Grilled Sesame Asparagus or More Asian Goodness.

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
Grilled Sesame Asparagus.

     Today's dinner is actually a cross-series post that is part of the Asian series and the the Salad and Sides series, it's not so much a dinner as it's on asian side dish. In fact, it could also be part of the Grill series
     Grilled sesame asparagus is a quick and easy side dish that combines the flavors of grilled asparagus and a light soy and ginger based sauce. My hope with the Asian series so far has been to help you understand the ingredients that create asian flavors. This recipe and next weeks recipe should help you to understand how to create asian flavors in a real and applicable way.
     While this is a delicious side dish I believe that a good part of it's appeal lies in it's simplicity. These are basic ingredients that, when combined impart a wonderful, unique flavor.
     So, instead of going on and on about how simple and delicious this side dish is, let's just jump into the recipe.

                                   Grilled Sesame Asparagus

Prep time   10 Min.     Cook time   10 Min.     Serves   6

Ingredients

2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon ginger root, fresh, minced

2 sprays cooking spray

1 pound uncooked asparagus, ends trimmed

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Instructions

In a small bowl whisk together soy sauce, vinegar, oil, honey, garlic and ginger; set aside.

Off heat, coat grill rack with cooking spray; heat to high (or cook on a stovetop grill). Grill asparagus, turning frequently to char all sides, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Place asparagus in a shallow serving dish and pour sauce over top; toss to coat and garnish with scallions and sesame seeds.

This recipe yields 6 servings at 1/6 of asparagus per serving.


     Grilled sesame asparagus goes well with beef and broccoli stir-fry, szechwan pork, cashew chicken or any other asian dinner, give it a try and find out for your self. If you try this recipe check back here and leave a comment to let me know how it turned out.

     Next week - Cashew Chicken or The Things We Do For Others Part II.

Steak with Roquefort and Mushrooms or Yes, It Is Healthy.

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
Steak with Roquefort and Mushrooms.

     When I was young, growing up in my parents house, my mom used to make huge "Fred Flintstone" steaks. I call them Fred Flintstone steaks because each one was so big that it would cover a plate; if you wanted any side dishes to go with your steak you would have to put them on a separate plate. I know that you are probably thinking that eating steak that way can't be healthy; to be honest it probably wasn't but my point isn't really to debate that yet but to draw a picture. My mom's steaks were delicious and although they only had a pinch of salt and pepper they were so good that they didn't need anything to dress them up. Don't get me wrong, there was always steak sauce on the table but it wasn't needed. Those were truly great steaks.
     Fast forward many years to the present and there are a lot of new ways to prepare steak with all kinds of exotic and interesting ingredients. While I am still a steak purist in the sense that I believe a steak should be able to stand on it's own I'm not opposed to trying new ingredients that blend well with steak. One of the combinations that I like is steak with roquefort cheese and mushrooms.
Steak with sauteed mushrooms and onions is nothing new but when we add blue cheese to the equation we start to approach a sum that is greater than it's parts. The first time I saw blue cheese used this way was on a "Black & Blue" burger at a local restaurant, it seems that the jump to adding blue cheese and mushrooms to a steak would be a logical move.
     The three ingredients that you should consider before you try to make this dinner are roquefort cheese, cremini mushrooms and shallots. Roquefort is a type of blue cheese, if you can't find it in the store you can substitute gorgonzola, stilton or any other blue cheese. Cremini mushrooms should be available in most stores, if you can't find them labeled as "Cremini" mushrooms try looking for "Baby Portobello". Cremini mushrooms are simply portobellos that have been picked before they matured. Shallots belong to the genus Allium which includes onions and garlic, they are similar to onions but different enough that they shouldn't be used interchangeably. If shallots seem familiar it's because we used them when we made Maple-Mustard Pork Chops.
     As far as whether this dinner is healthy or not we will be using lean beef which is a healthy source of protein and fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth instead of butter. This dinner is healthy and flavorful while using a minimum of ingredients.
     So, let's take a look at today's recipe.

                           Steak with Roquefort and Mushrooms

Prep time   12 Min.     Cook time   10 Min.     Serves   4

Ingredients

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 medium shallots, sliced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

3 cups cremini mushrooms (1/4 pound), sliced

3 fluid ounces madiera wine

1 cup fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 ounces roquefort cheese, crumbled

16 ounces trimmed beef eye round steak or roast, 4 (4 ounce) pieces

Instructions

Spray a large nonstick skillet with nonstick spray and set over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the steak with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper, then add to the skillet. Cook the steak until browned and cooked through, 2-3 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate and keep warm.

Add the shallots, garlic, mushrooms and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to the skillet. Cook, stirring frequently until the mushrooms begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the wine, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Cook until the liquid completely evaporates and the mushrooms begin to brown, 3-4 minutes longer. Add the broth and cook about 2 minutes.

Add the cheese, reserved steak, and any steak juice on the plate; cook, stirring frequently until cheese just melts, about 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat and serve at once.

This recipe yields 4 servings at 1 steak and 1/3 cup of mushroom mixture per serving


     This dinner is a great way to have a restaurant style steak without firing up the grill or adding unnecessary fat. If you try this dinner, check back here and leave a comment to let me know how it turned out.


     Next week - Grilled Sesame Asparagus or More Asian Goodness.

Pastrami Hash or What Is It?

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
Pastrami Hash.

     Occasionally I run across something that confuses me or is not easily defined by it's name. When I discovered Pastrami Hash I had an idea of what it is but not what it should be.What I mean is, based on my experience with corn-beef hash it's easy to extrapolate what pastrami hash is but as far as how to serve it I don't know if it's breakfast, lunch, dinner or a side dish. My first thought thought was that it's a breakfast item to be served with pancakes, eggs and bacon. My second thought was that it's a side dish to be served with dinner. As I read through the recipe I started to think that since it's large and intended to serve a group of people maybe it's a dinner. The only way to resolve my confusion was to try it in all of these scenarios to see what works and what doesn't.
     The first time I made pastrami hash I decided to make it as a dinner. This is a large recipe and I thought it would be good to try it as a stand-alone dish with a salad and artisan bread. This turned out to be a good call because at four servings we were able to have seconds and still have left-overs to combine with scrambled eggs the next day for breakfast. While I'm used to having hash as a breakfast food it made a delicious and satisfying dinner.
     The next time I made it I tried it as a breakfast. This is the way I know hash; with pancakes, eggs and a side of bacon. This recipe works great as a breakfast food because it will serve several people and is well-suited to Sunday brunch or Christmas and Easter breakfasts. I like this as a breakfast but to me it seems like a lot for two people.
     The third and most recent way I tried Pastrami Hash was as a side dish.
My sister-in-law Elaine and her husband Mike host a New Years day dinner, this year I decided that since I had all of the ingredients on hand I would make it and take it along. As usual with Mike's cooking the dinner went well and the sense that I got from everyone was that it worked well as a side dish.
     The one thing that I haven't covered yet is the pastrami component of this recipe. We are probably all familiar with pastrami but in this recipe we will be using Turkey Pastrami. You should be able to find it in the deli counter at your local grocery store. Turkey pastrami usually comes with a light coating of black pepper, if you don't like spicy food you may want to omit the tablespoon of black pepper.
     So, let's jump into today's recipe.

                                            Pastrami Hash

Prep time   18 Min.     Cook time   51 Min.     Serves    4

Ingredients

2 sprays cooking spray

4 medium uncooked yukon gold potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces

1-1/2 large onion, thinly sliced

1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped

1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in half

1/3 pound turkey pastrami, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup scallions, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper, or less to taste

1/2 teaspoon thyme, fresh, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450f. Coat a 9 X 13-inch oven-proof dish or pan with cooking spray.

Set a medium pan of water to boil over high heat. Parboil potatoes just until fork tender, about 5 to 6 minutes.

Combine potatoes, onions, red pepper, tomatoes, pastrami, scallions, salt, black pepper and thyme in prepared dish; toss with oil. Bake to desired degree of doneness rotating dish once or twice during cooking, about 30 to 45 minutes.

This recipe yields 4 servings at about 1 cup per serving.


     This is a great recipe that defies you to decide what it is. I've tried it in every situation that I can think of and I still don't know if it's a breakfast, lunch, dinner or side dish. While I reserve the right to serve it anyway that I want I have to say my favorite way is as a dinner. If you try this recipe check back here and leave a comment to let me know how it turned out.


     Next week - Steak with Roquefort and Mushrooms or Yes, It Is Healthy.

Crock Pot Jerk Turkey Soup or How Hot?

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is

Crock Pot Jerk Turkey Soup.

     I found this recipe while doing an on-line search for diet turkey recipes, I usually lean toward spicy foods and I needed a new recipe for Crock Pot Thursday. Considerings that I like jerk foods and I've never tried to make any this recipe was a no-brainer. Since most jerk food is either chicken or pork based the idea of trying jerk turkey sealed the deal.

     If you are not a spicy food person this dinner may not be for you, but, if you want to try something new this might be the ticket. The three ingredients that a make jerk recipe are Chili peppers, Allspice berries and Thyme. In this recipe we will be using Cayenne powder in place of the traditional Habanero pepper. Allspice berries are different from the ground allspice that you may know from baking pumpkin pies and they shouldn't be substituted. You should be able to find allspice berries in any well-stocked spice aisle or the Latin section of your local grocery store. Thyme is pretty self-explanatory, we've already used it in other recipes and you should already have it in your kitchen. One other item that you should consider when shopping for your ingredients is the turkey. The turkey that you'll want to buy should come pre-packaged and will look more like pork chops than the turkey that you're familiar with from Thanksgiving. If you use regular turkey breast it will fall apart in the crock pot and you'll end up with little strings of turkey instead of bite-size chunks.

     Now that we know a little bit about jerk foods let's take a look at today's recipe.

                                Crock Pot Jerk Turkey Soup

Prep time   20 Min.     Cook time   420 Min.     Serves   8

Ingredients

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice berries

1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided

1 pound turkey breast, cut in 1-inch chunks

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium onion, chopped

14-1/2 ounce canned diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained

15 ounce canned black beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups fat-free chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons cilantro, fresh, minced

Instructions

In a medium bowl combine allspice, cayenne, ginger, garlic salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper. Add turkey and toss to coat; set aside for 15 minutes.

Place turkey in a 5-quart crock pot; add any spices remaining in bowl. Add thyme, garlic, onion, tomatoes, beans, broth, salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon of pepper; stir. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours. Stir in lime juice and cilantro; let sit for 5 minutes for flavors to blend.

This recipe yields 6 servings at about 1-1/2 cups per serving.

     This is a delicious soup with a little bit of a kick to it. I recommend that you try it once as the recipe is written and then adjust the spiciness if you need to.

To complete this dinner all you need to add is a salad and some crusty whole-wheat bread. If you try this dinner, leave a comment here and let me know how it turned out.

     Next week - Pastrami Hash or What Is It?

Szechwan Pork or Part 2.

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
Szechwan Pork.

     Last week I covered Crunchy Asian Salad in part 1 of this two-part series, this week we will conclude with Szechwan Pork.
     I've written about foods from many areas of the world and many styles of cooking, one area that I've briefly touched on but want to cover in more detail is Asian/Chinese food. Of all the types of food I've written about Chinese food is probably the one that we can all relate to but is also the one that we know the least about. It's ingredients are foreign (pun intended) to us and it's flavors are hard to define. As I stated in my Beef and Broccoli Stir-fry post, until recently I've had very little experience at cooking Chinese food but over the last year I've gained a better understanding of the ingredients that create these uniquely Asian flavors.
     Most of the Asian dinners that I've made utilize traditional ingredients, Szechwan pork is different in that it uses non-traditional ingredients to achieve a traditional taste. Peanut butter may not seem like an Asian ingredient but peanuts and peanut sauce are featured in many Asian foods. The really odd ingredient is picante sauce. When I read the recipe I thought it was a typo but when I tried it, it actually worked. The way I look at this recipe is that it's a simplified way to get to a delicious result. And if anyone asks how you made it, you don't have to tell them about the picante sauce, Just tell them it's an ancient Chinese secret.
     So, let's take a look at today's recipe.

                                          Szechwan Pork


Prep time   14 Min.     Cook time   7 Min.     Serves   4

Ingredients

2 teaspoons dark sesame oil

1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 teaspoons ginger root, peeled and minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium red bell pepper, cut into strips

1/3 cup picante sauce

2 tablespoons reduced-fat peanut butter

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

2 cups cooked white rice, hot

1/4 cup scallions, sliced

Instructions

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork, ginger and garlic; stir-fry 1 minute. Add bell pepper; stir-fry 2 minutes. Add picante sauce, peanut butter and soy sauce; stir-fry 3 minutes or until pork loses it's pink color and sauce is thick.

To serve - transfer pork and rice to individual plates and top with scallions

This recipe yields 4 servings at about 1/2 cup of pork mixture and 1/2 cup of rice per serving.


     If you like Chinese food this dinner should be easy to work into your menu rotation. Next month I'm planning to cover a couple more Asian inspired dinners.
As always, if you try this dinner, leave a comment here and let me know how it turned out.


   Next week - Crock Pot Jerk Turkey Soup or How Hot?

Crunchy Asian Salad or Part 1.

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
Crunchy Asian Salad.

 

     Today's post is part of the Salad and Sides series and is also part of a two-week Asian food series that will conclude next week with Szechwan Pork. When we think about Asian food we normally think about Chinese restaurants. At our favorite Chinese restaurant we will probably order soup, egg rolls, a main course and the obligatory fortune cookie; a salad simply never crosses our minds. With this salad I am asking you to think outside the box and try something new.
     At it's core Crunchy Asian Salad is just like every other salad, the only difference is that we will be using different ingredients to give it an Asian flavor. One of the ingredients that we will be changing is lettuce, instead of the typical lettuce we will be using cabbage and lettuce in equal amounts to give this salad a lot of it's crunchiness. The rest of the crunch comes from edamame (shelled) and slivered almonds.
     Salad dressings generally come in two forms, vinegar based and mayonnaise based, in this recipe we will be making a vinegar based dressing using rice wine vinegar, honey, soy sauce and sesame oil. Where the cabbage, edamame and almonds give this salad it's crunch the dressing gives it an Asian flavor.
     So, let's jump into today's recipe.

                                  Crunchy Asian Salad


Prep time   10 Min.     Cook time   0 Min.     Serves   4

Ingredients

2 cups packaged coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)

2 cups romaine lettuce

1 cup edamame (shelled)

1 cup scallions, sliced

1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce

1 teaspoon dark sesame oil

2 teaspoons ginger root, finely minced or grated

1/4 cup slivered almonds

Instructions

In a large bowl toss together coleslaw, romaine, scallions and tomato.

In a small bowl whisk together rice wine vinegar, honey, soy sauce, sesame oil and ginger.

Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat. Sprinkle almond slivers over salad and serve.

This recipe yields 4 servings.


     This is a great salad to go with any Asian dinner. As I stated earlier this is part 1 of a two-part series, I recommend you serve it with next week's dinner and treat your family to make-it-yourself Chinese food. As always, if you try this salad leave a comment here and let me know how it turned out.


     Next week - Szechwan Pork or Part 2.

One-Pan Pork Chops with Fennel, Onion and Apple or Easy and Delicious.

     Welcome and thank you for checking out my blog, today's dinner is
One-Pan Pork Chops with Fennel, Onion and Apple.

     If you've been reading this blog you have probably noticed the theme of easy and delicious, today's dinner is no exception. When I look at recipes one of the things that I consider is how difficult is it to make. If they require multiple tedious steps or a special piece of cooking equipment that I don't have I skip over them in favor of something more simple. One-pan pork chops with fennel, onion and apple is a delicious dinner that is well-suited to fall or winter. It's name implies a level of simplicity and most of the ingredients can be found in your kitchen already.
The most difficult part of this dinner is that you will have to go to the store to get a fennel bulb. The combination of flavors work well together with the fennel bulb giving it a tartness and the apple giving it a sweetness.
     Now that we've covered the simplicity of this dinner, let's take a look at the recipe.

              One-Pan Pork Chops with Fennel, Onion and Apple.


Prep time   15 Min.     Cook time   30 Min.     Serves   4

Ingredients

1 large red onion, cut into wedges

1 medium fresh apple, cored and cut into thick slices

1 medium fennel bulb, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 teaspoon garlic herb seasoning, or steak seasoning

1 pound lean boneless pork chops, four 4 ounce pieces

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375f.

In a large bowl, combine onion, apple, fennel, oil and seasoning; toss to coat and spread out in a large nonstick pan. Bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, Season pork to taste with salt and pepper.

After vegetable mixture has cooked for 15 minutes, *remove pan from oven and toss; move vegetable mixture to sides of pan and add pork to the middle of pan. *Bake until pork is cooked through and vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes more.

This recipe yields 4 servings at 1 pork chop and about 3/4 cup vegetable mixture per serving.

*Note: Be careful - the handle of the pan with be hot.


     This is a easy and delicious dinner that should appeal to every member of your family, make it on a cold fall or winter evening and watch as everyone warms up to it. Also, after you've made it a couple of times try substituting chicken and pears for the pork and apples. As always, if you try this dinner leave a comment here and let me know how it turned out.


     Next week - Crunchy Asian Salad or Part 1.