Aaaahhhhh Avocado

For those of you who don't know me, I have a serious love affair with avocado. I love it...anytime anywhere. I can be considered a guacamole snob because of this (i.e. I want nothing to do with it if there aren't chunks of real avocado happening), and many have suggested I move to California where apparently they put it on everything. However, that won't be happening any time soon.




Anyways, a few years ago I fell in love with an omelet at a restaurant in LBI...you know the famous Uncle Will's. There is ALWAYS a line at this place, and believe me if everyone knew about this omelet, the line would be even worse. Because of this though my visits to Uncle Will's are not particularly frequent and must be timed appropriately.

Yesterday though, I came up with a BRILLIANT idea...hello make the omelet at home, and being that I had leftovers from a Cobb Salad I made the night before, it was a fantastic plan. So below follows the ingredients & recipe for the MOST delicious omelet you will ever eat!

Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
3 Egg Whites
Freshly shredded cheddar cheese (none of that bagged stuff)
Chunks of Chicken (Uncle Will's uses grilled...I pulled chunks from oven roasted chicken & thought it was better because the chicken was juicier)
Diced Avocado (a little less than what you would garner from a 1/2 an avocado)

In a small bowl combine, diced avocado, chicken , and shredded cheddar cheese. Add salt & pepper to this mixture & set aside.

Now separate the yolks of three eggs & lightly coat a pan with olive oil. Pour in your three egg whites & cook over medium heat. Once the omelet is firm, put your ingredients in the center & fold over the edges. Turn down the heat & cover until the cheese melts.

I'm telling you, you won't regret it!

Cheddar & Pepper

This is a delicious, fresh, easy appetizer to make any time of year, but particularly for a summer bbq or when you return from a day at the beach. A summer favorite of my family & friends we've had this three times in the past two weeks, the most recent being yesterday.

After scooping up every last morsel, I asked my mom, "Where did this come from?" And she told me it was my Aunt Louise's recipe. I was shocked. I didn't know my Aunt Louise could cook, let alone come up with a delicious recipe like this one. My Aunt Louise (actually my great aunt) was a character & never in my wildest imagination did my thoughts of her involve cooking. She was a drinking, swearing, cigarette smoking card player who stole our pennies at poker & our candy at Halloween.

We sure did love her though. She was wild & a great partner for my grandmother. My brother and I were always thrilled to be picked up for an evening with the two ladies or babysat by them while my parents went out, because after all, according to my grandmother & Aunt Louise, my dad was simply an old fart.

So thanks for the memories & now, the delicious recipe too Aunt Louise!

Two Green Bell Peppers
One Block of Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Mayonaise

Dice the peppers into small cubes & shred the cheese. Combine in a bowl with enough mayo to hold. Serve with triscuits & watch it be devoured :)!

Sweet Summer Side

The summer job is almost over, so it's time to get in the saddle & get the recipes going. Here is a family favorite that my mom came up with a few years ago after having soft shell crabs served over it at a local restaurant (now closed). She came home raving about it & then did her very best to imitate it. I never tasted the original, but man is this version delicious!!



http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdickert/852904568/

1/2 a stick of butter
Four Ears of Corn
3 Zucchini
1/2 Cup of Light Cream
3-4 Cloves of Garlic
Freshly grated Parmesan

Slice zucchini in thin rounds. Melt butter in large saute pan and add zucchini along with some salt & pepper. Stir occasionally until zucchini softens. In the meantime, cut corn off the cob. Throw into pan & heat through. Mince and add the garlic & stir for a few minutes (until garlic aroma begins). Add cream & let warm until ingredients become "stewy". Grate cheese over & serve. Sometimes I also add a shake or two of nutmeg; either way, this is a great side for seafood or beef. Enjoy it all summer long :)!

Simple Summer Fish

In the spirit of summer & another season at LBI, I must discuss the easiest most delicious fish recipe ever. Talk about quintessential summer baby....this is IT! I do make this all year round, but the first time I ever threw it all together was a couple years ago when I was living by myself in LBI for the summer, and I do make it more frequently in the summer months because it's one of those oven options that you can also wrap in foil & throw on the grill.

In case you aren't familiar with Long Beach Island & my love affair with it. Here's a quick little explanation of how it all came to be: LBI is located about 25-30 miles north of Atlantic City off the coast of the great old state of New Jersey. The island is 18 miles and long and at most, if not all points, it's less than a 1/2 mile wide (ocean on one side & bay on the other). It's separated into a bunch of quaint little towns that all pretty much possess a local sandwich/bagel shop, a pizzeria, and of course ice cream in walking distance.

I would imagine my affinity for LBI started in the womb, since my grandfather tended to a church in Harvey Cedars (one of the small towns on the island) long before I was born. However, the pre-birth crush turned into a long standing love affair as my family returned here summer after summer. My family still rents the very same house on 42nd St., right next to the OH Fudge candy store, that they have been renting since I was born. However, once I graduated from college I began summering down here with my friends. I taught & coached swimming at a local yacht club & fell head over heels in love with every inch of the island as I spent much of my time here alone when my friends returned north for their jobs. I sipped coffee on the deck, threw fish on the grill, and strolled to the ice cream store more often alone than with friends or loved ones, so I found a friend in the quiet mornings & the crashing waves that would so often whisper me to sleep. There is a magic here that somehow always makes me whole again, and each time I make a simple summer fish dish it brings a little glimmer of that magic to wherever I am & whoever I'm with.

Enjoy...

Fish (Tilapia, Flounder, Cod, Halibut)
White Wine (I use Sauvignon Blanc b/c that's what I drink so there's always some in the fridge)
Two Lemons
Two Garlic Cloves (minced)
Parsley
Salt & Pepper
Butter
Capers (If you have them...sometimes I feel like them, sometimes I don't)

Season fish on both sides with Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper
Place fish in baking clear baking dish
Pour 1/2 cup-1 cup of wine into dish (fish shouldn't float, but good amount of wine)
Squeeze the juice of an entire lemon into dish
Add garlic to liquid/fish
Cut 1 tbs. of butter for each piece of fish & put on top
Slice 1/2 of second lemon & put slice of lemon on top of each pat of butter
Put remainder of lemon around dish
Sprinkle w/ parsley

Bake in oven @ 350 for about 20 minutes. The broth is to die for so you can put over pasta, quinoa, or spinach. I like all of them.

Red, white, and blue....

Ok, I know I know. In the rules of blogging I'm officially disqualified for my lack of posts, but its been a long month & a half or so that has involved track meets, grading, Easter, three family birthday celebrations, mother's day & the unfortunate loss of my grandmother & a dear family friend.

However, I have finally caught up with my responsibilities and am fighting my way back into being a more committed blogger. I promise, and while I am nervous about keeping that promise for the next six weeks or so as school comes to a close, I know that summer brings fresh air & a bit more free time for me to do things like blog...so I PROMISE....and my mom better promise too.

In honor of soon to be summer & the passing of our dear friend, comes one of my ALL time favorite desserts. It's birthplace is the Shatel family fourth of July picnic that my family and I spent...mmm...probably decades attending. It was one of the many joyous constants in my life as a child. Each year we showed up around three with Mr. Shatel working the grill, the coaches hanging out drinking some beer, the women clustered around salads, desserts, and sides, and the kids getting some sort of game together.

After some mean hours of running bases, wiffleball, or manhunt, us kids were ready for some grub. I would get my plate and fill it with whatever my mom brought (as a kid I pretty much only liked my mom's food) and then head to the grill where Mr. Shatel would say, "Hey Red. Burger or Dog?" I would be awarded my request, grab a soda from the cooler, and plant myself on a chair somewhere close to my family. The next few minutes were spent chowing down and then my brother and I would sit waiting anxiously for dessert. Sometimes it felt like hours or even days. We never went back to the game because we wanted to be the very first kids in line for Mrs. Shatel's famous dessert: The Icebox Cake.

I don't think I ever left the picnic without two (okay maybe three) pieces and all year I would look forward to it's magical return on 4th of July. Until one day the unthinkable happened: Mr. Shatel decided there would be no more 4th of July party. I was in college at the time, and it was quite a blow...I remember saying to him, "What the heck am I going to do on Fourth of July?" Mr. Shatel replied, "Sorry Red, but why don't you have your dad have a 4th of July picnic? Oh right, because he's a frickin' cheapskate, that's why." Mr. Shatel spent a lot of time making fun of my dad and I reveled in every moment of it. It was the second best part of the 4th of July party. The first being the dessert of course.

I remember shortly after the party was canceled that I asked my mom, "but what about the icebox cake?" And soon it magically appeared in our refrigerator from the hands of Mrs. Shatel. It would reappear a few times a year on special holidays because she knew our love for it. She even sent me back to college with it one year. However, when Mr. Shatel retired and they spent more time in Florida, Mrs. Shatel blessed me with the recipe. It follows below. I recommend bringing it to parties though because if it's in your house you'll eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. TRUST ME. In the mean time, enjoy & please think of the good old Shatels each time you make it :)

Ingredients:
1 Bx of Graham Crackers
2 Small Boxes of Instance French Vanilla Pudding
3 1/2 cups of Whole Milk
1 8 oz. container of Cool Whip
2 sq. of unsweetened chocolate
3tbs. of butter
2 tsp of white corn syrup
2 tsp of vanilla
1 1/2 cups of confectioner sugar

Mix pudding, milk, and cool whip
Butter clear baking dish
Layer graham crackers, pudding, graham crackers, pudding, graham crackers
Refrigerate for two hours

In the meantime, melt chocolate & butter
Mix corn syrup, vanilla, and sugar.
Stir chocolate mixture in & spread icing over top layer of graham crackers
Refrigerate overnight

Mom's Mac & Cheese

This is by far my earliest food memory. Before my mom of today with her gourmet cooking ability, there was another version. This was a newly married, green to the kitchen, chasing two crazy kids around while her husband worked and oh yea dinner had better be on the table when he got home version of my mom. Frankly I don't know how she did it & more impressively I don't know how she did it with me in the kitchen in the midst of it all. I was known for a trail of flour, butter smeared just about everywhere, & of course sticking my spoon into whatever I thought the "chef" should taste.

But this dish taught me everything I love about food & cooking. I don't know when the first time I crawled up on the stool to stir the cheesy sauce was, but from that moment on I knew I loved cooking, eating, and of course CHEESE! I remember the ritual always began when my mom walked into where my brother and I were playing or watching TV & asked me to grate the cheddar cheese. Now, in the beginning. I wasn't in it for the long haul. I didn't really care how the cheesy sauce was made; I just wanted to be there when we added the cheese & my mom let me dip a piece of pasta in it & top it with some shreds of cheese for the PERFECT bite before mixing it up and baking it in the oven. But as I got older I knew I wanted to see how the most delicious thing I had ever tasted came to being. So I soon began making a rue long before I knew what it was called, what it meant or even that there was a name for such a simple thing, and sooner, rather than later, I could make the dish start to finish. And of course now, it's still an ultimate favorite. It forever reminds me of my mom and why I love cooking. It's another simple way to make people happy; food, in my life and in my family, has always brought people together whether it be around the stove or around the table and I have my mom and her mac & cheese to thank for that.

Enjoy!

Ingredients
1/4 Cup (1/2 stick) of butter
1/4 Cup of flour
1 tsp. of salt
1/4 tsp. of pepper
2 cups of milk
8 oz. grated cheddar cheese

1. Heat salted pasta water, cook pasta, & strain
2. Meanwhile, melt butter & gradually add flour while whisking (making the rue)
3. Add salt & pepper & gradually add milk allowing to thicken as you go
4. When at desired consistency (creamy but not thick), add most of cheese to the sauce (leave some to sprinkle on the top)
5. Put pasta in baking dish & pour sauce over
6. Stir pasta so it's equally covered & sprinkle top with cheese
7. Bake @ 350 for 20-30 minutes

Chicken Stew w/ Pretzel Rolls

Mom is back...

This is one of my favorite winter recipes, I saw it in Bon Appetit in the mid nineties. It looks complicated, but it is really very easy. When you make the pretzel rolls not only will you love them, but you'll feel very accomplished.

Anyways, this is good for company on a winter night or just plain fun for a snow day because you can make it early in the day, clean everything up, and heat it up when your guests arrive or your kids return from sledding, snowball fights, or snowman making. The prep time is about 2 hours and the cooking time 35 minutes. As a tip I recommend working on the stew & rolls together because as the pretzel roll dough is resting/rising you can be working on the chicken. I use the boneless skinless thighs, but you can use whatever you like.

This is a great recipe and really worth a try, either this weekend or on the next snow day.


Chicken Stew

Ingredients

2 tbs vegetables oil
1 4 lb. chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 tsp butter
4 parsnips, peeled, sliced
3 large carrots, peeled, thinly sliced
3 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise, sliced
1 lb baby new potatoes, thickly sliced
3 tbs all purpose flour
3 cups chicken broth
2 tbs minced fresh tarragon or 2 tsps. dried
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup whipping cream


Preparation

Heat vegetable oil in heavy large Dutch oven over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Add chicken to pot in batches and cook until light brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to bowl. Pour off fat from pot and discard.

Add butter to same pot and melt over medium heat. Add sliced parsnips, carrots, leeks and potatoes and stir to coat. Cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually mix in chicken broth. Increase heat and bring to boil. Return chicken to same pot. Add 1 tablespoon tarragon and bay leaf. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until chicken and vegetables are cooked through, turning chicken occasionally, about 30 minutes.

Using tongs, transfer chicken pieces to large shallow bowl and tent with foil. Add whipping cream to pot; increase heat and simmer until liquids thicken to sauce consistency, about 10 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Mix in remaining 1 tablespoon tarragon. Season stew to taste with salt and pepper. Spoon sauce and vegetables over chicken and serve.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Chicken-and-Mixed-Vegetable-Stew-1115#ixzz1BKgv8dKv

Pretzel Rolls

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups bread flour
1 envelope quick-rising yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (about) hot water (125°F to 130°F)
Cornmeal
8 cups water
1/4 cup baking soda
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg white, beaten to blend (glaze)
Coarse salt


Preparation
1. Combine bread flour, 1 envelope yeast, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar and celery seeds in food processor and blend. With machine running, gradually pour hot water through feed tube, adding enough water to form smooth elastic dough. Process 1 minute to knead. Grease medium bowl. Add dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then towel; let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 35 minutes.

2.Flour baking sheet. Punch dough down and knead on lightly floured surface until smooth. Divide into 8 pieces. Form each dough piece into ball. Place dough balls on prepared sheet, flattening each slightly. Using serrated knife, cut X in top center of each dough ball. Cover with towel and let dough balls rise until almost doubled in volume, about 20 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease another baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal. Bring 8 cups water to boil in large saucepan. Add baking soda and 2 tablespoons sugar (water will foam up). Add 4 rolls and cook 30 seconds per side. Using slotted spoon, transfer rolls to prepared sheet, arranging X side up. Repeat with remaining rolls.

4. Brush rolls with egg white glaze. Sprinkle rolls generously with coarse salt. Bake rolls until brown, about 25 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Serve rolls warm or at room temperature. DO AHEAD Can be prepared 6 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Rewarm in 375°F oven 10 minutes.

Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/1994/01/pretzel_rolls#ixzz1BKRnx2Bj