Monday, February 28, 2011

Talapia

Fish is something that everyone does differently, I prefer to go as healthy as possible when cooking such good food.

What you'll need:
(Recipe based on 6 person dinner)

Talapia (2 pieces for every 1 person)
2 lemons
Pepper
Sea salt
olive oil

Zest both lemons, set aside. Juice and seed both lemons, set juice aside. Heat oven to 375. While oven is preheating...rub a small amount of olive oil on a large cookie sheet (enough oil for the fish to not stick...you can use PAM or whatever spray you like too...no butter, it burns) rinse fish in cold water, pat dry. Once fish is on cookie sheet, evenly pour lemon juice over fish. Sprinkle about 1 tsp of black pepper evenly over fish, then sprinkle lemon zest over fish evenly. You can put a small amount of salt on the fish, but I don't until after cooking. Bake in oven for @ 10-15 min. Serve with salad and rice.

Pulled Pork

What you'll need:

1 pork roast (I prefer butt roast, but anything is fine)
2 cans mild green chiles
1 bay leaf
BBQ sauce(s) of choice
buns
2 tsp sea salt
3 tbsp red wine vinegar


In a slow cooker, place pork roast, chiles, salt and bay leaf. Put enough water to just cover the roast. Cook for 8 hours. With 2 forks, pull roast out of slow cooker, shred meat apart and put in a bowl. Discard fat. Toss meat with vinegar, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve on a bun with BBQ sauce. Easy, and people will think you are a genius.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Mom's Transcontinental Potato Salad

This is a mix of German potato salad and American potato salad...and man is it delish!

12 red potatoes
1/2 lb bacon, cooked crispy and smashed to crumbs
1/2 purple onion, minced
3/4 c mayo (please use Best Foods)
4 tsp red wine vinegar

boil potatoes, skin on, cool. Cut potatoes into large cubes, place in bowl with bacon, onion, mayo and vinegar. While mixing add salt and pepper to taste. It is very simple, but very good. Great as a side to burgers or BBQ chicken.

Chicken Soup

Chicken soup can be made so many ways with so many twists on it. Everything is according to what you like...

What you'll need...

CHICKEN: a whole chicken, a package of thighs, or rotisserie bird from the grocery store. Skinless doesn't work that great for soup, the fat gives it flavor and has medicinal enzymes that work with your immune system a.k.a Jewish penicillin.

1 can stewed diced tomatoes
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bulb roasted garlic (chop the top off the bulb, wrap in tin foil, stick in 375 degree oven 40 min)
1 lemon, quartered
1 heart of celery with tops, chopped
1 bunch of cilantro *or* 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 diced jalapeno (don't worry about spice, it boils out) *or* 6-8 fresh basil leaves
2 handfuls of fresh spinach
1/2 cup frozen white corn
1/2 cup chopped green beans
1/4 cup frozen peas
3 tbsp coarse sea salt
1-2 tsp black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 carrot diced

In a large soup pot boil the chicken until fully cooked. Remove chicken from pot, placing the bird in the fridge to cool. In the boiling pot, add onions, squeeze 2 quarters of lemon juice (take the seeds out before), squeeze the garlic from the bulb (comes out in a paste...make sure there are no peels), add celery, bay leaves, spinach, salt, pepper, peas, corn...well...add everything else!
Once the meat is cooled, shred it from the bone with a fork. throw away fat and bones. Add meat to boiling pot. Turn heat down, simmer for 40 min. Add the rest of the lemon juice right before serving. Serve hot with either fresh cilantro sprinkled on top or rosemary. I like to serve with a seeded baguette.

Pot Roast (slowcooker)

All recipes based on serving 6 people...adjust accordingly (please don't make me do math)


What you'll need...

3-4 lb beef roast with a smaller amount of fat marbled through meat
1 medium size yellow onion chopped coarse
2 large potatoes cubed, skin on
2 carrots split in half lengthwise and chopped (or 1/2 bag of baby carrots)
2 bay leaves (a must)
1/2 tsp coarse ground black pepper
1 tbsp coarse sea salt

Rinse roast in cold water, pat dry with paper towels. Place roast in 8 qt slow cooker, place onions, potatoes, carrots, salt, pepper and bay leaves. Fill slow cooker 3/4 full with water, turn on high. Cook for 6-7 hours. Serve hot with biscuits (recipe below) or Jiffy cornbread. Easy as pie, cheap as heck...but your kids will have full tummys.

Biscuits

2 cups flour (UNBLEACHED)
1/2 tsp sea slat
4 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar (brown sugar is good too)
1/2 cup butter or shortening (butter is better)
2/3 cup of milk

Preheat oven to 425.
Put all dry ingerdients into bowl, stir. Cut in softened butter or shortening, stir until it looks like a coarse meal, add milk, stir until there is a ball around the fork. Turn the ball onto a lightly floured surface, knead a few times, roll out. Use a round cookie cutter or juice glass to cut out biscuits. Place on a greased cookie sheet, make sure they are touching eachother. Bake for 15-20 min. These are sooooooooooooooooooooo good! They are awesome with homemade jam too!