Recipe of the Week: Sweet and Garlicky Pork Chops

Here's another classic recipe which is both simple and delicious, Steven Raichlen's Garlicky Pork Chops. I could have sworn that I've posted this recipe before because I've made this meal numerous times, but I couldn't find it on the blog, so here it is. Hopefully this isn't the second time I've posted this recipe, but if it is maybe it will get you excited to try it out for this upcoming BBQ season.

Not sure if you can tell, but it's raining in this picture; typical. Well the day started off nice and I had plans to BBQ, so nothing was going to hold me back.

The finished product, look at that sweet and delicious char on the edges, which is why YOU HAVE to BBQ these pork chops, you could cook them on a grill pan, but it just isn't the same. The name of the recipe couldn't better describe this meal. To make it simple think a sesame oil, garlicky teriyaki pork chop.

There are a few things to keep in mind to take this dish from good to great:

• If you have time marinade overnight (the recipe says 1-2 hours, but I think the more time the more flavorful)


• Use a hot grill, don't put the pork chops on until it's nice and hot otherwise you won't get that nice char, which is the best part of the finished product


• Cook 4-6 minutes per side, try not to overcook because the pork chops will lose some of their juiciness and flavor, also they will cook while you let them sit on the cutting board

Now on to the recipe:

What you need:

• 4 thick (1 inch) or 8 thin (1/2 inch) pork chops - about 2 pounds in all - I recommend the thick cuts


• 1 head garlic, broken into cloves and peeled


• 3 T sugar


• 1/3 C Asian fish sauce or soy sauce (go with good fish sauce)


• 3 T honey


• 3 T rice wine


• 2 T Asian (dark) sesame oil


• 1 T grated fresh ginger


• 2 t salt


• 1 t freshly ground black pepper


• A FOOD PROCESSOR - a good blender, may work, but I highly recommend you get access to a food processor

What to do:

• Make 1 or 2 cuts in the fat side of each pork chop to keep it from curling during grilling. Arrange the chops in a baking dish and set aside.


• Combine the garlic and sugar in a mini chopper or food processor and process to a paste or pound to a paste in a mortar using the pestle. Work in the fish sauce, honey, rice wine, sesame oil, ginger, salt, and pepper. Using a rubber spatula, spread the mixture over both sides of the chops. Cover and let marinate in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours, I say more for more flavor. Also turn the chops a few times throughout the marinating process to make sure each side gets coated.


• Preheat the grill to high - please use charcoal and never use lighter fluid to get it started (use a chimney or my propane starter BBQ)


• When ready to cook, oil the grill grate.


• Arrange the chops on the hot grate and grill until nicely browned on both sides and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes per side for thick chops half that time for thinner chops.


• Shold read 160 degrees internally when cooked.


• The chops will have a great juice after finished so I recommend serving with rice.

Here's hoping for better weather because I'll be BBQ'ing rain or shine and would prefer to soak up some rays rather than rain while I'm cooking.

- Kyle

Recipe of the Week: Cooking with Jamie Oliver

Emi hit up the library again to find some new cookbooks for us to peruse. One of the books she picked up was Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver. I haven't had a chance to go through it yet, but did try one of the recipes Emi picked out. It was super easy. I'm talking easier than a crockpot easy. So for any one out there in need of a simple and easy, yet tasty meal this one is for you.

The recipe was called Chicken Breast Baked in a Bag with Mushrooms, Butter, White Wine, and Thyme. I changed it up a little.

What you'll need:

• 4 - chicken thighs or you could do 2 chicken breasts, I prefer thighs
• 1 handful of dried porcini (didn't have these and it still came out great)
• solid amount of mushrooms torn up, I used crimini (some chopped, some whole) and one chopped up portabello mushroom. If you can find them I would use chantrelles.
• 1 large wineglass of white wine - I used a chardonnay, but I'm sure anything on hand works
• 3 large pats of butter - I used 3 chunks of Emi's homemade truffle butter
• 1 handful of fresh thyme
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced
• 1 shallot diced - not in the original recipe, but was a good addition
• salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Using aluminum foil, make your bag by placing 2 pieces on top of each other (about as big as 2 shoeboxes in length), folding 3 sides in and leaving 1 side open. I added a third piece in the end to make sure it was fully sealed.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
3. This is optional, but I think would create a crust and seal in a better flavor. I didn't do this, but will next time. Salt and pepper the chicken generously and heat a pan on medium high heat with 1 T of olive oil. Once hot, brown the chicken skin side down for maybe 3 minutes at the most.
4. Then mix everything together in a bowl and place in the bag with all the wine, making sure you don't pierce the foil.
   
5. Close up the final edge, making sure the bag is tightly sealed and secure on all sides, place into a roasting pan.
6. If cooking chicken breast, I wouldn't recommend browning the meat and only cook it for 25 minutes. With a bone in chicken thigh, which I cooked, you'll need about 40 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven and place on a big plate. Break open the foil and serve.
8. Jamie said you could vary the recipe with grated parsnip, smoked bacon, and red wine.

Before I sealed everything up. In the end the mushrooms were the highlight of the dish. They soaked up the butter, thyme, and wine beautifully. Make sure you don't skimp on the mushrooms.

The finished product. This photo doesn't really do this dish justice. It was super easy and very flavorful. The only thing lacking was a little bit of salt and pepper, which I added in after, however I think if I brown the chicken in advance that might help a little.

This was a great recipe because the ingredients were simple and the steps to making it were simple. All you need is chicken, some white wine, mushrooms, butter, garlic, and thyme. I can't wait to try a variation of this dish with something different like fish.

I'm looking forward to reading through the rest of this book. The recipe seemed pretty healthy and I'm interested to see what else he has to offer. Random side note, but I just read the back of the book and at the time he wrote this he was only 26. Pretty impressive all that he had accomplished at still a very young age. By the way thanks Carmen and Jamie for getting me interested in learning more about Jamie Oliver!

- Kyle

Recipe of the Week: Truffle and Chantrelle Pizza

As I write this blog post, it is snowing outside and I am sitting in front of a warm, blazing fire. Nothing like a delicious and warm meal to heat you up on a cold, winter day!

Chantrelles are on sale right now at Central Market, so I picked up a pound with no solid plans for it. A couple days later, I realized I had to use it and incidentally also had a flashback to my amazing experience at Serious Pie last winter and that awe-inspiring truffle pizza that still brings tears to my eyes...

This is my attempt to recreate it, and I must say it turned out better than I expected given the fact that I am an amateur and lack a wood burning oven. Plus, Tom Douglas is a culinary God, and has access to the best ingredients in town. I have some good ingredients, but chose to be a slacker and used store bought pizza dough. I made Kyle make a side trip on the way home from work to get the dough from Trader Joe's.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chantrelle mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic
• Olive Oil
• Sea salt and pepper
• 1 TBS butter
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup truffle cheese (you can also find this at Trader Joe's for pretty cheap)
• A pinch of truffle salt
• A couple of drops of truffle oil

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 500 degrees--I like a really hot oven, and find that the temp that the pizza dough packages suggest is often too low (usually 450 or so, which doesn't cook the dough very well)
• Heat large pan with oil
• Smash garlic cloves and put in pan to infuse oil with garlic
• Add butter
• Add chopped chantrelles and saute until mushrooms are tender, remove garlic
• Roll out dough and place on pizza stone. My friend and fellow blogger, Carol, suggested that I put parchment paper under the dough and slide it out midway through cooking--this is a great tip and always helps to make the pizza crisp up better!
• Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the dough
• Add the chantrelles and garlic infused oil to the top
• Sprinkle the cheeses over the mushrooms as well as a couple of pinches of truffle salt
• Sprinkle sea salt over the edges of the dough for a salty crunch
• Pop it in the oven for about 15 minutes or until dough browns up and is to your liking
• Once done, take out of oven and add a couple drops of truffle oil over the top
• ENJOY!

This pizza was really good as leftovers, just put in a 350 degree oven for about 5-7 minutes.

Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Spanish Chicken and Chorizo

For you avid Food Networkers out there, you might have seen the new show that features Nigella Lawson. I have seen her on Top Chef many times as a guest judge. I haven't been able to figure out if her British accent and very sensual way of talking about food inspires me or creeps me out.

But I figured I would let her recipes and cooking speak for itself and found out that she is legitimate. Along with this recipe, I am currently catching up on blogging while waiting for my "Beer Braised Beef" to cook up in the oven--another Nigella recipe I saw on the TODAY show. Maybe it will be next week's recipe....

I should warn you all that if you watch her show she is obviously filming in Europe and uses grams, liters and other strange European measurement terms (I know, I am such an arrogant/ignorant American). Well, this smarty pants watched the show and thought this recipe looked good and was so simple, I could do it without referring to the online recipe. She said to put the chicken in the oven for an hour at 200 degrees. I thought, "hmm...that sounds awfully low, but I trust her." Oops. She meant 200 degrees CELSIUS! Moral of the story, trust your gut, not British TV cooks...haha, just kidding.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons regular olive oil
12 chicken thighs (bone in, with skin)
1 3/4 pounds chorizo sausages, whole if baby ones, or cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks if regular-sized
1 1/4 pounds baby white-skinned potatoes, halved
2 red onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 orange

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Put the oil in the bottom of 2 shallow roasting pans or quarter sheet pans, 1 tablespoon in each. Rub the skin of the chicken in the oil, then turn skin side up and put 6 pieces in each pan.

Divide the chorizo sausages and the baby potatoes between the 2 pans. Sprinkle with the onion and the oregano, then grate the orange zest over the contents of the 2 pans.
Bake for 1 hour, but after 30 minutes, swap the top pan with the bottom pan in the oven and baste the contents with the orange-colored juices. Transfer the chicken mixture to a large serving platter and serve.

I used cumin instead of oregano (another slip up as a result of my overconfidence with the recipe) and it was really good and went well with the chorizo.

Other than the minor hiccup of the oven temperature, this was a very simple and delicious recipe that I would recommend for a weeknight hearty Fall meal.

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the Week: Halloween Jello Shots!

Happy Halloween Ghouls and Guys! I know it has been several months since our last "recipe of the week"....What better time than Halloween to kick start another round of fun??

This is a fun party idea that is perfect for a summer party or Halloween bash. Kyle's cousin brought these adorable orange jello slices to a party--they were non-alcoholic, but suggested adding orange vodka for an adult treat. They are fun and easy to make, yet make quite the conversation piece and definitely get any party started right!


Ingredients:

• 6 oranges, halved and meat scooped out
• 6 oz orange jello
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 cup orange vodka

Directions:

• Mix boiling water and jello in large bowl
• Add orange vodka and mix
• Put orange halves in muffin tin so they are held up in the refrigerator
• Fill oranges to the brim with jello
• Let set overnight or at least 2 hours
• Slice into orange slices and serve immediately!

Hope you all have a fun and safe Halloween! Kyle and I dressed in a food themed costume this year and will post about our fun night soon (we promise within the next 2 months, haha!).

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the Week: Grilled Corn with Honey-Ancho Chile Butter

Emi has been a little behind on some of her posts, so thought I would do this week's recipe of the week. Also we haven't done one in awhile, so we're due. This week's recipe is straight out of the July issue of bon appetit.

Since Emi was out of town this weekend, I decided to plan a "Man Night" dinner for my friends. I went to the Edmonds Farmers Market with Pert to load up for that night's meal and dinner for Emi on Sunday night.

It's a good thing I went to the bank the day before to pull out some cash. I should have limited the amount of cash I brought to limit my spending because it was starting to turn into Monopoly money! However it's always good to buy local and the taste of fresh produce is worth the cost. Also most of the stuff is about as cheap as the grocery store if not less.

My final tally included chantrelles, homemade duck ravioli, peaches, cherries, Walla Walla sweet onions, zucchini, strawberries, blackberries, flowers, and some awesome sweet Yakima corn.

I ended up making the ricotta with sea salt and thyme spread which I served with a garlic toast. We also snacked on some of the fruit from the Farmers Market and I made a caprese salad to start off the meal. I grilled some BBQ chicken utilizing a great rub Emi's parents brought back from Austin for me. I also threw some some steaks on the grill, zucchini, and Walla Walla sweet onions for the side. To try something new I grilled the corn, but made the Honey-Ancho Chile Butter to serve it with.

On to the recipe.

What you'll need:

• 8 T (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
• 1 T ancho chile powder (substituted some chile powder Emi's parent's brought back from New Mexico)
  
• 1 t ground cumin
• 1 T honey
• 1/2 t dried oregano (didn't have any, but tasted great without it)
  
• 1/2 t coarse kosher salt
• 1/4 t garlic powder
• 1/4 t onion powder
• 8 ears of corn
  

Directions:

Melt 2 T butter in small skillet over medium-low heat. Add chile powder and cumin; stir 10 seconds. Transfer to medium bowl; stir in honey and cool.

Add oregano, coarse salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and 6 T butter to butter mixture. Mix until smooth.

You can make this in advance and store in the fridge, just bring to room temperature before using.

Grill corn until charred in spots, turning often, about 13 minutes. Serve with honey-ancho butter.

Emi loves using different types of seasoning on her corn, so this was the perfect opportunity to try something new. The chile powder adds a nice subtle kick, while the honey and butter add a nice rich, creamy, sweetness to the already sweet corn. This is an easy add on to make and a great way to try something new. Make sure to take advantage of the summer corn and weather to BBQ up this recipe.

- Kyle

Recipe of the Week: Keo's Honey Glazed Spareribs

A few weeks ago while Emi and I were trying out a few of Keo's recipe, I grilled up the Honey Glazed Spareribs. They were delicious and I wanted to share the recipe with all of you. The sweetness of the honey combined with the lemongrass is a great, unique flavor.

If you want to try something different, yet still simple with great flavor this recipe is for you. It's also perfect for a summer BBQ.


Honey Glazed Spareribs Recipe:

The recipe book said that this was one of their more popular dishes.

What you will need:

• 4 pounds of baby spareribs - I purchased a few racks of these ribs at Ranch 99 (much more affordable there)
• 4 stalks of lemongrass, chopped (again easy to find at Ranch 99 or your equivalent local, Asian market)
• 1/2 C chopped garlic
• 3 T coarsely chopped fresh ginger
• 1/2 C coarsely chopped Chinese parsley roots (it looks like a white turnip)
  
• 1/2 C honey
• 1/2 C coconut milk
• 1/4 C soy sauce
• 1 t salt

Cut spareribs into individual ribs. In a food processor, combine lemongrass, garlic, ginger, Chinese parsley roots, honey, coconut milk, soy sauce, and salt; blend until smooth. Pour sauce over the ribs and marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 F place ribs in an open pan and bake for 1 hour, or until cooked, depending on the thickness of the ribs. Serve with Sriracha sauce for dipping.

I BBQ'd the ribs over indirect heat instead of baking them in the oven. This gave the ribs an added smokey flavor. It took a little bit longer to cook them at about 40 minutes in total. It's important to cook over indirect heat so that you don't burn the sugar in the marinade coating the ribs.

The ribs came out tender and flavorful. If you enjoy sweet, salty, and garlicky and teriyaki flavors you will enjoy these ribs. Also the lemongrass gives this dish an added kick.

Instead of serving with Sriracha, Emi prefers a little bit of sweet chili sauce on the side. Honestly the ribs have so much flavor you don't need an additional dipping sauce.

- Kyle

Recipe of the Week: Eggplant with Chicken

We are having an amazingly sunny and hot weekend here in Seattle which makes me crave some grilled meat and a cold beer! But I wanted to post my last Thai recipe from our meal several weeks ago.

I love eggplant, but have always had trouble cooking it since it can be tough to cook perfectly--always either too soggy or undercooked and rubbery. Kyle and I always order this dish at our favorite Thai restaurants, and found the recipe very closely matched our favorites. Hope you enjoy this tasty and easy dish!

3/4 lb Japanese Eggplant (about 3 cups sliced)
1/3 lb boneless chicken breast
6 TBS vegetable oil
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
1-5 red chili peppers, seeded and chopped
10-15 sweet basil leaves
1-3 TBS yellow bean sauce (see my below post if you are wondering what this is--trust me, you would never reach for it in the grocery aisle if you didn't know what it is!)

Slice unpeeled eggplant crosswise into slices 1/8 inch thick. Thinly slice chicken. Heat oil in a wok; add garlic and stir-fry until light brown. Add eggplant and chicken and cook for 5-7 minutes. Add red chili peppers, basil leaves and yellow bean sauce; mix well. Serve immediately, since eggplant and basil turn dark if dish sits after cooking.

Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Thai Broccoli Noodles with Shrimp

Here is round 2 of my Thai food extravaganza!

Ingredients:
1/2 lb shrimp
4 TBS vegetable oil
1/2 lb fresh wide rice noodles (Kyle and I searched for about an hour for this. It is located next to the refrigerated noodle section of Ranch 99 on a shelf of its own since the noodles get hard in the fridge)
2 eggs (optional)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb broccoli (preferably Asian), cut into 2 inch lengths
1-3 TSP yellow bean sauce (I found out that this is also called soy bean paste and looks like fermenting, gross yellowish green garbage but truly does make the food taste authentic. After another hour of searching, we found it in the sauce aisle by the soy sauces and other canned items.)
2 tsp oyster sauce

Peel and devein shrimp, leaving tails on for color. Heat 2 TBS o the oil in a large wok on medium heat. Add rice noodles and eggs; mix well and cook for 2 minutes. Place rice noodles on a large serving platter; set aside. Heat the remaining 2 TBS of the oil on high heat in the same wok with garlic, until garlic is golden brown. Add shrimp, broccoli, yellow bean sauce and oyster sauce. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Add noodles and toss lightly. Serve immediately.

Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Sunday Thai Food

Kyle and I are getting ready for our big kitchen remodel! If you look at our photos taken from our cooking adventures, you will notice how I strategically photograph things to avoid capturing our hideous countertops and 1960s appliances. I am looking forward to having a beautiful new kitchen as a backdrop to my food photos.

While spending a day packing away dishes and scraping the last dregs of ugly wall paper off a kitchen wall, Kyle and I decided to say farewell to the old kitchen with a Thai food extravaganza. Instead of our usual Thai take-out, we picked out a couple of recipes from a cookbook I picked up from the library. It is a cookbook for Keo's Thai Cuisine, an amazing Thai/pan-Asian restaurant in Waikiki.

Several years ago, my friend Ali and I traveled to Hawaii as a part of the Japanese Community Queen Scholarship Program and were wined and dined for a week. Keo's was one of the stops on the trip, and when I found their cookbook, I was instantly transported back to the amazing dinner we had on that trip. Although my attempt was not quite up to par with the restaurant and took about 1 1/2 hours of shopping at Ranch 99 in order to find all the ingredients, it was well worth it in the end. I will post the recipes for all three dishes we tried over the next couple of weeks!

Evil Jungle Prince with Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 lb boneless chicken breasts

2-6 small red chile peppers

1/2 stalk fresh lemon grass

2 kaffir lime leaves (I think they are also called curry leaves, and found them in the produce section of Ranch 99)

2 TBS Vegetable Oil

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-3 TBS fish sauce (amount depends on brand and personal taste--Kyle and I found a bottle of the stuff that was made in Thailand, so we thought it would have a more "authentic" taste!)

10-15 sweet basil leaves (make sure you get the Thai basil, not Italian...)

1 cup chopped cabbage (we got Napa cabbage which is a little crunchier and sexier than boring normal cabbage!)

Thinly cut chicken into 2-inch strips. I found that if you slice the chicken length-wise in thin strips and then cut those strips in half width-wise, they end up perfect for this dish. Grind together red chile peppers, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or pound in a motar. Heat oil to medium-high and saute pepper mixture for 3 minutes. Stir in coconut milk and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken and cook for 5 minutes, or until cooked. Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in fish sauce and basil. Serve on bed of chopped cabbage. I have to note that the dish ended up a bit salty, so I would reccommend going easy on the fish sauce and extra salt. You can always add salt, but unfortunately cannot take away salt once it is in the dish....

Thai Broccoli Noodles with Shrimp...look for the recipe in next week's post!



A very blurry photo of the eggplant with chicken...look for the recipe in another future post!

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the Week: Bobby Flay's Crunch Burger

Ali, Emi's good friend bought her Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries, and Shakes for Christmas. We've been waiting a long time for BBQ weather so that we could finally pull out the book to try out some of Bobby's recipes.

This past weekend with the sun out and the weather in the mid 70's we decided it was the perfect weather to finally have some people over to BBQ. The book is filled with tons of fun burger and milkshake recipes that I'm sure we will test out this summer, but we wanted to start out with Bobby's signature burger the Crunch Burger.

Directions (recipe makes 4 burgers):

• 1 1/2 pounds ground chuck (80% lean) - fat is flavor so look for at least 20% fat
• First heat up the BBQ - I prefer charcoal and make sure it is nice and hot before cooking, briquettes should be glowing orange and starting to turn ashy.
  
• Make the horseradish mustard mayonnaise in advance.
• Whip together 1/4 C mayo, 2 T dijon mustard, 1-2 t of horseradish (depends on how spicy you want it to be), salt and pepper. Let it sit covered in the fridge for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to combine.
  
• Divide the meat into four equal portions and loosely form into 3/4 inch patties
• Make a deep depression in the center of each patty with your thumb. This will keep your patties from turning into hockey pucks and the depressions will disappear as the patties cook.
• Season with Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper on both sides
• Brush on 1 1/2 T of Canola oil over both sides of all of the patties
• Throw on the BBQ and cook for 4 minutes on one side, then flip and cook for 3 minutes on the other.
• Add on 2 slices of American cheese and cover the BBQ and allow to cook for another minute or two, until the cheese is melted. This will result in the burgers being medium-rare, cook an extra minute for medium. Remember to not push down on the burgers with your spatula this will squeeze out the juices and may also cause your BBQ to flame up.
• Toast each side of a potato bun on the BBQ
• Place the cooked patty on the bottom of the bun, top with lettuce, tomato, red onion (we didn't do onions), a dollop of the horseradish mustard mayonnaise and a handful of potato chips.

This is a great burger, it's deliciously simple. I love the smoky flavor that only a charcoal BBQ can give a hamburger and American cheese is the only cheese to enjoy on a cheeseburger. The horseradish mustard mayonnaise is what makes this burger special. It's not overpowering, but both sweet and a little spicy and adds a great flavor to the burger. However, what brings this burger to another level is the potato chips, hence the name the "Crunch Burger".

Make sure to try out this burger at your next BBQ because it's really easy to make, yet you'll impress with the added horseradish mustard mayo and the creative use of potato chips.

- Kyle

Recipe of the week: Grilled Veggie Salad

Here comes another salad recipe that involves grilling! It's inspired by a Giada recipe, which is usually a good thing. I decided to add some grilled shrimp using my favorite go-to recipe. Follow the hyper-link here to the recipe. It is absolutely scrumptious, filling and healthy and is the perfect addition to a summer bbq....ahh, wishing it was summer already!

This salad is beautifully bright and colorful!

Wish tons of veggies and protien from the shrimp, this is a true healthful, well rounded salad that could be a served as a main dish.

Ingredients:

Japanese Eggplant
Asparagus
Zucchini
Avocado
Cherry Tomatoes
Romaine Lettuce
Grilled Shrimp (optional, but delicious!)
Olive oil for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Dressing:
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
3 TBS Olive Oil
1 1/2 TBS Honey
salt and pepper

Cut the ends off the zucchini and eggplant and slice lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick strips. Drizzle asparagus, eggplant, and zucchini with some olive oil and salt and pepper and throw on the grill until veggies are soft and have some nice grill marks. You can also grill the romaine as I suggest in last week's recipe, but I found that the salad needed a little crispness, so I would also recommend saving some non-grilled romaine for the salad.

Chop the grilled veggies, romaine, tomatoes, and avocado into bite size pieces and place in large salad bowl. Top with grilled shrimp.

In a separate bowl combine honey and lemon juice and whisk. Add in olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Toss with Salad and enjoy!

Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Avocado Caeser Salad

Summer is around the corner and my favorite season brings some of my favorite things: sun, warm weather, long days, and grilling!

It also brings swimsuit season, which means it is time to slim down, shed the winter insulation and eat better. This is one of Kyle's favorite salad dressings I make. One of my best friends, Amy, started to learn to cook last year and I gave her this dressing along with one other recipe. Her fiance loved it so much, they made it for a week straight!

Ingredients:

• 1 Head of Romaine Lettuce


• 1 loaf of ciabatta bread


• Garlic salt


• olive oil

Dressing:

• 1 ripe avocado


• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese


• 1 tbs anchovy paste


• salt and pepper to taste


• a dash of Worcestershire sauce


• 1/4 cup white wine vinegar


• 2 tbs lemon juice


• 1/2 cup olive oil

Cut romaine lettuce in half and put on grill or grill pan. This will give it a smokey flavor and give beautiful grill lines. Set to side until dressing and croutons are ready.

Croutons:

Chop bread into bite size pieces and add to hot pan, sprinkling with olive oil and garlic salt. Toss until toasted and put to side.

Dressing:

Blend all ingredients except olive oil in blender (I personally love my Bella Cucina small blender because it is an easy clean-up and a perfect size for salad dressings...also for smoothies!). When blended to a chunky consistency, add oil and blend until smooth. Top on romaine and add croutons.

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the week: MVM (most valuable marinade)

The recipe I am about to share with you is my most valuable marinade and probably my most prized recipe of all time. I learned this marinade back when I was going to school down in Southern California and was just learning how to cook. One of my friends down there was a pretty good cook and BBQ'd steak for us one day and it was absolutely amazing. It wasn't like anything I had ever eaten before, it was so flavorful, every bite of the steak just gushed juice and an amazing garlic flavor. It also had a great little spicy kick to it. As soon as I took my first bite I knew I had to have the recipe. It was so good, I was skeptical he would share it with me, but alas he did and I've seriously been using it probably at least 5 times a year for the last 6+ years.

This recipe is basically fool proof, really easy to make, and consistently really, really, really good. I've shared this marinade numerous times from my closest friends to strangers at Husky tailgate BBQ's who just had to have the recipe. However the time has come to share it with the world. I know I've built it up a lot, but I think you'll enjoy it just as much as I have.

What's great about this recipe is that it is very versatile. I usually make this with 3-5 lbs of tri tip steak, but I've also done pork tenderloin, chicken thighs and drumsticks, and flank steak. Basically any hearty dark meat will work well.

Dan's Steak Marinade (Named after the genius who shared this recipe with me)

In a blender add the following:

• 1 cup olive oil
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 2 T A1 steaksauce
• 2 T worcheshire sauce
• fresh ground black pepper
• few dashes of cayenne pepper depends on how spicy you like it
• KEY INGREDIENT: One whole head of garlic, remove the skin from each clove and put the cloves in the blender

Blend everything to a smoother consistency and pour over your meat into a gallon sized ziplock bag. If you need to use two bags do that.

Now this takes a little bit of planning, but marinate for two days if possible and rotate the meat a few times a day. Also if you have more than one fridge, I would recommend you store the marinade in the one you use the least because this stuff is overpowering.

After you are done marinating the steak, heat up the grill and let the fire do the rest of the work. Of course I only recommend grilling with charcoal (no lighter fluid, use a chimney or propane starter) or propane grill if you have to. This will ensure the best flavor. Also keep an eye on the meat because the marinade can cause the BBQ to flame up and you don't want your meat to get burnt. Depending on what your cooking, cook it for a few minutes on each side and when rare to medium rare, pull it and let it sit on a cutting board for about 10 minutes. Then slice it up and serve. I like to throw a few tortillas on the hot grill for a few seconds each side to serve with the steak. It also goes really well with guacamole. I'll have to share that recipe later.

Anyhow hard to mess this one up, unless you don't give it enough time. If you are short on time, try poking holes in your meat with a fork and hopefully that will help.

Good luck and let me know if you ever try out this recipe!

- Kyle

Recipe of the Week: The Fall Diet

I have discovered a new passion: the library. My friends and I have a book club, which truth be told, is more like a wine club, but we feel much more cultured and sophisticated calling it a book club. A couple of the girls have been going to the library and have been telling me what a great money saver it is to borrow each month's book vs. spending up to $20/month to buy a book you may or may not love. Also, Kyle's Auntie Cheri (our family's Martha Stewart) often borrows cookbooks from the library. Kyle and I spend a lot of money on cookbooks and most of the time we only use a couple recipes. So I finally decided there might be some logic behind going to the library.

I showed up to our teensy-weensy Richmond Beach library a month ago and was so overwhelmed and excited to find that I could borrow up to 100 books at a time that I ended up leaving an hour and a half later with just about that amount of books on CD for my long drives for work, home improvement books, our book of the month, and...cookbooks! I was perusing the shelves and noticed a book by Cheryl Fall. One of my best friends mom's name is Cheryl Fall, and I thought "...hmmm what a coincidence". I flipped through the pages and was in aw when I discovered that the author WAS my friend's mom!

Her book is Two at the Table: Cooking for Couples Now that the Kids are Gone (I have linked the title to amazon.com so you can order a copy!). She has wonderful recipes, including many healthy/healthful recipes like the creamy kale and turkey kielbasa soup that is shown below. Becca and her sister are both skinny, so Kyle and I decided this book must hold the secrets to the diet they grew up on that made them so lean! Hence, the title of this blog post.

Anyways, this week's Recipe of the Week's recipe won't be posted because I think everyone should go out and get this cookbook--it's a keeper! Or, you could check out your local library and if they aren't esteemed enough to have a copy on hand, they could order it for you from a different location.

I've never cooked with kale before, but started to get interested in trying it after my friend Carol posted about its health benefits on her blog. This soup was soul-warmingly delicious and filled us up quickly with all of the yummy veggies and hearty sausage. Look at the color of the soup!

Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Simple Pork Chops

I want to take this week's Recipe of the Week post to declare my love for garlic salt. And not just any garlic salt, Lawry's garlic salt, which I lovingly call the "green top" garlic salt. There are many brands out there, but this one by far has the best flavor and can make any meat or starch dish tasty in a pinch (of salt).

I have fond memories of this salt--it was a staple in our household growing up. From fried chicken, to fish, to roast chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, etc.; I think I will have images of the green top flash by me when I die.

Here is one simple recipe that uses my beloved garlic salt:

Ingredients:

4 thick pork chops

1/2 cup flour

Fresh ground pepper

3-4 tablespoons vegetable oil

Green top garlic salt!

Sprinkle pork chops with lots of pepper and garlic salt. Use a pastry brush to spread flour over the raw pork chops in a light layer. Heat a large pan and add oil once hot. Add pork chops, 2 at a time, and cook about 5 minutes per side, or until each side is browned.

These are great as leftovers, so you could double the recipe if you want to have a nice lunch or snack the next day! As a sidenote, earlier in the year, I saw a nutrition article online that said that pork chops have "good fat" and is a good meal option to get protein for a cheap price tag.

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the Week: Crab and Brie Fondue

I just got back from a long week of meetings in Dallas and have some catching up to do with my blog posts. After a busy week, the best thing to cure your frizzled brain is with some delicious comfort food.

I made this fondue a couple of weeks ago for my parents. Kyle is allergic to crab, so he wasn't able to enjoy this. One of the near deal-breakers in our relationship was that he couldn't eat my family's favorite food--crab. He found out he was allergic to crab when he was old enough to know that he loved crab. Luckily he is a good sport and allows us to crack open juicy claws, drench it in butter and ohh and ahhh over the tasty critters, all while he looks on with longing. We usually have a crab alternative like my other favorite, lobster, so don't feel too bad for him.

This fondue is probably one of my all-time favorite dishes and is a recipe from one of my most trustworthy Food Network stars, Emeril Legasse. It is truly decadent and I have to warn that it is pretty expensive to make because of the lump crab meat and brie. Not to mention that it is probably 1000 calories per bite. If you have guests coming over or need a guaranteed amazing, plate-licking meal, this is the one for you.

If you look closely, you can see the cheese bubbling a little in this photo...yummm...

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup minced shallots
2 cups heavy cream
8 ounces brie, trimmed of rind
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 pound lump crabmeat, picked clean of shells and cartilage
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 to 3 tablespoons Tomato Confit, recipe follows
French bread or focaccia croutons, for serving

Directions:
Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add the butter to the pan. Once the butter is melted, add the shallots and saute, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are soft and translucent, about 1 minute. Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Once the cream is hot and bubbling, add the Brie and use a whisk to stir it into the cream. Season the cream with the salt and pepper and add the crabmeat to the pan. Continue to cook the fondue over medium heat until the cream is slightly reduced, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir the parsley into the fondue. Transfer fondue to a fondue pot and spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of the Tomato Confit into the fondue. Serve warm with French bread or focaccia croutons.

Tomato Confit:
1/4 pound plum tomatoes, cored, halved, and seeded
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 fresh rosemary sprig
1 large clove garlic, peeled and smashed
Olive oil, as needed
Place tomatoes in a small saucepan and season with the salt. Add the rosemary sprig and garlic and enough olive oil to barely cover the tops of the tomatoes. Bring oil to a very low simmer and cook for about 1 hour. Remove tomatoes from the oil with a slotted spoon and place in a food processor or blender. Process until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
Yield: about 1/2 cup

I forgot to add the tomato confit before I took this photo, but it was absolutely delicious. I have noticed that many chefs are using tomato confit in various dishes lately, so it might be nice to make extra and use it in other dishes you make during the week.

Happy Eating,

Emi

Recipe of the Week: Sweet Potato Fries

In honor of the Super Bowl, I thought I would post a recipe for a healthy and yummy food that can be eaten as a snack, served as a starch with dinner, or as a side dish with your traditional football party food. If you make extra, you can put it in the refrigerator and later stick it under the broiler for a quick snack.

Kyle and I have been trying a new diet that our crossfit gym endorses called the Paleo diet (actually, it is more Kyle doing it, and me selecting the parts I like such as the fact that butter is OK!). This is also known as the caveman diet, and stresses eating a balance of protein, fat and carbs while avoiding processed foods that weren't around in the early days of the world. While rice, pasta and potatoes are no-nos, yams and sweet potatoes are considered good starch/carb choices. Kyle and I have been making sweet potato fries a lot for snacks before our intense workouts.

Ingredients:
2 large sweet potatoes or yams
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
Fresh cracked pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut potatoes into strips about 1/2 inch wide. Toss the potatoes in Olive Oil and sprinkle sea salt or kosher salt and pepper over the top. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread the potatoes in the pan in a single layer. Bake in the middle rack for 20 minutes, then move to the top rack for 10 more minutes. Let cool, serve and enjoy!

I like to eat these with ketchup, but that has a lot of sugar and sodium, so they are really tasty alone, too. Without being fried, they are much healthier than normal fries and have great nutrients.

One more thing--here is a link to our new crossfit gym that is in Mill Creek, Outer Edge Crossfit. We are having a blast and are getting in much better shape thanks to the high intensity workouts that Jake gives us. Come in and take advantage of his 2 week free trial period!

http://outeredgecrossfit.com


Happy Eating,
Emi

Recipe of the Week: Pot Roast and Pot Roast Bolognese

In an attempt to stay more on top of my blogging, I want to start a weekly post that will run every Sunday and feature my favorite recipes.

This first week, I am going to be a little crazy and post TWO! For those of you busy bees out there who don't have much time at night to cook, these are easy and feature one of my favorite kitchen fixtures, the crock pot. The beauty of crock pots/slow cookers is that they can make the simplest and cheapest ingredients taste succulent and expensive. Everyone has their own Pot Roast recipe, so this one is really no better or worse then your average pot roast; but Emeril Legasse's Pot Roast Bolognese is a must-try and a fabulous use of left overs.

One of the most expensive pot roasts I ever had was the one my mom made when I was in 8th grade. She was cooking pot roast for my dog who was 16 and unable to eat normal dog food as she was suffering from a growing tumor and old age. My mom cooked the pot roast on the stove (that is why I love slow cookers, they are practically fool proof!); she accidentally left the pot roast on the stove and came home to a smokey mess. The massive protein fire left our whole house with an absolutely terrible, nose hair curling, smell that permeated every surface of our house. Luckily, our home insurance covered the clean-up which included hand wiping down every surface, dry-cleaning all of our clothes, and replacing over $1000 worth of spices from my dad's well-stocked pantry. This is a total side story, but I thought it was pretty amusing. Moral is don't leave meat cooking unattended unless in a slow cooker!

Here are recipes. If you try them, let me know what you think!

Recipe #1: Mama Neely's Pot Roast

Ingredients:

1 (3 to 4-pound) boneless bottom round roast
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 yellow onions, peeled and quartered
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock
2 fresh thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
3 carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
Freshly chopped parsley leaves, for garnish

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Season the roast on all sides with salt and pepper.
In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the vegetable oil and sear the roast on all sides. Add the onions, garlic and tomato paste and cook until slightly colored. Add the wine, stock, thyme and bay leaves. Bring the liquid to a simmer, cover, and place in the oven.
Roast for 1 1/2 hours and then add the carrots. Continue to cook for 1 more hour. Transfer the roast to a cutting board and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Slice and place on a serving platter. Skim the fat off the braising liquid and serve with the roast. Garnish with parsley.

Recipe #2: Pot Roast Bolognese

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 ounces pancetta or bacon, diced
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions
1/2 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced celery
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 sprig fresh thyme
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 pounds leftover cooked pot roast, shredded
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes and their juices
1 cup leftover pot roast gravy or reduced beef stock
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound fettuccine
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions:

In a large pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring, until browned and the fat is rendered, about 4 minutes. Add the onions, carrots and celery and cook, stirring, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, nutmeg and thyme, and cook for 30 seconds. Add the wine, stir to deglaze the pan, and cook until the liquid is nearly all evaporated, about 3 minutes. Add the shredded meat, tomatoes and gravy and simmer, stirring occasionally, over medium high heat until the sauce is thickened and flavorful, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in the cream and parsley, and adjust the seasoning, to taste. Remove from the heat and cover to keep warm.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettuccine until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and add to the pot with the sauce, tossing to coat the pasta. Add 1/2 cup of the cheese and toss to blend.
Divide among pasta bowls and serve with the remaining cheese passed tableside.

Happy Eating,

Emi