion to receive equal billing with the tomatoes. But for this salsa, it’s best to go subtle with the onions.

Now, chop up one clove of garlic and add it to the bowl.

Again: moderation, baby.

Jalapenos. Slit in half lengthwise.

Then slit the halves in half lengthwise.

Make thin slices, leaving in the seeds and membranes because you’re tough. You can take it.

Throw ‘em right in with everything else.

Next, add 1/4 teaspoon sugar…

And 1/4 teaspoon salt.

Next comes some lime juice—a half a lime if it’s large, a whole lime if it’s a little one.

Next, add 1/2 to 1 cup cilantro.

I’m a cilantro freakazoid, but if you’re not, feel free to go lighter.

But it really does add a lot of flavor.

Pulse it seven or eight times.

This is pretty chunky, and you can stop here if you like this consistency. But I wanna go farther; as I stated in my diatribe above, I don’t like chunks in my salsa.

Plus, I forgot to add the cumin!

Just 1/4 teaspoon will do; this’ll give the salsa just the tiniest cumin undertone. Any more than this and it starts to get a little strong. A little—dare I say?—cuminy?

Pulse it up again until it reaches the consistency you want. I like it very homogenized, without a whole lot of distinction between ingredients. I like it smooth, baby, not chunky. Everything’s evenly distributed. The flavor’s mild but spicy…without the annoying bite of vinegar.

Vinegar in salsa = bad. Very, very bad.

Now, be sure to taste it with a tortilla chip so you can get an accurate sense of the seasonings. Adjust as needed…but I hardly ever have to add anything at this point, beyond a little more cilantro. I never add more salt—there’s plenty on the chips!

Now, it’s ideal if you can cover and refrigerate the salsa for a couple of hours at least. This’ll help everything meld and marry and mingle and become perfect.

And then…

It’s time to serve it up!

I’m sorry…but chips and salsa. What in all creation is better than this?

Sidenote: please observe my psychedelic bird dish.

Thank you for your cooperation.

It’s Hyacinth’s fault. All psychedelic bird dishes are Hyacinth’s fault.

China Check: Tracy Porter.

But this salsa? This salsa is my fault. I take full responsibility.

And as my punishment, I’ll go ahead and polish it off for you.

But first, I’m going to make nachos.

But instead of plain ol’ Monterey Jack (whose beauty is not to be underestimated) or a cheddar/jack blend, I’m breaking out the good stuff. I found these at my precious little smalltown grocery store. First Parmigiano Regianno…and now this.

Grate it up. And this brings me to one of the most important principles of making cheese nachos:

Always grate your own cheese.

This is important stuff, my friends.

Sprinkle the cheese over the first layer of chips. Don’t lay it on too thick; you want some of each chip to shine through.

I put way too much thought into nachos.

Add another layer of chips…and another layer of cheese. Then pop it in a 350 degree oven (make sure it’s an ovenproof plate) for about 5 minutes.

Pull the plate out of the oven when the cheese is hot, melted, bubbly, and eager.

Yum. Oh, yum.

And yum again. Cheese nachos. Good homemade salsa. It’s enough to bring a desperate ranch wife to tears.

Enjoy!

Restaurant Style Salsa

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Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time:

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 can (28 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes With Juice
2 cans (10 Ounce) Rotel (diced Tomatoes And Green Chilies)
¼ cups Chopped Onion
1 clove Garlic, Minced
1 whole Jalapeno, Quartered And Sliced Thin
¼ teaspoons Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
¼ teaspoons Ground Cumin
½ cups Cilantro (more To Taste!)
½ whole Lime Juice

Preparation Instructions

Combine whole tomatoes, Rotel, onion, jalapeno, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and cilantro in a blender or food processor. Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you’d like—I do about 10 to 15 pulses. Test seasonings with a tortilla chip and adjust as needed.

Refrigerate salsa for at least an hour. Serve with tortilla chips or cheese nachos.

A Tasty Recipe: Lettuce Wraps

Ree — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:12:00 +0000

First. The four winners of the Surf & Turf sushi weekend have been contacted. (See list of winners here.) However…as of Tuesday morning, only three have responded. I’ll give the fourth winner till the end of the day today to respond; if I don’t hear from them, I’ll choose another winner tonight. Meanwhile, I’m in the process of planning several other cooking weekends at the Lodge this year and am gathering creative ideas for cooking/baking themes and expert demonstrations. Feel free to offer suggestions here for unique/hands-on cooking retreats—2010 is the year of the Lodge getaway.

Second. It’s been about six months since my happy little community recipe site called Tasty Kitchen was born. It’s been a wonderfully fun experience, and the goldmine of recipes people are sharing there is…is…well, let’s just say it’s a treasure. My girls now regularly scour the submitted recipes for new ideas (note that they never veer far from the “Cookies” category) and I’ve found some real jewels over there myself.

Last month, I added a blog to Tasty Kitchen and have been planning some fun things: featuring Tasty Kitchen members, quick how-to’s, guest posts from foodbloggers, and—of course—step-by-step recipe instruction once a week. The recipes chosen for the step-by-steps will be some of the less-noticed ones, recipes that might otherwise be overlooked. I think it’ll be a fun way to find hidden treasures that folks might otherwise miss.

I started this series with this recipe for Lettuce Wraps, submitted by Tasty Kitchen member tfenger. Follow the link below to see the step-by-step recipe on the TK Blog.

A Tasty Recipe: Lettuce Wraps, Step-by-Step

(Here’s the printable recipe if you need it now.)

Lettuce Wraps

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Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 pound Ground Beef Or Turkey
2 Tablespoons Peanut Oil, Or Other Light Cooking Oil
1 whole Onion (small)
1 clove Garlic, Large
1 piece Fresh Ginger (1 Inch Long)
1 whole Red Pepper
½ cups Diced Water Chestnuts
3 Tablespoons Chinese Cooking Wine
4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Tablespoon Peanut Chili, Or Satay, Sauce
1 Tablespoon Hoisin Sauce
1 teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 head Iceberg Lettuce

Preparation Instructions

The prep for this dish takes the longest, so get everything chopped and ready beforehand. Once you get cooking, you add ingredients fairly quickly.

Prep the veggies:
Dice the onion and red pepper. Drain and rinse the water chestnuts. Mince the garlic and the ginger. Cut out the core of the iceberg lettuce and give it a rinse. Allow the lettuce to drain, and carefully loosen the leaves.

Prep the sauce:
Mix together the soy sauce, oyster sauce, peanut chili sauce, hoisin sauce and the sesame oil.

Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the peanut oil to the pan, allow it to heat up for a minute, then add the diced onion. Cook the onion for a few minutes. When it starts to become translucent (after 4 or 5 minutes), add the garlic and ginger. Stir fry for 30 seconds, then add the ground meat. Brown the meat, then add the red pepper and water chestnuts, stirring constantly. After another 3 or 4 minutes, add in the Chinese cooking wine. Allow this to sizzle and cook for about a minute, then add in the sauce. Stirring frequently, let this cook for 2 or three minutes. The sauce should thicken a bit. If it doesn’t, you can add a teaspoon or two of cornstarch.

Serve with the iceberg lettuce: take one leaf and add a few heaping spoonfuls of the meat mixture, fold up, and enjoy! I recommend serving this with steamed rice.

New recipe here on PW Cooks tomorrow. I apologize in advance for the butter I might use.

Love,
P-Dub