Posts tagged ‘red onion’

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November 21, 2011

Crockpot Beef Stew

I found a deal on some beef stew meat at the Teeter so I decided to throw it in the crockpot.  I don’t know if I’ve done this yet, but I’ve got to wax philosophical about the crock pot.  Basically, y’all, if the crock pot is appropriate for cooking what you’re trying to cook (and sometimes if it isn’t), the crock pot is the proverbial shit.  It’s the ultimate lazy or busy person’s cooking tool.  You can turn something on low and cook it for the entire time you’re at work and it’ll be ready for dinner.  For something like beef stew (or any number of other things), the recipe with the crock pot goes something like “dump things in crockpot, turn to low, leave for 8 hours”.  Not to mention, it’s a handy holding device for leftovers that will keep your food in the fridge for days.

Here’s what I put in the crock pot on Saturday

  • beef stew meat (pick your favorite)
  • a red onion, chopped (not too small)
  • russet potato, chopped (ditto)
  • handful of chopped carrots
  • salt/pepper
  • red pepper flakes
  • 2 bouillon cubes – seriously, go buy some of these and keep them in your house
  • 2 cups boiling water

Here’s what it looked like

I cooked it for about 8 hours.  I was really pleased with how it turned out.  The broth that was left over was amazing and had very complex flavors.  I might tone down the red pepper flakes if you’re not a spicy person, but I liked it.  I was pretty generous with the salt and pepper and I think that was appropriate.  I think if I was going to do this again, I might consider some vegetables that would provide color, maybe some peas or something.  But other than that, I was really pleased, and of course, had plenty of leftovers.

The finished product is below.

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July 7, 2011

Bruschetta

I’ve never really been one for appetizers, instead preferring to make my food and eat my food on the spot.  I wasn’t raised in a home where we had appetizers (or come to think of it, bread prior to a meal), and being a single person has amplified that disinterest in appetizers.  When preparing food for one, I often find that it’s very difficult to get eat all of the leftovers before it goes bad, and adding extra food that doesn’t directly connect to the dish seems a little counterintuitive.

Bruschetta is a dish that will make even the most average of cooks look like an epicure.  It feels high end, but it’s incredibly simple to make and relies more on the ingredients to be the star than the cook itself.  Make it for a date and serve with a nice riesling and you’ll get things off to a great start.

You can make your own variations on this dish; some people add a slice of mozarella on top, some people add different vegetables.  This one is my favorite, but feel free to experiment and try something new. Tell us about it in the comments!

Bruschetta

1 French Bread Roll
1 Package of Basil Leaves
1 Clove of Garlic
1 Red Onion
1 Tomato
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil

Chop the red tomato, red onion, and basil leaves and place into a large mixing bowl.  Crush the garlic clove and add to the mixing bowl.  Add a tablespoon of the balsamic vinegar to the mixture (the amount of balsamic will differ based on how much volume the vegetables take up.  Start with the tablespoon and taste after mixing.  Add more if needed).  Mix and let rest while you make the bed.

Slice the french bread roll into slices than are about a half inch thick.  I liked slicing at an angle as it adds some extra surface area and also provides a unique look to the bread.  Cover a baking pan with the bread, add some olive oil on each slice and place under the broiler.  These cook really fast, so pay attention, it should be done in under 5 minutes.

Take a spoon and place a scoop of the vegetable-balsamic mix on each bread slice.  Serve!

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June 20, 2011

Grilled pizza

I borrowed some ideas from my neighbor @modonmendenhall‘s Grilled Pizza recipes.  However, I didn’t make my own dough, because, well, that sounds like a lot of work.  Anyway, here’s the recipe I was borrowing.

So, you’ll need some pizza dough.  If you want to make your own dough for some reason, you can check out Mod On Mendenhall’s recipe.  If you’re lazy like me, the dough from Harris Teeter works just fine and it’s like 2 dollars for enough for one pizza.  The Chef and I went a little crazy on the toppings and in retrospect, I’m not sure I’d recommend it.  We went with:

  • goat cheese
  • hot banana peppers
  • red onion
  • ham slices
  • tomato
  • pizza dough

Before I go into how to actually do this, let me first go into the mistakes I made.  I was stretching and flattening the dough in my pizza pan and decided that I should cover the pan in olive oil, for some reason aka Mistake 1.  Doing that caused the pizza dough to stick to the pan when I was trying to transfer it to the grill.  Mistake 2 – not regreasing the grill with oil when I tried to flip the pizza, which caused the dough to slightly stick to the grill.  Honestly though, neither of these really detracted from the meal, but they’re just things I’d do different.

So, here’s what you do need to do.  Roll out the pizza and flatten it out and do your best (seriously, just do your best) to make it into a pizza shape.  Part of the endearing part of homemade pizza is that it’s not perfect.  Seriously, check out Cecelia’s photos and she’s a better cook than I’ll ever be.  Oil up the top of the pizza and salt and pepper.  When the grill is ready, put the dough on the grill and let it go for 2-3 mins.  Honestly, I made another mistake here.  It’s better to get this pizza closer to burnt.  The grill flavor is enhanced when it’s a little crispy, so don’t be shy here with getting it over done.  Take the dough off and regrease the grill quickly with some olive oil.  Cook this side for 1-2 minutes (a little less done).

Take the dough off and put your toppings on.  Here, you have two options.  Either use the oven at 450 for 10 minutes or so or put back on the grill and cover until the cheese is melted.  I tried both, and I don’t really think there’s a bad option here.  I might go with the grill though, if I did it again (which I will).

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June 14, 2011

We’re Syndicated! Singular City Post – Bruschetta

Check out out post over on Singular City.  Thanks to Kim from Singular City for hooking this up.

http://singularcity.com/food-wine-and-cooking/805-menu-for-one-bruschetta

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March 16, 2011

Chipotle Alfredo Farfalle Pasta – aka “When You Eff Up”

The below looks good enough, right?  I started off with Farfalle Pasta, Ragu Alfredo Sauce, Spinach, and Red Onions.  Sounds simple enough.  I got myself into trouble with my aforementioned affection for hot peppers.  The store didn’t have the ones I wanted in their produce section, so I decided to “go rogue” in the least Palinite fashion possible (or maybe the most?) and go buy some canned peppers.  I settled on some of the “chipotle peppers in adobo sauce” and figured I could make it work (can pictured below).

I cracked open the can of peppers and went to work washing the adobo sauce off of them (it’s kind of a smoky barbecue sauce), meanwhile putting about 2/3 of a red onion and the spinach in a saucepan with some oil.  I added the peppers once I had rinsed and chopped them.  I added ALL of the peppers.  A little sauce and some boiled pasta later, I had my dish.

I added too many peppers.

The dish came out hot as fire.  The Chef, to her credit, managed to hang in like a champ and eat her helping, even though she did say she had some “stomach upset” by the end.  I took mine down and went back for seconds, even though I think I went through about 3 glasses of tea.

Over the next few days, I finished all of the pasta that I had made, leaving out most of the peppers.

Moral of this story?  Taste what you’re putting in your food before you do it.  I had never cooked with these peppers and didn’t realize the heat and pain that I was about to unleash on myself and my guest.  A simple taste would have revealed that a much smaller portion would have been sufficient to bring the spice train to town.

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January 15, 2010

Green Pork Chili

My favorite food guy/traveler is The Travel Channel’s Anthony Bourdain.  Unfortunately, Comcast and the Travel Channel do not get along, but I can still view Anthony’s show on the internet (you suck comcast, make this happen).  Anthony likes to talk about the journey of finding a meal and that there’s a part where you just need to trust yourself and trust that you’re moving towards something great even if it may not look that way sometimes.

I was reminded of Anthony’s thoughts while I was trying to adapt Bobby Flay’s recipe for Green Pork Chili into something that I could handle in my own kitchen.  If you want to see his take, visit the Food Network site, but I’ll be showing you what I did below….

Ingredients

  • 2 red onions, chopped
  • 1 pound tomatillos, husked (peeled), rinsed, and halved
  • 3 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded and halved
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 4 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 pounds pork roast, cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 5 cups store brand chicken stock
  • 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, toss the onions, tomatillos, jalapenos, and garlic with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and spread on a baking sheet. Leave in the oven until soft and starting to brown, about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring twice during roasting.  I only left for about 20 minutes and I wish I had left for 30 so the vegetables were browned a little more.  Also, while chopping the onions, I started to tear up; I’ve never teared up when chopping onions.  I turned the microwave vent on, but still had a rough go of it….not that there’s anything wrong with crying.  If you don’t know this already, it’s very important that you don’t touch your eyes before you’ve washed your hands after messing with jalapenos and onions unless you’d like to enter a world of pain.

Meanwhile, in a large pot over medium-high heat, add the oil and heat. Brown the pork, in batches, until well-browned. When browned, add all of the pork back to the pan and cover with chicken stock. Add the roasted vegetables, cover the pan and turn the stove heat to medium. Cook until the pork is very tender, about 1.5 hours.  I wish I had let the pork get a little more brown as well, but honestly, I got impatient.  If you’re trying it or I’m doing it again, I recommend letting the pork get brown.

Toss cilantro into pork mixture and stir.  Let cook for about 5 more minutes.

Honestly, this was one of the best tasting dishes I’ve made myself.

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