Sausage-Stuffed Cherry Pepper Poppers – Because the Party with the Best Food Wins

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Dec 182011
 

Whether you want to admit it or not, it’s getting close to holiday entertaining season, and as far as I’m concerned there’s really only one measuring stick by which all holiday parties are judged – the food.

You can have the best DJ, the coolest place settings, even those novelty ice cubes in the shape of shapes, but none of that matters if your food is lame. That’s where these sausage-stuffed cherry pepper poppers come in.

The foundation of all great holiday party menus are the hors d’oeuvres and appetizers. Most people will be drunk by the time the main courses are served, but when the party begins, and senses are yet to be dulled, a bad or boring array of small bites will not go unnoticed.

These super-simple, but memorable cherry pepper poppers will get the party started right. The next day, instead of talking about you trying to moonwalk with a lampshade on your head, or how you spilled a Bloody Mary on the boss’s wife, people will be raving about “those little, red, spicy sausage pepper things.”

By the way, the hardest thing about this recipe is finding these Peppadew peppers. Except for a few annoying exceptions, you know I like to use easy-to-find ingredients, but these gorgeous peppers, from the Limpopo province of South Africa, have such a wonderfully unique, sweet/spicy/tangy flavor that I wanted to use the real deal.

I was having a hard time finding them myself, but it was my mother-in-law Peggy who came to the rescue (again), and mailed these down to us as part of our anniversary gift. You can get them online for sure, and they are often found at the better gourmet grocery stores, but if you can’t find them, most supermarkets do carry some type of jarred cherry peppers. Enjoy!

UPDATE: While I was making this recipe, I couldn’t for the life of me remember where I saw this done for the first time. Well, I just talked to my mom Pauline, who informed me these were my Uncle Bill’s invention. I should have known! Thanks Uncle Billy!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZaHk-XJFlk?fs=1]

Ingredients:
8 oz Italian sausage
2 jars Peppadew peppers (about 32)
1 tsp olive oil
chopped parsley

Three Corn Polenta – An old Italian classic gets “freshened-up”

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Dec 182011
 

In today’s clip I’m going to use corn in three different ways. I’m going to use it dried and ground, which of course is the Polenta part. I’m also going to use fresh corn, but cooked two different ways. Part of the fresh corn will be sautéed and cooked into the polenta, and the remainder will be added at the last minute so it stays relatively crisp and fresh tasting. Now, if all this sounds too complicated, as you’ll see from the clip, it’s actually an extremely simple dish. The final result may remind some of you of creamed corn, but this is significantly lower in fat and calories, as it has only a small amount of butter and no cream, flour, etc. The “creaminess” comes from the properly cooked polenta and plain old water.

When I first began my career as a cook in San Francisco, polenta wasn’t a common starch in non-Italian restaurants, as it is today. I remember talking with a Chef about an upcoming menu on which he was thinking of using polenta as the side dish. I asked him what exactly polenta was and he told me an Italian ground corn meal. I asked him if he was talking about “Polanda.” He said no, and that he had never heard of polanda. I told him it was also an Italian ground corn meal that I had eaten many times growing up. I remember calling my Mom and telling her we were going to serve something called polenta at the restaurant. I asked her if she had ever heard of this similar sounding dish. She laughed and said that they were the same things! She explained that “pol-an-da” was just our family’s mispronunciation of the actual name polenta. I was pretty embarrassed to say the least. Come to find out, my family had mispronounced and/or Americanized many Italian terms (mostly curse words), which I won’t go into now, but needless to say, from that point on, I’ve always checked! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup polenta
2 1/2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp butter
1 tsp olive oil
3 ears fresh corn (about 1 1/2 cups)

Homemade Crème Fraiche – Nobody’s Ever Made it Just Once

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Dec 172011
 
Crème fraiche is French for “fresh cream,” which makes it one of the most ironically named foods ever, since it’s made by leaving cream out in a warm spot until it’s soured and thickened by a growing colony of bacteria. Yeah, fresh.

Regardless, making crème fraiche is very easy and as the title implies, once you taste the magic of homemade sour cream, you’ll have a hard time not repeating this somewhat esoteric exercise. Sure it takes a couple days, but the effort is minimal for such a marvelous payoff.

As I mention in the video, besides the amazing taste and luxurious texture, maybe the best thing about crème fraiche is its ability to be cooked. Because of it’s composition and fat content, it doesn’t curdle and separate when you heat it like sour cream.

This makes it an incredibly versatile addition to countless recipes. I can’t think of many pan sauces that don’t benefit from a spoon or two. Yesterday on this blog, you saw it stirred into fried rice. Next week, you’ll see it turn an ordinary pan of braised beef into a world-class Stroganoff. I could go on and on, and for SEO purposes I probably should, but you get the idea.

As long as your jars and utensils are very clean, preferably sterilized, there isn’t a lot that can go wrong. Be sure to get your hands on the best, freshest cream you can find. In the supermarket you’ll want to look for “pasteurized,” not “ultra-pasteurized” heavy whipping cream. Also, be sure to use cultured buttermilk otherwise you’re going to be waiting a full day to see nothing happen.

By the way, I’m extremely proud of this video recipe and blog post, but not for the usual reasons. It’s because I didn’t make one single Randy Marsh joke! You South Park fans know what I’m talking about, and those of you that don’t should really check out this crème fraiche-themed episode. Enjoy!


Ingredients:
2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons cultured buttermilk

Mix together and leave in a warm spot (about 70-75 degrees F.) for 24 hours, or until thick. Refrigerate for 24 hours before using. Should last a week or two. 

Tomato Sauce – Your Wish is Eventually My Command

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Dec 172011
 

One of the most common “food wishes” I get is for tomato sauce. Even though I’ve received hundreds of requests for my tomato sauce recipe, I’ve resisted filming it for a few reasons.

First, I always thought I would eventually put all my most requested, unpublished recipes on a DVD, and totally get rich. That scheme has been thwarted since, over the course of the last couple years, I filmed and posted just about every recipe that fits that description.

Second, tomato sauce recipes are so personal that what I may think is a perfect all-purpose sauce, you may taste and think is the worse one you ever had. I remember going out to eat as a kid and listening to my mom and aunts talk about how the sauce we were eating was an abomination compared to “our” sauce.

Anyway, those issues aside, this is my basic, all-purpose tomato sauce. I trust you’ll taste and adjust the seasoning as you see fit, and be relatively gentle when comparing it to your grandmother’s clearly superior version.

One thing I hope you do not change is the tomato. There is little debate among tomato sauce aficionados regarding the advantages using the magnificent San Marzano tomato. This long, intensely red, plum tomato variety imported from Italy can be found in any good Italian market, and most of the larger high-end grocery chains.

Any sauce recipe is only as good as the tomatoes, and unless you’re going to use a basket of sugar-sweet, vine-ripened tomatoes in the middle of summer, these are your best option. I hope you find some and give this sauce recipe a try.

The other ingredient that may give you pause is the hint of anchovy paste. Use it. No one will taste it, and while I can’t prove any of this, it really does “something.” Enjoy!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HP9doLye26I]

Ingredients:
2 cans (28-oz) whole peeled San Marzano plum tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 rib celery, fine dice
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
water as needed

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

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Dec 162011
 

Ingredients:

6 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered

4 to 5 garlic cloves

5 cups water

2 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil

1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt

Pinch pepper

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, bring potatoes, garlic and water to a boil.
Reduce heat; cover and cook for 20 minutes or until potatoes are
tender. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup cooking liquid. Mash the
potatoes. Add oil, salt, pepper and reserved liquid; stir until
smooth.

Yield: 4 – 6 servings

Seared Wild Halibut on White Bean and Garlic Puree

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Dec 132011
 

I feel like I have to apologize any time I post a clip from my old blog, since many of my older viewers have already seen it. But, as stated ad nauseum, I want all the clips I’ve previously filmed to be archived here. Besides, if you watch it again to may see something you didn’t notice the first time you watched it (like how I give the wrong name for the beans I used!). Another reason for the “easy” post today is I have lots of personal business to take care of, as well as beginning my part-time “Chef to the Stars” gig that I mentioned in the Spring Training/Las Vegas post.

Fast and very healthy, this halibut is served on top of a puree of white Italian beans and garlic. This is a great, lower-carb alternative to the more common base of garlic mashed potatoes. Feel free to use ANY fish in this dish, as everything tastes great on top of these white beans!

I’ll also show you how easy it is to make fish steaks into boneless, skinless, fish fillets.

2 Wild Halibut Steaks Or Fillets
1 Jar White Italian Beans (10 Oz)
4 Cloves Garlic
1/2 Bunch Fresh Italian Parsley
4 Tbl Butter
Red Pepper Flakes
Black Pepper
Salt
2 Tbl Olive Oil
1 Lemon

Broccoli Cornbread

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Dec 112011
 

This recipe for Broccoli Cornbread I got ages ago from my friend, Debbie, who used to bring this to our church socials. Her pan ALWAYS went home empty. It is so good.

1 box frozen broccoli; thawed and drained
6 oz cottage cheese
1 onion, chopped
1 stick margarine, softened
4 eggs
1 box jiffy cornmeal mix Mix together, pour into greased pan. Bake at 400*-425* until golden brown. Freezes well.

Saffron Rice with Currants and Almonds – Is this a Pilaf? Who cares?

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Dec 072011
 

On this busy Monday morning, I didn’t have the time or energy to go surfing around the web gathering extensive info on what makes a rice dish a Pilaf. Early translations of “pilaf” simply refers to rice, or other grains, being cooked in oil and then in stock. As far as I’m concerned, if you put “stuff” in rice (veggies, fruits, nuts, meat, etc.) then you can call it a Pilaf, and keep a straight face. Sometime Pilaf is just a restaurant term used to make the rice sound fancier on the menu. I’ve had “Pilaf” that looked just like plain rice to me. I think most chefs would say the difference is whether the rice is cooked in a stock, or flavored broth, verses plain water…whatever.

I’m calling this “Saffron Rice with Currants and Almonds,” and there nothing anyone can do about it. Now, as I say in the video recipe, this is the very easy, very fast version. In the professional kitchen, a stock would be made with sautéed onions and the saffron, to infuse the maximum amount of color and flavor. In this version I just used my basic basmati rice technique and after coating the rice with the oil, I just throw everything in at once. It worked. Now, I will admit the professional method described above does make a better product, but many home cooks when faced with the extra steps of dicing onions and infusing stocks, will simply make plain rice and eat thier chicken legs. So, I decided to show a compromised version that should make everyone happy (is that possible?).

If you haven’t seen it, be sure to check out the Basmati Rice video recipe clip which will make this recipe easier to understand. By the way, there is NO substitute for saffron, so don’t ask. If you can’t find it and/or afford it (warning: its crazy expensive) then just make the recipe without it. If you’re just looking for a nice yellow color you could throw in some turmeric. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 cups basmati rice
3 cups cold water
2 tbl dried currants
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1 tsp salt
1 tbl butter
pinch of saffron
2 tbl olive oil

He Tells of Michele’s Seashells with Sicilian Sausage by the Sea Shore

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Dec 052011
 

I just had to post this picture of a pasta Michele made for her sick chef a couple nights ago. I get emails once in a while asking if and what Michele cooks and why don’t I film her.

She does cook – when she can get in the kitchen, which I’m usually occupying. I would film her, but her rates are very high and we haven’t been able to agree on a price.


It’s a super simple recipe, which goes as follows; sauté sausage meat until brown, add some garlic and sauté in the fat for a couple minutes. Throw in a bunch of broccoli rabe, some pepper flakes, and enough chicken stock to cover.

Simmer until the broccoli rabe is tender. Boil shells and add to the sauce with a splash of good olive oil and a handful of real Pecorino Romano cheese. Yes, I will be filming this someday.

Simple Raw Green Sauce

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Dec 052011
 

This is about as primitive as it gets. Take some garlic, capers, anchovy, and parsley, and smash it up in a molcajete, or other mortar and pestle type grinding device. Add a little oil and vinegar, possibly a pinch of salt and pepper, and you have maybe the world’s greatest grilled meat condiment.

The sharpness of the sauce, and the brightness of the flavors makes for a perfect marriage with the smoky meat and its subtly bitter grill marks. As I say in the video, the secret here isn’t the ingredients, as you can really use any kind of green herbs you want, but it’s the grinding and smashing.

Certain things happen to hand-ground food that just don’t occur in a food processor. You can check a site like Cooking for Engineers for the scientific reason, but tasting is believing.

By the way, these little molcajetes make for a great gift. I should know – I was given this one at the Hotel Valencia on my recent trip with the San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau.

So remember, it’s a long grilling season, and you’re going to need to switch things up now and again. When you do, this simple, raw, green sauce will not disappoint. Enjoy!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEPeGKml0OQ]

Ingredients: (warning: I guessed at these amounts, as this is not a recipe that requires precise measurements – do everything “to taste”)
2 large cloves garlic
pinch of salt
2 teaspoon capers
1 teaspoon anchovy paste
1/4 cup packed Italian parsley leaves
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (or any vinegar or lemon juice)
2 tablespoon olive oil

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