scallion

Easy does it # 31 – Mushroom & Gorgonzola Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes

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And the award for best twice-baked potatoes goes to…………
No need to explain the virtues of this dish, just look at it and imagine
it would be in front of you right now
(anyone for a steaming, hot beauty ?)……….. 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Mushroom & Gorgonzola Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes

potato, mushrooms, onion, garlic, gorgonzola, asiago

bake potatoes until soft in center, cut in half, remove flesh, lightly mash with grated asiago and diced gorgonzola

saute mushrooms in a sinful amount of butter, add to the potatoes, season with cayenne pepper and kosher salt, fill into potato shells

saute mushrooms and diced onions in a sinful amount of butter, add to the potatoes, season with cayenne pepper and kosher salt, fill into potato shells

sprinkle with grated asiago, bake until golden, sprinkle with sliced scallion and chili flakes

Mushroom & Gorgonzola Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes

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Romaine, Octopus And Bean Salad

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Trying to end 2015 on a healthy note :-).
Well, BS, I just don’t feel like cooking today 😦
Anyway, I could eat this salad for no reason any day, anytime, anywhere…….
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Bon Appetit ! Happy 2016 !
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Romaine, Octopus And Bean Salad

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: grape tomatoes, scallions, julienned peppers, julienned red onions, cooked beans

: saute garlic paste in olive oil until fragrant

: add cooked diced octopus

: add vegetables, saute 2 minutes, season with salt, fresh oregano and freshly ground black pepper

: remove to bowl, add lemon juice, check/adjust seasoning, let cool to room-temperature

: just a picture of a pretty salad bowl 🙂

: cover serving dish with romaine

: add octopus salad, drizzle dressing from octopus salad all over romaine leaves, sprinkle with honey roasted corn kernels for crunch and additional flavor

: Romaine, Octopus And Bean Salad

: Romaine, Octopus And Bean Salad

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Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

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(Beef Tenderloin, Three Cheeses And Whole Grain Pasta Casserole With Pesto)
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When you want something a bit more exciting than this :

OK, but………..

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Adding a few more ingredients and a lot more love will give you a much more satisfying culinary experience 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for Pesto Recipe
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Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
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: swiss and pepper jack (plus parmesan – not in the pic)

: diced beef tenderloin – head and tips

: season with kosher salt, granulated garlic and cayenne pepper, sear in VERY hot pan until outside is browned but meat still rare

: mix whole-grain penne, beef, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, carrot julienne, sliced scallions, ketchup, sliced chilies, GARLIC PASTE, heavy cream, shredded pepper jack, grated parmesan and diced swiss

: place into an ovenproof dish (cast iron pan works fine for me)

: sprinkle generously with grated parmesan, top with butterflakes, bake until top is golden and crisp, serve with pesto

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

: Mac & Cheese – Boss Level

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Breakfast Of Champions # 50 – Salmon Rillette And Fried Eggs

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This morning I finished-off the last of the salmon rillette I prepared last week. (The next rillette will be pork, can’t wait for it to munch on) 🙂
This dish is VERY rich, so you might want to restrict yourself to enjoying it about once a month, otherwise you might soon need to buy bigger clothes and increase the frequency of your cardiologist visits 😦
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for Salmon Rillette
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Click here for more Breakfast of Champions
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Breakfast Of Champions # 50 - Salmon Rilette And Fried Eggs

Breakfast Of Champions # 50 – Salmon Rillette And Fried Eggs

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: grill sourdough bread on both sides

: plate the bread

: top bread with salmon rillette

: fry eggs in clarified butter , season with kosher salt and chili flakes

: top rillette with fried eggs, add a small salad

: Breakfast Of Champions # 50 – Salmon Rillette And Fried Eggs

: Breakfast Of Champions # 50 – Salmon Rillette And Fried Eggs

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Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber-Potato Salad

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While I am a great fan of traditional breaded fish fillets, this version, without the egg as part of the breading, is more suitable for a thin and delicate fish fillet such as flounder. Adding the finely diced peppers and sliced scallions to the panko-crumbs give the fish added flavor, while adding rice flour to the mix will help the coating to stick to the fish, as well as ensure a crisp crust. As for the potato salad, just add sliced, salted cucumbers to regular swabian potato salad.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for Swabian Potato Salad (Schwäbischer Kartoffel Salat)
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Click here for MORE Swabian Potato Salad (Schwäbischer Kartoffel Salat)
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Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber/Potato Salad

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures

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: Season fish and shrimp with lemon juice, cayenne pepper, granulated garlic and kosher salt

: mix panko bread crums, finely diced peppers, sliced scallions and rice flour ((substitute with corn starch if rice flour is not available)

: dredge fish and shrimp in the panko mix, saute in olive oil on both sides until almost done, then add shrimp and cook both until cooked through but still juicy, remove to absorbent paper

: serve with swabian potato-cucumber salad and lemon wedges

: Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber/Potato Salad

: Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber/Potato Salad

: Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber/Potato Salad

: Panko Coated Flounder Fillet With Shrimp And Cucumber/Potato Salad

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Salad Of Mussels, Octopus, Sardines, Artichokes, Potatoes, Eggs & Greens

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Today was “Fix and clean the computer day” at my house (re-installing all programs, etc), therefore there was no time for elaborate cooking (or anything else, for that matter).
So what better way to not cook but still eat a great meal than a large salad with veggies and canned seafood.
As I mentioned before, canned seafood can be great if you know what you are buying and forgo the cheaper, inferior brands.
Just experiment with different brands until you find the one that will ring your bells 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Link to Cuban Crackers
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Link to Escabeche
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Salad Of Mussels, Octopus, Sardines, Artichokes, Potatoes, Eggs & Greens Salad

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: romaine lettuce and fresh spinach

: add sliced peppers, shredded carrots and small potato wedges

: add marinated artichoke hearts and boiled eggs

: add octopus en escabeche, mussels en escabeche, olive oil, cider vinegar, garlic paste, kosher salt and cayenne pepper

: plate salad with Cuban crackers

: garnish with tomatoes, sardines en escabeche, eggs and sliced scallions

: Salad Of Mussels, Octopus, Sardines, Artichokes, Potatoes, Eggs & Greens Salad

: Salad Of Mussels, Octopus, Sardines, Artichokes, Potatoes, Eggs & Greens Salad

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Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans (Teriyaki Feast)

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While the ingredients for this dish (and the cooking methods) are not exactly a traditional combination, for my personal palette they compliment each other perfectly. They are typical for the dishes I prepare for myself at home. On the other hand, would I still cater to guests at a restaurant or at home, I would not hesitate to serve this kind of food as a course in a multi-course menu. (As I have done many times).
Having been trained in and practiced for most of my career classic French cuisine, as well as garnering experience in local cuisines around the globe, this type of “fusion cuisine” has become my personal cooking style. Nowadays, cooking mostly for myself, a few close friends and the occasional high-end private gig, I don’t have to confirm to traditional cuisines anymore; – my food has become truly a fusion of dishes, methods and ingredients from around the world. Mind you, I don’t try to make my food appear haphazardly strange or exotic on purpose, but sometimes that’s the result when mixing without restraint 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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P.S.
“Teriyaki” in this dish refers to the teriyaki sauce as part of the dish, not the traditional cooking method. Click for Teriyaki
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Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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Standard cup board items in my kitchen:
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: Ginger Paste

: Garlic Confit Paste

: Chile Oil

: Soy Sauce

: Teriyaki Sauce

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: mix soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, ginger paste, garlic paste, and chile oil into sweet and spicy marinade, about 1 cup

: marinade pork butt in the marinade for two days, turning often

: to a non-stick pan, add the 1 cup marinade, 6 cups of water and the pork but

: cover the pan, bring to a boil, turn heat to very low, simmer until pork is very tender, about 2 hours, depending on the size of the butt

: remove pork but, set aside, keep warm

: remove 1/3 of the stock, reduce until thickened, put the pork on a baking rack, brush with the thickened glaze, bake for twenty minutes at 375F, brush with glaze every 5 minutes

: meanwhile, rinse rice cakes for 5 minutes

: cook rice cakes in lightly salted water for 2 to 3 minutes, drain, rinse

: add rice cakes and blanched beans to the remaining teriyaki stock, simmer for 2 minutes, check / adjust seasoning

: plate the rice cakes and beans

: top with sliced pork and pork skin

: nape generously with the teriyaki stock, sprinkle with scallions

: Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans

: Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans

: Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans

: Japanese Pork, Korean Rice Cakes And French Beans

: First Bite 🙂

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Red Lentil Soup With Smoked Turkey Leg

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It’s getting cooler at night lately, so hot soup is again welcome, especially when eaten al fresco. This soup took about two and a half hours to cook from beginning to end, but the actual prep-time was only a few minutes, which makes it a perfect dish when you don’t feel like getting too involved with heavy prep-work, but still want to have a satisfying meal 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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P.S.
If you want your lentils with more texture, cook the turkey leg first in lightly salted water, then cook the lentils with the resulting stock until just done.
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Red Lentil Soup With Smoked Turkey Leg

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: saute garlic paste in butter until fragrant

: add julienned onions, saute until lightly caramelized

: add red lentils, maggi seasoning, bay leave, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, ground cumin and dried oregano

: add chicken or vegetable stock

: add the smoked turkey leg

: simmer until turkey leg is tender, about two hours

: almost……

: remove turkey, dice, check / adjust seasoning of lentils

: Red Lentil Soup With Smoked Turkey Leg

: Red Lentil Soup With Smoked Turkey Leg

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Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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My original intention for breakfast this morning was to just pile some smoked salmon on a slice of bread and wait for lunchtime to come around for a more substantial meal. But then I saw the pomegranate and bean sprouts in the fridge, as well as an open container with Greek yogurt. Needless to say, I couldn’t stop there and all of a sudden, breakfast started to morph into what became this great brunch.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
To enlarge pictures and read instructions, click on pictures
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: bake potatoes at 375F until done, let cool slightly

: season sliced radishes with kosher salt, let stand for 15 minutes

: cut top off of the potatoes

: remove “flesh” from “skin”

: coarsely chop smoked salmon

: mix the potatoes, salmon, greek yogurt, scallion, garlic paste, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, fill back into potato skins

: dress romaine lettuce, fresh spinach, sliced salted radishes, bean sprouts and tomatoes with honey/mustard dressing and fresh ground black pepper

: select a pretty serving platter 🙂

: arrange salad, dragon fruit slices and baked potatoes nicely on platter, sprinkle with pomegranate-seeds

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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Fiery Midnight Snack – Chilli-Noodles With Seafood And Egg

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Here is the thing – if yo are able to use anything fresh in preparing food – not frozen, not canned, not otherwise preserved – that’s usually the best way to go (although not always).
But, as I have mentioned before, we are not always so lucky as to have access to fresh, unprocessed food. Then, it is my honest opinion that as long as you use good quality preserved food, you will be able to prepare great dishes – just don’t skimp on the quality of the ingredients.
Having said that, if you have a well stocked larder and freezer, you are ready to prepare a wide variety of wonderful dishes without being a slave to store opening hours and store offerings.
Last night for dinner I shared a prosciutto sandwich with Bella at around 9.00 pm. Usually I can withstand any temptation of more food after that time of day, but while setting up to watch a great movie (A simple Plan) , hunger struck me with all its nasty temptations, (Bella of course is always in that state) :-), so I decided to whip up something fierce and satisfying for the both of us.
My larder revealed (among a lot of other goodies) rice noodles (Bánh phở), canned octopus, canned anchovies and canned mussels. In the freezer I had some leftover homemade lobster balls and a bag of titi shrimp. Together with fresh chilies, scallion and onions as well as garlic paste, grated ginger, chili paste, chili oil and sesame oil, this made for a very fiery, very satisfying midnight snack which, after the end of the movie, motivated Bella and I to go on a 1,5 hour early morning walk from 2.30 am to 4,00 am. Life is good !
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Bon Appetit ! Spice-up your Life !
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Chili-Noodles With Seafood And Egg

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Preparation :
To read instructions, hover over pictures
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How to cook rice noodles:
Place rice noodles in a deep bowl. Bring a good amount of water to boil. Pour the boiling water over the rice noodles until they are completely submerged. Stir the noodles to prevent from sticking. Check often to see if they’re cooked through. This will take 1 – 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the noodles. Once the noodles are tender, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Toss them with a bit of sesame oil to keep the noodles from sticking to each other if you’re not going to use them right away. If you use the noodles in a stir-fry, under-cook them or they will become mushy. If used for soup, you can cook the noodles straight in the soup.

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