Month: February 2013

Satay’s Meet Rib’s

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I wanted to prepare some chicken satay’s for some time now, but I just never got around to it. So on friday I bought chicken and other ingredients to finally get my satay fix. However, I also bought some pork rib’s, which got me thinking……. Peanut and pork is alway’s a great combination, so why not going that route. No reason not to ! So here we go, Pork ribs with an asian inspired peanut glace and peanut dipping sauce. Great success ! This will be one of my new standby’s for an informal dinner party 🙂
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Satay’s Meet Rib’s

: Satay’s Meet Rib’s

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Ingredient’s :

Pork rib’s,
Peanut butter,
Hoi sin sauce,
Oyster sauce,
Soy sauce,
Scotch bonnet sauce,
Ginger powder,
Garlic, granulated,
Coriander powder,
Turmeric,
Sour orange juice,
Lemon grass, dried, chopped
Brown sugar,

Method :

Heat peanut butter with all ingredients except ribs. Add water and whisk until you have a smooth, thick sauce. Simmer for a few minutes. Set aside most of it to marinade ribs for at least two days. Add some more water to the rest of the sauce to use as dipping sauce. Set aside. After two day’s, bake ribs on a water filled roasting tray, lightly covered with aluminum foil, at 180F for nine hours. Remove cover during the last hour to get a golden color.
(Best to put the rib’s in the oven in the morning, happily thinking about a great dinner to come during the whole day 🙂
The collagen will turn into gelatin, leaving the ribs tender and succulent. Add the juices from the roasting tray to the dipping sauce, simmer until the desired texture is reached. Strain. Serve with the dipping sauce, slices of raw onion, cucumber and tomato.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Small Plates “

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I don’t know what the fuss about “small plates” is all about?
As you can see, at my house they were alway’s ” in ” 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Spinach Pappardelle, Ham & Bell Pepper Ragout

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What a great meal a bit of ham, peppers, pasta
and a good amount of love for all things pasta can make.
( As you can see, Madam agrees 🙂

Sharing a meal with a loved should count as one of life’s most precious moment’s. Even if not all of them can be there physically, they are alway’s there in spirit.
All my loved ones love food, – coincidence ?
And not all are as big-bellied as I am, thankfully 🙂

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Spinach Pappardelle & Ham And Bell Pepper Ragout

: Spinach Pappardelle & Ham And Bell Pepper Ragout

All over the world, same crap……..

I think she is pissed and I agree with her………………

Alan Simpson, the Senator from Wyoming, calls senior citizens the Greediest Generation as he compared Social Security to a milk cow with 310 million teats.

Here’s a response in a letter from PATTY MYERS in Montana … I think she is a little ticked off! She also tells it like it is!

“Hey Alan, let’s get a few things straight!!!!!1. As a career politician, you have been on the public dole (tit) for FIFTY YEARS.

2. I have been paying Social Security taxes for 48 YEARS (since I was 15 years old. I am now 63).

3. My Social Security payments, and those of millions of other Americans, were safely tucked away in an interest bearing account for decades until you political pukes decided to raid the account and give OUR money to a bunch of zero losers in return for votes, thus bankrupting the system and turning Social Security into a Ponzi scheme that would make Bernie Madoff proud.

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Recently, just like Lucy & Charlie Brown, you and “your ilk” pulled the proverbial football away from millions of American seniors nearing retirement and moved the goalposts for full retirement from age 65 to age, 67. NOW, you and your “shill commission” are proposing to move the goalposts YET AGAIN.5. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying into Medicare from Day One, and now “you morons” propose to change the rules of the game. Why? Because “you idiots” mismanaged other parts of the economy to such an extent that you need to steal our money from Medicare to pay the bills.

6. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying income taxes our entire lives, and now you propose to increase our taxes yet again. Why? Because you “incompetent bastards” spent our money so profligately that you just kept on spending even after you ran out of money. Now, you come to the American taxpayers and say you need more to pay off YOUR debt.

To add insult to injury, you label us greedy for calling “bullshit” to your incompetence. Well, Captain Bullshit, I have a few questions for YOU:

1. How much money have you earned from the American taxpayers during your pathetic 50-year political career?

2. At what age did you retire from your pathetic political career, and how much are you receiving in annual retirement benefits from the American taxpayers?

3. How much do you pay for YOUR government provided health insurance?

4. What cuts in YOUR retirement and healthcare benefits are you proposing in your disgusting deficit reduction proposal, or as usual, have you exempted yourself and your political cronies?
It is you, Captain Bullshit, and your political co-conspirators called Congress who are the “greedy” ones. It is you and your fellow nutcase thieves who have bankrupted America and stolen the American dream from millions of loyal, patriotic taxpayers.
And for what? Votes and your job and retirement security at our expense, you lunk-headed, leech.

That’s right, sir. You and yours have bankrupted America for the sole purpose of advancing your pathetic, political careers. You know it, we know it, and you know that we know it.

And you can take that to the bank, you miserable son of a bitch. NO, I did not stutter.

Cream Of Broccoli “Bella”

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” Cream of broccoli and potato, with parmesan and fontina ”

Soup can be so many things.
– Boring. Unimportant. Uninspired 😦
– Good. Great. Warming. Satisfying. Amazing. Unforgettable. Pretty. Flavorful. Addictive. A Treat. Not to be missed 🙂
“Bella” means beautiful in Italian, therefore: Bella the soup. Bella the dog 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Cream of Broccoli and Potato, with Parmesan and Fontina “

: Bella

Ingredient’s :

Broccoli, cut into small florettes, blanched
Broccoli stock, reserved from blanching the broccoli
Potato,   small chopped
Onion,   julienned
Garlic,   paste
Heavy cream,
Parmesan,   finely grated
Fontina,   coarsly grated
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,
Chili flakes,
Butter,   to saute

Method :

Saute onion and garlic in butter until fragrant. Add potatoes, stock and seasoning. Simmer until potatoes are soft. Add broccoli, reserve some for garnish. Bring back to simmer. Remove from heat, add cream and parmesan. With a stick blender, blend until smooth. Adjust seasoning if neccessary. To serve, add a few broccoli florettes, sprinkle with fontina and chili flakes. Share with a loved one. (Bella adores this soup, I guess because of the cheese) 🙂
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Pasta. Basta !

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Pasta !
Sometimes, in our quest to create ever more complicated, fancy, elaborate, inventive, trendsetting dishes, we tend to forget why we fell in love with a food item in the first place. In most cases because in it’s true form and simplicity, it is perfect and can’t be much improved. It can be altered, changed, made more fancy, more colorful, spicier, fattier, more unrecognizable, deconstructed, more expensive (yep) or whatever, but in its original form, texture, and flavor it will alway’s be the star it has originally been. Without a doubt pasta is one of these food items. If properly prepared, it needs little or no embellishment to satisfy most senses. “Pasta Aglio E Olio” or, my personal favorite, Pasta Aglio E Burro” are the most basic dishes which, when prepared with love and knowledge, will produce the most satisfying meal or separate course in a meal. Here we have another basic, “Bucatini Pomodoro”

Cook pasta about 3/4 to doneness, drain, reserve some of the cooking water. Saute roasted garlic paste in butter or olive oil, add chopped peeled tomatoes, add a few sprigs of basil, simmer until tomatoes break down. Remove basil sprigs, blend tomatoes with a stick blender. Season with kosher salt and cayenne pepper. Add pasta, some of the cooking water, butter and finely grated pecorino and simmer until pasta is al dente. Add more water during the simmering if needed. To serve, sprinkle with more cheese.

Buon Appetito ! Life is Good !
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Pasta Pommodoro

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Pollo Al Mojo & Moros Y Cristianos

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” Cuban Style Mojo Chicken with rice and beans and lettuce /avocado salad in honey & lime vinaigrette ”
Here is a dish which is very popular in Cuba and because of that, it is popular here in Miami as well 🙂
It is prepared in many different variations, since each region, family and restaurant have their very own special recipe for “Mojo”

Pollo Al Mojo & Moros Y Cristianos

: Pollo Al Mojo & Moros Y Cristianos

Ingredient’s :

2 teaspoons cumin seed
6 large garlic cloves, minced
1 large serrano chili, stemmed, minced
3/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons sour orange juice
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
6 chicken legs
kosher salt to taste

Method :

Stir cumin seeds in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat until seeds are fragrant and slightly darker in color, about 2 minutes. Transfer seeds to medium bowl. Add minced garlic, minced chili and salt to seeds; mash mixture with back of fork to form coarse paste. Heat olive oil in same skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, about 2 minutes. Pour hot olive oil over garlic mixture; stir to blend. Let stand 15 minutes. Whisk in orange juice and lime juice. Add chicken to marinade; turn to coat. Cover chicken and refrigerate over night.
Put chicken on a baking rack an roast until internal temperature has reached 160 F, all the while basting with the marinade. When done, remove from oven, let rest for 15 minutes. Carry-over heat will take the temperature to a safe 165 F, while leaving the chicken very moist and tender. Serve with avocado and lettuce salad and “Moros & Cristianos“.
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Bon Provecho ! Life is Good !
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” Schweine Sülze “

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” Pork in Aspic “
While most folks have heard of head cheese ( Schweinskopf Sulze ), many are put off by the thought of eating pig’s head, although it contains without doubt the best parts of the pig, such as the snout, ears, tongue and, best of all, the cheeks. So here is the “tamer” version , “Schweine Sulze “, made entirely from the shoulder of the pig with no head or feet in sight. However, while the taste is the same, it lack’s some of the wonderful texture you get by using the head and / or feet. I did not omit the head because I don’t like it, but rather because for some strange reason I was not able to find a pig’s head in any shop around here for nearly six weeks. Not even pig’s feet, which make a great substitute for the head. Now they are available again in the neighborhood. Go figure.
Thank you Lord ! (And You, dear pigs 🙂
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Ingredient’s :

Pork shoulder, excess fat removed, diced
Chicken stock,
Carrots, finely sliced
Banana peppers, pickled, sliced
Eggs, hard boiled, sliced
Scallions, sliced
Radishes, finely sliced
Dill pickles, cubed
Onion, sliced
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,
White wine vinegar,
Garlic paste,
Gelatine, powdered

Method :

Simmer diced pork and carrots in seasoned chicken stock. Simmer until very tender, but not falling apart. Add vegetables, bring to a simmer and remove from heat at once. Take a bit of the hot stock to dissolve the gelatin. Return to the stock, add vinegar and adjust seasoning. Keep in mind that once the aspic has cooled and solidified, the seasoning will have nearly disappeared. So make sure that you “over season “a bit , especially with the vinegar, to compensate for this effect. Place meat into serving dish or mold, top with sliced eggs and ladle stock and vegetables to cover. Place into refrigerator and let set. When the top has solidified, add some more stock to completely cover the meat, eggs and vegetables. Let set overnight. Serve with sauce gribiche or a vinaigrette with lots of onions and sautéed potatoes or a rustic bread. Cold milk will not do as accompaniment to this beauty, I recommend a good beer (or two 🙂

Bon Appetit ! Prost !
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Killer LO

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( Killer left overs 🙂
Yesterdays leftover potatoes from the Spatchcocked Chicken “Nilda’s Way” made for a terrific breakfast this morning. The potatoes were super flavorful from all the chicken fat / juices and the liver gave it some extra debt. All in all a dish wich is great without the special potatoes, but outstanding if you have special ones on hand as I did from yesterday’s leftovers 🙂

Saute your leftover potatoes and thinly sliced Argentinian Sopresata until sausage start’s to lightly brown at the edges, add whisked eggs, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and cook until eggs are set to your liking. To serve, sprinkle with cilantro and finely grated parmigiano reggiano.

Bon Appetit ! Have a great Day !
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