Seeing how Tidbits was such a rousing success with two responses I have decided to continue with Tidbits 2... Here are some additional thoughts since I posted the first time...
Blueberries... Always looking for new ways to use these. Many years ago on a cold wintry snowy night we wound up in the lower lounge area by the fire place of a very nice local restaurant. My usual after dinner drink is a straight up shot of Frangelico. The bartender suggested a little dose of blueberry on top of the frangelico. It was terrific. I have never found a blueberry liqueur so I guess this may have been just a syrup of some kind. For some reason I have never tried this again. Must put this on my To Do list.
Artic Char... This is a new type fish for me. Not bad at all. Right now I keep the prep for this and other fish like salmon very simple... s&p, brush with olive oil and toss in a hot oven for about 20 minutes. I should start to look for more dramatic ways of preparing fish.
Toast... Does anybody just make simple toast anymore or has that just disappeared from the American scene.
Trader Joes once again... Their pie crusts are quite good. I make a very good pie crust but these days I simply use theirs. Very easy to put together a chicken pot pie or almost anything with these. Actually when I make a pie crust I use the same recipe for both a quiche and a pie... for the pie I simply add about a tbl of sugar.
Eggs... Darn it Robin... you stole my thunder on this subject with your sunny side up post. I was going to ask if anybody ever made eggs over easy anymore. After reading the post guess what... I made eggs over easy for the first time in a year or so.
Pizza Time... Someone posted about a pizza they made using Trader Joes pizza crust plus their basic tomato sauce etc. I used their garlic and herb dough and added some sauce, green pepper, onions, mushrooms and cheese... perhaps the best pizza I have made in a long time. Growing up my favorite pizza was a sausage pizza followed by a pepperoni pizza. I have now surrendered to my wife's vegetarian pizza. The crust was crisp but not hard so that you could easily bite into it without breaking a tooth in the process.
Grow Lights... Instead of tossing my herb pots at the end of the year I will bring them inside so I can have fresh herbs year round. Also I am going to plant some lettuce and other items. This will be a great buffer against the grey gloomy cold winter months.
It's Summertime... Here is a quick simple dish for the deck or patio and perhaps good for the waist line also.
Greek Yogurt with a Fig, Date, and Honey Swirl
Note: I just roast the nuts in a 400F oven for six to eight minutes.
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup pine nuts
6 figs, fresh or dried, cut into quarters
6 dates, pitted and chopped
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1 lemon, juiced
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups Greek yogurt
Mint leaves for garnish
Toast the nuts in a saute pan over medium heat until they become fragrant. Put the nuts onto a plate and set aside; when cool enough to handle, chop them roughly.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the figs, dates, honey, water, lemon juice, and cinnamon stick. Cook for about 10 minutes until fruit is soft. Set aside and let it cool slightly; remove the cinnamon stick.
Place the yogurt in a big bowl. Spoon the warm fruit onto the yogurt and gently swirl the fruit through the yogurt. Sprinkle on the nuts and garnish with mint leaves. Serve immediately.
Astronomy... I am looking to buy a telescope. When I was a very young lad I would lay on my back in the grass at night and look up at the Milky Way and see a zillion stars flicking in the night sky. Now days if I spot one star I am lucky. The large airplanes flying overhead give out much more flickering lights. Hey, I like neon flashing lights too. I suppose to make this post legitimate for this board it should have a food related value so I will say that via the telescope I am trying to get a closer look at the moon to see if it really is made of cheese. Wow... a large chunk of real estate out there that is made up of triple brie, aged Gouda and other delicious and exotic cheeses. I have an armful of crackers and bottles of wine... Beam me up Scottie.
Bacon... I seldom have bacon around these days and I am not sure why. Whenever a recipe like milk gravy calls for making a rue using bacon grease I simply substitute some demi glaze. Same effect I guess.
Fourth of July... we have veered away from having traditional fare on all the holidays but this year I had a chili hot dog and my wife had the first in her lifetime hot dog. I latched onto Robin's Smart Dog comment and she had that. She seemed to enjoy the hot dog experience. Here is the nostalgic recipe I use for my chili dog...(I use NH dogs though)
A&W Chili Dogs
1 Sabrett brand 2 ounce beef frankfurter (7½" long)
1 regular hot dog roll
3 Tablespoons A&W Coney Island Sauce (see recipe below)
1 Tablespoon chopped white onion
1/2 Tablespoon Kraft shredded mild cheddar cheese (optional)
A&W Coney Island Chili Dog Sauce
1 pound ground chuck
1 six ounce can Hunts tomato paste
1 Cup water
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 Tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
1 Tablespoon dried, minced onion
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (heaping)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Making the Chili Dog Sauce:
1. In a 2 qt. saucepan, brown the ground chuck, breaking into very small pieces. Salt and pepper lightly while cooking. Do not drain the fat.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Simmer, uncovered, 30-45 minutes until it thickens. Stir occasionally.
3. Allow to cool, cover, and refrigerate until "Dog-Time". You'll be microwaving what you need later.
Cooking your A&W Chili Dog
1. Bring a 2 qt. saucepan of water to a rolling boil.
2. Remove the saucepan from the heat, and add the desired number of frankfurters to the water. Cover and let sit about 10 minutes.
3. After the franks are done, microwave the chili dog sauce until steaming. (Only microwave what you need, save the rest) Then microwave each hot dog roll 10 seconds....just enough to warm.
4. Remove the cooked franks with tongs, and place on the microwaved hot dog roll.
5. Add about 3 Tablespoons of your prepared A&W® chili dog sauce, and the chopped onion. Grated cheddar cheese is optional. ENJOY!
Arugula... I never cared for this plant until this year. Now I am fascinated by it. Just using it for sandwiches right now but I am sure with it's distinct aroma and taste that there are many other uses for it.
Moving On... For the last four years or so I have ordered all my steaks and a lot of hamburgers from Allen Bros off the internet. Seems lately that there is way too much fat in the rib eyes. I need to find another source for awhile. The hamburgers I am sure are a combination of all the steak trimings they have. I think they turn out a little on the tough side. I am going to simply make my own of mostly chuck with a little of something else. Consistency is the better choice I believe. I am impressed with the kolbe beef hamburgers sold by Trader Joes... nice and juicy.
Life... perhaps nature has it all wrong. Perhaps we should come into the world with all the knowledge and development that we now have and then work backward to a baby status.
Fudge... I make this about once a year during the holidays. I only have one recipe and it is... MIMI EISENHOWER'S MILLION DOLLAR FUDGE. Does anybody make fudge these days.
Tomatoes... We planted 7 specific types of tomatoes this year. In one of the flower packets there was a tomato seed which we planted. We don't have a clue as to what kind of tomato it is. All the plants are growing well and we have lots of blooms but only one plant has a tomato about the size of a golf ball right now. Which plant has the tomato you want to know... of course it is the mystery tomato plant.
Another dish for the deck or patio... Zinfandel Poached Peaches with Cardamom Yogurt
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 cups vanilla yogurt, low-fat or no-fat or greek yogurt
8 ripe peaches, peeled
2 lemons, juiced
1 bottle Zinfandel (good quality, but $10 a bottle is fine)
1 cup sugar
Mix the cardamom into the yogurt and refrigerate until you are ready to
serve.
Toss the peaches with the lemon juice so they won't oxidize.
Put the Zinfandel and sugar into a stainless steel pot over medium heat and bring it to a simmer. Add the peaches and simmer for about 15 minutes, covered.
Remove the peaches and reduce the Zinfandel by about half, down to light syrup. Spoon the sauce over the peaches and serve with the yogurt.
Regrets... Back in the days when I didn't mind spending 3 or 4 hours in the kitchen preparing food one of my favorite times was baking bread. A different loaf every couple of days. Now in the continual race to lose weight I have completely abandoned that effort. I miss it a lot. I will now even skip buying bread for sandwiches because of dieting. My supermarket btw makes a very good multi grain bread. Great for sandwiches.
Tim
