I'm coming back online soon. My home PC crashed - BSOD from a totally pooched windoze.
Again.
Moved went over to XP (was W2K & , NO, I will not go to Vista, A.K.A. Millenium II).
Just a few more apps to load and I'll be up again. yippee.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Herbed Pork Roast
I've only made a pork roast a couple of times before, and I don't recall either being all that great. So when My wife came home from the grocery ( I was a bit under the weather, so she subbed for me that week) with a big ol' hunka pork, I coulnd't help but wonder what the heck she was thinking! I guess I'd impressed her enough with my recent culinary accomplishments that she figured I'd have no problems...
After a bit of 'net research, I came up with a recipe that I hoped would produce a half-decent outcome. From the family's reaction, I think I did. I found a few tips here and there. First was to not trim off the layer of fat that is usually on one side of the roast and to keep that side up while roasting. Oiling up the roast with the seaonings and putting it in a very hot oven for a short while before turning it down for a long while was another good tip, helping to "seal" the piece and keep it juicy
so here's what I did----
Ingredients:
2 ½ pound pork loin roast
Olive oil, a tablespoon or two
1 Tablespoon of a combination of herbs:
-a mix of rosemary, thyme, marjoram leaves
¼ teaspoon rubbed sage
¼ teaspoon ground red Thai chili
½ teaspoon of salt (I used kosher salt)
¼ teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
Method:
Preheat the oven to 450°
Put the olive oil in a small bowl.
Add the herbs, chili, salt and pepper, mix to blend.
Rub the mixture all over the roast (top, bottom, sides and all...).
Line a pan with foil and put the roasting rack in it.
Put the herbed roast on the rack with the fat side up and put the roast in the oven.
After 10 minutes, turn down the heat on the oven to 250° and continue to cook for 50 to 80 minutes, until a meat thermometer measures the internal temperature at150°. The cooking time will vary with the roast's shape - longer for a thicker piece, shorter for a more narrow piece.
When it is done, remove the roast to a cutting board. Cover it loosely with foil (I just loosely tented the roast) and let it sit for about 15 minutes to rest*.
Slice the roast about ¾" and serve.
I served mine with garlic-sour cream mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli.
*Resting meat: there is some controversy as to whether one should cover/tent/wrap meat while resting (AKA complete carry-over cooking). It works for me, so I do it.
BTW, this is a bit of the "ground" Thai chili pepper I used. I made this from the peppers that Rosie brought me last fall (Thanks, Rosie!).
Enjoy,
Lorence
After a bit of 'net research, I came up with a recipe that I hoped would produce a half-decent outcome. From the family's reaction, I think I did. I found a few tips here and there. First was to not trim off the layer of fat that is usually on one side of the roast and to keep that side up while roasting. Oiling up the roast with the seaonings and putting it in a very hot oven for a short while before turning it down for a long while was another good tip, helping to "seal" the piece and keep it juicy
so here's what I did----
Ingredients:
2 ½ pound pork loin roast
Olive oil, a tablespoon or two
1 Tablespoon of a combination of herbs:
-a mix of rosemary, thyme, marjoram leaves
¼ teaspoon rubbed sage
¼ teaspoon ground red Thai chili
½ teaspoon of salt (I used kosher salt)
¼ teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
Method:
Preheat the oven to 450°
Put the olive oil in a small bowl.
Add the herbs, chili, salt and pepper, mix to blend.
Rub the mixture all over the roast (top, bottom, sides and all...).
Line a pan with foil and put the roasting rack in it.
Put the herbed roast on the rack with the fat side up and put the roast in the oven.
After 10 minutes, turn down the heat on the oven to 250° and continue to cook for 50 to 80 minutes, until a meat thermometer measures the internal temperature at150°. The cooking time will vary with the roast's shape - longer for a thicker piece, shorter for a more narrow piece.
When it is done, remove the roast to a cutting board. Cover it loosely with foil (I just loosely tented the roast) and let it sit for about 15 minutes to rest*.
Slice the roast about ¾" and serve.
I served mine with garlic-sour cream mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli.
*Resting meat: there is some controversy as to whether one should cover/tent/wrap meat while resting (AKA complete carry-over cooking). It works for me, so I do it.
BTW, this is a bit of the "ground" Thai chili pepper I used. I made this from the peppers that Rosie brought me last fall (Thanks, Rosie!).
Enjoy,
Lorence
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Tandoori Chicken Burgers
I was watching the PBS show Everyday Food last weekend - the show was called "The Best Burgers" (episode 405 according to their website). I love a good burger, but don't make them from scratch very often, so I thought it would be worth the time. After the show was over I had 2 things: a couple of interesting recipes to try and a big hunger. Good thing it was lunch time.
I didn't have any of the ingredients readily available for either of the recipes, so it was a couple of days before I could cook one up. The first (and as of 02/21/08, the only so far) was the Tandoori-style Chicken burger in pitas. There are so many interesting flavors going in, I was really looking forward to how they would turn out. I was also excited to get to use the cardamom pods I'd recently purchased from Penzey's. The original recipe called for a cumin-yogurt sauce, but I made the tahini mayonnaise from the veggie burger recipe.
The use of chicken thighs makes for great chicken flavor. The thighs are run through the food processed a bit to break them up, but not enough to make them mushy.
For the pitas, try to find the thin pitas, not the thick heavy ones. I'm not a big fan of one of the national brands, Father Sam's; they're just a bit too thick/bready for me, but are very popular and usually available near your grocer's deli department. If you live in an area that has an Aladdin's Eatery location (northern Virginia; Charlotte, North Carolina; San Antonio,Texas; western Pennsylvania, Chicago,Illinois; and 16 Ohio locations), I recommend that you stop in and buy a bag of pita from them. It's pretty cheap and perfect for almost anything, even (and especially) just snacking on. Oh, yeah, they're great for this dish, too.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs (4 to 5), cut into rough chunks.
4 scallions, sliced thin (both the white and the green parts)
2 Tablespoons of finely chopped fresh ginger (about a 2 inch piece, peeled)
2 Tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of paprika
2 teaspoons of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom (I ground mine fresh in the old coffee mill!)
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons of Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
Whole wheat pitas
Cucumber, thin sliced on the bias
Fresh Cilantro leaves
Directions:
Place the scallions, ginger, lemon juice, cumin, cardamom, cayenne, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.
Add the chicken and toss to combine all of the ingredients and set the bowl aside to marinate for up to 30 minutes (at least 10 minutes).
After no more than 30 minutes, transfer the chicken mixture to your food processor. Pulse the mixture just until it is roughly chopped, and not yet pasty (maybe a dozen pulses).
Heat a skillet to medium-high heat and spray it with vegetable oil spray (Pam or the equivalent)
Form small patties fromthe chicken mixture (about 3 Tablespoons each).
Season the patties with salt and pepper and place inthe skillet. Be sure not to crowd them.
Cook until they are opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes,then turn carefully and cook 2 to 3 minutes more.
Tahini Mayonnaise
1/2 cup of Mayonnaise (use the real stuff, not that nasty Kraft M.W.)
1 to 2 Tablespoons of fresh squeezed lemon juice
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
1 to 2 Tablespoons of tahini (I used "Ziyad" brand)
Whisk the above ingredients together and season with a bit of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Serve the burgers in the pitas - halve the pitas and place 2 cooked patties inside with some cucumber slices, cilantro leaves and some tahini mayo.
They turned out moist, tender and full of freshness. I need to cook from scratch a lot more.
Enjoy,
Lorence
I didn't have any of the ingredients readily available for either of the recipes, so it was a couple of days before I could cook one up. The first (and as of 02/21/08, the only so far) was the Tandoori-style Chicken burger in pitas. There are so many interesting flavors going in, I was really looking forward to how they would turn out. I was also excited to get to use the cardamom pods I'd recently purchased from Penzey's. The original recipe called for a cumin-yogurt sauce, but I made the tahini mayonnaise from the veggie burger recipe.
The use of chicken thighs makes for great chicken flavor. The thighs are run through the food processed a bit to break them up, but not enough to make them mushy.
For the pitas, try to find the thin pitas, not the thick heavy ones. I'm not a big fan of one of the national brands, Father Sam's; they're just a bit too thick/bready for me, but are very popular and usually available near your grocer's deli department. If you live in an area that has an Aladdin's Eatery location (northern Virginia; Charlotte, North Carolina; San Antonio,Texas; western Pennsylvania, Chicago,Illinois; and 16 Ohio locations), I recommend that you stop in and buy a bag of pita from them. It's pretty cheap and perfect for almost anything, even (and especially) just snacking on. Oh, yeah, they're great for this dish, too.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs (4 to 5), cut into rough chunks.
4 scallions, sliced thin (both the white and the green parts)
2 Tablespoons of finely chopped fresh ginger (about a 2 inch piece, peeled)
2 Tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tablespoon of paprika
2 teaspoons of ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom (I ground mine fresh in the old coffee mill!)
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons of Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
Whole wheat pitas
Cucumber, thin sliced on the bias
Fresh Cilantro leaves
Directions:
Place the scallions, ginger, lemon juice, cumin, cardamom, cayenne, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.
Add the chicken and toss to combine all of the ingredients and set the bowl aside to marinate for up to 30 minutes (at least 10 minutes).
After no more than 30 minutes, transfer the chicken mixture to your food processor. Pulse the mixture just until it is roughly chopped, and not yet pasty (maybe a dozen pulses).
Heat a skillet to medium-high heat and spray it with vegetable oil spray (Pam or the equivalent)
Form small patties fromthe chicken mixture (about 3 Tablespoons each).
Season the patties with salt and pepper and place inthe skillet. Be sure not to crowd them.
Cook until they are opaque, about 2 to 3 minutes,then turn carefully and cook 2 to 3 minutes more.
Tahini Mayonnaise
1/2 cup of Mayonnaise (use the real stuff, not that nasty Kraft M.W.)
1 to 2 Tablespoons of fresh squeezed lemon juice
kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
1 to 2 Tablespoons of tahini (I used "Ziyad" brand)
Whisk the above ingredients together and season with a bit of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.
Serve the burgers in the pitas - halve the pitas and place 2 cooked patties inside with some cucumber slices, cilantro leaves and some tahini mayo.
They turned out moist, tender and full of freshness. I need to cook from scratch a lot more.
Enjoy,
Lorence
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Garlic Lemon Shrimp Pasta
Yeah, let's hit all the good stuff at once - garlic, shrimp, pasta, and lemon all living in perfect harmony and with one goal in life: to make me happy.
This recipe is based on one of those old recipe cards I got from First Magazine years ago (early 1990's?). I haven't made it in a while, but I pulled it out last week when I was pressed for time. I always have a pound of shrimp in the freezer for emergencies, and I'd just been to the store and found some nice lemons at a decent price (for February), so I was all set (garlic is, of course, a staple...).
I usually use a thin spaghetti, and until recently my preffered pasta was Barilla Linguini Rigate. I can't seem to find it anymore and it's no longer mentioned on their web site. I've had to settle for their Spaghetti Rigati, which works ok , but it's a bit heavier than I like for this dish, although I think angel hair would be too thin. Such a delicate balance..
It's a pretty simple and quick recipe, and tastes even better as leftovers.
Ingredients:
½ pound spaghetti
3 large cloves of garlic, crushed, then minced
¼ cup of olive oil
2 Tablespoons of butter
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (I used the zest from ½ large lemon)
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice (I used the juice from ½ large lemon, the same ½ that I got the zest from)
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
Cook the pasta per package directions.
While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil and butter over medium heat in a large sauté pan.
Add the minced garlic and cook for about a minute.
Add the shrimp and cook until pinked through; that should only take a couple of minutes.
Add the parsley, lemon zest and lemon juice and toss well.
Be sure to time the finshing of the shrimp with the finishing of the pasta.
Drain the pasta and toss the drained pasta into the sauté pan of shrimp and garlic sauce, blending it well with the shrimp/garlic sauce.
Serve with a finish of a bit fine salt and fresh ground pepper, garnish with some thin lemon slices if you're into that sort of thing.
Sorry, no photo this time - too hungry.
Enjoy,
Lorence
This recipe is based on one of those old recipe cards I got from First Magazine years ago (early 1990's?). I haven't made it in a while, but I pulled it out last week when I was pressed for time. I always have a pound of shrimp in the freezer for emergencies, and I'd just been to the store and found some nice lemons at a decent price (for February), so I was all set (garlic is, of course, a staple...).
I usually use a thin spaghetti, and until recently my preffered pasta was Barilla Linguini Rigate. I can't seem to find it anymore and it's no longer mentioned on their web site. I've had to settle for their Spaghetti Rigati, which works ok , but it's a bit heavier than I like for this dish, although I think angel hair would be too thin. Such a delicate balance..
It's a pretty simple and quick recipe, and tastes even better as leftovers.
Ingredients:
½ pound spaghetti
3 large cloves of garlic, crushed, then minced
¼ cup of olive oil
2 Tablespoons of butter
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest (I used the zest from ½ large lemon)
2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice (I used the juice from ½ large lemon, the same ½ that I got the zest from)
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
Cook the pasta per package directions.
While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil and butter over medium heat in a large sauté pan.
Add the minced garlic and cook for about a minute.
Add the shrimp and cook until pinked through; that should only take a couple of minutes.
Add the parsley, lemon zest and lemon juice and toss well.
Be sure to time the finshing of the shrimp with the finishing of the pasta.
Drain the pasta and toss the drained pasta into the sauté pan of shrimp and garlic sauce, blending it well with the shrimp/garlic sauce.
Serve with a finish of a bit fine salt and fresh ground pepper, garnish with some thin lemon slices if you're into that sort of thing.
Sorry, no photo this time - too hungry.
Enjoy,
Lorence
Friday, February 15, 2008
Toasted Chili Mayonaise
Eager to do something constructive with my new haul from Penzey's I cracked open the chili powder with a specific condiment in mind. Since I had 1/2 of a torta carnitas in the fridge from our trip to Cuco's Taquieria, I decided to make some toasted chili powder mayonaise. I've made this before and love how it makes an ordinary sandwich jump with flavor. I never have found a real recipe for it, so this is what I've been doing. It seems to turn out ok:
Toasted Chili Mayonaise
2 to 3 Tablespoons Penzey's Chili powder (whatever type you choose is fine)
Real Mayonaise (I always use Hellman's, NEVER EVER that nasty M.W. stuff - even if I believed in miracles, it would take more than a miracle to make that stuff any good...)
Get a heavy skillet nice and hot over medium heat. Add the chili powder and toast the chili powder, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 1 minute. Transfer to a mixing bowl to cool.
Once the powder has cooled, it can be transfered to it's own jar for future use, or just use some of it right away like I did to make the mayo.
Put a couple of Tablespoons of mayo in a small bowl. Add some toasted chili powder to it and blend well. Taste it & tweak the flavor - does it need more chili powder? Add some more, then! Too much chili? Add a bit more mayo. You'll know when it's right.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate until ready to use. I used some on my leftover Cuco's torta. Very nice...
Enjoy,
Lorence
Thursday, February 14, 2008
My first trip to Penzey's
Penzey's Spices.
I know it's been sitting there in that little round building on Reed Road for a couple of years now, I just never seemed to get there - until last weekend. Finally, I'm not a Penzey's virgin anymore.
I was no stranger to this building, though - I'd actually been inside of it years before it was a Penzey's. Way back, this odd shaped building was a bank, the covered portion on it's south side was drive-through. After the bank closed, and after a while of being empty, the building became the home of the "Zacchaeus Short Man's Clothing store". Yes, I'm a bit vertically challenged, so I visited the store in search of some pants to wear to work. I quickly learned that the name of the store should have been "Zacchaeus Short *FAT* Man's Clothing store". I was looking for 29x29 - they had 26x45, 27x49, etc., with prices as large as the wiast sizes and in those fabulous golf prints everybody loves to wear to the office... Lovely. Would you believe I didn't buy anything?
But I digress.
We stepped in to Penzey's and I almost felt overwhelmed. I have been receiving their catalog, so I was somewhat familiar with their products,but I was completely unprepared for how nice the actual store would be. Boogie grabbed a basket and I immediately started fiding things to put in it. Of course, I did have a list to follow and quickly reverted to it in a desperate attempt to keep from spending too much. It was tough, but I managed to stick mostly to the list, spending a bit over $20 on: chili powder, garam masala, Fine ground white pepper, white cardamom pods (for Kheema), vanilla sugar, and some hot chocolate mix with mint:
48 in all and I'll be buying more the next time I get to Penzey's, which hopefully won't be too far away.
Go, Shop, Enjoy,
Lorence
I know it's been sitting there in that little round building on Reed Road for a couple of years now, I just never seemed to get there - until last weekend. Finally, I'm not a Penzey's virgin anymore.
I was no stranger to this building, though - I'd actually been inside of it years before it was a Penzey's. Way back, this odd shaped building was a bank, the covered portion on it's south side was drive-through. After the bank closed, and after a while of being empty, the building became the home of the "Zacchaeus Short Man's Clothing store". Yes, I'm a bit vertically challenged, so I visited the store in search of some pants to wear to work. I quickly learned that the name of the store should have been "Zacchaeus Short *FAT* Man's Clothing store". I was looking for 29x29 - they had 26x45, 27x49, etc., with prices as large as the wiast sizes and in those fabulous golf prints everybody loves to wear to the office... Lovely. Would you believe I didn't buy anything?
But I digress.
We stepped in to Penzey's and I almost felt overwhelmed. I have been receiving their catalog, so I was somewhat familiar with their products,but I was completely unprepared for how nice the actual store would be. Boogie grabbed a basket and I immediately started fiding things to put in it. Of course, I did have a list to follow and quickly reverted to it in a desperate attempt to keep from spending too much. It was tough, but I managed to stick mostly to the list, spending a bit over $20 on: chili powder, garam masala, Fine ground white pepper, white cardamom pods (for Kheema), vanilla sugar, and some hot chocolate mix with mint:
Back at home, I decided that before I put my Penzey's bounty away, I would clean up/out my spice rack & cabinet and boy, oh, boy did they need cleaning. This turned into more of a project than I had anticipated, but I was still giddy from the shopping adventure in that little round store and had plenty of energy to burn off.
I wiped down all of the bottles & I found some really old and scary stuff hiding back there, along with some things I know I'll never use. Both categories included a few bottles of spice that originally came with the rack (we received it from my classmate Tracy as a wedding present in back 1987...). When the heck am *I* ever going to use pickling spice? I also found a 10 year old can of cinnamon hiding inthe back of the cabinet. I hate cinnamon. I emptied both of those (and a few others) into the trash and thoroughly washed and dried the bottles for re-use.
With a cleaned up space, I began to put my spices & herbs back into the rack. After a bit of organizing/alphabetizing/categorizing, I decided, being the nerd that I am, to make a list to blog, a list of my spices... I discovered that I had much more variety than I thought. Actually, I hadn't really thought at all about how many different herbs and spices I had. I've accumulated so many different ones over the past years that I lost track. Here's what I found in the rack and two shelves of the cabinet:
My Spices
| Allspice | Whole Cumin Seed |
| Basil Leaves | Ground Cumin |
| Black Peppercorns | Mustard Seed |
| Ground White Pepper | Ground Mustard |
| Caraway Seed | Marjoram Leaves |
| Cavender's Greek Seasoning | Ground Marjoram |
| Celery Seed | Nutmeg |
| Chili Powder | Old Bay Seasoning |
| Toasted Chili Powder | Oregano Leaves (Homegrown) |
| Chinese 5 Spice | Paprika |
| Cilantro Leaves | Smoked Paprika |
| Cinnamon | Rosemary Leaves |
| Coriander Powder | Sesame Seed |
| Whole Coriander Seed | Tarragon Leaves (Homegrown) |
| Dill | Thyme Leaves (Homegrown) |
| Onion Powder | Ground Thyme |
| Dried Onion Flake | Wasabi Powder |
| Whole Sage, Dried (Homegrown) | White Cardamom Pods |
| Rubbed Sage | Whole Fennel Seed |
| Garam Masala | Baliene Sea Salt |
| Garlic Powder | Course Sea Salt |
| Ground Cayenne pepper | Kosher Salt |
| Red Pepper Flakes | Lowery's Season Salt |
| Thai Chili Powder | Morton's Iodized Salt |
| (made from Rosie's Homegrown peppers) |
48 in all and I'll be buying more the next time I get to Penzey's, which hopefully won't be too far away.
Go, Shop, Enjoy,
Lorence
A Cuco's Taqueria lunch - on the card of course.
This past weekend's lunch outing was a trip to Cuco's Taqueria up on Henderson Road. I've always loved going up to this area. There have always been so many great places to eat around there, with one of my all-time-but-long-gone places just a few storefronts away from Cuco's, the old Gloria Cafe, aka Harold's Cajun Glory. It's been a while since our first visit to Cuco's (last summer) and after our lunch we realized that we can't stay away that long again.
So we headed up to Henderson Road, Prestige Dining Club card in hand, at about 2 in the afternoon. There weren't many people in the place, so we were seated quickly and were served a basket of crisp fresh chips and a great fresh medium-mild salsa. They have a wonderful salsa bar to paretake of, but we were so happy withthe regular stuff they served us that we completely forgot about the salsa bar. After much deliberation (their menu offers great variety), we made our selections & our soft spoken very polite waiter took our order - A $6.99 combo of one beef enchilada, one crunchy beef taco, rice and beans fo my wife, torta carnitas ($5.95) for me, and the kids menu fish and chips ($3.95) for Boogie. I was very surprised that he went with a non-mexican style choice, but he's been on a real fish kick lately (must be all that Easter/Lent talk at school). We completely killed the bowl of chips along with 2 bowls of salsa while we waited for lunch to arrive.
When the plates arrived at the table, they were, of course, very hot and looked fab. The combos plate was steaming and very colorfully pleasing to the eye; my torta was enormous and smelled great (sorry, I haven't installed BlogSmell yet); and Boogies fish selection turned out to be an excellent choice - the fish used in his kids meal was the same fish Cuco's uses in their great fish tacos and burritos, lightly breaded golden brown strips of grouper.
We polished off another basket of chips and more salsa with our meal, and I wound up taking half the sandwich home. Of course, I forgot the camera again, so the olny photo I have is of my leftovers:
So we headed up to Henderson Road, Prestige Dining Club card in hand, at about 2 in the afternoon. There weren't many people in the place, so we were seated quickly and were served a basket of crisp fresh chips and a great fresh medium-mild salsa. They have a wonderful salsa bar to paretake of, but we were so happy withthe regular stuff they served us that we completely forgot about the salsa bar. After much deliberation (their menu offers great variety), we made our selections & our soft spoken very polite waiter took our order - A $6.99 combo of one beef enchilada, one crunchy beef taco, rice and beans fo my wife, torta carnitas ($5.95) for me, and the kids menu fish and chips ($3.95) for Boogie. I was very surprised that he went with a non-mexican style choice, but he's been on a real fish kick lately (must be all that Easter/Lent talk at school). We completely killed the bowl of chips along with 2 bowls of salsa while we waited for lunch to arrive.
When the plates arrived at the table, they were, of course, very hot and looked fab. The combos plate was steaming and very colorfully pleasing to the eye; my torta was enormous and smelled great (sorry, I haven't installed BlogSmell yet); and Boogies fish selection turned out to be an excellent choice - the fish used in his kids meal was the same fish Cuco's uses in their great fish tacos and burritos, lightly breaded golden brown strips of grouper.
We polished off another basket of chips and more salsa with our meal, and I wound up taking half the sandwich home. Of course, I forgot the camera again, so the olny photo I have is of my leftovers:
We got out with a check of $20 (including $4 tip) with the help of the Prestige card, plus a tasty lunch to make my coworkers jealous with on Monday's.
Go for lunch, go for dinner, go for a late breakfast...Just go. And be sure to print out the coupon for 1/2 off a second entree if you don't have or have already used your Prestige card there.
Cuco's Mexican Taqueria
2162 Henderson Road
Columbus, Ohio 43220
614-538-8601
Enjoy,
Lorence
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Hearty Blueberry Oat Pancakes
My wife found the basis for this recipe in the February 2008 issue of Prevention Magazine, and their original version can be found here - Cranberry-Orange Oat Pancakes.
The first time she made them, she didn't add any fruit to them at all, but really enjoyed them and they lived up to their claim of being a satisfying breakfast that held hunger at bay easily until lunch time. I made the second batch for her and added whole organic frozen blueberries - this batch was an even bigger hit. If you're looking for a hearty breakfast that will get you starteed and give your metabolism a boost, try these. they're full of fiber, protien, and are low in calories.
Our version - Hearty Blueberry Oat Pancakes:
Ingredients:
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
¼ cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup Tropicana® Healthy Heart with Omega-3 Orange Juice
¼ cup 1% milk
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¾ cup frozen organic whole blueberries
Directions:Preheat a nonstick griddle. (no need to grease or spray)
Whisk together the oats, flours, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, orange juice, milk, and oil.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in the blueberries (try not to crush them).
Drop ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle and cook them until edges look dry and bubbles come to the surface, about 3 minutes.
Carefully flip them and cook until their bottom browns and the pancakes are cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes.
Repeat with the remaining batter.
These pancakes freeze very well, too, so we put ½ in the fridge and ½ in a the freezer. This batch made 18 pancakes, enough to last her over a week.
Enjoy,
Lorence
Updated:Pork Tenderloin Medallions with an Orange Reduction
Made the Pork Tenderloin Medallions with an Orange Reduction again and this time managed to get a few photos. Take a look.
Enjoy,
Lorence
Spiced ChickPeas from Dave's Beer
Tonight, whle roasting a turkey breast, I decided to try a recipe from DavesBeer.com, for Spiced Chickpeas. They looked like they wold make for a very interesting and far too healthy snack. since I had the oven on, I figured, what they heck...
Here's how they turned out (Dave's look nicer):
Taste was interesting indeed. My wife and I tried them and at first, they were,well, odd tasting. We both soon realized that the taste really grew on us fast and we wanted more. Then a few more...
Lorence
Here's how they turned out (Dave's look nicer):
Taste was interesting indeed. My wife and I tried them and at first, they were,well, odd tasting. We both soon realized that the taste really grew on us fast and we wanted more. Then a few more...
We'll definately be making these again, but I think I'll vary the spice mixture by adding some cayanne, some garlic powder, maybe even some wasabi powder - ahh, the possibilities are endless.
Enjoy,Lorence
Friday, January 04, 2008
Hello, Goodbye? No, Hello Ci'ao!
One of the first places we tried using our 2007 Prestige Dining Club was the Ci'ao Bar and Grill in Upper Arlington. The 3 of us arrived fairly early and the place wasn’t very busy. We were met and seated by the owner who informed us that this was their first night open after a remodel, so not everything on the menu would be available, but most were. We looked over the menu to order and found, not surprisingly, a mostly Italian theme. I can’t really remember what we ordered, but I think one of us had the lasagna and I know Boogie had a small pizza. We were all very pleased with our selections. I remember the lasagna was housemade (he said it was his wife in the kitchen cookin’ up all that goodness) and was very good – the details escape me, but I remember the portion was generous and the flavor as a homemade lasagna should be, rich and meaty. Boogie’s pizza was also satisfying. The cost of one of our entrees was comp’d because of our Prestige card, but even at full price it would have been a good value.
We’ll be going back again with our 2008 card and probably a time or two again.
Ciao Restaurant
2820 Nottingham Rd
Columbus, OH 43221
614-457-2777
Enjoy,
Lorence
We’ll be going back again with our 2008 card and probably a time or two again.
Ciao Restaurant
2820 Nottingham Rd
Columbus, OH 43221
614-457-2777
Enjoy,
Lorence
The Prestige Dining Club card - Get one!
2007 has come to a close and as we begin 2008 (Happy New Year!), I realize I need to write about the best $30 I spent last year. If you live in Columbus, Ohio (or Dayton), you should look into this as well.
The Prestige Dining Club.
(above image is from the Prestige Dining Club web site)
Membership in this club entitles you to go to over 100 different restaurants and when you order two entrees you receive the second entrée of equal or lower price free. That’s FREE, as in at not cost, no charge, gratis, on the house…
We first bought into this club back in 1990. The restaurants in it back then allowed us to enjoy many different types of food for the first time, introducing us to Indian foods and many local restaurants we may never have tried otherwise. After a couple of years we let our membership lapse, but renewed it again at the beginning of 2007. Of the 100+ restaurants available to us last year, we were able to go to 19 different, getting 19 free meals for our $30 investment (NOTE: the cost of membership is actually $60, but we jumped on a 2-for-1 deal that was offered and split the cost with a co-worker. Best $30 she’s ever spent, too!). Not bad, especially considering which restaurants they were and what we ate. Unlike the popular “Entertainment” books, there aren’t menu limits (other than excluding buffets, and some minor restriction on hours – very few and still quite flexible). We can order whatever we want and get one entrée FREE. There isn’t a participating restaurant list for last year (and I’m not typing them all in now…), but here’s the current list for 2008 (as of 01/04/08):
94th Aero Squadron
Amazon Grill Steak House
Amul India
Anatolia Cafe
Ashley's
Avesta Eclectic Cuisine
Banana Bean Cafe
Barley's Brewing Co.
Barley's Smokehouse & Brew Pub
Baxter's Bar & Grill
Bayleaf India Bistro
Bistro 86 Asian Fusion
Bogey Inn
The Burgundy Room Dublin
Butch's Italian Cafe
Cafe Mediterranea
Camille's Sidewalk Cafe (3 locations)
Cananas Mexican Restaurant
Carfagna's Kitchen
Caribbean Jerks Island Bar & Grill
Carsonie's
Caucus Room
Chile Verde Cafe
Ciao
Clarmont
Colonial House
Cuisine of India
Don Patron
E J Canon's Cafe
Embassy Grille
Figlio
G. Michael's Italian American Bistro & Bar
Gahanna Grill
Gibby's New Albany Grill
Gibby’s
Grandview Cafe
Happy Greek
Hoover Grille
Hunan J
Iacono's
Inchin's Bamboo Garden
Indian Palace
Johnny Buccelli's (2 locations)
Juergen's European Bakery & Cafe
Justin's Place
The Kitchen Lounge
La Comedia Dinner Theatre
La Hacienda Real
La Scala Italian Bistro
Las Margaritas (5 locations)
Lido's Pizza & Restaurant
Linardos Villa
Los Candiles Mexican Kitchen
Mac's Cafe
Maca
Maharajas
Mama Zarella's
Mariachi’s
Mi Mexico
Milano's
Minico's
Morgan House Restaurant
New India Restaurant
O'Shaughnessy's Public House
Otani
P.K. O'Ryan's Irish Pub
Pasta Petite
Pesto Creative Italian Bistro
Polaris Grill
Pomegranate Mediterranean Cuisine
Quaker Steak & Lube
R.J. Snappers
Red Brick Tavern
Red Door Tavern
Robin's Italian Cafe
Rotelli - Pizza, Pasta, Perfect
Rothschild Market Cafe
Rude Dog
Schmidt's
Scrambler Marie's (5 locations)
Sedeo Cafe
Stone Creek Diner
Stoney River
Taj Palace
Taste of Bali
Thai Lagoon
The Hickory House
The Wine Guy Wine Shop
Trattoria Roma
Tropical Bistro
Tutto Vino
Vaquero's
Verdi Ristorante
Village Wines & Bistro
Vino, Vino Restaurant & Wine Bar
Vito's Italian Pub (2 locations)
Warehouse Italian Grill
The Worthington Inn
Zum Rathskeller at the Columbus Maennerchor
Note that nearly all of these are locally owned, not chain restaurants, and many are small family owned places. I consider both of these facts to be a a huge plus as we try to avoid the chains as much as possible (with a one notable exception – more on that in another post to come).
Most of the 19 Prestige club restaurants we visited this past year are places we would have gone to anyway, but we did manage to get 5 new to us. We were disappointed in only one place (one of the new ones), but were still glad we tried it as we had wanted to for some time (more on that in a later post, too).
With the new card for 2008 in hand, we’re ready to hit our old haunts and try a few more new places, too, since many of our dining out choices are determined by what’s in the Prestige Dining Club book.
I’m going to try to post a small review of each of the places we went last year (ambitious, I know), trying to remember what we had. How good each was won’t be a problem.
In the mean time, if you live in Columbus (or Dayton!), order a membership, I implore you!. It’s well worth the money and the adventure.
Enjoy,
Lorence
UPDATE: I forgot to add that we always present the card when we request our check and have never, ever had a waiter/waitress give it or us a funny look - it is always accepted without notice. The club rules require that you tip based on the original full cost of the meal before the free entree is subtracted, and there are a few restaurants that add the tip in (18%) for you, but this isn't a problem for us. I usually tip pretty well; I remember my days as a waiter all too well.
The Prestige Dining Club.
Membership in this club entitles you to go to over 100 different restaurants and when you order two entrees you receive the second entrée of equal or lower price free. That’s FREE, as in at not cost, no charge, gratis, on the house…
We first bought into this club back in 1990. The restaurants in it back then allowed us to enjoy many different types of food for the first time, introducing us to Indian foods and many local restaurants we may never have tried otherwise. After a couple of years we let our membership lapse, but renewed it again at the beginning of 2007. Of the 100+ restaurants available to us last year, we were able to go to 19 different, getting 19 free meals for our $30 investment (NOTE: the cost of membership is actually $60, but we jumped on a 2-for-1 deal that was offered and split the cost with a co-worker. Best $30 she’s ever spent, too!). Not bad, especially considering which restaurants they were and what we ate. Unlike the popular “Entertainment” books, there aren’t menu limits (other than excluding buffets, and some minor restriction on hours – very few and still quite flexible). We can order whatever we want and get one entrée FREE. There isn’t a participating restaurant list for last year (and I’m not typing them all in now…), but here’s the current list for 2008 (as of 01/04/08):
94th Aero Squadron
Amazon Grill Steak House
Amul India
Anatolia Cafe
Ashley's
Avesta Eclectic Cuisine
Banana Bean Cafe
Barley's Brewing Co.
Barley's Smokehouse & Brew Pub
Baxter's Bar & Grill
Bayleaf India Bistro
Bistro 86 Asian Fusion
Bogey Inn
The Burgundy Room Dublin
Butch's Italian Cafe
Cafe Mediterranea
Camille's Sidewalk Cafe (3 locations)
Cananas Mexican Restaurant
Carfagna's Kitchen
Caribbean Jerks Island Bar & Grill
Carsonie's
Caucus Room
Chile Verde Cafe
Ciao
Clarmont
Colonial House
Cuisine of India
Don Patron
E J Canon's Cafe
Embassy Grille
Figlio
G. Michael's Italian American Bistro & Bar
Gahanna Grill
Gibby's New Albany Grill
Gibby’s
Grandview Cafe
Happy Greek
Hoover Grille
Hunan J
Iacono's
Inchin's Bamboo Garden
Indian Palace
Johnny Buccelli's (2 locations)
Juergen's European Bakery & Cafe
Justin's Place
The Kitchen Lounge
La Comedia Dinner Theatre
La Hacienda Real
La Scala Italian Bistro
Las Margaritas (5 locations)
Lido's Pizza & Restaurant
Linardos Villa
Los Candiles Mexican Kitchen
Mac's Cafe
Maca
Maharajas
Mama Zarella's
Mariachi’s
Mi Mexico
Milano's
Minico's
Morgan House Restaurant
New India Restaurant
O'Shaughnessy's Public House
Otani
P.K. O'Ryan's Irish Pub
Pasta Petite
Pesto Creative Italian Bistro
Polaris Grill
Pomegranate Mediterranean Cuisine
Quaker Steak & Lube
R.J. Snappers
Red Brick Tavern
Red Door Tavern
Robin's Italian Cafe
Rotelli - Pizza, Pasta, Perfect
Rothschild Market Cafe
Rude Dog
Schmidt's
Scrambler Marie's (5 locations)
Sedeo Cafe
Stone Creek Diner
Stoney River
Taj Palace
Taste of Bali
Thai Lagoon
The Hickory House
The Wine Guy Wine Shop
Trattoria Roma
Tropical Bistro
Tutto Vino
Vaquero's
Verdi Ristorante
Village Wines & Bistro
Vino, Vino Restaurant & Wine Bar
Vito's Italian Pub (2 locations)
Warehouse Italian Grill
The Worthington Inn
Zum Rathskeller at the Columbus Maennerchor
Note that nearly all of these are locally owned, not chain restaurants, and many are small family owned places. I consider both of these facts to be a a huge plus as we try to avoid the chains as much as possible (with a one notable exception – more on that in another post to come).
Most of the 19 Prestige club restaurants we visited this past year are places we would have gone to anyway, but we did manage to get 5 new to us. We were disappointed in only one place (one of the new ones), but were still glad we tried it as we had wanted to for some time (more on that in a later post, too).
With the new card for 2008 in hand, we’re ready to hit our old haunts and try a few more new places, too, since many of our dining out choices are determined by what’s in the Prestige Dining Club book.
I’m going to try to post a small review of each of the places we went last year (ambitious, I know), trying to remember what we had. How good each was won’t be a problem.
In the mean time, if you live in Columbus (or Dayton!), order a membership, I implore you!. It’s well worth the money and the adventure.
Enjoy,
Lorence
UPDATE: I forgot to add that we always present the card when we request our check and have never, ever had a waiter/waitress give it or us a funny look - it is always accepted without notice. The club rules require that you tip based on the original full cost of the meal before the free entree is subtracted, and there are a few restaurants that add the tip in (18%) for you, but this isn't a problem for us. I usually tip pretty well; I remember my days as a waiter all too well.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Ebay and Ecko - Another win!
We've been using the same old colander for over 20 years - a cheap (yet obviously sturdy) buck ninety-nine Odd Lots plastic colander. Now, if yuou've read some of my older posts, you know I have nothing against using durable old kitchen equipment. As a matter of fact, I prefer it. So when a 50+ year old Ecko Flint Stainless colander came up on my saved search for Ecko stuff on Ebay, I was pretty jazzed. I immediately put it on my watch list and bid on it onthe final day of the auction. I probably paid more for it than I should have, and shipping was, wel, shipping always seems high to me, but the seller sent it out immediately, it was exactly as described and packed very well. Into the dishwater and then right to work it went, draining that night's pasta for dinner.
Another addition to my working Ecko collection. Yippe for me!
11 inches from side to side and 4 1/2 inches tall
The stampings on the bottom
Enjoy,
Lorence
Another addition to my working Ecko collection. Yippe for me!
Enjoy,
Lorence
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Tilapia Stuffed with Crabmeat
What to make tonight...Same old question, made harder by long stretches between grocery store excursions due to colds and bronchitis...I got lucky, though, a couple of weeks ago as we were "recovering". We all felt somewhat better and were hungry for dinner. What do we have? Nothing obvious... Lets dig around in the freezer... Hey, look Tilapia! Ok, that could be good if I had some way of making it, um, interesting. Tilapia *can* be a little bland. So I went rooting around for something, anything to do with the fish & I found this recipe on Recipezaar. I've had a can of crabmeat in the cupboard for a couple of months just itching to be used. The perfect opportunity, I thought.
I was right.
The recipezaar version calls it "Crabmeat Stuffed Tilapia". Well, not really. I couldn't see anyway to roll the little fillets around the crab mixture, as the original recipe on http://www.blogger.com/www.tilapia.ws describes, and I didn't want to "sandwhich" the stuffing between fillets as the recipezaar recipe called for. I did something just slightly different and wrapped a fillet over a mound of crabmeat mixture. They were big enough. You'll see what I mean below.
This was a very good tasting & easy to prepare dish. Nice crab flavor (even better with some fresher fillets & crabmeat if handy). We'll definately be making this again.
Tilapia Stuffed with Crabmeat
Ingredients:
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 celery rib, chopped fine
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup fresh parsley (yeah, I had to use dried, but it worked just fine)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs, unseasoned (we used fresh from whole wheat bread)
8 ounces white crab meat (I only had a 6 oz. can of BumbleBee)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 tablespoon cayenne pepper
4 (6 ounce) tilapia fillets, approximately 6 oz each (had 6 fillets in the bag)
2 tablespoons butter, Melted
paprika
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Chop the onion and celery into fine pieces.
3. Flake the crabmeat and check for pieces of shells. I drained it a bit, too.
4. Sauté the onion and celery in butter until tender.
5. Add the parsley, stir, saute for just a bit more and remove from heat.
6. Stir in the bread crumbs, crab meat, lemon juice and cayenne pepper.
7. Spray a casserole or oven pan with cooking spray. I used a foil lined pan.
8. Make a small mound of the mixture, then drape a tilapia fillets over it as shown inthe photo.
9. Sprinkle with melted butter and paprika.
10. Place in a 400°F oven for about 15 to20 minutes until the tilapia flakes easily with a fork.
"Stuffing" the tilapia.
After about 18 minutes in the oven...
Plated, with some quick steamed edemame.
Give this a try - quick and tasty.
Enjoy,
Lorence
I was right.
The recipezaar version calls it "Crabmeat Stuffed Tilapia". Well, not really. I couldn't see anyway to roll the little fillets around the crab mixture, as the original recipe on http://www.blogger.com/www.tilapia.ws describes, and I didn't want to "sandwhich" the stuffing between fillets as the recipezaar recipe called for. I did something just slightly different and wrapped a fillet over a mound of crabmeat mixture. They were big enough. You'll see what I mean below.
This was a very good tasting & easy to prepare dish. Nice crab flavor (even better with some fresher fillets & crabmeat if handy). We'll definately be making this again.
Tilapia Stuffed with Crabmeat
Ingredients:
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 celery rib, chopped fine
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup fresh parsley (yeah, I had to use dried, but it worked just fine)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs, unseasoned (we used fresh from whole wheat bread)
8 ounces white crab meat (I only had a 6 oz. can of BumbleBee)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 tablespoon cayenne pepper
4 (6 ounce) tilapia fillets, approximately 6 oz each (had 6 fillets in the bag)
2 tablespoons butter, Melted
paprika
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Chop the onion and celery into fine pieces.
3. Flake the crabmeat and check for pieces of shells. I drained it a bit, too.
4. Sauté the onion and celery in butter until tender.
5. Add the parsley, stir, saute for just a bit more and remove from heat.
6. Stir in the bread crumbs, crab meat, lemon juice and cayenne pepper.
7. Spray a casserole or oven pan with cooking spray. I used a foil lined pan.
8. Make a small mound of the mixture, then drape a tilapia fillets over it as shown inthe photo.
9. Sprinkle with melted butter and paprika.
10. Place in a 400°F oven for about 15 to20 minutes until the tilapia flakes easily with a fork.
Give this a try - quick and tasty.
Enjoy,
Lorence
Monday, December 17, 2007
Jenny's Butter Cookies - 'Tis the season!
Our friend, Jenny, gave us this recipe several years ago. She's made them every Christmas for years, and since we got the recipe, so do we. As a matter of fact, Santa gets a batch, fresh made on Christmas Eve, right along side the reindeer's carrot and a can of Coke (you did know Santa loves his Coca-Cola, didn't you?).
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2012
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2014
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2016
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2018
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2019
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2017
The Boog, XMas Eve, 2020
We always enjoy making these simple cookies. It's a lot of fun rolling the dough in the sugar crystals and squishing them down. We used to use a glass that was just the right size, but it cracked and broke several springs ago, and for a while we struggled to find a new "squisher". We even used the bottom of a pinot grigio bottle one year until we discovered that the bottom of our sugar shaker was a perfect fit. Usually we empty it out first 'cause it needs to be degreased afterwards...This recipe makes about 2 dozen cookies.
Jenny's Butter Cookies
Ingredients:
1 Cup (2 Sticks) Butter
¾ cup light Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 Cups sifted flour
colored granulated sugar
Pecan halves
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚.
Cream the butter & the brown sugar
Blend in the vanilla
Gradually add the flour, mixing well.
Chill the dough for at least ½ hour.
Pull off about 1 teaspoon of the dough and roll it into a ball.
Roll the dough ball in the sugar crystals to coat it well.
Flatten the ball to about ¼” thickness.
Press a pecan halve into the center.
Place the cookie on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake 10-12 minutes at 350˚.
Let cool, bite, chew, swallow, say yum...
Enjoy,
Lorence
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