Recipes from "Summer of Pork--Part II"

The marinade recipe for my pork (a fresh ham) is inspired by "The BBQ Bible" by Steven Raichlen....you should really consider buying all his books, he is the KING of BBQ!!

Pork (a picnic, a fresh (unsmoked) ham or loin
fresh-squeezed lime juice (I used 2 limes for probably about a 6-8 lb ham)
fresh-squeezed orang juice (I used 1 orange)
olive oil (I used around 1/4 cup)
Dry sherry (I used around 1/4 cup)
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp kosher salt
around a tsp or two of dried oregano
around a tsp or two of ground cumin
1/4 if a sweet vidalia onion, sliced and cut into 1-2" pieces
2 bay leaves
1 tsp cilantro

I mixed all the above ingredients (except the ham, of course). Then I put the ham into a pan (I used a ceramic, square dish, like a lasagna pan...do NOT use an aluminum pan), cut slits in both sides of the ham, then poured the marinade over it, wrapped in plastic wrap and put in the fridge. After 24 hours, I turned the ham and put it back in the fridge for 24 more hours. You can also turn it more frequently, and you don't have to marinate it for a full 48 hours. I'd at least marinate it overnight, but in that case, you should try to turn it in the marinade several times. Obviously a pork loin would not require as much marinating if that is what you are using.

Prepare a BBQ grill for indirect grilling. Put a deep-sided foil drip pan (like a disposable foil lasagna pan) in the center of the grill. Heat the coals in a chimney starter. When the goals are hot and glowing, carefully tip them out onto either side of the foil pan. You will have coals on both outer sides of the grill with an aluminum pan in the middle. Make sure you add a good amount of water to the pan before the grill gets hot. This will help with controlling grease fires. Place the ham (or other piece of pork) directly over the drip pan (make sure that you have a pan that is slightly bigger than the piece of pork you are grilling to help ensure all the fat dripping off the pork lands in the pan). Close the grill. Your grill should be up around 300-325 degrees. Remember, if you are using a WHOLE fresh ham, you will need to increase the marinade, probably more than double. In that case, the cooking (BBQing) time would be 6-8 hours. If using a fresh ham as I did above, the cooking time would be around 31/2-41/2 hours, you be the judge. If using a shoulder (4-6 lbs) use the same marinade (roughly) as above and grill for 4-6 hours. For a loin (2-3 lbs), about 1-2 hours. You be the judge! Differences in temp (both outside and actual grilling temps, especially with charcoal) vary, as well as individual preferences.
I became concerned during grilling that my fresh ham (which was more of a big, fat 'slice' taken from the portion, didn't have enough skin/fat over the meat to prevent drying the meat, so during BBQing I basted it with a mixture of fresh-squeezed orange juice, beer and a little olive oil, just to keep the meat moist. But don't lift the lid to often. I basted liberally every hour, and then I basted a little again after removing it from the grill. Then I covered it with foil and allowed it to 'rest'. After it has cooled a little, you can 'shred' it by hand or slice/chop it up and then drizzle 'mojo' sauce over it: (1/4-1/2 cup olive oil, 4 tbsp minced garlic, 1 fresh squeezed lime, 1/4 fresh squeezed orange, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper and a couple tsps chopped cilantro. (Double if making the WHOLE ham).

Spanish Risotto

short-grain rice (about 3/4 cup for 4 servings, adjust to your preferences)
olive oil (2 tbsp or so to put on bottom of pan for sauteeing rice)
2-3 pats butter
1/4 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1 tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup (or more?) canned diced tomato with mild green chilies
beer (about 1/2 cup)
chicken broth (1 cup + more!...all extra that is necessary as you cook)
2-3 pinches saffron threads
1 tsp Lawry's seasoning salt
generous pinch white pepper

Heat olive oil and pats butter in saucepan. Pour in short-grain rice. Stir around and 'sautee'. Add the onions & red bell pepper. Stir all around some more. Do not allow the rice to brown, but stir around/sautee quite well. Add in minced garlic and keep stirring. Add the diced tomatoes and keep stirring. Add in beer and stir around. The liquid will be absorbed quite rapidly. Add a good amount of chicken broth and keep stirring. As the rice plumps up and absorbs the liquid, add more. Add the saffron threds, rubbing them with your fingers to sort of 'break them up' a bit as they go into the pot. Add the Lawry's Seasoning Salt and white pepper. Stir around. Keep stirring the rice and adding chicken broth as needed to get to the consistency you want. Some people like 'soupy' risotto, some like more firm, creamy risotto. We tend to prefer the more firm, creamy piles of risotto. The most important thing is to give them enough moisture (broth/water) so they plump up and get creamier. Play with it and see what you like.

Zucchini & Green Bean Medley

John plucked an '8 ball green zucchini' from our garden and I sliced it into wedges and put it in foil along with some whole green beans, a bit of olive oil, a couple pats of butter and some Lawry's seasoning salt. I folded up the packet of foil and let it steam/cook over the remaining heat of the coals after I removed the pork (while I was letting the pork 'rest'). Our veggie packet turned out quite yummy! You can make all sort of veggie packets this way and add all sorts of things...we would have added yellow summer squash, but our garden hadn't produced one right then. You could also add broccoli, red bell pepper or onion. Your choice! Add some olive oil & maybe some bits of butter and a little minced garlic, and you are good to go! Have a Happy Summer!!

Kathy

Simple Tortilla Bowl Salad

• 1 edible Tortilla Bowl
• Romaine Lettuce
• Cucumbers, sliced
• Peppers, chopped or diced
• Carrots, shredded
• 3 ounces of grilled steak
• Feta cheese crumbles
• Bacon bits
• Grated Parmesean /Romano Cheese blend

Start with a freshly baked tortilla bowl.

Then add some freshly chopped Romaine Lettuce.



Add some shredded carrots and sliced cucumbers

Then add some chopped bell peppers and some feta cheese crumbles

Add the 3ounces of steak



And finally add some bacon bits and sprinkle a bit of shredded parmesean /romano cheese blend to complete the salad.

You can add 2 ounces of any salad dressing that you desire or you can eat as is.  The tortilla is a great replacement for croutons...and is quite tasty too!



Gasparilla Recipes

Rosemary Chicken Alfredo Pizza

Cooked, sliced chicken breast pizza dough jar alfredo sauce
garlic powder (or minced garlic) couple sprigs fresh rosemary, needles pulled off
sprinkling red pepper flakes *optional: splash white wine, sliced mushrooms
shredded mozzarella

Purchase pizza dough or make your own favorite recipe. After rolling out dough, spread with Alfredo sauce, sprinkle with garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Top with some shredded mozzarella. Top that with the sliced chicken, the rosemary and more mozzarella. Bake and serve! Yum! *Optional: I did not have the time, but I would have preferred to saute' some sliced mushrooms and minced garlic in a little olive oil, then add a splash of white wine, then sprinkle the rosemary leaves over this, then the alfredo sauce. Then apply to pizza dough.


Seafood-Stuffed Whole Grilled Trout

1 whole trout (cleaned) olive oil Butter sundried tomato green onion
minced garlic dressing/stuffing mix (cornbread is a good choice)
assorted seafood (cooked) of choice: artificial Krab, crab, lobster meat, scallops, diced shrimp, etc
clam or chicken broth diced onions, celery and carrot salt, pepper, tarragon

Make compound butter: To softened, room-temp butter, add diced sundried tomato, green onion and minced garlic. Spread on parchment, fold over and pop in freezer for awhile to harden. Meanwhile, make stuffing: Saute' onion, celery, carrot & a little minced garlic in olive oil. Add broth. Add to stuffing mix to moisten. Fold in seafood and seasonings.

Break off pieces of compound butter and put in cavity of fish. Carefully stuff cavity with stuffing. Tie fish with kitchen string. Rub fish with olive oil. Grill over medium hot coals for about 10 minutes total, 5 minutes per side. (This, of course, will depend on size of fish. You may also substitute a fish other than trout). Put fish on platter. Carefully slice fillets off the skeleton and pick out any remaining pin bones from the meat. You can either toss the skeleton or freeze to throw in a seafood stock pot later on. Enjoy!

Spicy Veggie Soup

2-cartons of Veggie Soup Stock
1-bottle of V8 Spicy Hot
2-bags of frozen italian style veggies*
1-lb of italian sausage**


Cook the italian sausage thoroughly, drain.

Put the Veggie Soup Stock into the soup pot, then slowly add the V8 Spicy Hot until it is spicy to your tastes.  Bring to a boil.  Add the veggies and the sausage, and allow to boil for at least 20 minutes then simmer.

*You may always use fresh veggies if you have them or you may use other varieties of frozen veggies.
** Ground Turkey makes and excellent substitute but doesn't have the added italian seasonings.

Recipes from "Happy New Year!" menu

This year we enjoyed a "small plate" dinner along with a large assortment of appetizers. The below recipes (except the spicy cabbage, which is a full batch) are primarly made for 2 people. You will need to expand the recipes as you see fit to serve more.

Grilled Teriyaki Tuna Plate

2 Tuna steaks Teriyaki marinade with a little olive oil

Grill tuna over Medium-Hot coals for about 2 minutes per side for "medium-rare" tuna. On this particular occasion I think my coals were slightly hotter because the tuna did not turn out medium-rare, but rather slightly pinkish. However, the tuna was perfectly tender and tasty! This was the first time I have ever made good tuna steaks. I grilled according to the time on the Publix package (instead of grilling it to death!), and I believe had my coals been slightly less hot (it can be hard to judge, but I honestly should know better by now, I have grilled for many years), they would have turned out medium-rare. Just the same, they still turned out moist, tender and delicious! Pull off the grill, loosely cover with foil, let sit just a little, then slice and fan out on 2 plates. Serve with dabs of Wasabi Mayonnaise (see below).

Wasabi Mayonnaise

Wasabi powder or paste Mayonnaise

Mix wasabi with mayo till at the desired taste/heat level. I mixed mine with both the paste wasabi and some dry, and it turned out to have quite a bit of heat! But it was very good. Small dabs on the plate, in between the slices of fanned-out tuna, was perfect.

The Sides:

"Fried Rice" Risotto

Around 1/4 cup short grain rice pat butter Olive oil
dash white wine around 1 cup chicken broth (you be the judge)
1/4 cup chopped "stir fry" vegetables around 1 tbsp soy sauce

Melt butter and olive oil in small saucepan. Pour in rice and stir around, lightly sauteeing it in the butter and oil mixture for a bit. Add the wine, stir. Add half the chicken broth and stir. Keep stirring here and there, encouraging the rice to absorb the liquid. You will ultimately have to be the judge of how much liquid (broth) you need to pour in, depending on the consistency you want. Add the stir fry veggies (I just used a mix of frozen stir fried veggies...carrots, broccoli, etc, which I thawed first). When adding the last addition(s) of chicken broth, add the soy sauce and stir around. If your risotto is not too "soupy" (depending on if you like it soupy or firmer), you can pack some in small "molds" (like tiny bowls) that have been lightly oiled, then unmold them on your plates like I did (see picture in "Wine n' Chat "Happy New Year!" blog").

Spicy Cabbage

1 head green cabbage Olive Oil "Tony Cacheres" Creole Seasoning
Kosher salt water

Thinly slice up the cabbage on a slicer or in a food processer. You can do it by hand with a sharp knife and it will work fine, but it may take slightly longer to cook down. I like to use a rather deep, wok-shaped pan (non-stick) to do mine. Put the pan over medium-high heat. Pour olive oil in the pan then dump in the cabbage shreds and stir around to coat with oil and sautee' them a bit (they will be mounded quite high in the pan, but don't worry, they will cook down quite a bit). Stir around a bit more. Then add a little water (maybe 1 cup) and cover the pan with a lid (this will help the cabbage to "steam down"). You don't want "stewed cabbage", so don't make the mistake of putting in too much water...you want this water just to help steam it down (and prevent burning)...the water should evaporate by the end of cooking. You just need to keep an eye on it to be sure the water hasn't cooked entirely away during cooking. Every now and then, lift the lid and stir the cabbage around. After awhile, when it has wilted down pretty good, remove the lid, add a generous amount of olive oil, stir around, add the Tony Cacheras Creole seasoning (or another Creole/Cajun seasoning you may prefer), and stir around, letting the cabbage further wilt down and any remaining "puddle" of water in the pan to evaporate. Taste the cabbage for seasoning. You may want it spicier or saltier. Most seasoning blends come with salt in them, so it's a good idea to not add salt till after you are finished adding your seasoned blend. This batch will make plenty more than 2 people can eat at once. But it refrigerates well and can be eaten the next day or so, or shared with family and friends. Enjoy!

We also enjoyed a spread of appetizers, such as the usual chips n' dip, mozzarella sticks and mini corn dogs. But we enjoyed a few specialty appetizers as well:

Baked Tortilla Cups with 2 fillings

Fajita-sized flour tortillas, cut into quarters canola oil cupcake pan

Oil the tortilla quarters...I just dip my fingers in oil and rub it on them, both sides. Push each quarter into a spot in a cupcake pan (gently pushing the center down to the bottom), the 3 sides will stick up along the sides of each cupcake spot in the pan. If you make a total of 12 baked quarters (standard cupcake pan), 3 tortillas, that will be more than enough for 2, especially along with your other appetizers! Bake the tortilla "cups" at around 350 degrees till they lightly brown. Unmold them and put them on a platter, they are now baked firm and can hold whatever filling you like!

Filling # 1: "Southwest Eggroll" (adapted from Chili's Restaurant Appetizer)

Grilled chicken breast, diced canned black beans (1/2 can), drained
roasted, diced red bell pepper diced canned green chilies
frozen corn kernels (1/4 cup?) generous amount of cumin (1/2 tbsp?)
salt, pepper, "taco" or "fajita" seasoning to taste
shredded cheddar (1/4 cup?) salsa (a couple tbsp) squeeze of 1/2 a Lime

Mix filling ingredients, heat in microwave for a bit. Mound hot filling in half the tortilla cups. Top with sour cream OR mix up a batch of Avacado-Ranch sauce (peel and mash a ripe avacado half with some ranch dressing, a pinch of salt, a splash of lime juice). Enjoy!

Filling #2: Spanakopita

8-10 oz. Frozen, chopped spinach (thawed and squeezed dry) Feta (1 cup?)
Olive Oil squeeze lemon white pepper splash white wine
Cavender's All Purpose Greek seasoning
Good pinch garlic powder/granulated garlic or minced garlic, if desired*

Warm olive oil in saute' pan. Add spinach and stir around, sauteing. Add a splash white wine. Stir around. Add squeeze fresh lemon juice and crumbled feta (as much or as little as you like...the feta will start to "melt" some and will become dispersed throughout the spinach as you stir). Add the seasonings, keep tasting till done to your liking. (Remember: You probably won't need salt, feta is pretty salty on it's own. For this reason you should also go easy on the Greek seasoning blend, tasting as you go). Put dollops of the hot filling into the other half of the baked tortilla cups. Enjoy!

Roasted Mango-Chili Mayo to go with mini crab cakes

We purchased a box of gourmet mini crab cakes which were simply luscious! This mayonnaise went perfectly with them:

1/2 a ripe mango, peeled Olive oil bottled chili sauce
prepared mayonnaise

Lightly coat the mango with the olive oil and broil (or grill) to help caramelize the flavors of the mango. You don't necessarily need to see black char on it. I actually put mine next to some red peppers I was roasting, and the peppers turned black before the mango. But I took them all out at the same time and the mango was done perfectly! Cut up the mango and blend in a blender or small food processor. Scoop the mango puree' into a bowl and stir in some mayo (1/2 cup?) and some chili sauce (this is entirely up to your taste...you will need to add some and taste as you go! I think I added around 1/8 cup). Gently stir around and serve! Delicious!! A sweet and spicy, decandent blend.

Hope you enjoy these recipes! And they aren't just for New Years!

Recipes from "Heat n' Serve" blog

When I set out to make these recipes, the main idea was to do anything that would help heat the house, since we were not using our heat at the time, due to our air handler's odd behavior and fears of a possible fire. So I chose to bake chicken and potatoes in the oven to help generate some heat. So along with the extra warmth, we got a bonus of some delicious, roasted food that was quite simple to throw together!

Roast Chicken Thighs

*Since there is just my husband and I, we can cook in small amounts. A family of 4 will wish to either have 4-6 thighs or roast a whole chicken.

2-chicken thighs, with the bone and skin on
assorted seasonings (any you like. I used kosher salt, pepper, Lawry's Poultry Seasoning,
Thyme & a little granulated garlic)
Olive oil (and a drop of canola oil to "oil" the baking dish with)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Pat chicken pieces dry and lay, skin-side up, in oiled baking dish. Rub a bit of olive oil around each piece then season as you like. Bake, uncovered, about 45-50 minutes.


Scalloped-Gratin Potatoes

2 medium-sized white potatoes, peeled and sliced (rather thin slices, like 1/8" wide)
small amount chicken broth
small amount half n' half or milk (if desired) *I did not use this, but it is common with scalloped
potatoes).
Grated cheese, your choice (suggested: Fontina or Mexican cheese blend, can also be cheddar...
your choice).
A couple pats butter, cut up
Assorted seasonings: Lawry's seasoning salt, white pepper, chives. (Whatever you like).
Drop of canola oil (to "oil" baking dish)

Place sliced potatoes in a small baking dish. (You can increase the potatoes, ingredients & dish, depending on how many people you are feeding). Pour in broth (and a bit of milk, if using), not too much, just till you can see it when you look down into the potatoes. Put in the cheeses and seasonings and toss around. Lay on the cut up pats of butter. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. You can either put this in the oven uncovered the whole time, or loosely cover it with foil at first, then remove part-way. This time I covered it loosely till partway ('cause I did not want to darken the cheese too much), but I'd added a little too much broth, and this would have probably completely boiled down nicely had I left it uncovered the whole time, allowing evaporation. You will have to be the judge. The other option is you leave it uncovered the whole time, then the last 15 minutes, sprinkle the cheeses on. Enjoy!

*We enjoyed this was some Smoking Loon Chardonnay.

Crème Brûlée Cheesecake

To Make The Crust:

• 2 cups of finely crushed Vanilla Wafer crumbs
• 3 Tbs of Granulated Sugar
• 7-8 Tbs of Unsalted Butter, melted

Place your oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375F

Then in a medium bowl, stir together the vanilla wafer crumbs and 3 Tbs. granulated sugar. Mix in the melted butter until the crumbs are evenly moist and clump together slightly. Transfer the mixture to a 9-inch springform pan and press evenly onto the bottom and about 2 inches up the sides of the pan (to press, use plastic wrap or a flat-bottom measuring cup). Bake until the crust is  slightly darkened about 9 to 12 minutes. Let the pan cool on a rack.

Lower the oven temperature to 300°F.

Cheesecake:

• 3- 8 ounce packages of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
• 8 ounces of mascarpone
• 2 Tbs of all-purpose flour
• Pinch of table salt
• 1 1/4 cups of granulated sugar
• 1 Tbs of pure vanilla abstract
• 4 Large Eggs, @ room temperature
• 2 Tbs granulated sugar

In a stand mixer beat the cream cheese, mascarpone, flour, and a pinch of table salt on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl frequently, until very smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Make sure the cheese has no lumps.

Add the 1-1/4 cups granulated sugar and continue beating until well blended and smooth.


Add the vanilla and beat until blended, about 30 seconds. Add the eggs one at a time, beating just until blended. (Don’t overbeat once the eggs have been added or the cheesecake will puff too much and crack as it cools.) Pour the filling into the cooled crust and smooth the top.

Bake at 300°F until the center jiggles like Jell-O when nudged, 55 to 65 minutes. The cake will be slightly puffed around the edges, and the center will still look moist. Set on a rack and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 8 hours and up to 3 days.
Unclasp and remove the side of the springform pan and run a long, thin metal spatula under the bottom crust of the cheesecake. Carefully slide the cake onto a flat serving plate.

Sprinkle the 2 Tbs. granulated sugar evenly over the top of the cheesecake and slowly pass a hand-held kitchen torch over the sugar until melted and caramelized.

To cut, run a thin knife under hot water, wipe it dry, and cut the cake into slices, heating and wiping the knife after every slice.