Olive oil

” Rotelli, Cepes, Peppers & Chorizo “

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Tonights quick and tasty dinner :
Rotelli, cepes, peppers and chorizo, giving non- offal lovers a break today .

( Offal will be back tomorrow, three dishes to go 🙂
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Ingredient’s

Rotelli, cooked al dente, strained, reserve some cooking water
Chorizo, sliced
Cepe mushroom, re-hydrated
Onions, julienned
Chili peppers, julienned
Garlic paste, to taste
Kosher salt, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste
Olive oil, to saute
Cilantro, coarsley chopped
Manchego, finely grated
Butter, whole, not melted
Olive oil, to saute

Method :

Saute onions, garlic and cepes in olive oil, until fragrant,
add chilies, pasta and seasoning, toss well. remove from heat.
Add manchego cheese, butter and a bit of the cooking water from the pasta.
Toss again until the pasta is covered with a thin film of cheese sauce.
(Starch from the pasta, the butter, water and cheese will combine into
this delicious sauce). To serve, sprinkle with cilantro and more manchego cheese.

Bon Provecho ! Life is Good !
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” Asiago Crusted Pork Chop & Brussel Sprouts “

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Here I am tonight, thinking ” what can I do with those lovely brussel sprouts ? ”
Lovely brussel sprouts ??? !
I used to hate them with a passion, but boy oh boy, has that changed.
Now they are one of my favorite vegetables and I am glad I got some in the fridge
today, because they pair so nicely with my breaded pork chop.
Usually I saute my sprouts with bacon, but I felt I had enough pork on my plate today.
Great, tasty dish and the bone made bella happy 🙂
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Ingredient’s :

Pork chop,
Asiago cheese, finely grated
Panko bread crumbs,
AP flour,
Egg, whisked
Cayenne , to taste
Salt,   to taste
Olive oil, for sauteing

Brussel Sprout‘s blanched, halved
Roasted garlic, paste
Salt,   to taste
Cayenne, to taste
Nutmeg, to taste
Butter,   for sauteing

Method :

Season pork chop with salt and cayenne.
Blend panko and flour 50% each.
Bread Chop by dusting in flour, then coating with egg
and finally with the panko / flour mix.
Sautee until center reaches 158 degrees, rest on absorbent paper.

Saute garlic in butter until fragrant, add brussel sprout’s and seasoning
and saute until heated through. To serve, top pork chop with fried parsley.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Spaghetti Aglio e Olio “

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Tonight,
a simple, great, straightforward pasta dish is all I need.
I give you : Spaghetti aglio e olio 🙂
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Ingredients :

1 pound dried Spaghetti
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons roasted garlic
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
Salt, to taste

Method :

Cook pasta in boiling, salted water until al dente.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.
Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until garlic is fragrant.
Drain pasta, reserving some of the cooking liquid. Add to pan.
Season with salt.Mix well, adding some of the cooking liquid
if the pasta seems too dry.
To serve, sprinkle with chopped italian parsley.

Please note :
I have changed the basic, very traditional recipe by replacing
slivered garlic with roasted garlic and adding scallions
(for crunch) and Parmigiano Reggiano (for taste).

Buon Appetito ! Life is Good !
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” Roasted Garlic – The Top Of The Food Pyramide ? “

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By now you have probably realized that I add garlic to just about
everything, maybe with the exception of vanilla pudding and fruit salad 🙂
Here a quick instruction how to quickly and easily do this
wonderful concoction which will enhance so many dishes.
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Cut the top of a heads of garlic, drizzle with duck fat or olive oil,
sprinkle with kosher salt and wrap airtight in alu foil.
Roast in a 400 degree oven for one and a half hours. Let garlic cool in foil.
When cool, unwrap and squeeze garlic into bowl.
If you made a large amount to be frozen, mix with some oil so that it does not
freeze rock solid and you are able to remove small amounts at a time.
Pack into sealable bag and freeze.
This can be used in any dish which calls for garlic, but it is also great to just spread on
a grilled bread of any kind and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper🙂

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” About My Recipes “

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Dear Friend‘s,

Here is my answer to a question some of my new readers have once in a while :

I love the dish! But where is the recipe ?

To answer those questions :
The ingredient’s (except most standard seasonings) are usually pictured in the first (the Prep) picture..
The idea is to have you add as much / little of one ingredient as you like :
Don’t like much garlic? Add less! Love garlic? Add more.
In savory cooking, recipes are usually just guidelines, which you should interprete
according to your taste , preferences and availability. (Don’t like butter? Use olive oil !
Don’t like butter nor olive oil? Use Canola oil or peanut oil or whatever fat you like !
Prefer your soup / sauce thicker or thinner ? Add more or less thickener !
Don’t want fat in your food? Leave it out!
Most reader like this format, especially the once who have fallen on their butt
by following “EXACT” recipes to the dot, just to find out they don’t give you the pictured result : -(

And yes, many of my recipes have the approximate amounts printed 🙂

So please remember :
To truly learn a dish, one must understand what the temperature, moisture and time does to the ingredients. (Amongst many other things).

To quote Alton Brown:
“A home cook who relies too much on a recipe is sort of like a pilot who reads the plane’s instruction manual while flying.”
– Alton Brown

Cooking is a labor of love.
Do what makes you happy, as long as you understand the guidelines. :-)

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Breakfast Of Champions ” # 8 Tomato Flatbread & Chorizo

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Unfortunately, Bella does not understand the concept of sleeping in on a holiday.
So, even though I took her on our last walk at around 2.30am this morning, she had the urge
to wake me up at 5.30am again, indicating she had urgent business to take care of.
Turns out that business was chasing cat’s, nothing else, not even the smallest of “business”.
Well, sometimes love makes us suffer a bit and I figure in Bellas case it is an easy
trade off, all the love she gives me in return for getting up a bit early 🙂
Anyway, after the walk I felt it was time for a REAL breakfast.
So here it is, 6.30am, my “breakfast of champions” :
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Obviously this dish need’s no recipe. All of the items in the picture of the prep can be substituted and added upon, such as adding different cheeses, different sausages, flatbreads, veggies, change the spread from mustard to greek yoghurt, guacamole or salsa, etc, etc. The possibilities are endless, your imagination will be highly rewarded.

Bon Appetit ! Have A Great Day !
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” Penne Rigate alla Contadino ”

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Last nights dinner, rigate alla contadino,
a rich concoction you might find at a poor farmers table.
Even at a simple farmers dinner table you can find pasta,
sausage, cheese, cream and vegetables.
With a little imagination and love for food, you can turn these
simple ingredients into a dish fit for a king 🙂
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Ingredients :

Penne Rigate, cooked al dente, strained, reserve some of the cooking liquid
Morcilla, thinly sliced
Chorizo, thinly sliced
Peppers, julienned
Onion, julienned
Garlic, paste
Tomato, wedges
Scallions, sliced
Parmesan, grated
Hot sauce, to taste
Salt, to taste
Cream,
Olive oil,

Method :

Saute onions and garlic until translucent, add chorizo and peppers and saute one more minute.
Add pasta,cream, cheese, morcilla and seasoning, simmer and mix well for another minute.
If texture becomes too thick, add some cooking liquid until you have the desired texture.
To serve, sprinkle with scallions and more parmesan.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Mock Pappardelle, Chorizo, Asparagus, Carrots & Gorgonzola “

My dilemma is:
I love pappardelle, but I seldom make fresh pasta
at home and I have never seen pappardelle on a store shelf,
at least not here in South Florida. The solution?
Use lasagna sheets. Break them into irregular shapes before
you cook them. The result was very satisfying for me and I will
resort to this many times to come, if, for whatever reason, fresh
pappardelle are not available or impractical to make from scratch
at the time. ( For whatever reason ) .
Don’t knock it before you try it ! 🙂
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Ingredients :

Pappardelle, cooked al dente, strained (or substitute pasta)
Chorizo, thinly sliced
Asparagus, blanched
Carrots, blanched
Gorgonzola, coarsely crumbled
Garlic, paste
Black Pepper freshly ground, to taste
Salt, to taste
Olive oil

Method :

Saute garlic and chorizo in olive oil until garlic becomes translucent,
Add all other ingredients except gorgonzola, saute until all ingredient’s
are well combined. To serve, top with crumbled gorgonzola.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Breakfast Of Champions # 6 ” Farmers Omelette

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Today I finally found time again to do a proper breakfast,
after a week of peppermint tea and bananas.
During the week I get up at 3.30am and after a usual sleep time
of 3 to 4 hours, my desire to cook a full meal is usually subdued a bit 😦
Not today ! So here we go:
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” Farmers Omelette ”
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Ingredients:

Eggs, whole, whisked, seasoned with salt and cayenne
Grape tomatoes, whole
Asparagus, blanched
Carrots, blanched
Onion, julienned
Garlic, paste
Potatoes, blanched
Chorizo, thinly sliced
Chives, sliced (fresh or freeze dried)
Butter (substitute olive oil if desired)
Parmesan, grated
Salt, to taste
Cayenne Pepper , to taste

Method :

Sautee potatoes in butter (oil) until starting to change color,
add onion and saute until starting to brown.
Add garlic, saute until translucent, add all other vegetables
and seasoning and saute until heated through.
add eggs, cover tightly, lower heat and cook slowly until eggs are set.
to plate, invert onto serving dish, sprinkle generously with chives.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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” Whole Sauteed Fish & Guacamole “

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Last nights great dinner :

Whole sauteed fish & guacamole

Freshly caught fish, seasoned with salt, pepper and lime juice,
lightly dusted with a mix of AP flour and corn starch,
slowly sauteed in olive oil, some onions and garlic added towards the end.
I had some grape tomatoes laying around, so in the guacamole they went.
Three medium sized fish were just the right portion for Bella and I 🙂

Life is Good !
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