Jazzed Up Whipped Cream

Today I was going to share with you this amazing Pecan Pie recipe that was my grandmother's personal favorite. Molasses, cane sugar, eggs, toasted pecans. Real old school stuff. Anyway, while the pie is baking, I decided to try  hand at making whipped cream for the pie. How hard could it be? Heavy cream, vanilla extract, a little brown sugar & a stand mixer. Right?

Once I've assembled my ingredients, lightbulbs started going off in my head! How can I improve this? How can I make this my own? What will put this over the top? Then it hit me like a brick. Bourbon! Not just any bourbon though. This requires something special like Old Rip Van Winkle Bourbon.

Ingredients, measuring devices, & shot glass in hand, I head for the mixer. Using the theory that you can always add more, I make generic whipped cream with 1/2 tbsp of bourbon. It was ok but the brown sugar definitely was the strong  ingredient. 

So now the pie is out of the oven, cooling on a rack at the end of the counter & it's back to the mixer for me. Long story short; three more trial runs and I had one banging whipped cream chilling in the fridge. 

The pie was also a success and what a combination the two were together! Below is the recipe that I came up with & let me tell you that the taste testing was the best part!

Jazzy Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream

1 1/2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons bourbon

Add all ingredients to mixing bowl. With mixer set at medium speed, beat until stiff peaks form ( about 2 minutes or so ). Refrigerate for 90 minutes before using. Enjoy!

Crescent Roll Taco Bake

Crescent Roll Taco Bake

Mmmm! Yummo! Tastee!
This easy to make dinner will knock em' dead. Simple, fairly quick, & inexpensive you are sure to have folks asking for seconds when you prepare this all in one meal.

Ingredients:

2 crescent roll tubes
1 LB ground beef (or ground turkey)
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (your choice)
Shredded lettuce
1 or 2 diced tomatoes depending on size
1/2 small can sliced olives (optional)
Sour cream optional (optional)
sliced avacado (optional)

Directions:

Lay out the two tubes of crescent pastry, thick sides in. Use some of the left over crescent rolls to to make the center a bit thicker. 
Brown beef and add taco seasoning. 
Lay beef in a circle inside of the laid out crescent rolls
Add cheese to the top
Pull over crescent rolls and tuck in under meat and cheese. 
Add cheese, lettuce, tomato, black olives, sour cream or whatever you desire for your tacos, in the middle. 

Follow cook time on the pack of crescent rolls, and once it's done you will end up with this:

Overnight Breakfast Frittata

Ingredients:

1 bag 26 oz. frozen hash browns
12 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon ground mustard
1 16 oz. roll sausage
(Any flavor of sausage will do but I really prefer maple sausage)
Salt and pepper to taste
16 oz. shredded cheddar cheese


Directions:


Spray crock pot with non-stick spray and evenly spread hash browns at the bottom.
Crack 12 eggs in a large bowl. 
Mix well (and slowly) using a whisk.
Add the milk.
Sprinkle in the ground mustard.
Add salt & pepper. Mix well and set aside. (If you have a pepper grinder use fresh ground pepper. Much more flavorful). 

Cook the sausage on medium- high heat, drain and set aside.

Add sausage on top of hash browns.

Add the cheese & mix well.
Pour the egg mixture over everything in the crock pot. Using a wood spoon, even everything out so it's spread evenly.
Turn the crock pot on low for 8 hours. Now go wash your face, brush your teeth and get in bed. Go ahead and close your eyes, and fall asleep. Because when you wake up and walk into the kitchen, you'll see this...

Oh, my.

What do we have here?

A perfect recipe that reminds you that the day is worth living, that's what.

Some fun variations of this recipe include making it vegetarian by eliminating the sausage and adding the veggies of your choice. Peppers, onions and chives work really well. My personal favorite is asparagus and green onion. Yum Yum! 

Chocolate BBQ Sauce

This past weekend I was in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Before coming home I made a side trip to Hershey, PA to visit Hershey's Chocolate World. This small place, just outside of Hershey Park is a chocolate lover's utopia! All things chocolate and all things Hershey exist in this little slice of heaven. After doing a little chocolate shopping, I decided to grab a bite to eat before hitting the road for the 90 mile drive home. I got a simple chicken sandwich but what made that sandwich pop was CHOCOLATE BBQ SAUCE! It was amazing, delicious, and like nothing I've ever had before. Yesterday, I fooled around with a bbq sauce recipe a little bit and came up with this concoction and it's pretty close to what I tasted when I was in Hershey.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tbsp prepared mustard
• 1/2 tsp hot sauce 

Directions

In a sauce pan saute onions and garlic in olive oil, cooking until tender. Stir in lemon juice, salt, pepper, paprika and hot sauce. Simmer for 5 to 6 minutes and reduce heat. Stir in ketchup, vinegar and Hershey’s Syrup. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. This is great on chicken or pork as a marinade and I may even give it a try on a turkey burger. This is easy to make and has a great chocolate flavor.

If you like things a little less sweet then try melting down 1/2 cups worth of Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate. The dark chocolate has a less sugary taste.

Holiday Appetizers

Well, the holiday season is upon us. Holiday work gatherings, family get together's, & neighborhood pot lucks will be soon popping up. I'm going to list a few quick appetizers that will dazzle the crowd, no matter what type of gathering you attend. 

Hummus Deviled Eggs

Mix 6 yolks from 12 hard boiled eggs with 1 1/4 cups Sabra Classic Hummus. Pipe into eggs, sprinkle with smoked paprika, & garnish with fresh parsley.

Spicy Devil Shrimp Cocktail Sauce

Jazz up your cocktail sauce by mixing in one container of Sabra Homestyle Salsa and adding a tsp of Srirachi Sauce and mix until well blended. Serve with pick and peel shrimp.This kicked up cocktail sauce will be the hit of the party and everyone will be asking you for the recipe.

Bacon & Pear Bites

Cut just ripe pears into 1/2 inch cubes. Sprinkle with salt, sugar, and cayenne pepper. spear on a toothpick with crispy bacon.

Spicy Maple Nuts

Mix 2 cups each of pecans, almonds, and walnuts with 1/4 cup maple syrup, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 2 tbsp chopped herbs (your choice), & 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper. Bake @ 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

White Chocolate Grapes

Melt white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Spear grapes with toothpicks. Dip grapes in white chocolate then roll in sprinkles or holiday colored sugar. Refrigerate until set.

Enjoy these appetizers and please feel free to share them with as many folks as you like. 

Upping My Game

Things have been busy in the firehouse lately with our call volume increasing, fire prevention duties, community service stuff, residential smoke detector installations, and a new lieutenant working on our shift. Our crew works our tails off. We are probably the most active platoon in the station and now that the cold weather is here it's just going to get busier.

Before the really busy season starts I wanted to treat the crew and the new lieutenant to a really good dinner (I know how to suck up to a new boss too!). Something over the top. A wowza meal. Something they would remember. This was going to take some planning. The biggest issue is time management because as everyone knows, at a moments notice we go from 0 to 60 and are on our way to answer a call.

After careful planning this is what I came up with:

Spring Salad

Baked Salmon over Truffled Cauliflower Puree

Razzberry Turnovers

Well, unbelievably the meal went off with out a hitch and it was well received by all. In the interest of sharing my love of food and cooking, the recipes and pictures are below.

Spring Salad

Ingredients:

4 cups baby arugula leaves, washed 

2 cups babay spinach, washed
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
1/2 cup Italian parsley leaves
1 small bunch fresh chives, chopped
1 cup thinly sliced radishes
1 cup shelled peas, blanched *

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup shaved Parmesan Cheese 

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

* To blanch peas: Drop it in boiling water for one minute, then place in an ice bath for one minute & drain

Directions:

Combine arugula, baby spinach, 

mint, parsley, chives, radishes and peas in a large bowl.  Whisk olive oil, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper together in a small bowl.  Pour 2/3 of the dressing over greens and toss to combine.  Arrange on plates.  Top with shaved Parmesan and lemon zest. Drizzle with remaining dressing. 

Baked Salmon over Truffled Cauliflower Puree

Ingredients: Truffled Cauliflower Puree   

                                                                                

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 shallot, chopped

1 pound cauliflower, cored and cut into small florets

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

1 tablespoon white truffle oil

Directions:

Heat butter in a large stockpot over medium heat.

Sauté shallot until translucent, then add cauliflower florets, cream, salt and pepper.

Stir to combine.

Cover pot and bring mixture to a boil.

Reduce heat, and simmer, covered, until the cauliflower is soft, about 10 minutes.

Add salt and white pepper; stir in truffle oil.

Transfer mixture to a blender.

Blend until smooth and creamy.

Ingredients: Sauteed Swiss Chard

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 small onion

2 cloves garlic

1 1/2 pounds Swiss chard (about 1 large bunch), cut into strips

 (baby spinach works if you can't find swiss chard)

1/2 cup dry white wine (such as Chardonnay)

1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground white pepper

Directions: 

Heat oil in a large skillet.

Add onion and garlic, and sauté until fragrant.

Add the Swiss chard and sauté until slightly wilted, about 4 minutes.

Add the wine, salt and pepper; simmer until wine is reduced and Swiss chard is tender-crisp, about 5 minutes.

Ingredients: Baked Salmon

1 cup breadcrumbs (I use Panko breadcrumbs)

1/3 pound smoked salmon, very finely chopped

1/3 cup prepared horseradish

1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

4 (6-ounce) filets salmon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 280°F.

Combine panko, smoked salmon, horseradish, 1/3 cup olive oil, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

Stir until breadcrumbs absorb oil and mixture is combined.

Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Sear salmon on both sides, about 2 minutes per side.

Cool to room temperature. Evenly distribute panko mixture among the tops of the salmon filets.

Bake salmon for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crust is golden and salmon is just cooked through.

Razzberry Turnovers

(Ok. So I cheated on dessert)

Well, that's it. from prep time to plating took me about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

I hope you enjoy!

Salsa Sunday

Tonight I am catering a small party for twenty people. It's a drop off job where I just set up the event, drop off the food and pick up the equipment the next day. These are my favorite types of catering jobs because they are pure profit after the cost of the food.

This is a Mexican food themed party. I am making a couple of different types of salsa for this party and I thought I would share them here since my cooking philosophy is that "cooking is love" and I love sharing my passion for cooking with as many people as I can.

Mango Salsa

Ingredients

1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted and diced (should be 1 1/2 cup)

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped

1 Jalapeno chile pepper, minced (include seeds and membrane for hotter taste)

1 small cucumber, peeled and diced

3 tbsp cilantro leaves, chopped

3 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 red bell pepper, diced (seeds and membrane removed)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 diced avocado (optional)

Directions

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the salsa ends up being a little too hot or acidic for your taste, you can temper it by adding some diced avocado.

Corn Salsa

Ingredients

2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed

1/3 cup chopped purple onion

1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

1 avocado, diced

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 to 2 tablespoons finely chopped jalapeno pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours. Remove from refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving. Serve corn salsa with grilled meat, poultry, or tortilla chips .
Makes about 5 cups.

Tomato Salsa

Ingredients3 Roma tomatoes 
¼ head of red cabbage
¼  cucumber
1 small red chili
1 small green chili
Extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
1 lemon
1 lime
3 cloves garlic
2 tsp chopped mint
2 tsp chopped coriander

Directions

Chop all salad vegetables to chunky pieces and mix in a bowl. Finely chop garlic and add to mixture along with mint and coriander. Squeeze in the juice of lemon and lime and stir well. Drizzle 1 dessert spoon of extra virgin oil and finish with balsamic vinegar.

There you go. Three simple, yet tasty salsa recipes that are sure to be a hit. I hope you enjoy making these salsa's as much as I enjoyed sharing them with you.