Brussel Sprouts with Lardon

When brussel sprouts are cooked so there sweetness and nuttiness,

shine forth they are just mouth watering! Add a bit of salty pork and 

they become irresistible!

Thank you to my sister-in-law Kim for once again preparing 

great vegetables for our holiday meal.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source:Barefoot in  Paris by Ina Garten

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp. good olive oil

6 oz. Italian pancetta, 1/4 inch diced

1 1/2 lbs. brussel sprouts, trimmed and cut in half

3/4 tsp. kosher salt

3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup golden raisins

1 3/4 cup homemade chicken stock or canned broth

Heat the olive oil in a large 12 inch saute pan, and add the pancetta.  Cook over medium heat stirring often, until the fat is rendered and the pancetta is golden brown and crisp, 5-10 minutes.  Remove the pancetta to a plate lined with a paper towel. 

Add the brussel sprouts, salt and pepper to the fat in the pan, and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the raisins and chicken stock.  Lower the heat and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the sprouts are tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Return the pancetta to the pan, heat through, season to taste, and serve.

Roasted Beets

Thank you to my sister-in-law, Kim, for preparing these 

beets for our holiday meal.  This recipe turned out so delicious!

It was really a good pairing for the meal, and super easy to prepare!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Art and Soul in the Kitchen, Jacques Pepin

INGREDIENTS

12 beets

3 Tbsp. good olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves

2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

2 Tbsp. raspberry vinegar

Juice of 1 large orange

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Remove tops and roots of beets, and peel each one with a vegetable peeler. Cut the beets into 1 1/2 inch chunks. Small beets can be halved and medium beets can be quartered and large ones cut into eighths.

Place the cut beets on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil, thyme leaves, salt and pepper. Roast for 35-40 minutes, turning once or twice with a spatula, until the beets are tender. Remove from the oven and immediately toss with the vinegar and orange juice. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve warm.

Potatoes with olives

Two large pans of these potatoes were prepared 

to feed the large, hungry family, that I have!

As simple or ordinary as this recipe may seem, 

they were absolutely delicious and the perfect 

accompaniment to the stuffed pork loin chops!

Once plated next to the chop and all its sauce, the potatoes

become a useful sponge of all the flavors and ingredients

that went in to preparing both dishes.

As Always, 

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Jacques Pepin : Art and Soul in the Kitchen

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs. small potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or Red Bliss(about 16) scrubbed

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (best possible)

1 tsp. fleur  de sel or other coarse salt

12 Kalamata olives, pitted and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 1/2 Tbsp. minced fresh chives.

Put the potatoes in a sauce pan, cover with water, add the salt, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and continue cooking for 25 - 30 minutes or until potatoes are very tender. 

Drain the potatoes, and put in one layer in the serving dish.  Using a fork, or the flat bottom of a measuring cup press down gently on the potatoes, to crack then open a little. Sprinkle with the olive oil, salt, olives and chives. Serve.

Stuffed Boneless Pork Loin with Spinach and Gruyere Cheese

Perfect interior or spinach and cheese melting out, YUM!

The sauce is a great balance with olives, cilantro, tomatoes,

onion and white wine.

Since this was being prepared for a crowd, the stuffed pork loin
needed to be browned in batches. Feeding 24 people for the holidays,
requires planning, time, and big pans!

Once all the pork loin is browned, the tomatoes, spices and
other sauce elements are added to the pan drippings.
The sauce was delicious and a perfect balance to the stuffed pork.

Stuffing was a two person job. Thank you to my son John for his help.
After the filling was prepared, I began cutting the pocket openings in the
pork pieces and my son stuffed each pork piece.  We filled two big
trays of stuffed pork loin in preparation of browning them in batches.
A toothpick was inserted into the front opening end, to help the
stuffing stay inside while browning.

These turned out fabulous, once plated with the sauce, the combination
of flavors was wonderful.  In my opinion, the nutmeg added to the filling
is the essential unique component that sets the flavor on these
apart from any other style stuffed meat.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Jacques Pepin, Art and Soul in the Kitchen

CHOPS:

4 thick boneless pork loin chops(1 3/4 lbs. total, about 1 inch thick)

1 tbsp. peanut oil

1 tbsp. butter

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup sliced scallions

1 large ripe tomato cut into 3/4 inch dice(about 2 cups)

1/4 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup diced Kalamata olives

3 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Stuffing:

1 Tbsp. peanut oil

8 oz. baby spinach, (about 9 cups)

1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg

2 tsp. chopped garlic

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups grated Gruyere cheese(about 5 oz.)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the spinach, nutmeg, garlic, salt and pepper, and cook for about 3 minutes.  Transfer to a plate and let cool. Mix the grated cheese into the cooled spinach.

On a work surface, cut the pork loin pieces, almost horizontally in half. Stuff with the spinach mixture. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  In a large 12 inch skillet, on high heat, brown the pork

for about 3 1/2 minutes and turn on the other side. 

Once the meat is done cooking remove to a plate and in the pan drippings add, the tomatoes, chicken broth, wine, scallions, salt and pepper.  Cook for one minute, then add the olives and cilantro cook for 30 seconds.  remove from heat.  

On a clean plate, put a spoonful of the sauce, and add a chop on top of that , then drizzle a bit more sauce over the top of the meat. 

Smoked Trout Pate'

Served on purple endive, or....

on green endive,.....
either way, both are delicious and so pretty!
Make a large platter and arrange both colors together,
or serve as a starter to any meal.

The lemon zest is the key to this Smoked Trout Pate'
it gives a light brightness to the smoky richnes of the pate'.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: La Vie Rustic by Georgeanne Brennan

1/4 lb. Smoked Trout fillet

6 Tbs. (3 fl.oz.) Creme Fraiche

1 Tbsp. minced fresh Tarragon, plus tarragon sprigs for garnish

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Endive leaves

Break trout into pieces and put in a bowl.  Add all the other ingredients and mash together with a fork until a thick paste forms. 

Serve at once with endive leaves, or refrigerate for up to 4 days.

Tomato Tart

Thank you to Irene for preparing this delicious

tomato tart.  

Tomatoes and cheese are always a great combination of flavors.

Sometimes in the winter it is hard to replicate those 

great flavors of summer, but luckily we have some 

pretty amazing stores that carry great tomatoes, year round!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: 

1 Ready to roll fresh pie dough

2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

2 cups sliced tomatoes

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

sprinkling of fine sea salt

sprinkling of fresh ground pepper

sprinkling of fresh thyme

1 cup Gruyere cheese grated

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. roll out dough, large enough to line the bottom of a 12 inch tart pan, and up the sides of the pan. Press in place and trim edges. 

Spread the bottom of the tart with a thin layer of  Dijon mustard. Cover this with a tightly packed single layer of tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and thyme. Finish with a layer of grated Gruyere cheese. Place in the oven and bake until golden brown. 20-25 minutes. Cool for at least 20 minutes on a rack, and then slice and serve.

Liver Pate'

This recipe is a family recipe, handed down
from my Uncle Tom!  I don't know how my brother
found this recipe, but I am sure glad he remembered it.
If our Uncle brought appetizers for our cocktail hour,
it was sure to include this pate', which he would whip up at home!

Having a few  condiments with vinegar and salt,
always help balance out the fatty or rich items.

Who can resist french olives! and how could you have a
cocktail hour without these!

I think my brother and his wife did 3 or 4 test runs
on the pate' until they finally got it just right.
I told my brother I thought it was even better than my
Uncle had always prepared it, but maybe my childhood memory
fails me in that area!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Christmas Eve- The French Menu

My daughter created our lovely French Menus!
Listing all our foods for the evening,

as well as all our drinks!

The meal was a great success, thanks to all of the lovely
chefs(my sister-in-laws) who so willing help
sustain this wonderful family tradition.

Some of the recipes, I have already recreated, because they
were so enjoyable the first time around!

Even though this post is going out late and all the following recipes
are going out later than I would have liked, the
heartfelt thanks to all my family is still very real!!

As Always, 

ENJOY!

Homemade Greek Yogurt

Once the milk and cultures have thickened into yogurt,

Run a knife through the mass of yogurt in a cross hatch,

it will help the whey drain out quicker.

carefully, tip the mass of yogurt into a cheesecloth lined 

colander that is resting in a large bowl.

Cover with plastic and put into the refrigerator. 

Let the whey drain for 4 hours or overnight, depending on 

the thickness of the yogurt you desire.

This yogurt drained overnight in my refrigerator.

Carefully, lift the corners of the cheese cloth, and tumble 

the mass of thickened yogurt into a clean bowl, if you are going 

to divide it into small containers, or put it directly into 

a large container and store in the refrigerator.

I divided the yogurt into 10 containers.

You can see how thick the yogurt is by 

the way it stands in each cup.

This is the whey that drained from the yogurt, 

I put it in a container for the refrigerator, to use at 

another time.

As Always,

ENJOY!

INGREDIENTS

half gallon whole milk

4 oz. organic greek yogurt

or remainder of yogurt from previous batch.

Heat milk to 190-200 degrees, stirring frequently.  Take off heat and let cool to 90-100 degrees. 

in a small bowl whisk together the yogurt and a bit of the warm milk, then add this back to the pot of warm milk.  Cover pot with lid and wrap in kitchen towels.  Place this inside of oven, or other draft free warm spot in your kitchen.  Allow to stand 10-12 hours or overnight. 

Once the milk has thickened into yogurt, take a sharp knife and cut into 4-5 rows horizontally and vertically through the yogurt.  Carefully tip this mass into the cheesecloth, colander and bowl assembly. Let stand in refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight, to desired thickness. 

Tumble thickened greek yogurt into a tub for the fridge or into individual containers.

7 Seasoning Salute Salmon

Who can resist a featured special at Trader Joe's?

This was a great deal, and worth a try!

The directions on the packaging say cook from frozen.

Quite unusual, for fish! However, it turned out great.

I lined my baking tray with parchment paper, and 

according to directions, drizzled with olive oil. 

This fish, since frozen at the start, cooks for 25-30 minutes.

It is a large piece, so I think the cook time was accurate. 

I always like to go with the minimum amount, especially 

since I wanted the fish to still be moist and tender. 

The seasoning on this salmon lends its way to being used

for tacos, or slightly cooled to go on a salad or into a sandwich. 

If eaten as a entree it should be paired with other items that can

hold themselves up to the seasoning on the fish. 

A good dollop of  Greek yogurt or Indian Raita, 

would be excellent paired with this fish, especially if serving it with rice.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Maple Za'atar Roasted Chickpeas

Once the chickpeas have been toasted, toss in seasoning.

I put the chickpeas back in the oven for 5 minutes,
once they had been seasoned.  I think this helps bake on the seasoning,
and makes the texture of the finished product drier.
No one wants to be picking up oily or sticky chickpeas.

After draining and rinsing the chickpeas, 

dry on paper towels for 60 minutes.

A yummy healthy snack. Loaded with protein.

Great for lunches, great with beer, or tossed on salad.

As Always, 

ENJOY!

Recipe adapted from: Spice Spice Baby by Kanchan Koya

INGREDIENTS

One 15½-ounce can of chickpeas

¾ tablespoon olive or avocado oil

2 teaspoons za'atar spice blend

Pinch of cayenne (optional)

1 teaspoon maple syrup

Salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Dry them extremely well with a tea towel. If you have time, let them air dry for 30 to 60 minutes. This will ensure a crisper texture.

3. Place the chickpeas on a roasting pan in the oven for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and crisp, rotating the pan at the halfway mark.

4. Transfer the hot chickpeas to a bowl. Add the oil, spices, and salt to taste, and mix well with a spoon. Serve hot or at room temperature for a crunchy and healthy snack, or throw a fistful into kiddo's or your own lunchbox. (They also make great croutons over salad!)

Homemade Yogurt

Making yogurt takes a bit of planning, but it is really worth it!!
Here are 12 yogurts, ready for lunches, the 13th yogurt, is saved, and
will be used to start the next batch.

Heat the milk to 190-200 degrees, stirring frequently.
You do not want the milk to burn on the bottom of the pan,
or to form a skin on the top as it heats.
Do not let it boil, just steam.

Once the milk has cooled to 90-100 degrees, the yogurt with
live cultures can be added.
Once blended, let activate for 8-12 hours, or overnight.

So Yummy!!

I felt like I was always running into the store to buy yogurts for 

a packable breakfast. Hoping they would be on sale.  Yogurts can range from 

$1.00 each to $1.49 or more each.   Now, not only do I make plenty of yogurt in one 

batch to last for at least two weeks, but I also save a ton of money!

This batch of yogurt was made with a half gallon of organic whole milk at $1.89.

Initially you need to buy one pre-made yogurt of your choice, that only has milk and 

the live cultures, but no additives.  

When ready to make a new batch, you use a bit of the previous batch to 

inoculate the yogurt with the live bacteria.

So once you get going, you will be making delicious yogurt for less than .20cents each.

This was the initial yogurt I purchased.  It is Organic Whole Milk Greek Yogurt.
You can find it at Trader Joe's.

You can use any type container you like to store the finished yogurt. Put the whole batch in 

a glass jar or crock and refrigerate.  Taking out only the scoops you use on fruit or cereal. 

If you prefer to have it as a ready to go item, then divide the completed 

yogurt into small seal-able glass or plastic cups. 

Then you can just add your fruit or a bit of jam to the yogurt when 

you are ready to eat it.

As Always,

ENJOY!

1/2 gallon whole milk

1 - 4 oz. carton of organic whole milk Greek yogurt

Large stainless steel pot

digital thermometer

1 large crock or 12 small containers

Warm the milk in a large pot to 190-200 degrees, not over 200 or you will be boiling it. Stir frequently so as not to scorch the milk on the bottom of the pan and not create a skin on the top.
Once heated, take off heat and allow to cool to 90-100 degrees. Put the live culture yogurt, either one you purchased, or a small amount from you last batch, in a large glass measuring cup.  slowly whisk  in 1/2-1 cup of the warm milk.  Pour this mixture back into the large pot of warm milk and whisk through. Wrap the pot in large towels and place in the oven.  This is just to have it in an out of the way place where it can remain undisturbed and somewhat insulated.  Leave the yogurt for 8-12 hours or overnight.  Once it has thickened you can put it in a crock or divide it among small containers. Refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours before eating.
Lasts for 2 weeks.

Chocolate Cake Trifle with Honeycomb Candy

A Trifle of any type always makes a beautiful

presentation.  When it is something chocolate and

filled with candy, it makes it irresistible!

Mound the top of the Trifle with an abundance of 

the goodies you are using to build the Trifle. 

Whether it is cookies, candies, nuts or fruit, 

the overflowing top will make it that

much more appealing!

As Always,

ENJOY!

1 recipe chocolate cake

24 oz. Heavy cream

5-6 bars Crunchie or Violet Crunchie by Cadbury

or Homemade Honeycomb candy.

Bake your chocolate cake recipe in 3 - 8 inch cake rounds.  Let cool completely.  While still in the pan, use a sharp knife to cute each round into cubes. 

Whip the Heavy cream, Add 1/2 tsp vanilla(optional) at the end.

Place all the bars in a gallon ziploc and break into chunks. 

In your trifle bowl place one of the cut cake rounds, so the cubes are tossed, not just one layer.  Spread with one third of the whip cream and cover with candy chunks. Repeat on the next two layers. 

Mound the top layer of whip cream, very high and all extra candy to the top layer for show!