Pepperoni Tomato Sauce

Pepperoni Tomato Sauce over Pasta

Dried pasta still has its uses. It is pasta anyway, however this is about the sauce. Pepperoni was the base, and while it is a great idea. I now know where to take this to really make it sing. SPICE!

Ingredients
-Pepperoni
-Tomato
-Pasta
-Celery
-Onion

Creation

As said before this was just an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof...

Wait a minute. Back on track. The sauce. Saw pepperoni in the fridge.. figured could render fat. Make tomato sauce serve over pasta. Now I wanted to begin defining this italian/mediterranian style that I haveso kept it simple. Basil. Onions. Celery.

But now I know... and know is half the battle... G... I... Joe!!

Rats. Happened again. Either way next time I know it needs peppers and spice and then it will become...

Beef Ravioli

Beef Ravioli

Yes, follows the theme of homemade pasta. Probably gonna make December the month of Pasta. Yeah that sounds good. 

Ingredients
-Beef
-Homemade Pasta
-Celery
-Onion
-Bechamel

Creation

I remember the first time I made pasta. Attempted to make ravioli. Didn't know the ratios or anything. Was totally dry in the middle. Yeah. Now I know you are supposed to boil them and then add to sauce... who knew?

Being that pasta is one of my favorite things ever being able to make it at home sure does change things.

The stuffing is beef and cheese. Needed a lot more cheese (not a beef lover) but it was and is...

Making Pasta

Making Pasta at Home

This is like a teaser for a later date where I outline the whole process. There aren't many steps and as you can see the pasta above is a little thick. That will all change when I get my first pasta machine. 

Ingredients
-Flour
-Eggs

Creation

And this is what happens when you have way too much meat.. but it was good and because it had homemade pasta it was an...

Shrimp Risotto

Shrimp Risotto

Aww... doesn't it look all pretty? Normally I don't style my food, just plate it nicely, but this time. I couldn't help it. The shrimps were just so good. Could have skipped on the risotto and ate an entire bathtub of the stuff. 

Ingredients
-Shrimp
-Rice
-Carrots
-Spices

Creation

Oh risotto. I have a bittersweet relationship with it. Still learning how to make it perfect, and the stock used to make it came from the last dish. Let nothing go to waste.

Had no wine which was a real buzzkill, but the fresh stock can make up for it.

But forget about the risotto... these shrimps! Thyme and Parsley marinated then sauteed. Was so tasty, pretty sure these alone make this...

Shrimp Fettuce

Shrimp Fettuce

First off, there is no spelling error. Fettuce is a wider form of the oh-so-popular fettuccine, and yes they were made by hand. I tried a couple years back, didn't have a clue what I was doing. Working with pictures in a book. Terrible. So now I see the book again and decide its time. Took three tries though.. imagine the realization when when I realized I was working with medium eggs instead of large.

Ingredients
-Flour
-Eggs
-Shrimp
-Onion
-Basil
-Heavy Cream

Creation

Homemade pasta?! No way. Actually much simpler than even I thought and I use the "well" method. Pretty simple.. quite messy, but being covered in flour makes you look like more of a chef right?

The shrimp are just cooked with a cream sauce. No wine or vinegar. I know right. Focus was on the pasta which makes this...

Sweet Potato Pie

Sweet Potato Pie

Ahh. Sweet Potato Pie or Punkin (Yes Punkin) Pie? Guess that will be figured out if I ever do a homemade Punkin Pie. Today sweet potatoes were on sale.. $0.39/lb. I KNOW RIGHT? Being it takes about a pound to make a pie. Being able to make a filling for a pie for about a dollar... double score.

Ingredients
-Sweet Potatoes
-Cream
-Sugar
-Egg
-Spices

Creation

First time using sweet potatoes and it is a simple as boiling them, removing skin, beating with everything else and then baking off in pan.

Second, don't ask about whipped cream... rarely use it actually.

The mixture is very liquidy until after baking, but once its done and cooked properly... grabbed a mug of milk and enjoyed chowing down on...

Chicken Parmesan

Chicken Parmesan

Now I really hate using pre-breaded anything, but this is what I had so you gotta make the best use of it. Chicken Parmesan is there only thing I could think of to hide it.... that and a thick homemade tomato sauce.

Ingredients
-Pre-breaded Chicken Breast
-Brisket's Tomato Sauce
-Angel Hair Pasta
-Romano Cheese

Creation
Now I'm not one of those cooks that refuses to cook with stuff like you see on tv. I want to bread things myself and plus pre-breaded limits the uses. Grrness. Oh well.

The sauce. Thick and hearty. Actually because I prefer thick sauces that lends itself to not using anger hair or other spaghetti like sauces. Should have been shells or rotini. Something to grip the chunks of flavor, but I also really like angel hair.

That's pretty much how to turn a pre-breaded chicken breast into...

And that is...

Country-Style Pork

Sauteed Pork with an Apple Gastrique over Potatoes

Haven't cooked these in a while and I always do it the same way. Yeah. Then the potatoes had a little mishap, of which I am blaming the non-stick pan. Yep. I sure am.

Ingredients
-Pork
-Potatoes
-Apples
-Celery
-Ginger
-Onions

Creation

So, saute pork on all sides. Done. Then came the time to make a gastrique. Which apparently I have been almost doing this whole time is I just switch the order of ingredients. Caramelize sugar before deglazing and boom gastrique.

Now the potatoes... sigh. They were supposed to be yellow, but when it came to finish them with a dash of cream the excess oil (Nonstick pan) mixed with the cream and turned it brown.

However, the taste was on point and that is what matters. Especially since it is...

Cinnamon Rolls (Revisted)

Cinnamon Rolls

I said I would do it and I have done it. Though I still have an affinity for the apple glaze. No other fruit will do... until I branch out and how often do I do that. Not very. For the record these taste much better than the first batch. Next time I write my own recipe.

Ingredients
-Flour
-Milk
-Sugar
-Cinnamon
-Egg
-Yeast
-Apple Glaze

Creation

Pretty much the same thing a last time. Make dough. Fill it. Roll it. Cut it. Rise it. Bake it, though next time I'm a do it my way from the get go. Gonna bake, then cut the dough, roll it, make it. I'm sure this will work.

Of course this time I still didn't follow recipe. As there isn't a sugar glaze. Too simple. And I love apples and as far as I know apples make it...

Beef Stew

Beef Stew over Rice

This was really an impulse dish, due to the impulse buy of some bottom round. Originally it was gonna be a roast but then I didn't feel like going through all that. So diced it up and made a stew... Brisket-style. 

Ingredients
-Bottom Round
-Carrots
-Onions
-Balsamic Vinegar
-Wine
-Spices

Creation

Stews are generally one of the easiest things to make and are usually one pot things, but not this time! The Beef is seared first. I know... why? Not sure.. probably shouldn't. Being it is cooked for such a long time.

Depending on what onions I have on hand they will be caramelized as well cause this is a sweet stew. Then everyone into the pool. For hrs and hrs. Then you'll have something like the picture.

Which if you look closely you can see shreds of beef. Yeah. It falls apart when attempting to scoop out. Mhmm... fall apart deliciousness in...

Bacon Omelette

Asiago Omelette with Bacon

I don't care what anyone says about how to make an omelette. I have always liked a slight brown on my eggs. (Not scrambled obviously) Also, my omelettes always are single fold. Only half circles here. So if you are one of those food snobs that frown upon this. Continue to frown while I eat.

Ingredients
-Eggs
-Bacon
-Asiago Cheese

Creation

Its an omelette. How hard can it be? Pretty hard apparently since that is a test for new and experienced chefs. Yep. So how do I do it?

Umm.. mix eggs and milk.. cook bacon... render fat. Now add eggs and cheese. Detailed enough? I'm not gonna sit here and tell you how to make an omelette into...






P.S. - Muahahaha

Fettuccine and Meatballs

Fettuccine and Meatballs

Mmmm fettuccine makes a return with meatballs this time. No I didn't make them from scratch, cause I don't have the time to ground up 3 different kinds of meat. That is just crazy... good.. but crazy and now I'm growing quite fond of Beurre Blanc.

Ingredients
-Meatballs... shocker
-Fettuccine
-Beurre Blanc based white sauce

Creation

Seeing how the meatballs were pre-made this was essentially making them look good. Simple Beurre Blanc with vinegar and Moscato wine. With some shallots and jalapenos for some spice.

Assuming you know how to cook pasta it can't be much more simple than that. Toss and serve. Well Toss... plate nicely... pull out camera.. take multiple pictures... then serve. How else would you see...

Beef Soup

Beef Soup

You ever have one of those days when you just want something simple and comforting, but your lactose intolerant and shouldn't be drinking milk? Enter Beef soup. 

Ingredients
- Beef
-Pasta
-Mirepoix
-Beef stock or Beef bouillon
-Spices

Creation

Got the idea for this when I was making a shrimp stock for a risotto. If you take onions, carrots and celery, some salt, and a stock, put it in some boiling water and let it just go. Kitchen will smell delicious.

Take that and throw in some beef to stew and people will come for their portion

Then make pasta just for kicks and giggles and you have...

Cinnamon Rolls

Apple-glazed Cinnamon Rolls

So don't consider myself a baker nor do I bake a lot. However this may change that. Cinnamon Rolls have been on the list to make for years, but I just hate following recipes. Still diverted towards the end of this one, but yes cinnamon rolls! 

Ingredients
-Cinnamon
-Sugar
-Flour
-Milk
-Egg
-Apples
-Butter
-Probably something I'm forgetting

Creation

First dough made from scratch (aside from Chinese dumpling dough). Turned out quite well. After that it actually becomes quite simple.

Roll the dough out. Cover in cinnamon sugar butter mixture. Roll it. Cut it. Let rise. Bake. Done.

Apple glaze is.. well.. apples, butter, sugar. On top of a cinnamon rolls make this...

Faux Risotto

Bacon and Asiago Cheese Faux Risotto

So October pretty much yielded no cooking. November shall be different. Right off the bat we have a 'faux' risotto. Looks like one, but doesn't nearly have the same texture or flavor as it is made with orzo pasta instead of arborio rice, but it was sure tasty.

Ingredients
-Orzo Pasta
-Bacon
-Asiago Cheese
-Onion
-Pepper
-Heavy Cream

Creation

Bacon! I can't believe I'm been doing this since August and I haven't used bacon yet. I mean really. That makes me sad, but then there is this.

Fried bacon and wondered what to do next. So I reserved the bacon fat, boiled the pasta, sauteed the onions and peppers in the fat and then mixed it all together.

That wasn't much until I grabbed the heavy cream and cheese. That turned it into this sophisticated pasta and cheese. Top with bacon... yum... and you have...

Swai and Chips

Swai and Chips

Swai, catfish from Vietnam, cheap and healthier than improperly prepared Puffer fish. I have to pick up some whenever it is fresh and it season. I thought it was funny that Swai is $4/lb frozen and $3.69/lb fresh. So there may be more Swai dishes coming. This one served with 'chips' and homemade cole slaw.

Ingredients
-Swai
-Potato
-Rosemary
-Garlic
-Homemade Cole Slaw

Creation
Homemade Cole Slaw? Yep. Very simple. Cabbage sliced and mixed with mayo, apple cider vinegar and sugar.

Potatoes are also thinly sliced and done on the stove top with rosemary and garlic. Not too much salt cause the Swai will have more.

Fun with plating.. before I wanted Cole Slaw

My usual way of preparing fish. Salt, pepper and hot oil. I like to keep things simple no? Especially when I'm making...

Orange Ginger Chicken

Orange Ginger Chicken over Rice

A light and bright dish. Definitely won't use a non-stick pan for it next time though. Had a bunch of chicken and knew I wanted to do something orange and light. This is what my kitchen brought forth. 

Ingredients

-Chicken Breast Tenderloin
-Orange Juice
-Ginger
-Onion
-Jalapeno

Creation

This is my first dish that really uses delicate flavors instead of going bold. Which was done by not reducing the orange ginger sauce so much. Not searing chicken. Yes that was done on purpose.

Essentially this was a orange juice poached chicken, but a little more involved.

Served over seasoned rice balances everything in...

P.S. - Upon typing this short post I became hungry for another serving.

Pork Sausage Tomato Sauce

Pork Sauce Tomato Sauce over Angel hair

I never was good at plating spaghetti and sauce, however this is mostly about the sauce anyways. This is pretty much my go-to meat-tomato sauce as long as there is about 2hrs of preparation time. Yes this take that long. Gotta break down the tomatoes and make sure the flavors meld. 

Ingredients

-Pork Sausage
-Tomatoes
-Wine
-Balsamic Vinegar
-Garlic
-Onion
-Peppers

Creation

I say tomatoes because it can be tailored. This particular batch was made with petite diced and sauce. I usually use crushed.

And peppers. This one used bell peppers, but I like poblano and jalopeno.

While this sauce is simmering forever the oil must be siphoned or spooned off because the pork will continue to render its fat and that will make the sauce greasy. It won't stick to pasta and that won't make it...

Braised Beef

Braised Beef in Black Sauce

Beef.... uhhh. Guess I need more of these dishes. So I turned Black sauce into a braising liquid which was then added back to finish the dish. Possibly the most tender beef I have made so far. Then the sweet Black sauce.. oh yeah baby.

Ingredients

-Beef Steak
-Celery
-Onion
-Garlic
-Ginger
-Vinegar
-Black Sauce

Creation

Should know by know Black sauce is a balsamic reduction with stuffs. Everything else is a marinade. Don't marinade for too long cause the acid can turn meat mushy.

To turn Black Sauce into a braising liquid essentially add water and vegetables. The water will boil away after simmering for over an hr and what you are left with is a sweet thick sauce.

And don't forget braising is two cooking methods so first sear the beef. Gotta love that sear. If only it wasn't so messy to make...

Rice Pudding

Creamy Rice Pudding

I have always wanted to make rice pudding.. along with risotto, but that is done already. I've always heard the texture is weird, but its rice.. not something terrible like coconut. That's right I said it. There will not (should not) be a coconut dish here. Blah. Anyways, back to the pudding.

Ingredients

-Rice
-Milk
-Sugar
-Eggs

Creation

Its actually much easier to make than I originally thought. Just a little time consuming. Next it will be made with medium or short grain rice. Its pretty much take cooked rice and add milk. Continue to cook so the starches from the rice come out and thicken it.

Then add the egg and more milk and do it again. Done. Well, done after it is finished with vanilla and butter to make this...

Shrimp Fettuccine

Shrimp Fettuccine with a Tomato Cream Sauce

I seem to be making a lot of seafood... probably because I love seafood... go figure. However, there hasn't been a lot of seafood and pasta. So here we go, back to one of my favorite sauces... the tomato cream sauce.

Ingredients

-Shrimp
-Fettuccine
-Tomato
-Heavy Cream
-Onions
-Celery
-Garlic

Creation

To get the fullest flavor out if this sauce.. at least more robust flavor.. the sauce in completely homemade and instead of removing the skin the whole thing is blended. Then thrown in with the onions and stuff cooking.

As you can see by the color there wasn't a ton of tomatoes involved. Everything else is pretty straight-forward. However, more awesomeness comes from the shrimp. They weren't cooked in any special way, but the shells help make a great shrimp stock that will be used for later. Si. I am very resourceful when making...

Celery Leaf Cream Soup

Celery Leaf Cream Soup

What? Celery leaf? Yes those leaves from celery you never use. I do, all the time actually, as celery is always in the fridge. Taste pretty much like celery... shocker! But without the texture of... well celery. But no, this doesn't taste just like a puree of celery. Its just a hint to add a little complexity.

Ingredients

-Celery Leaves
-Pasta
-Garlic
-Onions
-Milk

Creation

Looking at those ingredients it seems it should be really simple... and it is. Everything is minced.. besides the milk and pasta. Don't even think about it.

Pasta is pre-boiled a bit, don't wanna cook it all in a white sauce. Which is made with the minced stuff. Nothing special here.

Finished with a bit of the minced celery and then garnished with it. Now I don't usually use garnishes, but this one is edible and allows you to know what the flavor is of...

Flounder over Kale

Sauteed Flounder over Kale with a Buerre Blanc

I just couldn't go the weekend without putting up something.. so here is a little light lunch. Actually its very light. More like a snack. But it was oh so tasty. Especially with the Buerre Blanc. First time making that and it is definitely added that the rotation. But it should have been the whole time right?

Ingredients

-Flounder
-Kale
-Beurre Blanc
-Garlic

Creation

First gotta get that Beurre Blanc going. Onions, white wine, and vinegar reducing. Then finish with heavy cream and butter. Yeah its that easy.

Salt and pepper the flounder and get that in a pan. It'll be real quick. Barely long enough to get a sear. Flounder can be quite thin.

All that is left is the kale lightly sauteed so it still has some crunch. Obviously add the salt and pepper. I actually flavored the oil with the garlic. And boom.. that is...

Chicken and Beans

Chicken and Green Beans

This is an old 'what can I make with these things' type recipe back when I was setting off the fire alarm every month. New to fresh green beans, I didn't know what I was getting into. Now rice and green beans are in most of my dishes. Also before I knew how to take a picture...

Ingredients

-Chicken Breast
-Green Beans
-Half 'n Half

Creation
This is definitely a more Italian-style dish, due to the simplicity and leaving the integrity of the ingredients. Nothing but a salt and pepper sear on the chicken completely cooked on stove to make it really crunchy.

Boiled green beans with a little salt and lemon pepper. Very quick to make sure they still have a bite and the sauce. What I call White Sauce. Its a butterless reduction to maximize the whiteness. Plate and serve.

Simple, Tasty, and..