Glazed Sesame Pork

I came across this recipe some time ago and thought it sounded interesting so I gave it a shot.  All I can say is that I absolutely loved it and can never get enough of it.  The pork is cooked in an Asian-inspired glaze that is thickened at the end to make a wonderful sauce.  The glaze can also be used for poultry and I can confess that it is excellent on chicken.  Enjoy!

Glazed Sesame Pork

Ingredients

4 4-ounce boneless loin chops, trimmed of fat
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1⁄2 cup chicken broth, divided
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions

Season both sides of pork chops with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add chops and sauté 2-3 minutes per side, until golden. Add 1⁄4 cup of the chicken broth, sesame seeds, vinegar, brown sugar, and mustard. Simmer 6-8 minutes, or until chops are fork-tender.

Dissolve cornstarch in remaining 1⁄4 cup of chicken broth and add to skillet. Simmer 1 minute, or until sauce thickens.

A cowgirl's dessert

While looking through several different cookbooks, I came across this delicious recipe for  Chocolate Pecan Squares in a cookbook entitled Cowgirl Cuisine from Paula Disbrowe.  These little dessert squares will disappear fast so don't worry about having to store them even though they will keep for five days or so if stored in an air-tight container.  I hope you enjoy this and if you do make sure you check out Paula Disbrowe's cookbook which you can find here.

Chocolate Pecan Squares

Cookie base

1 1⁄2 sticks unsalted butter
2 cups all- purpose flour
1⁄2 cup packed light brown sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Pecan topping

10 ounces pecans, toasted
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt
1⁄3 cup Uvalde (or other) honey
2 tablespoons heavy cream
3 ounces finely grated bittersweet chocolate (such as Scharffen Berger)

Directions

 

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Cut the butter into 1⁄2- inch pieces and place in a food processor along with the flour, light brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Process until the mixture begins to form pea-sized clumps. Sprinkle the mixture into a 9 × 9 baking pan and, using your fingers, pat out evenly into the bottom. Bake the cookie crust in the middle of the oven until golden, about 25 minutes. While the cookie base is baking, prepare the topping.

In the bowl of a food processor, coarsely chop the pecans. In a medium-size heavy saucepan, melt the butter and stir in the dark brown sugar, salt, honey, and cream. Simmer the mixture for 1 minute, stirring occasionally, then stir in the pecans.

When the cookie base comes out of the oven, sprinkle the grated chocolate evenly over the top. Pour the pecan mixture over the chocolate, spreading evenly. Bake in the middle of the oven until the entire filling (not just the edges of the pan) is bubbling, about 18 minutes.

Cool completely in the pan and cut into bars. Tightly covered, these bars will keep about 5 days.

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Once again, if you enjoyed this recipe, please check out the cookbook Cowgirl Cuisine here.  It is full of some awesome recipes and I will definitely be featuring some more of them here.  So until next time, enjoy.

Let me show you this chicken recipe

Okay, the title for this post was a very bad attempt at humor.  The reason I said "Let me show you this chicken recipe" is because it is for Shoyu Chicken.  Get it?  Shoyu Chicken and show you this chicken recipe?  Uh...yeah...like I said, it was a bad attempt at humor.  This is another recipe that I saw on TV and once I tried it, I fell in love with it.  Its from the show Ask Aida on the Food Network.  Enjoy.

Shoyu Chicken

Ingredients
5 1/2 to 6 pounds chicken thighs
5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups low-sodium soy sauce
1 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup mirin
8 medium garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
4-inch piece ginger, sliced 1/2-inch thick and smashed
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 5 tablespoons water
Thinly sliced green onions, for garnish

Directions
Combine all ingredients except cornstarch and green onions in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to low and simmer, covered, turning occasionally, until chicken is tender, about 30 to 35 minutes more.

Remove chicken to a serving platter. Remove garlic and ginger and discard. Bring sauce to a boil, skim off excess fat, and cook until reduced slightly, about 10 minutes. Whisk in cornstarch mixture and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add chicken, turn to coat, and serve chicken with sauce and sliced green onions.

Kotopita

I was watching The Food Network and the show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives came on and the next thing I know they are here in Nashville.  They were at the Athens Family Restaurant and they were making Kotopita.  Well, having eaten there and having actually experienced this wonderful dish, I guess you could say I was mesmerized.  Here I was watching them make a dish that I actually loved.  Well, after the show, I jumped on the inter-web and went to that www dot food network dot com thing that Emeril is always talking about.  Sure enough, there was the recipe for kotopita.  Now, I haven't actually tried to make it at home yet but I thought I would share it with you.  The best way to describe it would be a greek version of a southern chicken potpie.  Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

KOTOPITA

Ingredients

1 pound boneless chicken breast, cubed
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 large garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
2 cups chopped onion
1 teaspoon chopped dill
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
1 cup chicken stock
5 ounces Parmesan, grated
5 ounces feta cheese

Bechamel sauce:
2 cups milk
4 ounces butter
5 ounces all-purpose flour
5 ounces Parmesan, grated
1 egg
Melted butter
1 package phyllo dough

Directions

Filling:
In a medium pot, over medium heat, add the chicken and the olive oil. Stir in the garlic, onion, dill, celery, carrots, salt and pepper. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down and let it simmer for 15 minutes.

Sauce:
In another medium pot bring the milk to a boil over low heat. At the same time, melt the butter in another pan. Add the flour to the butter and mix well on low heat until the flour absorbs all of the butter. Be sure not to burn the butter! When the milk reaches the boiling point, slowly whisk it into the flour mixture until it thickens, removing any lumps. Whisk in the Parmesan and the egg. Remove the sauce from the burner and let it cool for 10 minutes. Set aside and go back to the filling.

The chicken mixture should be fully cooked by now. Strain the mixture to remove any liquid. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Mix the sauce into the chicken mixture. Add the Parmesan and feta cheese and mix well.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter an 8 by 8-inch baking dish. Layer 7 sheets of phyllo dough in the bottom of the dish making sure to lightly brush each 2 sheets with melted butter. Make sure to press the sheets against all sides of the baking dish. Fold the sheets in half, and evenly spread them with the filling. Put another 7 sheets of phyllo, prepared the same way on top of the filling, pressing the dough around the edges of the dish. Lightly brush melted butter on the top layer. Cut through the dough to make 4 squares. Make sure you cut through the bottom layer. Sprinkle a little water on top to keep it from drying out. Put the dish in the oven and bake it until golden brown, about 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes before serving. Most commonly served with salad, but it's a great dish with vegetables or by itself.

My next pirated recipe!

Well, I was trolling the inter-web this morning trying to get an idea for what I wanted to cook today and I found a ton of recipes that had potential.  For some reason though, I was especially drawn to this one from JMJE that she posted on her blog Making Stuff is Fun.  Here is her recipe for Cajun Chicken Sausage and Pepper Tortellini. 

"Cajun Chicken Sausage and Pepper Tortellini (3-4 servings)

2 Chicken Sausages-Sweet Pepper Flavored

Package Frozen Tortellini

1 cup Frozen Pepper Blend (red, yellow, green)

1/2 small white onion

Cajun Seasoning

Garlic Salt

Red Pepper Flakes

1/2 Can Petite Diced Tomatoes

1/2 cup chicken broth

I cooked all the veggies (except the tomatoes) together with some garlic salt and cajun seasoning.  Then I added in the Sausage.  These are precooked so they don't take too long to heat up.  I added in the tomatoes and simmered that for a bit.  Then I added in some chicken broth in small increments to make it more saucy and less just chunky.  I threw in some red pepper flakes for good measure.  While you are making the sauce cook the tortellini or whatever pasat you want or have.  Once the sauce was thickened I mixed it all together with the Tortellini.  And there you have it, a pretty easy week night meal."

After reading this, I decided that I would "pirate" this recipe and make a few tweaks to it and cook it tonight.  So, I will be back later with an update to this post and let you know how it goes.  I will also include my recipe for this seemingly delectable dish.

All respect and much love to JMJE and her blog.

UPDATE:  So I made this recipe but substituted andouille sausage for the italian sausage and spiced it up a little bit by add a little ancho-chipotle vinaigrette.  I must say, it was pretty tasty.  I would recommend this to everyone.

Beignets anyone?

After my last entry, I started longing for malasadas and then that got me thinking about my last visit to New Orleans.  Now I am no longer craving malasadas but now I would kill for some beignets.  There is just something so fresh and satisfying about biting into a warm beignet from Cafe du Monde in the morning.  I can't really explain it.  But I can explain a recipe for them.  I don't know if it will live up to those from Cafe du Monde, but until I make it back to the Big Easy, I will have to settle for these.

Beignets
Ingredients
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon yeast
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
1 cup evaporated milk
2 eggs, beaten
7 1/2 cups flour
1 quart vegetable oil for frying
1 cup confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions
Pour 1/2 cup room temperature water into a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let stand for about 5 minutes to dissolve.

Combine the shortening, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Pour the boiling water over the shortening mixture and then stir in the evaporated milk. Wait for the mixture to cool down until it is lukewarm. Then, add the yeast and water mixture and beaten eggs.

Slowly mix in the flour until the dough forms a ball. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Working with a small portion (a little larger than a baseball) at a time, roll out the dough 1/8-inch thick. Cut the rolled out dough into strips 2 to 3-inches wide, then cut again in the opposite direction and at an angle, making diamond shapes.

Heat your oil for frying in a deep and wide, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat to 360 degree F (180 degrees C).

Slide dough slowly into the oil to avoid splattering and deep fry until they puff up and are golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Carefully remove onto a rack with paper towels underneath and allow to cool until you can handle them. Place in a clean paper bag with confectioners' sugar and shake gently until covered generously or, use a sifter to dust the beignets with powdered sugar.

Laissez les bon temps rouler

Inception!!!!!

Okay, I know this is not a food topic but I just saw the movie Inception and all I can say is WOW!!!!!!  This movie was amazing and can't wait for it to come out on Blu-Ray.  For those of you who haven't seen the previews or heard about it, it stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a sort of mind-spy.  He gets inside your dreams and unlocks all your little secrets.  I won't go into to detail about the movie and ruin it for you but needless to say, this movie is a must-see for this summer.  I will share some pics from the movie with you though. 

Like I said, this movie was awesome.  At least I think it was.  Then again, maybe I just dreamed seeing the whole thing.

Heaven from Table 10

Last November, I had the pleasure of trying a delicious dessert at Table 10 in Las Vegas.  It was White Chocolate Malasadas.  Now, before that fateful day, I had never had malasadas, white chocolate or other otherwise.  But when I took that first bite, I knew then that I had found a little bit of heaven here on Earth.  For those of you that are wondering exactly what malasadas are, here is the Wikipedia entry:

A malasada (or malassada) is a Portuguese  confection. They were first made by inhabitants of Madeira Island. Malasadas are made of egg-sized balls of yeast dough that are deep-fried  in oil and coated with granulated sugar. A popular variation is where they are hand dropped into the oil and people have to guess what they look like. Traditional malasadas contain neither holes nor fillings, but some varieties of malasadas are filled with flavored cream or other fillings. Traditionally the reason for making malasadas has been to use up all the lard and sugar in the house, luxuries forbidden from consumption during Lent. Malasadas are eaten especially on Mardi Gras - the day before Ash Wednesday.

In 1878, Portuguese laborers from the Madeira and Azores  came to Hawaii to work in the plantations. These immigrants brought their traditional foods with them, including a fried dough pastry called the "malasada." Today there are numerous bakeries in the Hawaiian islands specializing in malasadas.

Mardi Gras ("Fat Tuesday"), the day before Lent, is also known as Malasada Day in Hawaii. Being predominantly Catholic, Portuguese immigrants would need to use up all of their butter and sugar prior to Lent. They did so by making large batches of malasadas, which they would subsequently share with friends from all the other ethnic groups in the plantation camps. This led to the popularity of the malasada in Hawaii.

In the United States, malasadas are cooked in many Portuguese or Portuguese descendant homes on Fat Tuesday. It is a tradition where the older children take the warm doughnuts and roll them in the sugar while the eldest woman—mother or grandmother—cooks them. Many people prefer to eat them hot. They can be reheated in the microwave, but then they will have absorbed the sugar, providing a slightly different flavor and texture.

Like I said, that is the Wiki entry.  All I have to say is that it is out of this world.  Before I share the recipe with you, let me tell you how I happened upon this wonderful delicacy.  My wife and I were in Vegas for our honeymoon and we were staying at The Venetian.  Well, it was my birthday and she asked where I would like to go eat so I chose Table 10 in the Palazzo.  Table 10 is one of Emeril Lagasse's restaurants and is named after the table that the staff used to sit around and plan meals and such in Emeril's first restaurant in New Orleans.  So we arrive at Table 10 just after the lunch rush and just before the dinner crowd.  The hostess informs us that it will be about a 10 minute wait which is cool with us so we stroll over and look at the menu.  Well, while my wife is looking at the menu, I look up and who is walking out of the restaurant but Emeril himself.  I was speechless for a couple of reasons.  First, here I was face to face with a world famous celebrity chef.  Secondly, because he was a lot shorter than I thought he would be.  Anyway, as he is leaving, he strolls by and asks if we are going inside his restaurant and I tell him yes.  He just nods, pats me on the shoulder and says, "I hope you enjoy it and make sure to try the malasadas."  Well, after a recommendation like that, how could I not try them and in Emeril's words, "BAM!!!!!"  He was right on the money.  They were awesome, fabulous, delicious, scrumptious, divine and several other words that I can't think of at the moment.  Well,  now that I have rambled for so long, how about we get on with the recipe.  Well, it is a recipe for malasadas that I have adapted to try to replicate the ones I had at Table 10. 

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White Chocolate Malasadas
Ingredients
1 ( 1/4-ounce) package of active dry yeast
3/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
6 eggs
6 cups flour
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup half and half
1 package white chocolate chips
1 quart of vegetable oil for frying
Cinnamon-sugar to coat the Malasadas

Directions

Preheat the oil.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk the yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1/4 cup of the warm water. Set the mixture aside.

In an electric mixer, and the eggs and whip until the eggs are thick and pale yellow in color.

Change the mixer attachment to a dough hook. With the machine running slowly add the yeast mixture, melted butter, milk, and half and half. Add the salt. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time. Mix until the mixture forms a soft ball, leaves the sides of the bowl, and climbs up the dough hook. Remove the dough and turn into a lightly oiled bowl.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set the bowl in a warm, draft free space. Let the dough rise until double in size, about 1 1/2 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and dust the surface of the dough with flour. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough, about 1/4-inch thick, in the shape of a rectangle. Cover the dough with a greased piece of plastic wrap (this will prevent the dough from sticking to the wrap) and the dough rise until double in size, about 1 hour.

Using a sharp French knife, cut the dough into 1 inch squares. Place a few of the white chocolate chips in the center and fold the dough around them.  Then roll the dough in your hands to form the shape of a ball.  Fry a couple of the balls at a time, until golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly for overall browning.

Remove the malasadas from the oil and drain on a paper-lined plate. Place the still warm malasadas in a small paper bag containing the cinnamon-sugar and shake well to lightly coat.  Serve while still warm.

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Well, that is my version of Heaven from Table 10.  I hope you enjoy.  See you soon with some more wonderful recipes.