Italian Cooking is Easy

Cooking Risotto is like our Relationship with the LORD?

2007-10-29T21:44:00.000-04:00

Great question? Or just me spending too much time thinking about things that are way to deeo? In the next two or three days I will post my recipe for Risotto ... and while I am preparing to write this recipe down and taking the pics for this post ... I am thinking about my relationship with the LORD. In order to make a great Risotto you have to be patient and work the flavors into the rice as you cook it. This takes a lot of time and heat. The heat and the moisture make the rice absorb the liquid that surrounds the rice. If you heat the rice up too hot then it will not absorb the liquid because the liquid will evaporate. If you keep the temperature too low then the rice will not absorb any liquid at all and the rice will not cook.

The LORD keeps us over the heat just enough so that we absorb the lesson he is trying to teach us ... he does not turn up the heat too much so we do not burn ... he knows just how high we can handle the heat ... sometimes we are a bit "thick-headed" and the LORD pulls us off the heat until we are ready to learn his lessons. Funny thing is while we are sitting off the stove just waiting for the LORD to deal with us ... we think this is where we are supposed to be ... we think that this is successful for us ... no stress ... no issues ... no challenges ... but when the LORD puts us back over the flame that is when we absorb the "flavors" of life and learn the lessons that the LORD has in mind for us.

So think about it this week ... does the LORD have you over the heat now? Are you ready to absorb the flavors of life? What lesson is he trying to teach you? We will talk Risotto later this week ...

Ciao,
Mark

How Long has it Been?

2007-05-24T22:10:00.000-04:00

I know ... I can not believe that it has been this long since I have blogged. It is kind of funny that I would even think of this. Last night I went to a soccer practice/tryout for my son Nyan ... he is our 17 year old that we adopted several years ago. So I go to make sure all of the paperwork is taken care of ... well he is a boy and a teenager ... so the likelyhood that he would do it correctly is ... well ... slim at best. So I am filling out paperwork and talking to a very helpful woman with a "shorty" t-shirt on. Obvious from her control of the entire situation that she is in charge even if she does not have the title at the company she is working with. She helps with my paperwork takes my check and does it all with a smile. Great Service ... end of story ... right?

NO ... so tonight my friend Marybeth calls and tells me about a friend of hers that used to love to read my blog. Well it turns out that this firend of Marybeth's also has a t-shirt with "Shorty" on it and was signing up kids at a soccer tryout the night before ... can you believe it I meet in person one of the only people that used to read my blog! It must be a sign for me to keep writing. So this is a start. I will try to keep writing ... and telling you how and what I am cooking.

Take care and thank you for being so patient!

Oh ... Hi Marybeth ... and you too Shorty!

Ciao, Mark

Puffy Pancake

2007-02-08T08:58:00.000-05:00

I have got to tell you that one of the most exciting recipes we make for breakfast is the "puffy pancake." Yes, I said exciting, because the kids love the way this looks when it comes out of the oven. This recipe is a regular in my house and very simple as my two boys will make it once a week. It usually will feed 3-4 people assuming that you have two growing boys like I do. I hope that you will take a minute to try it this weekend.

Puffy Pancake

3 tablespoons butter

4 Eggs, slightly beaten

1 cup milk

/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons confectioners sugar

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Beat the eggs, milk and vanilla in a large bowl. Then add the flour, sugar and salt and beat well with a wisk. Yes, you are trying to eliminate the lumps. So beat it until it is smooth.

Once the oven has reached temperature put the 13" x 9" glass pan in the oven with the butter in the pan. I like to use butter right out of the refrigerator so that it take a little longer to melt. One of the things we are trying to do here is to get the pan very hot while we melt the butter. Keep and eye on the butter in the pan, once it melts and starts to turn a little brown the pan is ready. At this point slide the pan out of the oven and add the pancake mixture. Return the pan immediately to the oven. Now cook the pancake for about 12-14 minutes. You will see the pancake "PUFF" up along the sides and possible in the middle well over the edge of the pan ... do not worry this is what the kids want to see.

Remove the pancake form the oven and sprinkle with the confectioners sugar. You can serve it plain or with some maple syrup.

Enjoy this one ...

Ciao, Mark

Oprah Show ...

2007-02-06T12:54:00.000-05:00

You can see pictures of my family and some of our friends on the Oprah Show!

OK, I have not said anything in here about this ... but last week my family and our friend were on the Oprah Show. Can you believe it? Neither can I. We were on the show to talk about the adoption of our oldest son, who is from Liberia, West Africa. The story has gotten alot of legs ... with articles in Readers Digest, USA Today, O Magazine and many others. Being on Oprah was a great experience. We got to share our story and how we were asked by GOD to do what we did. When the show was on TV (Jan 29, 2007) they left all the information about GOD in the show! My e-mail has been flooded with people from all over the country wanting to tell us what a great thing we did ... but I have to tell you that ... we are normal and we only did what we were asked. The reality is, that we were not capable, we did not have the moeny and we did not have the room for an adoption ... but with GOD all things are possible ... and now we are a family of five ... or maybe more like 85 ...

I hope you saw the show ... if you did not ... well I may just have an extra copy ...

Thank you for reading,

Mark

Great Cook Book for Kids!!!

2007-02-05T10:40:00.000-05:00

My son got the Emeril LaGasse Cook Book, There's a Chef in My Soup, for Christmas this year. It is a cookbook for kids. I was a little suspect about getting a cookebook for kids for him ... not because I do not want him to cook. More because I wanted to make sure that what Dominic was going to be cooking would be edible for the rest of us. This is a MAJOR concern for many of the cookbooks out for kids. Well to my suprise this is a GREAT COOKBOOK!

Dominic has made several of the recipes from this book so far. All ... and I mean ALL of the recipes we have made were great to eat. Dominic enjoyed making them much more than even I had anticipated. So if you are looking for a great cookbook to buy for one of your kids ... I highly recomend this one. If you want to sample on o0f his recipes ... just follow the link below to see his recipe for Emeril's Favorite French Toast Recipe. It is a great breakfast and again, the kids love making it and "treating" Mom & Dad.

http://www.famousfoods.com/emsfavfrento.html

Have a great day ... and enjoy time with your family in the kitchen,

Mark

Beef & Cheese Enchilada's

2007-01-21T19:02:00.000-05:00

This is a great recipe for the winter months. It is easy to make and it is VERY easy to make more the one batch. Usually I like to say ... serve with something else ... but not this time ... this one can stand on it's own.

Beef & Cheese Enchilada's

3/4 Pound Ground Beef (Ground Turkey or Chicken work just as well)
2 tablespoons olive oil.
1 medium yellow onion, chopped.
1 clove garlic, crushed

1 large can enchilada sauce (24 ounces)
2 cups rice, cooked.
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed.
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 cups grated mild cheddar cheese
15 - 20 soft corn tortillas

Heat skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil and then saute the chopped onions and garlic for about 2 minutes, until tender. Add the ground beef and saute till browned. Remove from heat and drain the fat from the meat. Combine the ground beef, rice, black beans and cilantro. Toss mixture till combined.

Pour about half of a can of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9 pan. Take 4-6 of the tortillas at a time and heat them in the microwave for about 30-45 second until they are warm and easy to roll. Start by laying out one warm tortilla, add about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture and 1 tablespoon of the cheese and then roll up the tortilla and place in the 13 x 9 pan with the seam down. (This will hold the enchilada together.) Repeat this until the pan is filled. Pour the remainder of the enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Cover the pan with aluminum foil.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve with sour cream and hot sauce.

Enjoy ...

Is this a special recipe???

2007-01-13T09:17:00.000-05:00

Really ... you want to ask ... is this a special recipe? In truth it is not a special recipe. But the meal IS considered special. You see it is not always those special "meals" we make, but, as I have said before, it is who we are inviting to eat with us! So in this recipe we are making Buttermilk Pancakes ... for my kids!

So what makes this recipe special is really the fact that I got help making the pancakes from Sophie and then heard the kids "loving" the pancakes for breakfast. This is the best way to start a day ... with my kids smiles around the table. So take some time to cook with your family ... you will love the memories you are creating.

Buttermilk Pancakes:
(Adapted from The Joy of Cooking)

1 1/2 Cup Flour (not packed)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put all the dry ingredients in a ziplock plastic bag and then shake it to mix. I use the bag so that I do not have to wash anything and I can save it for the next time I am making pancakes or waffles.

1 1/2 cup butter milk
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix all of the wet ingredients in a large bowl with a wisk or a fork. Once the wet ingredients are combined then pour in the mixed dry ingredients and stir until combined. Let the batter stand for about five minutes while you heat up the griddle or pan that you are using. Keep in mind that the heavier the pan the better ... then the pancakes will cook better. Cook on a medium heat so they do not burn. Serve with warm syrup.

Sit with your kids while they are eating and talk about their plans and hopes for the day ...

Enjoy ... Mark

Happy New Year

2006-12-31T07:27:00.000-05:00

OK, I know that I have not been around much lately. I am sorry for that. While I love to cook and I really enjoy telling others about what I am cooking and teaching them easy ways to cook as well, Life has Happened around me! I would love to tell you (if there is anyone left reading this) that I would continue to write on a regular basis ... but I am not sure if I can.

I will make sure that in the next few weeks I am working to make "blogging" easier and more convienent for me ... this way I will blog more often. (is this a Resolution?) So with all that said ... I would like to be the first to say, Happy New Year to all who ready my blog ... thank you for your comments this year ... I look forward to getting back on track with my blog and with you!

Talk to you soon,
Mark

Tacos, Beef or Pork

2006-09-26T13:18:00.000-04:00

Tacos, Beef or Pork

5-7 pounds of pork-butt or beef roast. (I usually use the lowest cost roast possible for this recipe ... since we are cooking it in a crockpot it will always come out tender and tasty.)

2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves of garlic
1 small onion chopped
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt (I like to use sea salt)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 can enchalada sauce - 12 oz can

Turn a large crockpot on high. Put the olive oil in the bottom of the crock pot and coat the bottom. Add the garlic and the chopped onions. Mix the cumin, salt and pepper together in a small bowl. You can sprinkle or rub half of the dry mix on half of the roast. Place the roast, seasoned side down, in the crock pot on top of the onions. Sprinkle or rub the remaining dry ingredient mix on the top of the roast. Pour the enchalada sauce in the crock pot on the side of the roast. Now the hard part ... walk away for four to two hours then turn the crock pot down to low. I know the roast is done in four but I usually cook it for over 6 hours. About fifteen minutes before you are going to eat remove the roast and use two forks to shred the roast. You can add some of the liquid back over the shredded roast to keep it moist if you like. We like the meat dry, so we do not add any liquid before the meat hits the table.

We put on the table the following toppings:

Salsa ... homemade sales recipe later this week!
Hot Sauce
Chopped Onions
Flour or Corn Tortillas (that I warm in the oven in aluminum foil)
Preformed Corn Taco Shells (use the preformed shells to make things easier)
Sour Cream
Shredded Cchedder Cheese or Taco Cheese Mixture
Chopped Lettuce
Chopped Fresh Cilantro
Refried Beans (warmed in a heavy pan on the stove)

You get the idea ... these is one of those make it early and enjoy it without much work dinners. Spread everything on the table and let everyone make their own tacos ... this is the most requested dinner in our house ... I hope that it will be in yours as well. Here are some pictures of the last time we made beef tacos.

Ciao, Mark

Penne Pasta with Tomatoes and Basil

2006-09-19T12:20:00.000-04:00

Hi Gang! I know ... I am kind of an on again off again blogger at the moment. So I will first start there ... WHY? Well in recent months I have started a new career in sales. I have sold, for over 20 years, Factory Automation Products used in manufacturing companies in the southeast. In March of this year I went to work for a company that sells Office Furniture. This has been, and continues to be, a big adjustment. So at night, when I should be blogging, I am trying to learn what I am supposed to do for a living! As I feel I am becoming more proficient at what I do for a living I will blog more. Wow, that just sounds like a long-winded excuse to me!

Tomatoes

So lets talk about an easy recipe for dinner any night. I made this recipe on Saturday Night when our family got to spend time with Marybeth. (In the photo from left to right it is me, Cindy and Marybeth.) She is a wonderful blogging friend of ours that we can never seem to spend enough time with. Visit Marybeth's Blog here. She does a great job talking about Motherhood, Homeschooling and Life as a strong Christian Woman. Anyway, Marybeth called and asked me to make a recipe from the back of a box of Mueller's Penne Pasta. I have to tell you (and you Marybeth) that I NEVER buy Mueller's Pasta because it is just too Non-Italian to me! Talk about a guy with a complex! Also, no one ever tells me what to bring because they expect me to bring something good! So here Marybeth is inviting us for dinner and telling me what to make with Mueller's Pasta ... the nerve! So I went to the store and bought the pasta and took everything over to Marybeth's house and made it there. I hate eating my words (even if they were under my breath and I was the only one that heard them!) but this recipe is Great Tasting and Easy to make! Take the time to try it this week ... I would bet that you have everything in the house to make it this evening.

Penne Pasta with Tomatoes & Basil

1 Pound Penne Pasta, Cooked (Yes, use Mueller's)
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Clove Garlic, smashed and chopped
2 1/2 Cup Diced Tomatoes (Or 1 Can 24 oz Drained Diced Tomatoes)
1 Can, 12 oz chicken Stock (I use low sodium and low fat products)
1/2 cup shopped fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

Prepare the pasta as directed, drain and rinse with cold water. Do not pour olive oil over it to prevent it from stick as this makes it hard for the flavor of the sauce you are using to infuse into the pasta. Heat a large skillet to medium high heat, add the olive oil and then saute the garlic for about 45-60 seconds. Add the tomatoes and saute for an additional 2-3 minutes. Now add the chicken broth and bring the sauce to a boil. Simmer for about 3-5 minutes and then add the chopped basil and salt and pepper to taste. (How much salt and pepper ... like I said you need to taste the sauce at this point with a spoon or a piece of bread.) Now add the cooked pasta and toss until it is coated with the sauce. Serve the pasta with the grated Romano cheese on the side so your guests can add what they would like.

Enjoy this dish with Family and Friends ... Ciao, Mark, Cindy and Marybeth and CURT!

2006-09-16T07:52:00.000-04:00

Well, I am not a finalist for the Build-A-Better-Burger contest this year. I still think there are a few burgers this year that are worth making. Visit the recipes for this years finalists in the link below.

As for me and my burger ... well this one deserves to be re-written. I will try to post a version of this burger later this weekend. For now ... enjoy cooking with your families.

Build-A-Better-Burger Finalists

Build-A-Better-Burger Contest

2006-09-04T21:45:00.000-04:00

I am not really sure why I think I will get picked for this years contest. Maybe it is because my wife has asked me to make this burger recipe at least four times this summer. Maybe it is because everyone outside of my family that I let try the burger requested it a second time. Maybe it is because the morening after I make the burger my wife has one for breakfast. these are all good signs. So I think that my hopes have been raised. The real question is if I wrote the recipe so it reads as good as it tastes? Only time will tell. I will post the recipe next week if I am not one of the finalists that is picked. In the mean time just look at the picture and see if you can taste it with your eyes.

Ciao,
Mark

Our Friends ... and O Magazine

2006-08-28T10:36:00.001-04:00

I am sorry but this one has nothing to do with food. I wanted to share some phots and a story about my family and some of our friends. We, some time ago, adopted a son from Liberia. this story has been in the news and on the TV several times. This past weekend we posed for a photo shoot for O Magazine. You can see the story and some of the photos here ... just thought I would share ... or should I say brag!

If you want to read the story from the Charlotte Observer and view additional photos follow this link: Charlotte Observer Story

Ciao,
Mark

Broccoli Sauted with Garlic and Olive Oil

2006-08-24T12:41:00.000-04:00

This is a great side dish that gives a different flavor to broccoli! Maybe, like ours, your kids might even eat broccoli if it is prepared this way. Serve this with a crusty loaf of Italian Bread as you will want to use the bread to dip into the olive oil.

1 Head Fresh Broccoli
4 Cloves Fresh Garlic
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1/4 teaspoon Sea SaltSalt
Fresh Ground Pepper to taste

Start by washing and then trimming the broccoli so you have stems about 2 inches long with he tops on each stem. Set the broccoli aside. Smash & chop the garlic cloves. You can use a garlic press if you like but I like the smash/chop method. Check out my reasons here ... Garlic - Smash & Chop. Now heat up a large frying pan that has a cover over medium high heat. Once the pan is hot add the olive oil and the garlic. Let the garlic saute for about 1 minute while stirring. Do not let the garlic pieces sit in the oil without stirring as they will burn. Now add the broccoli. Stir the broccoli around to coat with the olive oil. Add the sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Cover and cook for 4 minutes. Test to see if the broccoli is done by poking a fork in a stem, if the fork goes in with a little resistance then it is done. You can also test it by just tasting one of the pieces of broccoli like I do. Put the broccoli on a serving dish and pour the remaining olive oil over the top. You can also sprinkle a little fresh Romano Cheese over the top when you serve it.

This dish can also make part of a great vegetarian dinner. Serve the broccoli with a nice salad, some Italian Bread and of course a bottle of Red Wine.

Ciao,
Mark

Recipe Index

2006-08-21T23:11:00.000-04:00

I have now added the DESERT's to the index! Life is short ... EAT DESERT FIRST!

Ciao,
Mark

OK, I am sort of back on line. I have actually been working for the past few days to make things a bit easier for someone who has never been on my blog to find a recipe. Over on the right hand side of the screen you can see a RECIPE INDEX. By clicking on this link you will be taken to an index of all of my recipes.

I will still continue to post based on what I am making but every recipe that I post will end up in the index so it will be easier to find it later. I hope this will make my blog a bit more friendly and easy to use. Thank you all for being patient.

Ciao,
Mark

The Crazy Tomato, Johnson City, TN

2006-08-03T23:30:00.000-04:00

If you are ever in Johnson City, TN you should try to visit a restaurant called Crazy Tomato. This is a wonderful little Italian restaurant that serves pizza, pasta, salads, subs and so much more. The restaurant can be found at:

203 Princeton Rd
Johnson City, TN 37601
(423) 283-0211

It is just a little place where you can order everything form Pizza to Pasta to Subs. The owner of this little place is Leo Dian. I had the opportunity to enjoy the Monicotti Florentine. It was fabulous. The portions were superb but more important it was the best monicotti since ... well since I made it myself. It had the right amount of ricotta cheese flavored with spinach, garlic and mushrooms. It was served on a piping hot plate with just the right amount of sauce on the plate and then mozzarella cheese melted, browned slightly to make it taste even better, on top. Of all the places I would have thought I would find Great Italian food ... Johnson City, TN would have been one of the last. So if you are ever in the neighborhood stop by and enjoy a great meal with Leo at a great price. Please make sure you tell Leo that Mark said Ciao!

Ciao,
Mark

Great Quote

2006-08-03T15:27:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, while watching, Feasting on Asphalt on the Food Network, I saw a quote fly across the screen. I think it went something like this ...

Determine who you are eating or drinking with, before you determine what and where you are going to eat or drink.

... This sounds like a great philosophy to me. More than that, I think it also shows my deeper thoughts on cooking. I do not necessarily cook because of the food but more because of who shows up at our table to eat. The time spent at the table eating, talking, laughing and sometimes crying is precious to me. I feel connect to those that I am blessed to have at my table and the way of showing my gratitude for that time is be me cooking for them.

So, what does it mean? I am a simple guy so I think it means that we spend time cooking so we can show others how much they mean to us and how much we value them in our lives. So next time you are cooking think about how you would miss the people you are cooking for IF they were not in your life.

Ciao,
Mark

Italian Style Baked Chicken

2006-07-31T12:35:00.000-04:00

This is a Quick Recipe for Chicken Thighs or Chicken Breasts. There are a few things I like about this recipe. This is an easy recipe as there are only four steps to completion, Mix, Coat, Sprinkle and Cook. This recipe is low cost because a package of 5 or 6 boneless chicken thighs is usually under $5.00. The chicken tastes great, at least according to my family. Once you have cooked the chicken thighs you can freeze them for future use. Finally, and for me this is a key, you can use these chicken thighs as a starter for other recipes. In the next week I will post two additional recipes that use the cooked chicken thighs from this recipe as a base.

Italian Style Baked Chicken

3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1.5 pound boneless chicken thighs (this is about 5 or 6 thighs)
1/2 cup Italian Style Breadcrumbs

pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use a jelly roll pan for baking these chicken thighs. (What is a Jelly Roll Pan ... it is a cookie sheet with sides. Usually 12 inches x 9 inches x 1 inch high.) I suggest a light spray of PAM or some non-stick spray.

Mix the Mayonnaise, Parmesan Cheese, Salt and Pepper in a small bowl. Lay the chicken thighs out on a piece of aluminum foil. Take the mayonnaise mixture and brush half of the mixture on one side of the chicken thighs. Take half of the Italian breadcrumbs and sprinkle over the mayonnaise coated chicken thighs. Turn the chicken thighs, one at a time, on to the lightly greased Jelly Roll Pan with the breadcrumb side down. Spread the rest of the mayonnaise on the second side of the chicken thighs. Sprinkle the remaining breadcrumbs on the chicken thighs. Place in the oven and let bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes until the chicken is done.

When is it DONE? It is done when you poke the chicken thigh with a fork and the juices run "clear". You can go further and use an instant read thermometer. When the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 170 to 180 degrees F the USDA says your chicken is done. (If you are inviting the USDA to eat with you let me know.) Remember that the meat (any meat for that matter) will continue to cook when you pull it out of the oven so make sure you pull it out of the oven a about 5 degrees early. What do I do? I cook the chicken thighs for 20 minutes and then poke one of them and watch the juice run out ... if it is clear I pull them out of the oven.

This is a great recipe that should go from start to finish in about 30 to 40 minutes. I usually serve this with rice and a salad. So, once I put the chicken in the oven I put some rice on the stove. Then I start my salad. This will put the completion of all three items at about the same time.

If you are freezing the chicken after you bake it. Then place the chicken thighs on a cookie sheet in the freezer for at least 8 hours. Remove the chicken thighs and put them in a Zip-Lock Freezer Bag and return them to the freezer. When you need to serve them you only need to heat them up in the oven at 350 degrees F for 15-18 minutes.

Ciao Mark

I Love Saturday's

2006-07-29T16:35:00.000-04:00

I get to sit in front of the Food Network and wathc all day long. Today three or four of us sat and wathced Alton Brown for about 2 hours. I say three or four because our oldest (the teenager) would only peak from the other room ... so as to not watch and enjoy what Dad would watch. What was amazing to me is how much my kids know already ... we have worked so much in the kitchen together that it is actually rubbing off. But we also learned a lot ... I think we will be making wontons this week and most likely we will be making several other things that Alton was talking about.

My point in this post. Hang with your family ... if you can do it in the kitchen all the better ... but hang with your family and enjoy one another.

Ciao,
Mark

Dreams and Passions

2006-07-26T22:15:00.000-04:00

I was watching the movie The Rookie the other night. I love that movie. It has such a great statement about our dreams and how important it is for us to follow our dreams and even more than that I think the movie teaches us that it is necessary ... no we are required ... to use the gifts that the good LORD has provided to us. The star of the movie is a gifted pitcher who is over 30 years old when he goes after his dream with his gift. All the odds are against him because of his age and his responsibilities ... but his gift is so great that he succeeds. One of the lines in the movies goes like this ...

it is ok to do what you want to do until it is time to do what you were meant to do

... when the line is spoken to Jimmy Morris (played by Dennis Quaid) his Father is trying to say that it is time for him to give up on his dream ... I actually hear the opposite ... Pitching was what Jimmy Morris was meant to do and now it was time for him to do it!

So I ask you, are you doing what you are meant to do? Are you using your gifts? Are you teaching your kids how important it is to follow your dreams? Think about how the LORD has given you a gift and think about how he wants to bless others by using that gift.

Enjoy the weekend and remember to use your GIFT!

Ciao,
Mark

Contest Time Again ...

2006-07-26T21:52:00.000-04:00

OK, many of you who know me know that I enter a cooking contest for cheese burgers every year. Every year Sutter Home puts on the Build-A-Better-Burger contest. It is time for that contest again. So I have been experimenting with ingredients for use in a GREAT BURGER ... I have tried gorgonzola, avacado, olives (several different kinds), grilled onions, carmalized onions, peppers and many many others that I care not tell you right now! I am afraid that you might enter the contest and beat me!

If you love a great burger you should try the web site for Build-A-Better-Burger and download some of the winning recipes from the last ten years here:

Build-A-Better-Burger

Something about this years recipe is special. I have never seen Cindy quite so excited about one of my burger recipes. So wish me luck ... and if you are lucky maybe you will be invited over to the house for a burger!

Ciao,
Mark

Dinner for 100

2006-07-23T14:38:00.000-04:00

Is this a good idea? For the longest time my friends and family have said, "You need to open a Restaurant," but it just has not been in the cards. I love our weekends with my wife and our family and I could never see giving that up to work in Restaurants again. Last night I was talking to a friend of mine about his passion for food. Then I thought we could do a one night restaurant. We thought it might be a good idea to put on a big 7-course dinner for a group of people at a large house in Charlotte. We could charge a big price and then use the money to go to a charity. It sounded like so much fun that I have been thinking about it ever since our conversation. I like the idea ... maybe we will have to take this one further.

Ciao,
Mark

Garlic ... what to use and why?

2006-07-19T21:00:00.000-04:00

I know that many of us do not have enough time on our hands and because of this an entire industry has developed for fast convenient food. The convenience of prepared or partially prepared foods is all around us. You can make instant anything, rice, oatmeal, pudding or even baby back ribs. We can buy precooked and chopped chicken in the meat department of your local grocery store. A bag of salad from Dole Fresh Vegetables is available that includes lettuce chopped and washed; (most of the time?) dried fruits, croutons and dressing … just pour it all in a bowl and mix. This has all happened because we do not have enough time to cook when we get home from work.

As a result of all this need for convenience foods we have seen many new ways to bring garlic to our kitchens. You can by garlic fresh in bulbs. Pre-chopped and bottled in olive oil, cloves separated, pealed and frozen and of course you can buy it as garlic powder and garlic salt.

So the question is this, when do we use what? For the most part I only use three different types of garlic in my house.

Garlic Powder
Peeled-Frozen Garlic Cloves
Fresh Garlic.

I use the garlic powder when I am cooking roasts and seasoning meats before going in the oven or on the grill. I use a lot of the frozen garlic cloves when I am making quick sauces and maybe garlic bread. The frozen/peeled garlic has lost some of its bravado because once it has been peeled it starts to loose flavor. So it works well when I do not want to overpower a recipe.

Most of the garlic I use is fresh. I keep a head or two of garlic in a jar in the refrigerator with a top that has a few holes punched in it. (Similar to what you might do if you wanted to keep bugs in a jar.) The holes let the garlic breathe and it stays fresh longer. I keep it in the refrigerator so it will peel easier. When I am using fresh garlic I peel the cloves, smash it with the side of a French knife and then chop the smashed garlic into a fine chop. This spreads out the flavor in a recipe and also takes out aggressions for the chef!

As far as using the garlic salt I usually do not because then I am not in control of the amount of salt being used in the recipe. I have used the garlic in a jar on occasion but I think I have a problem with using a prepared food like this that will contain preservatives. It tastes ok but it always seems to have a chemical smell to it when I use it to cook.

So that is my dissertation on Garlic. I hope it has helped.

Ciao, Mark

Dominic .... You are My Hero!

2006-07-18T11:42:00.000-04:00

I want to just say to Dominic that you are really my HERO! I was so proud to be your Dad the other night when you received the Christian Athlete Award from the YMCA. All season long you were an example to everyone on the team and the coaches of a great team player. You are becoming a great example of what a Man should be in the eyes of the LORD. You have made me so proud and I also know you have put a smile on our LORD's face by your attitude and effort at swim team. I Love you, Dad.

Making Sauce ... a Guide

2006-07-17T21:45:00.000-04:00

OK, this is a difficult post. There really is not a recipe for my sauce at the moment. For those of you in New Jersey I think you might call it Gravy, but in my family in Buffalo we always called tomato sauce ... sauce.

For the most part I make sauce because I love to eat pasta and because I love the time and effort that is put into making it. In my mind that is what cooking is really all about ... LOVE ... when you take the time to cook or bake you are showing LOVE for those who will enjoy what you have made. In the case of making sauce everyone new I was going to make it because we had to make lasagna for another family. In order to make lasagna I have to start with a pot of homemade sauce. Sophie and Dominic wanted to help me cook. So we made it a family affair.

I have talked about the steps of making sauce below ... please remember that this is not a recipe but a guide to how to make sauce.

First I make the meatballs. I mix ground beef, ground pork, romano cheese, crushed garlic, diced onions, breadcrumbs, raw eggs and salt and pepper. We mix everything together in a bowl and then form the meatballs.

We fry Italian Sausage in olive oil until they are cooked in a large skillet. Then we fry the meatballs in the same oil until they are just cooked. In addition I sometimes use pork ribs, or beef ribs or stew beef or any other cut of beef or pork that is small enough as a cut to add a few bites to a person's plate.

Then I take the skillet and drain the oil. Then I de-glaze the pan using 2 cups of red wine and a small can of tomato paste. I pour all of this off into a large pot. Then I put into the pot a large can of tomato puree, two large cans of crushed tomatoes and a large can of chopped tomatoes. I add about a large can of water then I add all of the meat to the sauce and add 4-6 cloves of fresh garlic and salt and pepper to taste. I bring the pot to a boil and then turn the heat to very low. I cook this pot for about two to three hours. Then I add 1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil. Then continue to cook the sauce for an additional hour.

Normally when we are making sauce it will be used the next day ... not the day we are making it. So why not serve it the day you make it you ask? Tomato sauce needs to mellow. By putting the pot of sauce in the refrigerator for a day and then reheating it the flavors of the sauce will be both mellow and complex. Tomato sauce when you are making it fresh can be tart. Many people will add sugar to the sauce to take away the tartness of the tomatoes. By taking the time to cook the sauce, then refrigerate it and then retains it you will build a mellowness into the sauce rather than forcing it into the sauce with sugar. This process will also make the meat more tender by allowing the sauce to get to the core of the meatballs and the other beef and pork in the sauce.

I know that this is not an easy one. But you have to believe me that there is very little that will get your family to eat and compliment as much as a home made pot of sauce. Serve the sauce over your favorite pasta or ravioli then serve it with a crusty Italian bread and some great red wine.

Ciao, Mark

Simple Baby Back Ribs & Why They are Like Prayer Requests

2006-07-04T06:46:00.000-04:00

Ribs & Prayer? Is this guy off his Rocker?

I know what you are thinking. Baby Back Ribs are not simple. They are difficult to handle, they take too long to cook and they are very easy to burn if you try to cook them completely on the grill. Someone told me a few years back (I think it was Cheryl & Kevin) a different way to make ribs. I have made some slight changes to the original description, but trust me this is an easier recipe than most and it will make mouthwatering ribs. It does not require a smoker. I know that the lack of a smoker is a big problem for some people and I am sorry for doing this to you, but the main objective for my cooking is trying to simplify ways to make great tasting food. So I apologize to the Baby Back Rib Smoker Purists out there ... this recipe is for those of us that are "smoker challenged"!

So why are Baby Back Ribs like Prayer Requests? This thought came to me after my wife and I were talking. I could take a few slabs of baby back ribs and just throw them on the grill. After 10-15 minutes I could throw on some BBQ sauce and after 20 minutes or so I could have them on the table. Quick ribs! Problem is that they would be hard to eat because they would be tough and tasteless. But if I take the time, as I have shown in this recipe, ribs made this way the mouthwatering delicious. The meat falls off the bone as you eat them. You taste the BBQ sauce in every bite. This seems to work in the same manner as our LORD answering my prayers. You see if I throw up a prayer request and then get frustrated with the LORD because my request is not answered in my time it is because I have not given the LORD time to impregnate my heart. I think the LORD wants to slow cook me and my heart like the ribs. HE wants me to simmer in his word. HE wants me to get tender because I am under a just enough heat to make me uncomfortable and to make me want to change. This is, I think, how the LORD strengthens us, over a long period of time he works us and makes things a bit hotter than we desire.

So as you make this recipe think about how the LORD works on you. Enjoy the ribs and even more than that enjoy the heat that the LORD has you under right now because he is making you into a great person that he is longing to love.

Mouth Watering Baby Back Ribs

4 Full Slabs of Baby Back Ribs
1 18-oz Jar of Hickory flavor BBQ Sauce
1/2 Cup Red Wine Vinegar
Salt & Pepper to Taste.
Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Mix together the BBQ Sauce and the wine vinegar and then set aside. Take ribs and remove the membrane from the under side of the ribs. The easiest way to do this is to slide the tip of a sharp knife under the thin skin of the rib. Then take your finger and slide it underneath the membrane you will see it start to separate from the ribs. Pull this membrane off and discard it. Rinse the ribs under water and pat dry. Lay the ribs out on paper towels on the work surface. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Then take half of the BBQ sauce and brush both sides of each slab of ribs. Wrap two slabs of ribs in two layers of the heavy duty aluminum foil. Put the wrapped ribs in a large backing pan or cookie sheet with sides. (This is to catch any dripping that may occur.) Bake for 3 1/2 hours. Remove the wrapped packages and then let them stand on the counter, wrapped, for about 45 additional minutes.

Prepare the grill so it is at about 350 degrees F or at a medium to low flame. Put the ribs on the grill and brush each side with the remaining BBQ sauce. Cook the ribs on each side for only about 5 minutes, brushing additional BBQ sauce on the ribs each time you turn them over. (Remember the ribs are already cooked all we are doing now is finishing the process.) Remove the ribs from the grill and cut the ribs into one or two rib sections.

I like to prepare the ribs the day before I will serve them. This makes serving ribs to guests much easier and quicker. I take the wrapped ribs after they have sat on the counter for about 45 minutes and I put them into the refrigerator. Then I pull them out of the refrigerator for about 15 minutes before I put them on the grill. Then just grill them and add sauce as I have explained.

I hope you will try these ribs and I hope that you will enjoy the way they taste and more than that you will see how the LORD is trying to change you!

Ciao,
Mark

Steak with a Balsamic Vinegar Sauce

2006-06-30T13:20:00.000-04:00

Steak with Balsamic Vinegar Sauce

This is a great little recipe for the summer or winter. It is a very impressive meal on the table as it has such a rich dramatic taste. My kids and my wife love this recipe. Serve it with some rice and maybe a bit of steamed fresh broccoli.

Ingredients:

Steaks … I like using prime rib in thin slices without the bone for this recipe. Get them cut about 1/2 – 3/4 inch thick pieces. Cut them in to medallions that are about 3 – 4 inches in diameter. You will need two medallions for each person.
3/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
3 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1 Teaspoon Mustard, use either Grey Poupon or a brown mustard … not generic Yellow.
4 Tablespoons of butter
2 Cloves of Garlic, Smash and Chop (you can use 2 tsp of chopped from a jar)
Salt and Pepper to Taste
4 tablespoons of gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
Fresh Parsley, just a bunch of parsley tops to put in a bunch on the plate.

Pound the steak medallions with a meat tenderizer or the bottom of a coffee cup so you have 1/4 inch thick medallions. Sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides and set aside for about 5 minutes.

Mix together the balsamic vinegar, sugar and the mustard. Set this mixture aside.

Heat a heavy skillet over medium high heat. Make sure the pan is hot before you add the butter. Add butter and melt then add the garlic and a little salt and pepper and sauté for about 30 seconds. Add the medallions to the skillet. Do not cover the pan. This will make a bit of a mess but it has the right flavor this way. Add a little salt & pepper to the top of the steaks. Cook for about a minute, when the steak is browned on one side turn them over. Cook for an additional minute, if they are browned on both sides, the steaks should be done. Remove the steaks from the pan and set aside.

Turn the heat of the pan up to high. Let the pan heat up for about a minute. Add the balsamic vinegar mix to the pan and then deglaze the pan by scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. The mixture will start to bubble. Turn the heat down to a medium. Stirring occasionally, cook this mixture for about four minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the sauce in a small bowl.

Put about a tablespoon of the sauce on the plate first then place two over-lapping medallions on the sauce. Drizzle a bit of the sauce on top of the steaks. Sprinkle some of the Gorgonzola Cheese over the top. Put the remaining sauce in a nice bowl on the table with the meal. It is nice to pour over the top of the steak as you eat it.

Caio …

PS: Go Italy …

Can't Buy a Lobster Because WHY?

2006-06-16T15:21:00.000-04:00

Many of you may have heard the Whole Foods Market announced that they no longer would sell Live Lobster in their stores. They have made this decision after seven months of study to determine that the Lobster is mistreated in the trek from ocean, to ship, to shore and finally to that little tank in the store. They said it was cruel to place all these lobsters together in a tank and then have little kids (my daughter always does this) tap on the tank with their fingers. Because of this cruel punishment the chain would not longer supply live lobster in their stores.

They will however, "continue to sell frozen raw and cooked lobster products from suppliers meeting specific quality standards for humane treatment, handling and processing." This is according to Margaret Wittenberg, vice president of quality standards for Whole Foods Market.

I can tell you hear the dripping sarcasm in my fingers as I type. So Whole Foods thinks it is so wrong to throw a lobster in a bucket of salt water or on dry ice. Transport the water tank or dry ice container from Canada to ... say Charlotte, NC ... then have the lobster transferred to another tank of salt water in the store where every kid in southeast Charlotte will tap and bang on the glass. I can see the logic in these thoughts. It does seem like the LARRY (the lobster) would suffer a bit in this process. But it is OK, according to Whole Foods to KILL THE LOBSTER BY FREEZING IT TO DEATH OR BOILING IT TO DEATH! I say this because they will still sell frozen cooked or raw lobster.

Maybe I am the only one who thinks this ... but if you are willing to kill the lobster then it is quite alright to beat up on it a bit so that you can get it to a local store so I can KILL it in my own house. Anyway ... I think this is a silly statement by a Chain to protect a lobster. All this writing has given me an idea.

Remember the POT? Well I think it is time to break out the POT and get some water boiling. I think I will be cooking some LIVE Maine Lobster in the POT in a few weeks!

The news article on the lobster ban can be read here:

Yahoo News Article

To be fair I have also included the link to the news release by Whole Foods here:

Whole Foods Web Site

Have a GREAT weekend ... and do NOT forget the Dad's.

Ciao, Mark

Another Artist I Love

2006-06-15T10:13:00.000-04:00

I love this painting by a good friend of mine Mark Dobbs. His work is very inspiring as it helps me to focus on the simpler things in life. This picture, in particular, reminds me of sitting by the upper Niagara River in Tonawanda, NY in the summer time. I can almost hear the water rushing by me as it heads towards the falls. I can smell the char-grilled hot dogs from behind me and I can feel the grass at my feet. Like I said Mark's work reminds me of things that are easy. Visit the gallery section of Mark's web site. I know that you will enjoy his work.

Mark Dobbs Studio

Have a great day!

Ciao,
Mark

Apples and Gorgonzola Cheese Appetizer

2006-06-14T23:30:00.000-04:00

YEA! We have completed our move. We moved from one subdivision in southeast Charlotte to another subdivision about 1.5 miles away! We have downsized and it feels nice. We only moved into the house on Saturday and already you can tell Cindy lives here. The paintings by Patsy are all up on the walls. Her work means so much to us and it is so beautiful. I am working in front of this one while I type. We so love Patsy's work!

Take a look at more of her other work here ...

Patsy Howell Art Work

The other way you can tell this is feeling more and more like our house is because we are sitting down, having a glass of wine and an appetizer. Tonight it was simple but it tastes so good.

Use a nice apple ... say a Fiji or a Braeburn apple. Cut the apples into slices that are about 1/8 of an inch thick. Then cut thin wedges of the gorgonzola cheese and place the cheese on top of the apple slices. Serve it as is ... you will love the combination of the sweet-tart apple with the stronger and robust flavor of the gorgonzola cheese. Of course if you would like to make substitutions go right ahead ... try any blue cheese or any type of apple ... pick your favorite ... whip up this SIMPLE appetizer and enjoy a moment with your spouse or a special friend.

Ciao, Mark

Daddy Daughter Dance ... what a fun night

2006-06-01T22:34:00.000-04:00

Recently our church held the annual Daddy-daughter dance. Sophie and I had so much fun. I wanted to share some of the pictures from the night. Here is a picture of Sophie and I before we left for the dance ... we had an appetizer and a glass of sparkling cider. How gorgeous was my date????????

This is one of Sophie at the dance. She should have been exhausted ... I had been dancing with her for about an hour at this point.

Here is a shot of the the room filled with Dad's and their daughters!

So what do you say to a group of girls growing up in Southeast Charlotte? Where plastic breasts are acceptable and keeping up with the Jone's is a family sport! I was blessed and honored to be able to speak to these girls and I got to tell them about how GOD's creation is much like a piece of orchestra music ... where the song builds and builds with each addition of a musical instrument the song starts with a bang and then builds to greater and greater heights much like how GOD created the light, then the earth then the land, the sea and then the animals and fish and birds and then man ... but there there is a crescendo ... to the story ... GOD created Woman! The crescendo is the key and the heart to the song ... just like Women are the key and heart of this world! So I got to tell these girls ... that are becoming women ... that they are GOD's most treasured part of creation. I also tried to make the point that none of the girls was beautiful because of what they were wearing ... how their hair was done or their nails ... but because GOD thinks that each and every Girl and Woman IS beautiful. I closed with a verse ...

Psalm 45;11, the KING is enthralled by your beauty

Italian Sausage and Salami Sandwich

2006-06-01T07:43:00.000-04:00

Hey Gang ... I am sorry that I have not blogged lately ... I am in the middle of a move and life and all it's stress is baring down hard. I feel like the house of cards I have built over the past few years ... while our finances have slipped away is about to collapse ... keep me in your prayers. We are closing on the sale of our house on June 12 ... (I have to tell you that I came on here to tell you that I can not blog ... but then I wrote down what we had for dinner last night ... I love to blog about food.)

So what has made me smile the past few days ... well of course food ... try this for a quick dinner ...

1 Loaf Italian Bread
1 pound Italian sausage, removed from the casings
1 small onion, chopped
4 oz feta cheese crumbled
8-12 slices of hard salami
2-4 tablespoons of mayonnaise
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
1 cup of lettuce, romaine or ice berg, chopped
2 tablespoons of olive oil

Saute the Italian Sausage in a pan making sure you keep crushing into small pieces as it cooks. When the sausage is cooked add the onions and simmer for about 1 more minute until the onions are just a bit tender. Remove the pan from the stove and drain off the fat. Return the mix to the pan and stir in the feta cheese and set the mixture aside.

Split the loaf of bread in half length wise. Spread the mayonnaise on the top and bottom of the bread. Spread the mustard on the bottom of the bread. Layer the salami on the bread. Pile the sausage, onion and feta mixture on top of the salami. Top with the lettuce. Drizzle with the olive oil and salt and pepper. Close the sandwich and then cut into slices and serve with a lot of napkins!

Enjoy it ...

Daddy-Daughter Dance

2006-05-05T08:16:00.000-04:00

I am so sorry that I have NOT blogged any recipes this week. I have been consumed in our annual Church Daddy-Daughter Dance this week. The Dance is this evening. I am very excited about our annual Daddy-Daughter Dance ... but Sophie is so much more excited. I will get a chance to talk to all the daughters about why they are REAL princesses ... not because of how they are dressed but because of what GOD has done for them. I would love to chat some more ... but it will have to wait till next week. I will put out some pics of the dance as well.

In HIS Service,
Mark

Strawberry Picking Time

2006-05-03T07:12:00.000-04:00

This past weekend, while my wife was at a retreat, the kids and I went strawberry picking. We picked five gallons of strawberries ... well actually we probably picked seven gallons of strawberries and only brought home five. The other two ended up in our mouths. I have provided several pictures of the weekend and what we did with all those strawberries.

IN THE FIELD:

The kids in a rare moment when no one was eating a strawberry. It was a beautiful day, as you can see by the blue sky, where we got to laugh and tease and talk with one another.

ON THE VINE:

I just had to show you how good the strawberries looked. Just the sight of seeing strawberries brings to mind happy times as a kid. I know that the idea of picking strawberries seems odd to many of us. I mean, why both picking them when I can go to the grocery store and buy them? Even if we ignore the cost issue because it would cost twice as much in the grocery store and the freshness issue because I know how fresh the strawberries were ... could you really ignore the time with your kids?

SHORTCAKE FOR EVERYONE!

So what did we do with all those strawberries? We made homemade Strawberry Shortcake. Don't these look good?!?

MY IDEA OF FUN:

Here you can see a few of the jars of Strawberry Jam, some homemade foccia bread, strawberries mixed with raw sugar for the shortcakes, flowers picked by wife before she left, homemade shortcakes and more strawberries. We had a fun day in the kitchen.

PRETTY ONE MINUTE ... GONE THE NEXT:

Here is the second type of strawberry Shorcake we made. After I made the traditional type, Dominic mentioned that he wanted the spnge cake type with strawberries inside and whipped cream on top of the cake. We served that for dinner on Sunday night with another family. Here Kattie T. is putting on the last strawberry for our display. Within five minutes there was only one small piece of that cake left.

Pasta Fagioli

2006-04-27T12:13:00.000-04:00

When I was younger, in the early 70's, times were tough for our family as we were growing up in Upstate NY. I remember Mom making Pasta Fagioli for dinner because we did not have much money. Dad would tell us how when he was a kid that this meal was a delicacy (read: he grew up in the depression and having food was a delicacy) But as time went on and things got better in our family this meal kept showing up at the table. I know now that the reason it kept showing up was because it is a GREAT meal and it is EASY to make. It also fit the meal requirements during Lent ... (it is meatless and my family was Catholic) When I started working in Italian Restaurants in the early 80's I found that many times this recipe was on the menu. After I moved from Buffalo to Boston I realized I missed having this meal and learned to make it.

So here we are, 2006. My family is not struggling and we serve this meal on a regular basis. This recipe is also one of two recipes that allow me to do a preliminary evaluation of an Italian Restaurant. If they have this recipe on the menu then they pass the first test. (OK, I know that the Olive Garden has this on the menu ... but the Olive Garden does NOT pass for an Italian Restaurant!) My family loves meal, it is healthy, it is quick we always have the ingredients in the house. I hope that you will try this meal and that your family will enjoy it as much as we do.

Remember this is a ONE dish MEAL. Put bowls of Pasta Fagioli on the table with a nice red wine, some crusty Italian bread, fresh grated Romano cheese and some hot pepper flakes. Your family might even say things like:

molto bene - very good
meraviglioso - marvelous
splendido - splendid
favoloso - wonderful

Pasta Fagioli

1 box ditalini
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion,chopped
1 can tomatoes, crushed, 28 oz
2 cups water or chicken broth
1 can white beans, I think we have cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

Prepare the ditalini pasta according to the directions on the box, less 2 minutes of cooking time.

In a separate pot. Saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil for about 2-3 minutes until the onions are beginning to get tender. Add the can of tomatoes and bring to a boil. Add the water or chicken broth and the beans. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Add the oregano and salt and pepper. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Put the pasta in the sauce mixture and bring back to a boil. Serve immediately with grated Romano cheese, a red wine, a crusty Italian bread and some hot pepper flakes.

Some side notes: I usually buy the Barilla Pasta at the local grocery store. You can visit Barilla's web site here. Of course they have a recipe for Pasta Fagioli as well ... but it is not from My Kitchen.

Barilla Home Page

Also, do not forget to tell me what you think I should make in this Kettle? Put your comments in here ...

What to Cook?

Enjoy,
Mark

Copper Kettle ... what to do?

2006-04-25T22:26:00.000-04:00

OK, lets face it, some men see a mountain and they decide they have to climb the it. Other men feel the coolness of the early winter and they have to go hunting. Still others feel the begining of spring and they know that it is time to watch a baseball game.

Well, not me! I see a huge copper kettle and I need to know what I am going to cook in it? Who would I invite for this dinner? So, at our friend's, Mark and Nichole's house we saw this huge old copper kettle and Mark took a few pictures of me and the kettle and now I can think of nothing else ... what should I make in the KETTLE?

So I will ask you ... do you have any ideas? What do you want me to make? Let me know and if I pick your idea ... maybe you will be invited for dinner.

Have a great day,
Mark

Pasta with Broccoli, Artichoke Hearts and Mushrooms

2006-04-24T22:33:00.000-04:00

This is the recipe from Dinner Club this past weekend. I have to stand corrected ... Marybeth and Curt brought the Strawberries and the Baguette Bread. Of course the fondue would not have been possible without those two items ... the strawberries were great in the chocolate and the bread in the cheese. (of course without the strawberries I would have just used my fingers in the chocolate)

Pasta with Broccoli, Artichokes and Mushrooms

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 can artichoke hearts, 14 oz, packed in brine, rinse and chop
2 cups sliced mushrooms, baby bella or white
1 large tomato, diced
2 cups broccoli pieces, tops cut in bite size pieces
1/2 cup white wine, chardonnay
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste

1 pound linguini, cooked and drained according to the package, less 2 minutes

Start with a Large Heavy skillet. At the end of cooking the sauce you will add the pasta to the skillet so it needs to be large. This helps to finish the pasta and brings the flavors "inside" the pasta. Heat the skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil, onions and garlic. Cook for about 2-3 minutes until the onions are softened. Add the artichoke hearts, mushrooms and diced tomatoes and cook for about four additional minutes. Add the broccoli, wine and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for an additional 2 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Toss in chopped fresh basil and linguini. Simmer and toss until the pasta is covered in the sauce and is completely heated. Put the pasta in a serving platter and top with a little romano cheese and a little more chopped fresh basil for a beautiful plate of pasta.

Some nice things about this pasta dish. This is a light pasta sauce and it can be prepared in less than 30 to 45 minutes. It was great for the dinner club because I precut everything at my house so all I had to do at Pete and Katherine's was put everything in a skillet. I precooked the pasta at about 3:30 in the afternoon and brought it in a ziplock bag. I did NOT toss it with olive oil, just drained the pasta and then rinsed it with cold water, then I put it in the bag. This can be served as a meal or as a side dish as I did at dinner club.

I hope you will try this one ...

Mark

Dinner Club

2006-04-24T09:44:00.000-04:00

I will most likely talk about "Dinner Club" every so often in my blog. Three couples that Cindy and I know, decided to gather on a regular basis and share a meal. Usually on a Saturday night. We alternate who's house the dinner will be at. Saturday we were at Dinner Club again ... and it was Awesome!

Lets start with the basics. Pete and Katherine were the hosts this time. Butch, Mandy, Curt and Marybeth were all there with my wife Cindy and I. We started with a cheese fondue with some baguette bread slices. Then dinner was served at a beautiful table (Katherine) that included Chicken Marsala (Pete and Katherine), a Tremendous Salad (Mandy ... no one makes a better salad!) and a tossed pasta with mushrooms, artichoke hearts and broccoli (Me). We finished the meal with a chocolate fondue (Pete and Katherine) with apple's, bananas, marshmallows and cheesecake to dip into the chocolate. It was soooo good.

Dinner was Awesome ... but more than that ... this was kind of a "date" time with my wife. We do not do that often enough lately ... so I really enjoyed just driving there with my wife and not hearing the kids in the back of the mini-van. Top that time off with fellowship, laughter and prayer with our friends and you can see how the evening was GREAT. The joy of having everyone laughing and talking around the table while there are three or four conversations going on and everyone just content to sit and enjoy one another is why I cook! Some point today I will post again and provide the recipe for the pasta ... since it did turn out very good. (It was a new recipe for me.) I will also provide recipes this week for a Chicken Marsala (Pete I will use my recipe ... but yours was GREAT!), a Roasted Chicken - Tomato Pasta Sauce and a Sausage with Peppers and Onions.

Finally I want to take a minute to say Thank You to those who are reading this blog for the first time this week. I hope that my passion for food and friends will be something that you can enjoy and that the recipes will allow you to cook wonderful meals and spend more time with your family and friends.

Also, to the gang at Dinner Club ... I LOVE YOU ALL! Through thick and thin ... in good and bad times I know that I will be able to count on all of you for prayer and fellowship. I hope that all of you know ... I will also be there for you!

In HIS Service,
Mark

Blessings and Challanges

2006-04-21T10:22:00.000-04:00

Why do I cook? Yes, I love the food. Yes, it calms me down and takes away the agressions that may have built up during the day. Yes, I enjoy the attention. But ... it is the companionship and relationships at the table that I enjoy the most. One of the things that we love to do at the table in our house for dinner is our ... Blessings and Challanges. We go around the table and each person shares one way (sometimes there are more than one way) they were blessed during the day. Then we go around a second time and each person shares a challange they had during the day. This conversation takes many directions each evening but usually it turns into a time of teaching ... for the kids and for my wife and I. Why do I cook ... so I can create deeper relationships with those that sit at my table.

In HIS Service,
Mark

Pasta with Italian Sausage and Basil

2006-04-21T09:27:00.000-04:00

I know that it is Friday evening and you want something good to eat ... because we have accomplished the week. But I also know that we want something that will not require fuss and major cleanup. Of course in my house, growing up, this usually consisted of Pasta. Funny thing is we must have eaten Pasta more than three times a week. Anyway this is a recipe that includes only a few items, that are easy to get and it takes about 20-30 minutes to prepare. It also is great to re-heat for a later time.

Pasta with Italian Sausage and Basil

1 tablespoon olive oil
12 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
3-4 Links of Italian Sausage (remove from casings or cut each link in 8-10 pieces)
1 can crushed tomatos, 28 oz
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil or 2 teaspoons of dried basil
1 pound of pasta, ziti or rigatonni or any short/fat pasta

This is an easy meal. Put a pot of boiling water on the stove first. Heat up a seperate saucepan over medium heat to cook the pasta sauce. Add the olive oil and onions when the saucepan is hot. Stir for about two minutes. Add the garlic to the pan, stir and cook for an additional minute. Add sausage and cook until the sausage is done. Add the can of crushed tomatoes. Stir the sauce and let it come to a boil. Add the basil, salt and pepper and lower the heat to simmer the sauce. Add the pasta to the water at this point. When the pasta is done, drain it and the return the pasta back to the large pot. Add about 1/4 cup of the sauce and stir. Put pasta on each plate and then top with a generous amount of the sauce and sausage. Serve it with some crusty Italian bread and maybe a glass of wine ... ok do not give the kids the wine ... cut down on clean up and use paper plates ...

This is a very flavorful sauce and is enjoyed by my family on a regular basis. I hope you will try it ...

Enjoy,
Mark

Love, Me ... what does it mean?

2006-04-19T23:11:00.000-04:00

I am feeling a bit more romantic this evening and very much in love with my wife. So I was thinking about the way we both sign our e-mails to one another. Usually it is written ... Love, Me ... The way I see it this is either a request or a command. If she is writing it to me ... she is asking me to LOVE her. This is a request for an action by me. This is not, as many people think, a feeling. If I am to LOVE her then I am going to have to LOVE her with actions, by me and or words of love, from me. So as you move about your day on Thursday ask yourself this question, "Did I do anything to LOVE my spouse/significant other today?" Or did you just complain that he/she did not do anything for ME today? Have a great day ...

Love ME ... think about it!

Olive Tepenade

2006-04-19T22:44:00.000-04:00

This is a great appetizer to prepare in just a few minutes. Typically these are items that I usually have in the pantry. (Hey, that is the definition for Putanesca Sauce ... but we will talk about that at a later date.) This is great on crackers or on baguette slices.

Olive Tepenade

1 14 ounce jar of Kalamata Olives, pitted
1 clove fresh garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup romano cheese
fresh ground pepper

Put olives, garlic and olive oil in a small cuisinart and pulse about 30 to 45 seconds. Scrape the bowl, add the pine nuts and pulse for 30 more seconds or unitl the olive mix is smooth enough to spread. If you are not sure, taste a little and decide how the texture feels. Would you like it? Then decide if you need to pulse any longer. When you are satisfied with the texture remove the cuisinart bowl and scrape the mixture into a medium size bowl. Stir in the romano chees and fresh ground pepper to taste. Regrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

This is a great appetizer while you and your spouse/better half are getting ready to go out for an evening. Pour two glasses of wine and then place the Tepenade and some crackers or breads on a small platter and bring all of it up to the bathroom while you are both showering and getting ready.

Enjoy,
Mark

Sausage and Roasted Bell Pepper Appetizer

2006-04-18T16:38:00.000-04:00

It seems like most of what I have posted lat in the week were all difficult recipes. So last night I decided I would try to post some things that are easer to deal with. One of our favorite appetizers is to arrange on a big platter the following items:

Sausage and Roasted Bell Pepper Appetizer

Baguette Bread Slices
Crackers (Carr's Usually)
Roasted Red Bell Peppers
Sliced Cheeses
Roasted and Sliced Sausage
Spicy Brown Mustard for Dipping
Olive Tepenade
Grapes

Arrange all these items on a platter or a large cutting board and then serve with a glass of wine or two. Most of the time we have Italian sausage, but lately at the local Lowes Foods they have many different flavors, Cajun, Basil and Lemon and many others. This is a great summer appetizer that is quick and easy for the company that just drops by as long as you have some sausage in the freezer ... ready to go.

Enjoy,
Mark

Rocky Road Clusters ... by my son

2006-04-17T22:44:00.000-04:00

OK, some of you might ask, why let your kids in the kitchen? Well I think I have several reasons. the first is because they enjoy it so much. You should have seen my sons face when he was making Rocky Road Clusters this evening. I know that he loved what he was doing. He loved how confident I was in him and how I would not help him even a little. They turned out great ...

He enjoyed himself.
It created a high level of self-confidence.
It teaches independence and a drive to complete a project.
Maybe he will grow up and love to cook for his family ... like me.
Last but not least ... he was with others in his family while he made dessert.

Rocky Road Clusters

1 cup toasted O's cereal
1 cup mini marshmallows
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1/4 cup caro syrup
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon brouwn sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 cup chocolate chips

Mix cereal, marshmallows and peanuts in a bowl. Heat the butter, syrup, flour and brown sugar in a heavy pan . Bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring constantly. Boil for 3 more minutes. Remove syrup mixture from heat and pour over cereal mixture. Stir until combined. After 5 minutes stir in chocolate chips. Press into a 9 x 9 pan. Chill, cut and serve. Well ... you do not have to wait till they are chilled!

They taste best if ... you let one of your kids make it for you and watch their face when YOU taste what they made!

Enjoy,
Mark

Brownie Trifle Recipe

2006-04-17T08:40:00.000-04:00

I have to laugh when I make this recipe. This traditionally has been called a TRIFLE. It seems like a funny name for a dessert that looks so extravagant when it is complete. If you look up "trifle" in Webster's Dictionary it is defined as " ... A thing of very little value or importance; a paltry, or trivial, affair ... " But when the trifle is complete everyone is always so impressed with how it looks. So I have always thought it should be called something else ... like really rich, gooey chocolate and wonderful whipped cream desert ... in general the opposite of Trifle!

Anyway, my wife asked if I would make the Trifle for Easter Sunday Dessert. My younger son and daughter helped me make it. It is pretty simple to make (maybe where the name comes from) here is the recipe. Remember, if you do not like one of the ingredients ... change it ...

Brownie Trifle

Brownie, 13 x 9 size, prepared
Large Container Cool Whip
Large box chocolate pudding, prepared
3-4 Heath Candy bars, broken in pieces

The best way to make this desert is to use a Trifle Bowl, that is clear glass. It will display the desert so everyone is drooling before they eat it.

Basically, you are going to make two layers for this desert. First take and crumble the brownie into small bite size pieces. Place half of the brownie in the bottom of the bowl. Top with half of the prepared chocolate pudding. Top the pudding with half of the Cool Whip topping. Sprinkle half of the crushed candy bars over the Cool Whip. Repeat the layer process a second time, brownie, pudding, Cool Whip then crushed candy bar. Cover and refrigerator.

Make sure when you company is arriving you have it placed in a visible spot ... everyone will ohhh and ahhh.

Enjoy it this summer ...
Mark

Brushetta Amore

2006-04-14T10:17:00.000-04:00

I call this one Bruschetta Amore (My translation is ... Bread for my Love) because I was living in CA and my wife and a friend, LuAnn were getting ready so a group of us could go out for a night on the town. My wife asked if there was anything to eat as an appetizer. What was available was used ... and now has become famous in our group of family and friends. It is a great appetizer because so much can be prepared in advance and then just put together at the last minute. I am writing the recipe in three sections so you can see each of the main components. Also, because of the way the recipe is written it looks complicated IT IS NOT COMPLICATED! This is an easy recipe because so much of the work can be done ahead of time.

Brushetta Amore

Prepare the Tomato Topping:
1 Large Ripe Tomato, diced (I use Heirloom tomatoes at the local market)
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 cup Chopped Fresh Basil
1 clove Garlic, SMASHED and chopped.
Salt and Pepper to taste

Put the tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil in a bowl and gently toss. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside for at least 20 minutes. This topping can be made up to 4 hours ahead. Leave it on the counter top. Do NOT put in the refrigerator astomatoesmatos will become ÂmealyÂ and no one wants that!

Prepare Bread:
1/2 Loaf French Bagette Bread
Have the bread sliced at the store. They may complain but tell them to cut the loaf in half and then put it on the slicer.
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly brush each slice of bread with the olive oil on both sides. Place the slices on a cookie sheet and bake until the first side is slightly toasted, about 3-5 minutes. Turn the bread slices over and bake the second side until slightly toasted, again about 3-5 minutes. You can store the toasted bread slices in a zip lock bag for a day or two if you like.

Prepare Cheese Mixture:
1/3 cup Ricotta Cheese
1/3 cup Feta Cheese, crumbled
1/3 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
1 tablespoon milk
Salt and Pepper to taste.

Put all three cheeses, milk and salt and pepper in a bowl and mix until smooth. Set this aside. You can make this a day or two ahead and then store it, covered in the refrigerator.

Put the Brushetta together.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place all the toast slices on a cookie sheet. Place a small spoonful of the cheese mixture on each slice of the toasted bread slices. Top with a small spoonful of the tomato topping. Make sure you add a drizzle of the olive oil that the tomatoes have been marinating in as this will help to flavor the Brushetta. Bake in the oven for about 8-10 minutes until the cheese is melted.

Your guests will go wild for this recipe. And the will ask for the recipe ... just send them to me ...

Godere di Buona Salute,
(Enjoy good health)
Mark
marktheitalianchef@yahoo.com

Most Expensive Sandwich ... This one is BETTER

2006-04-13T23:21:00.000-04:00

So I have stewed all day about seeing the MOST EXPENSIVE SANDWICH on the WEB. I do not like the idea of someone making a sandwich (or any food) that is just to make it expensive ... and to get your name on the WEB and in the news. I set out and shopped for the ingredients for that sandwich and I said I could make it for about $20 per sandwich. But I wanted to share one of my favorite steak sandwiches. It is great in the summer when you get fresh tomatoes. This recipe will feed four ... and they will be stuffed.

2 Filet Mignon Steaks, butterfly cut, divided (so there are four pieces) then pound the steaks.
4 cloves of Garlic
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 tomatoes, Sliced for 8 total slices
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Kosher Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
4 thick slice Ham Copocolla
4 thick slices of Fresh mozzarella Cheese
2 cups Arugula Lettuce Mix
4 Tablespoons mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon Pesto Sauce
8 thick slices of Italian Bread. This should be a hearty/crusty bread. The slices should be 3/4 inch think ... or so.

Make a Pesto mayonnaise. Mix the mayonnaise and the Pesto Sauce in a small bowl until combined. Cover and place in the refrigerator. This can be made up to one day ahead.

Smash and chop two cloves of the garlic combine with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and the chopped basil. Line a shallow bowl with the sliced tomatoes. Salt and pepper to taste. Then pour the olive oil mixture over the tomatoes. Turn the tomatoes over once or twice to coat both sides. Set aside till you are ready to make the sandwich. This can be made three to four hours ahead. Do NOT put this in the refrigerator.

Smash and chop the other two cloves of the garlic. Mix in the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil and Worcestershire Sauce, combine completely. Line a shallow bowl with the Filet Mignon's. Salt and Pepper both sides. Pour the olive oil mixture over the filets. Turn the filets over to coat both sides. Let stand for about 20 minutes then turn over and let stand for another 20 minutes. (OK ... so maybe you only have 15 minutes total ... it is not a problem.) Preheat your grill to 350 degrees F.

Place the filets on the hot grill. Salt and pepper both sides. Grill the filets on both sides until they are just about done to your likeness. I like medium-rare. Just before the filets are done placed the slices of Copocolla on the Filets. Then top with the mozzarella cheese Slices. When the cheese is beginning to melt ... not too long, only about a minute. Remove the steaks from the grill.

Take a little more olive oil and brush the Italian Bread slices on both sides and grill the slices till they are just golden brown. Keep your eyes on the bread ... it really wants to burn quickly. Maybe 30 to 60 seconds per side.

Now let's build the sandwich. Place one slice of bread on a cutting board. Spread about 1/2 tablespoon of the mayonnaise Mixture on the bread, top with the Filet, then the Arugula Lettuce, then two slices of tomato then pour a tablespoon of the olive oil from the tomato bowl. Spread 1/2 tablespoon of the mayonnaise mixture on the other slice of bread. Close the sandwich and cut in half.

Serve this with a nice Red Wine ... say a Cab or Chianti and extra napkins.

Enjoy ...

Oh Yeah ... total for four sandwiches and the wine ... well about $50.00 total. A boat load cheaper than the McDonald ... and I think a whole lot better.

Remember to play around with this sandwich. You say you do not want to spend the money on the Filet ... buy what is on sale. You do not like mozzarella ... try Blue Cheese or Provolone or even Feta. You do not want to spend the money on the Arugula ... try chopped Ice Berg or any lettuce in a bag. It is important that you make what you enjoy and what your family will eat.

Enjoy the sandwiches! Happy Easter.

Most Expensive Sandwich ... WHY ... part two

2006-04-13T15:39:00.000-04:00

Additional notes on this MEGA-COST SANDWICH ... Yes I know that many of us struggle with some of these "items" ... foie gras (duck liver) and confit (veggie or meet cooked for a long time in salt and fat, then preserved in fat) and expensive steak, tomatos and cheese ... but like I said earlier I understand the need for high quality ingredients. So I went to the store for some items ... I priced ALL organic items in a very expensive grocery store in Charlotte NC. I came away with a total of over $80.00 and I would think I would feed four large men or three couples that we normally hang out with. That means ... worst case I would spend $20.00 per sandwich.
BUT ... the same question still stands ... WHY WOULD I SPEND THAT MUCH TO MAKE A GREAT STEAK SANDWICH? I will submit my recipe for a BETTER STEAK SANDWICH this evening. You can all be the judges.

Thank you for standing in front of my "soap-box";
Mark

Read about Confit here ...
http://www.cuisinenet.com/digest/region/france/menu_terms.shtml
(sorry I am still learning about blogging so I can not make my links work)

Most Expensive Sandwich ... WHY?

2006-04-13T10:29:00.000-04:00

OK ... I am sure many of you have seen this ... it was titled the Most Expensive Sandwich. It appeared in YAHOO on the web today. Supposedly it would sell for over $148.00 US. I have one question for the Chef ... First let me talk about the sandwich. Here is the description from the YAHOO site ... view the information directly here ...

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=1756&e=3&u=/060410/481/lth10404101133

What is claimed to be the world's most expensive sandwich goes on display at Selfridges Department Store in London, Monday April 10, 2006. Named the McDonald Sandwich, after it's creator, chef Scott McDonald, the ingredients are Wagyu beef, fresh lobe foie gras, black truffle mayonnaise, brie de meaux, rocket, red pepper and mustard confit, and English plum tomatoes, all packed into 24-hour fermented sour dough bread - and it sells for 85 pounds (US$ 148.33: euro 122.53) each.(AP Photo/Tom Hevezi

Look, I do not question the use of upper grade foods in cooking. In fact I would rather pay $4.00 or $5.00 for a tomato that is fresh grown rather than a typical grocery store tomato. But this grouping of items goes way too far. I expect that I could make the same (or even better) sandwich from the local Fresh Market here in Charlotte, NC ... Lets see ...

OK, here is what I will do ... I am going to go the store at Lunch and buy all the items for this sandwich for four people ... then I will tell you what I bought and hwo much I spent ... I bet I can make a sandwich that 99% of the public could NOT tell the difference between my sandwich and Scott McDonald's. I will go further (but I should not) and say that 99.9% of the people who could pay this much for a sandwich could NOT tell the difference.

So here is my question ... WHY? WHY? WHY? Would you make such a sandwich ... or maybe I know the answer ... now everyone knows who Scott McDonald is and no one knows ME!

I'll be back ... Mark

Who the heck is Mark The Chef?

2006-04-13T08:37:00.000-04:00

Who am I? Well lets start with a picture of my family ... Cindy, Sophie, Nyan and Dominic ... as you can see the LORD has blessed me in a huge way with this family ... also you can tell we love to have a good time ... I will tell you more about them in the future.

Well like I have said before ... I am just some Italian boy from Tonawanda, NY. I went to Kenmore East High School and graduated in 1980 (wow ... that was a long time ago) then I went to NCCC for a technical education and then on to RIT for more Mechanical Engineering Technology education. Then I went to work in Boston, MA for a factory automation company and I spent the last 20 years of my career selling factory automation equipment. I moved from Boston to California. I got married to Cindy and we lived in CA for a few years then we moved to Charlotte, NC in 1992 and we have been hers ever since ... funny ... but I did not mention food training???

Well I am NOT a real chef ... just a wanna-be-chef. I worked in many restaurants in my earlier years ... Salvatore's Italian Garden's, Romanello's Roseland, Romanello's Prime Rib, Arthur's Restaurant and or course Alice's Kitchen. I am sure there were several others that my 44 year old brain will no longer recall. My restaurant training and my family training are what have inspired me to work so hard and be so passionate about food and cooking. I have wanted, for a long time, to do something about my food passion and now with BLOGGING and can ... so that is why I am blogging as Markthechef ...

In HIS Service,
Mark

Check out some of the restaurants I worked at ...

Romanello's ... http://www.romanellos.com/rosmenu.php3
Salvatore's ... http://www.salvatores.net/italian_gardens/index3.html

WOW ... Someone is reading my BLOG!

2006-04-13T07:56:00.000-04:00

OK, maybe to the rest of you that is not all that exciting ... but to me it is VERY EXCITING that someone is reading what I wrote. So if you are reading this blog ... I want to say THANK YOU!

Garlic ... Press or Crush/Chop?

2006-04-12T07:45:00.000-04:00

OK ... I am a purist. When I started working in Kitchens back in Buffalo, NY we did not have garlic presses. So you crushed all the Garlic you used. Alot of what we did was "tableside" cooking so you actually used two forks to crush a clove of garlic. You push down on the clove with one fork and you drag across the tynes with a second fork to "scrape" the garlic and kind mash it into a paste. This is a great method for Cesear Salad because you do not want big pieces of garlic in the bowl. Sounds like a great reason for a Garlic Press? Not really, because too much of the garlic seems to NOT make it in the bowl if I use a press. If I am going to cook the garlic in anyway then I use the SMASH and chop method. I take a french knife and lay it on it's side on top of the garlic and then SMASH it with my fist! It works out a ton of agression. Then I just chop it as fine as I need it.

What are your thoughts? Do you SMASH? Do you use a press? Do you use pre-crushed garlic? (I do not want to even talk about that idea here ...)

Have a GREAT Day!

EASY Sweet & Sour Chicken

2006-03-30T17:23:00.000-05:00

EASY Sweet & Sour Chicken

1 Package cut up Chicken. (Usually a whole chicken cut up will work.)
1 Package DRY Onion Soup Mix
1 8 oz Jar (or one cup) Apricot Preserves
1 8 oz Bottle (or one cup) Thousand Island Dressing.
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Arrange chicken in a 13 x 9 baking dish, skin side up. Salt and Pepper each piece. Spoon Apricot Preserves on each piece of chicken. Sprinkle some of the onion soup mix on each piece of chicken. Spoon some of the Thousand Island Dressing on each piece of chicken. (I told you this was going to be easy.) Cover the pan with aluminum foil. Put in the oven for 90 minutes at 350 degrees.

Serve with rice, soy sauce and a salad.

Monkfish alla Diavola

2006-03-30T13:36:00.000-05:00

This is a great recipe for Monkfish, or shrimp or for Lobster. Have lots of strong red wine and a crusty Italian bread to serve with this meal. Total cooking time was less than 30 minutes. Not very kid friendly.

Monkfish alla Diavola
(Monfish in a spicy tomato sauce)

1 pound Monkfish (2-3 filets), cut into 1 inch pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chipped
4-5 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Hot Serrano Chilli Peppers, chopped
1 cup red wine.
8-10 plum tomatos, diced
3 tablespoons fresh basil, coarsly chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat a heavy pan on the stove top then reduce the heat to medium. Add olive oil, saute garlic and onions until translucent. Add monkfish and cook for about 3-4 minutes stirring frequently. Remove the monkfish and set aside. Add the peppers to the pan and saute till tender, about 2 minutes. Turn the heat up to high on the pan, then add the wine and deglaze the pan making sure you scrape all the pieces off the bottom. Add the tomatos, bring to a boil, reduce the heat on the pan to medium and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Return the monkfish to the pan and simmer until the fish is opaque, about 4-5 minutes. Add the basil and simmer for about 1 minte longer. Salt and pepper to taste. This will be like a soup so it can be served in a bowl with some crusty Italian bread or over a linguini pasta or even over rice. Add a little red pepper flakes and fresh chopped basil to top off the bowl and enjoy.

You can make this hotter by using more peppers or by using a hotter pepper.

Why do I love to cook?

2006-03-30T12:58:00.000-05:00

Yeah ... that is a good question. Why do I love to cook? I think the main reason is not just because I love to eat ... but more because I love to be with people. Growing up in Buffalo, NY the best way to get the "family" together was to cook. And my family, always had an excuse to get together. If someone broke a toe nail they needed to get together and talk. We would all show up at Grandma and Grandpa's house and there would be food. Of course most of it was Italian and ALL of it was wonderful. So when people ask me why ... it is for the memories and so that I can give our children the same memories. I want our kids to remember sitting around the table and talking, laughing, telling stories and crying. I love when we have other families over and we get to share our emotions with them as well. Since we all gather over our table and in our kitchen it has become my passion to make sure we are serving great food. When people come over our house for dinner or brunch or for appetizers someone always asks for a recipe. So that is where the idea for this blog began. I will share recipes and cooking ideas. I hope you will enjoy reading and more than that I hope you will enjoy cooking some of the recipes that I hope to post in the future.

Godere di Buona Salute,
(Enjoy good health)
Mark