And here's what I'm serving up this week…

Well the credit really goes to blogger, Three Many Cooks, but my Dad is the one who found the recipe in the Chicago Suntimes, so I’ll give him some bragging rights too.  For those of you who know my Dad, he is a foodie who enjoys simple cuisine.  When he started raving about this easy bread that he made, I knew I had to try it.  And since I refuse to follow recipes just for the sake of being different, I decided to use a local Michigan craft brew, Oaked IPA from Round Barn Brewery instead of the normal light beer.  This added a fragrant almost pine finish which was a great compliment to the rosemary and salt crust on the bread.

So here is the recipe:

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3Tbs. sugar

1Tb. baking powder

1 1/2 tsps. salt

12 oz beer (this is where you can be creative)

1 egg, beaten

1 tsps. fresh chopped rosemary

1/2 tsps. kosher salt for top of loaf

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.  Add beer (“no sips” says the author.  I say grab a fresh one for yourself.) and stir with a fork until just combined.  Turn dough onto floured surface; knead quickly to form a ball.  Place bread on a baking sheet and confidently slit an “X” on top with a serrated knife.  Brush loaf with egg wash and sprinkle with freshly chopped rosemary and kosher salt.  Bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes.  Transfer to wire rack and serve.  Serve it up and enjoy!

I may not be Irish, but I can cook a mean corned beef. My method might be a little different than yours, but once I explain why I cook my corned beef the way that I do, you might just get it. It makes sense.

How many people boil their corned beef? Why? When you boil something, whatever flavor was in that meat, just seeped out into the water. Yes, that might be good to flavor your potatoes and cabbage, but really your focus is the corned beef, everything else is just a filler. So read below to find out my method, it may seem strange, but I’ve never had any complaints.

Corned Beef ala Jurczak (Yes I’m Polish)

1. Follow cooking times on the corned beef package, but add 1 hour.
2. Open up your corned beef and trim any excessive fat. Your corned beef needs some fat so don’t get too crazy.
3. Find the biggest pot with a lid that you have.
4. Take your corned beef and wrap it in aluminum foil, forming a tight seal. Repeat with a second layer.
5. Place your corned beef(s) and put it in your large pot.
6. Cover corned beef(s) with water, about 2-4 inches above the corned beef. Add 1 tablespoon of salt.
7. Put on stovetop and follow cooking instructions on corned beef package, but don’t forget to add an addition hour. Be sure to put the lid on.
8. During that last hour is when you will add the potatoes and cabbage.
9. After cooking is complete, remove the potatoes and cabbage, dump out all of the water and let corned beef rest for about 30 minutes before cutting.
10. Cut the corned beef against the grain and serve!

You will find that the cabbage and potatoes will taste like cabbage and potatoes and not corned beef water. The salty corned beef and the mellow, sweet taste of the cabbage and potatoes is a perfect contrast. Follow these simple instructions and you will have a perfect corned beef every time!

Well yesterday was the start of Lent. And of course I immediately think Pepper and Egg Sandwiches! When I was telling Ryan that I was making that for dinner, he thought pepper,as in black pepper and egg sandwiches. No wonder he was not that excited. Little did he know that pepper and egg sandwiches were nostalgia to me and my Catholicness. I recall going into Tony’s on 71^st and Pulaski and instead of a beef sandwich and cheese fries, we’d get pepper and egg sandwiches on Friday’s during Lent. My parents LOVED these sandwiches and began making their own at home, and of course they were ten times better. Because I have the insatiable need to always improve on an already delicious meal, I came up with this recipe for dinner last night :

Kathryn’s Pepper & Egg Sandwich

2 jumbo eggs
1 jumbo egg white
½ sweet red pepper, sliced into 1 inch strips
½ green pepper, sliced into 1 inch strips
½ of a medium onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeño sliced into thin circles
extra sharp cheddar cheese
salt & pepper
olive oil
Crusty French or Italian bread

Saute onions, garlic and peppers in some olive oil to a desired firmness. Season with salt and pepper and set to the side. In a separate pan, drizzle pan with olive oil, add jalapenos, let cook for one minute before adding the scrambled eggs to which you added about 1 tablespoon of water and salt and pepper. Let cook and add sharp cheddar cheese. Add sauteed peppers and fold like an omelet. Place cooked omelet on warm French or Italian bread that has been slightly toasted. Wrap in parchment paper until all sandwiches are prepared.

For those of you who are my Facebook friends, you probably know that I made hush puppies the other night. I was trying to figure out whose recipe I should use. Emeril’s or Paula Dean’s. After much recipe review, I finally went with Emeril. BAM! And I am so glad I did. They were fantastic! The hush puppies however were not the highlight of the dish, the “sort of” Jambalaya was. Below is my version of Jambalaya.

Start out by browning up the sausage over medium/high heat. Once browned, remove from pan and add chicken. Brown chicken and remove from pan. Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to pan in toss in the onions, peppers and garlic, turn heat down to medium. Add thyme and cajun seasonings and let cook for about 5 minutes. Add rinsed rice to pan as well as the chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Leave lid on for 20 to let rice steam. Add chicken. Sausage and scallops to pan and let cook for an additional 10 minutes on low to allow the meats to warm up again and the scallops cook. This is where you need to taste the dish to see if you want to add any additional salt, pepper, hot sauce and or chicken stock.

I really can’t believe I’ve let my obsession with food get away from me again. It’s easy to post on Facebook what I made or what I’m thinking about making for dinner, but for some reason I just can’t seem to blog about it with any frequency. Well I’m going to give it another shot. Since I have some free time on my hands in the afternoons, I’m going to make it part of my routine. Feel free to contact me if there is anything you would like to see on the blog. It defiantly helps when there is a need for content or discussion.

So in my next post I will discuss what delicious, spicy meal we had on Fat Tuesday this week.  Jambalaya, sort of.

Cakes:
2 tilapia filets
1 can crab
1 egg
½ cup fresh bread crumbs
2 tablespoons diced onion
Salt and Pepper

Sauce:
½ cup Mayonnaise
1-2 Tablespoons Szechuan Sauce (found in Asian isle at the food market)
Juice of ½ of lime
Dash of salt

Dice up Tilapia as if you were dicing it for tuna tartar (very small dice). Put in a a mixing bowl along with the crab. Remember quality counts, so the better the fish, the better your results are. Add the bread crumbs and onion as well. In a separate bowl, beat the egg and add to the mixture. Add salt and pepper at this time too. Gently mix the ingredients and make them into patties for pan frying.

Heat up a medium to large skillet on medium-high heat. Spray pan with cooking spray and add patties. Cook for 2-4 minutes on each side depending on the size. I typically cook the first side a little longer than the second side so that it gets a good sear and it doesn’t fall apart when you try to turn it over.

Sauce:
Mix all ingredients together adding more Szechuan sauce if more heat is desired.

Serve over your favorite greens, or serve it on some crusty bread or just serve as is with some sliced avocados.

4 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 flank steak (about 1-1/2 lbs.)
3 tablespoons dry vermouth or dry white wine
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon Worcestershire
1-1/2 tablespoon capers, drained well (I use more because we love capers)

Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with the oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat. Place meat in pan and cook, uncovered; until meat is browned on both sides but still pink in center when slashed (5 to 6 minutes total).

Transfer meat to a carving board and cover loosely to keep warm. Over low heat, melt the remaining 3 tablespoon butter in pan drippings. Mix in vermouth, mustard, Worcestershire and capers; stir briskly to blend. Cut meat across the grain into thin slanting slices. Spoon sauce over meat.

Makes 4 servings.

Michael Chiarello is one of my favorite chefs. Check out this recipe he whipped up on the Early Show this morning. It’s a must for my next party!

8 ounces Parmesan cheese, broken into 1″ chunks
8 ounces Asiago cheese, broken into 1″ chunks
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped basil
2 tablespoons chopped scallions
1 teaspoon pepper flakes
1-1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil

Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse for about 10 seconds, to break the cheese into small granules. (Use a rubber spatula to scrape down and recombine between every couple of pulses.)

Transfer the salsa to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to a week. Bring to room temperature before serving.

My lady friend just sent me over this mouthwatering recipe.  I suggest you make it for dinner tonight.  I know I am.  Simple, but fabulous!

2lbs Chicken (bone in works best)
Dried Thyme
Salt & Pepper to taste
White wine (Sauvignon Blanc)
Lemon juice
Olive Oil
Diced Garlic

Pat dry chicken and season both sides with salt and pepper, heat olive oil in pan on medium heat, toss in garlic. Try not to burn the garlic.  After a minute, insert chicken bone up. Cook until meaty side is golden brown, remove chicken from pan and transfer to baking dish. Squeeze half a lemon in pan and add white wine 1/4 to 1/3 cup and deglaze pan. Take almost a tablespoon of dried thyme and rub between palms and sprinkle over chicken, pour drippings from pan over chicken and bake, uncovered at 350 till done.  This usually takes about 30-45 minutes depending on the size of the chicken.

Last night for dinner I grilled up a flank steak for Ryan & I. It was so delicious; it motivated me to start posting some more recipes on here. So below is what I had for dinner last night…keep reading on if you like a little spice in your life.

Citrus Habanero Flank Steak Tacos
2lb Flank Steak
4 Juicy Oranges
2 Juicy Limes
2 Habanero Peppers (sliced in half)
1 teaspoon Honey
¼ cup chopped Cilantro
½ cup Olive Oil
½ teaspoon Salt
¾ teaspoon Pepper

Mix all of the above ingredients together and place flank steak in marinated for about 30-60 minutes. In the meantime, heat up your grill. Get the coals hot. After you have marinated your Flank Steak, place on grill and cook on each side for about 6-8 minutes. This will give you a medium to medium rare steak. After you are done cooking, place foil over the steak and let it rest for about 10-15 minutes before cutting into it. This will help keep the steak nice and tender. Take the rest of your marinade and put it in a sauce pan, letting it come to a boil, and then reducing it to a simmer. After you cut your flank steak in thin pieces AGAINST the grain, you are going to pour the remainder of the cooked marinated over it. I served mine up with some cool, creamy guacamole to balance the heat from the habaneros.

**Use caution when cutting peppers. May cause burning to eyes and skin**