For Taste Sake ....4TasteSake.blogspot.com

Salmon Chowder

2012-02-29T12:42:00.000-08:00

Here is a quick, hearty, belly warming soup that you can make in one pot, with leftover salmon. It's worth cooking salmon just to make this chowder also! Other fish and seafood can be substituted.

I'm able to make this chowder in my large, deep skillet (it gets a bit full)you may want to start out with a good sized pot.

Serves 3 to 4 as a Main dish.

Ingredients
1 qt. Half-n-Half
1/2 + Pound Potatoes - Cubed (I like to use the small red potatoes)
1/3 to 1/2 Onion - Minced
1/2 lb + of salmon cooked and flaked or broken up (be sure to remove all bones)
1 Can Kernel Corn - drained

In your pot, bring well salted water to a boil and add the cubed potatoes, sample the potatoes - when they're about half cooked, add the onions. Then the potatoes are done, drain the potato and onion mixture in a colander and set aside. ddt the Half-n-Half to your pot, add the broken up salmon, and corn. You don't need to bring it to a boil, just make sure the mixture is hot and the salmon and corn is heated through, add your potato and onions into the chowder and serve!

For Taste Sake
I personally like fresh cracked black pepper on my chowder
My "Better Than Garlic Bread" is a great addition (see my earlier recipe)
If you don't have leftover salmon, you can quickly microwave a piece.
If you reheat your leftover salmon first, it's much easier to remove the skin, flake it and remove any bones.

Prepare Your Favorite Restaurant's Recipes at Home!

Learn the Jealously Guarded Secrets Behind Actual Dishes From Billion Dollar Restaurants Like, The Cheesecake Factory, KFC, The Olive Garden, PF Changs, Red Lobster, Chili's... (plus many others - Over 300 Restaurant Recipes Revealed) Learn How to Easily Make Them at Home!
Get 5 Free Recipes!
Click Here!

Home Canned Corn Relish

2011-08-29T23:04:00.000-07:00

Here's a delicious way to save summer's bounty to enjoy throughout the off season. The crunch of the corn, onion and celery in a flavorful, syrupy sauce. It's wonderful served cold on hot dogs, hamburgers and kielbasa or served warm on broiled salmon, or just served as a side condiment with almost anything.

5 Cups corn kernels
2 1/2 cups minced onion
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup diced celery
1 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
2 tablespoons dry mustard
2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons celery seeds
2 cups apple cider vinegar
3 - 4 Tablespoons corn starch
makes aprox 7 - 8oz jars

Canning tools
Several canning jars with corresponding lids and ring bands
Lid lifter
Jar lifter
Canning Funnel
Large skillet
2 Large pots

Use your sharpest knife to cut the kernels from the cob - you want to 'cut' the kernels cleanly not 'pop' the kernels with a dull knife. Mince the onion and celery so the pieces end up the size of the corn kernels. Hold the ear of corn stem side down, cut in one slice, from the tip to stem, as close to the cob as possible, turn the ear slightly and slice again. I use a plastic tray with sides, while cutting the kernels, as the kernels fall they won't bounce all over. Some people put down a tea towel to catch the kernels. Another method is to invert a small bowl inside a larger bowl, place the stem down on the bottom of the inverted smaller bowl as you slice.

One Large ear of yellow sweet corn can yield one cup of cut kernels. For this recipe I prefer the yellow corn to white.

Canning the mixture
I use 3 burners on the stove - you need your largest pot to be deep enough to cover your canning jars with an inch of water. Bring to a slow boil, enough water to cover your jars - leaving enough space to accommodate several jars without overflowing the pot - must be at least 180 degrees. Use a large skillet with 2" of water - place your empty jars in the water leaving room for a stack of jar lids, keep this water hot but not boiling, you're sterilizing the jars and softening the compound on the jar lids.
Place everything but the corn starch in another large pot. Bring to a boil - stirring often. When it starts to boil place 3 tablespoons of corn starch in a drinking glass and add enough water to stir into a paste, the add enough additional water to make it thin enough to pour. As you slowly pour your corn starch slurry into the corn mixture stir it in quickly or it could get lumpy. It will reach it's maximum thickness at a boil - if you like it thicker add a tablespoon of corn starch slurry at a time - being sure to wait until it boils.
Once the mixture has been brought to a boil for several minutes and reached the desired thickness, you're ready to place the mixture in the jars.

Canning your Corn Relish
Using your jar lifter, grab a hot jar from the skillet - place the jar close to the relish pot, put the canning funnel into the jar, use a ladle to put the mixture in the jar - leaving 1/2" 'head space' space at the top edge of the jar. Remove the canning funnel and place aside. Using a paper towel dipped in hot water, wipe off the lip of the jar, use the lid lifter to remove a jar lid from the hot water in the skillet, and place it on the jar, screw the Ring Band on just finger tight.
Set full jar aside and fill several. Once you've filled 5 or 6 jars using the jar lifter, gently place the jars in the pot of boiling water. the heat of the boiling water covering the jars forces air out (that's why you don't crank down the ring band) let them boil for 10 min then remove them in the order you put them in the pot. If you have a metal or stone counter top, placing hot jars on a cold counter can cause the jars to break. Place the jars on a towel or cutting board etc. Leave the jars undisturbed over night. As the jars cool, a vacuum forms, pulling the domed center of the lid downward - sealing the jar. The ring band is no longer necessary until the jar is opened.

For Taste Sake
This recipe can be doubled and tripled - I make triple batches all the time - just be sure to triple (or double) ALL of the ingredients - writing it down helps.

Canned goods should be kept in a cool dark place - the vacuum keeps it fresh, the vinegar keeps bacteria from growing - it's basically like pickles. Canned goods are typically good for up to two years.

Other spices that can be added or substituted:
2 teaspoons tumeric
1/2 teaspoon cayenne peppeer
3/4 cup red bell pepper
substitute Dark Brown Sugar for the Light Brown sugar.

Fred McMuffin

2011-04-21T22:50:00.000-07:00

Fred McMuffin with chicken.

The Fred McMuffin should NEVER be confused with the breakfast sandwich that that Clown makes!
A healthy delicious breakfast to go in less time than it would take to drive to your nearest fast food stop.
These can also be made ahead of time and frozen - they reheat in a microwave well.
When there's no time for a relaxing weekend breakfast - this is our go-to breakfast meal.

Ingredients
1 fresh egg per sandwich or an equivalent of egg substitute
salt and pepper to taste
any leftover meat or lunch meat - vegetables make a great substitute

non-stick spray
I like to add some chopped green onion
English Muffin, Bagle or Skinny Bun

Place the English muffin in the toaster
Start with a small bowl, spray the inside with non-stick spray.
Crack the egg into the bowl, salt & pepper - use a fork to scramble the egg.
Add chopped onion and meat to the egg mixture - pressing it into the scrambled egg.
Microwaves vary in power so you'll have to adjust to yours I set mine for 1min 20 seconds to 1min 40 seconds depending on how much meat and the temperature of the meat. If it's not done, raw egg tends to work it's way to the top, you'll see it, just microwave for another 10-20 seconds.

When done - it's gonna be hot - If it's going to be several minutes before eating, I'll put it immediately in the English Muffin, wrap in a paper towel, flip it over so that the weight of the sandwich holds the ends of the paper towel from unwrapping. Otherwise I'll flip the cooked egg mixture out on the cutting board to cool off a bit before placing it in the muffin, and eating.
You can prepare several sandwiches in a matter of minutes. Spray the bowl with non-stick spray before each sandwich. The cooked egg mixture can be placed in plastic wrap or sandwich bags for freezing.

For Taste Sake

A squirt of hot sauce can be added to the mixture if you like a little spice.
Chicken or Turkey goes very well with egg
Leftover meat is oftem easier to work with if it's been warmed up a bit in a microwave.
When seasoning, take into account the meat - has it been seasoned already or could it use a little more and also the bread - I tend to add a little bit extra salt & pepper than normal so I can taste it past the muffin.

Breakfast Scramble

2011-04-06T22:25:00.000-07:00

Chicken Breakfast Scramble served with English Muffins

This is a trick that I pull out of my hat from time to time. Sometimes in desperation (there's no Bacon, sausage or ham in the house for breakfast, or there's not enough eggs to go around) and sometimes as a treat - ohh there's that leftover prime rib or corned beef! Typically this is a breakfast dish, but it's a strong candidate as "Breakfast for Dinner'
This is typically a one pan dish, it's very flexible with what you can put in it. The basic ingredients are potatoes, onion, meat and eggs - of course vegetarians can substitute vegetables for the meat.
1 Large potato per 2 people (cubed)
1 or 2 eggs per person
maybe some mushrooms
Vegetable oil
any leftover meat and even seafood (cubed)

Chopped Chicken, Cubed Potatoes, Green Onion

The potatoes can make or break the whole dish. They must be thoroughly cooked, very few people enjoy a raw potato. The first key to cooking the potatoes is cutting them into uniform size, this ensures they will cook through at the same time. It's all a matter of preference how thick you cut the potatoes - that's how you make this recipe yours - just do it uniformly. For your first cut a 'stabilizer' cut. Slice a small piece off of the long side of the potato, then place the exposed portion of the potato down on the gutting board, this will keep the potato from rocking around as you slice it. Next cut the potatoes in 1/2" or what ever width you prefer, slices. Now stack 2 or three slices on top of each other and cut the rounds into strips (french fries) the same width as the first slices (ie. 1/2"). Next turn those strips crosswise on the cutting board and cut the strips into cubes - again paying attention the the width (1/2"). There's bound to be 'ends' that are not uniform - if their size is significantly smaller than the rest of the cubes (ie. 60% or smaller), either discard them or set them aside to be added later. The small ends will cook that much faster than the others and by time the large pieces are done - the small pieces are burnt. The only thing worse than raw potatoes, are burnt potatoes.

Browned Potatoes

If you're not using a non-stick pan, a helpful tip is to allow the potatoes to approach room temperature and add them to hot oil. Allow the potatoes to brown on a side before turning, be sure to turn all the potatoes so some of the don't burn. If you're adding minced round onion (brown, red, yellow, white) you can add it about 1/2 way through the potato cooking - if you're using chopped green onion - wait for now. Mushrooms can be added now.

Once the potatoes are cooked through, add the meat - you're basically just reheating the meat, if you're adding green onion, now is the time.


Potatoes, Chicken, Green Onion - ready for the eggs!

Now it's time for the eggs! If you're confident with your egg cracking ability - you can crack them directly into the scramble. If you're not so confident, break them into a bowl, making sure there's no shell fragments then you can use a fork or a wisk to scramble them or pour them directly into the pan and the eggs will scramble as you stir/turn the mixture.

When the eggs are to your desired doneness salt and pepper to taste - serve and enjoy!

For Taste Sake.

It's easier to remove chicken from the bone if you microwave it for a minute or so before removing the meat from the bone.

Homemade Corned Beef Hash

2011-03-19T15:09:00.000-07:00

Homemade Corned Beef Hash

If you like Corned Beef Hash from a can, or what they serve in a restaurant (which is probably from a can) then You'll LOVE fresh homemade Corned Beef Hash.

Ingredients
Leftover Corned Beef cubed
Potatoes the amount depends on your preference I like a 50/50 mix or even a 60/40 of Corned beef to potato ratio.
Green onion about 1/4 cup sliced (including the green portion)

The potatoes can make or break the dish

Potatoes being browned for Homemade Corned Beef Hash

The potatoes must be thoroughly cooked, very few people enjoy a raw potato. The first key to cooking the potatoes is cutting them into uniform size, this ensures they will cook through at the same time. It's all a matter of preference how thick you cut the potatoes - that's how you make this recipe yours - just do it uniformly. Make your first cut a 'stabilizer' cut. Slice a small piece off of the long side of the potato, then place the exposed portion of the potato down on the gutting board, this will keep the potato from rocking around as you slice it. Next cut the potatoes in 1/2" or what ever width you prefer, slices. Now stack 2 or three slices on top of each other and cut the rounds into strips (french fries) the same width as the first slices (ie. 1/2"). Next turn those strips crosswise on the cutting board and cut the strips into cubes - again paying attention the the width (1/2"). There's bound to be 'ends' that are not uniform - if their size is significantly smaller than the rest of the cubes (ie. 60% or smaller), either discard them or set them aside to be added later. The small ends will cook that much faster than the others and by time the large pieces are done - the small pieces are burnt. The only thing worse than raw potatoes, are burnt potatoes.

In a large skillet, put enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom with a bit of extra - enough to give you a puddle. Set the heat to medium high and wait till it comes up to temperature - you should be able to put your hand over the oil and feel the heat coming off of it. I wet a finger from the sink faucet and flick a small amount of water into the oil - it'll snap and dance. Use caution when doing that. Now dump all your cubed potatoes into the hot oil. It's best if you try to spread them as evenly as possible. This is a trick part - the starch in the potatoes tend to stick, use a good spatula and stir/turn over the potatoes using a scraping motion to the bottom of the pan. Give the potatoes a bit of rest in between each stir/turn over. When the potatoes start getting crispy - taste test them to be sure they are cooked all the way through.

Homemade Corned Beef Hash with two eggs over easy

Add your corned beef to the skillet, and stir into the potatoes. The potatoes shouldn't be as sticky now and the corned beef should mix in easily. Once the corned beef starts to get crispy, add the green onion and finish cooking the hash to your preference of crispness. I like to serve Corned Beef Hash with eggs over easy. Either beside the hash or right on top of the hash.

Salmon Hash

For Taste Sake
Hash can be made from just about anything - my second choice is canned corned beef, roast beef, pork, ham. I've even made Salmon Hash that was wonderful. If you don't have any leftover pre-cooked meat then cook what ever raw meat you have on hand, once it's cooked, then proceed with the recipe.

Some tips to reduce the sticking of the potatoes: Room temperature potatoes will stick less. A cast Iron skillet is nice because the thickness of the cast iron holds it's heat better than other pans - adding the potatoes to hot oil lowers the cooking temperature of the oil which makes them stick.

If you're just coming off of St. Patrick's Day - and have left over potatoes - they are perfectly fine to use. Cube them up and add them to the hot oil, they're already cooked through, so you just cook them till they're visually done.

Corned Beef with Pan fried Cabbage, Carrots and Onion

2011-03-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Corned Beef is the Ultimate 'Crock Pot' meat. You can put the Corned Beef in the crock pot before leaving the house in the morning and return home after a long day at work and it will be ready to enjoy!

Corned Beef is a cured meat. The cure is typically a heavily salted brine commonly containing Potassium nitrate which preserves the pink color. The cut of beef is often brisket or round steak, both considered tough cuts, the brining process tenderizes and preserves the meat.

Traditionally the meat is boiled - a common method is to boil it in water for 50 minutes per pound. Boiling the meat tends to reduce the salt taste in the meat. Other variations involve boiling it in beer, apple juice, or pineapple juice. The 'juice' contained in the package is part of the flavoring and goes in the pot. There's also a small spice packet in the package - open it and sprinkle the spices over the meat. Some people boil the meat then finish it off on a BBQ, adding a smokey dimension to the meat.

The Vegetables
Cabbage, potatoes, and carrots are another part of the traditional meal. Often they are cooked in the same pot as the meat. Since the cook time is rather long for these vegetables they are left in large chunks. Potatoes and carrots can be left whole, carrots should be pealed and have the tops cut off, potatoes may have the skin on or off. Cabbage it commonly cut into four large chunks.

Crock Pot Method
I prefer to put the meat, juice and spices in a crock pot, with enough apple juice to halfway cover the meat. Set the crock pot on low and cover. The apple juice adds a bit of sweetness as well as take out some of the saltiness. It's pretty hard to over cook a corned beef. I recently had a 4 pound corned beef in the crock pot from 7:00am till 6:00pm - that's 11 hours and it was wonderful!

Boiled Red Potatoes
I prefer my vegetables cooked separately. I prefer the small red potatoes boiled in heavily salted water. Once they are fork tender throughout. I drain them in a colander, placing the hot pot back on the stove and using the residual heat to melt some butter and sprinkling in some chopped fresh rosemary and chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley. The larger potatoes I'll cut in half or quarters, smaller ones I leave whole. Once the butter is melted and the herbs have had a chance to get heated, add the potatoes to the pot and stir.

Pan Fried Cabbage and Carrots

I prefer the cabbage, carrots stir fried with some onion. Peal the leaves off the cabbage head and stack them on a cutting board. Using a large chef's knife, thinly shred the cabbage. Thinly slice the carrots, using a knife, vegetable peeler or small mandolin (theTitan Peeler works great!)
. Mince about half a cup of onion. In a large skillet over medium high heat, coat the bottom of the pan with a half cooking oil and half butter mixture, add a pinch of caraway seed, celery seed, and some fresh ground black pepper. Put he onions in first when they are translucent, add the carrots - if the carrots are on the thick side, let them cook a bit before adding the cabbage, otherwise add the shredded cabbage at the same time. Stir fry to the desired doneness. Some people like their vegetables heated through but still crunchy, some like them with a bit of scorch on them. Set the vegetables aside, while you carve the meat.

Carving the meat

Gently lift the meat out of the pot, using a sturdy spatula or straining spoon, and place on the cutting board. Using the spatula or spoon, gently scrape and peel off the layer of fat and discard. Once the fat layer is removed it's easy to see the 'grain' of the meat. Any and all meat should be carved across or against the grain this will yield short fibers and a tender slice. OK the the meat has been tenderized by brining and has now had the daylights boiled out of it so it's tender but do you really want to serve a chunk of stringy meat? So get out your carving fork and your longest, sharpest knife. Position the cutting board and the meat so that you can comfortably draw the knife across the grain of the meat. The REAL trick here is to put the fork at the side of (not in) the meat closest to you, placing the tine of the fork the width of one slice of meat inward from the edge. Place the knife as far as comfortably forward as possible, then draw the knife back towards you, using the tine of the fork as a guide, bull the knife directly against the tine of the fork. ALWAYS draw the knife towards you and against the fork tine, using a sawing, back and forth cutting action will guarantee you an unrecognizable pile of meat strands.

For Taste Sake
Over all corned beef with the fat layer removed is a rather low calorie source of protein. More calories can be saved by substituting broth in the skillet, instead of the half and half oil and butter mixture, steaming the vegetables instead of frying.

I think one of the greatest joys of eating corned beef is that it goes so well with mustard so we break out the mustard collection - coarse ground, Dijon, Wasabi , Hot Chinese.

The cabbage, carrots, and onions can be cut up the night before, stored in the refrigerator in plastic bags to make the preparation that much easier, the following day.

I love a good corned beef dinner but truth be told, I would cook corned beef simply for the leftovers - a Ruben Sandwich is one of my favorites but you haven't lived till you've had freshly made corned beef hash!
I promise to make that my next recipe.

Salmon Cakes / Salmon Patties

2011-03-03T13:02:00.000-08:00

This is one of the recipes I turn to when we've forgotten to thaw something for dinner. They're quick and easy to make, delicious, make a tasty main dish or appetizer and can be served with a variety of sauces to add variety.
I make sure there's always a few cans of salmon in the house, by buying several when they go on sale.

1 Can (aprox 15oz.) Salmon
1 Cup Italian Bread Crumbs
1 egg
3 or 4 heaping tablespoons of Italian (flat leaf) Parsley (use 1/2 that if using dried herbs)
1 Jalapeno Pepper - minced
1 Med Shallot - roughly minced
1 Tbsp Horseradish
1 Tbsp Mustard

Drain the salmon, and place in a bowl - some people remove the bones (if any) They are completely edible - I like to remove them and eat them my self. Flake (break up into small pieces) the salmon, add the remaining ingredients. Fold the ingredients together - mix them together thoroughly but don't stir so completely it's unrecognizable mush - you want to preserve some of the chunks etc.
Generously coat the bottom of a large skillet with cooking oil and bring to temperature over a medium heat. I wet my finger slightly in the sink and flick it into the oil to see if it crackles - use CAUTION!
Take a heaping tablespoon of mix into your hands and form a patty - go around the outer edge with your finger pressing the edge inward to try and make the patty as uniformly thick as possible - thin edges will cook quicker than the remainder of the patty and could burn before the patty is thoroughly cooked.
Place the patties in the pan in an orderly manner so that as they brown, you can determine what order they are browning in. Flip them over and brown on the other side. A small offset spatula is VERY handy for turning the patties. Remove to a folded paper towel to drain the oil.

Makes 8 to 12 - 3" patties makes great finger food and reheats well.

Serve with a variety of sauces - Tartar Sauce, Soy Sauce, Teriyaki Sauce, Cocktail Sauce, Ranch Dressing, and flavored mustards etc.

For Taste Sake
Top them with my Hot Crab Dip or Hot Crab & Shrimp Dip
Green onion can be substituted for Shallot
If you don't like the heat of a Jalapeno pepper - cut it open and remove the seeds & veins - then you'll still have the flavor but not the heat - slice into small strips then mince the strips int 1/8 - 1/16" cubes
Experiment with different mustards - rustic seed mustard is my favorite, but an Orange or Lemon mustard is a great addition.

Fred's Famous BAM Chicken

2011-02-16T20:16:00.000-08:00

BAM Chicken Thigh

This is one of my signature dishes, and a family favorite. It's delicious, with crispy skin, moist tender meat and it's very easy to make. We never tire of this treat.

First start with the BAM mix:
1 Part Paprika
1 Part Garlic Powder
1 Part Salt
1 Part Brown Sugar
For example 1/4 cup of each ingredient will give you 1 Cup of BAM mix.
Mix thoroughly, and store in a container - preferably one with a shaker top.

Next is the chicken - If you know how to debone a chicken - that's the first choice (I'm putting the finishing touches on my video on how to debone a chicken and hope to post it soon). Second choice are thighs. You can use any parts you prefer or bake the chicken whole - I prefer those stand-up chicken rack for roasting the whole chicken.

Whole deboned BAM Chicken

Coat the chicken thoroughly with BAM mix. Line a cookie sheet that has sides, with aluminum foil. Place the coated chicken pieces, evenly spaced on the foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and bake for 45 minutes.
The grease captured in the foil is perfect for making gravy.

For roasting the whole chicken - if you're using one of the stand up roasting racks (they allow all of the skin to get crispy) I remove one of the oven racks or put them all on the lowest part of the oven, making room for the stand-up chicken rack. I take a cast iron skillet and place the rack inside the skillet along with about 1/2 a cup of water - so that the grease doesn't burn if it overflows. Bake at 350, if we baked at 400, there's the possibility of burning the outside of the chicken before the inside is finished cooking. We lower the cooking temperature and increase the amount of time. The amount of time will be dependent on the size of the chicken, I would allow 1 1/2 to 2 hrs. You should use a meat thermometer to check the temperature - stick the probe as deep as you can on the inside of the thigh, between the body and the thigh. The meat should reach a temperature of 165 degrees (check it in several places in that area - the LAST thing you want is under cooked chicken!)

For Taste Sake
For a different flavor variation - try making the spice mix with Smoked Paprika
I prefer using Kosher salt with big flakes instead of the standard, fine grained table salt.

Grumpypasto - Antipasto

2011-01-31T19:26:00.000-08:00

Tired of the same old dips and appetizers? Try this hearty antipasto.

Grumpypasto with anchovy wrapped capers

This antipasto got it's name from my brother in-law's father, who was known by friends and family by the nickname 'Grumpy'. He was known for his cooking skill - this is his recipe, which is a family favorite. We lost Grumpy in 2008 but his memory lives on. I've kept the original recipe intact, just rearranged the list of ingredients to reflect the order of use - I've added my notes at the end. Enjoy!

1/8 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Carrot, peeled and sliced about 1/8 inch
1/2 medium onion, rough chopped
2 Celery Stalks, chopped
1/4 head Cauliflower Broken into small pieces
5 raw mushrooms, sliced into 4 pieces
1 small garlic clove, crushed and minced
6oz Chili Sauce (Del Monte/ Huntz)
1 tsp. salt
1tsp. Accent
1 (6oz) can solid pack white albacore tuna
3 oz marinated artichoke hearts and juice
Juice of 1/2 fresh lemon
12 Black olives, sliced in half
10 Green Olives, sliced in half (Spanish Style)
Capers and/or anchovies (few, optional)
7 oz ketchup

Put oil in 3 quart microwavable pot, add sliced carrots, stir; cover and cook on HIGH heat for 3 minutes.
Add chopped onions and celery, stir; cover and cook on HIGH heat for 2 minutes.
Add cauliflower, stir; cover and cook on HIGH heat for 2 minutes.
Add mushrooms, stir; cover and cook on HIGH heat for 2 minutes. Set aside.

In a large glass or stainless steel bowl, add ketchup, chili sauce, lemon juice, salt, Accent, and garlic, and mix well.
Add cooked vegetables, Mix; add well drained tuna, broken into pieces, olives, artichoke hearts (with juice), cocktail onions, and carefully mix again.
Can be eaten immediately but reaches full flavor after being refrigerated 1 to 2 days or more.

For Taste Sale
Being a Mediterranean dish - consider adding 2 or 3 tablespoons of fresh chopped Flat Leaf (Italian) Parsley.
Another Mediterranean addition - Feta cheese.
He mentions adding anchovies and/or capers - I found canned, anchovy wrapped capers. They are WONDERFUL - I place them on top of the mix after I've put it in the serving bowl.
A sign of our times - he calls for a 6oz can of solid Albacore tuna - all I could find in the store these days are 5oz cans - it's up to you weather to go with 5oz or buy a second can and use 1/5 of it in the recipe.
I don't add the Accent
Serve with a sturdy cracker, sliced toasted chunks of bread.

Steamed Italian Lima Beans and Peas

2011-01-27T21:57:00.000-08:00

This is a simple yet tasty recipe that can be made in 5 minutes. A great side dish for incorporating a variety of vegetables into your diet. This recipe is very flexible, increasing it's size would only increase the cooking time slightly, change the proportions (ex. 60% peas/ 40% Lima Beans) vary the onion (Green Onion, Shallots, Leaks).

1 cup frozen Baby Lima Beans
1 cup frozen Peas
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Dried Italian Herb mix
1/2 Medium Onion rough chopped, separate the layers
Salt & Pepper

Place your steamer basket in a medium pot and add water to just below the basket bottom. place Peas, Lima Beans and onion in the basket, cover and boil for approximately 5 minutes. Onion should be translucent, taste a Lima Bean to make sure it's warm enough to eat. Once vegetables are done, remove basket and place vegetables in a bowl. Drizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the vegetables, add salt, pepper and dried Italian Herbs to taste, mix well and serve.

Crab Dip or Mold Hot or Cold

2011-01-22T23:30:00.000-08:00

Crab & Shrimp mold served with baby carrots and celery

This is a delicious go-to dish, it's simple, rich and delicious. This dish can be made hot or cold. If you've seen my Stuffed Trout recipe and my Sea Shells recipe, you know that I always keep cans of crab and shrimp in the house. There's typically mayonnaise and shallot in the house, so the only other things are an 8oz brick of Cream Cheese and Knox Gelatin.

1 Can Crab
1 Can Tiny Shrimp (optional)
1 small/medium shallot minced
1 Cup Mayonnaise
1 8oz brick of Cream Cheese
2 packets Knox Gelatin (for the cold version)
Leaf lettuce (for cold version)

Hot Crab & Shrimp Dip

The hot dish is the quickest and easiest to make. If you have the ingredients in the house, you can make this with short notice. In a shallow skillet, add the Can of crab (juice also), minced shallot, cup of mayonnaise and brick of cream cheese. Heat over a medium low heat, stirring often until the cream cheese is melted and the ingredients are fully mixed. Serve. Having a small crock pot on hand to keep it warm is the best way to keep it at serving temperature for an extended period.

Lettuce arranged on foil covered 11" paper plate

To make the cold mold version, it helps if you drain off the crab juice and add only dry crab to the skillet, add the 2 packets of gelatin, making sure it's thoroughly mixed in and heated through. A plastic bowl can serve as your mold or you may own a fancy mold that you choose to use. It's not necessary but it helps if you spray the inside with a nonstick cooking spray. Pour the hot mixture into the mold and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. You most certainly can pour the hot mixture into an attractive bowl and then serve it from that dish. Another serving variation is inverted - when you're ready to serve, it's very attractive to line a flat serving dish foil covered large paper plate works well (that has a larger diameter than your mold) with lettuce. Tear and place the lettuce so that all the stems are in the center of the dish, so that when you invert the mold onto the plate, the crab dip mound will cover the lettuce stems. Invert the mold on top of the lettuce - be prepared for the mound of crab dip to come out of the mold immediately upon inversion by aiming for the center of the plate. More than likely it won't immediately release from the mold. You can help the dip, release from the mold by taking a kitchen towel, running it under the hottest water that you can stand, wring it out then wrap it around the mold. Alternating between two towels can speed up the process. You are heating up the mold enough to slightly melt the surface of the dip so that the dip will fall out of the mold. The dip can be wrapped in cellophane and refrigerated until it's time to be served.

For Taste Sake
A drained can of shrimp can be added to the hot or cold mixture to kick it up.
Fresh or dried Basil can be added for an even bigger increase in flavor about a tablespoon.
Typically the dips are served with crackers but vegetables can be substituted, the cold version may need sturdier cuts of vegetables than the hot version.

Brussel Sprouts

2011-01-09T15:18:00.000-08:00

Brussel Sprouts - the mere mention of which can send people screaming off into the night!
I believe this stems from a bad childhood experience. When I was a child I was told

they were baby cabbages. Now what kid wouldn't enjoy eating kid sized cabbages?
If you're not a fan of Brussel Sprouts - approach this recipe with an open mind - it took me three years before I could convince my wife to let me bring them into the house and now this recipe is one of her favorite vegetable recipes! If you like Brussel Sprouts, here's a twist on most traditional methods of preparing them.

Fresh Brussel Sprouts - depending on size about 6 per person
1 Medium Shallot, pealed & minced
1/2 Carrot pealed and shredded
2-3 Tablespoons or more of Chopped Italian (flat leaf) Parsley
1/4 - 1/2 cup of chicken Broth
Butter & Olive Oil to generously cover the bottom of the pan.
Salt & pepper to taste - typically you don't need additional seasoning.

Start by 'cleaning the brussel sprouts - cut the stem end a bit shorter and remove the loose leaves, resulting from the cut and removing any discolored leaves.
Cut the brussel sprout in half lengthwise through the stem - aim for cutting one of the attached leaves in half through it's stem, accuracy isn't important but it helps keep the leaves intact through the cooking process,

In a large shallow fry pan, have enough Olive Oil & Butter (50/50 mix) to generously coat the bottom of the pan, medium-high heat. Once the Oil and Butter mixture is hot, place the 1/2 sprouts cut side down in the pan. A good method is to place them in a circle starting at the outer edge of the pan and work your way towards the center. This helps you keep track of how long the halves have been in the pan. When the sprout's cut side becomes browned, flip them over. They should brown in the approximate order that you placed them in the pan.

When all of the halves have been flipped over, add the rest of the ingredients (Parsley, Shallot, Carrot, and Chicken Broth) place the lid on the pan and let them cook until tender.
Enjoy!

For Taste Sake
A julienne peeler is a handy tool to shred the carrot, if you don't have one, you can use a conventional vegetable peeler. Use the peeler to produce long thin strips. Lay the strips on top of each other, cut the strips in half lengthwise then cut those halves lengthwise into as many strips as you can.

Chicken Broth can be replaced with a Chicken Bouillon and water mixture.

If you're not familiar with shallot, it's in the onion family, they are a small member of the onion family with a nutty flavor. Shallots are a bit more expensive than an onion. Onion can be substituted but the flavor will be a bit different.

I've tried to keep this recipe healthy. My brother in-law takes my recipe and puts a cube of butter in - how could you go wrong?

Better Than Garlic Bread

2011-01-02T22:05:00.000-08:00

Better than Garlic Bread. There's just SOME meals I have to have a good bread with - such as seafood. I used to reach for Garlic Bread on those occasions - homemade or store bought it was all good...... UNTIL I discovered this way of preparing, serving bread. Almost any bread will do but for the best results, pick a rustic artisan bread, one with small holes works best, my favorite is Puglasese made at a grocery store that we frequent. Next you want the very best Extra Virgin Olive Oil that you can find, a specialty salt like Pink Salt or Grey Salt, and a pealed clove of garlic.

Cut the bread in half lengthwise.

Toast the bread thoroughly (either in an oven, toaster oven or on a BBQ grill) I think toasted on a BBQ grill with grill marks is the most impressive with a little added kick of smoky flavor but it does require some extra skill to keep from burning the bread.

As soon as the bread is well toasted, take the garlic clove an rub it all over the exposed toasted inside of the bread. The toasted bread acts as sandpaper and the garlic will rub off onto the bread. Take special note of your and your guest's taste for garlic - don't over do it.

Next use a Silicone Brush to spread the Extra Virgin Olive Oil generously over the exposed toasted inside of the bread.

Sprinkle a pinch of Pink Salt or Grey Saltover the bread, slice and serve.

For Taste Sake
Pink Salt and Grey Salt aren't as salty as table salt - they have a 'mineral' taste to them - enhancing the flavor.

When you slice the bread in half, lengthwise, pay close attention to the edges of the bread, especially if you're going to grill it. Often times the bottom half is well proportioned but the top half's edge may be quite thin and subject to burning - it's a good practice to trim the thin edges back before toasting.

A Silicone Brush is best at spreading the Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the bread - the silicone will not leave any bristles on your food, will withstand high cooking temperatures, and cleans easily because the bristles will not absorb food.

Baileys Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

2010-12-28T16:01:00.000-08:00

I'm not really a dessert person, but this cheesecake is sooo good it's my favorite dessert! It's my go-to dessert when I want to go all-out. It's rich, not too sweet, has the texture of a creamy cheesecake and the flavor of Baileys Irish Cream, chocolate chips and a graham cracker crust.
I'm not sure where I got this from, otherwise I'd give credit where it's due. This can be made ahead of time and keeps well in the refrigerator. This is much taller than your standard pie-sized cheesecake so it can serve a good sized party.

Crust:
2 Cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 Cup Sugar
6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick) butter, melted

Filling:

2 1/4 lbs (4 1/2 - 8oz bricks) Cream Cheese, room temperature or microwave until soft
1 2/3 cups sugar
5 eggs, room temperature
1 cup Baileys Irish Cream
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Cooking Instructions:
For Crust:
Preheat oven to 325F.
Coat 9" diameter springform pan with nonstick vegetable oil spray.
Combine graham cracker crumbs and sugar in pan.
Stir in butter.
Press mixture into bottom and 1" up sides of pan.
Bake until light brown, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Maintain oven temperature at 325F.

For filling:
Use electric mixer to beat cream cheese until smooth.
Gradually mix in sugar.
Beat eggs in one at a time.
Blend in Baileys and vanilla.
Scrape down edges of bowl and mixing blades, and remix to ensure consistent texture and flavor.

Sprinkle half of chocolate chips over crust.
Spoon in filling, taking care to not disturb placement of chocolate chips.
Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the top of filling.
Bake cake until puffed, springy in center and golden brown, about 1hour 20 minutes.
Cool cake completely.

For Taste Sake:
Pay attention when assembling the springform pan - you want the 'lip' to face down so that you can slide the finished cake off of the disk, I actually assemble it with a piece of parchment paper in place, when it's cooled I can pull the paper and cake onto my cake stand, then slip an icing knife between the crust and paper, use the icing knife to hold the cake in place while I pull the parchment out from under the cake leaving just the cake on the cake stand.

Cake my crack when puffy, crack(s) will close as cake cools and shrinks. Some cooks prefer to place pan of boiling water in oven with the cake to keep humidity up lessening crack or wrapping the cake pan in aluminum foil, ensuring the bottom and sides are water tight, placing the cake pan, aluminum foil assembly in another larger pan,adding boiling water to the outer pan, then cooking.

The bottom of a small cup or measuring cup can be used to press the crumb mixture in place and up the sides of the pan.

To top the cake:
Chocolate chips can be placed symmetrically on top of the filling before cooking, giving a nice presentation.

Coffee Cream Topping
1 cup chilled whipping cream, 2 Tbsp. Sugar, 1 tsp. instant coffee powder.Beat cream, sugar, and coffee powder until peaks form. Spread over cooled cake, garnish with chocolate curls.

Amaretto Topping
Dissolve 1 pkt. Knox Gelatin in 1/2 cup Amaretto and bring to a boil as it starts to cool it can be spread over top of cake while it's still in the springform pan it will cool to an translucent amber gel.

Homemade Raviolis

2010-12-13T23:09:00.000-08:00

One of the best things about Homemade Raviolis is that you have complete control over how they’re made. There are three components to consider when making raviolis; filling, dough, and sauce.

The filling is limited only by your imagination. Meat, seafood, vegetables, mushrooms, and cheese is just a start.

Meat Raviolis fried in Olive Oil, with herbs and shallot

The pasta dough is very important. It has to stretch over the filling, stick to itself and hold up to a great amount of handling. After years of struggling with various recipes, I finally found one by Tyler Florence on the Food Network. My early batches of raviolis were made completely by hand, now I try to automate the process as much as possible. Currently I use a pasta roller attachment for my Kitchenaid. The Ravioli maker, is a cast aluminum rack of 12 holes surrounded by zigzag borders, with a corresponding piece of plastic with 12 dimples that stretches the dough enough to make pockets to put the filling in.
The Kitchenaid pasta roller attachment will make a long sheet of pasta that fits over the ravioli maker's rack, The plastic tray fits over the rack, making dimples in the dough, fill the 12 dimples, then cover the rack with another sheet of pasta, run a rolling pin over the assembly. The pressure from the rolling pin, pinches the dough together , cutting it on the zigzag borders, making 12 raviolis.
All of the automated equipment isn’t necessary , dough can be made by hand, and rolled out with a rolling pin or hand cranked pasta machine, dollops of filling can be laid out on a sheet of pasta on the counter, the second sheet can be laid on top of the other and the dull side of a butter knife can be used to press and cut the dough.

When rolling out the dough, keep in mind that the dough is doubled over, so to keep from minimizing the taste of your filling, keep the dough as thin as possible.

Whatever filling you decide to make, take into consideration that the filling is surrounded by dough, so often times it pays to over season the filling, especially meat filling that’s also going to be served in a bold sauce.

Sauce can be homemade, store bought, or fixed up store bought. Red sauce is traditional, but for variety consider, a pesto sauce or in the case of sea food ravioli, try an alfredo, white wine or cheese sauce . One of my favorite ways to enjoy homemade raviolis is with no sauce at all. In a large pot of lightly salted boiling water drop frozen raviolis, most will sink, when they start to float they are getting close to done. In a large fry pan, sauté some shallot, maybe some mushrooms in a healthy dose (more than you’d typically use) of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Off to the side have some chopped herbs (Italian Parsley, Oregono, Rosemary, sage Garlic) Once the raviolis are close to done and the shallots are translucent, drain the raviolis and put them into the sauté. As the raviolis start to crisp up, put your fresh herb mix in the pan and finish cooking to the desired brown, crispness. Serve with shredded parmesan cheese.

Dough Recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/pasta-dough-for-ravioli-recipe2

Raviolis keep very well frozen – care must be taken that they don’t break!
I have this odd piece of Tupperware the top and bottom are the same depth, it’s wide and shallow enough to hold 20 raviolis in a 4 x 5 grid, I use the thin plastic sheets used as semi-disposable cutting boards, that I cut to fit inside the container. I put 20 raviolis down, a sheet of plastic on top of them, another 20 and another plastic sheet – I can fit 140 Raviolis (12 dozen less 4) in the container and freeze them. A handy way is to lay the raviolis out on a cookie sheet, freeze them individually (if they stick to the cookie sheet, just gently drop the cookie sheet from a inch or two above the counter) then store them in a resealable bag or plastic ware.

Meat Filling

Meat Raviolis fried in Olive Oil, with herbs & shallot, Parmesan

1 ½ lbs Ground beef
4 table spoons minced Italian Parsley
2 table spoons minced Rosemary
2 table spoons minced Oregono
2 table spoons minced Sage
2 table spoons chopped garlic
½ to 1 cup red wine
¼ cup Worchester sauce
Salt & pepper to taste
Brown the meat in a large skillet (do not pour off the grease), add the remaining ingredients. Continue to cook the meat until the liquid disappears, continue to stir the meat mixture until it becomes dry and starts to brown. To make the ground meat easier to work with I run it through a food processor chopping it finely.

Homemade Granola

2010-12-05T15:59:00.000-08:00

Even people that don't like Granola like this!

The BEST part of of Homemade Granola is that you modify the recipe to suit your taste.
It's very simple to make and keeps fresh on the shelf for about a week. Eaten dry or in milk.

3 Cups Oatmeal Old Fashioned Slow Cook style
1 Cup Nuts - your favorite
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
pinch of salt
1 Cup Raisins

Mix Oats, Nuts, Oil, Sugar and Syrup in a bowl, spread out on large cookie sheet that's been sprayed with non-stick spray, and bake @250 for 1 1/2 hrs - turning every 20 minutes.

Oats, Cashews, Pumpkin Seeds - Golden Raisins were added later

Let cool and add 1 cup Raisins
Keep in Zip lock bags.

For Taste Sake
Oatmeal - The Old Fashioned Oatmeal will give you the largest flakes - the only difference between the Old Fashioned Oats and the Quick Cook is that the quick cook has been cut into smaller pieces.

The nuts can be anything you like, Cashews work well as does Walnuts, Pecans, Almonds, etc. This process toasts the nuts - improving the flavor. If you use salted nuts then you can omit the pinch of salt.

Seeds can also be used, Pumpkin, sunflower (without the shell), etc. Raw ones can be added 1/2 or 3/4 the way through the toasting process - depending on their size, or if they're already toasted - add them at the end with the raisins.

Adding Raisins - my favorite for this granola is the Golden Raisins (made from White or Green Grapes), the regular raisins go good, as well as craisins (dried cranberries) or any dried fruit you prefer.

The Syrup used is the standard "Maple Flavored" - REAL Maple syrup does kick it up a notch!

Serving suggestions - Dry, in milk, in yogurt, over ice cream, with berries or pomegranate seeds, roll a ball of peanut butter in the granola then dip in melted chocolate.

Thanksgiving Turkey Cookies

2010-11-21T16:35:00.000-08:00

Side by side the small Turkey sort of looses it's "OOMPH" next to the large Turkey Cookie, but let me assure you - by itself the small Turkey Cookie ROCKS!

There’s no cooking involved in making Turkey Cookies – the most difficult part of making them is the shopping! The main body of the turkey is Nabisco Pinwheels, a cookie topped with marshmallow covered in chocolate with a hole in the middle. The base can be any small round chocolate cookie, it can be any generic chocolate cookie, or something like Keebler Fudge covered Cookie or Fudge covered Oreos. You can even bake your own chocolate cookie for the base. To make the big turkey cookie you’re going to need another larger plain chocolate cookie at least an inch in diameter larger than the Pinwheel. Check your grocery store’s bakery department, you may have to bake your own. The head/beak and feet (and feathers for the Large Turkey Cookie) are standard Candy Corn, the hard part is finding it after Halloween.If you have time for mail order between Halloween and Thanksgiving then Mail Order Candy Corn is probably your freshest and most convenient choice.Check your local Grocery, Drug & Specialty stores etc. If you have a "Sweet Factory" store in town is a sure bet and the candy is fresh but it'll be your most expensive option.

1 Pkg. Nabisco Pinwheels (12 in a pack)

1 dz. Small Chocolate cookies

36 Perfect pieces of Candy Corn

1 tub Chocolate Cake Frosting

For the large Turkey Cookie – You’ll need:

12 Large Chocolate Cookies

Additional Candy Corn

Using a butter knife, fill the hole in the Pinwheel with chocolate frosting. Use frosting to cover any spots on the Pinwheel that may have become damaged.

Place a gob of frosting on the side of the Pinwheel in between the raised part of two swirls, that will give the cookie a slight bit of stability. Place the Pinwheel, vertically, frosting gob down, on the far edge of a small chocolate cookie.

Take 2 pieces of candy corn and push the white pointy side first into the frosting gob between the Pinwheel and the base cookie. If you have any candy corn that's missing the white tip, this is the time and place to use them. The candy corn 'feet' also add stability to the Pinwheel from leaning forward. Next place a small gob of frosting at the top of the Pinwheel. Place the 'head/beak' piece of candy corn in the top gob of frosting, white tip facing out, with the corn sitting up on it's side.

To make the Large Turkey cookie

Use a serrated knife to flatten one side of a large chocolate cookie and a small chocolate cookie to give some stability. When assembling, the flat spot on the large cookie should rest flat on the counter and the flat spot on the small cookie should butt up against the large cookie.

Frost the outer edge of the large cookie, then frost the back side of the Pinwheel. Center the Pinwheel on the large cookie leaving the height of the small cookie between the bottom of the pinwheel and the flatspot on the large cookie. Place the candy corn all along the outer edge of the large cookie. Place a gob of frosting at the base of the Pinwheel and set the Large cookie, candy corn Pinwheel assembly on the small base cookie. The flat spot of the large cookie should rest on the counter and the flat spot of tyhe small cookie should press horizontally against the face of the large cookie Finish by shoving the two 'feet' candy corn in place and a small gob of frosting at the top and placing the 'head/beak' candy corn in place.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2010-11-19T14:12:00.000-08:00

Garlic Mashed Potatoes are one of my specialties – it’s an often requested side dish that I bring to family dinners.

Some people like mashed potatoes that have chunks of potato in them, or those made with the skins.When I want traditional garlic flavored mashed potatoes. I want mashed potatoes that are fluffy, creamy, buttery, garlicky, and well seasoned with salt. I want the type of mashed potatoes that can be eaten without gravy. The gravy is just a nice addition.

I’ve made as much as 20 pounds for a big Thanksgiving dinner. Let’s start with Five pounds, a good sized start for a family dinner. Adjust the recipe as your needs dictate.

5 Pounds of Russet or Idaho Potatoes - flaky baking style potato (not waxy potatoes like Red, or Yukon Gold etc.)

2-3 Tablespoons Salt

1 Cup Cream, or Milk, or Chicken Broth (your preference)

1 Stick Butter

Make the Garlic Paste First

As a rule of thumb start with one head of garlic per pound of potatoes, this will be more than necessary, but you’ll be adding it to taste so any overage can be used in another dish.

The garlic paste can be prepared ahead of time -mashed garlic can be kept in the refrigerator for more than a week.

Peel the garlic. For large amounts, I use a Garlic Peeler. There are several types out there, I use a silicone tube style Garlic Peeler. The clove goes in one side, pressure from your hand rolling it on the counter, cracks the dry skin and either removes it completely or makes it easy to remove. Get a system going, break the heads into cloves, put the cloves in one spot on the counter, the peeler in the middle and finished cloves on the other side. Tiny cloves aren’t worth keeping and peeling, toss them. Once the cloves are peeled, cut the little stem end off. These little particles can ruin the look of your mashed potatoes. Again get an assembly line going, one side of the cutting board have untrimmed cloves, and finished cloves placed on the other side.

Pre-Peeled garlic can be purchased – one head of garlic has an average of 15 good sized cloves – purchase accordingly.

Once the cloves have been peeled and trimmed. Roast them by placing them in a large frying pan that has a lid. Put enough vegetable oil the pan to lightly coat all the cloves. Stir or toss, to completely coat the cloves with oil. On a low heat, roast the garlic stirring or tossing regularly, until it becomes translucent. Raw garlic can be very strong, the longer the garlic is cooked the mellower and sweeter it becomes. Cooked down correctly, the garlic can become so mellow that it can be eaten straight. A bowl of mashed garlic is not out of the question. I’m assuming you wouldn’t be reading this recipe if you didn’t like the flavor of garlic. By roasting the garlic in the pan we’re trying to achieve a balance between the harsh raw and the mellow flavor that would be lost in the mashed potatoes. Once the cloves have become translucent, turn off the heat and mash the garlic with a fork or a flat hand operated potato masher. I’ve put the garlic in a blender or food processor but they mash it up so fine that the garlic flavor gets lost in the potatoes. Mashing the garlic by hand leaves some of the plant fibers intact, leaving small flavorful chunks of garlic in the potatoes and yields a much more flavorful result.

Making the Potatoes

Peel the potatoes and remove any eyes. If the potatoes are large, cut them into evenly sized chunks. Similar sized chunks will ensure that they cook evenly. Making them smaller will allow them to cook quicker.

In a pot large enough to hold the potatoes and water, put in the potatoes, and cover them with cold water. Make sure there’s enough space between the water level and the top edge of the pot to allow for the water to boil. I like my water salted. I believe the flavor is far better when the potatoes absorb the salt as they are being cooked, than trying to add salt after they’re cooked. I sprinkle enough salt that would lightly and completely cover the bottom of the pot, approximately 2-3 tablespoons.

Bring the potatoes to a boil then turn the heat down to just enough to maintain a good boil. Boil the potatoes until fork tender – a fork should be able to sink ½ way into the potato with equal amount of effort (no hard center). Removing a larger chunk to a cutting board, cutting it in half and sampling the center is another way to check for doneness. When the potatoes are fully cooked, turn off the heat, and pour the potatoes into a colander in the sink to drain.

Put the butter and cream in the bottom of the pot you just used for cooking. Using a mixer to whip the potatoes, gradually put the potatoes back in the pot adding more as the ones in the pot become whipped.. If a large batch of potatoes is being made, it can be helpful to work in batches, then mixing the batches together at the end. Be thorough with the whipping process – especially if you don’t like lumps. Uncooked potatoes and not spending enough time mixing are the two leading causes of lumpy mashed potatoes. Near the end of the whipping process, add the garlic paste, one heaping tablespoon at a time, integrating it thoroughly, stopping to taste test it every one or two tablespoons. When the flavor is to your liking, serve.

For Taste Sake

Avoid garlic that has sprouted - the sprouts can be bitter and will leave little green flecks in your otherwise white mashed potatoes.

If any of your cloves become scorched or overcooked in the roasting process - remove them - they'll be bitter.

Caprese Salad

2010-10-10T21:41:00.000-07:00

This is a very simple Italian salad – fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh tomato and fresh basil leaves, often seasoned with only salt and pepper. This is the classic that you often see fanned out on a plate, repeating slices of white mozzarella, red tomato, green leaf of basil. The Italian flag’s colors are Red, White and Green. Don’t lose sight of its simplicity – the creaminess of the mozzarella, the slight acid of the tomato and the spiciness of the basil is a classic that has stood the test of time – try it in all of its glory. Don’t be afraid to serve it in all of it’s simplicity.
Now if you know me I’m not one to leave things alone, so here are some variations I like to add. My favorite way of serving it is, as a slice of tomato as the base – I often try to get a large heirloom tomato. I believe heirloom tomatoes have such a variety of colors, sizes and flavors that commercially grown tomatoes can’t offer. I often like to add a thin slice of cucumber – either a standard green cucumber or my all time favorite is a lemon cucumber. Mozzarella cheese is simplicity, but I am finding variations – especially marinated in olive oil or flavored olive oil. Mozzarella can also be found in small cherry tomato sized balls. Topped off with, or hidden in between a layer – a fresh basil leaf. Sprinkled with fresh ground black pepper, I like to use coarse Kosher salt or even a Pink Salt or Gray Salt – which typically has less of a ‘salty’ taste and adds more a ‘mineral’ taste. Drizzle some Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the top. Drizzle some Balsamic Vinegar over the top. Experiment with different balsamic vinegars, one of my favorites is Fig Balsamic Vinegar.
By making individual stacks, and serving them as stacks, your guests will find it easier to select a stack, cut and eat your gorgeous salad.

For Taste Sake – a slice of tomato, a leaf of basil, a small ball of mozzarella cut in half and two marinated mussels (recipe from an earlier post). Slice it in half, between the mozzarella and mussels and put the whole slice in your mouth – the flavors and textures, go on for some time!
Another variation would be to serve it as an appetizer. Take a bamboo skewer and cut it down to size, slide on cherry tomato, a small ball or cube of mozzarella, a leaf of basil, and maybe a marinated mussel. Serve them soaking in the herb dressing posted earlier, in a shallow dish.

Marinated Mussels

2010-09-26T21:28:00.000-07:00

I came up with this recipe many years ago when I ran across an awesome sale on mussels and wanted to extend the joy! They make a wonderful Appetizer/hors d'oeuvres as well as a decadent snack. They keep in the refrigerator for a few months (IF they last that long!)

1 Batch (basically 1 cup) Herb Salad dressing
2 Pounds Steamed Mussels
2 or more cloves Elephant Garlic

Start with the Herb Salad Dressing, posted earlier.
The mussels are best if fresh, but they are not always in season - they are commonly available frozen and when cooked according to the directions, are very suitable.
If you are using fresh mussels - make sure they are all alive (shell tightly closed - with those that are slightly open - tap another against it's shell, if it doesn't close, throw it away.) Rinse the shells to remove any loose debris and remove the beards - the beards are the fibers that the mussel produces to attach itself to rocks. Take a dull butter knife and pinch the fibers found along the seam of the shell, between the knife and your thumb, and pull the fibers away. If you are using frozen mussels - check for a beard, but most I've come across have the beard already removed. Steam the mussels until they open, Discard those that won't open - they were dead (you don't know for how long or from what - you only want to eat the ones that were healthy). Remove the meat from the shells, use a dull knife to scrape off the muscle that adheres the meat to the shell.

I like to layer thin slices of Elephant Garlic and mussel meat, in the marinade. Sliced shallot, small button mushrooms, sliced or quartered larger mushooms make great additions. I use a quart size canning jar to store the marinated mussels in the refrigerator. An empty mayonnaise jar or other or similar container will also work. Periodically holding the jar horizontally and "rolling" it in your hands will mix it well. The mussels can be eaten immediately. At that point they are simply coated with the salad dressing, after about a week the marinade will start to penetrate and enhance the flavor.

A Mandolin Peeler makes short work of slicing the Elephant Garlic.

For serving - They can be eaten straight from the jar, I like to place a slice of Elephant Garlic on a cracker then a mussel on top. They also make an awesome addition to a Caprese Salad.

Herb Salad Dressing

2010-09-20T23:23:00.001-07:00

I ran across this simple and delicious herb salad dressing a long time ago. It’s one of my favorites. It's equally at home on a green salad as it is on a pasta salad. It can be quickly made and used immediately, but comes to full flavor if left to sit overnight. It can also be used as a marinade for Chicken, Beef, Pork, and Sea Food.

3/4 Cup Vegetable Oil

1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tsp dried Sweet Basil

1 tsp dried Dill Weed

1 tsp water

1 tsp Soy Sauce

1 Tbsp Honey

1/2 tsp geound Cayenne Pepper

1 large or 4 small cloves of Garlic, pressed

Combine all ingredients, shake well before using.

For Taste Sake

Change up the ingredients - try using some of the wonderful flavored vinegars and oils available. Red Wine vinegar can give it more of an Italian style. Try using tarragon flavored vinegar on a salad with chicken or chicken marinade.

Grilled Sweet Corn Salad

2010-08-25T20:29:00.000-07:00

This is a wonderful summer time salad made with fresh ingredients, having the brilliant flavors and colors of summer. This salad needs no dressing, and little if any salt and pepper. It travels well and keeps in the refrigerator. It's tasty when the corn is still warm but can easily be served chilled.

Ingredients
2 large or 3 medium ears of fresh sweet corn
1/2 Can Black beans rinsed and drained
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
1/3 cup cubed feta cheese
1/3 cup minced onion
1 Cup Cherry Tomatoes cut in half
1 Firm Ripe Avocado cubed

Directions
Remove the husk and silk from 2 big or 3 medium ears of sweet corn.
Grill the ears on a BBQ over a medium high heat turning the ears to achieve a nice even browning
Cut the kernels off the cob using a sharp knife
Add black beans, cilantro, avocado, onion feta cheese and gently toss.

For Taste Sake
For the onion use: Torpedo Onion, Green Onion, or Shallot.
A damp paper towel, rubbed along the corn’s kernels helps remove the silk.
Cut the kernels from the cob using the sharpest, thinnest fillet/boning knife you have – a dull knife will pop the kernels and give you mush.
It’s easiest to cut the kernels off from the tip of the cob to the stem.
A tea towel laid down under the stem will keep kernels from flying all over the kitchen when cut, a shallow rectangular baking dish, or a small inverted bowl placed in a larger bowl will also contain the kernels as they are cut.
When traveling I leave cutting and mixing the avocado, tomatoes, and maybe the Feta until I arrived at my destination.

Fred's Famous Breakfast Pizza

2010-07-14T22:20:00.000-07:00

Breakfast Pizza!

Caramelized onions, Scrambled Eggs, Italian Sausage, Pepperoni and sharp cheddar cheese on a fluffy garlic bread!!!

Background;
Many years ago Breakfast Pizza was quite a novelty. I still remember my first one – some folks at work heard that a local pizza shop was making them and they delivered. So one Friday morning we chipped in and ordered one. Quite frankly once I got the concept I thought I could do better, so I set out to make a better Breakfast Pizza!

This recipe makes a big pizza – about 14” x 1 ½ to 2”. When I’m in the mood for breakfast pizza I’ll make it the night before, let it cool, wrap it completely in plastic wrap, put it back in the pan and into the fridge. It travels well if, when you make it, you spread the cheese to the edge. When the cheese melts it keeps everything else in place. At work I’ll find a piece of cardboard, place the pizza on it, open the plastic wrap, slice the pizza into pieces (grab my piece!) then cover with plastic wrap. My coworkers can then microwave their piece individually – about 35 seconds.

Recipe

My early breakfast pizzas were made with the dough from a bread machine, the machine had a “Manual” setting which mixed the dough then stopped, and didn’t bake it into bread. I now make the dough with my Kitchenaid. A dough recipe is included at the end of this recipe.

Oil a deep dish pizza pan (I use a 14” diameter x 1 ½ high pan ) with vegetable oil (not olive oil) place dough in pan - flip dough over – stretch it to the edge of the pan, and cover with plastic wrap (doesn't need to completely cover pan) - I stretch the plastic wrap tight –so I can watch it rise towards the plastic wrap - place in warm draft free place for about an hour.

While the dough is rising:
Caramelize a large onion – cooking down an onion brings out the natural sugar in it. Slice the onion into small slices, place in a heated well oiled skillet, as the onion cooks down, turn down the heat every so often until they are limp and browned, you can “cheat” a little by sprinkling some sugar over the onion half way through the cooking process.
Brown 1/3 to 1/2 lb of sausage, I’ll cut a 1 lb breakfast sausage into 3rds or a 12oz chub in half and freeze the remainder. Brown until dry & crumbly.
Scramble 3 eggs, I like to season with salt & pepper – scramble until dry and crumbled.
Grate 1.5 cups cheese. Almost any cheese will do – I prefer a sharp cheddar.

I put the onion, egg, sausage, sometimes mushrooms, pepperoni and whatever else I'm in the mood for, on the dough. I top with cheese, making sure it’s spread enough to secure all the toppings when it melts. Bake at 400 for about 15min or until the cheese is melted and crust is slightly browned. It’s a good idea to rotate the pizza half way through.

Dough Recipe

Here is the Kitchenaid recipe for bread:
Using the Dough Hook.
This makes a big Pizza - I use a 14 1/2" pan
1/2 Cup Low-fat milk
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons butter
2 pkg Dry Yeast or 4 1/2 teaspoons of jar yeast
1 1/2 Cups warm water 105-115 degrees
5-6 cups bread flower or all purpose flower

Put milk, sugar, salt & butter in small saucepan - heat on low till butter melts & sugar dissolves - cool to lukewarm.

Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed mixing bowl. Add lukewarm milk mixture and 4 1/2 cups flower - mix on speed 2, when mixed add remaining flower 1/2 cup at a time, until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl - continue to kneed for another 3 minutes (now is a good time to add spices- while kneading)

If I REALLY wanna kick it up - I add about a tablespoon (or two) of Garlic Powder, Italian Seasoning, Caraway, Fennel & Dill seeds - It's pretty spicy for "White-Bread" people.

Sea Shells - Jumbo Pasta Shells - stuffed with Shrimp, Crab & Swiss Cheese!

2010-06-02T12:37:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite hors d' oeuvres to make, and eat!

This appetizer is WONDERFUL on so many levels, first and foremost they are delicious, quick and easy to make, have eye appeal, can be made ahead, and they are served chilled.

I often keep a box of Jumbo Pasta Shells, cans of tiny shrimp and canned crab in my pantry at all times. I usually have at least 2 or 3 of the remaining ingredients: shallots, Swiss cheese, celery and mayonnaise in the refrigerator, so I may only have to go out for one or two of the ingredients before I can whip this appetizer up on short notice.

Makes about 20

Ingredients
1 box Jumbo Pasta Shells (16 oz.)
1 can tiny shrimp, drained approx 4.5 oz
1 can crab meat, drained approx 6oz
8oz (1/2 lb) shredded Swiss Cheese
1/2 Cup Mayonnaise
2 tablespoons thinly sliced celery
2 tablespoons chopped shallot

Stuffing Mixture
Place the Shrimp, Crab, Cheese, Mayonnaise, Celery, and Shallot in a bowl, then gently mix the ingredients together, trying not to mash it all together.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate while cooking the shells.

Cooking the Shells
Boil an adequate amount of water - approximately 6quarts, add salt, approx. 1/8 cup.
Add the shells to the boiling water, making sure they all become submerged quickly to ensure even cooking.
Gently stir the shells every so often, making sure they don't stick to the bottom.
To test for doneness: Pull out a shell, with the edge of a spoon or a knife blade snip off a piece of pasta and make certain that it's fully cooked, not “al dente”.

Stuffing the Shells
When the shells are fully cooked, drain them in a colander, and rinse in cold water, to stop the cooking process and to cool them to a comfortable working temperature.
Put the shells back into the pot used for cooking them, and add enough cold water to cover them half way, this keeps them moist while stuffing them.
Choose the best shells – some will have broken in the cooking process and there'll be some excess.
Remove a shell from the pot, and shake off excess water. Hold the shell open with one hand, and scoop about 1 tablespoon of your mixture into the shell. Form the shell into a natural shape and place on the plate.
When you’ve used up all of your stuffing mixture, cover the dish with plastic wrap to prevent them from sliding around and from drying out. Refrigerate until it’s time to serve them.

Tips
One annoying part about bringing a dish to a get together - is after it's over - remembering to retrieve your dish! I've lost some dishes that way! My solution - if it's not a really fancy occasion is to take a sturdy paper plate - the oval ones are my favorite. Cover it in aluminum foil and you have a semi fancy serving dish that's disposable. Placing another inverted dish on top, makes them ready to travel.

Put the leftover pasta in a baggie, later on, put pasta sauce over them and microwave, for a quick meal.

Clam Fritters

2010-04-18T20:25:00.000-07:00

Background
In my younger days I’d study the Tide’s Tables, when there was a low tide in the winter during daylight AND on one of my day’s off – I’d head to Tamale’s Bay near the Point Rey’s National Park to an area called Lawson’s Landing. I’d arrive early, sometimes with my crab nets to throw off the pier and fishing rods to catch whatever would bite. At the proper time my friend & I (or at times by myself) would hop in my kayak and as the tide went out – head to the emerging island(s) out in the bay, beach the kayak and dig for the famous “Horse-neck clams’ they were huge! Each clam weighed about 3 pounds and had a “neck” on it that could stretch about 3 feet – which meant the clam was 3 feet deep in the sand and mud. If you’ve ever dug a hole in the sand at the beach you know that you’d only get so deep before the hole collapsed in on itself. I had a 3’ x 16” piece of PVC pipe that I’d shove into the sand. Shovel sand out of it, push it down, and shovel some more – by time it was completely buried – I’d found my clam! The limit was 10, so on to the next one! By time the tide came back in I had 30 pounds of clams! LOTS of material to make all kinds of epicurean delights with – mostly a killer clam chowder and clam fritters! That was many years ago!
Recently my wife came home with a package of Razor Clams – thinking “They look cool, and Fred can probably make something yummy with them’. Well they stayed in the freezer for a little while, then came the time to cook them, my mind sifted thought the possibilities and I settled on an old recipe of mine – Clam Fritters – would these new clams prove suitable? – the verdict YES!

Recipe
Clam Fritters
I’ve only made these with Horse Neck clams and now Razor Clams (I can’t guarantee results with other species of clams)
I grind up the clam meat with a meat grinder attachment for my Kitchenaid, if you’re using a food processor – “pulse” it until you get a “rough chop” or if you don’t have a grinder or food processor, you can “mice” the clam meat to about 1/8” bits.
You’re looking for a 1:1 ratio of Clam meat to Cracker Crumbs
1 cup minced clam meat
1 cup cracker crumbs (crush them by hand in a bag – rough crush not “dust’)
1 egg
1 TBSP minced fresh Flat-leaf /Italian parsley (if you have to use dried ½ TSPB)
1 TBSP minced fresh ginger
1 TBSP minced fresh garlic
1 pinch salt (I like to use a “big grain’ salt like “Kosher” salt
1 pinch black pepper
Mix together to get a sticky mix – if it’s too lose add more cracker crumbs

Over a medium heat in a frying pan add enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the pan. When the oil is hot, form a golf ball size portion of the mixture – roll it into a ball then flatten it into about ½’ patty – drop into the oil and brown on both sides. Remove to a paper towel lined dish to drain. They are wonderful all alone but for variety, serve with dipping sauces of, Cocktail Sauce, Tartar Sauce, Sweet Chili Sauce, Teriyaki Sauce or a 1:1 mix of Mayo and flavored mustard (Wasabi, Dijon, Orange, Raspberry)
You can easily make these the day before and microwave or reheat in the oven, they freeze well up to a month.
Bon appetite!

-----------------------------
If you found the contents of this BLOG useful - any donation amount, will help contribute to the further development of this site - ALL donors will be redirected to a Thank You page where you can download a Free Electronic book "The Ultimate Chicken Wing Cook Book"

Asian Salmon Lettuce Wraps

2009-11-20T15:04:00.000-08:00

These make a great appetizer/hors d'oeuvres or even a lite main dish.

Asian Salmon Lettuce Wraps:
Ingredients
Butter Lettuce (1 or 2 heads)- you can expect to get 4-6 good sized leaves off each head to make each wrap.
1 Good Sized Carrot
1 Head Cabbage
Sesame Oil
Salad Oil/ Vegetable Oil
Sesame Seeds
Soy Sauce
Sweet Chili Sauce
Cucumber
Salt
Pepper
Butter
Olive Oil
Rice Wine Vinegar
Sugar
1 Med/Large Shallot
1 Piece of Salmon Fillet about 4-6" wide

Butter Lettuce Head
Finely sliced cabbage (cut the main vein out of the leafs and thinly slice it separately, stack the leaves, roll them tightly then thinly slice them)
Shredded carrot (for shredding - a julienne peeler makes short work of this task)
About a 4 to 1 ratio of Cabbage to carrot is good (1 cup cabbage 1/4 cup carrot)
If you like cuccumber - cut a chunk in 1/2 lengthwise, scoop out the seeds then cut the halves again into quarters and thinly slice them.

Asian Dressing
1/8 Cup Sesame Oil
1/8 Cup Salad Oil
2 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

Thinly slice the salmon meat Slicing it crosswise (knife running from tail to head instead of back to belly) holds it together a bit better. Slicing with the knife running back to belly is most common. Slice straight towards the skin then once the knife makes contact with the skin twist your wrist and slice the meat off the skin instead of all the way through the skin.

Make your salad by mixing Cabbage, Carrot, Cucumber, & dressing together in a bowl.

Preheat a shallow frying pan with 1/2 olive oil & 1/2 butter mixture - just enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
Dredge the pieces of salmon in seasoned flower (salt, pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika) and brown both sides. Place salmon pieces on a paper towel covered plate to drain. Add 1/2 Butter 1/2 Olive Oil mixture as needed.
When all of the salmon has been cooked and removed, Put 1/4 cup minced shallot in the pan, when the shallot turns translucent, add 1/4 cup of soy sauce and 1/4 cup Sweet Chili Sauce, when it begins to boil, turn the heat off and place in a bowl or gravy boat.

Assemble your wraps by placing a leaf of Butter Lettuce down on a plate, scoop some salad on top, then slices of salmon, topping it off with the sauce and a sprinkle of sesame seeds, fold and eat!

-------------------------------------

If you found the contents of this BLOG useful - any donation amount, will help contribute to the further development of this site - ALL donors will be redirected to a Thank You page where you can download a Free Electronic book "The Ultimate Chicken Wing Cook Book"

Hot Basil Chicken Stir Fry

2009-11-19T21:45:00.000-08:00

There was this little Chinese Restaurant in downtown Sacramento on K Street, that I used to stop in and grab this dish for lunch and go eat in the park. They went out of business. (I guess I didn't stop in often enough!)
I began to miss this dish, so I set out to recreate it! It took me SEVERAL tries and I'm not sure it's an exact duplicate of the original but I'm pleased with it - I hope you enjoy it!

Hot Basil Chicken:
This is a spicy dish and can vary in heat depending on the peppers - they can vary in heat from one to another.

6 Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs (buy them or remove the skin and bone yourself)
6 to 10 Leaves Fresh Basil
5 good sized Mushrooms
Vegetable Oil
Fish Sauce
Onion or Shallot
3 Jalapeno Peppers
White Rice

Start the Rice (Bring 1 1/2 Cups water to a boil, add 1 cup rice, cover the pan and turn the heat to low.)
Quarter the Mushrooms
Thinly slice 2 of the peppers into rounds (discard the tops), remove the seeds and veins from the 3rd pepper and coarsely chop.
Cut the chicken into 1" chunks

Heat oil in a large frying pan, when the oil is hot, add the chicken. When all of the chicken has turned opaque/gray-brown, add the peppers, mushrooms, onion (to taste). Now would be a good time to give your rice a stir with a clean spoon. Continue to stir on Med-High heat until the peppers all wilt. At this point take the basil leaves and tightly roll them lengthwise and slice the roll every 1/4 inch - fluff the basil ribbons then add them to the pan. If you cut the basil at the beginning of the dish, it will oxidize and turn black (bunch like a sliced apple left out in the open would turn brown) it's best to wait before slicing the Basil until the dish is ready. Once the basil is stirred in, add the fish sauce (most fish sauce comes in squirt bottle - so squirt it all over your dish generously) if the fish sauce doesn't have a squirt bottle - add 3 tablespoons to 1/4 cup - fish sauce is salty therefore you're adding a salt component to the chicken and the rice it's being served with.

Serve next to, or over the rice. Serves 2 or 3 people as a main dish.

How to Butterfly Fillet a Trout, Salmon, Kokanee, Char:

2009-09-13T22:54:00.000-07:00

Background

I grew up fishing Lake Ontario for Yellow Perch, Rock Bass, and Smallmouth Bass with my dad. When I was old enough to handle a knife, my Dad taught me how to clean my catch. Back then we cleaned them the traditional way by scaling them, removing the head and the entrails.

Later, someone taught my Dad how to fillet fish and he passed it on to me. The Butterfly Fillet method came about after years of filleting fish. After catching an especially fine example of a Rainbow Trout and wanting to honor my catch, as well as the people I planned on serving it to, with an over-the-top stuffing. Now I've Butterfly Filleted so often it's hard to clean fish any other way.

How to:

The Butterfly Fillet method works best on fish in the Trout, Salmon, Char family - it removes the meat from the fish in one piece, without removing the head, tail, or entrails. You end up with one virtually boneless piece of meat in about the same amount of time it would take you to clean one the traditional way.

Caring for your catch:

A good meal starts with a good product. If your fish hasn't been properly cared for the meal probably won't be as good as it could be. I live in California where the summer temperatures get over 100 and the surface temperature of the lakes can be like bath water. The cold water species we're discussing are fatty fish, which can spoil quickly. If I catch a fish from 100 feet deep where it's nice and cool, put it on a stringer and drag it behind a boat all day in 70+ degree water - isn't an ideal situation. By putting fish immediately on ice in the ice chest to keep it cool. Pour the ice in the sink and put the bag of fish on top of the ice and remove the fish one at a time to clean them then put the meat back on ice untill you ready to do something with them, will insure a fine meal.

Over-The-Top Fish Stuffing

You are going to have to gauge the quantity of the stuffing that you'll need.

For several smaller fish or one large (say 5#)

2 small cans of tiny shrimp - drained

2 small cans of Crab Meat - drained

1/2 to 1 Cup Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs

1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic

1 minced green Onion

2 chopped Mushrooms

2 tablespoons chopped Italian/Flat Leaf Parsley

1/4 Cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese cut into 1/4 cubes

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

On a large fish be sure to remove the pin bones (run your fingers from front to back, across the highest ridges of the meat to feel them) use tweesers or small needle nose pliers to pull them straight out. On smaller fish the pin bones are small enough to not be a choaking hazard and in most cases never noticed.

Put a layer of foil on a cookie sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Lay the fish on the foil. Salt & Pepper the inside of the fish. With your hands spread the stuffing across one half of the fish. More stuffing will fit in the belly cavity. Lay thin slices of cold butter on top of the stuffing. Fold the unstuffed half of the fish over the stuffed half. At this point you can see how well the stuffing fits. You can take some out or add more, pack some into the opening at the fish's back. Salt & pepper the top of the fish's skin and put thin slices of cold butter on top.

Bake at 350 - time is determined by the size of the fish smaller fish will take 20-30 minutes a large fish ill take 45min to 1 hour. Half way through I like to spoon the melted butter from the cookie sheet over the fish. I like my fish a bit on the dryer side so I pull it out when the skin is starting to brown and the exposed part of the meat is firm and slightly dry.

Presentation - visual presentation is part of the dining experience. On smaller fish a long thin spatula/icing spreader under the length of the fish can support it from cookie sheet to plate. On a larger fish lifting the foil from cookie sheet to serving platter then removing the foil in pieces works best. Now is a good time to remove the remaining fins, simply pull them out.

When carving a large fish it's best to use a serrated knife it cuts through dried skin better with minimum amount of distortion. Use a flat spatula pressed firmly against the end of the fish, then slice. Use the knife to help flop the slice onto the spatula, and serve. For young children and elderly - the portion of fish past the ribs to the tail is the safest section to serve if bones are a concern.