Recipe - Tuna Ceviche with Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus

Fun recipe - kind of involved, but, worth it. This recipe has three parts:

1. The Ceviche
2. The Asparagus
3. The Glaze

Ingredients:
Ceviche:
1 lb. Yellowfin Tuna - Cubed into 1/2" cubes
1 Ripe Avocado - Cubed into 1/2" cubes
1 Medium Onion - Diced Small
1/2 Cup Fresh Lime Juice (About 2 limes' worth of juice)
1/4 Cup cold-pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Cilantro - To Taste
Kosher Salt - To Taste
Some type of Lettuce - For garnish/serving

Asparagus:
1 lb. Asparagus
1/4 lb. Prosciutto

Glaze:
1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 Cup Fresh Lime Juice
1/4 Cup Sugar

Preparation:
Ceviche:
Mellow the onions by soaking them in a bowl of water with about 1 tsp. dissolved salt for about 45 minutes.
Drain the onions, and combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Combine gently.
Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Taste, and re-season if necessary

Asparagus:
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil with a pinch of salt.
Boil the asparagus for about 3 minutes, then, shock in ice water.
Dry on a paper towel and grill on a grill pan, barbecue grill, or clamshell grill.
Wrap 1/2 piece of prosciutto around each stalk while the asparagus is still warm.
Let cool to room temperature.

Glaze:
Simmer the vinegar, lime juice, and sugar until the mixture reduces by about half.
Set aside to cool.

Plating:
On one half the plate, place a large piece of lettuce, and mold about 1/4 cup of the ceviche into a round on top of the lettuce. A biscuit cutter works well for this.

On the other half, lay a thin line of glaze, about the average length of the asparagus stalks, and place three wrapped stalks on top.

You're going to need:
Nothing special, although, a biscuit cutter would help for presentation.

Serves:
4-6, easily.

Tip - Turkey Tips

Use a roasting pan with a rack, and cook your turkey upside down.

Start with the bird with the breast up, and cook it for about 25 minutes at about 400 degrees. Drop the heat to 325, open the oven, remove the turkey, and carefully flip it breast down. This is a good time to put a remote thermometer into the thigh or breast.

Put it back in the oven and finish cooking it upside down to ensure you get juicy white meat.

Tip - Glass Top Stove Care

Ever burn a serious amount of grease splatter right onto the heating element on your glass-top stove? Fun, right? I just went through this while making Chicken Marsala, and I tried a bunch of things to clean it.

The less-successful attempts were:
Soft Scrub (Which is what I normally use to clean the stove)
Soft Scrub with a Scotch-Brite (Which is what I normally use to clean the stove when it's filthy)
A Razor Blade (Not uncommon when the stove has a small spot of burnt-on grease)
A cleaner designed specifically for cleaning burnt-on grease from a glass cooktop (I'm not going to mention the name, because the produce was worthless)
Dish detergent left to sit on the grease for several hours
Some cussing (Didn't work, but helped my mood tremendously)

All of that failed. The only thing that seemed to make a dent was the razor blade. I poked around the kitchen and garage and found two things that worked, with very little effort and fantastic results:

A fresh razor blade.
A Mister Clean Magic Eraser.

That's it - nothing fancy. If you can't figure out how to make that work, put down the razor blade and don't play with stoves anymore.

Recipe - Chicken Tikka Masala

Ingredients:
12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cubed into 1" cubes. (Don't bother with white meat, the thighs are better here)

Marinade Ingredients:
1 Cup Plain Yogurt
1 Tsp. Chile Powder
1 Tbsp. Garlic Paste
2 Tbsp. Ginger Paste
2 Tsp. Cumin
1 Tbsp. Garam Masala
1 Tsp. Paprika
1/4 Tsp. Turmeric
1/2 Tsp. Ground Coriander
1/2 Oz. Lemon Juice
2-3 Pinches Salt

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl, whisk together, and add the chicken pieces.
Stir well to cover all the chicken and put in refrigerator, preferably overnight, but, for at least 8 hours.

Sauce Ingredients:
2 Onions, Chopped
1 Tbsp. Butter
2 Tbsp. Oil (Vegetable is fine)
1 Tbsp. Ginger Paste
1 Tbsp. Garlic Paste
1 Tsp. Cumin
1 Tsp. Ground Coriander
1 Tbsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Garam Masala
1 Tsp. Paprika
1/2 Tsp. Turmeric
1 Pint Heavy Cream
1 Cup Plain Yogurt
6 oz. Tomato Paste
Salt

Preparation:
Begin making the Sauce:
Heat the oil and butter in a large saucepan or chef's pan. Once heated, add the onions and a pinch of salt, and caramalize the onions.
Get the Heavy Cream ready, and add the Garlic and Ginger pastes to the onions. As soon as the pastes begin to stick to the bottom of the pan, add the heavy cream, then, the rest of the ingredients.
Stir well, and then stir occasionally while you cook the chicken.

Cooking the chicken:
There are several ways to accomplish this. The tastiest way by far is to grill the chicken. In the past, I've skewered the chicken pieces and grilled them. Great flavor, however, quite time consuming.

Alternately, a large skillet will suffice, however, don't crowd the pieces in the skillet, as they'll end up boiled instead of pan-seared, and you'll lose the marinade. As the chicken finishes cooking, add it to the sauce.

Another method that works quite well is using a clamshell grill. It's fast, maintains the marinade on the chicken, and is easy to clean up afterward. Again, once the chicken finishes cooking, add it to the sauce

Once all the chicken is combined with the sauce, cook over low heat for an additional 15 minutes or so to let the flavors incorporate.

Plating:
Serve with or over saffron-infused rice, and with naan.

You're going to need:
Aside from the spices, nothing special.

Serves:
4-6, easily.

Tool - Jerky Shooter

Picked this tool up at Gander Mountain.

It's a Guide Series Jerky Shooter, and its advertised capacity is 1 1/2 pounds of ground meat, although, I find it holds a bit more than that.

I adapted a stuffing horn from a small grinder to fit the collar on the end, and find that this is much faster and much more controllable than using the grinder to stuff sausages.

Once you're in the groove, it takes about two minutes to prepare, stuff, and tie off a 1-pound ring of sausage.

Recipe - 24 Hour Pickles

These are nice and crisp, and easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 Quarts Water
1 1/2 Cups White or Apple Cider Vinegar
1/3 Cup Salt
1/4 Cup Sugar
2 or 4 Garlic Cloves, Chopped
1 Cup (or more) Fresh Dill
1 Tsp. Mustard Seed
Cucumbers, Cut or Sliced to taste

Preparation:
Wrap the Dill and Mustard Seed in Cheesecloth, this will allow you to avoid straining the brine and adding more garlic later on. If you don’t have cheesecloth, double the amount of garlic.

Bring the Water, Vinegar, Sugar and Salt to a boil; boil 3 minutes, then remove from heat.

Add the Dill/Mustard Seed Packet and Garlic, and allow mix to cool.

Once cool, remove the packet with the Dill and Seeds, or if you didn’t use cheesecloth, strain the mixture into another container and add more garlic.

Put cucumbers in a Glass or Plastic container, and pour the cooled liquid over them. Let stand unrefrigerated for 24 hours. After 24 hours, refrigerate pickles.

You're Going to Need:
Container(s) for the pickles.

Serves:
Makes about 3 jars of pickles.

Recipe - Rigatoni Aglio E Olio

Ingredients:
1 lb. Uncooked Rigatoni
6-8 Cloves Garlic, Sliced
4-6 Leaves Fresh Basil, Chiffonaded
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Water
Grated Parmesan Cheese

Preparation:
Bring a pot of water to a boil and salt the water. Add the Rigatoni.
Once the pasta is almost done cooking, heat about 4 Tbsp. Olive Oil in a skillet.
Once the oil is hot, add about 2 Tbsp. of sliced garlic, brown, but don't burn.
When the pasta is finished cooking, drain, and add a portion's worth of cooked pasta to the skillet.
Toss quickly to prevent the pasta from sticking, and then add about 1/4 cup water, and a small pinch of basil.
Toss again, and serve, topping with a little bit of grated Parmesan cheese.

You're going to need:
A Stock Pot
A Skillet

Serves:
4

Recipe - Gazpacho with Avocado and Crab

Ingredients:
4 Heirloom Tomatoes - Rough Chopped
2 Large Cucumbers, Skinned and Rough Chopped
3 Cloves Garlic
1 Cup Fresh Cilantro
1/2 tsp. Ground Cumin
1/2 tsp. Fennel Seed, ground
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Lime, juiced
6 Oz. Lump Crab
1 Avocado
9-10 Fresh Basil Leaves
Kosher Salt
Cayenne Pepper

Preparation:
Blend the Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Garlic, Cilantro, Cumin, Ground Fennel Seed, Olive Oil, and Lime Juice until smooth. Taste and season with Salt and/or Cayenne Pepper. Chill.

Before serving, prepare the Avocado, Crab, and Basil -
1. Chiffonade the basil.
2. Drain the crab and remove and cartilage or shell. Lightly salt and toss with some extra virgin olive oil.
3. Halve the Avocado, and remove the pit. Using a small knife, cut thin slices lengthwise, but, don't cut through the skin.
4. Fan the avocado slices around the side of the bowl, ladle in some gazpacho, and top with the seasoned crab and a small ball of basil.

You're going to need:
A fairly respectable blender
An old coffee grinder or mortal and pestle (for the spices)

Serves:
4-6, comfortably

Recipe - Pan Seared Scallops

Want a 10-minute dish that makes you look like you know what you're doing in the kitchen? This one is a winner.

Ingredients:
Sea Scallops
Kosher Salt
Unsalted Butter
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preparation:
Unless you're fortunate enough to be able to get dry-packed sea scallops where you hail from, the first thing to do is rinse the scallops really well and then pat them dry with a paper towel.

Put about 1 Tbsp. Butter and 2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a saute pan, get it hot, just about to the smoke point.

While the pan is heating, turn the scallops on their sides, and, while pinching them with a moderate bit of pressure, slice them in half.

Sprinkle a bit of Kosher salt onto each side.

If the pan is hot, place no more than 6 scallop halves in the pan, let them sit, untouched, for about two minutes. Lift one gently and, if you've got a nice golden "crust" on the scallop, flip them over to the other side and cook for additional minute.

Serve immediately.

You're Going to Need:
Nothing special.

Recipe - Boerewors

I used the recipe from africhef.com (http://www.africhef.com/Boerewors-Recipe.html) as my base, and modified it slightly. My version has less salt and Worcestershire sauce, more garlic, and dices rather than grinds the bacon, for a slightly more interesting texture.

INGREDIENTS:
3 Pounds Ground Pork Shoulder – Coarse Ground
3 Pounds 90/10 Ground Beef
1 Pound Bacon – Diced Small
½ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
3 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
4 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Ground Pepper
2 Tbsp Ground Coriander
½ Tsp Nutmeg
½ Tsp Ground Thyme
½ Tsp Allspice
¼ Tsp Ground Cloves
2 Tbsp Minced Garlic
32mm Sausage Casings

PREPARATION:
Combine all ingredients except the casings and mix well.
Stuff into Casings.
Use the tip of a small knife or a clean pin to prick the casings if there are any air pockets.
Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze.
Cook on the grill.

YOU’RE GOING TO NEED:
A grinder (if you don’t buy your meat ground)
A Sausage Stuffing Tool
A Big Bowl
An old coffee grinder or mortar and pestle (for the spices)

SERVES:
Makes about 7 lbs of sausage

Recipe - Pancakes

Ingredients:
2 Cups all purpose flour
4 Tbsp. Sugar
4 Tsp. Baking Powder
1 Tsp. Salt
2 Large Eggs
3 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil
1/4 Tsp. Fresh Nutmeg
1/8 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
Milk - Add enough to make a pourable batter

Preparation:
Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl, and whisk to combine.
Add the wet ingredients, breaking the yolks on the eggs once they're in the bowl.
Whisk gently until the ingredients are well mixed. Add more milk if necessary.
Let the batter sit for about 5 minutes, untouched. Bubbles will start to form in the batter. This is good.
Ladle the batter onto a heated griddle.
Cook at medium heat, flipping once the edges of the cake start to bubble.

You're Going to Need:
A goodly-sized bowl

Serves:
Makes about 20 4" cakes.

Recipe - Beef Jerky - Honey Teriyaki

Ingredients:
4 London Broils - Trim external fat, freeze slightly
2 Quarts Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce
10 Oz. Honey, heated in microwave for about 15 seconds
12 Oz. Teriyaki Sauce
1 Tbs. Hoisin Sauce
10 Shakes Liquid Smoke

Preparation:
Whisk all of the ingredients except the London Broils in a large (about 6 quart) container.
Slice the slightly frozen meat into thin strips, preferably on a meat slicer. Make sure the slices are uniform.
Combine the meat with the marinade, and let sit the refrigerator for a minimum of two days. Stir or shake occasionally.
Lay out the marinaded slices in your dehydrator, and dry to the preferred texture. On my Excalibur dehydrator, this takes about 6 hours at 115 degrees.

You're Going to Need:
A Meat Slicer (Optional, but well worth it)
A Dehydrator
A Large, preferably covered container

Serves:
Depending on the cuts of meat, makes about 4 lbs of finished jerky

Tip - Collagen Casings

I may be a bit late to the party on collagen casings, however, they don't make good linked sausages. The ends don't stay twisted. For linked, unfortunately, you may have to go with natural...

Recipe - Homemade Italian Sausage - Hot

Update 2009-04-14: I've gotten some feedback on this recipe - apparently it's not all that hot, so, if you like it spicy, consider adding more Red Pepper Flakes, Cayenne Pepper, or both. -- gcF

INGREDIENTS:
Package Collagen Casings - 32mm - 35mm
2 Tablespoons Fennel Seeds
3 Tablespoons Coarse (Kosher) Salt
1 Tablespoon Black Pepper
3 Tablespoons Parsley
1 Tablespoon Red (Cayenne) Pepper
2 Tablespoons Dried Pepper Flakes
1 Teaspoon Sweet Paprika
10-Pound Pork Shoulder

PREPARATION:
Toast the fennel seeds in a skillet until they brown. Set aside to cool.
Grind the fennel seeds and the dried pepper flakes
Cube the pork into 1" Cubes
Toss the cubed pork together with the the spices, refrigerate for at least one hour (more is better)
Grind the seasoned pork through the fine disc on the grinder
Stuff casings to your specifications, I normally stuff them in .25 lb increments

YOU’RE GOING TO NEED:
A Meat Grinder
A Sausage Stuffer (I use Gander Mountain’s Jerky Gun with a #5 Sausage nozzle)
A REALLY Big Bowl
A coffee grinder or mortar and pestle (for the spices)

SERVES:
Using the guidelines above, makes about (40) quarter-pound sausages

Tip - Painter's Tape

Quick tip that you may have already thought of, but, if not...

Keep a roll of blue Painter's Tape and a dual-tip Sharpie(r) in the kitchen for labeling food bags and containers. The tape holds up fine in the fridge and freezer, but pulls off easily when you're done with the container, of if you have to put the container in the oven or microwave.

Simple and effective.

Recipe - Award Winning Chili

Every once in a while, I whip this up and bring it in to work. I get quite a few requests for the recipe, and, it did take third at a chili cook off, so, it can't be all bad, right?

Ingredients:
1 lb lean Ground Beef
1 lb lean Stew Cubes, Cut into ½” cubes
3 Large Bell Peppers
1 Large Can Mushrooms, Drained –or- 1 Small Package, Sliced
2 Large Onions
3 Carrots
1 8 oz. Can Dark Red Kidney Beans, Drained
1 8 oz. Can Light Red Kidney Beans, Drained
1 8 oz. Can Seasoned Chili Beans, NOT Drained
3 Tbs. Onion Flakes
3 Tbs. Cumin
2 Tbs. Chile Powder (Homemade is best!)
3 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper
2 Tsp. Seasoned Salt
2 whole Turkish Bay leaves
1 Small Can Tomato Paste
6 Tbs. Garlic, Minced
12 oz. bottle of lager
Salt

Preparation:
Brown the ground beef slowly with a pinch of salt and 1 Tablespoon each of onion flakes, cumin, chile powder, and cayenne pepper. Drain and set aside.
Brown the beef cubes slowly with a pinch of salt and 1 Tablespoon each of onion flakes, cumin, chile powder, and cayenne pepper. Drain and set aside.
Dice the peppers and onions into half-inch squares.
Peel and then slice the carrots into quarter-inch thick slices.
Combine the remaining ingredients except for the Bay Leaves and lager with the browned beef in the crock pot and stir to distribute everything evenly.
Flatten the top of the mix, and pour the beer evenly over it.
Place the Bay Leaves on top of the mix.
Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours, remove the Bay Leaves before serving.

You're Going to Need:
A Large Crock Pot

Serves:
8-10 Servings, serve over Tortilla Chips, Corn Chips, or Rice

Recipe - Jack Daniel's Glazed Ham

INGREDIENTS
4 to 6 pound spiral-cut ham, pre-cooked
1/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey
1/3 cup orange juice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 325°.

On a rack in a roasting pan, roast ham, uncovered, for about 20 minutes per pound, or until a meat thermometer reads 140° F.

While the ham is cooking, whisk the remaining ingredients together in a saucepan and simmer over medium low heat for about 15 minutes, or until it begins to thicken.

Brush/pour the glaze over the ham about 20 minutes before done, or when the temperature reads about 125.

YOU'RE GOING TO NEED
A Roasting Pan
A saucepan
A Coffee Grinder or Mortal and Pestle (For the cloves)

SERVES
6 to 8, easily

Recipe - Mac and Cheese

To begin, this is not the old blue-box Mac and Cheese. It takes a while to make, uses damn near every pan in a normal kitchen, and is brutal to clean up after. It also costs more than the GDP of some third-world countries.

It is, however, worth it.

Without further ado...

INGREDIENTS:
2 Lbs. Pasta of Choice (I normally use Large Shells)
8 oz. Can Evaporated Milk – Not sweetened
2 Ham Steaks –diced small, more or less to taste
1 Onion – diced small, more or less to taste
12-16 oz Little Broccoli Florettes
Cheese – Lots of Cheese, Including:
-- Shredded Sharp Cheddar – 4-6 oz.
-- Shredded Gruyere – 2-3 oz.
-- Shredded Mozzarella – 4-6 oz.
-- Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano – 2-4 oz.
-- Shredded Swiss – 0-2 oz.
-- Shredded Colby – 2-4 oz.
-- Shredded Monterey Jack – 2-4 oz.
1 Large Egg - Beaten
Bottle Dry White Wine (Like a nice Chardonnay)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste.

PREPARATION:
In the sauté pan, combine the evaporated milk, the salt, pepper, most of the cheese (see below) and the egg, and begin to cook over very low heat. Whisk occasionally to ensure the cheese melts cleanly and smoothly.

Begin heating enough water to cook the 2 lbs. of pasta. Salt the water when it gets hot.

Add the oil to the skillet, and over medium-high heat, caramelize the onions.

Once a light brown, put them in the sauté pan with the cheese mixture.

Add a bit more oil to the skillet, and brown the ham pieces. Once browned, add to the cheese mixture.

Deglaze the skillet with roughly ¼ cup of the wine. Reduce to half its original volume. Once reduced, add the wine to the cheese mixture

When the pasta is about halfway done, add the broccoli to the water with the pasta.

Finish cooking the pasta to a slightly firm al dente texture, and drain.

In the stockpot, combine the fully melted cheese mixture with the pasta and broccoli.

Spatula the pasta/cheese mixture into the large casserole dish. Top with the rest of the cheese.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes

Switch to the broiler, and broil until the top gets a nice, brown crunch to it. Don’t over-broil, as few things in life taste worse than burned cheese.

YOU’RE GOING TO NEED:
A stainless (NOT non-stick!) skillet
A large casserole dish
A large sauté pan
A large stock pot

SERVES:
An army. Seriously, this is a LOT of food.

Tool - The Smoker

A couple of summers ago, I was looking to get into smoking foods, but, when I started pricing smokers, anything of any appreciable size was ridiculously expensive. With that in mind, I built my own.

The frame is standard 2x4 kiln-dried pine, ripped in half on the table saw. The panels are luan, and the racks are cooling racks that I picked up at Wal-Mart for about $3 each. It has a 6-rack capacity, which is enough to smoke about 25-50 lbs of meat at a time.

The two-door design means I don't have to let out heat and smoke to replenish the wood chips, and the heat source consists of two cheap side burners, one is 750 watts, the other is 1500 watts. Firing them both up on a cool day gets the internal temperature to about 120 degrees.

Clicking the picture at the top the page will take you to a gallery of more pictures of the smoker, and other small projects.

Recipe - Homemade Italian Sausage - Sweet

INGREDIENTS:
Package Collagen Casings - 32mm - 35mm
2 Tablespoons Fennel Seeds
3 Tablespoons Coarse (Kosher) Salt
2 Tablespoons Black Pepper
3 Tablespoons Parsley
1 Teaspoon Sweet Paprika
10-Pound Pork Shoulder

PREPARATION:
Toast the fennel seeds in a skillet until they brown. Set aside to cool.
Grind the fennel seeds.
Cube the pork into 1" Cubes
Toss the cubed pork together with the the spices, refrigerate for at least one hour (more is better)
Grind the seasoned pork through the fine disc on the grinder
Stuff casings to your specifications, I normally stuff them in .25 lb increments

YOU’RE GOING TO NEED:
A Meat Grinder
A Sausage Stuffer (I use Gander Mountain’s Jerky Gun with a #5 Sausage nozzle)
A REALLY Big Bowl
A coffee grinder or mortar and pestle (for the spices)

SERVES:
Using the guidelines above, makes about (40) quarter-pound sausages

Recipe - Homemade Kielbasa

INGREDIENTS:
Package of collagen casings - 32mm - 35mm
10 pound bone-in pork shoulder – cut into 1” cubes (remove the bone, first)
1 lb beef chuck or stew cubes – cut into 1” cubes
1 cup water
4 Tablespoons garlic, minced or crushed
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
2 tablespoons salt
2 teaspoons black or white pepper
2 teaspoons marjoram

PREPARATION:
Grind the meats with the coarse disc on the grinder
Grind the heck out of the marjoram, pepper, and garlic powder
Mix the water with the spices until the salt is dissolved
Add the juicy spice mix to the meat and combine until everything is well-coated
Chill in fridge for at least one hour
Stuff the casings in one-pound increments

Optional: Cure the kielbasa in the refrigerator overnight, and then cold-smoke for several hours. Once smoked, bake it in the oven until it’s cooked.

YOU’RE GOING TO NEED:
A Meat Grinder
A Sausage Stuffer (I use Gander Mountain’s Jerky Gun with a #5 Sausage nozzle)
A REALLY Big Bowl
A coffee grinder or mortar and pestle (for the spices)

SERVES:
Makes (11) 1-pound rings, give or take

Introduction

In addition to infrequently updating my technical blog, http://bpelonwindows.blogspot.com, I've decided to infrequently update yet another blog, this one devoted to cooking, a hobby of mine.

Herein you will find mostly recipes, some examples of what not to do, and maybe the odd picture of my motorcycle (in keeping with the blog's title).

So, thanks for stopping by,

-gcF

---

"Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you who you are."
Anthelme Brillat-Savarin