Thanksgiving Turkey tips

Happy Thanksgiving to all! Here is a short video with some of my own turkey preparation tips. I have been cooking birds for a few years now, and I think I've finally got the recipe down right for a nice juicy golden brown turkey. Have a wonderful day with your family and friends, then pass out on the couch. Gobble Gobble!

Kale Salad and Cous Cous

These 2 couldn't be a better pair. I must say the both kale and cous cous melded together nicely in balancing freshness with savory, warm goodness. The great thing about cous cous is that there is no shame in buying it in the box. Ready in 5 minutes, you have created something that tasted like it took hours to make. I used a Pine Nut flavor and was very satisfied. Now, usually...I am not a box person..... but here I make an exception. After fully cooking the cous cous, drizzle with lemon juice and zest to give it tang. 

For the kale salad, I included red bell pepper, tomatoes, and chopped cucumbers and drizzled it with my lemon dressing. Remember to massage the kale with salt and oil prior to make it tender and sweet. Add nuts and dried fruit to make it even better. Again, just as a refresher, here is the recipe to my lemon dressing.

Juice of  1 lemon

Zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp chopped shallot or onion

1 Tbsp sugar

4 Tbsp olive oil

4 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and whisk vigorously. 

Pasta Fagioli Soup

 "When the stars make you drool, just-a like pasta fazool, that's amore". - Dean Martin

 It is officially getting chilly outside. Grab your coat, don't forget your hat, and lets get cooking.

One of the best ways to warm up is with a great big bowl of soup and a hunk of bread to dunk through thoroughly. Pasta Fagioli is an Italian-American classic that we see in countless restaurants and family recipe books. It looks like it takes hours to make, but honestly...you can make this dish very quickly and fool your entire family into thinking you were slaving over a hot stove. With the help of one of my girlfriends who also loves to cook, we tweaked this recipe that was similar to Olive Garden's Pasta Fagioli, and made it into something much more fresh and inviting. Experimentation works!

Rich and bubbling with flavor, this soup will warm you to the very core. It has sausage and bacon for the meat-lovers, fresh herbs and tomatoes for the naturalists and pasta because let's face it...everyone loves pasta. Pasta Fagioli is a peasant dish. By this, I mean that peasants who didn't have access to the most expensive cuts of meats and ingredients would make large vats of hot concoctions to keep their family's warm throughout the cold months. Is it just me, or does peasant food seem to be the best kind of food? Combined together into a over-sized stock pot, your friends and family will slurp this soup down to the last drop. I call this the perfect cure for a hard days work.

Ingredients:

1 pound mild or spicy Italian sausage (remove casings)
1 1/2 cups macaroni pasta
1 sweet onion, chopped fine
3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped fine
2 stalks celery, chopped fine
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups chicken broth
1 16 oz can tomato sauce
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
1 Tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup bacon (either bag of real bacon bits or freshly fried up)
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can great northern beans OR cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Procedure:

1) In a skillet, break up sausage and brown completely. Drain fat and set aside.
2) In a large stock pot or dutch oven, add a couple of Tablespoons of olive oil and saute onions, celery, carrots and garlic until soft, about 5 minutes.
3) Add in sausage, tomato sauce, halved grape tomatoes, basil, oregano, thyme and all chicken broth. Stir thoroughly
4) Simmer for 10 minutes and meanwhile, heat another medium pot of boiling water and add macaroni pasta. Cook until al dente. Drain.
5)Add beans to the soup pot
6)Add macaroni pasta and bacon bits
7)Add salt and pepper to taste
8) Simmer for 5 more minutes
9) It's ready!

Serve with a big hunk of bread to dip into the hot soup. There is nothing like it! Salute!

Cooking demo for Mango Salsa

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of doing a cooking demo for one of my past professors at the University of Florida. When I was his teaching assistant in grad school, I had the idea of doing a cooking demo for the students to show them that you can eat healthy on a budget. As a college student, you can indeed eat things that don't taste like cardboard if you know where to look! One of the recipes I had up my sleeve was a delicious MANGO SALSA. Always a hit and always eaten to the last bite. I will make sure to post the recipe soon. It has been a year and a half since grad school, but I still love to come and do these cooking demos for my professor. This time, I had one of his teaching assistants film it in front of about 90 students. Enjoy!

Kale Salad

Kale! 

What is it? Some sort of curly, green, prehistoric leaf?

It seems like kale is becoming the "drug" of choice for health conscious foodies. Its rough and tough, its mean and it's really green. I'm not going to lie. When kale is eaten completely raw without anything added, it's a little like eating leaves off of a tree. In fact, it was and still is often used as a garnish on many plates and buffet tables. 

When you hear the word roughage, kale should probably come to mind. However, there are so many new and updated ways to make this leaf taste spectacular. Pinterest is just full of ideas. 

Kale is part of the cabbage family and is considered a "superfood". No, it can't fly. No it doesn't have laser vision. BUT, it is jam-packed with nutrients to help fight diseases and keep you living LONGER. Here are some of the benefits:                                                                                 

(Sources: National Institute of Health and WebMD)

Kale:

- lowers your cholesterol (the bad kind) with its Omega-3 fatty acids. 

- It has protein and fiber (get those bowels movin')

- Folic acid 

- It has high levels of vitamin K, A, and C

- It is good for your eyes, protecting against cataracts

- potassium, calcium, iron, an zinc

- It has antioxidants which prevent cell damage and have been thought to fight cancer

- It is also low in calories, about 30 cals for 1 cup

Basically, you can eat a small amount of this and get an enormous amount of benefits. Great right? But how the heck do we make it tasty?

There are a number of ways. You can saute it, steam it, put it in smoothies, make kale chips in the oven, or try one of the more amazing salad combinations out there. I decided to take the salad route, and it was a fine decision. 

Another crazy thing about kale is that it gets more tender and more sweet when you MASSAGE the kale with your hands. The bitterness fades away. No candles or lavender oil needed...but definitely some olive oil. By bruising the leaves, their true flavors are released.

Now, a kale salad can have almost anything in it. I have seen avocado, peaches, apples, pears, quinoa, goat cheese, feta cheese, blue cheese. Make whatever you like, but I have a simple recipe with a lemon vinaigrette:

The recipe:

Salad: 

2-3 cups kale, chopped roughly

Dried cranberries

Dried cherries

Almonds

Walnuts

Pecans

Pumpkin seeds (green)

Pears (Barlett)

Olive oil

Dressing:

Juice of 1 lemon

zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp chopped onion/shallot

1 Tbsp sugar

4 Tbsp olive oil

4 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

The procedure:

1) Take kale and place into a large bowl, drizzle a small amount of olive oil onto kale and massage with hands. Smush, squeeze and rub with fingers. 

2) Rinse the kale with water and dry off with paper towels. Return to large bowl.

3) In a small bowl, combine ingredients for dressing, whisk vigorously and set aside for a few minutes  ( Even better for a few hours if you have time!)

4) Chop pear into small pieces and add to large kale bowl

5) Add desired amount of cranberries, cherries, nuts & seeds.

6) Take dressing and strain into the salad. I use a small strainer or sieve. 

7) Mix thoroughly and serve immediately

Optional: Add goat cheese or feta to make it even better!

Roasted Root Vegetables

The smell of rosemary and garlic is something that never gets old. Hand me a recipe that has these two ingredients and it is bound to be delicious.

Now, let's say that you are frantically searching for that perfect side dish and every recipe you come upon seems to have an exotic ingredient not normally found in your pantry.

Black volcanic sea salt? NO
Squash blossoms? NO  (although delicious)
Purple carrots? NO
Squid ink? NO

BUT you might have some big orange carrots, some red potatoes, some sweet potatoes, a little garlic, a little onion and some rosemary from your apartment garden. Well, you have all the ingredients you need for a perfect side dish. Roasted Root Vegetables. Good at any of time of the year and so deliciously simple.

I usually pair this side with a main dish of  meat, poultry, or fish. I probably wouldn't serve it with pasta simply because you don't want to double your starches with the potatoes. If you do, your guests might go straight into food comas on your lovely furniture.

So, here is the recipe for Roasted Root Vegetables
 ( +'s indicate that you may add more if you wish)

Ingredients:

1 large yellow onion
1-2 sweet potatoes
5 + red potatoes, fingerling, or small golden potatoes
3 + carrots
2+ shallots (optional)
8+ cloves of garlic
Fresh rosemary
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper


The procedure:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

1) Chop onion, potatoes, carrots into relatively equal size small chunks
2) Peel shallots (optional)
3) In a large baking dish, toss chopped onions, all potatoes, carrots and shallots with olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Seasoning is key!
4) Place in oven and roast for 30 minutes
5) Meanwhile, peel garlic and chop rosemary
6) Remove baking dish from oven, and add garlic and rosemary. Toss to combine.
7) Place baking dish back in oven for 20 minutes more or until vegetables are soft and browned.
8) Serve them up!

Note: You may use a baking sheet to roast the vegetables, they just take less time to cook (approx 40 minutes)


Enjoy the smells that permeate through your kitchen as you cook this. Rosemary and garlic? Oh yes!

Marinara Sauce

I totally understand that everyone has their own recipe for red sauce. I have heard it all. Everything from this sauce recipe is 100 years old to my grandma was buried in her coffin with this recipe but we somehow managed to get it from her ( Yikes!). But regardless, the red sauce is that safegaurded pasta sauce the people keep close to their hearts. We cook it to show our love! However, I would make a hefty bet that grandma's serious marinara sauce was seriously simple. Here is my recipe for Marinara sauce that can be used as a base for many Italian recipes or eaten just as is over a bed of fresh angel hair. Don't forget to pair it with a gulp of good red wine.

I started trying out sauce recipes as a result of hearing a very big secret from many gourmet chefs. The key to a really good red sauce is to use the right kind of tomato. San Marzano tomatoes to be exact. Now, what the heck are San Marzano tomatoes? Well, it was rumored that in the 1700s, a Peruvian king gave the king of Naples some San Marzano seeds and the rest is history. We know this to be a complete myth. However, we do know that San Marzanos are mostly grown in Italy and the United states and are the genetic base for Roma tomatoes (which are actually a crossbreed of tomatoes). San Marzanos are a very pure plum tomato, having low seed counts and having just the right amount of sweetness and acidity. So much so that most chefs prefer them above other types of tomatoes. I know I love them! I hope you do too.

Now, here is the recipe for the sauce:

The ingredients:

1 28oz can San Marzano tomatoes
5 basil leaves
1/2 cup red wine (Cabernet or Syrah)
Sugar
Salt
Pepper
Red pepper flakes
Extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion
3-4 cloves garlic

The procedure:

1) Chop the onion into small pieces and mince the garlic. Keep separate.
2) Drizzle a few tablespoons of olive oil into a large saute pan, toss in the onions and saute gently at about medium heat until the onions become soft and translucent. We call this SWEATIN' the onions
3) Add in the garlic and saute about 1 minute
4) Add in the can of tomatoes
5) Take a fork and squish the tomatoes down until they are in small chunks. I try to get it as smooth as I can. Stir the concoction together. (Optional: use Immersion blender)
6) Add the red wine, a good pinch of sugar, salt and pepper, and a few shakes of red pepper flakes. Stir altogether.
7) Let simmer for 20 minutes, stirring periodically
8) Chop basil leaves into a chiffonade or just roughly chopped.
9) Add basil leaves, stir, and simmer sauce another 10 minutes.
10) Enjoy!

I like to serve this immediately over angel hair pasta, with a good amount of fresh grated Parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil over the top. I have also used this as my base sauce for manicotti. Another great recipe for another post.

Easy BBQ Ribs

I'm not an expert at BBQ sauce. I haven't "mastered the sauce" or "mastered the rub" so to speak. Although I like to think I am good at foot rubs. One day I am sure I will rise to the challenge of creating a custom sauce and bbq rub, balancing the perfect amount tomato, vinegar, sugar, spice and everything nice. BUT for now, I will leave that to the pit masters.

All things said, there is one thing that I know how to do really well and that is making succulent, fall off the bone, roasted cavewoman meat...and in my opinion, that is most important. Anyway, who wants to bite into a bone dry piece of rib OR WORSE an undercooked piece of rib? Maybe the dogs and ravenous wolves drooling on your porch smelling your home cooking.... but not me or my guests.

SO, when it comes to the rub down of your ribs or the dousing of your sauce, just stick to what you like. Maybe you make your own, which is great! But if you prefer, just pick something good in the store. I decided to go with a Sonny's BBQ rub and sauce (awesome chain located in the "bbq" states like Florida, Alabama, North & South Carolina, Kentucky, Mississippi, Georgia and Tennessee). I also added McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning, because that stuff is delicious and basically like crack...in the best way possible of course. 

So let's get down to business with the recipe. 

* NOTE: This takes time. Approx 3 hours total. 

Low and Slow BBQ Ribs

The Ingredients:

1 rack of pork spareribs

Very generous amount of BBQ dry rub

1 good bottle of BBQ sauce  (or your own)

Montreal Steak Seasoning

The Procedure:

Note: Allow your rack of ribs to sit out for about 30 mins to 1 hour. You dont' want them straight out of the fridge COLD. Just slightly cool or room temperature. For some reason, extremely cold meat gets tougher if it is super cold going to a super hot temperature immediately.

1)Preheat your oven to 300 degrees F

2) Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil

3) Place ribs on baking sheet and generously sprinkle dry rub on both sides of the ribs. Don't be stingy! 

4) Take Montreal Steak Seasoning and sprinkle over both sides again, but just enough to season the ribs to your liking. This seasoning contains salt and pepper in addition to other spices.

5) Take additional foil and completely wrap the ribs into a package. Wrap tightly!

6) Place ribs in the oven on the baking sheet and roast LOW and SLOW for 2 hours.

7) After 2 hours check on the ribs, and increase the heat to 325 degrees F and roast for an additional 30-45 minutes.

8) Prep your grill and line it with more foil. This is a good tip for ALL grilling.

9) After the ribs have roasted in the oven, take them out carefully and brush generously with your BBQ sauce.

10. With tongs, very carefully transfer the ribs to the foil lined grill. 

11. BBQ on grill until ribs are a little caramelized on both sides, continuously adding more bbq sauce as you grill and flipping the ribs a few times. 

12. Enjoy those ribs and enjoy them good. The crunchy caramelized bits are the best.

Caramelization = Best part of cooking

Dumplings

I was cooking with a close girlfriend the other night and we both came to a very interesting conclusion about international food.  It can seem at times that certain cultures just won't agree on anything and never will. War is war, culture is culture, and there is no middle ground. But that notion is so wrong, especially when it comes to our food. There is a middle ground indeed. The dumpling. Also known as ravioli, the klobb, fufu, the pierogi, the empanada, the kreplach, potsticker, gyoza, mandu, pasteles,the samosa, the Chinese dumpling. Call it what you will, but these little things are what bring familes together. Can you imagine a table of these served up at a meeting of the United Nations. I am positive they would be gone! Want to end a war? Share a dumpling with your greatest enemy.

My friend and I decided to go along with some Chinese style steamed dumplings. Yum. Using store bought wonton wrappers and filling from scratch, we created some pretty amazing pillows of goodness. A pork dumpling and a chicken dumpling, steamed in an aromatic bamboo steamer and dipped in glorious sauce. Sounding good? You bet. Lets take a look some recipes:

For whichever filling you decide to make- 

*Get 1 packet of wonton wrappers

*Get 1 bamboo steamer basket

*Prepare a small bowl of water on the side

*Get some wax paper

*Get some cooking spray

Pork dumpling 

1 lb ground pork

1/3 cup chicken stock

2 tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp fresh ginger, ground

1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp chili paste

some chopped scallions or chives
(some sesame seeds, optional)

Chicken dumpling 

1 lb ground chicken

1 1/2 tsp fresh ground ginger
3-4cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoon soy sauce

1- 1 1/2 tablespoon Chinese rice wine

some chopped chive or scallion (be generous)

some chopped spinach
(sprinkle of sesame seeds optional)

The procedure:

1) Pick a dumpling filling recipe above and mix ingredients thoroughly  in a bowl

2) On a cutting board or flat surface place one wonton wrapper down flat

3) Place about 1- 1 1/2 tsp dumpling filling in the middle of the wrapper

4) Dunk your finger in the bowl of water you have set a side, and run them along the edges of the wonton. This will allow the edges to stick when you fold them.

5) Take one edge of the wonton and fold in half over the filling. Press the edges down. Crimp them, fold into the shape you like. 

6) You now have your dumpling.

7) Time to prepare the steamer basket. Take your wax paper and tear a sheet into small squares

8) On each tier of the bamboo basket, place 4-5 small squares of wax paper

9) Spray each paper with cooking spray

10) Place a dumpling on each piece of paper

11) In a large frying pan or wok, put a good amount of water in the bottom, but don't let the water touch the bottom tier of the bamboo steamer when placed inside. 

12) Heat the water to high heat until boiling.

13) Place the steamer basket in the pan, and steam for 7 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through

OHHH You didn't think I'd forgot the dipping sauce, did you?

For dipping sauce, mix together

1/4 water

1/4 soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp chili paste

2 1/2 tsp fresh ginger, ground

( similar to PF Changs)

Enjoy friends!

Roasted Bone Marrow with Sea Salt and Rosemary

Watching countless travel shows  has made me notice something very particular about trending restaurants- the serving of beef marrow bone as an appetizer. Are you serious? Let's explore this.

This is the gelatinous inside cavity of the bones where white an red blood cells are created. It is high in protein and fat. Sounds like it is supposed to be reserved for medical practice! BUT ALAS. One chef being showcased on one of the travel shows I was completely drawn into, was Chef Chris Cosentino. Among his many cooking talents is serving delicious plates of unusual cuts of meat and animal parts. Tongues, intestines, snouts, you name it. One of the unusual delicacies he cooked was beef bone marrow, seasoned with sea salt and pepper on a bed of herbs. It is hard to believe that something as simple as this could be so delicious. I haven't had the pleasure of visiting his restaurant on my last trip to San Fransisco (as I hear it is now closed), but I wanted to try a version for myself. Bone marrow is such an interesting thought as a morsel because it was once seen as a part of the animal to be discarded or used for soup or...dog treats... and is now being used as a showstopping small plate. How can I describe it? It is meat heaven. Meat butter! A soft, gelatinous delicacy that WILL melt in your mouth. I am not just saying that and using flowery words.

SO as a mission, I decided that I ought to try and make it myself since many restaurants are trending this dish. In Gainesville, I drove over to one of the town's small markets, specializing in local products (something I try to always encourage). This place tends to be overrun by hipsters sometimes, but whatever. There, I approached the butcher and asked for 2 beef bone marrows, cut in half. After researching the dish, I saw that it is the easiest to roast them in halves. The butcher came back with the marrow bones, which were very large and bloody. My eyes widened with disgust and excitement. The butcher said finally, I hope your dogs like these! Of course I knew dogs loved bone marrow, but this man had no idea I was about the roast them up and eat them. I replied " Actually, they are for me, I am gonna eat them!" He gave a very strange look and went about his way. Oooo...burned.

At home, I followed some instructions that I found online and started roasting. In 15 minutes I had a delicious snack and I served it with some toast and a tall glass of raspberry Fromboise beer. 

PERFECT.

Intimidating to try at first trust me. The smell is questionable and the texture is literally jelly, but BE BRAVE! And try it.

I actually threw a GAME OF THRONES premiere party not too long ago and served this up. How appropriate! All attendees were college students who were luckily brave enough to try it. Surprisingly, everyone approved. So try this at home to serve as a lovely little tapa or appetizer!

The ingredients:

Beef marrow bones, cut in half 

Extra Virgin olive oil

Salt 

Pepper

Fresh rosemary, thyme or parsley

The recipe. 

PREHEAT OVEN TO 400 degrees F

1) On a baking sheet, place the bones an inch or two apart with the wider sides facing down.

2) Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over the tops of each bone.

3) Sprinkle tops of bones with salt, pepper and chopped fresh rosemary

4) Before baking, prep a warm loaf of french bread and slice into disks. Set aside and keep warm.

5) Bake marrow bones for 15-18 minutes

6) Remove from oven and serve immediately

7) To retrieve the marrow, take a small spoon or knife and spread on bread like butter

Enjoy this. It is pure heaven and drooling status.

Crabs from the Fisherman's Warf in San Francisco

Each day at Fisherman's Warf, these babies wind up in a boiling pot and are served with a side of drawn butter. I know it's kind of known as the touristy area of San Francisco, but damnit...the flavor is still in my memory. Don't pretend like you don't want this!

Greek lemon soup: Avgolemono

Opa!!! We are headed to Greece today!...well...in our mouths...and in our crockpots...

I love soups, and who doesn't? I always get a sort of rustic feeling when I am tending to a big pot full of vegetables and meat bubbling away. This soup has been a tradition in Greek culture for MANY years, and it is called Avgolemono. I never had the opportunity to cook it before, so this is exciting. The inspiration came because I caught a terrible drawn out flu just a couple of weeks ago. It started with a sore throat, then losing my voice, then coughing my brains out for a couple weeks. Thank goodness it's gone now, but during that time I had Greek lemon soup from a little hole in the wall restaurant down the street. One bite and my throat instantly started to feel better. Grandmothers everywhere have established that chicken broth and citrus are good for the flu! SO whether you are sick or you just want to try something a little Greek today, I recommend this recipe.

After scouring the internet for variations of this recipe, I personally prefer this method. It creates a creamy, thick soup...without using cream!

The ingredients:

1 small size whole chicken
3-4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
2 carrots chopped into small chunks
2 celery stalks, chopped in small chunks
1 small yellow onion, sliced
2 bay leaves
1 TBSP peppercorns
salt
3 eggs
2 big lemons
1- 1 1/4 cup orzo pasta (whatever you like)
fresh cracked pepper
parsley ( dried flakes or fresh)

The procedure:

1. Place whole chicken into a crockpot, breast-side up
2. Pour in chicken broth and water. The liquid should not cover the chicken entirely.
3. Add carrots, celery, onions, peppercorns, bay leaves, and a little salt to the pot.
4. Put on high for about 4 hours until the chicken is completely cooked through. I turn the chicken once to make sure everything cooks thoroughly. After approx: 4 hours, you have a delicious stock.
5. Take orzo, and boil in a pot of salty water over the stove until AL DENTE ( a little chewy). Strain and set aside
6. Remove the chicken carefully and place on a cutting board. Shred meat and set aside..
7. Pour the contents of crockpot through a strainer into a another wide bottom pot. (Discard the veggies and such). You should be left with just stock.
8. Bring your pot of stock to a simmer over the stove
9. In a medium bowl, crack the eggs in and squeeze the lemons. Whisk together thoroughly
10. When the stock on the stove is hot BUT NOT BOILING, take a ladle of the stock and put it into the bowl with the lemon and eggs. You DON'T want scrambled eggs. Whisk together. Add one more ladle and whisk again.
11. Now, add the entire lemon/egg/stock mixture to the pot of stock and stir together. Season with salt and cracked pepper as well as the parsley (fresh or dried).
12. Finally, add cooked orzo and some of the shredded chicken
13. Opa!!! Eat and enjoy. Tastes fantastic the day after as well.

*Note: You can leave out shredded chicken from soup if you wish and just use the shredded meat for other dishes later.

The Yummy House

I know that some of you readers probably don't live in Gainesville, FL, but this is my time to get on my soap box about Chinese restaurants. We all have our Chinese restaurants and Chinese takeout restaurants. What's funny is that no matter how bad they are, we keep ordering from there... don't we? Why? We all want to experience that delicious far east taste but for some of us, that means ordering spaghetti lomein and questionable fried chicken balls. And yet, we stick them like we are married to them because we love it. For those living in the Gainesville area, I suggest taking a trip to a real Chinese restaurant...sit down style...with a menu that reflects authenticity mixed with "new york style" Chinese. This is Yummy House. It is so simple and yet everything works so well. The sauces are scrumptious. Laced with crack? Could be. But I think it's just amazing recipes passed down through the restaurant's family for generations. I have gone there a few times since they opened, and every single time is like eating cake for the first time and I act like I am an overly excited 6 year old. I have had a few of their dishes which are as follows:

•  Mongolian Beef - so tender and in a sweet, sticky and slightly spicy brown sauce tossed with golden onions, chili peppers for look and crunchy scallions
•  Black Bean Chicken- NOT SPANISH TASTING by any means, but a shiny brown sauce sprinkled with black beans and a tinge of far east curry flavor mixed with red peppers, onions, and celery slices.
• Egg Rolls- more like spring rolls with savory egg roll filling, crispy and hot with sweet chili dipping sauce
•  Spicy Yummy Chicken- fried, spicy, yummy, what more can I say?
•  Sesame Chicken- fried white meat chicken in a honey sesame brown sauce
• Honey Walnut shrimp- an absolute MOUTHGASM that will stop you in mid-chew. Jumbo shrimp, lightly fried and covered in creamy sauce, tossed with candied walnuts coated in honey and sesame seeds. To die for. 
•  Hot and Sour Soup- if you order the soup for one here, you get soup for six. Delicious. 
•  Schezuan Chicken- a work of art with a spicy kick, but again, has that sweet spicy brown sauce mixed with vegetables. 
• Lomein- not in anyway spaghetti noodles. Delicious and lightly flavored so you can mix the noodles in with those tempting sauces from other meat dishes. 
• Hot oolong tea- they bring you a whole pot so you can keep drinking all night. 

 AND...its BYOB.  Can more restaurants adopt this trend please? 

Granted the parking is very limited and there may be a wait because..well...people call it the Yummy House for a reason. But you won't wait long and you will be treated with the utmost kindness and respect as one of their guests. 

In your town, find your own Yummy House, whether it is a new place you were scared to try, or something else on the menu at your good ol' takeout place around the corner. Expand expand expand....and long live Yummy House!

Poached Pears in Mulled Red Wine

Poached Pears...how classic. So this is a boozy, yet delicious dessert that reaches back to MEDIEVAL TIMES. As people drank wine constantly for the lack of clean water and pears were a sign of fertility and nobility, this was eaten often at large banquets. I can also imagine feeding this blood-red dessert to the king's soldiers before a battle, getting them into the mindset to fight and slaughter! For those of you spending the night watching Game of Thrones, or you just want to try something different for dessert, then this one is for you!

How do you make it? Read the recipe as follows.

POACHED PEARS IN MULLED RED WINE (serves 3-4)

The Ingredients
3-4 pears (I like red pears) peeled with stems still intact
2 1/2 cups dry red wine, preferably Cabernet Sauvignon
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoon mulling spices ( cinnamon stick pieces, cloves, all spice)
zest of a small orange


The recipe
1. After peeling the pears, cut a small slice off the bottom of each so that they can sit flat on the cutting board.
2. Add wine, sugar and mulling spices to a pot with a large wide bottom.
3. Bring the wine mixture to a boil, then reduce to simmer. As Anne Burrell says in her shows, BTB and RTS.
4. Place pears in the wine mixture so that they sit up.
5. Simmer the pears for 45 minutes or until very tender, turning every 15 minutes or so.
6. After 45 minutes or so, take the pears out.
7. Bring the simmered wine mixture to a low boil and let reduce until thick and syrupy. What you are left with is a blood-red deliciously dreamy and thick sauce to pour over the pears.
8. Place pears in serving bowls or on a platter and pour the sumptuous sauce over the pears so that they look red and glistening.
9. Serve immediately and hog all the pears for yourself.

Juicy Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

Let's go to Argentina!!! But please, don't cry for me. Just eat.

This dish is a culinary explosion. Not only are the flavors incredibly vibrant, but the colors are as well. Just look at that emerald green! Chimichurri is a green or red sauce that can be commonly found in Argentinian cooking. Its incredibly fresh tasting and can range in spiciness. After this, you'll be dancing tango in your sleep.

The Recipe:

Juicy Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

For the Rub:

1 sirloin steak or ribeye steak or flank steak
1 1/2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
kosher salt
fresh cracked black pepper
* For two steaks, double recipe for the rub.

The Procedure:
Before hand, let the steaks sit out for 20 minutes to take the chill off.
1.Rub a dub dub that steak with your rub mixture
2. Time to cook. There are 2 options.
Option 1 : FOR SIRLOIN, RIBEYE, OR FLANK, grill on charcoal or propane grill to desired doneness
Option 2: FOR SIRLOIN AND RIBEYE ONLY. Preheat oven to 450F, and place a cast iron pan in there for about 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, heat stovetop to medium to medium high heat. Place cast iron pan on stove and place steaks in pan. KEEP THE OVEN ON. In the pan, sear steaks 1-2 minute on each side. After doing so, place steak in cast iron pan back in the oven and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Perfect medium steak!
3. Whatever method you use, cover steak with foil and let rest for 5 minutes.
4. Pour chimichurri sauce over steaks and serve immediately.

For the Chimichurri Sauce:

6 garlic cloves
1-2 cups cilantro
1-2 cups parsley
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (add more if you like)

The Procedure:

1. Combine all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth. Add more or less ingredients to own taste.
2. Pour over grilled steaks or use as a dipping sauce.


THE SAUCE IS TO DIE FOR!!!!! Enjoy.

"GO TO" Pasta with Grape tomatoes and Garlic

Are you starving in your house just waiting for ravenous wolves to come and eat you? Do you have a few ingredients in your pantry but not enough to throw together something lavish? Then this dish is for you. A little of this...a little of that. This is my "GO TO " pasta. The only reason I have measurements in the ingredients is to give you viewers an idea of what you should be putting into the dish. HOWEVER, do what you like. This pasta dish is relatively healthy, and super easy to make. We are talking under 30 minutes here people.

"Go to" pasta with grape tomatoes and garlic:

The Recipe:

Penne pasta or any small pasta like fusilli, bowtie, wheels, rigatoni, etc.
Olive oil
About a cup of grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 yellow onion, sliced
3-5 garlic cloves, sliced thin
1/2 lemon's juice
Block of cheese to shave. Romano or Parmesan.
1 tsp Balsamic vinegar
A few shakes of dried basil, or a few shreds of fresh basil
A pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher Salt
Pepper
OPTIONAL- 1-2 Tbsp Butter

The Procedure:
1. Boil water in a medium pasta pot and cook pasta until al dente. Drain and set aside. MEANWHILE, prepare the sauce.
*secret: salt your pasta like the ocean and add a little olive oil to prevent it from foaming over.
2. In a medium size nonstick frying pan, pour in about a Tbsp of olive oil and heat to medium-high heat.
* secret: you can tell when the oil is hot enough if you see "waves" in the bottom of the pan or by testing a few drops of water in the pan to see if it sizzles.
3. Add the onions and tomatoes and season with Kosher Salt, then the reduce heat to medium-low.
4. Cover the pan for about 2-3 minutes and stir.
5. Once onions are translucent and tomatoes are soft and puckered, squish the back of the tomatoes with a large wooden spoon until the juices come out. POP POP SQUISH. This creates a sauce.
6. OPTIONAL STEP- add butter
7. Add the garlic and stir to coat pieces
8. Cover the pan for about another 2 minutes and stir.
9. Take your half lemon, and drizzle the juices into the pan. Add as much as you like. I usually find 1 good, hard squeeze to be enough.
10. Add the balsamic vinegar and cooked pasta to the pan.
11. Add basil, cayenne pepper, season with salt and pepper, and stir to coat everything.
12. Cover for 2-3 minutes, transfer to a bowl, shave cheese into bowl like a glutton
13. Serve immediately.

Asian BBQ Ribs

I'd like to start this blog with an excellent recipe with moderate difficulty. Asian BBQ Ribs over white rice with Cool Asian Coleslaw on the side. BUT DON'T BE DISCOURAGED! It has been one of the most delicious things I have ever made and well worth the time.  I got the original recipe from Williams-Sonoma's Sous Chef Series and of course...added twists

The Recipe

For the ribs:

8 cups chicken stock

1⁄4 cup soy sauce

4 garlic cloves, peeled

1 6-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 medium carrot, diced

1 medium onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 racks baby back pork ribs, about 4 pounds total (racks cut in half if using a Dutch oven)

For the glaze:

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger

1⁄4 cup sliced scallions

1⁄4 cup soy sauce

1⁄2 cup hoisin sauce

1 cup dark corn syrup

1⁄4 cup ketchup

11⁄2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder

11⁄2 teaspoons chile paste

The Procedure:

For the ribs:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. In a large roasting pan, combine the

chicken stock, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, carrot, onion and celery and bring to a

boil over high heat. Remove from the heat and nestle the ribs in the braising

liquid. Get them nice and cozy!

2. Cover the roasting pan tightly with foil and bake until

the meaty part of the ribs are tender when pierced with a knife, about 90

minutes.

3. While the ribs cook, prepare the glaze: Heat the oil in a medium saucepan.

Add the garlic, ginger and scallions and cook over medium heat, stirring

occasionally, until fragrant, about 4 minutes. Add the soy sauce, hoisin, corn

syrup, ketchup, five-spice powder and chile paste. Increase the heat to high until almost boiling. Reduce the heat to a simmer until the mixture has thickened slightly, about 20 to 25 minutes.

4. Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on the baking sheet. (We put foil over the rack and cut slits in it, but a bare wire rack is perfectly fine.)

5.Remove the ribs from the braising liquid and place them, meaty side up, on the

rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°. Brush a thick coating of glaze on the

top of the ribs. Bake for 45 minutes, brushing the ribs with additional glaze every

15 minutes.

6. Transfer the ribs to a cutting board, let rest for 5 minutes, then cut

into one- or two-rib portions and serve immediately.

  

Yes, this recipe takes time, but those Asian flavors are so rich and savory. You also get that finger-licking effect, which everyone loves with BBQ. This would also be great on a grill, but who needs one when you can make this in your own kitchen. You will absolutely love this.

***Here's another secret that they don't mention in the original recipe. The braising liquid from the roasting pan that you baked for 90 minutes actually becomes a stock! It tastes just like a rich chicken soup with a hint of ginger. Absolutely delicious and even better if you add some noodles, some dumplings or even Matzo Balls!***

Welcome

It's 2014, and I have tried to write a cooking blog twice before. This time, it's here to stay. I want something bigger and better for my life, and it definitely is going to involve food. So, enjoy these recipes and rants that I absolutely love. Many are inspired from my favorite chefs and many are combinations of different recipes put together. Whatever it may be, I have one thing that I believe in very strongly. Food brings people together and food creates love. That is why my life revolves around it! I always tell my friends that I have a mental obsession with food. When I am eating breakfast, I am thinking about what I want for lunch and when I am having dinner, I think about what I want to have tomorrow. So lets talk turkey..and hundreds of other things... cooking, food, eating, restaurant and all the gastronomical elements  put together. I am Beth Kravitz, and welcome to my blog.