About those Hot Dogs and Beans

My son shared two packages of New England Hot Dog buns with me.  He got them from his friends in Boston – When you grill the sides – it sure makes a difference in the taste.  Nothing like it.

Dog with New England Hot Dog bun

They are impossible to get here in Florida.  I froze a bag and a half and we ate the rest.  I need to save them as long as I can without making them taste bad from freezing.  You’ll probably see more posts about this because this bun is important.

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LaSpadas

From my other blog at:

http://sorrentolens.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/laspadas-original-hoagies/

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Eggplant Parmesan

Note: My Eggplant Parmesan is NOT a vegetarian meal. It is a wonderful blend of Italian meatballs, sausage, cheese, eggplant, and home made sauce.

4 Medium/Large Firm Eggplant

4 Eggs – beaten with a little water

3 cups Italian seasoned bread crumb

Kosher Salt

1 cup Olive Oil

1 cup Vegetable Oil

Left-over meatballs (4), left over Italian sausage (3), and about two cups of left over spaghetti sauce.

½ lb sliced provolone cheese

4 oz. of shredded mozzarella cheese

Peel the eggplant and slice them a little more than ¼ inch thick.

Lay the sliced eggplant out on a large platter and generously salt them with kosher salt. Layer the slice and salt them until all of them are sliced and salted. Let them set for about an hour. A lot of dark liquid will come out of the eggplant. Be sure and drain the liquid.

After an hour, rinse all of the eggplant under cold running water, and then pat them all dry.

In a medium bowl, beat 4 eggs with a tablespoon of water. Pour out 2 cups of seasoned bread crumbs onto a large plate. You may need to use more bread crumbs or eggs depending on the size of your eggplant.

Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

On a large sheet pan (it helps to have two pans) blend the olive oil and the vegetable oil.

Dip sliced eggplant in egg and then in the bread crumbs and place on the oiled sheet pan. Do this until the sheet pan is full. If you have another pan, do the same process.

Bake the eggplant until golden brown on both sides (about 10 minutes each side). When done, lay the fried eggplant on a large platter lined with paper towel to drain the excess oil. Put paper towel between layers of eggplant to ensure proper drain.

Repeat this until all of the eggplant has been fried and let them cool a bit.

In the meantime, using a fork or potato masher, break up the meatballs and sausage with some sauce. Then add the rest of the sauce and mix.

In 9 X 9 baking dish – spread some sauce on the bottom of the baking dish.

Line the pan with the first layer of eggplant. Next put down three slices of provolone cheese and a little of the shredded mozzarella cheese. Next, spoon on some of the meat/sauce mixture. Repeat these steps until the baking dish is full, or you’ve used up all of the eggplant. Top with any remaining sauce and cheese.

Bake –covered (I use a sheet of parchment paper covered with aluminum foil) for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

(ok, it’s not a perfect picture, I had to try some!!)

My family loves to make eggplant sandwiches using Portuguese Rolls. Sometimes I will cook angel hair pasta and top with a nice square of eggplant parmesan and extra sauce.

Enjoy. If you have questions, write me at dadcooks at reciperedux dot com.

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Dad’s Potato Salad

Dad’s Potato Salad

3 pounds red potatoes (skins on) cubed to about ½-3/4 inch
Kosher salt
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 Tablespoon of celery seed
Freshly ground black pepper
½ to ¾ cup chopped onion – any kind you like – yellow-red-sweet
6 Hard boiled eggs –3 of them sliced in quarters – the rest chopped
Shakes of paprika
Chopped Fresh Parsley

Put the potatoes in a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are barely tender when pierced with a knife. Emril calls this “fork tender”. Drain the potatoes in a very large bowl to cool to room temperature.

In another bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of black pepper, and the celery seed and set this aside.

Chop 3 of the hard boiled eggs and add to the cooled potatoes. Toss well, cover, and refrigerate. When cooled, add the dressing and mix thoroughly. Transfer to a serving bowl (nice for the table) and add the remaining eggs/quartered around the top of the salad. Shake on the paprika and sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley. Serve cold.

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Bad Experience at Cheesecake Factory

#1 – Went to a going away lunch today at the Cheesecake Factory in Winter Park Village with our team for one of our co-workers.  Had the Kobe Cheeseburger.  When you order medium, you get it pretty much raw on the inside.  I ate it.  I didn’t feel too good an hour later.

#2 – Waited for our server to give us fill-up on our drinks (longer than usual).  She had one of the other wait persons take our ice tea glasses.  He gathered them up, took them away and then brought them back filled with the original straws.  Only the one I got back was someone else’s – but couldn’t be sure who’s.  Not a good system.  They should have filled our glasses at the table.

Lunch – Kobe cheese burger with fries $13.95, green ice tea $2.95 + 18% tip = $21.04.  I won’t be back for lunch.

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Stuffed Cabbage and Perogies

You will need to set aside some time to make this recipe. I usually start in the morning so that this can be for supper. Other times I’ve started this at night, and let it cook all night. Yup… the house smell like cabbage but it smells like heaven!!

large head cabbage or two medium (save the scraps)

1 pound ground chuck

1 pound of ground pork

1/2 cup rice instant rice cooked to yield one cup (a little more if you like)

1 medium onion chopped very fine

2 stalks of celery chopped very fine

2 garlic cloves chopped very fine

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes

3 or 4 bay leaves

5 slices of bacon

Cut the core out from the bottom of the cabbage; Place into a very large kettle of boiling water and cook the cabbage pulling off the leaves every 4 minutes or so. Once you have all of the leaves off, with a small knife, cut the large stem flat so that the cabbage leaf is the same thickness all the way down. Stack all of your leaves and let them cool.

Save all of the scraps of cabbage and toss them into the bottom of the large pot that you are going to cook your cabbage rolls in. This is in case any should scald or burn, you’ll only burn the scraps and not the cabbage rolls. But, you will only cook these on low heat, so burning should not be a problem if you pay attention.

Combine evenly the ground chuck, ground pork and the cooked rice. Add the garlic, onion, celery, salt and pepper and blend all of this with your hands so that it is completely mixed together. Scoop the meat mixture into the stem end of the cabbage leaf – lay it on the counter and roll up the leaf from the bottom while tucking in the sides until sealed. By trimming that think stem, you’ve made it easier to roll the leaves and not have to rely on toothpicks to hold the rolls together. (You’ll notice later when the rolls have been cooked that they hold nice and tight). Fill all of the leaves in a like manner. YES – you are filling the leaves with the raw meat mixture – don’t worry, they will cook just fine – and the taste will be magnificent.

In bottom of large pot or dutch-oven, place the cabbage scraps. Arrange layers of cabbage rolls, seam side down – repeat til the pot is full. Pour in the crushed tomatoes then shake the pot so that the tomato liquid settles throughout. Lay on the strips of bacon and toss in the bay leaves. Bring the pot to a slow simmer and keep covered the entire time you are cooking. Once the pot simmers, you will need to cook this on low heat for at least 4 hours. Make sure that the liquid bubbles very slowly. Good food takes time. That’s why your Bobcha was always hanging out in the kitchen… the golomkie (or goo-um-key) took most of the day.

Make a pot of mashed potatoes or perogies and serve with your stuffed cabbage. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with marble rye or pumpernickel bread and butter. ENJOY!

Perogies

If you choose Mr & Mrs T’s Perogies, I boil them as directed on the package. Then I fry them in 3 tablespoons of butter and one large onion chopped. Fry until the perogies are brown and the onions are caramelized and/or crisp. Delish!!!!

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Mac and Cheese – with a twist

I made a terrific macaroni and cheese – this time I just kind of threw it together but I added a little Dijon mustard.  I also used two cheeses – Velveeta and Cabot Sharp White Cheddar.

8oz. elbow macaroni
2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
8oz.  grated sharp cheddar
6oz. cubed Velveeta Cheese
1 cup bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and butter a 9×9 baking dish.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the macaroni and cook, stirring occasionally until it is almost tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, set aside and cover to keep warm.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter, add the flour and stir quickly to make a paste – as soon as it forms add the milk a little bit at a time, so that it all combines without lumps.

Add the salt, black pepper, nutmeg, and Dijon mustard and whisk to combine completely – simmer slowly until it makes a sauce that will evenly coat the back of a wooden spoon.  

Course grate the cheddar cheese and cube the Velveeta and add both to the sauce and blend completely.  Add the cheese sauce to the pot of macaroni and stir until all is combined evenly – then transfer to the buttered baking dish.  Smooth it out, then sprinkle the top with seasoned bread crumbs.

Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until it bubbles from the sides and the bread crumbs get a bit toasty. 

Serve warm.   This tasted even better the next two days, heated up in the microwave for a couple of minutes.

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Mac and Cheese or Cheese and Mac

Chef Joe’s Baked Macaroni and Cheese Recipe courtesy Chef Joe Randall Show: The Best Of Episode: Prix Fixe

Kosher salt 2 cups elbow macaroni 2 eggs, beaten 2 cups evaporated milk 1/2 cup butter, melted 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 2-1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar 1 cup bread crumbs 1 teaspoon paprika 1/4 cup grated ParmesanPreheat the oven to 350 degrees F.Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the macaroni and cook, stirring occasionally until it is almost tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water, and set aside.In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the milk, 1/4 cup melted butter, the cayenne pepper, and a teaspoon of salt.Put half the macaroni into a buttered 2-quart casserole and top with half the cheddar cheese. Repeat. Pour the milk mixture over the macaroni and cheese.In a small bowl, mix the bread crumbs with the paprika, the remaining butter, and the Parmesan. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the macaroni and bake until brown and bubbly, 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm.

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Meatless Pizzas

We had company from Cincinnati last night and a big request for pizza. Since we follow the dictate of – no meat of Fridays during Lent, I made three excellent meat-less pizzas.

1. Caramelized Sweet Onion and Baby Bella mushrooms with homemade pizza sauce and provolone cheese – got rave reviews on that one.

2. Greek Pizza – with the obvious – homemade pizza sauce, pre-cooked spinach w/garlic, chopped Kalamata Olives (pitted), fried eggplant, and Feta cheese.

3. Pepper Pizza – Slivers of Red and Green Bell Peppers with rings of Cubanelle Peppers – homemade sauce, provolone cheese as well.

I always dust the pizza (no matter what the toppings are) with garlic powder and dried oregano before putting them in the oven at 400 (for 25 minutes).

Try these… they were a real hit last night.

Sorry I don’t have any photos – I was so busy serving – and I might have had too much wine 😉

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Best Cornbread Ever!

We had chili earlier in the week and the leftovers last night. Didn’t have any good crusty bread to have with it, so I worked on this cornbread recipe. I might not be the healthiest of recipes, but if you think of “moderation” then it will taste all the better.

ENJOY

THEEEE Best Cornbread Ever!

1 stick unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups cornmeal
2/3 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 15oz can of sweet kernel corn – drained
Bacon grease

Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan or medium cast iron frying pan with bacon grease.

In a medium sized glass bowl, melt butter in microwave at high for 45 seconds and let this cool a bit – then whisk in the buttermilk and eggs.

Mix all of the dry ingredients in large bowl. Blend in wet mixture and the can of corn. Pour this into the prepared pan or frying pan.

Bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

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Cincinnati Chili

My daughter asked me for the Cincinnati Chili recipe that I usually make. This is supposed to be “Empress Style” i.e. Empress Chili Parlor. This was the second request in a week (my son asked for it last weekend) – so I figured I’d post it today.

This is very nice on a winter Saturday – Enjoy

Cincinnati Chili (Empress

2 lbs 93% lean ground beef (or ground sirloin)

2 large onions chopped

3 large garlic cloves chopped

1 tbsp paprika

2 tbsp Chili powder

2 tbsp Ground cumin

2 tbsp Ground allspice

2 tbsp Ground cinnamon

1 tsp black pepper

3 tbsp powdered cocoa

2 tbsp ground red pepper (use less if you want it less HOT)

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp of red wine vinegar

3 or 4 bay leaves

1 small can tomato paste

1 small can of tomato sauce

==========================

1 lb. Package of spaghetti

grated sharp cheddar cheese

One large WHITE onion chopped

Oyster crackers (optional)

In a large pot, pour in 11/2 quarts of water. Add the tomato paste and the can of tomato sauce. Stir this around until all the paste is dissolved.

Add the chopped garlic.

Add the ground sirloin my dropping small chucks of the meat into the liquid (that’s right – it goes in raw). Stir this around so that it is a loose mixture of liquid and meat (gross !!)

Add the two chopped onions, stir, and then add in all the rest of the ingredients. The entire mixture should be somewhat loose when you start and then will thicken as it cooks. If it seems to thick to begin with add more water.

Let this simmer on low or about three hours or until thicker. It smells great the entire time its cooking!! If it gets too thick and you don’t keep an eye on it, it will burn and you’ll have to throw it out! – so be careful dammit !

Cook pasta til done and drain. Place pasta on plates or pasta bowls and cover with Cincinnati Chili. Top with 1) dice white onions, sharp cheddar cheese, hot sauce (optional). Serve with oyster crackers is you want to.

Chili Pups………In a hot dog bun – – – spread a little yellow mustard into the bun, scoop in some Cincinnati Chili, top with onions, cheddar cheese, hot sauce. YUMMMMM.

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Saturday Night Hot Dogs and Beans

Ok, it ain’t Saturday night yet!  But I got this recipe for SATURDAY NIGHT BAKED BEAN SUPPER from the Cape Cod Today website  (scroll about half way down and you’ll find it).

The beans turned out swell!  I can probably save some of it when Saturday actually comes around.

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Five Guys – Uptown Altamonte

 

I heard about Five Guys in Altamonte Springs, FL from my son.  He thought they had some pretty good burgers and fries, so I decided to give it a try.

 

I got the bacon cheeseburger (all the way) with regular fries and a soft drink. 

Cost me $10.03 with tax.

 

All the meals come in a brown paper bag whether you are eating in or taking it out.  The longer you keep the fries (fried in peanut oil) in the paper bag, the paper bag gets greasier and greasier.  I saw at least three people in their eighties in this store – though I’m not sure what that means.  This relatively new store, which is large in square feet, was about half full when I left at 12:00 noon.  They had a pretty good crowd.

 

The burger was excellent.  The fries were so-so.  I’d go back, but I’d curb my spending and just go for the cheeseburger and soft drink.  Considering a five-day work week – 10 bucks is way too much to spend for lunch.

 

 

 

 

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Meatballs

 

Meatballs

 

I made meatballs today, but this time I just kind of threw it together. Here’s what I used

 

2 lb ground chuck

4 links of sweet Italian sausage (meat pulled from the casing)

Six slices of Pepperidge Farm white bread crumbled (rubbing bread in hands to crumble)

1 cup of seasoned bread crumbs

Sprinkling of milk

3 cloves garlic chopped

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

½ medium onion chopped

1/3 of a large green pepper chopped (fine)

2 eggs beaten

Couple of shakes of extra virgin olive oil

 

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried savory

¼ tsp ground red pepper

¼ tsp ground paprika

1 tbsp fennel seed

 

In a very large working bowl combine the ground chuck and the sausage and blend the two with your hands. Add the bread that has been moistened with sprinkling of milk. Add in all of the rest of the ingredients in the order listed. Add a little water to the whole mixture and a few shakes of olive oil.

 

My mother-in-law always added fennel seed to her meatballs. She thought it was great for Italian Sausage, it should be good for meatballs —- and it is… my family loves them that way. Try it.

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll the meatballs and put them in baking dishes and add a little water to the dishes before putting them into the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the meat is fully cooked. They will cook some more when you add them to your sauce pot later.

=Dad

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Red Beans and Rice with Sausage

I had a request for to post my recipe for Louisiana Red Beans and Rice. Here it is. Enjoy.

Louisiana Red Beans and Rice with Sausage

1 pound of dried red kidney beans
1 pound smoked link sausage halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices OR hot Italian sausage- cooked and cut into pieces,
1 large onion, chopped
2 pale-green inner celery ribs (with leaves), chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced, or to taste
6 cups water OR 2 cans of chicken broth – add more if needed
4 bay leaves
1 tablespoon dried thyme, crumbled
2 teaspoons dried oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoon Tabasco
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

Serve over white rice

In a bowl soak beans in water to cover by 2 inches overnight. In a 6-quart heavy kettle combine all ingredients except 1/2 pound sausage. Bring mixture to a boil using 2 cans of chicken broth (or water if you don’t have broth) and simmer, covered, over moderate heat 1 ½ to 2 hours. Remove lid and cook mixture at a bare simmer 1 hour more, adding more liquid if mixture is too thick.

Remove 1 cup bean mixture and mash into a paste with a potato masher. Stir bean paste and remaining 1/2 pound sausage into bean mixture and simmer 5 minutes.

Serve with white rice.

 

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