Nigella Lawson's Cheddar Mashed Potatoes With Bacon and Apples 11.21.11

Well, I feel silly.

I took the time to take photos of everything... except these.  Unless you count the "in process" shot above as I lazily allow the kitchenaid to do all of the work.

BUT, these are outstanding!  Bacon!!!  Bacon! Bacon! Bacon!

And to top that off, the apples are actually cooked in the bacon fat!!!

One of those OMG recipes!

You can find the recipe on the Chew website (Click HERE).  It's not terribly difficult, just a pretty standard tater recipe, except...

You fry up a bunch of bacon....
While that is frying, core and peel 2 granny smith apples, diced
When the bacon is done, set it aside and dump the apples in the bacon!  When they are soft (and have absorbed all that delicious bacon grease, add some onions until they are soft as well.

Add to your cooked potatoes, add some grated cheddar, add milk, salt pepper and mash as you like (long time for smooth, or shorter time for the preferred lumpy!

Serve with Turkey, Dressing, Green bean Casserole and fresh made Rosemary Bread!

YUM!

Mario Batali's Roasted Pumpkin With Fontina Fonduta 11.14.11

OK, today's recipe I actually made exactly as shown in the episode.  I was able to track down the specialty cheese suggested.  A bit pricey, but you only needed 4 ounces.

I did toast the pumpkin seeds.  On the show Mario suggested some heat spices... I used Cayenne!

You can view the recipe on The Chew website (Click HERE).

You can also view the video of Mario making the dish on the same site (Click HERE for the video).  It's not terribly difficult, but the video is broken down to 2 parts (Click HERE for the 2nd part).

The sauteed pumpkin cubes were exactly as Mario said they would be.  A crunchy bite on the outside, as well as a soft chewy center.

The spices were delicious.  My wife actually thought that I had made a sweet potato recipe.  The color was perfect and the cheese; the creamy goodness expected!

I simply loved it.

A brand new side dish, sure to delight!

Michael Symon's Mac and Cheese Casserole 11.11.11

I think next time I need to read the recipe just a little closer.  Instead of tossing the breadcrumbs with parsley at the end, I ran bread crumbs and parsley through a few pulses of a food processor.  Came out with that slightly unappetizing green colored topping.

Today's recipe Tasted fantastic!  Bacon and nutmeg and the addition of sweet creamy mascarpone cheese certainly makes the taste of this side dish stand out.  But adding the parsley colored bread crumbs took just a bit of the joy from the final product.

But that's just aesthetics, the taste left nothing to be desired, it was absolutely as good as hoped!

In addition to the slight error (again, my fault, the recipe clearly says to toss together, not sure what got into my head to pulse), I made a few slight changes in the recipe.

Michael used a rigatoni tube shaped pasta.  For Mac and Cheese, I like to use a Fusilli shaped spiral pasta.  i think the cheese that gets into the spiral is the perfect balance of cheese and pasta.

I also chose to use a high fiber whole wheat pasta.  After all, what's good for the American Colon is good for the USA!

And I served this as a side dish with a delicious spicy Cajun spiced Blackened Pork Chop!  Perfectly balancing the creamy sweetness of the cheese and the heat of the peppered chop.

Here's what I did...

1 pound Bacon
3 TBS Flour
1 Onion, diced
1 Butternut Squash, peeled and diced
2 cloves Garlic, smashed and minced
1 Quart 1/2 and 1/2
pinch Nutmeg
Bunch of chopped Parsley
1 pound Whole Wheat Fusilli
1 cup grated Gruyere Cheese
1 cup Mascarpone
2 cups bread crumbs

The dish is very very easy... Make the pasta as directed (al dente actually, cook 1 minute under the time recommended)
Preheat oven to 375
Cook bacon, drain and chop.
Add onion and squash to the bacon grease and saute until the onion is translucent.  Add the garlic and mix.
Slowly add the flour to the remaining grease and stir to make a roux.  Keep stirring until it softens and liquefies.
Slowly add the 1/2 & 1/2 while mixing and bring to a simmer.
Add in 1/2 of the Gruyere and nutmeg and stir until all of the cheese has melted.
Add the Mascarpone and continue to mix until melted and incorporated into the cheese
Add the pasta and mix

TOSS  the bread crumbs with the parsley and remaining gruyere and sprinkle over the mixture
Bake for 8 minutes

And ENJOY (highly recommend serving this with a spicy Cajun Blackened Pork Chop!

Carla Hall's Eggs in Heaven and my Heavenly Eggs in Hell 11.8.11

Miss Carla... I have a confession... I am falling in love.

If you check my stats on the side bar, I have made more of your recipes by double than any of the other hosts on The Chew.  You post accessible ingredients, often with an eye towards budget consciousness and you always make that leap from ordinary to just a shade better.

Except today.

Hey Carla, don't get me wrong, today's recipe is just fine.  Grits, and you showed lots of tips on the episode for making great grits (click HERE to see the video of Carla posted on The Chew website making this recipe), with baked eggs (love those beautiful light creamy whites with that perfect cooked soft yolk).

My only justification for the obvious (to me) changes that should have been made, you were doing a riff on Mario Batali' Eggs in Hell, which I made way back... well, 2 weeks ago.  Mario's eggs were baked in a delicious spicy tomato sauce, taking him back to his Italian specialty.

So you adapted to a more southern flare, using grits as your base.  So, for the sake of the show symmetry, you produced "Eggs in Heaven" to contrast his spicy delicious Hellish eggs.  I am sure, still delicious, but I just could not resist adding two of my favorite ingredients to add to grits...

Sweet Potatoes and a TBS of pureed Chipotle Pepper in Adobe Sauce.

First, look at that beautiful deep rich orange color.  Sure, your cheddar cheese added a little color, but oh my, that orange is a delight to plate.

But the addition of sweet potatoes (I steamed them for about 30 minutes until soft, then ran them through the food processor to get them creamed) made my grits... extra creamy and delicious.  But, I guess deep down I am not a heavenly guy at all.  The spoonful of hellish spice really made these the cat's whisker and the cat's meow.  Unique in their texture, color and deliciously wicked taste.

Carla, I love ya, You are my most copied chef host, but today... My Hellish Heavenly Eggs are better than yours.

Here's what I did...

2 large Sweet Potatoes, peeled, chopped, steamed and pureed
1 TBS pureed Chipotle Peppers in Adobe Sauce
1 cup Stone Ground Hominy Grits
1 1/2 cups Water
1 Cup Whole Milk
1 tsp Salt
4 TBS Butter
6 Eggs
1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 Ham Steak and Black Pepper to taste

Heat oven to 350
Bring water, milk and salt to boil, gradually add grits, simmer for 20 minutes or until thick.  Continue whisking throughout to prevent lumps
Add the butter and cheese  and also the Chipotle Pepper Puree and the pureed sweet potatoes and stir to combine... move to a baking dish...
Note, I have individual dishes that nicely hold about 1 1/2 cups of grits that fit 2 eggs perfectly.  Carla made this in one large serving dish.
Make an impression in the grits to hold an egg and carefully break the eggs and add into the iompression.
Bake uncovered for 15 minutes or until the eggs reach their desired doneness!

Garnish with a ham steak and pepper!

Oh My...

These are HEAVENLY!

Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos's Mozzarella in Carrozza 10.25.11

Who knew???

It's a savory French toast sandwich; Italian version.  And I say, "who knew???" because apparently this is a pretty famous Italian dish.  Take a look through Google and you will see several versions.  But basically, it's a toasted cheese sandwich, dipped in egg before you fry it up.

Today featured guest stars, Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corco.  They are the hosts of the Cooking Channel show, "Extra Virgin".  Have to confess, these two celebrities were new to me.  I do not get the Cooking Channel on my cable system.  They were very entertaining.  Reminded me a bit of my own situation, with a wife who enjoys food, but has little background in cooking.

The show did feature TWO segments with the guests; which I think is badly needed whenever they schedule folks.  In the past (Paula Deen comes to mind) I always felt rushed through their stories and recipes.  I thought the interview portion combined with the cooking segment was nicely balanced.

Click HERE to get a break down of the entire episode, with video segments and recipes from this episode.

Specifically, click HERE to see the recipe for Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos's Mozzarella in Carrozza.

I made a few changes in my version, nothing drastic.

They fried their French Toast in Olive Oil.  I decided to fry mine in butter instead.

They seasoned their Mozzarella in Carrozza with salt and pepper.  During the segment they advised that several options for seasonings could be used.  I decided to add a 1/2 tsp of my "Not your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence" Spice mix.  It's a very simple make ahead mix that combines 9 different spices for a Mediterranean taste.

Th sandwich is excellent!  Has that eggy French toast taste, but it also combines with the savory spices and the richness of the mozzarella cheese.  If, like me, your experience with French toast is only as a sweet dish (Syrup and/or powdered sugar toppings), this will really excite you.

It is a simple dish...

eggs
milk
toast
cheese
"Not your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence" Spice mix
dusting of flour
Oil or butter to fry the sandwich in  

It really is a terrific idea for an interesting lunch.  I can also envision smaller sandwiches for a tea or to use an appetizers.

On the show, the hosts cut the bread using cookie cutters for a holiday treat.

Love this recipe!

Michael Symon's Spicy Tomato and Blue Cheese Soup 10.18.11

It was soup day!!!

I love soups.  And the whole day did not disappoint.  This was a close call, as there was a gulf shrimp and grits soup recipe that looked really good as well.  But, in the end I decided to go with what I had in stock.

BTW, just a couple of days earlier I was shopping at Sam's Club, the big Costco-like warehouse store.and spied a HUGE can of tomatoes for less than $3.  Serendipity.

Click the photo above to see my
review of Michael's other Tomato Soup

I did find this interesting that Michael would post a second tomato soup just a few days apart.  Interesting, but there is very little comparison.  The soup that he used as an accent for a fancy grilled cheese was a quicky (it really did come together in about 5 minutes).  Savory seasoned, with Cumin and thick, almost like a dip.

Whereas, this is a spicy soup, seasoned with Sriracha sauce (the hot "rooster" sauce).  The spice is cut a bit with cream and blue cheese, but it is spiced instead of savory.

I made a few changes...

I was all set to add the chicken stock to the soup as it was cooking.  But, since the juices from the big can of tomatoes was added, as the tomatoes cooked down, what was left was still a thick soup (as I like).  Adding stock would have thinned it out too much for my taste.  I added 1/4 cup of stock, but saw the beautiful thick luscious soup being thinned and stopped at that small amount.

The soup also calls for a tiny amount of fresh oregano.  First, I did not have any, second, I was using canned tomatoes at the height of tomato picking season and third, I have a pretty good dried spice mix that I use (combined with a little bit of lemon zest).  This way, I was able to make this a pantry soup, something I generally have all of the ingredients on hand.

BTW, I make my own Mediterranean spice mix I call, "Not Your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence".  You will be seeing this ALOT.  It's a fast way to add that special savory taste to any dish.  I make about 2 cups worth a month and bit by bit, it is gone!  Tastes great on everything from eggs to chicken and anything in between!

While Oregano spice on it's own is fine, It was so much easier to just add a couple of TBS of this...

Here's my formula...

• 1 part dried tarragon
• 1 part dried Oregano
• 1 part dried Dill
• 1 part dried Rosemary
• 1 part dries Thyme
• 1 part dried Garlic Flakes
• 1/2 part course grind Sea Salt
• 1/2 part fresh ground Peppercorns
• 1/2 part fresh Lemon Zest
  Note: if I know I am going to use this up in a week or two, I will go ahead and zest the lemon.  Sometimes I make enough to last a month or two with no real plans to use it.  On those occasions, I do not add lemon zest, instead I will add fresh zest as I make whatever recipe I am using the spice mix.

And I made a very simple grilled cheese (just provolone) to go with the soup!

You can see Michael's original recipe by clicking HERE.  I did simmer the tomatoes much longer than Michael implied, about 2 hours at a very low simmer.  In my opinion, it breaks the tomatoes down better, allowing the sweetness to come through... before we added to Sriracha sauce!!!

The recipe made a huge pot.  Easily a dozen servings.  Perfect for a cool fall weeknight and plenty of lunches afterwards.  And with the very inexpensive huge box store can of tomatoes, this comes in at less than a dollar a serving.  The budget buster is the blue cheese, but if you shop carefully, it is a great budget saving soup!

I mean WOW, great taste, a pantry soup and a budget dream!

Michael Symon’s Spinach and Feta Grilled Cheese with Tomato Soup 10.11.11

This is one fancy toasted cheese sandwich!

It was part of an Iron Chef throwdown featuring Michael and Mario Batali (using guest judge, Marimoto).  While Mario's sandwich looked delicious (An Italian Ham and Cheese), it took some pretty exotic ingredients, fennel Salami, Fontina and pickled peppers.  Stuff I rarely if ever have in my pantry.  I hate the idea of shopping to make a sandwich.  And since I had just used up the last of my summer basil to make some pesto, I had a bit of pine nuts, the only luxury item I usually do not stock in Michael's sammy.

BTW, Marimoto whimped out and did not choose a winner of the "contest".  Sure, it's all in fun, but if the producers are going to go to the trouble of having a guest, doing the groundwork for a contest and teasing us with the tasting; just felt a little cheated.

Michael had a clever addition to his sandwich.  The assignment was to make a sandwich in 5 minutes (easy enough when you have all the ingredients mise en placed and pre-cut).  Michael, in true Iron Chef fashion, added a quickie tomato soup as a garnish for the sandwich.

I mean really, what's more "all-American" (the theme for the day) than grilled cheese and tomato soup?

I did need to fudge a bit with the ingredients to the soup.  I made mine extra thick, almost a dipping sauce for the sandwich.  Michael's recipe calls for a can of tomato puree.  I neither had any, nor have I ever seen this in the store.  So, I assumed and used a can of diced tomatoes and then used my wand mixer to puree them myself.

You can see Michael's recipe on The Chew website by clicking HERE.

Here's what I did...

1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can of tomato paste
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup cream

Heat the diced tomatoes in a sauce pan (do not drain, water and all) until the juices begin to simmer.
Add the tomato paste and mix well
Add the seasonings and continue to simmer
Add the cream to desired consistency and creaminess

The soup really did come together in just 5 minutes.  This is a gem of a recipe.  Uses ingredients I always have in stock, the cumin really shines and the thick dipping sauce I made can easily be thinned by leaving out the tomato paste.  5 minute tomato soup... I love it!!!

As to the sandwich, equally a winner!  Kind of a Greek toasted cheese.  I made the sandwich exactly as Michael recommends on the website (and in the show), click HERE.  He does saute his spinach in butter.  While indeed tasty, I think i would just use a nice extra virgin olive oil next time.

Also, pine nuts... HATE EM.  Not for the taste, but for the outrageous price.  I happened to have a small handful left from a pesto I had made a couple of days ago.  Ordinarily I never have these in stock.  Just a matter of timing that I had this luxury budget busting ingredient on hand.

Next time I make this with walnuts or pecans.  You would lose the total Greek-ness of the recipe, but move this to a lunch sandwich made with ingredients in your pantry.

And the Feta was AMAZING!

Carla Hall and Sam Champion's Mac & Cheese 10.4.11

Today is a difficult episode for me to comment on.  I live in the Kansas City area.  We have a tragedy going on right now.  You may have heard that there was a nationwide Amber Alert, centered in Kansas City.  The least of my concern was the ongoing TV coverage of the event.  As I write this, Lisa Irwin is still not home where she should be.  As I sat down to watch yesterday's episode, the first 20 minutes were centered on the ongoing investigation.  Also, another couple of news breaks interrupted or abbreviated the live show.

So, I don't think I saw an entire segment, and certainly not an entire recipe.  BUT... the good folks at ABC have set up a website that made it a bit easier (http://beta.abc.go.com/shows/the-chew).  Sadly, I did not find the episode I wanted to see until this morning, but I was able to find the recipe.

The recipe is incredibly easy.  It also makes just about the creamiest, the cheesiest Mac N Cheese I have ever eaten.  It is a stove top recipe, which makes it very easy.  I do miss the contrast of textures from a baked MnC, with a bit of a crunch.  BUT, the ease that this comes together, combined with the incredible taste makes this recipe a real keeper.

And of course... BACON, BACON, BACON, BACON, BACON!

As I am working on this post, I have been listening to the segment.  This is an interesting segment, Sam Champion is NOT a cook.  He freely admits that his schedule keeps him from cooking and that certainly showed in the segment.  While I have enjoyed the food related guests, I think this is a great move from the shows' producers.  Non-cooks are terrific to use as examples of how easy cooking actually is.  It is also a bit of a trick to gently teach cooking techniques without saying you are teaching.

Now, there is a small detail in the recipe.  It is listed as taking 30 minutes or less.  In fact, there is no way to caramelize onions that fast (unless you do a cheat and add brown sugar and butter to the pan, but that makes onions in a caramel sauce... almost the same, but not really).  The caramelized onions show up as an ingredient.  Sorry Carla, I just don't know where to shop where I can find caramelized onions.  they are easy to make, but it takes time.

But that's not that big of a concern.  Just know that the recipe will take about 45 minutes to make the onions.  Multi tasking can get this recipe into the 45 minute time frame and leave plenty of time to work on a main course...

Like this simple Balsamic Chicken Bruschetta open faced sandwich i served along side the Mac N' Cheese.

OH, one final change, Carla made this dish with standard elbow Macaroni.

I used a Rotini, corkscrew type pasta.  In fact, I used a whole wheat pasta.  I like the idea of whole wheat as adding a shade of a health benefit to this very fat filled recipe.  I also personally like the extra chewy texture of whole wheat pasta.  But that's just me.

You can find The Chew website version of the recipe by clicking HERE.  Easy, fast, especially VERY easy and fast if you eliminate the caramelized onions.

Now, I loved the recipe... BUT

I do wish the hosts would have discussed Brick Cheese vs the bags of pre-shredded cheeses.  In my opinion, brick cheese has a deeper taste.  The pre-shredded bags add surface area to the cheese.  More surface area, more oxygen hits the cheese.  more air hits, the faster the cheese losses it's taste.  ALSO, the bagged cheese adds just a touch of wax to keep the cheese from re-clumping.  It's subtle, but the wax does have a taste.  With all of those potential sous chefs, seems like Carla could have assigned and explained what most cooks and all chefs know.

Like I said before, though, it is one heck of a GREAT recipe!