Truffle oil, balsamic Margherita


Three cheese galic

Ingredients
2 onions, chopped
4 slices of bacon, chopped
1 bag of sauerkraut
1 pound skinless smoked kielbasa, cut into chunks
1 can tomato soup

Instructions
Cook bacon until slightly crispy. Add onions and cook until translucent.

In a crock pot add all ingredients and cook on low for 4-8 hours. Easy.

Piecrust
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup shortening
6 tablespoons cold water, plus 5 tablespoons cold water, as needed

Filling
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1 tablespoon butter

Instructions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

To prepare the piecrust, combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut in the shortening with your fingers or a pastry cutter, until the pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 6 tablespoons water over the flour, and gently toss with a fork. Push the flour to the sides of the bowl, add the remaining cold water, and mix until all is moistened and combined. Divide the dough in half, and form each half into balls. Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate.

In a large mixing bowl toss the apples with lemon juice. Combine the sugar, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, and nutmeg. Add the apples and toss until completely coated. Set mixture aside.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out one ball into a 12-inch circle, and place into a 9-inch pie plate.

Transfer the apple mixture into the pastry lined pie plate. Cut the butter into small cubes and add to the apple mixture.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, until apples are tender.

Ingredients
1 pint heavy cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Freshly cracked black pepper
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Instructions
Heat heavy cream over low-medium heat in a deep saute pan. Add butter and whisk gently to melt. Sprinkle in cheese and stir to incorporate. Season with nutmeg and freshly cracked black pepper. In a large stockpot, cook pasta in plenty of boiling salted water for 3 minutes. Quickly drain the pasta and add it to the saute pan, gently toss the noodles to coat in the alfredo. Transfer pasta to a warm serving bowl. Top with more grated cheese and chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Swiss, cheddar and brie with green onions on tortillas, fried in butter. Delicious.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
3 whole eggs, beaten
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
16 ounces milk, room temperature
Vegetable spray, for waffle iron

Instructions
Preheat waffle iron.

In a medium bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. In another bowl beat together the wet. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Ladle the waffle batter onto the iron and cook until golden on both sides. Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree F oven until ready to serve.

Yes, tofu can be delicious. Here are two examples I made last week. I almost didn't post them because they both use sauces from Trader Joe's. They are made exactly the same - just two different sauces. I chopped two onions and sauteed them with some olive oil and garlic and added cubed tofu and a handful of frozen green beans. Then, I added the sauce. When it was hot, I served it over rice. Easy. Alex loved both of them. Now, as I write the post, I forgot what each of them were. The first is some Chinese thing, Ginger Something, Something. The second is some Cilantro Curry Something or Other. It's Indian with the disconcerting warning on the label, "Not meant to be eaten raw. Cook thouroughly." Despite me not remembering what they were, they were both delicious.

Miso soup with tofu, edamame (soybeans), buckwheat soba (noodles), and yakinori (seasoned seaweed)


Wakame (seaweed salad) with sesame seeds, marinated tofu on yakinori


Ikura (salmon roe), magura (tuna) with tobiko (flying fish roe), and maguro (tuna)

Ingredients
2 red bell peppers, sliced thinly
2 onions, sliced thin
2 large garlic cloves, minced and mashed to a paste with a pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cup water
sweet Italian sausage links
hero rolls

Instructions
In a large skillet saute the bell peppers, onions, garlic paste, fennel seeds, in the oil over moderately high heat. Continue cooking until the vegetables are lightly brown and softened. Add the tomato paste and stir. Season the mixture with salt and pepper. While the vegetables are cooking, grill the sausage over moderately high heat, turning them once, for 6 to 10 minutes, or until they are cooked through, and halve them lengthwise.

Serve sausage on rolls topped with peppers and onions.

Ingredients
For each serving:
1 tablespoon butter
1 egg
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Instructions
Preheat oven to 475. Combine egg, flour, milk, and almond extract in a food process and process until total smooth. When oven is preheated put one tablespoon butter in a ramekin for each pancake and put in oven until butter is melted. Remove from oven and spray sides with nonstick spray. Pour batter into ramekins and bake for 12-14 minutes until pancake rises and browns. Serve with warmed fruit and maple syrup.

Ingredients
4 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons coffee liqueur
4 teaspoons Chili Oil
7 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
Spicy Whipped Cream, recipe follows

Whisk the egg yolks, 1/4 cup of sugar, butter, 1/4 cup of water, coffee liqueur, and chili oil in a large metal bowl to blend. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (do not allow the bottom of the bowl to touch the water); whisk constantly until the mixture is very thick and frothy, about 3 minutes. Add the chocolate and stir until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat.

Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites in another large bowl to soft peaks. Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, beating until stiff and glossy peaks form. Remove the chocolate from over the water. Fold 1/3 of the meringue into the warm chocolate mixture to lighten, then fold in the remaining meringue.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until set, at least 3 hours or overnight. Spoon the mousse into 6-ounce bowls. Top with spicy whipped cream and serve.

Spicy Whipped Cream
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Cocoa powder
Ground cayenne pepper

With an electric mixer, whip cream gradually adding the sugar until soft peaks form. Top with a dusting of cocoa powder and a pinch of cayenne. Serve immediately.

Venison Medallions
1/2 cup gin
1/2 cup port
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 # venison backstrap medallions
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil

Combine gin, port, and thyme in a medium shallow baking dish. Add the venison and turn to coat. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Heat oil in a large saute pan over high heat until almost smoking. Remove the venison from the marinade and shake off excess. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook on one side until golden brown. Turn over, reduce heat to medium and continue cooking until medium-rare, 3 to 4 minutes.

Port Cranberry Sauce
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 cup port wine
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup cranberry juice
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery and carrots and cook until soft. Raise the heat to high and add the port, cook until dry. Add the spices, cranberry juice, and chicken stock. Strain the sauce and discard solids. Return to pan to heat, whisk in the cold butter, stir in cranberries, and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Ingredients
2# roasted sweet potatoes
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup bourbon
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper

Instructions
Remove the skin from the roasted sweet potatoes and mash potatoes into a sauce pot. Over low heat, add cream, bourbon and butter, continue to mash until all the ingredients are incorporated. Season with salt end pepper.

Ingredients
1 pound green beans
1 large shallot
1 to 2 tablespoons black truffle oil
Freshly ground black pepper
salt

Bring a medium pot of cold water to a boil over high heat and salt it generously. Trim the stem end off the green beans. Peel and finely chop the shallot.

Drop the green beans into the boiling water and cook, uncovered, until crisp tender, about 4 minutes. Drain in a colander set in the sink and rinse with very cold water until cool. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels. (The vegetables can be prepared up to this point, up to 4 hours ahead.)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot is just golden, about 2 minutes. Add the green beans, increase the heat to high, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beans are heated through, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.