Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Great food, no recipies, part 3

Sorry, It's been nearly a year for some of these, and I never wrote down the recipies.  They were great, though!

Shirred eggs with avocado and English muffin
ham, cheese and eggs buried in cream and baked until golden brown on top.  Very good!











Jerk pork and plantains
I WISH we had written this recipe down.  Awesome heat and spiciness.  Brought back the Caribbean even though it was about 15 degrees that day.











Welsh laver bread.  Something I'll be repeating for sure.  I soaked some stale nori in water, mixed with oatmeal flour and a little salt, added water to get a nice doughy consistency, coated in more oats, and fried.  Glad the Welsh invented this, even more glad I tried it.


Teriyaki braised spare ribs with kumquat cole slaw.  Fall off the bone tender paired with crunchy/citrusy
















Zucchini "carpaccio"  No real recipe here.  THINLY sliced zucchini, lightly sprinkled with salt and pepper, and drizzled with olive oil.  Easy, and sure to impress friends.




Italian cold cut panini

Funny looking vegetables

These were too cool/strange not to photograph.  More to come as we find them.

Siamese mushrooms
Siamese mushrooms, part deux












Over excited, or does it have a nose?

we nicknamed this carrot Satan's paw, and then roasted it

Moroccan shrimp and couscous salad

 Ever get some fresh stuff at the grocery store and wonder, "what'll I do with that"?  We did. Fresh cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, and arugula.  Hmm...saladish...and I've been wanting something Middle-eastern... How about a play on tabouleh and some spicy shrimp to go with it?

For the shrimp:
2 lbs shrimp, peeled
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp Ras el Hanout
1/4 cup olive oil









For the salad:
1 lb(2 2/3 cup) couscous
2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup olive oil
5 oz. arugula
1 large sweet onion
6 dates
2 large cucumbers
2 cups cherry tomato(these were yellow)
1 Tbsp Zaatar
1 tsp minced garlic
3 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp salt
















The key here is that the salty shrimp are balanced by the salad.

harissa chicken with fruity salad dressing

I'd like to claim credit for this, but it's all Ruth!

For the salad dressing:
2 apricots, diced
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup mango nectar*
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp sugar
dash cinnamon
dash nutmeg
2 tsp whole grain mustard
2 Tbsp Rice Vinegar
2Tbsp sweet harissa
1/3 cup minced onion
Hazelnut oil



Allow to marinate in fridge over night.

Chicken:
6 drumsticks
1/4 cup sweet harissa
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp honey









Served with mixed greens and goat cheese

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Home made Pizza

We love making pizza at home, so tasy and easy!

For the crust:
3 cups bread flour
1 cup warm water
1Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 envelope(tsp) yeast
Add 2 cups flour to other dry ingredients.  Add warm water, and begin to knead.  Add remaining flour as needed, until the dough is no longer sticky and has formed an elastic mass.  Allow to proof for at least 12 hours before rolling into pizza crusts.

For the sauce:
1 large can(28 oz.) tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes.
1 small can (6 oz.)tomato paste
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup marsala wine

 
building a pizza while one cools in the background
3 pizzas in 3 stages of prep













 pear butter with sliced apples and Boursin cheese
Toppings are completely open, obviously, but be sure not to overdo it.  Let the crust bake.  Too much on top=soggy crust underneath.