recipes: May 2010

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Oatmeal Pan Bread

Bread:

2 c water
1 c rolled oats
3 Tbsp butter
3¼ - 4¾ c flour
¼ c sugar
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp active dry yeast

1 egg

Herb Butter:

1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
½ tsp dried basil leaves
¼ tsp dried oregano leaves
¼ tsp garlic powder
6 Tbsp butter, melted

Bring water to a boil in medium saucepan; stir in rolled oats. Remove from heat; stir in butter. Cool to 120-130 F. In large bowl, combine 1½ c flour, sugar, salt and yeast; blend well. Add rolled oats mixture and egg. Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 3 minutes at medium speed. By hand, stir in an additional 1¾ - 2½ c flour to form stiff dough.

On floured surface, knead in ½ to ¾ c flour until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Shape dough into ball; cover with large bowl. Let rest 15 minutes. Grease 13X9-inch baking pan. Punch down dough several times to remove all air bubbles; press into greased pan. Using very sharp knife, cut diagonal lines 1½ inches apart, cutting completely through dough. Repeat in opposite direction creating diamond pattern. Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and cloth towel. Let rise in warm place until light and doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Heat oven to 375. Uncover dough. Redefine cuts by poking tip of knife into cuts until knife hits bottom of pan; do not pull knife through dough. In small bowl, combine Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano and garlic powder; mix well. Set aside. Spoon 4 Tbsp of the butter over cut dough. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Brush remaining 2 Tbsp of butter over bread. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese-herb mixture. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or cool.

Linguini and Meatballs

- Nick Stellino

Meatballs:

1/2 c milk

2 T garlic

1/4 c chopped fresh parsley

1/2 c bread crumbs

2 eggs

2 c freshly grated parmesan

2 T sugar

1 t montreal steak spice

2 pounds lean ground beef

Combine, form meatballs, brown in batches in olive oil, place in 9x13.

Sauce:

2 onions, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic

2 T basil

1 T thyme

saute together, scraping in meatball bits

add:

680ml can tomato sauce

2 T vegetable stock powder

2 c water

Pour sauce over meatballs, bake for 2 hours at 300 degrees.

Serve with linguini noodles and parmesan cheese.

Michelle Olivier Cream Pie

mix in a medium saucepan:

2/3 c. sugar

1/2 t. salt

5-6 T. flour

whisk in:

3 c. milk

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and pour about 1/3 of the mixture into a heatproof bowl with 3 egg yolks, slightly beaten. (I use the Pyrex measuring cup that I used to measure the milk.) You must whisk the egg yolks the whole time you are pouring in the hot mixture.

Immediately pour the egg mixture back into the pan and return to a boil (this will be very fast). Cook for 1 additional minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in 2 T. butter and 1 1/2 t. vanilla.

Prepare an ice bath. I plug up one side of my sink and put in lots of ice cubes and about 3 inches of cold water. Place the hot pan in the ice bath. (This cools the custard down more quickly.) Stir every 5 minutes or so to prevent a skin from forming on the custard. When it has reached room temperature, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

**To make a delicious chocolate cream pie, increase the sugar to 1 1/2 c. and add 1 1/2 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate when you add the milk.**

To assemble the pie, pre-bake a pie crust, let cool, and pour in the chilled custard. Top with a generous amount of whipped cream. Sprinkle with toasted coconut for coconut cream pie, chocolate shavings for chocolate pie. I have tried a lot of different pie crusts, but, truth be told, I am not a crust connoisseur. For me, the crust is just a vehicle for the filling. Lately, I have been using this recipe from the old Betty Crocker cookbook.

For a 9" pie crust:

Mix together 1 c. sifted flour, 1/2 t. salt. Cut in 1/3 c. shortening with a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle with 2 T. ice water and quickly mix with fingertips. (You don't want to handle the dough too much or it will not be tender and flaky.) Gather the dough together and press firmly into a ball. Roll out into a circle about 1" larger than your pan. Fit pastry loosely into the pan -- avoid stretching to prevent shrinking. Crimp the edges and prick all over with a fork. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

Buttermilk Pancakes

3 c flour

3 T sugar

3 t baking powder

1 1/2 t baking soda

3/4 t salt

3 c buttermilk

1/2 c milk

3 eggs

1/3 c butter, melted

keep wet and dry ingredients separate until you are ready to cook

Beef Dip

2 lb Boneless Roast

2 c water

1/2 c soy sauce

1 t rosemary

1 t thyme

1 t garlic powder

1 t pepper

pour mixture over roast in a crock pot

cook on high for 6 hours

put beef in buns and use sauce for dip

good with:

1 c sour cream

1 T horseradish

1/2 onion sliced thin

Mark Spencer’s Amazing Roast

7kg roast top sirloin ($40 at Costco)

Score the fat.

Spray the sides of the roast wtih pam to protect the non-fat areas.

Over the top of the roast in a shallow pan:

2 T soy sauce

rosemary - generous

onion powder

garlic powder

pepper

roast at 500 for 30 minutes

then

continue to cook at 225 for 8 hours

uncovered!

25 people/roast

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Cover a whole chicken with water and simmer with:

salt & pepper

1 whole onion

1 rib of celery

1 carrot

2 or 3 bay leaves

Simmer for 2 hours. Cool chicken, skin and cut into bite sized pieces. Discard vegetables and bay leaves, skim fat. Season broth with garlic salt, table salt and pepper to taste. Add bite-sized chicken pieces, freshly chopped celery and carrots and noodles.

Homemade noodles:

1 cup flour

1 egg

1/2 tsp. salt

Enough cream (or milk) to fill 1/2 an eggshell.

Beat egg slightly with a fork. Add cream and stir. Stir in flour and salt. Knead gently; roll out on floured surface. Cut into thin strips with pizza cutter. (The noodles will expand as they cook...so thin strips are best!) Add to soup and cook at least 45 minutes.

**Note: I usually double or triple the noodles...they are the best part!

**In a pinch...use canned chicken broth and stewed chicken pieces. Throw in chopped vegetables and homemade noodles. No one needs to know you didn't make your own chicken stock!

Or use this recipe as a basis for homemade chicken and noodles in gravy.

Chez L.A. Chicken and Asparagus Lasagna

As found by Kelly

Yield: 16 servings.
4 lbs. Fresh asparagus
1 lb. Butter
2 C. Flour
2 C. Chicken Broth
4 tsp. Lemon Zest
2 C. Half and Half
2 C. Milk
16 oz. Ricotta Cheese
8 whole Eggs
1 box Lasagna Noodles
9 boneless skinless Chicken Breasts, cooked
1 lb. Mozzarella Cheese
1 lb. Parmesan Cheese
Roast asparagus in a small amount of olive oil in oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Make the white sauce with the next six ingredients. Mix eggs, and Ricotta cheese together, and add this to the white sauce. Cook lasagna noodles as directed on package, and coat the noodles with sauce, and lay in a 9 by 13 inch casserole that has been coated with Pam.

Double layer all the noodle layers.

Chop chicken and asparagus, spread over the noodles, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. One layer of noodles and repeat. Top with noodles, sauce and mozzarella cheese. Cook at 400 degrees for 30 minutes uncovered. Serve after casserole has sat for 15 minutes. Toping of red sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Marinara Sauce: DOUBLE THIS !!!!

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped fine
1 carrot, grated
1/2 C. Butter
5 ripe Roma Tomatoes, quartered
1/4 C. chopped Fresh Basil Leaves
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Black Pepper
1 to 1 tsp. Sugar
2 C. Chicken Stock

Preparation Instructions:

In a quart sauce pan saute onions and carrots in butter. Stir in tomatoes, basil, salt, pepper, and sugar. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Puree in blender until smooth. Return to saucepan, add chicken stock and reheat.

BBQ Chicken Salad

Amy Scott

1/2 head iceberg lettuce - cut into 1/4" strips
1 large bunch romaine lettuce - remove ribs & cut into 1/4" strips
1 cup jicama - dice into 1/4" cubes
1 cup frozen white corn kernals - rinse under cold water & drain
1 can black beans - drain & rinse
2 cups cheese (I like the cheese crumbles for this salad)
3 medium tomatoes - dice {grow at home or beg for some from neighbors' garden}
1 or 2 avocados - dice
juice of 1/2 lime - drizzle over avocado
1/4 cup cilantro - mince

1 cup buttermilk
1 cup Best Foods^TM mayonnaise
1 package Hidden Valley^TM ranch dressing mix

2 lbs. chicken tenders
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup barbecue sauce

Make ranch dressing. Chill along with all ingredients except chicken.
Place chicken tenders in a Ziploc^TM bag and marinate in olive oil, soy sauce, garlic and salt for 1 hour. Place tenders on broiler pan and season with fresh ground pepper. Broil 4-6 minutes per side. Watch closely. Let rest 10 minutes before dicing into 1/2" cubes, then toss with barbecue sauce.

On a large platter, layer lettuces, jicama, corn, black beans, cheese and tomatoes. Top with warm barbecued chicken and avocadoes. Sprinkle on cilantro.

Serve immediately with ranch dressing and garlic bread.

Harvest Moon Cookies

1 1/4 c sugar

1/2 c butter

cream together, then:

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

dry ingredients:

1 1/2 c flour

3/4 c cornmeal

1/2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

roll dough into 2” balls, toss balls ziploc with:

1/4 c sugar

1 T cinnamon

place on cookie sheet and flatten with a drinking glass to 1/4” thick

bake 10-12 minutes at 350

Cilantro Rice

- Kristi Cutler

4 t chicken bouillon

4 t garlic, minced

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 can green chilies

3/4 t salt

1 T butter

1/2 onion

4 c water
2 c rice

Blend cilantro, chilies, onion together in food processor. Bring water to a boil and add all ingredients, simmer covered 30 minutes.

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan

Amy Scott

Tilapia is a mild fish, and this is by far my favorite preparation of it. Best of all, it is a very easily & quickly made dinner.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 Tablespoons mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried basil (I used a full teaspoon of fresh)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon onion salt
1/8 teaspoon celery salt
2 pounds tilapia filets

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat broiler. Grease broiling pan or line pan with aluminum foil.

In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan, butter, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. Add the basil, black pepper, onion & celery salts. Mix well and set aside.

Arrange filets in a single layer on the prepared pan. Broil a few inches from the heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the fish over and broil for a few more minutes. Remove the fillets from the oven and cover them with the Parmesan mixture on the top side. Broil for 2 more minutes or until the topping is browned and the fish flakes easily with a fork. Be careful not to overcook the fish.

Sweet and Spicy Cashew Chicken

The Best of the Best - Vol. 1 (Page: 200)

A delicious and colorful stir-fry. Serve over rice on a large platter or take the wok right to the table.

Ingredients:
Sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
4 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth

The Rest
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
1/4 cup oil
2-3 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 red peppers, cut in strips
2 carrots, thinly sliced on diagonal
2 cups snow peas
1 1/2 cups cashews
bean sprouts
sprinkling of sesame seeds, toasted

Instructions:
Combine sauce ingredients and set aside. In a bowl, combine cornstarch, sugar and salt. Add chicken and toss. Heat wok or frying pan to highest heat. Add oil. Heat to hot, not smoking. Add chicken, ginger, garlic and onion. Stir until chicken is opaque (about 1 minute). Add peppers and carrots. Stir 2-3 minutes. Add peas and sauce. Cook until sauce comes to a boil. Add cashews and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

lentil tacos

sutton grace

lentil tacos is one of our favorites. we eat it at least once a week. lentils have a lot of health benefits.

Steak for a crowd:

Choose the right steaks. The most common steak choices are rib-eyes, strip steaks and filet mignons. Regardless of the cut, choose thick steaks, preferably 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches thick. Thinner ones are more likely to overcook by the time they've had a chance to sear. Thicker rib-eyes and strip steaks usually weigh 12 to 16 ounces, so consider splitting one steak between two people. Filet mignons range in size, but 8 to 10 ounces is common. Make sure the steaks aren't ice-cold. Start by bringing them to room temperature. You can do this very quickly in the microwave. Working two steaks at a time, microwave them, uncovered, on the defrost setting for about two minutes. But if you plan to sear the steaks and let them rest awhile, you can skip this step.

Choose your searing method. Either a grill or a skillet will work, but the surface should be piping hot. If using a gas grill, turn all burners on high until fully preheated, 10 to 15 minutes. Lightly brush the grill rack with oil. Close the lid and let the grill return to temperature. If searing the steaks stovetop, use a heavy-bottomed non-stick or cast-iron skillet that comfortably holds the number of steaks you plan to cook. The steaks should not be crammed together (which could cause them to steam) or set too far apart (which could cause the pan to smoke excessively). About five minutes before cooking, set the pan on the burner over medium-high heat. When smoke starts to rise, turn on the exhaust fan. If serving a large crowd, use a large heavy-bottomed roasting pan set over two burners to sear up to six filet mignons or four large rib-eyes or strip steaks (serving up to eight) at one time.

Keep the seasoning simple. While the pan or grill heats, rub both sides of each steak with oil, and season each side with salt, pepper and sugar. How much sugar? For large strip steaks and rib-eyes, sprinkle on a scant 1/2 teaspoon per side. For filet mignons, about 1/4 teaspoon per side. Wait to season the steaks until you are ready to sear them, because the sugar melts quickly. Set a timer, and sear the steaks for two minutes per side. They should end up with an impressive crust that has a few blackened spots around the edge; grilled steak should have nice grill marks.
Transfer the steaks to a wire rack set over a shallow baking pan. That keeps them from steaming and lets them cool faster.

Brush them with garlic oil. I often do this, because I remember how good the soft, yet potent, garlic tasted on my dad's steaks. The oven heat tames the garlic just enough to lose its bite. Figure about half a medium minced garlic clove and one teaspoon of extra-virgin olive oil for each steak.

Gently cook the steaks in a 325-degree oven until done. Once seared, all the steaks need is 25 to 30 minutes to reach a rosy pink medium. Don't worry too much about time. The low heat cooks the steaks slowly, gently and evenly. An extra 10 minutes' oven time will not hurt them. They are done when an instant-read thermometer, plunged deep into the steak from the side, registers 140 degrees, but it will not hurt them --especially filets--to cook to an even higher internal temperature. If they're ready, but you're not, simply turn off the oven and crack the door. That'll buy you at least another 10 minutes.

Braised Country-Style Ribs with White Beans and Fresh Herbs

Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, as found by Keith

Prep Time:

20 min

Inactive Prep Time:

Cook Time:

2 hr 20 min

Level:

Intermediate

Serves:

6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

3 pounds country-style pork ribs
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups diced onions
1 cup diced green bell pepper
1 cup diced celery
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 pound dried white navy beans
8 cups chicken stock
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon Essence, recipe follows
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
Steamed white rice, for serving

Directions

Lay the ribs on a full sheet pan and season with the salt and pepper on both sides. Set a large Dutch oven over medium heat and add the olive oil to the pan. Once the oil is hot, about 1 minute, add the ribs, in batches, to the pan and sear until golden brown in color, about 5 minutes. Turn the ribs over and sear the second side as well. When the ribs are caramelized on both sides, set on a sheet pan and repeat the process with the remaining ribs.

Add the onions, bell peppers, and celery to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent and the celery and peppers are lightly caramelized, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic to the pan and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle the flour into the pan and stir with a wooden spoon to combine with the vegetables and oil to make a roux. Cook the roux, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Add the beans and stock to the pan and stir to combine with the roux. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the diced tomatoes, the seared ribs, sage, thyme and bay leaves to the pan. Simmer the ribs for 2 hours, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking.

After 1 1/2 hours, check the ribs to see if they and the beans are both tender. Season with the Essence and continue to cook for an additional 30 minutes. When the ribs are done, add the chopped parsley to the pan and serve hot over steamed rice.

Emeril's ESSENCE Creole Seasoning (also referred to as Bayou Blast):

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly.

Yield: 2/3 cup

Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch, published by William and Morrow, 1993.

tomato sauce with onion and butter

smitten kitchen

I could no longer resist this sauce, and frankly, I don’t know why I even tried to: food bloggers obsess over it, and they’re not a bad lot to base a recipe selection upon. Adam of Amateur Gourmet fell for it five years ago. Molly at Orangette raved about it over two years ago, with a bonus approval marking from Luisa at Wednesday Chef. Then Rachel Eats fawned over it too, and Rachel, you see, she lives in Rome right now — I want to be in Rome right now — Rome, where you can get authentic, perfect tomato sauce a zillion places every single day. And yet she stayed in and made this one. That sealed the deal.

So what is it with this sauce that it moves people to essays over it, tossing about exclamations like “brilliant!” and “va-va-voom” and promises that “something almost magical happens”? Is it garlic, a slip of red pepper flakes, a glug of red wine or a base of mulched carrots, onion and celery, as so many of us swear by in our best sauce efforts? Is it a spoonful of tomato paste or a pinch of sugar? Is it the best olive oil money can buy? It is none of these things, not a single one: It is butter. And an halved onion, cooked slowly as the sauce plops and glurps on the stove, thendiscarded when it is done.

Butter and the juice of stewed onion is all it apparently takes to transform a two-pound can of tomatoes to something velvety and lush. It manages to remind you of how fresh and sweet tomatoes are in the summer, but more fitting for the winter when canned tomatoes are the order of the day.

Another thing that blew my mind about this sauce: I, for one, am a grated parmesan junkie. I not only sprinkle it over my bowl of pasta, I like to have additional nearby, to apply a fresh coat to the layers of pasta that follow. So you can imagine my shock to find that I liked this dish even more without the parmesan. The flavor of the sauce is so delicate, fresh and sweet that it needed nothing at all.

Serves 4 as a main course; makes enough sauce to lightly coat most of a pound of spaghetti

28 ounces (800 grams) whole peeled tomatoes from a can (San Marzano, if you can find them)*
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
Salt to taste

Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan (it fit just right in a 3-quart) over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste (you might find, as I did, that your tomatoes came salted and that you didn’t need to add more) and keep warm while you prepare your pasta.

Serve with spaghetti, with or without grated parmesan cheese to pass.

Pasta with Artichoke and Leek Sauce

- Nick Stellino

Cook 1 lb of penne, set aside

3 T olive oil

4 garlic cloves, sliced

1/4 t red pepper flakes

1 c sliced leeks, white part only

saute together

add to pan:

1 large jar artichoke hearts, reserving back one heart

3 T chopped fresh parsley

1/4 c white grape juice

cook 2 minutes

add to pan:

2 c chicken stock

cook till artichokes break with pressure from the back of a spoon, about 5-7 minutes

puree to a creamy consistency

add to pan:

1/2 c light cream (or canned milk)

3/4 t salt

1/4 t freshly ground pepper

1 pound cooked penne

1 T butter

1/4 c freshly grated parmesan cheese

sliced reserved artichoke heart

pizza

- Jamie Oliver

starter | serves makes 6 to 8 medium-sized thin pizza bases

This is a fantastic, reliable, everyday pizza dough, which can also be used to make bread. It’s best made with Italian Tipo ‘00’ flour, which is finer ground than normal flour, and it will give your dough an incredible super-smooth texture. Look for it in Italian delis and good supermarkets. If using white bread flour instead, make sure it’s a strong one that’s high in gluten, as this will transform into a lovely, elastic dough, which is what you want. Mix in some semolina flour for a bit of colour and flavour if you like.

Sieve the flour/s and salt on to a clean work surface and make a well in the middle. In a jug, mix the yeast, sugar and olive oil into the water and leave for a few minutes, then pour into the well. Using a fork, bring the flour in gradually from the sides and swirl it into the liquid. Keep mixing, drawing larger amounts of flour in, and when it all starts to come together, work the rest of the flour in with your clean, flour-dusted hands. Knead until you have a smooth, springy dough.

Place the ball of dough in a large flour-dusted bowl and flour the top of it. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and place in a warm room for about an hour until the dough has doubled in size.

Now remove the dough to a flour-dusted surface and knead it around a bit to push the air out with your hands – this is called knocking back the dough. You can either use it immediately, or keep it, wrapped in clingfilm, in the fridge (or freezer) until required. If using straight away, divide the dough up into as many little balls as you want to make pizzas – this amount of dough is enough to make about six to eight medium pizzas.

Timing-wise, it’s a good idea to roll the pizzas out about 15 to 20 minutes before you want to cook them. Don’t roll them out and leave them hanging around for a few hours, though – if you are working in advance like this it’s better to leave your dough, covered with clingfilm, in the fridge. However, if you want to get them rolled out so there’s one less thing to do when your guests are round, simply roll the dough out into rough circles, about 0.5cm thick, and place them on slightly larger pieces of olive-oil-rubbed and flour-dusted tinfoil. You can then stack the pizzas, cover them with clingfilm, and pop them into the fridge.

ingredients

• 1kg strong white bread flour or Tipo ‘00’ flour

or 800g strong white bread flour or Tipo ‘00’ flour, plus 200g finely ground semolina flour

• 1 level tablespoon fine sea salt

• 2 x 7g sachets of dried yeast

• 1 tablespoon golden caster sugar

• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

• 650ml lukewarm water

tomato sauce

Heat a saucepan, add a splash of oil and the sliced garlic and cook gently. When the garlic has turned light golden, add half the basil, the tomatoes and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Cook gently for about 20 minutes, mashing the tomatoes until smooth, then taste, season again and put to one side.

for the tomato sauce

• extra virgin olive oil

• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

a bunch of fresh basil, leaves picked

• 1 x 400g tin of good-quality plum tomatoes

• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Add toppings. Bake 20 minutes at 500 degrees, watching carefully.

Grilled Chicken Sandwiches with Charmoula

- Bonnie Stern

Charmoula Mayonnaise

1/2 cup mayonnaise (125 ml)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin (2 ml)

1 teaspoon paprika (5 ml)

1/4 teaspoon cayenne (1 ml)

1 tablespoon lemon juice (15 ml)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (50 ml)

Sandwiches

4 single boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to even thickness

Rubbed with:

1 t paprika

1 t brown sugar

1 t grated lemon peel

1 t salt

1/4 t pepper

Grill 4 minutes per side, till just cooked through.

1 onion, cut in thick slices, grilled 3 minutes per side

1 red pepper, halved, cored, seeded, and grilled to remove skin

4 leaves lettuce

4 focaccia buns

Grilled Shrimp on Spinach

- Art Smith

Shrimp:

3 T olive oil

2 T lemon juice

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 t chopped fresh oregano

1 t chopped fresh basil

1 t chopped fresh chives

pinch cayenne

salt and freshly ground pepper

24 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Marinate in fridge for 2 hours. Grill the shrimp 5 minutes (or saute).

Salad:

4 ounces green beans, cut in 1 inch lengths, steamed to crisp-tender

2 ears of corn, grilled and corn cut from cobs

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

2 T balsamic vinegar

2 T olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper

Marinate together, then serve along with shrimp over:

6 cups spinach

1 c fresh basil leaves

(Tossed together)

Crab Cakes with Remoulade Sauce

- Art Smith

Remoulade Sauce:

1 c mayonnaise

3 T grainy mustard

3 T sour cream

1 T seeded and finely chopped red pepper

1 T peeled, seeded and finely chopped cucumber

1 T minced capers

1 T chopped fresh parsley

1/4 t Chalula hot sauce

freshly ground black pepper

Crab Cakes:

1 T olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 celery ribs, finely chopped

1 red pepper, finely chopped

1 serrano pepper, seeded and finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

Saute together.

Combine sauteed vegetables with:

1/2 c mayonnaise

2 T chopped fresh parsley

1 T dijon mustard

1 T herbes de provence

1 egg

1 pound crab meat

1/4 c bread crumbs

Form cakes and dredge in 3/4 c bread crumbs.

Fry in olive oil to brown outside, then transfer to oven.

Bake 10 minutes at 375.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

The Rest of the Best - Vol. 2

Ingredients:

Sauce
3/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 1/2 tsp. rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. liquid honey
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. freshly grated ginger

Wraps
2 boneless chicken breasts
1/3 cup grated carrot
2 green onions, diagonally sliced
1 cup dry steam-fried noodles (fine, crunchy cooked noodles)
1/2 cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
1 head iceberg lettuce, separated into whole leaves, core removed

Instructions:
In a small saucepan, over medium-low heat, blend sauce ingredients. Set aside to cool. Poach chicken in a small amount of water until no longer pink. Cool. Cut each breast in half horizontally and then dice to about 1/4". In medium bowl, toss chicken, carrots and onion with enough sauce to coat. Let stand for 15 minutes. Add noodles and peanuts, gently toss with more sauce to coat.
To serve: Set out lettuce and chicken mixture. Let guests wrap their own. Serve extra sauce on the side.

1 1/2 times this recipe for a young family of 6.

Dave Lee's roast and gravy

rub for roast:
1/2 cup beef stock powder
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 T curry
1/4 cup montreal steak spice

Allow meat to rest at room temperature for one hour. Preheat to 500F, rub the roast as in the recipe, place in oven and immediately reduce the heat to 350F. Roast 20 minutes/pound, first hour uncovered, second hour covered.

remove cooked roast from pan
add potato water and more beef stock powder
whisk while boiling - will thicken slightly

add:
heavy cream

a runny, but delicious gravy

Carmel Corn - Gladys Stringham

2 c brown sugar

1 c lily white corn syrup

1/2 c butter

Stir over heat until sugar is dissolved, boil 2 minutes. Add:

1 can Eaglebrand

Mix together, then pour over popped popcorn.

(remove un-popped kernels before adding carmel)