Magic Sauce

It won’t get you very high, but it sure will make nearly everything you put it on taste exponentially better…like magic. This adaption of Melissa Clark’s Peruvian roast chicken sauce is one of the best things I’ve come across in a long time, and it’s just a matter of throwing everything into your food processor and pushing the button.

The ingredients include a bunch of cilantro including the stems, a quarter cup of crumbled feta cheese, two seeded jalapenos, a garlic clove, the juice from half a lime, half a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, a teaspoon of chili garlic paste, half a teaspoon of honey, half a teaspoon of ground cumin, and ¾ of a teaspoon of fine salt. No worries, there are lots of room for errors if you measure like I do.

Chop everything up into small pieces, put in the processor, then drizzle in a half a cup of olive oil while it’s running until you get a smooth sauce. Quickly smother your chicken, pork, beef, fish, veggies, or grains with lots of it.

Lo Mein

Like me, I’m sure you’re preoccupied with what to cook for Chinese New Year…the year of the pig. Let me tell you, there’s lots to love about this lo mein, not only is it quick and easy, but you can include pork, chicken, or just about any vegetables you happen to have in the fridge. And it’s really flavorful.

For the sauce, stir together a third of a cup of fish sauce, a quarter cup of maple syrup, a splash of vegetable oil, three minced garlic cloves, a tablespoon of Sriracha, and a few shakes of salt and black pepper. If you’re including meat, slice thinly and toss with a couple of tablespoons of the sauce in a separate bowl.

While you boil your lo mein noodles, or thin spaghetti, heat a large pan over high heat and cook the meat for a few of minutes until barely cooked through, then set aside. In the same pan, saute some sliced carrots, scallions, bok choy, kale, mushrooms, or any other veggies of your choice, add more vegetable oil if necessary.

Once tender, scrape them into a large bowl along with the sauce, the juice of two limes, the drained noodles, and the cooked meat. Toss well, and serve with Sriracha.

Crispy Cheddar Bacon Potato Melt

Crispy is the key word here, top and bottom. Pierce some baking potatoes with a fork, place in a roasting dish, and bake at 450 until they’re soft in the middle. Figure about one to one and a half potatoes per person. While they’re cooking, dice up some sliced bacon and fry until barely crisp in a large pan over medium heat, then set aside.

Once soft, smash the potatoes flat in the roasting dish with a potato masher then liberally drizzle them with extra virgin olive oil and a generous topping of kosher salt. Turn the oven up to 500 and cook for another twenty to thirty minutes, you want them starting to brown on the top and crispy on the bottom, without burning.

For the final step, turn down the oven to 350 and smother the potatoes with shredded cheddar. Top with the cooked bacon and cook for another fifteen minutes or until the cheese has melted completely.

Give ‘em a try for this weekend’s NFL playoff games, then again for Super Bowl…they’re that good.

Creamed Scallops on Toast

Why procrastinate any long on giving up your New Year’s resolutions? Do it now, and bring on the heavy cream, you won’t regret it…this scallop toast is well worth it. In a hot pan, quickly sear some bay, or quartered sea scallops, then set aside. Turn down the heat to medium, add some butter along with some sliced mushrooms, a large diced shallot, some minced garlic, and an overly generous amount of black pepper. Sauté for about five minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft and the shallots translucent.

After getting your toast started, add enough heavy cream to the pan, and a bit of clam stock if you have it, to barely cover the mushrooms. Cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Stir in the scallops, leave on the heat for another minute, salt to taste, then serve over the toast with some chopped parsley.

Salmon Sashimi with Jalapeno

You probably haven’t considered serving salmon sashimi, but you should. It makes any gathering a bit more special, and it comes together very quickly. The key is obviously to buy the freshest salmon you can find, and you want a piece that’s closer to the belly end of the fillet then the tail. Also, have your fishmonger take the skin off for you, a quarter pound will be plenty for two to three people.

With a long sharp knife, slice the entire piece in half along the spine, then into 1/8” to ¼” thick slices. For the jalapeno, slice the thinnest slices possible from the center of the pepper. I also like to serve them with a little sauce, either puddled on the plate or on the side. For that, simple stir some freshly grated ginger into some soy sauce.

To serve, gently place a single slice of jalapeno on each piece of salmon. If you’re adverse to jalapeno, you can also layer the salmon in a small dish with a splash of your very best extra virgin olive oil and some flakey salt. No need for soy sauce in this case.

Happy 2019!

Shrimp and Prosciutto

Prosciutto wrapped shrimp is one of those things I think of as a wedding or catered party appetizer. But why bother to wrap them, it’s a pain in the butt. And, while it’s a great combination, especially for the holidays, when you cook them wrapped neither the prosciutto or the shrimp comes out perfect. Let’s do it the easy way, cook them right, and make it the main course.

Tear the prosciutto slices into bite sized pieces and sauté over medium heat with a little bit of olive oil. If you like them crispy, let them go longer, if not, pull them after a couple of minutes and set aside. Add some more olive oil to the pan and stir in some chopped scallions and peeled shrimp.

Toss frequently until the shrimp are nearly cooked through, then stir in the cooked prosciutto and a minced garlic clove. Leave on the heat for another minute, hit it with a healthy squeeze of fresh lemon juice, then slide onto a serving dish. Garnish with some grated parmesan, chopped basil, and serve immediately.

Applesauce

It’s world latke week, and what’s a latke without applesauce and sour cream. So, as long as you’re making the effort to grate all those potatoes and onions, you might as well throw a few apples in a pot to make your own applesauce.

In keeping with my philosophy of less time at the stove and more time at the table, as far as I can tell, there’s no need to peel the apples. Simply cube four apples, any variety works fine, and combine in a small pot with a half a cup of apple cider, a half a teaspoon of cinnamon, and the juice from a third of a lemon. No need for any added sugar, the cider does it all.

Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for twenty minutes stirring occasionally. Add more cider if necessary. Happy Latkes!

Garlic Arugula Bean Dip

Friends dropping by in twenty minutes? No worries, your food processor will do all the work. Peel a couple of garlic cloves and process until minced along with a dash or two of salt. Add a can of drained white beans and a large handful of arugula, then pulse until smooth with enough extra virgin olive oil to reach the desired consistency.

If you don’t have any arugula, substitute a few anchovy fillets, or some kalamata olives. Smoked paprika, rosemary, or hot sauce would also make for a tasty dip. And if you have more than twenty minutes, serve with some grilled slices of a local baguette.

Cod in Ginger Broth

After Thanksgiving, and before the holiday party season starts, give this delicate poached cod a try for a bit of a cleanse. Heat some vegetable oil in a small pot or straight sided sauté pan over medium heat, add a finely chopped onion and cook for a few minutes. Turn the heat to low and add a couple of teaspoons of freshly grated ginger, and a minced garlic clove.

After a couple of minutes, add three cups of miso or vegetable stock and a splash of soy sauce. Once it starts to simmer, add some thinly sliced shitake mushrooms, chopped spinach or bok choy, and scallion. After a couple of minutes, carefully lower the cod fillets into the broth, cover, and cook until the fish is cooked through, seven to ten minutes depending on their thickness.

Crispy Turnips

There’s so much I love about these turnips, and best of all, they can be pre-cooked the day before…perfect for freeing up your oven for that Thanksgiving turkey. Peel and cube your turnips and toss with enough olive oil to lightly coat. Salt, and roast in a 350 oven until barely fork tender. If you’re preparing the day before, cool, and store in an airtight container in the fridge.

About twenty minutes before serving, heat some turkey fat in a heavy pan over medium high heat and stir in the cubed turnips. Toss every few minutes or so, you don’t want them to burn, but you want them crispy on as many sides as possible. When you’re ready to serve, spoon them into a bowl and toss with some thyme, sage, or parsley, and salt to taste.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Cauliflower with Mint, lemon, and Chili

When thinking about Thanksgiving dinner, there are certain things you can’t mess with, like the turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and gravy. But when it comes to the vegetables, I say, the heck with tradition….is creamed spinach really necessary?

This cauliflower dish is not only refreshingly cleansing, but it doesn’t take up any space in the oven. And you can prep it the day before by breaking the cauliflower up into small florettes, chopping the mint, squeezing the lemon juice, and storing them separately in Tupperware in the fridge.

Ten minutes before you’re going to sit down, steam the cauliflower until fork tender. Immediately drain, then toss in a large bowl with some extra virgin olive, lemon juice, chopped mint, and some red pepper flakes. Salt to taste.

Potato Celeriac Soup

November! It’s a tough month to embrace, but there isn’t a better time for potatoes, celeriac, apples, or soup. The quantities aren’t critical, but more or less equal quantities of potatoes and celeriac are a safe bet. Peel and cube the celeriac, then cube the potatoes, no need to peel them.

Sauté some chopped onion, shallots, or leeks in a large soup pot for five minutes. Add the celeriac and potatoes along with a cut up unpeeled apple, and a few chopped garlic cloves. Stir together, then after a couple of minutes add enough chicken or vegetable stock to cover the vegetables by at least an inch.

Bring to a boil then simmer for forty five minutes to an hour, or until the celeriac is very tender. Once cool enough puree with a stick blender, or in batches in a food processor, until smooth. Return to the pot, reheat, then salt and pepper to taste.

If you’re pondering your Thanksgiving menu, this one should be in the running.