Food bucket list…

Do you have a bucket list? Places you want to visit or activities you want to do before you kick the bucket? I have a food bucket list… that may sound strange, but I want to try different culinary options. Whether it is location dining (France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, etc.) or glamorous dining like the French Laundry (http://www.frenchlaundry.com/). I think it would be exciting to eat food that is famous for being the place where it all started like a philly in Philadelphia, Wings in Buffalo, Kansas City BBQ, Gumbo in New Orleans, and the list goes on.

I am so surprised by the food myths that are prolific in this country… Olive Garden is delicious, but is it really how they make Italian food in Italy (styles varies from region to region), Tacos in the U.S. are not like the myriad of taco types in Mexico and across Latin America, and do you really think that the Irish all stay home on St. Paddy’s day and have corned beef and cabbage?

This is an excerpt from the History Channel’s website:

So how did pork and potatoes become corned beef and cabbage? Irish immigrants to America lived alongside other “undesirable” European ethnic groups that often faced discrimination in their new home, including Jews and Italians. Members of the Irish working class in New York City frequented Jewish delis and lunch carts, and it was there that they first tasted corned beef. Cured and cooked much like Irish bacon, it was seen as a tasty and cheaper alternative to pork. And while potatoes were certainly available in the United States, cabbage offered a more cost-effective alternative to cash-strapped Irish families. Cooked in the same pot, the spiced, salty beef flavored the plain cabbage, creating a simple, hearty dish that couldn’t be easier to prepare.

http://www.history.com/news/hungry-history/corned-beef-and-cabbage-as-irish-as-spaghetti-and-meatballs

Now that you are in on the secret… does that change your menu? Nope, not for me. I have a corned beef in the fridge and a couple heads of cabbage. It will be deliciously not original, but maybe we can elevate our notions and try something new. 

Here is what I am working on…

Corned Beef and Cabbage rolls (Rueben style) http://www.primallyinspired.com/cabbage-rolls-reuben-style-st-patricks-day/

And I will have a few beers (Irish or not) to celebrate on March 17^th. Let me know what you are doing for the holiday at www.cookingwithtrace.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cookingwithtrace

Erin go Braugh

Valentine's Day

Do you celebrate the most romantic day of the year? Or do who rage against the commercialism of the made up holiday?

I am in the middle, I try to make sure that I am making extra effort to make my wife feel special, but since I am a guy it is nice to have a multibillion dollar event to give me some ideas.

Flowers, wine, candlelight, cards, gifts, and of course chocolate.

Chocolate is universal for Valentine’s Day and any other day that want to make your significant other feel special. Not only is it tasty, but it can be good for your health.

It is a versatile ingredient that can be sweet or savory, or in this case both.

I adapted this recipe from queen of Bitchin’ Kitchen, Nadia G. Her recipe called for milk chocolate, maple bacon, and crisp rice cereal, but I modified it just a tad.

Don’t go bacon my chocolate walnut heart bark (catchy name, no?)

3 ounces semi sweet baking chocolate

3 ounces milk chocolate chips

2 ounces toasted walnut pieces

6 slices of cooked bacon, minced

1 tablespoon honey

A pinch of salt

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave proof bowl (30 seconds at a time) until you can stir the chocolate into a smooth consistency. Meanwhile toast your walnuts in a dry skillet. Add minced bacon and honey to walnuts and stir to combine.

Combine the chocolate and the bacon/nut mixture (keep in mind that the mix should be about 65% chocolate and 35% bacon/nut mixture) and spoon into a parchment lined small bar pan, ramekin, or silicon mold. Sprinkle with a little sea salt (or fleur de sel if you have some on hand) and freeze for about 30 minutes.

I chose the bar pan and broke it into pieces to share with the woman I love. 

Happy Valentine’s Day Brandy!

Thanks for reading and let me know if you have any cooking questions at 

www.cookingwithtrace.com

The cheesy meltdown of 2014 --- i.e. the impending Velveeta shortage

So everyone, ok maybe not everyone, but quite a few people have posted about the impending Velveeta shortage, I thought it would be helpful to set the collective minds at ease. 

Wait for it…. YOU CAN MAKE YOUR OWN CHEESE SAUCE!

I know it seems like it would be impossible, but almost every processed food product that you can buy started as a real recipe in someone’s kitchen. Twinkies are sponge cakes with a cream filling, Kraft Macaroni and Cheese was made in grandma’s kitchen without all the chemicals and fluorescent colors (BTW kudos to Kraft for taking the artificial colors out of some of their products).

Back to cheese… cheese sauce is fairly simple to make because it is basically cheese gravy. Yep you read that right… cheese gravy (don’t those words just seem to flow together?).

This concept applies to cheese sauce for nachos/fries, vegetables, pasta, etc. 

 Image courtesy of joephotostudio/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Cheese Sauce

Use this cheese sauce on vegetables, pasta, or use in other dishes.

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

    3 tablespoons butter

    3 tablespoons flour

    1/2 teaspoon salt

    1/8 teaspoon ground pepper

    1 1/2 cups milk

    1 cup grated sharp Cheddar or smoky flavor Cheddar cheese

Options: Cumin (smoky flavor), smoked paprika (will color the sauce, but brings a smoky heat), 

jalapeno (diced or dried), your choice of hot sauce

Preparation:

Melt butter; remove from heat. Stir in flour and seasonings. Gradually add milk, stirring until well mixed. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth. Cook for 5 minutes longer; add cheese. Stir until smooth and well blended. Serve with pasta or vegetables.

Makes 2 cups.

Go Broncos!!! Trace

Under Pressure…

We all have been under pressure at one time or another especially during the holidays. Pressure can be a great thing… in particular when it is combined with heat. Diamonds anyone? Ok so hopefully your cooking shines like a diamond, but is not as hard.

I actually have wanted to write about pressure cookers since last spring…but I have hesitated because of the Boston Marathon bombing. Understandably there was concern about safety and there was a national emphasis being put on internet searches involving pressure cookers and I did not want my blog to gain that type of attention.

I received a pressure cooker from a friend and I am eternally grateful. These are amazing tools. I remember my grandma used hers often, but I did not have any inkling about what she was doing. She made the most amazing swiss steak, tomatoey, vinegary, unctuous, and comforting. I do not have her recipe, but I have been cooking everything else that I can think of in my new best friend.

Pressure cookers are unique and therefore they can cause some unrest. The science behind it is that when you pressurize a vessel it raises the boiling point of water. At sea level water boils at 212° F, under 15 psi water boils at 250° F. This allows the food to cook faster at higher temperature without drying out. The pressure builds in the sealed pot and it makes noise and lets off a little steam, and this can understandably cause some concern. Many years ago there were some problems with pressure cookers not being safe due to faulty gaskets or incorrect use, but now there are several varieties and as long as you follow directions you should have no problem.

Why should you use a pressure cooker? It is a quick and efficient way to cook food. Everything from mashed potatoes to pot roast can be cooked in a pressure cooker and the results are amazing.  Pot roast in the oven can take up to three hours or more… but pot roast in a pressure cooker happens in an hour and the taste is unmatched.

You can overcook food and therefore I recommend following the directions exactly (or you can turn California blend vegetables into an interesting puree). Trust me…

Check out this quick mashed potatoes recipe…

    2 lbs. Idaho Russet potatoes, quartered

    1 cup water

    1/3 cup half and half

    4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)

    Salt / pepper

Directions

Place peeled and quartered potatoes into the steamer basket or on metal trivet of your pressure cooker. Add water to your potatoes. Pressure cook on HIGH for 5-7 minutes, using the natural release method.

Drain potatoes, add 1/2 and 1/2 and butter, mash and stir vigorously. The potatoes should cream together rather quickly (if you need to you a hand mixer you can). I like to use bacon drippings and maybe some shredded cheese to make this side dish really pop.

Now go put on your Queen record and let’s put some food under pressure!!!

Trace

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Holidays...

It is the time of year that everyone starts to shout about family time, being thankful, being generous and kind…yada yada yada.

I know that those are all good things, but why do we wait until the end of the year to start pontificating about what we should be doing all year long? It is human nature to start reminiscing at certain milestones and it is my opinion that as we reflect on the past year we think about our regrets and shortcomings throughout the first 11 months and we want to make up for it with peace on Earth and stuff like that.

Don’t get me wrong, I want peace on Earth, but I want it all year. I am not perfect. I have issues with bad drivers, and people who don’t say thank you when you hold the door for them, I cuss (a lot, man do I love cussing), and have a million other things that I can improve upon. My point is that I am working on those daily and not waiting until the end of the year, the winter solstice, the new year, etc. to make a change. I am starting with the man in the mirror… (props to the king of pop). So continue to give to charity and help your fellow man. It is as simple as a smile to the homeless person on the corner or taking someone’s grocery basket back to the store for them. Gestures do not have to be grandiose to be effective; you just have to start somewhere.

So bake some cookies and take them to someone who could use a treat, then sit and have a cup of coffee and enjoy each other’s company and then do it again next month or two months from now. Don’t wait until next holiday season. Life is too short and you never know what lies ahead for you or the ones you love.

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies (adapted from Claire Robinson’s version)

1 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Coarse sea salt, for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place the racks in the upper and lower third of the oven.

In a medium bowl, mix the peanut butter, sugar, vanilla and egg until well combined. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the mixture about 1 inch apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten the mounds with the tines of a fork, making a crosshatch pattern on the cookies. Sprinkle coarse salt on top of the cookies.

Bake until golden around the edges, about 10 minutes, switching the position of the sheets halfway through baking. Transfer to racks to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough

I wish you all many blessings now and in the coming year.

Trace

Pumpkin everywhere…

Pumpkin everywhere…

It is that time of year where pumpkin starts showing up in everything. Bread, cookies,

lattes, candles, candy, noodles, marshmallows, arghhh. The frustrating thing is that

most of the time the pumpkin flavored foods do not include any pumpkin at all. They

usually have pumpkin pie spice, or artificial pumpkin flavoring, but no squash at all!

This recipe however is chock full o’ pumpkin.

Grain free pumpkin and spice pancakes. This is a primal inspired recipe that I adapted

from several recipes I found on the World Wide Web, and it is a variation of the grain

free banana pancakes recipe that I posted before.

Pumpkin pancakes

4 eggs

½ cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Pinch of salt

Butter (for the griddle)

Combine the first four ingredients until well blended. Heat griddle or skillet to medium

heat, brush with butter. Scoop about 1/3 cup of batter on to griddle. Cook until golden

on the bottom and slightly opaque in the center and around the edges. Flip, brown on

the other side, and serve.

I served with pumpkin pie spiced honey butter, sliced tangerines, and bacon (of course).

Now go cook something..

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The curious case of the missing apples...

If you come to visit me at work, you will notice that I always have a bowl of apples. I like apples, I use them to cut down on my temptation to choose candy or other less healthy snacks, and I am always willing to share.

So I buy two 3 pound bags of apples every two weeks when we do our grocery shopping and I leave one bag at home and take one bag to work, but this last shopping trip I could not find the bag to take to work.

Where could it be? I finally resigned myself to the fact that somehow they must have been thrown away... they were nowhere to be found... until yesterday.

I went downstairs to our freezer to pick out meat to be thawed for our weekly dinner and in the top corner of the freezer was a bag of gala apples, frozen solid.

Awesome... Applecicles! (I might patent that)... What was I going to do... when they thawed they would be mushy and no one likes mushy apples... unless they are in applesauce!

So let them rest until they were soft enough to core, and then I roughly chopped them. A medium size pot with about 3/4 cup of water, 3 lbs of chopped frozen apples, a couple of drops of pure cinnamon oil, and a generous sprinkling of really good cinnamon (from Orr's Trading Company), and a little bit of time was all that was needed to make delicious applesauce.

After the mixture cooked on low for about an hour, I used my immersion blender to blend the mixture to a nice chunky consistency.

Delicious, no sugar added, applesauce. Which was the perfect ingredient for these delicious grain free muffins from the Civilized Caveman http://civilizedcavemancooking.com/grain-free-goodies/apple-mug-muffin-in-2-minutes/.

Instead of turning lemons into lemonade, I turned frozen apples in apple muffins...

Go cook something! Trace