#foodblogchef
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1-2 garlic cloves (finely minced or grated and mashed to a paste with a pinch of salt)
1 tablespoon good quality olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (optional)
3-4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (to taste)
Pinch of salt (to taste)
Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Combine the ingredients and mix well.
A friend recently told me that even after 50 years as a vegetarian she still misses bacon. Here’s a recipe for anyone who loves umamiful, crunchy, chewy bacon. Air-frying thin slices of shiitake mushrooms tossed with a bit of olive oil and dusted with corn starch produces a vegetarian “bacon” that even avid bacon lovers say tastes like bacon. Use crispy shiitake as a garnish for pasta dishes, or atop your favorite salad, or soup, or baked potato...anytime you would use bacon bits. The crispy slices are also great snacks! “Where’s the bacon?” Crispy shiitakes! Prepare to be amazed!
Air Fried Crispy Shiitake
Yield about a cup
Ingredients:
5 ounces shiitake mushrooms stems removed, sliced very thin
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil (you can also just spray the sliced mushrooms with Pam or olive oil)
2 teaspoons of corn starch
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Method:
Preheat your air-fryer to 400 F.
Toss the sliced mushrooms with olive oil (or spray with Pam) and salt.
Sprinkle on the corn starch and toss gently to coat the slices. Don’t break up the mushroom slices.
Spread the sliced mushrooms in your air fryer basket so you have a single layer of slices.
Air fry for 15 minutes and check. The sliced mushrooms are done when they are golden brown and look crunchy. If you need more time, air-fry the slices for an additional 5 minutes or more until they are golden and crunchy.
Cool the golden crispy slices to room temperature. They will become crunchier as they cool.
The crispy mushroom slices can be used in place of bacon as garnishes for salads, pasta dishes, or soups. Enjoy!
Photo: c. foodblogchef 2021 Spinach Ravioli with Brown Butter and Crispy Shiitake
Photo: c. foodblogchef 2020
4 cups water
1 cup half-and-half or whole milk
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 cup coarse grind cornmeal
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
pinch of baking soda (to help it cook faster)
Bring the water and milk to a boil in a heavy-duty saucepan or small Dutch oven. Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.
Gradually sprinkle the polenta into the pan while whisking at the same time. Turn the heat to a very low simmer, cover, and continue to cook the polenta for 25-30 minutes, until it's thick, fluffy, and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Stir occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
When it's done, remove from the heat and stir in the butter, cheese, and additional salt to taste if needed.
Serve warm, sprinkled with additional cheese if desired, and the topping of your choice.
Line a baking dish with plastic wrap, or grease the sides of the dish with butter or olive oil.
Pour the freshly made hot polenta into a baking dish or sheet pan that will allow you to spread out the hot polenta to about 1/2-3/4 inch thickness. Spread the top evenly, allow to cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm.
Slice into rectangles or squares, or cut into portions with a cookie/biscuit cutter. Pan-fry in a cast iron or non-stick pan with a little olive oil until brown on both sides. (2-3 minutes on a hot skillet)
Photo: c. foodblogchef 2021
There is a debate in the pizza-world on the topic of uncooked vs. cooked pizza sauce. I grew up with fresh uncooked sauce, so that is my preference, but it ultimately comes down to your own individual taste. Uncooked sauce will be a bit brighter and more tangy and have more “fresh tomato taste”. Cooked sauce will have a bit more depth. Either way, the oven will cook the sauce. Experiment and decide which is your personal preference. This is the flavorful sauce I use on my Roman Style Pizza. Roasting or micro-waving the garlic is optional, but buttery, roasted or micro-waved garlic adds a wonderful taste to the sauce. If you don’t want to bother roasting the garlic, minced fresh garlic works just fine, but don’t let it scorch or burn or it will be bitter. Adding anchovy paste or a couple of anchovy fillets adds a nice flavor note to the sauce but is optional. If you use anchovy, reduce or omit the salt in the recipe. Spread a thin layer of sauce over the pizza and add your toppings. Cooked sauce, or fresh sauce…? You decide. Mangia e buon appetito!
Easy Pizza Sauce
Enough sauce for several pizzas
Ingredients:
1-28 ounce can of peeled San Marzano tomatoes crushed
½ head of garlic roasted (or 3-4 cloves finely minced and sautéed)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 tablespoons of fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dry basil
2 teaspoons oregano
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional; if you use, omit the salt)
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
For uncooked sauce:
If you prefer the tanginess of fresh uncooked pizza sauce, mix the ingredients in a food processor without cooking and omit the anchovies if you don’t like anchovies. You can add additional spices to taste when you assemble the pizza prior to baking. Process to your desired consistency (smooth or chunky); adjust the salt and pepper to your taste.
Preparation for cooked sauce:
If you roast your garlic, remove the extra papery skin; drizzle a little olive oil over the cut faces of garlic; wrap in a foil pouch, and roast in a preheated oven at 375 for about 25 minutes. Alternatively, you can wrap the garlic in a paper towel and microwave it for about a minute until soft.
If you’re using fresh minced garlic, preheat a saucepan or cast-iron skillet over medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil; wait 30 seconds, and add the minced garlic, stirring constantly until it just begins to brown. (don’t let it burn!)
If using roasted garlic: squeeze the cloves out of their skins into the hot olive oil and mash with a fork.
If using anchovy, add the fillets or paste and stir for a few seconds.
Immediately add the tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients. Stir and simmer for 15 minutes and remove from the heat.
Allow the sauce to cool a bit and add to a food processor and process on low until medium smooth. (Note: if you like your sauce more chunky, process less; if you want your sauce very smooth, process longer until you reach the consistency you like.)
Leftover sauce will keep in the fridge for about a week in a glass container with a tight top.
This is a good dry rub to season pork roast or ribs. It can be used for smoking ribs or seasoning meat prior to basting with a good barbecue sauce like Bourbon-Brown Sugar Barbecue Sauce.
Kansas City Dry Rub for Pork
(Copy and paste to print the recipe.)
Ingredients:
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup paprika
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
Preparation:
Mix all the ingredients well and store in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. The spice mix will keep stored in a cool dark place for several months.
Rub the spice mix onto your meat several hours (preferably overnight) before cooking.
Adapted from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/kansas-city-rib-rub-recipe
Photo: foodblogchef 2021
I developed this recipe specifically for
Québec Pork Pie. Either pear or apple will work for the chutney. The sweet-and-tangy, savory condiment is a perfect complement to the richness of the meat pie. It is also excellent paired with grilled meat or poultry. If you prefer a smoother condiment, process the chutney in a Magic Bullet or blender until smooth for fruit ketchup. Enjoy!
Green Apple-Ginger Chutney
Yield: 1 cup chutney
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons packed light-brown or turbinado sugar (I use turbinado.)
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoon seeded and minced fresh jalapeño (can use minced jar jalapeños.)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 whole clove
1+ cup of green apple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup finely diced yellow onion
1 tablespoon dried cranberries (Craisins)
1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
Kosher salt
Preparation:
Combine the sugar, vinegar, jalapeño, cinnamon, and clove in a heavy-duty saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar is completely dissolved, 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir in the apple, onion, cranberries, mustard seeds, fresh ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is soft and the liquid has reduced somewhat about 30-40 minutes.
Uncover and continue to simmer until the liquid has almost evaporated, about 10 minutes more. (You want to leave a small amount of liquid in the bottom of the pan.)
Adapted from: https://www.finecooking.com/recipe/pear-ginger-chutney
Who doesn’t love the delicious, creamy, umami-goodness of avocado? In addition to being wonderful and satisfying to eat, avocados are also a nutritious source of vitamins and healthy fats for your diet. More than a distinctive flavor, it is the creaminess of avocados and how they complement many other more flavorful foods that makes them so appealing, so when I saw this recipe for Avocado Pickles on the Delish.com website, I knew I had to try it. The brilliance of the recipe is while maintaining the creamy avocado texture, the pickling process also maintains the pretty pale avocado green color, and brings all 5 Tastes flavor to the fruit slices making them delicious additions to salads and creamy-tangy garnishes for many appetizers. If you’re an avocado aficionado like me, you should give Avocado Pickles a try.
AVOCADO PICKLES
Ingredients:
• 1 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
• 5 sprigs of cilantro
• 1-2 under-ripe avocados, peeled and thinly sliced
Directions:
1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. When the sugar and salt have dissolved, set aside to cool.
2. In a mason jar or other glass jar with a tight-fitting top, place red pepper flakes, garlic, cilantro, and avocado slices. Pour the cooled pickling mixture into the jar and seal tightly with a lid.
3. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.
Photo: c. foodblogchef 2021
Copy and paste to print the recipe.
AVOCADO PICKLES
Ingredients:
• 1 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
• 5 sprigs of cilantro
• 1-2 under-ripe avocados, peeled and thinly sliced
Directions:
1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. When the sugar and salt have dissolved, set aside to cool.
2. In a mason jar or other glass jar with a tight-fitting top, place red pepper flakes, garlic, cilantro, and avocado slices. Pour the cooled pickling mixture into the jar and seal tightly with a lid.
3. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.
Photo c. foodblogchef 2020
Ingredients:
10-12 Habanero peppers (use rubber gloves to seed the peppers or suffer the painful capsaicin consequences)
4-6 carrots chopped
½ onion chopped
4-5 roasted garlic cloves
1 cup apple cider vinegar
juice from ½ lemon
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon each of cumin and coriander (optional)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt to taste
2 teaspoons of honey
Preparation:
Roast the garlic until soft and set aside (a cast iron skillet on your stove top works well
Saute the cider vinegar, lemon juice, carrot, onion, spices, bay leaf, and peppers
When carrots are soft, remove the bay leaf, and put everything including the roasted garlic into the blender.
Add the salt and honey to taste.
Blend until smooth, add enough water to make the consistency you want.
Pour into a small saucepan and bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
Cool and bottle. (keeps refrigerated for up to a year)
To bottle:
1. Put your bottles into boiling water for ten minutes.
2. Remove from hot water and cool.
3. Fill with sauce and cap.
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (depending on your taste; I use 1/4-1/2 teaspoon for a mildly hot mix)
1 1/4 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/4 teaspoons dried thyme
1 1/4 teaspoons dried basil
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1. Stir together salt, garlic powder, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper, oregano, thyme, basil, and red pepper flakes until evenly blended, or mix in a spice grinder. Store in an airtight container.
Adapted from: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/149221/cajun-spice-mix/