Cheese Fondue

Last year I picked up a fairly cheap fondue pot, and finally pulled it out of storage for a little food project:

I always loved doing fondue as a kid in the '70's--we cooked chunks of steak in oil and dipped them in a couple kinds of sauces.  I inherited my parents' lime-green fondue pot and even used it for a double-date back in the 90's that lasted until 2am since we couldn't get it fueled properly.  Despite its condition, I sadly lost it in the move from the city to the suburbs. 

Flash forward to last night--I pulled out the one I picked up on a whim last summer and my daughter and I put together a delicious cheese fondue.  Here's what we did:

• 1/4 stick of butter or so melted first
• little pack of goat cheese melted next
• cheddar slices
• gruyere cheese grated (gruyere is key!!)
• splash of white wine for more liquid and sweetness
• squeeze of lemon juice for acid tang flavor

I believe that some recipes call for more liquid (wine) and flour but my kids don't care for too much wine flavor (yet!).

We chopped up some fairly crusty french baguette slices and dipped them in for an awesome meal!  We also fondued some orange pepper slices to add veggies to the mix.

Separately, we melted butter and chocolate chips in a pan and dipped in strawberries so the daughter could have her dessert fondue also.  You really don't need a fondue pot to make these things but they are fun to use!

We are planning a steak and seafood fondue session for next weekend along with some custom sauces!  Fun for kids and it would make for a nice, albeit small, wine/food night for couples. 

Tips for Home Cooks Part 2--Better fried chicken, use of vinegar, home made mac n' cheese, pizza dough at home, leftover mashed potatoes, etc.

This is my second installment in a short list of tips for home cooks who want to put in a little extra effort and learn some quick little items to enhance their technique if you haven't already figured some of this out.  I read a lot of cookbooks and food magazines but I am constantly humbled by what I don't know.

I hope this is helpful for a few of you out there!

*Better fried chicken--I have always struggled with making great fried chicken at home, but today I tested out a technique I saw on some food show that really helps.  I don't have a deep fryer, but this worked fine in a pan with a half inch of canola oil.  My kids were starving, so I didn't even use my usual bone-in chicken; we sliced up the dreaded boneless, skinless chicken breasts instead!  (I just prefer bone-in almost all the time).

The key was to soak the cutlets in milk, dip in a flour mix ("Frying Magic" brand works fine if you don't want to mix your own), and then DIP A SECOND TIME IN MILK, then sprinkle on my flour mix.  Simple adjustment but the results were so much better.

*Vinegar--this is a tiny thing I read from one of Michael Ruhlman's incredible books; you can see his site by clicking here.  He's a great teacher.  The idea is to simply splash a tiny amount of vinegar into a soup to brighten up all the flavors.  Trust me, it works.  A teaspoon is often sufficient for a home cook's pot.  Chili recipes often use vinegar, so why not soups?  I like apple cider vinegar for many uses, and rice wine vinegar is an obvious component for Asian dishes.

*Home made mac n' cheese--I still enjoy the boxed stuff once in a long while, but making home made mac n' cheese is awesome and my kids love it.  You can search for recipes, but my basic plan includes a roux (butter & flour), then becomes a Bechamel when cream or milk is whisked in, then a rich cheese sauce when you fold in great shredded cheddar, gruyere, or whatever you prefer.  Then, fold in al dente elbow macaroni with a bit of salt and the secret ingredient--ground dry mustard.  Just a bit.  Then bake it with good breadcrumbs on top.  If you don't have time, skip the baking and it will still be superior to the blue box stuff. Optional ingredients include bits of cooked bacon or onion.

*See my recent pizza dough post on this!  Very worth the time and mess.

*Leftover mashed potatoes--again, see my new post on this.

*Squeeze lemon juice (from actual lemons) on veggies, grilled meat, etc.  Squeeze lime juice on your tacos and use real corn tortillas (fry them quickly on each side for maximum flavor).

Have fun and go the extra step to enjoy great food at home!

Easy and Fun Home Made Pizza Dough That Kids Will Love to Make

It's really worth the effort to make your own pizza dough from scratch and then load up on various toppings to make your own awesome pizza at home.  It's tastier and less greasy than many delivery joints, and kids will enjoy making their own.

Here my daughter and I made pizza dough from a simple water, dry yeast, and flour dough.  Don't forget a pinch of salt because it enhances any dough or home made bread.

The other key thing in our opinion is to mix cheeses--don't just use shredded mozzarella; be sure to at least add some shredded Parmesan, but you can test out goat cheese, Romano, etc.  The richness of the other cheese is what makes a good pizza stand out vs. something simple.

In this photo, we have a pizza with only a simple light spread of tomato paste, some sauteed button mushroom slices, and the aforementioned mozzarella/Parmesan blend.  Finally, be sure to sprinkle on some dried oregano, something I learned making pizza bread at a small family sub sandwich shop in high school! For my own part of the pizza, I will drizzle on olive oil and a dash of red pepper flakes.

These are just tips; for a full starter recipe I would recommend this one from Food Network's Giada De Laurentiis.  You'll get the hang of it and it becomes easier over time and is totally worth the effort!

Great Meatloaf Recipe

Despite all my cooking experiments, I don't recall ever making meatloaf, but wanted to introduce my kids to this all-American comfort food!  I just didn't want to use my mom's or grandma's dried out versions (my mom is unlikely to Google this post and my grandma is long gone, RIP!). 

I adapted a recipe from one of my favorite Food Network authorities, Alton Brown, and did the following:

 

Here I mixed up a couple of pounds of a meat blend from Casey's Foods in Naperville, IL, (http://caseysfoods.com/), which is 1/3 ground chuck, 1/3 veal, and 1/3 pork.  I added two eggs, a bit of salt, and about a TBSP of chopped cayenne pepper that I grew on my patio.  A cool tip from the original recipe is to use a half cup of ground BBQ potato chips chopped in a food processor instead of the usual bread crumbs to add flavor and texture.  I went the extra mile by mixing in a 1/4 cup of mirepoix (look it up) of finely chopped and sauteed onion, carrot, and garlic, but you can probably skip this by dashing in a bit of garlic salt instead. 

I formed the meat into two "logs" to fix my pan and lit the charcoal grill; see the photo to see how I grilled it indirectly, though I cooked it right over the coals for the first 20 minutes or so in the pan.  I also added some sliced jalapenos so my son and I could get some heat (my daughter won't go there!).  You'll need to use your own judgement about cooking on a grill or in an oven.  Overall it cooked about 20 minutes directly over the coals while in the pan, then another 15-20 indirectly away from the coals.  Flip it once.  Only once if possible.  Don't overwork your meat :)  Just throw it all in the oven for 40-50 minutes on maybe 350 if you don't want to bother with the grill. 

The baste is simply 3/4 cup ketchup and a bit of worcestershire sauce mixed in. It all went over really well, especially when with a little extra sauce around for topping the sandwiches we ended up making out of the meatloaf!  Definitely awesome on the grill! 

Growing Cayenne Peppers

       Hi, this is Mike's daughter, Katie, and last year my dad, me and my brother Jack were planting some cherry tomatoes, basil, and some other herbs like we had done the past few years. This year, unlike the others, we decided to try something new: cayenne peppers. We planted them just the same as the others, but the growth was different. The cayenne peppers were visible earlier than the tomatoes. They started green, then over time turned red as they grew to a huge size. Almost as long as bell peppers, the cayenne peppers were, at the largest, 3 cm wide and turned purple after sitting out or staying on the plant for too long. We found that putting the peppers in a plastic bag and placing them in the freezer kept the cayenne peppers from getting too old and preserved the flavors. I recommend these peppers to people who like hot foods, but people who don't- maybe not.

Tips for Home Cooks--Roasting Chicken, Curing Salmon at Home, etc.

In the last few years I've been doing a lot of reading about cooking and have improved a lot of things in my home cooking.  I humbly present my first set of tips for home cooks who want some simple ways to boost what they can do, some of which I've already posted about (see the links highlighted):

• Roast a chicken every week, enjoy it with sides and maybe a gravy from the drippings, and use the extra meat for either a chicken noodle soup or shred the leftover meat for a taco filling.  Substitute rotisserie chicken from a store if easier.

• Use leftover french bread that is getting a little stale by chopping it up and tossing it like crutons in a salad with vinegarette, or use the chunks to thicken a soup.  Even simply heating up chicken broth with some leftover bread will warm you up and be an easy snack.

• Pat dry sea scallops for sauteeing, otherwise they won't sear and just poach lamely in all the water they release upon cooking. 

• Saute onions!  Just slice white or yellow onions thinly and saute them in olive oil until the have a nice mix of carmelization and sweetness while retaining a bit of crunch.  Use medium to high heat but reduce before burning them.  With some experience this can become the number one topping for your burgers and chicken breast sandwiches. 

• Cure your own salmon--buy a good, fresh piece and rub a mix of salt and brown sugar all over it, then rub in a splash of rum or whiskey.  Wrap it tight and in two days you'll have a delicious filet you can thinly slice into lox.  Place it atop a traditional bagel & cream cheese, or go for a BLA--bagel, lox, and avocado (mash avocado and lemon juice as a topping, and add slices of tomato and red onion to complete it)

Gumbo at home!

I needed to use up some leftover chicken thighs recently and thought that I'd try some gumbo.  Since I don't have access to killer seafood here in Chicago, I made do with canned clams and crab meat.  It was still delicious!  Here's the photo:

I've moved beyond using recipes that much, but here's a basic outline for what I did:

1) stir together an equal mix of olive oil and flour to create a classic roux; let it brown for a few minutes

2) stir in and saute chopped green pepper and onion

3) I added in leftover chicken thighs and continued sauteing, adding a bit more oil as needed

4) stir in a couple of cups of water and a chicken bouillon cube (or broth if you have it)

5) after some cooking time (20-30 minutes), remove the chicken thighs so you can cool them and hand shred the chicken for adding afterwards

6) add some frozen chopped okra pieces assuming you cannot get good fresh okra (I couldn't), also add a 16 oz. can or two of chopped tomatoes (depending on the quantity you desire)

7) add back the shredded chicken, a can or two of canned chopped clams and crabmeat

8) chop some cooked Andouille sausage and add to the mix.  Season the pot with cayenne, salt, and thyme to taste

9) let it simmer a half hour longer or more

I served it over some cooked white rice.  Next time, I will actually skip the chicken altogether and focus on the seafood, sausage, and vegetables.  The sausage added the most flavor and I'd like to try some shrimp and oysters next time.  In Chicago you do the best you can with the ingredients available but the chicken was kind of lame!  The okra, however frozen, turned out to be the highlight of the dish!

How I Do Thanksgiving Turkey

Most years for Thanksgiving I grill a turkey on a charcoal Weber grill using the indirect method--you can see I have two piles of coals on either side and I fashion a drip pan out of foil under the turkey.  If you add more charcoal each hour, you can do a 18-20 pounder in about 3 hours and the flavor from the smoke is wonderful and most of the turkey stays juicy except the outer edge of the white meat.

This year I made a 14 pounder and reduced the overall time on the grill to 2.5 hours--I actually tried a technique I saw on a food show where you remove the legs after the turkey is mostly done and put them back on the grill for 15-20 minutes longer while the rest of turkey, mostly white meat, rests.  This attempts to solve the issue that dark meat will cook longer given the bones and fat content.  I hope to perfect the technique next time as my timing was a little off when I initially took off the legs.

St. Louis Country-Style Ribs

The latest issue of Saveur Magazine, dedicated to real BBQ, had a wonderful set of stories and recipes worth checking out.  I tested out their riff on St. Louis style-BBQ, where cooks grill ribs and pork steaks and then finish them in a sauce in the oven.  Saveur's version works entirely in the kitchen, so it's a great option if grilling or smoking the ribs is not an option (perfect for winter BBQ, or if you cannot charcoal grill or don't have a smoker grill).

It's pretty simple--click on the link above for the entire recipe, but simply saute the onions, garlic, bacon, and ancho chili powder in a pot like I did:

Then I added the tomatoes, vinegar, brown sugar, etc. until it blended well.  I added a bit of red pepper flakes for some heat.  Separately I browned the ribs in a pan and then added them to the pot and braised it slowly as per the recipe, though I actually used more time and a lower temperature to keep the ribs juicy.

It worked out really well, and the ribs were very flavorful and tender--I ate them with some fresh corn on the cob:

Of course, Saveur's professional photo of their end result is far better, but I can tell you that the flavors worked out really well and I'll have leftovers to use with "al pastor" tacos tomorrow!

Homemade Potato Pizza

After watching a "Best Thing I Ever Ate: Pizza Edition" episode on Food Network, I tried an experiment where my homemade pizza included thin slices of potato, which might sound odd but it would be similar to the Spanish tortilla concept that I've written about before, though this pizza would not share the eggs as an ingredient.

I've tried this twice now, and it's worked out very well.  Tonight's edition (above) included grocery-bought pizza dough, a tiny spread of jarred pasta sauce, very thinly sliced potato slices, chopped fresh garlic, a pile of shredded mozzarella, some grated Parmesan, oregano flakes, red pepper flakes, and drizzled olive oil.  Delicious!

Clam and Spam Chowder

For awhile I've been curious about the actual cooking potential with the much-lambasted processed pork substance known as Spam.  I've heard that serious cooks have used it creatively, and there's plenty of web recipes out there you can look up.

In light of the big Midwest blizzard about to hit, I bought a tin and have been sampling ways to use it.  I fried up a slice of it and ate it like a little slider burger--not bad!

In this experiment, I substituted it for bacon in a clam chowder dish I whipped up using classic techniques that I've done many times.  Here's what I did:

1) Diced half a potato and a quarter of a white onion, and sauteed them in a bit of olive oil.
2) Added about a 1/4 stick of real butter, and stirred it in along with a TBSP or so of flour (like a roux for thickening and enriching)
3) Stirred in a cup and a half or so of 2% milk, and a chicken bouillon cube (a little water may be needed)

4) I chopped a little of the Spam and mixed it in the chowder
5) I added a 6.5 oz. can of minced clams along with maybe half of the liquid

I let it simmer on low heat for awhile, tasting it to get a sense of how soft the potato chunks were getting.  You can also judge thickness by how the liquid rolls off your spoon as the picture above shows (still too watery).  I simmered it about 15-20 minutes longer and added a shake of Chulula pepper sauce for a kick.

When it thickened and concentrated the flavors, I served it up and enjoyed.  I added a bit of salt earlier in the process, but the Spam and bouillon provided plenty of salt kick, so I wouldn't bother next time.

If I discover some new things to do with Spam, I'll post again!  I will likely be Spammed-out, however, after the one little tin......

First Calzone!

Since I've been making my own pizza dough for awhile, I thought I'd try a calzone one time.  I used the usual dry yeast and water mix (with a little sugar and salt) to make my dough, then rolled it very flat as I might in making a small pizza. 

I then added jarred tomato sauce, chopped onion, minced garlic, chopped salami, red pepper flakes, and provolone cheese into the center as filling, then folded it over and sealed up the edges.  I forgot to add oregano as well but next time I will modify it quite a bit anyway.

I baked it at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, and it turned out quite tasty!

Pizza for Kids

My kids eat a lot of pizza, but they are also excited about a "make your own" pizza night.  I help them make the dough from scratch using the typical dry yeast, salt, sugar, flour, and water (you can look up bread basics easily).

We spread on jarred pizza sauce such as Boboli's brand (I'm not making everything from scratch here!), and then I present a mix of ingredients for them to pick.  Typical ones include sauteed mushrooms, chopped garlic, carmelized onion, pepperoni, shredded Italian cheese blends,  black olives, and less conventional options such as browned ground beef and pickles. 

You can see from the photo that my daughter shaped her pizza like a heart and had cheese, black olives, pepperoni (like eyes), and pickles.  My son loves to do the same but include mushrooms, a lot of hamburger and a lot of pickles.  Mine is not pictured, but simply did garlic, cheese, mushrooms, and red pepper flakes.

Baking the pizza is by instinct--maybe 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the dough.

If you have kids, this is a real fun project and they tend to eat more when it's their own creation!

Easy Homemade Fries

Back in college I cooked hand-cut fries, burgers, teriyaki chicken, etc. at Murphy's Pub in Champaign, IL.  After taking my kids to Five Guy's for old school burgers and fries a few times, I realized that I could easily replicate the fries but with healthy olive oil at home.

In this photo, I've made thicker, wedge-style fries, but I've done a similar technique with fries cut into sticks like you'd get at Five Guys.

It's pretty simple--cut the fries from Idaho russet potatoes and soak the pieces in a salt and water brine for an hour or so.  Then heat a large pan with half an inch of olive oil and pat dry the potatoes in paper or kitchen towels.  Fry the pieces on medium heat--adjusting to make sure you both gently cook the inside yet add a bit of crispiness on the outside.  If you use thicker cuts, you can blanch them or nuke them first to make sure the inside gets soft.  I serve them for my daughter with ketchup, but my son and I prefer dashing malt vinegar on top like they do at Murphy's and in the UK. 

Meat Grinder Experiment

Not long ago I was given an old meat grinder from a friend, and I bought some pork at a Mexican grocery to test it out. 

I ground up a cheap cut of pork with cilantro and red onion to test it out.

Here's the ground meat that I then fried up like a hamburger:

I ended up making a burger with BBQ sauce with cheddar on toasted sourdough bread--tasty, no matter how bad my photo shows it!

Pizza Tortilla Rolls for Kids

My kids were recently hungry in between breakfast and lunch, so I quickly wrapped up some pizza sauce, mozzerella cheese, a bit of oregano, and sliced pepperoni into tortillas, and baked these little rolls quickly to make them a hearty snack!  They specifically asked me to include this on my food blog, so I hope it shows one way to whip up a quick bite to eat when there are leftovers around to use up!  (in this case, I already had the pizza making ingredients open and available in the fridge, and making something out of leftovers is an art in and of itself in my humble opinion)

Tomato, Basil, & Goat Cheese Pizza

My "garden" is delivering it's first batch of produce already; actually I just have a collection of potted plants on the patio--tomatoes, peppers, and herbs.  I have about a dozen plants in terra cotta pots, and the kids have designated plants to care for, though it's mostly me watering them daily!  (I'm talking about watering the plants, not the kids!).

My first tomato ripened up already, and I've had basil going for awhile, so I whipped up a small pizza to highlight the summer vegetables.  I used some yeast and a mix of whole wheat and white flour for the dough, then topped it with goat cheese, the tomato, dried oregano, and drizzed olive oil.  After baking I sprinkled on the fresh basil leaves--chopped at the last minute to release the flavor.  Great summer fare!

Quick New Chili Recipe

Today I was making a batch of Cincinnati style chili, and wanted to test a smaller new chili dish alongside of it since I'd be sharing some of the ingredients.  I meant to make this a vegetarian chili, but after realizing I had some Spanish-style spicy chorizo sausage around, I ended up creating this version instead.  Note: Spanish chorizo is more like kielbasa and not to be confused with the highly fatty and very spicy Mexican style chorizo which comes uncooked in a tube.

1) saute 1/2 cups sweet onion in a medium saucepan in olive oil.

2) add 1/2 diced Spanish chorizo sausage, continue the saute

3) pour in 1 1/2 cup water, add half a beef bouillon cube

4) stir 1 TBSP chili powder, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, 1 TBSP red wine vinegar, a small piece of unsweetened chocolate (1/2 tsp), 1/2 tsp cumin, and a dash of salt.

5) add 1/2 or 3/4 a 16 oz. can of white northern beans (cannellini)

6) if needed for extra liquid, add another 1/2 cup water or beer

7) bring to a boil, then turn down and add 1/2 cup elbow macaroni

8) cook about 20-25 minutes on low heat and serve with chedder or co-jack cheese!  Sour cream is another option, and if I had some fresh cilantro I would have garnished with that.

Enjoyed best with a cold bottle of lager!

Southwestern Pork Chops

About a month ago I had a craving for some pork, but also for Southwest flavorings, so I coated some pork chops with paprika, chili powder, salt, and cayenne and grilled them over charcoal.

I then made a basic pico de gallo with garlic, onion, jalapeno, and fresh tomato to place atop the chops. To accompany the chops I heated up some refried beans and added a dollop of sour cream to make this a very simple but hearty Southwestern-style dish. I also grilled up some fresh corn served with real butter and salt. Easy and tasty!

More Burgers!

Having just finished the latest copy of Saveur magazine, which featured a great story about burgers, I just had to grill out at the neighborhood pool's firepit this weekend.

I simply grilled cheddar cheeseburgers with onions, and I topped mine with crisp lettuce, ketchup, and mustard. I grilled the buns a little bit too. For a little extra kick I had mixed in a bit of raw white onion and that worked out well for added flavor. Sometimes the basics of food are so good!