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Um…Our Cruise Ship is Leaving

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Shortly after we were married, my wife and I went on a three night cruise with one of her sisters and brother-in-law. This was back in the time when cruise ships had two seating times for dinner and they told you not only what table you sat at but who sat with you. The four of us were sat at a table with a couple on their honeymoon and over the course of the cruise we had quite a few good conversations with them.

One of the stops was Cozumel, Mexico, and after an afternoon of snorkeling in an underwater nature preserve, we all decided to stop in a cantina for a drink. We went out on the patio and found the other couple sitting there. They invited us to join them and we ordered our drinks. This patio was by the main harbor and as our ship was too big to dock, it was anchored out in the bay (we had used smaller boats to get to shore).

As I gazed out on the Gulf of Mexico, I saw something that at first I thought was an illusion. A further look confirmed what I suspected – our ship was no longer anchored but was moving. I told the rest of the table, “Um…Our cruise ship is leaving!” After checking what we thought to be accurate documentation about our return time, we decided to just sit and finish our drinks. Running to the end of the dock would do no good, so we might as well enjoy things.

Luck for us, the ship was just repositioning and we were able to re-board an hour later.

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These cheesy enchiladas were bolstered by the addition or some corn and red beans.

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I started with the base recipe.

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After getting the mix together, I knew it would not feed my family of four without some additions.

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I added some corn and a can of kidney beans to add some greater volume.

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Start with some sauce at the bottom. This turned out to not be enough to ensure the tortillas wouldn’t stick. Next time grease the pan first.

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There was too much to fit in one dish, so I employed a second.

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Out of the oven.

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A gooey, cheesy great tasting dish!

Three cheese enchiladas

Prep Time: 0 hr 0 min | Cook Time: 20 mins | Makes: 1 serving | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

  • 6 ounces shredded Monterey jack cheese
  • 6 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
  • 3 ounces softened cream cheese
  • 1 cup picante sauce
  • 1 diced red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup sliced green onion
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 8 soft flour tortillas
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Chopped tomatoes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine 2/3 rds of jack, cheddar with the cream cheese, 1/4 cup picante, pepper, onion and cumin. Spoon into tortillas, roll and place seam side down in baking dish. Cover with remaining sauce and cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Cover with lettuce, cheese and more picante sauce.

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Uncle Al’s Sausage and Peppers Casserole

2 Comments

What do you think of when I say “sausage and peppers”?

My first thought goes to pasta. I will routinely fry up some Italian sausage pieces with some peppers and onions and then serve it with pasta and a bit of red sauce. Easy to make and yummy indeed.

The next thought is pizza. Sausage, peppers and onions on a slice of za is just perfect.

Lastly my mind goes to a sausage link on a bun with red sauce, and grilled peppers and onions.

It looks like onions are the silent partner to the other two.

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This recipe is a different take on the pair (trio). No red sauce, per se, although there are some tomatoes in it.

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The surprising ingredient here are the green beans. You’d think they don’t belong, but they work.

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To speed the process for a weeknight dinner, have two pans going at once.

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The pan gets overloaded once you add in the beans.

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Ready to bake.

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Out of the oven.

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A great combination and will now appear in my “sausage and peppers” list.

Uncle Al’s Sausage and Peppers Casserole

Prep Time: 30 mins | Cook Time: 46 min | Makes: 8 servings | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 pounds fresh turkey sausage (about 8 links), cut in 1/2
  • 1 medium red onion, quartered and separated
  • 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1- inch-wide strips
  • 1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1-inch-wide strips
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1- inch-wide strips
  • 1 pound green beans, ends trimmed and halved
  • 1 (14-ounce) can no-sugar-added diced tomatoes
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chopped basil leaves, plus some for garnish
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 8 ounces button mushrooms
  • 4 marinated hot cherry peppers, optional
  • Shaved Parmesan, for garnish
  • Equipment: oval gratin dish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 6 minutes. (Don’t fully cook the sausage, as it will be finished in the oven.) Drain the fat from the skillet.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and peppers and cook, stirring, until tender, about 2 minutes. Add in the remaining ingredients except for the mushrooms, cherry peppers, and Parmesan and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 3 minutes.

Combine the sausage, vegetable mixture, mushrooms, and cherry peppers in the gratin dish. Bake uncovered until well browned, about 40 minutes. Serve garnished with basil leaves and Parmesan.

Source:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/george-stella/uncle-als-sausage-and-peppers-casserole-recipe/index.html

Crisp, Tart and Refreshing

3 Comments

I am the only one in my family that likes traditional cole slaw. Because of that, I rarely make it. When, on the rare occasion, we buy a bucket of chicken from KFC we always choose mashed potatoes and gravy (how could you not choose this) and mac and cheese (which the boys like but it is just a too little radioactive orange to look appealing to me). If it is just my wife and I getting chicken, I can get the cole slaw.

This does not stop me from making different kinds of slaw. I make a mean Asian slaw but those flavors don’t work with all main dish items. This recipe is another take that brings the fresh flavor of apple to bear.

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A crisp, tart and sweet flavor.

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It calls for black truffle oil. I only had white truffle oil, but made it work. It takes time to juiliene the apples.

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The roasted garlic.

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The dressing. I used my immersion blender to make it.

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Fruity and refreshing!

Green Apple-Truffle Slaw

Prep Time: 0 hours 35 minutes | Cook Time: 0 hours 30 minutes | Makes: 10 cups | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

  • 4 large cloves garlic, unpeeled
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1/4 cup grapeseed oil
  • 5 Granny Smith apples, julienned
  • 1/2 small head green cabbage, very thinly sliced (about 4 cups)
  • 1/3 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tablespoon black truffle oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the garlic on a piece of foil, drizzle with olive oil and wrap up. Bake until tender, about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly, then squeeze the garlic from its skin.Combine 2 teaspoons water, the roasted garlic, lemon juice, sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a blender or mini food processor. With the motor running, slowly pour in 1/4 cup each olive and grapeseed oils through the feed tube, blending until emulsified.Toss the apples, cabbage, walnuts, parsley and truffle oil in a medium bowl. Add the dressing and toss; season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate the slaw until chilled, about 45 minutes.Photograph by Andrew Mccaul

Source:
http://m.foodnetwork.com/recipes/recipe/464005

O-H-I-O

5 Comments

One of the traditions of fans of the Ohio State University is getting four individuals together to spell out Ohio with their arms. The first and last person in the line make a giant “O” with their arms over their head. The second person puts both arms straight up to form the “H” (with their head acting like the crossbar). The third person in line puts both arms above their head with each palm touching the other to make an “I”. All together O-H-I-O! People do this everywhere. There are pictures from around the globe, and in a number of cases one or more of the letters is a local landmark (think Washington Monument standing in for the “I”).

Several years ago, my family made a trip to Mt. Rushmore. It was very impressive and after walking the grounds and getting great pictures we decided we wanted to do our own O-H-I-O with the heads of Mt. Rushmore in the background. We were at the overlook near sunset and asked a gentleman wearing an Illinois sweatshirt to take our picture. We positioned ourselves between him and the heads and lined up. Up went our arms and “click” went the camera. We thanked him and walked on.

Later we remembered to look at the picture and found that while it was a nice clear picture of our O-H-I-O, there wasn’t the Mt. Rushmore heads in the background! We could have been in our own back yard.

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This was a quick little side dish I whipped up for a Mexican meal I made.

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The recipe was a can of black beans, the equivalent amount of corn, one red pepper, 1/2 onion, about 1/3 cup chopped cilantro, a tsp of cumin and a couple of tablespoons of lime juice.

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It was delicious!

No Matter What You Do…

5 Comments

My never-ending quest to use up my warehouse club size bag of quinoa continues as documented in Mexican Quinoa Skillet, Quinoa Broccoli CasseroleQuinoa and Roasted Red Pepper Chili, and Quinoa Egg Bake. I looked in my pantry and that quinoa bag was laughing at me.

“No matter what you do, I still have plenty left.”

It was resting on top of a container of pine nuts and leaning against some raisins. Time to put them together.

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What a wonderful side. The quinoa plays well against the raisins and pine nuts.

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I will use up that quinoa! I will!

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Boiling the quinoa.

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Toasting the pine nuts.

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Putting it together.

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Lip Smacking!

Quinoa With Garlic, Pine Nuts and Raisins

Prep Time: 5 m | Cook Time: 25 m | Makes: 4 servings | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup quinoa, rinsed well
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Place the quinoa in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until toasted, about 2 minutes. Add 1 3/4 cups water (or use low-sodium chicken broth) and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until the liquid is absorbed, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium-high heat, stirring, until golden, about 3 minutes; transfer to a plate. Add the olive oil and garlic to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer the garlic to the plate, reserving the oil.

Fluff the quinoa with a fork. Add the pine nuts, garlic, reserved oil, parsley, raisins and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and toss.

Per serving (3/4 cup): Calories 300; Fat 15 g (Saturated 2 g); Cholesterol 0 mg; Sodium 5 mg; Carbohydrate 37 g; Fiber 4 g; Protein 8 g

Photograph by Stephanie Foley

Source:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/quinoa-with-garlic-pine-nuts-and-raisins-recipe/index.html

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