365 in 365 - #13 - Chocolate Bark

One of my favorite combinations of flavors is dark chocolate, pistachios and dried cherries.  For some reason, the bitter sweet of the chocolate, the crunch of the nuts and the sweetness of the dried cherries is very seductive.

Stressed to Impress - with Valentine's Day fast approaching, any brave soul might want to try this to really impress their special someone.  You can purchase a heart shaped container from any craft store, line it with gold or silver tissue paper and then layer in the pieces of bark and tie it with a silk ribbon and add a rose.

Gentlemen (hint - hint), you can also tie the box with a silk ribbon and add a rose shaped brooch or lapel pin.  There are some lovely pins available with Austrian crystals on the web, just search "Austrian Crystal Rose Pin" and you will find some great choices.  As part of your Valentine celebration, give this as one element of a special day / evening that you might be planning...something "hand-crafted", unexpected and special.

Dark Chocolate, Pistachio and Dried Cherry Bark

1 pound chopped dark chocolate
3/4 cup dried cherries
3/4 cup shelled pistachios
One ~ 18 inch piece of waxed paper, laid flat on the counter.  You may need to tape each corner down to keep it in place.

In a medium ceramic or glass bowl, melt the chocolate very gently in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring after each use of the microwave.  As the chocolate begins to melt, decrease the time in 10 second increments until you are at 10 seconds.  Melt the chocolate very gently or it may seize.  If it does seize, you will need to throw it away, clean the bowl and start over.  This may take several minutes, but it does work very well.

Once the chocolate is melted, add the dried cherries, the nuts and stir.  Pour the candy onto the waxed paper (you may need to use a rubber spatula to get all the chocolate out of the bowl)  and spread the bark out in about a 1/3 inch layer.  I use an off-set spatula for this as it gives a very even candy.  Let it set until firm, then break into bite sized chunks and enjoy.

This is one of those candies that you can play with.  You can double the recipe, or use other combinations of chocolate, dried fruit and nuts.  Other flavors that have been very popular for me are white chocolate, macadamia nuts and chopped dried apricots; walnuts and dried cranberries or any other combination that you might like.

This also makes a great house warming gift for any occasion.

I hope y'all enjoy!
S.

365 in 365 - #12 - Breakfast Hash

For the most important meal of the day....other than lunch, dinner and a bedtime snack.  Tomorrow, I'll post the best method for making an omelet that you will ever try....light, fluffy, impressive and oh so very easy.

Breakfast Hash

This is a recipe that I came up with because I didn’t have enough of any one item to make an adequate breakfast.  I needed to go shopping, and just had not yet found the time to get to the market.

For this recipe, you will want to make the dice the same size for all the ingredients.  Typically, I like a ¼ inch dice.

6 to 8 ounces left over roasted meat such as pork tenderloin or steak, diced

1 large onion, diced

1 large raw potato, peeled and diced

2 cloves garlic, minced 

Olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste

In a medium to large nonstick skillet, add 2 tbsps olive oil and sauté the onion and potato until tender.  Add the garlic and cook for an additional 5 minutes.  Add the meat and sauté until heated through.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

This works well as a stuffing for an omelet or as the base for a poached egg.  The first time I served it, I put a poached egg on top and served some very sweet and juicy cantaloupe with it.  

365 in 365 - #11 - Haricot Vert

So far, for 2011, I have written and posted 10 recipes in my blog and it is only January 10th.  That got me thinking, what if I do 365 recipes in 365 days??  

So, I went back and looked at what I have posted and this is the list:

January 1 – Strawberry Sauce & Strawberry Salad Dressing

January 4 – Sweet pickle, scallion and red pepper relish & Lime mayo

January 6 – Chocolate pudding & hot cocoa

January 8 – Grilled cheese sandwich & chicken tortilla soup

January 9 – Maple bacon & chocolate covered pretzels

1 more recipe and I am a day ahead of schedule.   I say yes, why not.....and then....Lord help me!!!  

So here is # 11:

Haricot Verte with caramelized shallots and toasted pine nuts

1/2 pound haricot verte, washed and blanched

Peel and slice very thin 6 shallots

Over a medium to low heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan

Add the shallots, let brown, stir and let brown and repeat until they are nice and brown and very sweet.  

Add 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper

Toast 4 tablespoons of pine nuts very carefully on low heat in a shallow pan. Keep an eye on these as they tend to brown more quickly than other nuts.

When the shallots have browned nicely, add the haricot verte and heat through.  Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts and serve.

The fresh taste of the crisp green beans with the sweet soft shallots and buttery pine nuts is a great combination that I am certain you will enjoy.

Cooking Bacon without the mess

I tried something different today with my bacon.  I have always cooked it the traditional way...frying on top of the stove in a pan...YUCK...what a mess!!  So, I turned on the oven and laid the bacon out on a jelly roll pan and let it cook at 350'.  It did take a bit longer, but no mess, no fuss and it came out great.

I also took some whole grain bread, drizzled it with olive oil and sprinkled on some southwestern seasoning mix and toasted it on a cast iron griddle.  This was amazing as the base for breakfast sandwiches.  I cooked some eggs very gently (not browned) and let the yolks set, but remain a little runny, added pepper jack cheese and the maple bacon, savory, sweet and spicy.....yumness personified!

Jason and I both like our bacon with maple syrup, so I buy maple bacon...but now I will brush it with a little maple syrup and place it back in the oven for a few minutes.   I also do this with my home-made sausage.  I actually mix maple syrup in with the meat on occasion.  It is so much better when it is home-made.

Because I really like the sweet / salty thing, I tried chocolate covered bacon.  Aida (5 ingredient fix) did this on her show and it is honestly fabulous.  I have also tried chocolate covered potato chips, which are actually yummy.  For holidays, I sometimes make chocolate covered pretzel rods and do them in several different flavors.  I like using the small ones for simple coverings and the bigger ones for the more elaborate coverings.  Think white chocolate, dried apricots and macadamia nuts; white chocolate and orange candy flavoring drizzled with dark chocolate; dark chocolate, pistachio and dried cherry; dark chocolate and raspberry candy flavoring with toasted sliced almonds.

Well, off to the kitchen to make candied jalapenos and bread (honey white; rosemary and garlic and maybe jalapeno cheese).

Have a great afternoon!!

Chicken Tortilla Soup

By far, the easiest home-made soup you will ever make.   This takes about 30 minutes from can to bowl.  People will think you have worked for hours to make this soup.....I believe that everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I would simply smile sweetly.

This recipe makes a ton of soup and it does freeze very well.  The amount of heat that you will get from 2 serrano peppers is about the heat of a "medium" salsa, this is the best comparison that I can make to give you a reference point.  If you would like a less spicy version than this, add only 1 serrano pepper.....or none at all if you prefer a very mild soup (ahem....wimp!).

This soup will get quite thick once it sits, so if you like a soup with more broth, please feel free to add more.

2 quarts chicken broth / stock
1 rotisserie chicken, meat taken off the bone and shredded
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn
2 medium onions, diced
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 serrano peppers, sliced very thin
1 package (~10 per pkg) medium sized flour tortillas, diced (approx. 1" squares)
2 tsps pepper
2 tsps salt

Avocado chunks spritzed with lime juice
Crema Mexicana and shredded cheese for garnish

Combine the broth, tomatoes, onions, corn, garlic, cilantro, serrano peppers, peppre and salt in a large soup pot and bring to a slow simmer.  Then, turn the heat on low and add the flour tortillas until they are soft.  Add the shredded chicken, stir and turn off the heat.  Let this sit for 5 minutes, until the chicken is heated through.  Taste for seasoning.

Add avocado to each bowl (as much as you like) then add the soup, drizzle with the crema and sprinkle with cheese.  The smooth, creamy avocado is a very nice surprise with the heat and chunkiness of this soup.

Total yumness!!!

On a cold day, waiting for an even colder night

Well, it looks like North Texas is going to get hit with freezing rain and snow tonite and tomorrow.  Since this area does not get much snow, I will be staying of the roads.  My observation has pretty much been that men in pick-up trucks in north Texas have a tendency to drive like they are invincible......and they are in their big ass Ford 950's (or whatever number it is) trucks.  It is us poor, helpless little runts in our PT Cruisers, Rav4's and Mitsubishis that are in trouble.  We putt-putt carefully and (I might add) blissfully along so that we don't slip and slide and crash into anyone else.  And then, all of a sudden - there is a HUGE truck driving so close to the rear ends of our cars that they may as well be a hemorrhoid.  Anyway, all that to say that I went shopping and filled the cupboard and I couldn't be happier to be home and ready for the impending weather.  

Back to cooking -  I picked up my dad and we fortified the larder for the impending weather.  This is the kind of thing that we used to do when I was growing up just outside of Boston, Mass....a storm would be forecasted and we would rush to the grocery store like all hades was going to break loose.  Since I could not in good conscience break the well established tradition, that is what I did today.

So, with larder full and fridge bursting at the seams, I am spending the afternoon and evening cooking.  Right now, I have pea soup with kielbasa and a Canadian pancake cooking (family recipe that I will post later). on the stove for my dad.  I am also making chicken tortilla soup (easy and fast), Mexican lasagna (recipe has previously been posted), roasted tomato basil soup (Barefoot Contessa's recipe) and getting the fixin's ready for grilled cheese sandwiches.

For the grilled cheese sandwiches, I use ciabatta bread and layer in cheddar, pepper jack and asiago cheeses and then cook them in my George Foreman grille.  They get really toasty and crunchy without adding extra fat.  However, when I am feeling very decadent, I use a cast iron pan, olive oil and toast the sandwiches that way......total YUMMNESS!!!

I'll post the soup recipes a bit later...gotta get back to the kitchen, stir the soup and flip the rather massive pancake.

Have a great afternoon!!!
Susan

A shout out for Chocolate

My brother is great at sending me links, books and sometimes goodies.  Not too long ago, I received a box of chocolates from him.  The package was beautiful.  Once unwrapped, the chocolates were revealed...they were gorgeous  My husband and I started tasting them.  We each ate half of every piece so we could taste everything in the box.  What we discovered was a mix of flavors that we had not encountered before.  The link to the source of these little treasures is:

http://www.dancinglion.us/wordpress/

....and I urge you to visit.  Try some of the chocolates and be prepared to taste a little bit of heaven in each bite.

Jason and I both like dark chocolate, so the recipes that follow are for the dark chocolate lovers out there.  If you like something a bit more mellow, you can use regular cocoa powder.  

Warm Dark Chocolate Pudding

For the best results, use  half-n-half.  However, skim milk will work just fine.

3 cups of milk

1/3 cup sugar (you may want to add more, but do so in increments of 1 tablespoon at a time)

1/3 cup dark cocoa powder (you may also want to add more, but do so in increments of 1 tablespoon at a time)

4 tbsp corn starch and 4 tbsp cold water mixed to make a slurry

1.5 tsp vanilla

Heat the milk on low until is gets warm.  Combine the sugar and cocoa powder and add to the warm milk.  The cocoa powder will eventually melt into the warm milk.  Slowly bring this to a light simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.  Then, stir the cornstarch and water to mix, and pour into the pan slowly while stirring (a wooden spoon works best) or whisking the pudding.  

Continue to stir or whisk and let it simmer for approx. 1 - 2 minutes, or until thickened.  Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.  

Pour into a bowl and cover the surface with plastic wrap to avoid the formation of a "skin" over the top of the pudding.  

Then, take 1/2 cup of whipping cream, 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla and beat until soft peaks form.  

Serve the pudding either warm or cold with the whipped cream.

Hot Chocolate

Use the same recipe as the pudding, but don't add the cornstarch and water.  This is a great hot cocoa.  

Variations - add 1/4 tsp (or more to taste) of peppermint abstract for a Peppermint Patti

Add 1/2 cup Raspberry liquor for a sensational Raspberry Hot Cocoa

Add 1/4 cup of Amaretto and 1/4 cup Coconut Rum for a Chocolate Covered Almond

Add 1/2 cup of Grand Mariner for a Chocolate Orange

You can also use the whipped cream to top your hot cocoa.

I hope you enjoy!

S.