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Appetizer Recipes Side Dish Recipes Vegetable Recipes Vegetarian Recipes

Chef Michael Stebner’s True Food Kitchen Brussels Sprouts with Umami Sauce

Brussels sprouts chef recipe True Food Kitchen

Have you been to a True Food Kitchen restaurant? Everything, EVERY SINGLE MENU ITEM there is so freaking amazingly fresh and delicious. The brainchild of health and nutrition guru Dr. Andrew Weil, True Food’s motto is “honest food that tastes really good”. YOU MUST GO.

Onward! We are sticking with our New Year’s resolution, avoiding Trader Joe’s cookie butter, and eating all of the green things. Today we share with you True Food Kitchens recipe for Brussels Sprouts with Umami Sauce. Created by Executive Chef Michael Stebner, here is what he has to say about this dish:
” Most people who say they hate Brussels sprouts have never had them properly prepared. The secrets: Choose fresh, smallish, young sprouts; do not overcook them; and enhance them with the right seasonings. Here, halved sprouts are quickly stir fried with garlic, then tossed in True Food’s Umami sauce. Spring these on a Brussels sprouts hater and change a life.”

 

Brussels Sprouts with Umami Sauce

Brussels Sprouts:
1 ½ teaspoons expeller-pressed canola oil
1 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts, halved
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/3 cup Umami Sauce (see below)
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Umami Sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup flaked nutritional yeast
3/8 cup tamari (low-sodium)
1 c olive oil
1/2 cup water
6 cloves garlic, mashed

Umami sauce instructions:
Add everything to food processor except oil.
Then, with motor running, add oil in a thin stream.
Umami sauce is great on salads, vegetables, etc. Use flaked yeast, such as Red Star brand, not powdered.

Brussels sprouts instructions:
Heat a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the oil. When hot, add the Brussels sprouts and garlic, and sauté for 1 minute. Add ¼ cup water, cover, and cook for 2 minutes, tossing to cook evenly. Remove the cover and stir in the Umami Sauce, lemon juice, zest, salt, and pepper. Continue to cook while occasionally tossing until the liquid is reduced to a thick sauce, about 7 minutes. Transfer to plate and serve hot.

Appetizer Recipes Chicken Recipes

Grilled chicken with gorgonzola dressing via Mario Batali

Mario Batali’s sixth cookbook is entitled “Italian Grill”, and if you aren’t an owner or are on the fence about purchasing it, give this recipe a shot as a trial, it’s not only simple but truly amazing.   An American concept with an Italian twist, Mario describes this grilled recipe as  ” buffalo wings go to Italy”.

Mario’s Spicy Chicken Drumsticks are bathed in a deliciously spicy chipotle buttermilk marinade, and served with a gorgonzola dip rather than traditional blue cheese dressing.    In place of celery sticks, Mario uses fennel bulb sticks, which can be dipped in the dressing as well.

Read on for the video and the recipe Continue Reading

Seafood Recipes

Top Chef Masters Duet! Seafood Recipes from Chefs Chiarello and Keller

Ciao Bello! Aspen 2009

Ciao Bello! Aspen 2009

Not double trouble but a charming duet!  And no, it’s not about Heidi from Savory Tv and her affinity for men in white as shown left.  Todays duo features the two San Francisco Bay area Top Chef Masters Michael Chiarello and Hubert Keller sharing seafood recipes, in this video from View From The Bay.  Michael Chiarello shares his salsa verde swordfish meatball recipe in tomato based fisherman’s sauce and a Calabrian tartar sauce, while Hubert Keller shares his Scottish cold salmon with caviar and mustard seed sauce. (This was the dish made in the dorm room if you watch the show!)  The two of them are very sweet together, and Keller confesses “the only thing we didn’t share in all these days was a bedroom”, and that although the show was “totally stressful”, “we compete in a more elegant manner” than traditional Top Chef relationships.  Proof once and for all that maturity and respect are in fact possible in reality television.   Bon appétit and buon appetito!

Read on for the recipes: Continue Reading

Breakfast Recipes Vintage Chef Videos

The Perfect Omelette via Julia Child

Julia Child in France

We are Julia Child obsessed this month!  With the upcoming movie and reviewing her old shows on Tv, we are consumed with Julia as of late.  How can an icon of the past cast a spell on a new generation of foodies and cooks?   Easily, with her attitude and encouragement that we can make great food at home, fans of JC  of all ages and genres are coming out of the woodwork to appreciate her teaching, even more so now than ever with the upcoming film approaching.

Food Network and Bravo Tv are you listening?   We love your reality shows, but bring us back the vintage classics.  Show us vintage Julia,  Galloping Gourmet, the 60’s and 70’s kitchens that our parents cooked in, and help us pass on classic recipes and techniques to newer generations.

We love this simple recipe, and you cannot go wrong with it!  It’s a no fail Julia Child omelette and a 30 second technique perfect for home cooks when time is limited.  She is a bit rough with the eggs, but try this and trust us, it’s a super fast and easy breakfast, brunch, or dinner.

Recipe for the perfect omelette via the video:

Take a non stick pan, toss 2 eggs in a bowl and throw into it salt, pepper, beat, and add one tsp of water.  Add the mixture into your pan that has been heated with 1 tsp of butter over high heat.  Swirl swirl flip!  Add a bit of butter and parsley for garnish, enjoy!

PS. Do you wish to impress your omelette eater friends or simply make the perfect breakfast with a baby on your hip?  Learn how to simply crack the eggs with one hand.  Chef John provides a tutorial that we mastered after 2 not so sober practice trials.  If we can do this, surely you can too.  Give this amazing egg cracking technique a try.  Thank us later.

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We also have a longer vintage Julia Child episode entitled “Elegance With Eggs” which demonstrates eggs 3 ways, including omelettes,  baked eggs,  and shirred eggs.

Dessert Recipes Ingredient Spotlights Salad Recipes

Mango Love: Top Chefs Share Their Favorite Recipes!

Today’s post is a shout out to the mango, and to our favorite chefs! Even if you’ve yawned with boredom over the plain fruit, often times mango combined with other ingredients (such as citrus or spices) creates exotic flavor combinations that will amuse your palate in surprisingly delicious ways. In addition to being a catalyst to mouth watering greatness, here’s another reason to indulge: Just one cup of mango offers 80% of Vitamin C and 25% of Vitamin A, as well as 3 grams of fiber. Here are some other mango fast facts you may not know:

  • Mango trees need a tropical, frost free environment to thrive.  Here in the US most of our mangos come from California, Florida, and Hawaii, and are of the Keitt variety, which remains green even when ripe.  There are 5 other main varieties, that typically come from Central and South America.
  • A ripe mango is slightly soft to the touch, similar to a ripe peach.  You can purchase firmer, unripe mangos, but store them at room temperature for a few days until ripe, or put them in a paper bag to hasten the ripening.  Only refrigerate ripe mangos.
  • Don’t discrimate by color!  Some mangos are green, some yellow, and some have a blush hue depending on variety.  Use the above tip to determine ripeness, regardless of color.
  • There are several ways to cut a mango, and the National Mango Board has some great cutting tips including a video here.

Chef Merrick Schoenfeld

On to the recipes! First up, Chef Merrick Schoenfeld. Merrick is a personal friend and an insanely talented chef.  In the US, he has worked for several celebrity musicians such as Beyonce, Morrissey, and Eddie Vedder.  Currently he is the executive chef of Pura Suerte on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, a 40 acre organic farm with community garden and educational center, bamboo cabins, and restaurant.  He has authored the cookbook Jungle Fusion, simple yet exotic recipes featuring fresh tropical fruits and vegetables.  Here is favorite mango delight!

Caramelized Mango Pie

1 large flaky pie shell, cooked until golden, allow to cool
4 cups ripe, but not over ripe mangos, cut into med. sized cubes
1 vanilla bean, split, remove and reserve the seeds
4-5 T. water
1/2 cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups sweet whipped cream

Making sure the mangos are free of excess water, put them in a bowl with the vanilla seeds and using a large spoon carefully coat the mangos with the vanilla. Set aside. Place the water and sugar and the cinnamon stick in a large soup pot. Bring to boil and watch as liquid caramelized after a few minutes. This is kind of tricky and you can’t waste any time, but you must pour the mangos into the sugar mixture as soon as it becomes caramel in color. Stir well with a spoon and coat all the mangos. Immediately remove from heat and put the mangos onto a sheet pan to cool. They should not be cooked from the heat of the pan. You want them still fresh and firm. You are just looking to coat them in stringy, crunchy caramelized sugar.
Place the sheet pan of mangos into the refrigerator to cool.
When they are cold, fill your pie crust with the caramelized mangos including any liquid, remove the cinnamon stick. Allow the mangos to rest in the shell for a 1/2 hour and then top with cold sweet whipped cream and serve.

Chef Becky Selengut

Becky Selengut is a Seattle private chef, author, instructor, and blogger of Chef Reinvented.   She offered her recipe for Mango “Potluck Crack”, how could we refuse that?!   This spicy sweet and sour mango salad turned her friends into addicts!

Mango Salad With Tofu, Herbs And Sweet Chile Sauce

1 cup Coconut, Unsweetened, Flaked — reserve small amount for garnish
1 pound Tofu, Baked, cut into small cubes
1 Mango — peeled, cut into small dice (can use an under ripe or ripe mango)
½ cup Basil — rough chopped
1 tbsp Mint — rough chopped
½ cup Cilantro — rough chopped
½ cup Peanuts, Roasted, Salted — chopped
1 cup Cucumber — medium diced
1 Lime — zested, plus juice
1 cup Thai sweet chile sauce
Lettuce cups, Rice crackers or Shrimp Chips — to serve salad on

In a small sauté pan over medium heat, toast coconut until lightly brown. In a large bowl, add tofu, mango, herbs, peanuts, toasted coconut, cucumber, lime zest and juice and 1/2 C sweet chile sauce. Toss tofu into bowl and mix everything together well. Taste and add salt if needed. Add more sweet chile sauce to your liking. Garnish with coconut flakes. Serve with lettuce cups, rice crackers, or shrimp chips.

Chef Christoper Cina

Denver chef Christopher Cina joined in as well, sharing a Cuban Mango Habanero Mojo recipe.  He told us “A mojo is a Cuban sauce/marinade consisting primarily of citrus, usually sour orange and garlic with the addition of many different types of seasonings and spices. Use for marinating pork, chicken and seafood and finishing as a sauce. It is also traditionally served over potatoes as a condiment. This version is a little sweeter and a little spicier. It works great for grilled chicken and fish and roast pork, and can also be used as a dip for breads, especially a good chewy sourdough.” Thank you chef Christopher!

Mango Habanero Mojo

1# mangos (approximately3 each) peeled and deseeded
2 oz whole garlic cloves
½ habanero, you can use more if your brave
¾ cup sour orange juice ( you can substitute ½ cup orange juice and ¼ cup lime huice)
1 ½ tspn. Ground cumin seed, toasted
4 oz. champagne vinegar
4 oz. extra virgin olive oil
1 tspn kosher salt

1. Combine all in a blender except for the oil and salt and puree until smooth.
2. While the blender is spinning on low speed, slowly add the olive oil until fully incorporated.
3. Add the salt
4. Adjust seasonings as you need.

Chef Neal Foley

And last but not least is Chef Neal Foley, aka @podchef, the hardest working chef farmer and sustainability advocate in show business!

Neal is the host of the podcast and youtube channel “Gastrocast” a cooking show about food, farming, and the politics of what we eat.  Burly as he sounds, he actually makes cookies!  Here is his recipe for White Chocolate Macadamia Mango Cookies, gracias amigo.

Mangoed out yet?  Here are more of our favorite chef recipes featuring mangos, enjoy!

Appetizer Recipes Vegetarian Recipes

Michael Chiarello’s Tomato with Warm Goat Cheese and Herb Salad

After meeting Michael Chiarello and his adorable wife Eileen in Aspen, and attending his Farm to Fork talk, my pre existing respect for him has quadrupled.   Not only is he dedicated to local, sustainable food, but he is one of the more down to earth, real, caring celebrity chefs I’ve ever met.  My partners in crime, Danny from Foodie Aspen, Chef John from Food Wishes,  Average Betty, and Jen from Daily Blender and I all had a chance to chat with him while sipping cocktails at  the Best New Chefs Dinner at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen.  “What did you think of our talk?”  he asked me, and “what else did you do today,  how were the other demos?”   Similar to chatting with a family member, he really wanted to hear about my day,  I loved that.     Last night while watching Top Chef Masters, I was very torn between rooting for local Boulder chef Lachlan Patterson from Frasca and Michael, it was a tough call!

No spoilers here in case you haven’t caught up, but here is a simple appetizer or vegetarian main dish from Michael Chiarello, a delicious tomato and warm goat cheese recipe served with an herbed salad.

Tomato Steak with Baked Goat Cheese and Herb Salad
Recipe courtesy Michael Chiarello

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup fine dried bread crumbs
* Gray salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 1 large egg
* 4 rounds fresh goat cheese, about 2 ounces each
* 4 thick, ripe beefsteak tomato slices
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the salad
* 2 cups lightly packed mixed tender fresh herb leaves such as basil, chervil, tarragon, Italian flat-leaf parsley, chives (1-inch lengths), or young cress
* Red wine vinegar

Directions

In a small, shallow bowl, mix the bread crumbs with salt and pepper, to taste. In another small, shallow bowl, beat the egg just until blended. Dip each goat cheese round in the egg, and then in bread crumbs, patting the crumbs in place. Cover and refrigerate the coated cheese rounds for about 15 minutes.

Center the tomato slices on 4 salad plates and season with salt and pepper.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over moderately high heat and pour in 2 tablespoons olive oil. When the oil is almost smoking, add the cheese rounds. Cook until lightly browned, about 45 seconds. Turn them over and cook on the other side until the cheese just feels quivery, about 45 seconds longer, depending on the thickness of the rounds. Place a cheese round on each tomato slice.

In a bowl, toss the herbs with a light drizzle of olive oil, a splash of red wine vinegar, and salt and pepper, to taste. Mound the herbs on top of the cheese, dividing them evenly. Serve immediately.

Michael’s Notes: This salad looks best when the tomato slice and the goat cheese slice are about the same size. So if you can only find goat cheese in small logs, you may want to serve 2 goat cheese rounds to each diner and perch them on slices of smaller tomatoes.

More from Michael: Care to whip up Chef Chiarellos fast food Fish Balls, Shaved Brussels Sprouts and Asparagus Salad, or Goat Milk Basil Gelato with Balsamic Strawberries as seen on the show? Bravo just posted these today!

Drink Recipes

Cooldown Recipe, Watermelon Lemonade!

via cc, babasteve's photostream

Finally summer is in full swing, and our minds are filled with visions of chilly fruit drinks for the start of Operation Cooldown!

Chef Chris Green is the Culinary Director of  the Viking Cooking School, and he share a delicious video recipe for a sparkling watermelon lemonade with raspberries.  This written recipe can be found at the P. Allen Smith site, which is a great resource for home and gardening info as well as recipes.   Feel free to tweak the sugar in the recipe to your desired level of sweetness, and add a touch of rum or vodka if it’s happy hour!

And a few watermelon tidbits FYI:

  • All water and sugar?  Yes, 92% water and 8% sugar,  however feast away without guilt, because watermelon is an excellent source of vitamins A and C, as well as the antioxidant lycopene.
  • A yellow spot on the watermelon is perfectly normal,  it is simply the spot where the fruit was laying on the ground ripening in the sun.
  • The entire fruit is edible, including the seeds and the rind.
  • Is it a fruit or vegetable?  Botanically it’s considered a fruit, however the USDA considers it a vegetable, you can read more regarding the controversy  here.
  • And lastly we’ll leave you with this very sweet photo of a vintage watermelon party from the Montana Historical Society archives.

[pro-player width=’550′ height=’353′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvXZLdunAu8[/pro-player]

Seafood Recipes

Seared Halibut with Zesty Lemon Risotto

We are pleased to introduce to you Chef Drew Munro!   Another talented chef that we discovered via Twitter,  Chef Drew hails from BC Canada, and after culinary school and working in several high end kitchens is now operating Drew Cooks,  a personal chef and catering service as well as a delicious food blog with videos.   And he not only offers his culinary magic at events such as romantic dinners and barbecues,  he also offers Iron Chef style dinner parties in your home, how cool is that?

Drew is a natural in front of the camera, perhaps the Food Network should scoop him up as their next star!   In this episode he prepares a pan seared halibut with a tangy lemon pesto risotto, topped with sauteed cherry tomatoes, shallots, and chive oil.  Visit his blog for the written recipe, enjoy!

Chefs Speak Culinary Events

Aspen Highlights: Chef Michael Chiarello and Peter Jacobsen “From Farm to Fork”

On day 2 of the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen I attended the Lexus talk “The Farm to Fork Connection: Creating a Sustainable World at Your Table” featuring Top Chef Master Michael Chiarello and master organic gardener Peter Jacobsen.

Peter Jacobsen, who calls his work “tantric farming” began the talk discussing food as an agricultural act. He requested that everyone become a farmer of sorts, and suggested planting basil, in order to understand and become involved in the agricultural process. He also suggested “voting with your fork”, making your economic decisions on which restaurant to dine in, ask questions, and find out if your venue is using local and sustainable food.

Chef Michael Chiarello, cheerfully admitting to having a slight red wine hangover, took the stage next. He talked about the process of taking over a piece of land that had previously been a non organic chemical farm, and transforming the land into organic, and watching the process over 7-8 years as the plot developed a new life and an entirely new ecosystem.  He now has several new quail on the previously barren land, as well as cattails, frogs and ducks.

Michael discussed how grocery store produce, and even organic produce from places such as Trader Joe’s , create a huge carbon footprint with gas and transportation, with the added insult of bringing in goods from hundreds of miles away. He stated that his goal with his restaurants is to have every food item come from within a 100 mile radius.

During a question and answer session, I asked him a tricky question which I have always been perplexed by.  When given the choice to choose between local (non certified organic) and non local certified organic, what should we do?  Chef Chiarello said to always choose local.  He touched base on the fact that some farmers do not use chemicals however do not have the resources to become “certified organic”.  He went on to say when you know the farmer that you are buying from, (and used a tomato as an example) you will respect the tomato and will not let it go to waste.  He stressed that having a connection with the local people your food comes from will ultimately affect the flavor and the overall tasting experience as a result of the connectivity.   “Having a relationship with your food is one of the most important things you can do”. I truly love this concept, and have been musing over it ever since.

(At this point I immediately had a flashback to the Thursday night Tapas party. The roasted lamb was prepared, seasoned, and nurtured by Jacques Pepin and Jose Andres, and sliced with master skill by Jose Andres. Sliced morsels were fed by hand, from Jose, directly into several Top Chef winner’s mouths. I apologize for not capturing this on film! The sight was slightly sensual to say the least, and while not completely spot on with Michael’s points, still a delicious example of connectivity and food).

During the talk Michael made a basil infused olive oil (recipe here), and added a touch of it to an amazing pureed and strained tomato water martini (sans alcohol, recipe below) with homemade mozzarella boccacini and cherry tomatoes.  Jen from the Daily Blender,  Sara from Average Betty, Chef John from Foodwishes and  I have been craving more of it all day long.  Cheers and thank you so much Peter and Michael for enlightening us with your knowledge!

tomato-martini

©foodwishes.com

Chef Michael Chiarello’s Tomato Martini

* 3 cups clear tomato water, set aside from Tomato Puree, recipe follows, refrigerated
* 1 green zebra tomato, thinly sliced
* 4 fresh mozzarella boccacini, each 1-inch in diameter
* 4 cherry tomatoes
* Gray salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 8 large fresh basil leaves
* Basil oil, optional (recipe link above martini photo)

Directions

You will need enough tomato water to fill your martini glasses, so measure their capacity, probably something between 5 and 9 ounces. Chill the martini glasses in the freezer, if there is room, or refrigerate 1 hour ahead of serving. (A freezer gives a heavy frost.)

Place 1 slice of green tomato in each glass. Halve or quarter the bocconcini if they are larger than 1 inch in diameter. Thread a bocconccini, and a cherry tomato onto each of 4 wooden skewers 4 to 5 inches long. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with basil oil, if desired. Working quickly, divide the tomato liquid among the chilled martini glasses. Balance the skewers on top of the glasses, then take a leaf of basil per glass, and rub it around the glass rim, before placing on top of each glass, near skewer. Serve immediately.

*Cook’s Note: It is impossible to give a specific amount for the tomatoes because how much “water” a tomato releases depends on many factors, including the growing season and the variety. Do not let the tomato pulp go to waste. Use this recipe as an excuse to start your quick tomato sauce season. You can freeze or can your sauce and then have it on hand for quick meals.
Tomato Puree:

20 tomatoes, core removed

Bring 2 large pots of water to a boil. Lower the tomatoes into the water, blanch for 45 seconds to 1 minute. Place blanched tomatoes on a baking sheet, and peel the loosened skins. With a colander over a bowl, squeeze the seeds and innards out of each tomato. Set aside and refrigerate the clear strained liquid for other uses. Slice the peeled tomatoes into 1-inch chunks, and place chunks into blender. Puree thoroughly. Pour into bowl.

Recipe makes 10 to 12 cups.

Pasta Recipes

Eureka! Hubert Keller’s Macaroni and Cheese

Thank you Bravo Tv! A winning dish from the premier episode of Top Chef Masters, Hubert Keller’s macaroni and cheese with prawns (or shrimp) and mushrooms recipe, prepared by charming Top Chef Fabio Viviani from Café Firenze and chef Michael Demers of Veloce Cibo restaurant.

So, here is the big question, what is the difference between shrimp and prawns?  The answer is as clear as mud.  For a thoroughly confusing explanation from a scientist (including college flashback terms such as arthropods, ecoskeletons and Malaconstracans) read this.  Chowhound foodies discuss it with a bit more clarity here, and here is Wikipedia’s definition of prawns.  So the short answer is yes, there is a scientific difference, and more importantly cultural differences regarding what are referred to as shrimp or prawns.

prawn

shrimp

The bottom line: can you use shrimp in this recipe? Yes! For more delicious Hubert Keller recipes, visit his restaurant site, Fleur de Lys. Select Secrets of a chef, and go to recipes.

Creamy Mac and Cheese with Prawns, Mushrooms and Fresh Herbs
Chef Hubert Keller
Top Chef Masters, Season 1, Episode 1, Elimination Challenge Winner
Ingredients

* 4 tablespoons butter
* 3 large carrots, diced
* 1 large onion, diced
* 1/2 quart cream
* 4 ounces half and half
* 1 cup white mushroom, sliced
* 1 1/2 cup Swiss cheese
* 2 pounds prawns, diced
* 1 pounds cooked pasta
* 1 cup whipped cream
* 5 tablespoons chopped parsley
* 6 egg yolks
* Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large pot, add butter, carrot, onion and sweat for 5 to 10 minutes. Add the cream, salt and pepper and simmer until it gets thicker (10 to 15 minutes). Add the mushroom and Swiss cheese, simmer for 5 minutes. Add the prawns and pasta and mix gently until very hot. Fold into the whipped cream the parsley and egg yolks. Season with salt.

Transfer Mac & Cheese into bowl and cover lip with the whip cream mix.
Hungry for more? Here is top Chef Alex Eusebio’s Macaroni and Cheese with white wine, bacon and 5 cheeses.

And last, but not least, we simply must mention Mario Batali, who we will see in Aspen! Here’s a quick clip of him with Gwyneth Paltrow discussing Mac and Cheese.

[pro-player width=’550′ height=’353′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkJDHK-W6Jg[/pro-player]

Hungry for baked pasta and cheese recipes from Mario Batali? Try these:
– Baked Ziti with Ricotta and Ham
– Baked Ziti with Mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano
– Baked Pasta Tubes, Casalinga Style: Cannelloni al Forno

Pizza Recipes

Top Chef Stephanie Izard’s pizza and the big debate, NY or Chicago style?

Today is Pizza day!   Why?   Because I’ve been craving it since watching Stephani Izard’s video this morning!   And although Top Chef Stephanie is a Chicago girl now, she grew up in the East Coast, and admits to being a diehard fan of the NY style thin crust.

Which led us to ponder the never ending NYC thin crust versus Chicago deep dish debate.  Yes, it’s been played out to death, but it’s absolutely a subject many feel passionate about!  I put a quick shout out on Twitter, and here is a taste of the @replies:

Our Colorado friends Abo’s pizza placed a vote for NY.   Delicious food blogger Two Peas and Their Pod voted Chicago, and she gave us her favorite deep dish pizza recipe, thank you!   Gera from Sweets Foods wanted to vote from another area, but we did not hear back!  So we’ll count that one as neutral, Gera let us know in the comments!  Susan from Culture Trek gave us this: ”  Aways thin NY, because if I wanted bread, I would eat…. bread (sorry Chicago, I love most everything else about you)”.   Food writer Cate OMalley from the Sweetnicks blog had this to say: “thin crust with bubbles all the way”.    Teacher and writer Carrie Havranek said  “NY Thin!  You need to be able to walk around with the pizza while you are doing five other things.  Can’t do that w/ deep dish!”   Which brings us to an interesting advantage of the big apple:  foldability.  New Yorkers love being able to multitask and eat their slices while driving cabs, and trekking the city, an impossible feat with silverware.   My vote: sorry Chicago, the NY crispy minimalism wins my heart every time.  Final score:  NY 5, Chicago 1.  More responses are need, let us know in the comments what your preference is, we would love to hear it!

In our featured video today, Stephanie visits Spacca Napoli where they show her their secrets for an authentic Neopolitan Italian pizza.  She then goes home with two cute munchkins in tow, and she makes her own version with a white wine and honey crust, and a garlic tomato sauce with apples.  Read about her experience here,  and her written recipe is here.  If you are an ipod user, be sure to subscribe to her podcast “The Tasty Life” so that you can catch every delicious episode.

See you in Aspen Stephanie!  This just in  via The Food & Wine Classic in Aspen on Facebook, “Watch Top Chef Season 4 winner Stephanie Izard challenge Top Chef Season 5 winner Hosea Rosenberg at this year’s Quickfire Classic Cook-Off.” Big cheers again for our friends from Plum Tv for getting us there!

Dessert Recipes Grilled Recipes

Grilled Plums With Honey Walnut Yogurt

Grilling gives us such wonderful chance to be creative because there is literally no limit to what foods one can grill!  Our video today features chef Bobby Flay, cooking up a very healthy dessert or brunch dish:  Grilled plums with a honey walnut yogurt sauce spiced with cinnamon and orange zest.  Feel free to get creative with this one. The yogurt sauce is delicious on grilled peaches, grilled pears, grilled apples, melon and even bananas.  We made this while camping recently using plums and bananas and it was a hit!  Be sure to clean your grill to eliminate any past cooked grill flavors, and choose a subtle, mild flavored oil so as not to overpower the fruit.  We like sunflower and canola for their fairly high smoking points for use with grilling fruits.

Be sure to visit the Food Network site for more delicious celebrity chef recipes.

[pro-player width=’550′ height=’353′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6hY1_Y7nK0[/pro-player]

Ingredients

* 6 plums, halved and pitted
* 2 teaspoons canola oil
* 1 tablespoon honey
* Pinch ground cinnamon
* Pinch finely grated orange zest
* Spiced Walnut Yogurt Sauce, recipe follows

Directions

Heat grill to high. Brush cut side of plums with oil, drizzle with 1 tablespoon honey, and sprinkle with a pinch each of cinnamon and orange zest. Place plums on the grill, cut side down, and grill for 2 minutes or until golden brown and slightly caramelized. Turn over and grill until just heated through, approximately 1 minute longer. Place 3 plum halves in each of 4 bowls and top with a few tablespoons of the Spiced Walnut Yogurt Sauce.

Spiced Walnut Yogurt Sauce:

1 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts, toasted

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate if not using right away.

Pasta Recipes Side Dish Recipes

Salud Napa’s Lemon Risotto

A short time ago we introduced you to our friends from Ceja Vineyards and the Salud Napa blog, and featured a beet salad recipe video from chef Gerry Castro.  That was only the beginning of a three course meal!  The second part of the meal is this delicious, tangy lemon risotto with peas topped with parmesan cheese.

You will need:  4 cups of chicken broth,  2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil, chopped garlic (one or two cloves) , one chopped onion, 1 cup of arborio rice, chardonnay white wine, sweet peas (frozen is fine), Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, one lemon (juice it and zest it), butter, salt, and pepper.

First, warm the chicken broth, juice and zest your lemon.   Add the olive oil into a hot pan, add the chopped onion, add the chopped garlic, and stir while cooking just until tender.  Add the arborio rice and cook while stirring for 2-3 minutes.  Next, add the white wine, and stir together for a minute to let it absorb.  Add approximately 3 generous ladles or about 3 cups of chicken broth, and turn the heat down to a simmer.   Add salt and ground pepper, and cooks while stirring for about 7 minutes, or until the rice is al dente.   Add the lemon zest, peas, a generous amount of butter and a few splashes of lemon juice.  You may add more chicken broth if needed.  At the end, top with grated parmesan cheese.

Next up, part 3, a to die for sirloin steak with red wine sauce. Stay tuned!

Pasta Recipes Vegetarian Recipes

Roasted Garlic Pesto over Gnocchi

Our video today features Chef Brian P. McCarthy, author of the Vegan Family Cookbook, making a very simple basil pesto with roasted garlic. He serves it over gnocchi, plated with crusty bread and a salad. This video is brought to us from EveryDayDish Tv, which offers a wonderful bounty of plant based vegetarian and vegan recipes and videos. The written recipe may be found here. What we like best about this dish is that it can literally be prepared in less than 30 minutes, and roasted garlic gives a sweeter, less bitter flavor than raw garlic. Non vegetarians feel free to add Parmesan cheese!

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’353′ type=’FLV’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUJNmVDno6U[/pro-player]

And, of course, a morsel of gnocchi trivia!  Gnocchi, an Italian dumpling,  translates to the word “knot” in Italian, and the word is derived from the stem word  nocchio, meaning “a knot in wood”. It’s composition differs drastically by ingredient, and while typically made from potatoes, it is also made with various flours (often semolina), and in some areas of Italy it is made with bread crumbs.

Salad Recipes

Ceasar Salad in a Crunchy Parmesan Bowl

A Le Cordon Bleu Paris graduate, Hector Playuk is currently the Executive Chef for Jack’s Bar and Restaurant in Washington DC. This restaurant gets big kudos from us as it is 100% wind powered! One of their signature lunch dishes is a Caesar Salad served in a crispy parmesan bowl, and in this video Hector shows us how to make the bowl.

Note: It is absolutely essential to use a nonstick pan for this, anything else will not work (we tried!).

Recipe instructions:  Make the Parmesan bowl using 7-8 ounces of cheese for each bowl. For the croutons, simply slice a baguette into cubes, coat in olive oil, garlic powder or fresh minced garlic, salt and pepper, bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes.  In a regular bowl, toss romaine lettuce, croutons, shredded parmesan cheese and caesar dressing, then add to the parmesan bowl. Regarding the dressing, we like this recipe from Scott’s Seafood, but you can absolutely use your own variation or use a store bought creamy Caesar dressing.  Enjoy!

Sushi Recipes

Sushi School: Tuna Roll

Making sushi at home can be a super fun activity and much more affordable than dining out.  Our videos today showcase Chef Shirley Cheng from the Culinary Institute of America, demonstrating an easy recipe for making tuna maki, aka a tuna roll.  The first video is very short and discusses the preparation of the short grain rice, which can be made via a rice cooker or on the stove.  The second video is a presentation of the assembly and rolling of the maki itself, and she serves the roll sliced and plated beautifully with wasabi, ginger, and julienned daikon radish. Depending on where you live, the ingredients and the bamboo sushi mat may be found in a typical grocery store, Whole Foods, or any Asian market. Interesting food for thought that Shirley mentions: sushi chef training in Japan requires 3 years of study.

The beauty of this basic maki technique is that you can be creative and craft your roll however you wish!  Substitute salmon for tuna, cucumber for avocado, or add shredded carrots.  Itadakimasu (let’s eat)!

Read on for the videos and recipes. Continue Reading

Sandwich Recipes

Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches!

The delicious iconic creation of Philadelphia brothers Harry and Pat Olivieri, Philly cheesesteak sandwiches first made their debut at a South Philly hot dog stand in 1930.  The brothers were so successful they opened a restaurant, Pat’s King of Steaks, which still runs a thriving business today. There was, in the 80’s, some cheesesteak family drama, that happened when Pat’s son Herbert opened “Olivieri’s Prince of Steaks” alleging unfair competition and using the original logo. The suit was settled happily in 2007. We’ve posted both of the family feuders recipes below.

In today’s video, Chef Niall Harbison from Look and Taste creates easy sirlion Philly cheesesteak sandwiches, complete with caramelized onions,green peppers, and garlic mayonnaise served on toasty baguettes. 

Chef Niall uses sirloin in his recipe, but a nice thinly sliced rib eye steak can be used as well, which some purists say is more authentic.  If the steaks are frozen they are simple to slice thinly with a sharp knife.  The cheese?   Whatever your heart desires, but we prefer a sharp provolone.   Enjoy!

Ingredients

  • 4 Baguettes
  • 600g Steak (about 20 oz or 1.25 lbs)
  • 3 – 4 Yellow Onion
  • 2 Green Bell Pepper
  • 200g Cheese (7 oz) (American, Provolone, Swiss, Emmenthal or Mozzarella)
  • 2 Garlic Cloves (Optional)
  • 7 tbsp Mayonnaise (Optional)
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 4 tbsp Butter or Olive Oil

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich
Chef Niall Harbison

1. If cooking fresh bread, place them in the oven to bake as per instructions;

2. Trim the fat from the sirloin steak and cut it into thin strips. If you do not feel comfortable ask your butcher to do it for you;

3. Heat your frying pan to a medium heat before adding the olive oil and butter. When it starts frothing add the onions and cook until golden brown, tossing occasionally;

4. When the onions have caramelized and taken on a deep brown color season with salt and pepper before adding the green peppers;

5. Slice the bread and open it as wide as possible without cutting all the way through;

6. Remove the onion and pepper mix and set aside on a plate and keep warm by covering with tin foil;

7. Without cleaning your pan, add some more oil and bring back to a very high temperature before adding the seasoned beef. Continue to cook on a very high temperature for 2 minutes until it has taken an even brown color all over;

8. To make the sauce, add the finely chopped garlic to the mayonnaise and mix together. Spread this sauce evenly between the baguettes on both sides of the bread;

9. Split the beef, onion and pepper mix between the baguettes before layering the cheese on top of the sandwiches;

10. Place the tray with the sandwiches under the grill for 30 seconds until the cheese has melted and serve immediately.

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cheesteakAnd thanks to the good people at Pat’s, here is their authentic restaurant recipe:

Pat’s King of Steaks famous cheese steak sandwich

  • 6 tablespoons soybean oil
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 24 ounces sliced rib eye or eye roll steak
  • Cheese (store processed recommended, aka Cheez Whiz, otherwise American or Provolone)
  • 4 crusty Italian Rolls
  • Sweet green and red peppers, sauteed in oil (optional)
  • Mushrooms sauteed in oil (optional)
  • Ketchup

Heat an iron skillet or a non-stick pan over medium heat and add 3 tablespoons of oil to the pan and saute the onions to desired doneness. Remove the onions and add the remaining oil and saute the slices of meat quickly on both sides. Melt the cheese whiz in a double boiler or in the microwave. Place 8 ounces of the meat into the rolls, add onions, and pour the store processed cheese over top. Garnish with sweet peppers, mushrooms, ketchup.
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The Olivieri Prince of Steaks (now Rick’s Steaks) cheese steak  original restaurant recipe, via a vintage Women’s Day magazine interview with chef/owner Rick Olivieri:

5 oz Steak (read below)
Water to moisten
2 1/2 oz Desired cheese (read below)
9 1/2-inch hoagie roll
Fried onions
Additional Toppings:
Mushrooms, raw onions,
Sweet red & green peppers,
Pizza sauce, lettuce,
Tomato

To make one cheese-steak sandwich, take the steak (Olivieri’s recommended cut: the eye of the chuck) and slice it very thin.
Panfry in large skillet with no grease or oil, just enough water to moisten.
Right before it’s done, top with desired cheese (American, provolone, mozzarella or Cheez Whiz) until melted.
Put meat and cheese on the hoagie roll, then top with fried onions.
Add additional toppings if desired.

Put on the theme song to the first Rocky movie and enjoy!

Latin Recipes

Tasty Tampiquena

We’ve just discovered another tasty video blogger! Her name is Monica DiNatale and she is an actor, tv host, and author of the Fun Food With Monica blog, which has loads of delicious videos and travel adventures.

For Cinco de Mayo, we’ve been hunting down an authentic mexican recipe for you, and Monica came through!  This video features Chef Patrico Sandoval of Mercadito Grove restaurant in the West Village of NYC.  He prepares a Tampiquena plate.   What is it?   In Mexico City in the 1930’s and 40’s, a legendary restaurant called the Tampico Club founded by Jose Luis Loredo from Tampico served a signature dish that became famous. Tampiqueña (pronounced tam-pee-cane-ya) has many permutations and culinary interpretations today, but the original plate consisted of carne asada, enchiladas, rajas (spiced roasted chiles), salsa, and charra beans. Patrico’s version of the recipe here includes a skirt steak carne asada, corn salsa, and marinated rajas.  Click the “read more” for the video!  Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

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Appetizer Recipes Italian Recipes Salad Recipes

Delizioso! Italian Salmon Carpaccio

Italians seem to possess an amazingly strong passion for food, much more so than the rest of the world.
There is a really great site, Italian Food Net, which serves up delicious authentic Italian recipe videos.  Their chefs speak Italian in the clips,  but they have done such a wonderful job with the subtitles and ingredient conversions that the recipes are simple to follow.

Some recipes are incredibly simple to make but somehow give the impression that you’ve spent hours slaving over them.   This would be one of those! In the video, chef Alessandro prepares an Italian salmon carpaccio with oranges served over arugula.  Head over to their site to view the written recipe, browse around a bit and pretend you’re a student in an Italian culinary school!

Tiny bites of ingredient education:

  1. Carpaccio is defined as an appetizer using thinly sliced raw fish or meat.
  2. The peppercorns used in the recipe are brined, Whole Foods should have them, you may need to look in the  area where jarred pickles are.
  3. The recipe calls for the greens “rocket”, and rocket = arugula!

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’353′ type=’FLV’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hli8trbSyY[/pro-player]

Salad Recipes

Salud Napa’s Beet Salad Recipe

The family behind Ceja Vineyards has a new video blog emerging!  Entitled Salud! Napa, they are just beginning their online journey, but soon will be a “bicultural cooking show” embracing world cuisine, a wine portal, and a social networking site.  Already they are featuring several delicious cooking videos, and all dishes are paired with recommended wines from their vineyard. Truly enlightening, learn about their delicious success story here.

We’ve developed a recent love affair with beets, and immediately fell in love with their video featuring Chef Gerry Castro preparing an easy beet salad with a fresh herb vinaigrette.  Using boiled, peeled, and sliced beets, he dresses them with oil, balsamic vinegar, chopped shallots, salt and pepper, served over parsley, chives, tarragon, and chervil.  He pairs it with an elegant 2007 Ceja Napa Carneros Chardonnay.

A tiny morsel of food trivia on the herb CHERVIL, for those not familiar.  It truly is an under appreciated herb in the states, however is quite the player in French cuisine. A component of “Green Goddess” dressing, this member of the parsley family has a delicate flavor with a touch of anise.  It also behaves as a catalyst in bringing out the flavor of other herbs.  The dried version is not of much use as it is fairly flavorless.   Chervil has a very short life, and will only be useful for about 2 days in the refrigerator.  Can’t find it?    The closest substitute is parsley combined with tarragon, which are already in this recipe, so don’t worry!