Pork Belly Anyone?

We made a trip to Jungle Jim's this weekend and I picked up a pork belly.  Like the name implies, it's the meat from the belly of the pig and it's very fatty.  I've never had it before, so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.  The recipe that I chose for the belly was one by Chef Anne Burrell,  Mustard Braised Pork Belly.  I think she's a very talented chef and I've made several of her dishes in the past.  Before I get into the recipe, the first thing you need to know about Pork Belly is that it has this really tough skin on it and it's very difficult to remove.  I Googled removing the skin and found a video on You Tube, but honestly, it wasn't very helpful.  I used 6 different knives trying to remove the skin and ended up butchering it pretty bad.  Anyway, if  you choose to do a pork belly definitely have your butcher remove the skin for you, you'll be glad that you did.  The good news about pork belly is that it's very inexpensive, only $10 for a 3 1/2 lb belly.
Chef Anne's recipe is very simple, but it will take you sometime.  You have to let it sit for 24 hours with a rub and the next day it will take you about 6 hours to braise.  The aroma in the kitchen and throughout the house was amazing and I was so excited about trying it.  So for the final step I put it under the broil for about 3 minutes to crisp up the fat layer.  It looked really yummy and smelled great.  But...it just oozed with fat.  The fat just coated my lips and the inside of my mouth.  Honestly, I've never experienced anything like it.  The meat under the fat layer was really tender, juicy and quite delicious.  But...it just oozed with fat.  I just don't think my palate is sophisticated enough for pork belly.  I'm glad that I experienced the pork belly, my next adventure will be foie gras.  Anyway, give pork belly a try and let me know what you think.

Happy New Year Pig and Peas

Traditionally in my family on New Year's Day my mom would make pulled pork, coleslaw and black eyed peas.  Supposedly if you consume pork and black eyed peas on New Year's Day you will be blessed with good fortune during the year.  I'm not sure if it's true, but I don't dare deviate from the tradition.  My dish today had 1/2 lb pulled pork (thawed), that I had  I pulled from the freezer that we had smoked back in the summer,  3 chorizo sausages (casing removed and broken into bite size pieces), 1 package of frozen black eyed peas, 1/2 of one red and green bell pepper chopped into small bite size pieces,  1 leek (cleaned well and sliced using only the white part, 3 cloves of garlic chopped, 1 tbsp of olive oil and S&P to taste.  I took a medium size dutch oven and heated my olive oil over med heat and added my veggies and cooked them until they were soft. I added the chorizo to the pot and let it brown, stirring frequently.  I added the peas and 2 cups of water to the pot and mixed it in, brought it to a boil and reduced the heat to med and cooked for about 15 minutes.  I added the smoked pulled pork and continued to simmer for another 10 minutes and seasoned with a little S&P.  I served this over brown rice and drizzled with a little Louisiana Habanero Hot Sauce.  Very simple, very yummy and can be served anytime of the year.  Enjoy!

Couscous with Italian Sausage

This dish is very similar to the Polenta dish I made a month or so ago, but I used the couscous instead.  Couscous is a rolled pasta that cooks very quickly by just adding boiling water to it.  I find that it's very versatile and can be used in many dishes.  I like to use it as a starch in Indian, Italian and Latin foods.  It's very common in Mediterranean and Moroccan dishes as well.  What I made tonight is very simple, quick, economical and yummy.  You will need 3 sweet Italian sausages (casing removed) and broken into bite size pieces, 1/2 of a red and green bell pepper med diced, 1/2 of a yellow onion med diced, 6 oz of button mushrooms thinly sliced, 4 garlic cloves chopped, 2 tbs of chopped flat leaf parsley, 2 tbs of olive oil, 1/4 - 1/2 C chicken broth, 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, S&P to taste,  parmigiano reggiano and couscous.  Add 2 tbs of the olive oil to med size skillet and heat over med heat.  Add all your vegetables and saute them, tossing them often for about 5-7 minutes and season with a little S&P.  Remove them from the skillet and add your sausage pieces and cook thru tossing periodically about 7-10 minutes.  While your sausage is cooking go ahead and cook your couscous following the directions on the package.  I made enough for 3 servings.  Add your vegetables back to the skillet with sausage add your chicken stock and red pepper flakes and let it simmer for about 5 minutes stirring occasionally.  Once it's finished, remove from heat.  Fluff your couscous with a fork and serve into bowls with the sausage mixture.  Grate some fresh parmigiano reggiano over top and sprinkle with parsley.  Bon Appetit!

Christmas Eve Treats

We are planning on spending Christmas Eve with my in laws and I thought I would bring a simple appetizer and dessert.  The appetizers are from the Pioneer Woman.  I first heard of the Pioneer Woman watching a Bobby Flay Throw Down episode.  Her name is Ree Drummond and she lives with her family on a ranch somewhere, she does a food blog and with her win on Throw Down she now has a show on the Food Network Channel.  Anyway, I found this recipe by Googling bacon appetizers and she came up.  The recipe looked yummy and easy, so I thought I would give these Holiday Bacon Appetizers a try.  All you need are some club crackers, thinly sliced bacon and grated parmesan cheese. This recipe is very simple and they taste great, they're crunchy, savory and easy to eat.  I mean who doesn't love bacon?  but be prepared for a 2 hour bake time, so give yourself some time.

I was going to go to the Cheesecake Factory to buy one of their signature cheesecakes, but I just couldn't bring myself to spend close to $60 on a cheesecake, plus gas, plus dealing with the holiday shoppers.  I'm really not a baker and by no means does this dessert even compare to a Cheesecake Factory Cheesecake, but it saved me some $$, gas and time.  These Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars are from the Food Network kitchen and are very easy.   All you need for this recipe is a package of cream cheese, 1/2 C sugar, 1 egg, 1/2 C shredded coconut, and a roll of Pillsbury chocolate chip cookies.  Please keep in mind that these taste nothing like chocolate chip cookies or cheesecake, so if you're looking for something a little bit more special, don't make these.

Candied Pecans are also a great holiday treat and are pretty easy to do as well.  What you'll need is 1/2 C of corn syrup, 1 tbsp of unsalted butter, 1 lb of pecan halves, 1/2 C granulated sugar, 1tsp of cayenne, and 1 tsp salt.  Preheat you oven to 350 and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a small sauce pan heat your butter and corn syrup until butter is melted and gently stir.  Place your pecans in a large bowl and pour the butter corn syrup mixture over the pecans and mix with your hands or large spoons to coat all the pecans.  You might want to wear latex gloves since the mixture is very sticky.  Pour the pecans on your cookie sheet and spread them out evenly.  Bake them for about 15 minutes.  While those are baking mix the granulated sugar cayenne, and salt in a small bowl. Remove the nuts from the oven and place them in a large bowl.  Sprinkle the sugar, cayenne and salt over the nuts and gently mix with your hands or large spoons, be sure to use those gloves again.  That's all there is too it,  let them cool and put them in a zip lock bag or any tightly sealed container.  These will store in a cool place for several months.  They are great over salads or just by themselves.  Enjoy!!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Beef Stroganoff

Hey!  I'm still here just so much has happened since my last post.  I have to say that "2011" hasn't been my best year,  but it could always  be worse I suppose.  No worries, I'm still cooking:>).  Tonight I made beef stroganoff from a Food Network Recipe.  I followed the recipe to a tee and you know what?  I don't like beef stroganoff.  I can't say that I had it before, so I really didn't know what to expect, but I don't like it. I don't think it was this particular recipe because I reviewed several and they were all pretty much the same.   I found it to be rather too boring and bland for my liking.  I like foods that add a punch and this just didn't do it for me.  Anyway, I'm sure that this dish is good eats for someone, but not me.  Oh, Will also thought it was just kind so-so.  Anyway, until next time Happy Holidays!  I'll be bringing a quick and easy appetizer and simple dessert next time, so stay tuned.

Bobby Flay Lasagna Kind Of

I had my heart on making Bobby Flays Lasagna last weekend, but I had to make modifications.  Have you ever tried to find actual beef and pork flanks with meat on them?  Good for you, because I called 4 different Kroger stores and the Whole Foods Market and nope, they didn't have them.  Needless to say I had to modify and I used 3 lbs of ground chuck and 2 lbs of ground pork.  If you have to resort to the ground meat then the first few steps of Bobby's recipe will need to be changed. I made my Bolognese by browning my pancetta in my large Le Creuset and removed it from the pan and then I sauteed my vegetables in the same pot with the pancetta fat.  After those softened I removed them from the pot and set aside.  I added the meat to the pot and let it brown. After the meat was browned I did drain a lot of the fat off  and then I added the wine, store bought stock, the vegetables and pancetta back into the pot,  and mixed everything in.  I crushed 2 28 cans of San Marzano tomatoes by hand and added those to the pot and stirred those in along with the herbs.  I added some S&P to taste.  BTW, if you make this Bolognese you won't need that 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes.  Anyway, I let the Bolognese cook for about 2 hours and in the meantime followed the recipe, but my last step before putting the lasagna together was the Bechamel sauce.  If the Bechamel sits too long it gets quite thick, so best to make last so that you can pour it over the layers.  Anyway, this recipe requires some time and has a few steps, so be prepared.  Obviously we couldn't eat it all, so we've been eating on this a good part of the week, but it's time to retire it.  I will freeze the leftovers and we can just pull them out of the freezer on those days when we don't have a lot of time to make dinner. Anyway, give it a try and let me know how it works out for you.  Until next time Good Eats!!! Oh, the picture doesn't quite show how it looks when you get ready to eat it.  When you serve it you will add the Bolognese over the top with freshly grated parmigiano reggiano.

Spicy City Chicken

I remember as a child that my mom would make something called City Chicken.  I don't really know how it was prepared.  I just know that I liked it.  This dish tonight is NOT what my mom used to make, but needless to say it was REALLY GOOD!  I found the Spicy City Chicken Recipe on the Food Network.  It's loaded with shallots, mushrooms, cilantro and jalapenos and has some nice acid with the addition of red wine vinegar. I followed the directions to a tee and I was very very pleasantly surprised.  FYI, if you make this dish there are a lot of steps and it does take some time, so if you don't have a least 1+ hours then I would save it for a weekend meal.  Try and let me know how it works out for you.  Bon Appetit!