BBQ Chicken Pizza on a work day

In our house, Fridays usually mean pizza — rarely ordered in, mostly tasty frozen ones from Costco. But even that gets old after a while. I've been putting off making pizza on the barbecue because my fear of yeast doughs is hard to get over. But it was time to get over myself already. I'd had several great successes under my belt, after all.

And besides, I found a great recipe for a pizza I could bake on the grill using my trusty pizza stone! This easy recipe for BBQ Chicken Pizza on the Grill is from on of my foodblogs.com blogs called You Made That? Because everything is already cooked except the crust, 20 minutes at about 300°F is enough time to melt the cheese, without burning the crust. My previous pizzas have been directly on a much hotter grill, with 3 minutes for the dough  on 1 side, flipping and then frantically putting all the toppings onto the pizza, before baking another 3 minutes. It's fun, but tense and an extra set of hands is helpful, to say the least.

One small thing: it was an extremely busy day last Friday. Work and meetings most of the day, but no excuses. I started the dough at about 12:30 (I know, way early, but I had a teleconference right at the optimal time and this was my only chance to start it.).

I love that this recipe calls for a cup of whole wheat flour. And I am now sold on using my stand mixer for yeast doughs! Call me Captain Hooked!

I heated the mixing bowl with warm water and tested the water with a thermometer to 110°F, covered with plastic and put the dough to rise in the oven with the light on, so it worked perfectly.

I don't know if it's because my dough for a couple of hours before I formed the crust, or that this is an especially deep crust pizza, but I ended up cutting the dough ball in half. I now have enough crust for another pie waiting in the freezer. Love when that happens.

I finally formed the crust before a quick trip to the grocery store for finishing ingredients and another meeting. This picture above is actually after the crust had risen yet again! I took my marble rolling pin to take out all the bubbles. I think yeast dough and I are now on friendly terms...

Finally the pie was ready to go. Hubby decided that he would like to cook the pizza himself, so this poor pie had to wait until he was finished cutting the lawn.

Finally about 5-1/2 hours after I started it, this beauty went onto the grill. Within a few minutes it had puffed up again! Oh well, although I prefer thinner crust pizza, c'est la vie!

Ta dah! An amazing way to end a busy week. Although I followed this recipe pretty closely, I did put at least double the amount of chicken and onions on this pie, but I wish I had also doubled the barbecue sauce. However, a bit of sauce on the side remedied that.

Another wee glitch (and I'm thinking again because it stayed on the stone so long) is that some of crust stuck to the stone. Next time I plan to sprinkle cornmeal onto the stone before placing the crust on top. Not to mention finishing up the pie in a timely fashion!

I think next time I would use more barbecue sauce (the recipe below reflects this change) and might even add some to the onions as they finish caramelizing. I think it would be spectacular! In Suzanne's youmadethat? blog posting she mentions if you don't have time to rise the dough it makes a less puffy crust, so I might try that next time I made this dough. In the meantime I have another crust in the freezer. I wonder how freezing affects it? Should be interesting...

I ate this yummy pizza with a beer the first night and a glass of white the next. I think my next pizza on the grill night will be with a Mediterranean-style pizza, because I'm all about the glass of red with my slice. Mmmm... can't wait!

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BBQ Chicken Pizza on the Grill From: You Made That? http://www.you-made-that.com/bbq-chicken-pizza-on-the-grill/
Makes 8 slices

1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp yeast
1-1/2 tsp salt
2 cups warm water (110°F)
4 to 5 cups all-purpose flour (you can also substitute 1 cup whole wheat flour)
1 tbsp olive oil

In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, mix the warm water, sugar and yeast together; let stand for about 5 minutes until yeast starts to foam.

Add oil, salt and 4 cups of flour; using the bread hook on your mixer, knead on low until the dough no longer sticks, (if dough is sticky, add flour 1/4 cup at a time and continue kneading until it isn’t sticky). Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise until doubled, about 1 hour. (If you don’t have time to allow the to dough rise, you can continue from here. The dough will not be as airy and light, but it still works well.)

When the dough has doubled (about 1 hour) punch it down, scraping it out of the mixing bowl and onto a floured surface. Cut the dough in half and freeze the remainder for another crust (or make two pizzas by doubling the ingredients below). Shape the remaining dough into a ball and begin to roll the dough into a circular shape, turning dough so that it doesn’t stick to the counter. Place the dough onto the desired pan, spraying it with cooking spray if using a metal pan, or sprinkling with cornmeal if using a pizza stone. Prick the pizza dough thoroughly to prevent air bubbles from forming during baking.

3/4 cup barbecue sauce of your choice
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded Colby, Jack or Cheddar cheese
1 large red onion sliced thin and cooked on low heat until caramelized
1 cup chopped chicken (use leftovers or a rotisserie chicken)
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Spread BBQ sauce on dough; top with Parmesan cheese, chicken, onions; bacon and Colby Jack. Put the pizza on the pre-heated grill at about 300°F; close lid and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese is melted.

Chicken Caesar Burgers: the ultimate quick summer barbecue

These are probably my all-time favourite homemade burgers. Over the years I've kept adapting so now the recipe includes pretty much all the ingredients in a caesar salad — inside a toasted bun! Loads of garlic, plenty of flavour, very simple to make. In a word: YUM!

Since ground chicken has virtually no fat, the addition of the eggs and all the other ingredients, helps them stick together without crumbling. My last big improvement was the croutons, which helped the uncooked patties from being too liquidy — and is yet another ingredient in a Caesar salad. You could certainly use a cup of oatmeal or bread crumbs if you prefer. I would have added cooked bacon (I don't make my Caesar salad with bacon, but it's growing on me), but I didn't have any. Next time for sure!

I made a triple batch so we would have enough to get through barbecue season, or an impromptu dinner party.

Maybe what I consider to be a burger worth eating is a little larger, but I only got 14 patties, not 18. It's at times like this I wish I had one of those burger patty forming thingys.

For best flavour, don't skip the anchovies. It's worth it. I generally use the paste because I'm a little freaked out by the look and thought of handling anchovies, but for a larger batch I used the food processor to purée them into paste.

No matter that I even forgot to add the specially purchased lettuce before taking the picture — this is one damned tasty burger!

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Chicken Caesar Burgers

Serves 6

I adapted this recipe to include all the ingredients of a Caesar salad with chicken — served on a bun! Perfect topped with garlic mayonnaise, Dijon mustard and romaine lettuce.

1-1/4 lb lean ground chicken
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano (or parmesan) cheese
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp anchovy paste
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 egg, beaten
2 cups croutons, in small pieces
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 tsp pepper
4 kaiser rolls, brushed with olive oil and toasted on the grill
garlic aioli
Dijon mustard
romaine lettuce

Mix together ground chicken, Romano cheese, garlic, lemon juice, anchovy paste, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon, egg, croutons, bacon and pepper. Shape into 6 patties 3/4-inch thick. Grill for 7 to 10 minutes per side or until no longer pink inside.

Sprinkle burgers with more Romano cheese; top toasted rolls with garlic aioli, Dijon, and romaine.

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Oh, I have to add this little anecdote. The first time I made these burgers was nearly 20 years ago and that was long before I started playing around with the ingredients. My brother, who is a serious burger man complained that I didn't bring pickles, ketchup, cheese and ballpark mustard. Sheesh! Sometimes you just can't win.

Maple Glazed Salmon for the Big 5-0

One must celebrate the big-0 birthdays, it's a given. You only get to celebrate them once, so you might as well do them in style. And heck, a milestone is a milestone!

I started with an invitation to celebrate my big 5-0 and the challenge to bring a course. With up to 5 couples coming, we almost had to do a French-style menu (entrée, main, salad, cheese, desert courses) but ended up a more manageable 3 couples and the traditional North American (appetizer, main, dessert) menu. This turned out to be a good thing because true to the first long weekend of the season, it was rainy and cold, (not deck weather at all) so no worries how to seat our guests.

Our course was the main, so hubby made Cedar Planked Salmon with Maple Glaze from epicurious.com. Well, without the cedar plank as we didn't want to light anything on fire like last time we tried. I also added hot pepper flakes. Next time I will add Canadian Rye Whiskey because I think it would be even better.  And yes, we will be making this dish again!

Oh! A little trick from Chef Michael Smith: keep your fresh ginger in the freezer, so it doesn't spoil. Grate it with the peel on. Easy Peasy!

This was really, really delicious and although we thought we'd have major leftovers, everyone ate their entire portion and there was nothing left (even after some pretty awesome appies). We even managed to eat an entire fruit pizza. Yum!

It was a good evening. I started with a martini (very dry, three olives), and then went onto sparkling wine (which goes with pretty much everything I think, but especially fish and seafood). My guests also brought their homemade wines, which were delicious (surprising for me the wine snob).

This was the next day. A bit of a slow start. We ended up telling tales of our youth until late (for a 50-year old), which is always entertaining and why I had a slow start the next day. No, really!

I also made a side dish of Tarragon-Almond Green Beans from allrecipes.com, which I adapted quite a bit. I used pine nuts (which are phenomenally expensive, but so worth the special occasion) and used a French shallot instead of green onion (which makes more sense to me when sautéeing). I also didn't add any sugar because it isn't necessary with a balsamic reduction. Oh, and I used dried tarragon because I couldn't find any fresh. When serving I didn't portion the beans out too well, so I only got a few to taste, but they were really good. The balsamic reduction was the perfect complement to the sweet salmon and the buttery dilled and mustard potatoes we also served.

I don't have any pictures of the food because I never think to take pictures when we have guests. Too eager to enjoy the food, or too shy to make everyone wait I guess...

I just read about +1 birthdays. You celebrate all the '0' birthdays, and then each year in between becomes a +1 birthday. So, for the next 9 years I will be 50 +1. I like this woman's way of thinking!

Happy my birthday!

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http://www.meat-n-veggies.com/2010/08/15/maple-glazed-salmon/

Cedar Planked Salmon with Maple Glaze

Adapted from Gourmet | November 1997

Makes 6 servings 1 cup      pure maple syrup 2 tbsp     finely grated peeled fresh gingerroot 1/4 cup   fresh lemon juice 3 tbsp     soy sauce 2             cloves minced garlic 1 tsp       dried chili flakes (optional) 1/2 cup   Canadian Rye Whiskey (optional) 1             untreated cedar plank (about 17 by 10 1/2 inches) if desired 2-1/2 lbs center-cut salmon fillet with skin 1              bunch green onion (white ends removed) In a small heavy saucepan simmer maple syrup, gingerroot, lemon juice (reserving 1 tbsp), soy sauce, garlic, chili flakes and whiskey (if using) and salt and pepper to taste until reduced to about 1 cup, about 30 minutes, and let cool. (Maple glaze may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. Bring maple glaze to room temperature before proceeding.) Preheat grill to 350° F. If using cedar plank, lightly oil and heat in barbecue 15 minutes; or lightly oil a shallow baking pan large enough to hold salmon. Arrange green onions in one layer on plank or in baking pan to form a bed for fish. In another small saucepan heat half of glaze over low heat until heated through to use as a sauce. Stir in remaining tablespoon lemon juice. Remove pan from heat and keep sauce warm, covered. Put salmon, skin side down, on scallion greens and brush with remaining glaze. Season salmon with salt and pepper and roast in middle of oven until just cooked through, about 20 minutes if using baking pan or about 35 if using plank.   Cut salmon crosswise into 6 pieces. On each of 6 plates arrange salmon and scallion greens on a bed of mashed potatoes. Drizzle salmon with warm sauce.

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Balsamic-Tarragon Green Beans

Adapted from a recipe by Glenda Malan at allrecipes.com

Serves 6

1-1/2 lbs     fresh green beans, trimmed
1/3 cup       thinly sliced French shallot
1                 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp         olive oil
1/4 cup       balsamic vinegar
1-1/2 tsp    minced fresh tarragon
1/8 tsp       salt
1/4 cup      pine nuts, toasted

Place beans in a saucepan of boiling water; cook, uncovered, until beans turn bright green; drain and set aside. Meanwhile, in a skillet, sauté French shallot and garlic in oil until tender. Add the balsamic vinegar, tarragon and salt. Bring to boil; cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add beans to shallot mixture. Heat through, sprinkle with toasted pine nuts and serve.

French Toast Secrets Revealed

I kid you not — my French toast is internationally famous. And I'm going to let you in on my secrets to the best French Toast you will ever eat in this blog today. But you must promise to use the power over people these toasts will soon yield for good — not for selfish reasons like making a man fall in love with you (oh, that's how I got my husband hooked on me — never mind that one). And, if you decide to worry about calories and fat, this is NOT the recipe for you. It's not something you'd make every weekend, so please allow yourself to live a little.

My secrets are to use crusty baguettes because they stay lovely and crispy when you fry them in butter. Oh yes you heard me say I FRY THEM IN BUTTER.

Another secret is to add vanilla and cinnamon to the egg and milk. Before I made this recipe I honestly never liked French Toast, and when it was served to me, would always garner strange looks when I asked for ketchup instead of real maple syrup. (Scrambled is my least favourite way to make an egg.)

My final secret it to always serve them with real maple syrup and heated berries to meld the flavours together to perfection. I generally use blueberries (no sweetening).

Oh, one final final secret: serve these French Toast Baguettes with something salty like bacon or sausages (or thinly sliced ham as I've done here). Great counter-balance to the sweetness of everything else.

The dish you see above doesn't follow all my rules. I wanted to try it with the amazing whole wheat ciabatta buns we buy at Costco. If I would have taken them out of the freezer and left them on the counter yesterday, they would have been better to use. Dry is always better to soak up the egg mixture.

I was using up the last bit of fruits from my Fresh Berry Trifle and Mixed Berry Custard Pie, so I cooked blueberries and strawberries this time (I picked out all the blackberries for the pie). I also served this French toast topped with strawberry yogurt. I am good until dinner, let me assure you.

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The Best French Toast You Will Ever Eat

2 cups frozen (fresh) blueberries or other berries
1 baguette, angle-sliced 1" thick 
6 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
butter for cooking

Put the blueberries into a small pot on the stove set to low. Allow to simmer until the berries break up, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a large frying pan set to medium-low to medium. Whisk eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon together in a bowl. Dip and coat each baguette slice and place in the frying pan. Press down with a spatula to flatten and crispen. Turn over when the bottoms are browned, flattening with spatula again. Place browned toasts in warming oven and repeat until all baguette slices are used, adding more butter to the pan for each cooking.

Serve with cooked blueberries and real maple syrup, breakfast meat of your choice on the side.


Enjoy, I know you will if you allow yourself to!

Kathy

Mixed Berry Custard Pie (Almost Like Mom's)

Taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ripe,_ripening,_and_green_blackberries.jpg

 When I was young girl growing up on the coast of British Columbia, that lush green country yielded some pretty magnificent fruit in the form of blackberries. As kids we would pick these huge berries for my mom, who would reward us with her delicious blackberry pies and jams.

My mom's blackberry pie was made in a custard of milk and eggs and she would sprinkle cinnamon on the top. It is without a doubt one of my favourite summertime memories. Worth all the scratches and the risk of stings from wasps who were attracted to the sweet stickiness of the berries as much as I. We collected buckets and buckets, as blackberry bushes were plentiful on our rainy coast. Nowadays I buy my blackberries, but I learned that they grow here on the east coast too, so I hope to pick some later this summer.

After diversion from disaster to success of the Fresh Berry Trifle, I had lots of berries left (except raspberries). Enough to make a pie.

I'd never made this pie and sadly, the recipe left this earth with my mother, but I knew it was made with eggs and milk. So I was excited to find this recipe for Mixed Berry Custard Pie on the Washington Post site.

I seem to be a bit disaster prone these days. No sooner had Hubby commented that the recipe holder he gave me on a whim two Christmases ago was one of his best gifts ever (it gives back to him on a regular basis) then what should happen, but it falls off the counter (the first time ever) and waaaah!

Thank goodness hubby is handy. He can glue the split back together and hopefully it will be as good as new, because I use this baby all the time!

I made my own pie crust (recipe also below), but didn't blind bake it first because the recipe didn't call for it. But it's something I would highly recommend because this is a very juicy pie!

Ready to load the berries in and pour this custard mix over top. I think it's so dark because of the vanilla. The vanilla added a good taste and if you weren't using cinnamon I'd suggest keeping it.

Argh! Disaster prone and mess prone, that's me all right!

Ready to be carefully placed in the oven...

Ta da! The finished pie! So pretty!

Pie tasting notes:
Can you say OMG good! Pretty close to my mom's, but for all Mom all the time, I'll use just blackberries next time (for old times sake). I also reduced the sugar from 1 cup in the recipe below because I like the tartness of the berries. But this is one tasty pie. I had to have a mouthful this morning when I got up to make coffee. Sooooo good!

The recipe calls for vanilla, which I did use, but next time won't (it was a great addition, but I want authentic Mom). I also added cinnamon, which next time I would sprinkle on top like Mom did. I'd suggest if you aren't using cinnamon to add the vanilla.

This pie took longer than original recipe's time, an hour, but even still was quite moist in the middle. I expect if you used frozen fruit and added all the juice it could be quite mucky. Anyway, Mom's was always pretty moist in the very centre too. Never stopped us from devouring it and asking for more.

This is the ultimate compliment I can pay to a pie: 

It was so good it didn't even need ice cream or whipped cream.

Yours in sweet dreams...
Kathy

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Mixed Berry Custard Pie

Adapted from the Washington Post, November 27, 2008

This is a brilliant idea, especially in the fall and winter, when only frozen berries are available. It's quick and easy, and the custard and sweet berries are a taste of summer. It's a nice change for the holiday table. The pie can be made with one kind of berry or a mixture. If you use frozen berries, don't discard the juices exuded when they defrost. The juices help give the top of the pie a lovely berry color.
To store, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

8 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 9-inch homemade or store-bought unbaked pie crust
• 6 cups fresh or frozen berries of your choice (if using frozen berries, defrost in a bowl overnight in the refrigerator)
• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 tsp vanilla (optional)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons plus one teaspoon flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Prepare pie crust (see recipe below). Allow to cool.

Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 375°F.

If your berries are still frozen, defrost in a microwave set on low. Be sure to retain any juices from the berries.

Whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla extract in a medium bowl. Add the sugar and flour; combine until smooth.

Arrange the berries in an even layer in the unbaked pie shell and pour in any reserved juices. Pour the egg-milk mixture over the berries. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Bake for about 50 to 60 minutes or until the center of the pie has set. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before serving.

Recipe Source: From Abby Aronson.

Tested by Candy Sagon for The Washington Post. E-mail the Food Section at food@washpost.com with recipe questions.

© 2011 The Washington Post Company

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Buttery Pie Crust

Makes one 10" pie crust

I use this very simple, no rolling pie crust for any pie requiring a crust. I prefer it to using shortening and find the end result tastier and a better complement to fruit pies.

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup granulated sugar

pinch salt

Preheat oven to 325°F.

To make the pie crust, place all ingredients in food process and process until dough just comes together (or simply mix with your hands). Press dough on base and up side of prepared pie plate. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Fresh Berry Trifle

A visit from an old friend from my days in Yellowknife calls for a special dessert. And since I knew we'd be spending the day of our one dinner together touring around the Greater Moncton Area, it had to be something I could make ahead and bring out of the fridge with a flourish worthy of an Esteemed Guest. This Summer Berry Trifle comes from the Summer 2011 Inspired Magazine that is published by Sobeys Compliments line.

A word of caution: do not attempt this recipe if you have had a rather large glass of wine and are cutting up strawberries at the same time — cutting and stirring and drinking don't mix! I burned the custard...

Oops! Hubby says, we can call it Crème Brulée Trifle and I was still addled enough by the wine to keep going.
 

I had forgotten to get what I thought was plain yogurt, but was actually vanilla yogurt, so I used my favourite yogurt — Méditerranée Lemon Yogurt, which is higher in fat, but an amazing thick and Greek-like lemony dessert yogurt. Instead of adding vanilla, I added lemon oil to make this a lemon custard trifle. I was already in deep, so big or go home, right?!

I had some Controy (a Mexican version of Cointreau) orange Liqueur from a vacation a while back and after I'd already sprinkled it over the angel food cake I panicked again because it didn't taste all that good. Oy!

And my last lapse in judgement was using a punch bowl that was entirely too big. Crazy big. So my trifle looked NOTHING like the lovely styled version in the magazine. Sigh... this was so far a big flop.

But after a full day of melding together in the fridge, this was OMG good! Hubby and Esteemed Guest both ate two bowls at dinner! I was too full, but then Esteemed Guest and I ate another bowl while watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith! It was so good. There is still one big bowl left and it could get ugly at the Mr. and Mrs. Mercure household tonight!

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Summer Berry Trifle

Serves: 10 

3 tbsp custard powder

1/4 cup + 1 tbsp sugar, divided

2 1/2 cups skim milk

3/4 cup fat-free vanilla yogourt

1 tsp Sensations by Compliments Pure Vanilla Extract

2 cups hulled and sliced strawberries

1/2 Compliments Angel Food Cake, cut into 3/4-in. (2 cm) cubes

2 tbsp orange-flavoured liqueur (optional)

1 cup each raspberries, blueberries and blackberries

1/4 cup Compliments Sliced Natural Almonds

3/4 cup whipping cream

1. In a medium saucepan, stir together the custard powder and 1/4 cup (60 mL) sugar. Slowly add milk, whisking to prevent lumps. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
2. Transfer the custard to a heatproof bowl and set it in a larger bowl of ice, stirring occasionally until completely cooled, about 10 min. Mix in the yogourt and vanilla.
3. To assemble the trifle, spread 1/2 cup (125 mL) of the custard in the bottom of a 3 to 4 L glass bowl. Stand some of the sliced strawberries in a ring against the sides of the bowl. Add half of the cake cubes. Drizzle 1 tbsp (15 mL) liqueur, if using, over the cake. Add half the berries and half the remaining custard. Repeat layers. Recipe can be made ahead up to this point. Cover and chill in the refrigerator overnight.
4. To finish, lightly toast almonds in a skillet over medium-low heat until golden. Cool to room temperature. Using an electric mixer, whip the cream to stiff peaks, gradually beating in remaining sugar. Spread the whipped cream on top of the trifle, sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve.

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For some reason, hubby left me to clean the burnt pot. Hmmm... I think I deserve the trifle then!

 This is after much soaking and scraping with a non-scratching scrubber.

 Forget that, I'm going to boil this bad boy in baking soda and scrape the hell out of it with a flat metal flipper. Almost there...

With just a bit more elbow grease (why do they call it that?) as good as new! Now I definitely deserve that trifle.

Portobello Mushroom Burgers

I've tried tastes of these before, but never attempted them myself. My recent Esteemed Guest doesn't eat beef or pork, and we needed something fairly easy to make for dinner as we were touring all day, so why not try Portobello Burgers from eatingwell.com?

These were dead easy to make. A bit of olive oil, garlic and salt brushed onto the portobello and the bun and a quick grilling. The recipe also called for a Greek salad-like topping, which I made, but increased the amount for an entire salad.

Oh, that's because my Esteemed Guest and hubby were eating freshly caught and steamed lobster, which we EG and I decided at the last minute would be the thing. We'd spent the day oceanside, and she loves seafood. Me, the non-seafood lover stuck with mushroom burgers and was very, very happy.

I added the salad mix onto my burgers, plus a slice of Havarti cheese because I forgot there was feta in the salad greens on top. Oh well! I loves my cheese!

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Taken from the eatingwell.com site

Mediterranean Portobello Burger

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/mediterranean_portobello_burger.html
From EatingWell:  June/July 2006 This mushroom sandwich comes topped with a luscious Greek-style salad. Make it a meal: Serve with cucumber spears and a glass of Firestone Gewurztraminer.
4 servings | Active Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 4 portobello mushroom caps, stems and gills removed
• 4 large slices country-style sourdough bread, cut in half
• 1/2 cup sliced jarred roasted red peppers
• 1/2 cup chopped tomato
• 1/4 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped pitted Kalamata olives
• 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 cups loosely packed mixed baby salad greens

Preparation

1. Preheat grill to medium-high.
2. Mash garlic and salt on a cutting board with the side of a knife until it's a smooth paste. Mix the paste with 1 tablespoon oil in a small dish. Lightly brush the oil mixture over portobellos and then on one side of each slice of bread.
3. Combine red peppers, tomato, feta, olives, vinegar, oregano and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a medium bowl.
4. Grill the mushroom caps until tender, about 4 minutes per side; grill the bread until crisp, about 1 minute per side.
5. Toss salad greens with the red pepper mixture. Place the grilled mushrooms top-side down on 4 half-slices of the bread. Top with the salad mixture and the remaining bread.

Nutrition

Per serving : 301 Calories; 11 g Fat; 2 g Sat; 7 g Mono; 2 mg Cholesterol; 40 g Carbohydrates; 10 g Protein; 4 g Fiber; 795 mg Sodium; 691 mg Potassium
2 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 2 starch, 2 vegetable, 2 fat

Venetian Baby Beef Liver Reinvented Many Ways

This is probably one of the very first recipes I ever attempted when I moved away from home. I started to collect the special Canadian Living recipe magazines and although I really, really detest liver (a horrible attempt by my mother to turn iron-deficient me into a liver lover became a liver and ketchup  milkshake... shudder!) for some reason I knew this would work with steak. And it sure did! And since that marvelous discovery that recipes can be played with, I have made this now with everything but fish (and I think that will be next). I've used steak (still my personal favourite), chicken when I wasn't eating beef in my misguided youth, pork (the above attempt)... pretty much anything BUT liver. Hubby would surely like it made with liver. And he could surely make it himself when I'm not around...

Obviously if I'm still making this dish nearly 30 years later, it must be good. The secret is that the meat is coated in a mixture of flour, paprika, salt and pepper, then sautéed  before using the vegetables to scrape up the lovely brown bits. In fact, thid particular flour mixture is so good I also use it when I brown meat for beef stew. It adds a wonderful flavour, without making the stew too thick.

Of course, the onions, tomatoes and sweet peppers are the perfect foil to the meat. The original recipe called for green peppers, but I find them bitter, so have substituted orange or yellow to contrast against the tomatoes. But any colour pepper will do.

The best way to serve this easy and tasty dish is over rice. I didn't really care for it served with potatoes, which Hubby made with carrots (too sweet with the savoury-ness of this dish). Rice is better because it doesn't compete with the taste of the meat and veggies, plus it does a damned fine job of soaking up the juice!

Yum!

Kathy

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Pepper Steak

This started out as a Canadian Living recipe for Venetian Baby Beef Liver. Obviously, no one should be forced to eat liver, or even encouraged for that matter, so I simply changed this to steak and it’s really good! You can use pretty much any kind of meat you like.

Serves 4

1 lb                                            flank steak, cut into strips

1/2 cup                                     flour

1 tbsp                                        salt

2 tbsp                                        paprika

1 tbsp                                        olive oil (or as needed)

2                                                 medium onions, sliced

2                                                 cloves garlic, minced

1                                                 orange or yellow pepper, cut in strips

2                                                 tomatoes, cut in wedges

3/4 cup                                     water

1 tsp                                          instant beef broth

1/4 tsp                                      dried basil

Put flour, salt, pepper and paprika in a plastic zipper bag; toss the steak to coat. Sauté steak in oil about 3 minutes per side. Remove to serving platter and keep warm in oven, or cover.

Sauté onions, garlic and pepper in same frying pan until soft and golden (if it gets too dry, add a little water). Add tomatoes; cook 2 minutes longer. Add water, instant broth and basil to frying pan; bring to boil, scraping up brown bits. Simmer, uncovered for 2 minutes. Add steak into the pan and heat until warm. Serve over steamed rice.

Risotto Primavera

Risotto is one of my favourite Italian dishes of all time and I collect risotto recipes like some women collect handbags. The variations that can be made from a simple dish of arborio rice are astounding. Among others, I made a spectacular Shrimp Risotto last year, but Risotto Primavera is the quintessential spring dish, and I was wishing for spring on a cold and rainy day. A while back I joined foodblogs.com, where I found this recipe on The Pioneer Woman Cooks blog.

Hubby is good at a lot of things, but he is truly gifted at the fine chop. I don't have the patience for it honestly and he loves it, so I owe this to him. I didn't follow the recipe exactly, I added a few different veggies, and since Hubby doesn't do goat cheese, I just amped up the level of Romano cheese. The end result is a delicious, filling meal that screams elegance, but is easy to make if you don't mind stirring frequently for 20 minutes or so.

I got to test out my homemade chicken broth, which was fabulous. Freezing it in 1 cup portions was genius.

Many people don't like eating leftover risotto because it gets a bit gummy, but we ate it for at least two more meals before we finally had had enough. But I could definitely go for it again... I have my eye on a little red wine and Italian sausage number. Sounds intriguing, doesn't it?

Godere, buon appetito!

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Risotto Primavera

Prep Time: 10 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 45 Minutes  |  Difficulty: Easy  |  Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 5 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• ½ whole Large Yellow Onion Finely Diced
• 3 whole Carrots, Peeled And Finely Diced
• ½ cups Cauliflower Pieces
• ½ cups Broccoli Pieces
• 1 whole Yellow Squash, Finely Diced
• ½ teaspoons Kosher Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil (additional)
• 1 Tablespoon Butter (additional)
• 1-½ cup Arborio Rice
• 1-½ cup Dry White Wine
• 1-½ teaspoon Kosher Salt (additional), More To Taste
• 4 whole Green Onions, Thinly Sliced
• ½ cups Frozen Peas
• 4 ounces, weight Goat Cheese
• ½ cups Grated Parmesan Cheese
• Fresh Dill, For Garnish
• Optional Vegetables To Substitute For Any Of The Above: Mushrooms, Red Bell Pepper, Zucchini, Asparagus Pieces

Preparation Instructions

Pour chicken broth into a small saucepan. Heat to a simmer.
In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter. Add diced onions and diced carrots. Stir and cook for a minute or two. Add cauliflower and cook for a minute. Add broccoli and cook for 30 seconds. Add squash and cook for 30 seconds. Sprinkle in salt and stir. Remove from pan and put on a plate. Set aside.
Add 1 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter to the same pan. Heat over medium-low heat. Add rice and stir, cooking for 1 minute. Add half the wine and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt. Stir and cook until liquid is absorbed. Over the next 30 to 45 minutes, add 1 cup of simmering broth at a time, stirring and cooking until each addition of broth has absorbed. Add other half of wine and cook until absorbed. Add green onions and peas, stirring to combine. Taste to make sure rice is the right texture; add another helping of broth if rice has too much bite to it. Check salt content and add more salt if necessary.
Once rice is cooked, remove from heat. Stir in goat cheese, Parmesan, and vegetables until all goat cheese is combined.
Serve on a plate with a sprig of dill.

Potatoes Anna

Last time we were at the in-laws, we cooked up an Easter feast (which means this post is long past due). Nonetheless, I wanted to contribute to the meal, so I made Potatoes Anna, from a Martha Stewart recipe I hurriedly found on the internet.

These are surpisingly easy to make: a little butter, salt and pepper between each layer of sliced potatoes. Luckily my maman-in-law has a mandolin slicer, because they need to be sliced thin (a food processor with a slicing attachment also works beautifully).

In the end, they ended up a bit darker than I would like. I also think the potatoes didn't have enough salt (I was worried about adding too much because my in-laws aren't used to it). Next time I will salt and pepper each layer as the recipe instructs.

The reason I didn't salt each layer is that we were having a delicious ham with the potatoes.  I encouraged maman to first simmer it in water to remove much of the saltiness. This also makes it incredibly moist and tender even when you finish it off in the oven. Papa bought a huge slab 'o ham, which ended up being perfect because we all got to taste the wonderful mustard/maple syrup sauce.

In the end, a meal prepared and eaten with love makes any meal tasty, and this was no different.

Happy very-belated Easter everyone!
Kathy


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Potatoes Anna à la Martha

Ingredients

• 6 medium russet potatoes (2 3/4 pounds total), peeled
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Using a food processor with a slicing blade or a sharp knife, slice potatoes as thinly as possible, 1/4 inch thick or thinner. (Do not place sliced potatoes in water; the starch is needed to bind the layers.).
   
2. Brush bottom of a 10-inch cast-iron skillet with 1 1/2 tablespoons butter. Starting in center of pan, arrange potato slices, slightly overlapping, in circular pattern, covering surface. Brush with another 1 1/2 tablespoons butter; season well with salt and pepper. Repeat for two more layers.
   
3. Place over high heat until butter in pan sizzles, 2 to 4 minutes.
   
4. Transfer to oven; bake until potatoes are fork-tender, about 1 hour. Remove from oven. Run a small spatula around edges of potatoes; slide large spatula underneath potatoes to loosen. Carefully invert onto a plate, and cut into wedges.
   

Cook's Note

Brushing each layer with butter and seasoning with salt and pepper creates a delicious buttery flavor throughout.

My Blessed Hotcross Buns!

I'm sorry that I was in such a panic while making these hotcross buns that I forgot to take pictures, because making this recipe was truly a comedy of errors. If you've read my previous bread postings, you know how flummoxed I am (me the baker's daughter) about making yeast breads. I attempted these years ago and although the Canadian Living recipe was incredibly tasty, they were about as fluffy as hockey pucks.

We had to find candied fruit on the way to the in-lawsbecause there was none at my local Co-op (grrr...). Thank goodness we found some in Neguac. Of course, I could just have used the lemon peel in my freezer, but I forgot. Next time!

It started out well... I was at my maman-in-law's and she knows her way around bread, so I figured she could coach me through the rough spots. Last time I tried and failed to rise my bread it was because my yeast water was too cool. I didn't know until I bought a thermometer how warm 105 to 115ºF actually is. Of course I didn't know until after she had a thermometer, so I relied on her. "Perfect," she said. So the yeast went in. Then, shite! I forgot to add the sugar. One packet of yeast left. This time when I gave maman the bowl to test, she said it was good again, only it wasn't. No yeasties were growing. No more yeast packets!

It was hubby to the rescue. He went out to the corner store (only 10 minutes away...) to get some (oh and cinnamon too, next time I will check with la maman before I come!). This time la maman made the yeast herself. And after placing the bowl in warmed water, it finally worked.

Note to self: never try to rise bread out in the open. ALWAYS do it in the oven with plastic wrap on top in the future. It hadn't doubled in size, but I punched it down and kneaded the heck out of them anyway and formed them into buns.

By this time we were late for dinner at Albert's place, so I stayed behind to deal with these damned buns. They still weren't rising on the counter, so in a pique of anger and hunger, I heated up the oven to 200ºF, turned it off and left on the light. Then, I covered the tray with plastic wrap, and left to share an Easter meal with the family before hurrying back.

Eureka! We had lift-off!

One tray was baked too long, but the other was perfection. When the others got home, we all shared one because this was truly a group effort. They were perfect, incredibly finely textured and superbly flavoured. I wanted more...

And the next morning, Easter Sunday, we had perfect Hot Cross Buns. My favourite way to eat them is with some sharp cheddar, for breakfast. Yum! Maman, likes hers warmed with butter. Hubby, well, he is a buttered man too.

Thank goodness I doubled the recipe because I would have had a hard time leaving any behind. We left the perfect good ones for la maman because she l-o-v-e-s them. But although dark, a quick removal of the burnt bottom on some of them made these so divinely delicious when thawed and eaten for several breakfasts to come, who could tell?

I may not be able to wait for next Easter to make these again! Now that I know how...

Kathy

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Hot Cross Buns

By The Canadian Living Test Kitchen

One a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns. Save a penny and make hot cross buns for everyone who loves the heavenly spice fragrance of this traditional currant-studded Easter treat. 

This recipe makes 9 serving(s)

Ingredients

1/2 cup (125 mL) granulated sugar 1/4 cup (50 mL) warm water 1 pkg (15ml) active dry yeast 3-1/2 cups (875 mL) all purpose flour 2 tbsp (25 mL) cinnamon 1 tsp (5 mL) nutmeg 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt 1/4 tsp (1 mL) ground cloves 3/4 cup (175 mL) milk, warmed 1/4 cup (50 mL) melted butter 1 egg 1 egg yolk 1/2 cup (125 mL) dried currants 1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped candied peel, mixed Glaze 2 tbsp (25 mL) granulated sugar 2 tbsp (25 mL) water Icing 1/2 cup (125 mL) icing sugar 2 tsp (10 mL) water

Preparation:

In small bowl, dissolve 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the sugar in warm water. Sprinkle in yeast; let stand for 10 minutes or until frothy. Meanwhile, in large bowl, blend together remaining sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cloves; make well in center. Whisk together milk, butter, egg and egg yolk; pour into well. Pour in yeast mixture. With wooden spoon, stir until soft dough forms.
Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface; knead for 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease all over. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise in warm draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Punch down dough; turn out onto lightly floured surface. Knead in currants and peel. Shape into 12-inch (30 cm) log; with serrated knife, cut into 9 pieces, Shape each into ball, stretching and pinching dough underneath to make tops smooth. Place 2 inches (5 cm) apart on greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes. Bake in center of 400ºF (200ºC) oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Glaze: In saucepan, stir sugar with water over medium heat until dissolved; brush over buns. Let cool in pan.
Icing: Stir icing sugar with water. Using piping bag fitted with round tip, pipe cross on top of each cooled bun.

Additional Information:

• Tip: To make 18 buns by hand, increase the yeast to 4 tsp (20 mL) and double the other ingredients.
  Bread Machine Method For Loaf:
  Reduce flour to 3-1/4 cups (800 mL). Into pan of machine, add (in order) water, milk, butter, sugar, eggs, salt, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and yeast. (Do not let yeast touch liquid.) Choose sweet-dough setting; after first kneading, add currants and peel. Let baked loaf cool on rack. Makes 1 loaf.