Thick & Meaty Rouladen

Ingredients:
6 Large rouladen strips
6 Bacon strips (fried or not)
6-12 spears of pickles
½ Red onions, sliced very thin.
Yellow Mustard
Sea Salt & Ground Pepper
3T Vegetable oil
Gravy
3 cups of water
¼ cup cornstarch
1T Soya sauce

Directions:
In a thick skillet, fry the bacon until browning but not crispy. Keep fat and pan for later use. Scatter the rouladen strips vertically on a flat surface. Spread a thin layer of mustard and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Horizontally lay 1piece of bacon (cut in half & place parallel if too long) at the very top of the rouladen. Repeat with onions and pickles. Roll the meat with its content starting with the top into a tight cylinder. Secure by stabbing toothpick through the center then fold edges and pin with toothpick.

Take the skillet with the fat and add 2-3T of oil. When oil gets hot add the rouladen. Fry until all sided are very brown. (~20min) Set aside, and placed in oven.

In a pot boil 2cups of water and add dripping form frying pan. Combine cornstarch and soya sauce into water. Once thick and gravy-like, poor over rouladen in oven (350F) and let it warm in oven for about 15 minutes. Preferably remove toothpicks before serving.

8/10 ❀

Voluptuous Pizza Lumps

Ingredients:
36 large button mushrooms
200 g. cheddar or mozzarella cheese
1 cup tomato sauce
1 t. oregano
100 g. pepperoni

Directions:
Clean the mushrooms, and remove the stems. Reserve the stems for some other use. Set the mushrooms on a baking tray, gills up. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Grate the cheese and mix it with the tomato and oregano. Chop up the pepperoni and mix it in as well. Spoon this mixture into the mushroom caps. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

They will exude a lot of juice as they bake, so make sure the baking tray has edges to prevent it from running off the edge.

7/10 ❀

Frisky Pork and Peaches

Ingredients:
6 pork tenderloin chops
1 bunch fresh thyme leaves picked & chopped
1/3 cup unsalted butter
8 fresh (or frozen) peaches, peeled & sliced into thick wedges
salt & pepper
Any root-like-veggies (potatoes, carrots, parsnip, celeriac, Jerusalem artichokes)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Trim accessible fat from the meat, make sure not to ruin the “ensamble”.

Smoosh up your butter & chopped thyme with salt & pepper and smear most of this mixture on both sides of the chop, smear some mixture at the bottom of the roasting pan. Gently place the chops slightly leaning on each other. Spread the peaches between the slices and on the top, whatever’s left over leave on the sides. Add the roasting veggies you like onto the sides of the pan.

Cook for 50 minutes to an hour or until the pork is done, depending on your oven. Take it out of the oven and transfer roast to a plate to let it rest for about 10 minutes before serving. (Yeild: 6 Servings)

8/10 ❀  

Strawberry Salad - Gone Wild!

Ingredients:
- goat cheese -
10.5-ounce log fresh goat cheese
1/3 cup flour
1 egg, beaten with 1/2 t water
1 cup panko crumbs
1/4 t salt
3-4 T vegetable oil
- salad -
baby spinach (about 4 handfuls)
6-8 fresh strawberries, cored and sliced
sliced almonds, for garnish
French vinaigrette, or champagne vinaigrette

Directions:
Slice the log of goat cheese into 12 rounds. If they break apart form them into nice rounds. Pop them in the freezer for about 15 minutes to help keep them firm for frying. In a small dish, combine panko and salt. In another small dish whisk the egg with the water. In another dish measure out the flour.Remove the goat cheese from the freezer and dredge in the flour, dip in the egg, then coat with the panko. Press the rounds slightly to make sure the crumbs adhere well and set them aside while you assemble the salads.

Tear the spinach and divide between four plates. Arrange the strawberries on top of the spinach and sprinkle with almonds. Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the cheese rounds in a single layer and fry until light golden-brown on the first side, about 2 minutes. Being careful not to break the crust, turn the rounds over and fry for another 2 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to blot excess oil. Arrange three rounds over each salad. Drizzle with the light vinaigrette of your choice and serve immediately. (Yeild: serves 4)

6/10 ❀

Broccoli & Cauliflower orgy with Garlic & Ginger

Ingredients:
2 broccoli trees
1 small head cauliflower
9 T. extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
1 red onion, thinly sliced
Large pinch dried chili flakes
Pinch saffron threads *
1 t. yellow & black mustard seeds
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T. finely chopped fresh ginger
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime, cut into wedges
*if poor substitute with turmeric

Directions:
Clean the broccoli and cut into smaller trees (1/4” thick stems). Take the large stem, skin with paring knife and cut into baton-shaped pieces (1/4” wide 2” long). Same idea with the cauliflower, but discard the core.

Set a 12-inch skillet over high heat. Pour in 3 Tbs. of the olive oil and then add the broccoli trees and stem pieces. Season with salt and carefully add 3/4 cup water. Reduce the heat to medium high and cook, until the broccoli is tender and browned (8 to 10 min).Transfer the broccoli to a large bowl. Wipe out the pan and cook the cauliflower the same way. Add the cooked cauliflower to the bowl with the broccoli.

Wipe out the pan and return it to the stovetop over medium heat. Add 2 T. olive oil, the onion, chili flakes, and saffron. Stir frequently, until the onion is golden brown and tender (~8 minutes). Push the onion to one side and add 1 T. olive oil and the yellow & black mustard seeds. Let the seeds sizzle for 1 min. and then add the garlic and ginger. Cook, for 1 min. be careful not to let them burn.

Return the broccoli and cauliflower to the pan, stir to combine, and cook until hot (~ 2 min). Taste and add salt if necessary. Transfer to a platter, sprinkle the cilantro on top, and serve the lime wedges on the side.

 9/10 ❀

Apple Cranberry Pie Recipe

Ingredients
2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1-3/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup quick-cooking tapioca
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons grated orange peel
3 cups sliced peeled apples
1 egg white, beaten
1 tablespoon water
Additional sugar

Directions
In a large saucepan, combine the cranberries, sugar, tapioca, water and orange peel; let stand for 15 minutes. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in apples. Set saucepan in a pan of cold water for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, Prepare (according to boxed directions) 1/3 of the Tender flake box. Roll and spread onto pie pan. Make cute cut-out for the top crust.

Beat egg white and water until foamy; brush over top pastry. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 375° for 45-55 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool completely. Yield: 6-8 servings.

 5/10 ❀