easy recipes

“Escargot Bourguignon” (Snails in Garlic–Herb Butter)

.
>

I cannot recall when I have last seen this classic dish on a restaurant menu. What a shame, since this is such a delightful, easy to prepare dish. As for my dinner today, I do have the shells, forks and escargot tongs at home, but since this is just for myself and not a dinner party, I prefer to serve them as I’ve done here, in a ovenproof dish, accompanied by simple bread to soak up ALL the garlic butter.
Here are my two pet peeves about this dish when I eat it in a restaurant :

1) If the snails are too large !
2) If the butter is not seasoned properly nor has enough parsley !

1) At home, I cut the very large snails in half. Much more pleasant to eat.
Voilà ! Problem solved 🙂
2) I make sure I add plenty of garlic, freshly ground black pepper and lot’s of chopped parsley.
Voilà ! No problem to start with 🙂

Escargot Bourguignon

: Escargot Bourguignon

: The Beast Devours Escargot

Ingredient’s :

Snails, canned, rinsed
Butter, unsalted
Red wine, (I prefer merlot)
Shallots, finely diced (I used onion)
Garlic, paste
Flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
Black pepper, freshly ground
Sea salt,

Method :

Saute onions and garlic until fragrant. Add red wine, simmer until almost evaporated. Add butter, season with salt and pepper. Heat butter until starting to brown in small spots. Add escargots, simmer until all liquid has evaporated again. Remove from heat, stir in most of the parsley. To serve, sprinkle with more parsley.

>
,

Asparagus & Brie Pizza

.
.
Pizza, beer and good company.
Great evening with friends, good music and (mostly) intelligent conversation 🙂
Life is Good !
.

Asparagus & Brie Pizza

: Pizza

Ingredient’s :

Dough:

A/P flour, 2 cups (plus more for kneading)
Water, 3/4 cup, warm
Active dry yeast, 1 envelope
Sugar, 1 teaspoon
Olive oil, 3 table spoon
Kosher salt,

Pizza:

Italian sausage, spicy, sauteed
Asparagus, green, blanched
Grape tomatoes, whole
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Tomato puree, fresh
Roasted garlic puree,
Brie cheese, diced
Asiago cheese, finely grated
Oregano, fresh, chopped
Corn meal,

Method :

1.
Pour water into small bowl, mix in yeast. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 5 minutes. Brush large bowl lightly with olive oil. Mix 2 cups flour, sugar, and salt. Add yeast mixture and 3 tablespoons oil, knead until dough forms a sticky ball. Transfer to lightly floured surface. Knead dough until smooth. Dust with flour as you work the dough. Transfer to prepared bowl; turn dough in bowl to coat with oil. Cover bowl with moist towel. Let dough rise until doubled in volume.Punch down dough. Pull dough until desired thickness and shape is achieved. If this is too difficult, roll the dough with a rolling pin. However, in my opinion, the pizza will turn out superior if the dough is pulled.
If you like your dough very thin and crispy, proceed with step 2.
If you like your crust a bit more thick and chewy, you might want to pre-bake your pizza dough for a few minutes.

2.
Sprinkle pizza pan or baking sheet with cornmeal, place pizza on it. Brush pizza with olive oil, sprinkle lightly with corn meal. Add tomato puree and roasted garlic puree, sprinkle with mozzarella and oregano. Add all other ingredient’s according to picture. Sprinkle with asiago and freshly ground black pepper. Bake at 500 F until dough is done and edge of pizza is crispy and golden.

Note : This recipe is works well in a home oven without a pizza stone.
,
,
,

Hans’ Easy Amaretto & Chocolate Chip Cake

Amaretto & Chocolate Chip Sponge Cake

.
.
Today when I came home from work was one of the rare occasions when the cake bug bit me, so I prepared this very simple beauty, which is not only easy to prepare, but also, in my humble opinion, one of the most beautiful, great tasting, easy to prepare cakes of all times, especially if you buy or pre-prep the sponge cake in advance.
Here I have used a comercial cake mix for the sponge cake. I usually make my own, but for me that was a bit too time consuming this evening, so I took this short cut 😦
I also baked two sponges because I like to do four layers for a more stunning presentation. This cake freezes very well, so after you take some of it to your friends next door, just freeze the rest in an airtight box until your sweet tooth comes calling again 🙂
Cut of the top and bottom of two sponge cake’s to make even surfaces. Cut each cake into two disc’s. Mix ricotta cheese with sugar, amaretto, a small amount of chocolate powder and mini chocolate chips. Soak all layers of the sponge cake liberally with amaretto. Spread some of the cheese and chocolate chip mixture evenly on all sponge cake layers, reserving some for the sides of the cake. Put all disc’s on top of each other. Spread the remaining cheese mixture on top and side of cake. Decorate with more chocolate chips. Chill for a few hours to set.
To serve, cut into big slices, over-eat 🙂

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
.
.,
.

Spaghetti “Graubündner Style”

.
.
Yesterday my friend George arrived from switzerland and as usual he brought a bunch of gift’s. One of them is my favorite cold cut in the world, “Bündner Fleisch” ( Bindenfleisch, or “Viande des Grisons” or “Air Dried Beef” ) The traditional way of eating bündner fleisch is to serve it very thinly sliced, cold, with fresh horseradish and rustic bread. However, George asked me to make something out of the ordinary with the bündner fleisch, so I came up with the following concoction which was a delightful and very unusual way of using this traditional ingredient. The extraordinary flavor of the bündner fleisch and the sharpness of the “Appenzeller Käse” (appenzeller cheese), another one of his gift’s, made this a truly special and delightful dish 🙂

Spaghetti “Graubündner Style”

: Spaghetti “Graubündner Style”

.
Ingredient’s :

Spaghetti, cooked al dente
Broccoli florets, blanched
Appenzeller cheese, finely grated
Grape tomatoes, whole
Onions, sliced
Garlic, paste
Milk, whole
Eggs, whole
Italian parsley, chopped
Kosher salt,
Black pepper, freshly ground
Butter, to saute

Method :

Mix eggs, milk and cheese, add salt and pepper, whisk. Saute onions and garlic in butter, add bündner fleisch, spaghetti, broccoli and egg mixture. Cook until eggs have set to your preference ( I like mine well done).
To serve, sprinkle with more grated cheese and chopped parsley.
>
Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

.
.
.

Guajillo Chile & Rum Spiced Pork Ribs

.
.
Pork rib craving – gotto give in to it 🙂
However, you’ve got to plan this well, because when the craving start’s, it will take another 9 hours of slow cooking time before you can eat your rib’s.
And so it goes:
Make a paste of “Brugal” rum, kosher salt, guajillo chile, granulated garlic and freshly ground black pepper. Cover both sides of the ribs with a thick cover of the paste. Place rib’s on a rack which sit’s over a pan of water. Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake at 180 F for 8 hours. (Replenish water if necessary). Remove foil and bake another hour until ribs are nicely colored.
The Verdict : Very tasty, very juicy, very tender, very easy to prepare. Rib’s rule !
.
Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
.

Guajillo Chile & Rum Spiced Pork Ribs

.
.
.
.

Mafaldine, Striploin, Mushrooms & Chilis

.
.
Dinner for two :
Sauteed strip loin, mafaldine, mushrooms, chilis and grape tomatoes with garlic and scallions.
Simplicity at it’s best 🙂

Mafaldine, Striploin, Mushrooms & Chilis

: Mafaldine, Striploin, Mushrooms & Chilis

>
Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
>
>
>

Steak Salad With Horseradish Dressing

.
.
Healthy does not have to be boring or tasteless, as this wonderful salad shows:
.
Salad:
Strip steak, arugula, mango, cucumbers, heirloom tomatoes, baby carrots, daikon,
red radish, lemon balm leaves, fresh horseradish.
‘
Dressing:
Horseradish, dijon mustard, lime juice, olive oil, maggi seasoning, sea salt, freshly
grated black pepper.
‘
Mix all ingredients with the dressing. To serve, grate more horseradish over salad.
‘
Bon Appetit ! Stay Healthy ! 🙂
>

Steak Salad

: Steak Salad

>
>
>
>

Arroz Con Pollo

.
.
“Arroz con Pollo“
In my opinion this is one of the most widly and often prepared dishes in the whole world.
“Hans, have you gone nuts?”, you probably think when you read this statement.
But what I am talking about is the actual Concoction, not the dish named “Arroz con Pollo”.
“Arroz con Pollo” simply translates into “Rice with Chicken”. Now, it is my firm believe that anywhere in the world where you have rice, and where you also have chicken, sooner or later folks threw the two, plus another bunch of stuff, together and made it a one dish meal, calling it “Rice and Chicken” or, surprise surprise, “Chicken and Rice”.

I would like to ask my readers to please give us the name of your country’s or region’s dish containing chicken and rice and other stuff 🙂
Also, any other dish containing these ingredients, be it from your own country or region or any other you might be aware of. Descriptions or pictures even more welcome.
I am looking forward to your input in the comment section. Thank’s.
.

Arroz Con Pollo

: Arroz Con Pollo

Ingredient’s :

Chicken, preferably dark meat
Rice, rinsed repeatedly to get rid of all excess starch
Chorizo, sliced
Peppers, diced
Chilis, diced, use your preferred heat level
Onions, diced
Garlic, paste
Saffran, or substitute with turmeric (I used both for a brighter color and taste)
Oregano, freeze dried or fresh
White wine, substitute with beer if preferred
Chicken stock, substitute with vegetable stock if preferred
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,
Olive oil, to saute

Method :

Saute chicken until golden, add onions and chorizo, saute until onions are translucent. Add garlic, peppers and chilis and saute until garlic is fragrant. Remove chicken, set aside. Remove 1/4 of the vegetables to use as brightly colored garnish. Add rice and saute until each corn of rice is covered with olive oil. Add wine (or beer, or both) and stock, season with salt and pepper. Return chicken, bake at 385F in center of oven until moisture has been absorbed by rice and rice is done. Sprinkle with reserved vegetables and chopped cilantro.
My meal yesterday had also a nice glass of chilled chardonnay (same as which went into the dish) and what I call “avocado cream” . (mashed avocado, seasoned with lime juice, cayenne pepper, kosher salt, roasted garlic paste and cilantro). Not quite guacamole, but even less prep and equally good 🙂
>
Note : Some folks like their arroz con pollo very moist, others less so. If you like it more moist, simply add more liquid while cooking until the rice is done, giving you more of the texture of an “Asopao”.
Note : Some folks like their arroz con pollo more “heavy “, some like it more “light and fluffy”. This will depend on the amount of fat used in the dish.
I usually like my arroz con pollo dry but heavy, so I use less liquid and a bit more fat 🙂
>

“Asopao”
Image Source : http://www.cynical-c.com

Buen Provecho ! Life is Good !

Spinach, Potato, Sausage & Cheese Casserole

.
.
This is such a versatile dish. Every ingredient can be replaced with a substitute without losing any of the complexity of texture and taste.

Spinach : Asparagus, cabbage, corn, broccoli, carrots, beets, etc.
Potato : Sweet potato, mashed potato, pasta, rice, etc.
Asiago : Gorgonzola, parmesan, cheddar, brie, pepper jack, stilton, etc.
Sausage : Bacon, chicken, seafood, beef, lamb, game, etc.

Saute onion, garlic and sausage in butter, add spinach, wilt. Add blanched potatoes, cheese, milk, salt and pepper. Bake at 375 F until golden brown, about 45 minutes. Let set for 30 minute before serving.
.

Spinach, Potato, Sausage & Cheese Casserole

: Spinach, Potato, Sausage & Cheese Casserole

.
Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
.
.
.

My Kind Of ” Finger Food “

.
.
Sunday night and monday evening was very cold here in Miami, so cold in fact I actually had to turn on the central heating system in order to be comfortable in the house. So, in order to help with the comforting process, I prepared two dishes which aided greatly in the warming of soul and belly :

Sunday afternoon :
“Smoked pig’s tail’s”
with fresh horse radish and potatoes fried in rendered duck fat “.

Monday afternoon :
“Spinach, Potato, Sausage & Cheese Casserole”
(I’ll post that in the next few day’s).
.

: My kind of ” Finger Food “

.
Simmer the smoked pigs’ tails in salted water with kosher salt, lot’s of garlic and cayenne pepper until very tender but not falling apart. Grate the horseradish very fine and mix with salt and lemon juice. Fry the potatoes in rendered duck fat, starting with cold fat and slowly increasing the temperature to 375 F. The potatoes will be creamy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Add the sliced chilis and onions for the last few seconds of frying. Remove to absorbent paper and sprinkle with sea salt.
Enjoy a great , simple meal; “Finger food” at it’s finest 🙂
..
Bon Appetit ! Keep Warm And Cozy 🙂

.
.