Another quick and easy dinner. This is another one of those dishes I grew up with. Mom would cook this up real quick, but she would use cut up strips of chuck steak. I decided to use skirt streak instead.

I am a member of FoodBuzz and they asked me to review and use Kikkoman’s new Ponzu sauce. Ponzu is a citrus based sauce that is often mixed with soy sauce and called Ponzu Shoyu. Here Kikkoman has brought their soy sauce and ponzu.

I marinated the skirt steak in some ponzu for about 15-30 minutes. Next I got some olive oil heated in a saute pan. I take the marinated steak out of the ponzu sauce and pat them dry with some towels. You want to pat them dry so they sear well. Don’t throw away the ponzu. I take an onion and slice them into rings and put them in the marinade. Meanwhile I cook the skirt steaks over medium high heat. Get some good color on them. When seared on both sides, add the marinade and the onions to the pan. Continue to cook and simmer for about 7-8 minutes.

Serve over rice!

A week or so ago I made another childhood dish, Chicken Adobo. I didn’t blog about it since the photos turned out so horribly – the taste, was a different story. I need to be on the quest to make Filipino food more pleasing to the eye. While making the adobo, I have to say that the tastes and smells brought me back to the old kitchen in the house I grew up in. I, personally hadn’t made chicken adobo for probably over 15 years. My mom actually cooked it at least once a week when I was growing up.

The technique is simple (braising) and it gets better the next day. The ingredients are simple, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, peppercorns and bay leaves. Tonight I decided to change the protien out and use pork. I really wanted to do pork ribs, but didn’t find any that I liked at Fresh N Easy. So I did bone-in pork chops instead. I had to braise it a bit longer than chicken and I found that there is this magic moment when the meat starts to fall off the bone and be the most tender meat. Served over fresh rice, it sure is a pleaser.

INGREDIENTS

6 skin-on bone in chicken thighs/1 rack of pork ribs
3/4 cup Kikkoman Lite Soy sauce
3/4 cup White vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
1 whole head garlic, peeled
3 bay leaves, cracked in half

DIRECTIONS

1. Take the garlic cloves and give them a good smash, but keep them whole. Add your protien (chicken or pork) and place into your pot.

2. For chicken, bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook, covered, for 30 minutes covered. Then uncover and continue cooking until the chicken is tender and the liquid has reduced some. Turn the pieces from time to time. You’ll know its ready when the meat starts to fall off the bone.

2a. For pork, same instructions as the chicken but you’ll have to braise a bit longer as the meat is more tough than chicken. I had to do mine for over an hour – keep the lid closed. There will be a moment when the meat is tender and falls off the bone. Then take the lid off and allow liquid to reduce. Oh, if you’re buying a small rack of pork ribs, cut them down to two-three rib pieces when cooking.

3. Take off the heat and serve over fresh hot rice.

Add some sauce to the rice and enjoy!

The picture doesn’t look to great since steamed salmon doesn’t look too great – but it sure tasted great! I steamed the salmon in a parchment pouch with:

Julienned Leeks
Baby Bok Choy
1 Tablespoon of Lite Soy Sauce
1/2 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar
2 drops of Sesame Oil
Salt and Pepper

In a pre-heated 400 degree oven, place your pouch in the over for about 12 minutes. When done, removed from oven and tear open your package at the table!

Did any of you catch Gordon Ramsay’s show last night, Cookalong LIVE?

In the show he made a three-course meal in one hour. One of the dishes he made was Steak Diane. I have been craving beef for several days now and decided that I was going to have Steak Diane, but with a Ribeye steak instead.  The recipe below is a severly edited version of Gordon Ramsay’s recipe from last night.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Rib Eye Steak
• 3 shallots, peeled
• 4 ounces crimini mushrooms, cleaned (if crimini unavailable use button mushrooms instead)
• 1 tablespoon salted butter
• 2 small garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, to taste (I used Reduced Sodium)
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup brandy or cognac
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• Small handful of flat-leaf parsley

DIRECTIONS

Pre-heat oven to 300f.

Cook the potatoes in a pot of boiling salted water for 10 minutes or until just tender. Drain the potatoes and set aside.

Heat a little olive oil in a skillet pan large enough to accommodate the Ribeye steak. Get a good sear on your Ribeye. When you have good color on the one side, flip over and sear for a minute.  Place pan in the oven.

I took a tablespoon of some fat from the Ribeye and placed it in another saute pan and added another tablespoon of Olive oil. Slice the shallots and add to the pan, allow to soften briefly before slicing and adding the mushrooms with a tablespoon of butter. Crush in the garlic using a garlic press or mince finely.

Add the Worcestershire sauce, then the mustard and heat through for a minute. Turn up the heat and tilt the pan away from you. Pour the brandy into the far end and allow it to ignite – be careful that the flame that flares up doesn’t singe your eyebrows! Once the alcohol has burnt off, swirl the juices around the pan. Add the cream and allow the sauce to thicken before turning down the heat. [NOTE: I have an electric stove, so obviously I didn't have a flame. So what I did was add the brandy and ignited it with one of those long neck lighters. Worked like a charm. Do be careful the initial flash goes pretty high, so I pulled my pan away from under my fan/microwave unit. When the flames started to go down, I put it back on the stove.]

Chop the parsley and add half to the pan.

By the time you finish the sauce, your ribeye should be about a medium. If you want med-rare, take it out halfway thru the sauce prep. Place your ribeye on your plate and let rest for a couple of minutes. Meanwhile, take the juices from your pan and pour it into your brandy sauce and mix well. This adds TONS of flavor.

I hope you enjoy this, I sure did!

Something really quick. The noodles were from the Ramen packet, but I didn’t use the seasoning packet. I usually find that the seasoning packet is many salt. Use chicken broth instead, you’ll enjoy it more. The spam/ham/kielbasa will release some of the fat in the meat and it will permeate into the broth. Yummm!

INGREDIENTS

2 Cans of Low Sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 cup water
1 Tablespoon Lite Soy
1/2 Teaspoon of Japanese Sesame Oil
Pepper to taste
1 Package of Top Ramen (or similar brand) – discard seasoning packet
Some sliced mushrooms
Few slices of leftover spam or ham or Polska Kielbasa
Scallion thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS

Mix all the ingredients together except noodles and scallions.

Bring to a boil then add mushrooms and meat. Simmer for 1 minute. Season with fresh ground pepper. Pinch of salt if it needs it.

Add noodles and cook for 2-3 minutes. Break noodles up and serve. Garnish with scallions.

Enjoy!

Tonight’s recipe is an adaptation from one of my childhood memories. I used to watch Nathalie Dupree when I was a kid and enjoyed watching her. Many, many years later I would have the opportunity to meet one of my childhood tv chefs. Nathalie taught a class for me at Sur La Table and she was as charming in person as she is on the air.

INGREDIENTS

2 c flour
1 ts salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 large cubed steaks
2 TB cream
1/2 c vegetable oil

1/2 c cream
2 c chicken broth
1 dash of Tabasco

PREPARATION

Mix 2/3 cup of the flour, the salt, and pepper together.

Beat eggs together with the cream.

Heat the oil in a heavy cast iron skillet over moderately high heat. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the flour. Dredge the steaks in the remainder of the flour, dip in the egg mixture, and then back into the flour. Shake off excess, let sit for 5 minutes before cooking.

Place the steaks in the hot oil and brown well. Turn and brown other side. Reduce heat to medium, cover the skillet, and cook for 5-7 minutes, turning occasionally, until the steaks are cooked through and tender. Chicken fried steak should be well done, but not dry.

Remove the steaks from the skillet and drain. Keep warm.

Add the onion slices to the pan and saute quickly. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of the fat in the skillet and stir in the 3 tablespoons reserved flour. Stir to incorporate any particles on the bottom of the pan and! ! cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the cream, then the chicken broth. Season the gravy and dont forget the dash of hot sauce. Top with the gravy.

Serve with potatoes. I opted for roasted potatoes instead of mashed. I had enough mashed potatoes over the Thanksgiving holiday.

The roasted potatoes was sooo simple. I used New Dutch potatoes. Cut them into similar sized pieces. Drizzle some olive oil on them. Salt and Pepper along with thyme and fresh rosemary. Toss and place on a baking sheet. Cook until just browned on the edges, 400 degrees.

So tonight I was feeling like spaghetti. I was going to stay late at the office, but went home around 7pm.  This sauce is super super easy.

Ingredients

1 lb Ground Turkey (dark and white meat)
1 small onion diced
3 Garlic Cloves rough chopped
2 Tbls Olive Oil
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar (please adjust to your taste)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (please adjust to your taste)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in medium sized pot, add chopped onions and sauté for a few minutes. Add chopped garlic and continue to cook for another minute. Make sure not to burn the garlic. I like to season as I go along, a couple grinds of pepper and about 2 pinches of salt.

Next, add ground turkey and cook, crumbling the meat as it cooks. Next throw in the tomatoes, sauce and paste along with the dried herbs and the sugar. The sugar will help with the acidity of the tomatoes – it actually does help the flavor. Simmer this until the diced tomatoes have completely broken down, about 20-25 minutes.

Check for seasoning and adjust as necessary. I like bold tastes so I might add more red pepper flakes.

Cook your favorite pasta (I like Barilla’s Thick spaghetti) and then serve pasta with sauce on top.

This also goes GREAT with added sliced cremini or brown mushrooms…YUM!! Great with some Pinot or even a nice cold glass of sparkling water with a twist of lime…

Tonight’s dinner was the simplest thing I have made in the last few weeks. I love just roasting a chicken. Tonight, I used thighs as they have the best flavor. Salt and Pepper, some olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. With the chicken was some baby potatoes, rubbed with olive oil, minced rosemary and thyme and salt and pepper.

I let the chicken roast on top of the potatoes and the juices from the chicken fell onto the potatoes giving them more flavor.

I love Turkey Tacos. I substitute ground turkey for ground beef and use a mixture of spices. Usually I will go out and buy one of those packets and add it to my browned turkey meat with onions and garlic.

But a few days ago, I brought out my bottle of chipotle powder that I got from a friend, Lisa Lohnes. I wanted to make a mix of my own. I came across a food blog called Food Renegade that had a nice simple, flavorful mix.

Homemade Taco Seasoning

The Players

• 1 Tbsp. Chili Powder (in my case Chipotle powder)
• 1/4 tsp. Garlic Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Onion Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 1/4 tsp. Dried Oregano
• 1/2 tsp. Paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp. Ground Cumin
• 1 tsp. Sea Salt
• 1 tsp. Black Pepper (optional)
• Pinch of Anise Seed (this was my touch…)

This is enough seasoning to season 1.25 pounds of ground turkey. You can go for the all white ground turkey, but I opted for the mixed with dark and white meat tonight. Sauté a small onion and two small cloves of garlic. Add the ground turkey and cook thoroughly. Add the seasoning mix. Usually with the “packet” you need to add water, but this this mix, the juices from the turkey work just fine.

I bought a small bag of locally made corn tortillas and made my own “shells”.

Garnish with lettuce, cheese and some Tapatio and you have a fiesta!

With “A Recipe for Life by the Doctor’s Dietitian” Susan Dopart and co-author and husband, Jeffrey Batchelor have created at smart, easy to understand, concrete nutrition road map partnered with simple, delicious recipes designed to improve one’s health.

If you are a regular reader of Foodie In Disguise, you know that I am a Type II Diabetic. Susan goes into details about the Glycemic Index and the differences between complex and simple carbs and all about the hidden sugars. She also delves into how Proteins and Fats play into a healthy diet.

One of the recipes featured in her book is “Perfect Pumpkin Custard” a delicious healthy alternative to pumpkin pie for those who want to reduce their calorie intact and need to avoid fat, carbohydrates, and sodium this Thanksgiving and Holiday Season.

For example in her book she provides a calorie/fat/protein/sodium comparison chart for pumpkin custard vs. pumpkin pie:

Perfect Pumpkin Custard has one-third of the calories of pumpkin pie, less than one-third of the fat, and is equal to only one slice of bread worth of carbohydrate versus three slices of bread for the pie.  With much less sodium content (40 versus 350 mg.) Perfect Pumpkin Custard is the ideal dessert for someone with diabetes, heart disease, in need of sodium restriction, calorie restriction or who just wants to incorporate healthier eating habits this Holiday Season.

Susan’s book is a cutting edge nutrition guide focusing on the latest research regarding how positively, powerfully and effectively the right way to eat affects your energy levels, insulin resistance, diabetes, cancer and other medical issues.

Perfect Pumpkin Custard

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
2 large eggs separated

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium mixing bowl, stir together canned pumpkin, yogurt and ricotta cheese until blended. Stir in honey and spices. Separate egg yolks from whites and stir egg yolks into pumpkin mixture. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form and fold into mixture. Pour into six ramekins and bake at 350 degrees 25-30 minutes until puffed and rounded. Serve immediately. Variation: May put a dollop of real whipped cream on each ramekin.

A Recipe for Life is available now at www.susandopart.com for just $34.95.

Do you want to WIN a free copy of A Recipe for Life? Click here for more details!

Susan B. Dopart, M.S., R.D., is a nutrition and fitness consultant in private practice for more than 15 years. She specializes in medical nutrition-related issues, including diabetes and endocrinology, heart disease, weight management, pregnancy, infertility, PCOS, and exercise nutrition. She received her B.S. in Nutrition and Clinical Dietetics from UC Berkeley and her M.S. in Exercise Physiology and Sports Medicine from California State University, Hayward. Susan has consulted for UCLA Medical Center and Extension, Sebastian International, and Procter & Gamble. She has written for and contributed to multiple publications, including Best Life, Men’s Health, and Diabetes Forecast.

Got home late again and I’m finding it hard to cook a meal this late. Usually if I can’t make it home by 8pm, I find myself getting take out. I need to get home earlier so I can make proper meals. Tonight we have some fried rice with potstickers from Diho Siam in Mission Viejo.

The rice tonight was a bit greasy and that’s the problem with most Chinese restaurants outside of China or Chinatown. Here is a recipe from my friend Allen at Eating Out Loud.

BBQ Pork fried rice

1 cup BBQ Prok, diced (you can substitute ham or bacon)
4 eggs, fork whipped
6 cups cooked long grain rice
4 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh minced ginger
1 Tablespoon Dark Soy Sauce
2-3 Tablespoons Regular Soy Sauce
2 tablespoons peanut oil (any veggie oil is fine)
dash of Siracha Sauce

I use a wok but a deep pot or dutch oven would work well too. Place pot on burner and turn up to medium high heat. When the pot is hot, add the oil. Some smoking may occur, this is ok, just move along quickly. Add the eggs, but don’t stir. Let them firm up on the bottom (like a pancake), then flip it over. When cooked, remove from pan and set aside.

Add meat to the pan and cook for 1-3 minutes until lightly browned and cooked through. I use whatever meat we have on hand, bacon is outrageously good. I’ve also used leftover meatloaf (also amazing), pork, or chicken. If you want something lighter, omit the meat entirely. In this case, I might add a bit more ginger.

When meat is done, add the green onions and ginger. Stir to combine and cook 30 seconds. Add rice and eggs, stir to combine. I stir the rice maybe once every 30 seconds for a few minutes, then add the soy sauce and siracha. Use the spatula to ‘chop’ the egg into smallish bits. Stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes. At this point I usually give it a taste to see if more soy sauce is needed to season it.

I usually turn off the burner and let it set in the for 5-10 minutes, I think it tastes best when close to room temperature. If you have leftovers, it freezes well.

Allen’s recipe is clean and bright with a fried rice that isn’t glistening in oil. Fried rice is one of the simplest things you can make. With a few leftover ingredients in your fridge a bowl of fried rice can be quite satisfying.

DinnerInDisguise is a daily record of my evening meals. It won’t always cover hand-made meals, it will probably have fast-food and meals at friend’s homes as well.

I recently came across a new blog aggregator (a site that centralizes blog posts from multiple sites into one site, think of it as a kind of index…) called FoodBlogs.com. They currently have several hundred food blogs from around the world and its a great centralized place to view content from hundreds of food blogs. What a great way to drive traffic to my site right? FoodBlogs.com is not unique in that there are several other food blog aggregators like FoodBuzz.com, the FoodBlogLog.com, FoodieBlogRoll.com and others. FoodieInDisguise is a member of the last three mentioned aggregators. With the thousands of sites that talk about food it’s nice to have a place(s) where you can search and skim through thousands of posts to find what you want.

There is such diversity in all the types of food blogs that are out there. Some blogs focus mainly on just recipes, while others only talk about food products. Others still might only talk about where the best deals are on the ingredients for your next meal or only feature appliances and gadgets to use in your kitchen. This blog, as you well know, covers probably all of those topics and more.

I tried to sign up so that my blog listings would be aggregated on FoodBlogs.com but was rejected since my blog doesn’t contain 80% recipes. You wouldn’t know it from their main page or most pages on their site that they only cater to recipe sites – not just food blogs. It’s unfortunate, I think they have a good thing going over there.

Anyway…if you are looking for a good recipe aggregator try out FoodBlogs.com. The site is clean and very well organized. The search feature is fast and they give you the ability to have favorites as well as sorting my title, number of posts and when the last blog entry was for a blog. They also have a “hide feed” function. I assume that is so that you never see listings from a particular blog. Interesting.

In addition to a recipe aggregator you can also try out some recipe websites like Food.com, Epicurious.com or AllRecipes.com – all great sources for great recipes through and through.

FoodBlogs.com is owned by JazzMedia LLC, and is a sister site to FashionBlogs.com and MommyBlogs.com

Spices. That’s what I’m talking about.

Sarah Engram and Katie Luber, founders of the tsp spices and Smart Spice has released a new cookbook, The Spice Kitchen: Everyday Cooking with Organic Spices.

The Spice Kitchen offers more than 100 delicious recipes for using herbs and spices to add vibrant flavors to your food at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and any time in between. From Spiced Yogurt and Granola Parfaits, to Strawberry Salad with Cinnamon-Balsamic Vinaigrette, Spiced Guacamole, Tarragon Chicken Potpie, Clove Spiced Caramel Corn, and more, this exciting cookbook is full of inventive recipes, information, and tips for using herbs and spices. Best of all, the recipes are easy and fuss free—a must for busy home cooks who want to spend less time in the kitchen and more time at the family table. And with dozens of full-color photographs and illustrations, The Spice Kitchen is as beautiful as it is practical.

There is one recipe that I will try making myslef this weekend. This is their version of Macaroni & Cheese, here is an excerpt from their book:

Macaroni and Cheese

Ever since we discovered a version of mac and cheese that didn’t require boiling the pasta first, we’ve been devotees of this beloved American comfort food. It’s perfect for kids and crowds and has become a potluck favorite, where vegetarians are grateful for non-meat entrées. If you get a hint of pepperoni, you’re not wrong—anise and basil are the flavors that give that popular sausage its distinctive flavor. As always, feel free to come up with your own spice combinations.

1 cup cottage cheese (not low fat)
2 cups milk (not skim)
1 teaspoon ground mild chile pepper
1 teaspoon anise seed
1 teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, grated
½ pound elbow pasta, uncooked
¼ cup plain breadcrumbs
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon basil
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Blend together the cottage cheese, milk, chile pepper, anise seed, mustard, salt, and pepper in a blender until smooth. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, and pasta. Grease an 8-inch square or round baking dish. Pour the pasta mixture into the dish. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes.

While the macaroni and cheese is baking, mix the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and basil in a small bowl. Add the oil and toss to combine. Remove the macaroni and cheese from the oven and carefully stir. Evenly sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top of the macaroni and cheese. Return the macaroni and cheese to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes, or until browned. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 6 to 8

Variations
• Substitute fennel seed for the anise seed and tarragon for the basil.
• Add a teaspoon of mild chile pepper and omit the breadcrumb topping.

The Spice Kitchen is available in hardback and is published by Andrews McMeel Publishing. Available in bookstores or purchase a discounted copy from the Foodie In Disguise Online Store.

The following Sunday I was catching up on my Saturday morning Food Network shows and caught an episode of Ask Aida where she cooked up a thick pork chop stuffed with sautéed mushrooms and served over polenta.  Well that afternoon I set out to get my ingredients for I was totally swimming in pig fat at this point! Oink!

So let’s call it a late lunch. I made a stuffed bone-in pork chop that was stuffed with mushrooms. Instead of polenta, I opted for risotto with mushrooms. The recipe is below but I opted not to make a sauce as I didn’t have any Vermouth handy. The pork chop was moist on its own, thank the pig lords!

Ingredients

• 2 (1-inch thick) bone-in pork chops (14 ounces each)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for coating pork chops
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
• 5 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tablespoon roughly chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
• 1/2 cup white vermouth
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F and arrange a rack in upper third.

Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels and put on a cutting board. Using a small paring knife, cut a 2-inch opening horizontal to the cutting board, halfway up the meat in each chop. Move the knife back and forth in a fan motion to open the interior of the pocket without significantly widening the opening. (You don’t want to pierce through the meat but simply create a pocket for the stuffing.) Brush the exterior of the chops with oil, season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste, and set aside until the stuffing is ready.

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the shallots and cook until softened. Add the mushrooms, season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook, stirring rarely, until browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley and remove to a plate to cool slightly. Wipe out the frying pan and return it to the stove over medium-high heat. Taste the stuffing and adjust the seasoning, as necessary. Stuff half of the mushroom mixture into the pocket of each chop. If the filling is falling out, secure the chops closed with toothpicks.

Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pan over medium heat. When the oil shimmers, arrange the stuffed chops in the pan and cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Flip the chops to the other side and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake until the pork is cooked and an instant-read thermometer, inserted into the center of the chops, registers 160 degrees F, about 12 to 15 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and set the pork aside on serving plates to rest.

For the risotto, it was your basic risotto with mushrooms. Yeah, I know…I probably went a bit overboard with mushrooms in the pork chop, but I like mushrooms..so I went with it! I don’t follow a recipe for risotto as I have been making it for years, but for those that need one, here is one from Fine Cooking magazine:

Ingredients

• 3 cups homemade or low-salt chicken broth; more if needed
• 1 oz. dried porcini soaked for 30 minutes in 1 cup warm water; mushrooms chopped, soaking liquid strained and reserved
• 4 Tbs. butter
• 3/4 cup arborio rice
• 2 cups assorted fresh wild mushrooms, cleaned, trimmed, and coarsely chopped
• 2/3 cup dry white wine
• Kosher salt to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 2 Tbs. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions

Heat the chicken broth along with the reserved strained porcini soaking liquid; lower the heat to a simmer. In a medium, heavy-gauge saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter. Stir in the rice, toasting just until it starts to sizzle and pop, about 1 minute. It should not color. Stir the porcini and the fresh mushrooms into the rice. Stir in the wine.

When almost all the liquid has disappeared, after about 2 minutes, add just enough hot broth to cover the rice. Lower the heat to maintain a vigorous simmer; stir occasionally. When the broth is almost gone, add enough to cover the rice, along with a pinch of salt. Check on the risotto every 3 or 4 minutes, giving it an occasional stir to make sure it isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan and adding just enough broth to cover the rice when the liquid has almost disappeared.

Continue this way until the rice is just al dente, about 20 minutes total cooking time. Bite into a grain; you should see a white pin-dot in the center. Take the risotto off the heat. Add the remaining 2 Tbs. butter; stir vigorously for a few seconds. Add the parsley, cheese, and more salt, if needed. The risotto should be moist and creamy, not runny. Stir in more broth to loosen the risotto, if you like. Serve immediately.

I purchased a bottle of 2008 Caretaker Pinot Noir from a vineyard in Santa Barbara. It went well with the Pork Chop and Risotto. I’m not a wine expert by any means, but I was hoping for something a bit more fruity. Regardless, I had two glasses of it with my meal and I was a happy pig!

]]> http://www.foodieindisguise.com/2009/10/21/pork-chops-and-pinot/feed/ 0 http://www.foodieindisguise.com/2009/10/19/turkey-burgers/ http://www.foodieindisguise.com/2009/10/19/turkey-burgers/#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 05:22:24 +0000 Scott Mindeaux, Editor http://www.foodieindisguise.com/?p=2948 I made some Turkey Burgers a little while back and didn’t post it. I need to cook with turkey more often. Usually you will see me making taco filling with turkey meat and one in awhile a chili, but today I wanted to have burgers.

• 1/4 cup(s) coarse-grained mustard
• 2 tablespoon(s) honey
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds toasted
• 1 pound(s) ground turkey breast
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 1/4 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper
• 2 teaspoon(s) canola oil
• Fried Pancetta
• Microgreens or alfalfa sprouts and onions for garnish

Directions

1. Heat your grill or pan.
2. Whisk mustard and honey in a small bowl until smooth.
3. Combine turkey, sesame seeds, 3 tablespoons of the mustard mixture, salt and pepper in a bowl; mix well. Form into four 1-inch-thick burgers.
4. If grilling, lightly brush the burgers on both sides with oil. Grill until no pink remains in center, 5 to 7 minutes per side.
5. If you’re using a stovetop pan, heat pan with some canola oil and cook until no pink remains in the center.
6. Brush the burgers with the remaining mustard mixture. Serve on rolls with microgreens onions, and fried pancetta.

I have to say that I enjoyed it so much, I had 2.5 bowls that night. The next day however….it was even better! Here are my photo’s from my reproduction of Rich’s Fagioli. Note: I used 14 Mini-Roma Tomatoes instead of full sized Romas.

[Show as slideshow]

This recipe is reprinted from Rich’s website www.wannabchef.com

• Olive Oil
• 1 lb. Bulk Hot Italian Sausage
• 1 medium Yellow Onion, diced
• 4 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp. Crushed Red Chile Flakes
• 1 Tbsp. fresh Rosemary, minced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh Thyme
• 2 cans White Cannelini Beans, drained and rinsed
• Roasted Tomatoes (see below), chopped
• 1 cup Red Wine (I used Cab. Sav.)
• 2.5 quarts Chicken Stock
• 6-8 oz. Ditalini Pasta
• 2 Tbsp. Basil, chiffonade
• Salt & Pepper, to taste
• Basil & Grated Parmesan or Asiago Cheese for Garnish

1. Heat a heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat.  Add 2 Tbsp. Olive Oil and then add sausage, breaking it up into bite-sized pieces with a spoon.  Stir until browned, then remove from pot and reserve.
2. Add 1-2 Tbsp. Olive Oil more, and sauté the garlic, onion, and chile flakes for 3 minutes.
3. Add in Cannelini Beans, Roasted Tomatoes, rosemary , and thyme.  Stir well to combine. Sauté 2 minutes.
4. Deglaze the pan by CAREFULLY adding in the red wine, and using a wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan.  Reduce to about 1 ounce of liquid, stirring frequently.
5. Add in the chicken stock, sausage and stir well to combine.  Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.  Using a stick blender, pureé some of the soup to help thicken it up.
6. Stir in pasta and cook for about 7 minutes (subtract 1 minute from package directions al dente cooking time).
7. Reduce heat to a simmer, and season to taste with Salt & Pepper.
8. Just before serving, stir in basil.  Add more basil to the top and grated Parmesan if you like before serving.

If you’d like the soup more broth-y, you can skip pureeing the soup.  Also, you can cook the pasta separately and add it in just before the basil, just before serving (just be sure to cook the pasta according to package directions, then run under cold water to stop the cooking process).

Roasted Tomatoes

• 8 Roma Tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• 16 pieces fresh Thyme, about the size of the tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp Garlic, minced
• Olive Oil & Black Pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Place the tomato halves, cut side up, on a sheetpan and drizzle with olive oil.
3. Sprinkle some of the minced garlic on each half.  Top with a piece of Thyme sprig.
4. Roast in 400°F oven for about 1 hour, until the omatoes atart to brown.
5. When cooled, cut each half into bite-sized pieces, about 6 pieces per half.

It had ground beef, chaoyte squash, onions, garlic and some other ingredients. My mom is back in Tagaytay and it was the middle of the night over there, so I decided to make it from what ever ingredients I could remember. I probably added a few more ingredients than the traditional recipe for Chayote Ginisang, nevertheless, the first bite was perfect.

What is Chayote you ask? Chayote, also known as Mirlitons in the South, is a type of squash. Chayote is one of the key ingredients in Central American cooking. An old friend and co-worker, Elise Jimenez, told me of a Mirliton Casserole that her family made for the holidays. It was then that I realized that Chayote wasn’t just a Filipino thing.

Scott’s Chayote Ginisang
Makes 6-8 servings

2 Chayote Squash

1.5 lbs Ground Beef

1 Medium Onion Sliced

2 Garlic Cloves, smashed

3 Small coins of smashed Ginger

1/8 teaspoon Red Chile Flakes

1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup of bean sprouts

1/4 teaspoon Sesame Oil

1/3 cup of Fish Sauce (Patis)

3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce

1 cup of broth

Saute the onions and garlic and ginger in vegetable oil making sure not to burn the garlic. After a few minutes, add the ground beef. Break up the meat slightly with your spoon. Leave some big chunks for texture. Continue browning the beef over med-high heat.

Meanwhile, cut the Chayote much like you would a mango. There is a center “seed” or pit that is not hard but a bit tough to eat, so I cut it out. Slice the remaining pieces. Add the chayote and the remaining ingredients in the pan with the browned ground beef. Me personally, I like to give the ground beef some color and will even give it some browning before adding the remaining ingredients. Lower the heat to medium and cover with a lid.

The dish is ready when the chayote has softened. Serve over fresh rice. Mmmmm….sarap!

Bolognese
serves 8

5 ounces (1 1/4 sticks) butter
1 carrot, peeled and minced
1 celery stalk, peeled and minced
1 small onion, peeled and minced
1 pound each ground beef and ground pork
salt and pepper
2 cups whole milk
2 cup dry white wine
Two 28 ounce can tomatoes, chopped fine, juice reserved
1 teaspoon thyme leaves, chopped
leaves from 1 sprig basil, chopped
smidge of freshly ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon of ground cinammon

1 pound pasta

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Place 3/4 of the butter in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Add carrots, celery and onion and sauté until softened but not browned, about 5 minutes or so.

Next, add ground beef and pork and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, crumbling meat, just until the pinkness in the meat is gone but has not yet browned, about 3-4 minutes.

Now it’s time to add milk and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until milk evaporates and only clear fat remains. It will take about 10 to 15 minutes.

Add wine and bring to a simmer. Simmer until wine evaporates, 10 to 15 minutes.

Add your tomatoes and their juice and simmer. Reduce heat to medium low, until almost all the liquid has evaporated, about 1 hour.

10 minutes from serving add thyme and cook another 10 minutes. Add shredded basil at the very end. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Cook pasta according to instructions. Drain, leaving a bit of water in the pasta, and toss with the sauce and the remaining butter.

Top with parmesan and serve.

Zov’s Neighborhood Cafés

Both Café locations will also offer an extended Happy Hour for the entire week from 4 p.m. to close with drink specials, including $7 specialty martinis, $5 draft beers and $6 well drinks.  In addition, each location will offer a specialty menu with appetizers priced at $5.

Zov’s Bistro in Tustin will also feature an extended Happy Hour for the week in its bar/lounge area from 4 p.m. to close with drink specials, including $7 specialty martinis, $5 draft beers and $6 well drinks.  The Bistro will premiere a new seasonal lounge menu and offer guests a choice of two appetizers for $12.

In addition to the many specials offered during the week, ALL Zov’s locations will introduce a company-wide no corkage policy and enhanced bar menu of specialty martinis and signature cocktails, along with a selection of wine and beer. Executive Chef/Owner Zov Karamardian will introduce seasonal prix-fixe lunch and dinner menus, offered at $12 and $19, respectively.

“We are always looking for ways in which we can serve our clients better and we’ve found that listening to their needs and working to give them what they want, is a sure-fire way to achieve success and gain loyalty,” explained Armen Karmardian, president of Zov’s, “Zov’s Neighborhood Café locations have undergone a recent makeovers and we wanted to share our new look and offerings with a week of truly spectacular offers at each location.”

For additional information and complete Zov’s Kids Club, Healthy Kids Menu, Happy Hour specials, lounge menu and prix-fixe menus, please visit www.zovs.com.

Adam is the man behind The Amateur Gourmet blog and the book of the same name. He’s been blogging since 2004! Adam lives in Brooklyn, NY with his partner Craig.

Well I “had” the video posted, but looks like they still have quite a few things to work out there at Food2. The Flash video code they gave for embedding didn’t have playback controls in the Flash window – which meant you couldn’t play the movie.  Ooops.

Here’s a link to the video on their site: http://www.food2.com/videos?view=video&vid=226

Marc’s recipe is simple. Follow 6,6,1,1,1.

6 cups flour
6 eggs
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Water
1 Teaspoon Fine Sea Salt

I love how he uses carving fork to get his pasta out of the pan! I guess I might do that too if I didn’t have tongs or something…

I recently gave some advice to a co-worker about how I like to cook a filet mignon. When he came back to me the next morning he told me that his filet was a bit tough and that his meat really stuck to the pan. It was then at this point that I remembered all the caveats that I didn’t tell him.

He went out and purchased an iron cast skillet. I told him to use a skillet with a metal handle or something that could handle heat up to 400 degrees. I have an All-Clad skillet that I use for my filet mignons. The skillet he bought wasn’t pre-seasoned. This caused alot of the sticking that he experienced. The next issue was the fact that it was cast iron. Cast iron conducts and holds heat way longer than any stainless steel skillet.

When I start my filet mignon, I preheat the pan with about 1-2 tablespoons of oil. While the pan is heating I season my filet. I only use kosher salt and pepper and I season liberally. I also make sure my meat is at room temperature and not striaght out of the fridge. Once I see that my pan is just getting to the smoking point (I can see the oil “rippling” in the pan and see small whips of smoke here and there) I place my filet in the pan. Once I put it in I don’t touch for it at least 1.5 minutes. At that point, the filet should release by itself and I flip it over. I’m not looking to blacken it just get good color. The instructions I gave my friend was to leave it in for about 2-3 minutes (in my head I was thinking it was med-high heat – when in fact I keep my heat on high). His beef almost blackened and started to cook the beef on that side. The cast iron retained all the heat and provided a hotter surface than I had anticipated. He had sticking problems but managed to release it and flip it over. It was almost black.

My next set of instructions was to flip it and then put it in a pre-heated 375 degree oven. I leave it in the over for about 5 minutes. This gives me just enough time to mince some shallots and get my mushrooms sliced for my sauce. I gave him the hand test method to check for doneness, but asked him to but a thermometer for his beef. I told him i like mine to finish at 125, medium rare. I offered that I usually will take my meat out at 120 as it will continue to cook even outside of the oven. Again, because of his cast iron his beef ended up cooking in the 5 minutes it was in the oven. Based on what he told me, his beef ended up being medium to medium well.

Once I was done with my veggies, I took my beef out of the oven and placed it on a plate a covered it with foil. Meanwhile I cooked my shallots and mushrooms, added my broth and wine and made myself a nice sauce. After about 10 minutes I had a nice med-rare filet with a red wine sauce, 1/2 of a baked potato from the night before and some asparagus I put in the oven while I cooked down the sauce. The asparagus simply had olive oil, salt and pepper.

My friends filet wasn’t a total bust, he said it tasted good, but that it was a bit tough. The next day we talked about it and how the factor of how cast iron vs stainless steel can make a difference. I then told him how to season his pan and how over time that an will be the best non-stick skillet he’ll have in his kitchen.

I slowly warmed up the soup in a sauce pan over medium heat. Meanwhile I took three small slices of pork loin (you can buy prepared strips of pork loin at Mitsuwa) and grilled them with just a dash of canola oil and two drops of sesame oil.

When the soup came to a simmer, I added a 1/2 cup of chicken stock from my freezer, snow peas, 1/2 tablespoon of lite soy sauce and a few sliced Shiitake mushrooms (stems removed, of course). The reason I added stock to it was that at Mentatsu the broth was kinda gelatinous and I wanted to water it down. You could just use water I suppose, but I had a cup of stock in the fridge from the other day.

Add the three strips of pork to the soup and simmer for a couple more minutes.

It was mighty good!

So, to transform this Filipino dish, I changed a few things up in this Beef Mechado. My mom made this dish often. She usually did it in under an hour and the meat was always too tough and we had to chew…alot!

Here is the basic recipe:

BEEF MECHADO

2 lbs. Chuck roast (cut into 2″ cubes)
6 Cloves garlic (chopped)
2 Medium onions (sliced)
1 Large red bell pepper (half chopped and half cube sliced)
1 Large green bell pepper (thinly sliced)
1 Medium can of stewed tomatoes
3 Coined sized pieces of Ginger
4 Tbls White Vinegar
2 Bay Leaves
1/3 Soy Sauce (I prefer Light Soy)
2 cups of beef broth (chicken works too in a pinch)
4 Medium potatoes (peeled and cut into roughly 2″ cubes)
Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper

So let’s talk about the type of meat. Most of the recipes I have seen online call for  just “beef”. For my test, I used a thick chuck steak. The one I got at the market was easily 2″ thick. Trim any fat from the meat, then cut into 2″ cubes – salt and pepper VERY lightly. Meanwhile, prep your other ingredients. You’ll see that I crossed out the Ginger from the dish. It turns out that there was a flavor in my experiment last nite that wasn’t bad, but I couldn’t identify it. This dish is VERY similar to a Chicken Afritada dish I made a few weeks ago. Two main differences? Ginger and vinegar. I’m going to say to omit both as it really doesn’t need it in my opinion. The ginger and vinegar add a tanginess that I, personally, didn’t care for.

Slice the onions and chop your garlic and have your 2 cups of broth ready. If you don’t have beef stock, chicken stock works great. Place the oil in a pot and once the oil is “shimmering” brown the beef pieces in the oil. The goal isn’t to cook the beef, just to get some color on them.

Don’t overcrowd the beef or you won’t get a good sear on them. Do the beef in batches if needed. Overcrowding the pan won’t get you the color you want, it will bring the temperature of the pt down and you’ll steam your meat.

After you are done browning the meat, set aside and add the onions and garlic and quickly sauté the vegetables. See all those brown bits at the bottom? That’s good stuff. We’re going to deglaze the pan and get all those brown bits off the bottom of the pan with 2 cups of stock. Using a wooden spoon, those bits will come right up once the stock is added. Add your soy sauce and bay leaves. Now add the beef back to the pot and over med-low heat, simmer for about 40 minutes, covered.

While that is simmering, peel your potatoes and cut your bell peppers into thin strips. Cut the potatoes into roughly 2″ cubes. After about 40 minutes of simmering, add one small can of Tomato Paste and 1 can of stewed tomatoes. Make sure the tomatoes are pure and don’t have any added ingredients like basil.

Mix and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Taste. Adjust seasonings as needed. [NOTE: I added a tablespoon of sugar to help cut down on the acidity of the tomatoes - this is optional]. After ten minutes add the potatoes and bell peppers and mix. Make sure the potatoes are down in the sauce.

Cook until the potatoes are fully cooked. Once cooked, take about 1/4 of the potatoes and smash them in to the sauce. This will help thicken the sauce. Check the meat, it should be very tender at this point. If not, continue to simmer over low heat until they are tender.

Once done, serve over fresh rice!

[Show as slideshow]

The dish is called Bistek (derived from “beef steak”). Basically, it is strips of beef cooked in soy sauce, onions and something called calimansi juice. As I said above it was made often in the house when growing up. What I remember is tough meat and onions that my mom liked more raw than cooked.

My version is just a bit different from the traditional Filipino version in that I substitute Flank Steak for the beef, much more tender and it absorbs the “marinade” much faster. I don’t use bottled Calimansi, I just use fresh lime juice. I also cook the onions more than the original recipe calls for. The almost “rawness” of the onions is not something I personally like.

Bistek – Scott’s Way

3/4 lb of flank steak, cut into manageable pieces across the grain
4 tbsp. of freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 c. of soy sauce or lite soy sauce
freshly-ground pepper
1 tsp. of minced garlic
1 onion cut into rings
2 tbsp. of cooking oil

In a glass mixing bowl, mix lime juice and soy sauce. Add beef, garlic and ground pepper. Mix well. Let sit for about 10 minutes.

Heat your pan and add oil. Pan-fry the beef slices in batches, removing them as they brown – about 1 minute per side on med-high heat. When all the beef has been cooked, take out and set aside. Pour the remaining marinade into the pan and let reduce for 1 minute. Add the onion rings to the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes – just to remove the rawness of the onions. Add the beef back to the pan, cover and turn off the heat. Arrange beef slices on a plate. Place the onion rings on top. Pour the sauce over the onions and beef. Serve at once with fresh rice.

Mmmmm…..! 

If you have leftovers, have it the next morning with fried rice and an egg!