Category: Entrees

Friday’s Flavors: Corned Pork Ribs

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

Recently, Natalia over at Traveling Hummingbirds wrote a post about a plate of delicious ribs she had while in Amsterdam. Being from the south, and married to a rib connoisseur, AND having mastered the art of making fall off the bone, fork tender, melt in your mouth ribs myself (I shared the recipe here way back in 2013), I had to know more, and she told me they were corned and smoked. Corned? Ribs?

I’d heard of corned beef, but this was new, and when I tried to find a recipe online, there was very little info about it. Naturally, I was intrigued. And I couldn’t help but feel challenged. So, even though I was positive I was going to ruin a perfectly good rack of ribs winging a corned rib recipe, I gave it a try anyways – and was delighted to discover I was wrong!

I’m not going to lie – there were MANY moments during this process that I thought we’d be ordering takeout at the eleventh hour. I didn’t even take pictures to document the preparation. The ribs weren’t very pretty. And unlike when I usually cook ribs, the smell didn’t make my mouth water. But the meat was succulent and delicious, which is all that matters!

Because most of the information I could find about brining to make corned meat was for briskets, and ribs are much thinner, I only brined the ribs for 48 hours.

Ingredients:

1 rack of pork ribs

salt for brining (I used Morton’s coarse grain salt)

plastic Ziploc bags

water

Preparation:

Cut the slab of ribs into 2-4 pieces (I made 3). Place each piece in a separate plastic bag. (Tip: Flip the ends of the bag over to the outside to prevent spreading raw meat germs.)

Mix your brining solution. I used about 1/8 cup salt for every 2 cups of water.

Place enough brining solution in each bag to submerge the meat and seal tightly.

Put your Ziploc bags inside another plastic bag (like a grocery bag) to guard against disaster and refrigerate.

Allow the meat to soak for 48 hours.

Rinse ribs under cold water, then place in a large pot, bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 hours.

And that’s it! We ate the entire rack that night, which we’ve never done before! If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next week for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Individual Beef Wellington With Blue Cheese

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

I’ve always wanted to try Beef Wellington. Fillet wrapped in pastry? Yes, please! So when a package of puff pastry caught my eye right around my birthday, I thought, why not? And when I was researching the process, cooking times, etc., and I came across a recipe that added gorgonzola into the mix, I remembered the blue cheese crumbles I had in the fridge, and again thought, why not? So I did.

I must say that since I wasn’t willing to let this meal be an all day thing, I skimped on a couple of steps. After you pan sear the steaks, most recipes suggest refrigerating them for an hour – I only did this for 40 minutes. Also, after you wrap everything in the puff pastry, it’s suggested that you put the wellington in plastic wrap and refrigerate for another hour. I found an explanation that this is done to help the puff pastry keep its shape during cooking – I didn’t care if it was pretty, just tasty, so I skipped this step entirely and put them right in the oven. To my surprise, it held its shape perfectly, and the taste? Well, I’ll definitely be making this again!

Ingredients:

2 fillet mignon steaks, 1″ thick, brought to room temperature

1 package of puff pastry

mushrooms (I used 4 good sized baby portabellos)

1 large shallot

garlic, 2-3 cloves

salt and pepper to taste

1 egg

1 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. high smoking point oil

parchment paper

Preparation:

Salt and pepper the meat. Heat oil in a cast iron skillet on high. Sear both sides and all ends of the steak, then turn the heat down to medium, removing the pan from the heat while it cools if the outside starts to crisp. Depending on the size of the steak, cook for another 10 to 15 minutes. When steaks are done, refrigerate for 40-60 minutes.

While the meat is cooling, finely chop mushrooms and shallots. You could also use a food processor if desired. Melt 1 tbsp. of butter in a pan and sauté mushrooms and onions until the shallots become translucent and the moisture is cooked out of the mushrooms. (Tip: dry clean your mushrooms so you don’t add extra liquid to them.) Add crushed garlic, salt and pepper. Stir until garlic is fragrant, then remove from heat and allow to cool.

If you don’t plan to refrigerate the assembled steaks for an hour, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Beat 1 egg to use as an egg wash.

Lay out your puff pastry dough. I rolled the dough I was working with a little thinner because it looked rather thick. Spoon blue cheese crumbles onto the dough in roughly the size and shape of your steaks. Add the cooled mushroom mixture over the blue cheese. Top with a steak. Fold opposite ends of the pastry over, sealing with a sparing amount of egg wash if it won’t stick on it’s own. Fold the other two ends, making sure all seams are well and tightly sealed. Remove any excess dough.

At this point, you can put the pastry wrapped steaks in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour, or you can go ahead with the cooking process. When you’re ready to cook them, place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and brush with the egg wash. Bake for 20 minutes at 425 degrees.

And that’s it! It was a touch more labor intensive than the average meal preparation, mainly because of the refrigerating time, but it was soooo worth it. The flavors melded together into savory steak perfection, and the puff pastry took it to a whole new level of delectableness!

If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Air Fryer Lamb Chops

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

When most people think of air fryers, they think they’re frying the food they put in them. But if you look at the broad range of food you can cook – even bake – in them, you’ll see that they can also be used as a substitute oven. Not a huge deal considering that most people use them in their homes, but in Florida, where the heat an oven puts out can make the indoor temperature quite unpleasant, or even in an RV or travel trailer when camping, using your air fryer as an oven can be a great option.

When we have lamb chops, we often grill them, but when it’s pouring down rain, an air fryer comes in a close second. This recipe is quick and easy – who can argue with that?!?!

Ingredients:

lamb chops, 1″ thick

olive oil

garlic, crushed

salt

pepper

Preparation:

Make a paste by mixing olive oil, freshly crushed garlic, salt and pepper. Placing your lamb chops on a piece of wax paper, coat both sides thoroughly with your mixture and allow to rest while you bring them to room temperature, about an hour.

Spray the inside of your air fryer with oil. Preheat air fryer to 390 degrees for a few minutes. Place lamb chops inside the air fryer bed, spacing so they don’t overlap. Cook for 3 minutes. Flip. Cook for another 3 minutes. Let sit in air fryer for 5 minutes, then serve. This recipe will cook your lamb chops to the medium side of medium rare. For an overcrowded basket, thicker or thinner chops, or to cook to a different temperature, adjust time accordingly.

And that’s it! If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Mediterranean Style Baked Feta Pasta

Hi, Foodies! Happy Friday!

I recently read a blurb about a recipe that was trending on TikTok, and while I’m not on that platform, the idea of the recipe – baked feta pasta – sounded so good I decided to give it a try. I’m not sure what the original recipe entails, but I bought myself a block of feta and set to work. It was so easy and turned out so delicious that I had to share!

The flavors melded so well that I could easily see turning this into a cheese spread and eating it on a cracker!

The only thing I’d do differently is that instead of a long pasta, I’d use a pasta with a shape, like shells, bowtie or ziti to catch even more cheesy goodness.

Ingredients:

1 block of feta cheese

1 tomato (sundried would work, too)

1 shallot

3 cloves of garlic sliced thin

halved Kalamata olives

capers

pine nuts

seasoning

olive oil

sherry or cooking wine

pasta of choice

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in the bottom of a baking dish. Place your block of feta in the center.

Add chopped or sundried tomato, shallots, garlic, olives, capers and pine nuts to the dish, surrounding the cheese.

Drizzle with olive oil. Add a splash of sherry or cooking wine. Sprinkle with seasoning. I used coarse sea salt mixed with herbs de provence and some fresh pepper.

Bake 30-40 minutes until cheese is soft.

Toss with your pasta.

That’s it! Big flavor with little effort! If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Have you jumped on the baked feta craze? How’d you prepare yours?

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Greek Mediterranean Chicken Kabobs

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

I love Greek food! The spices, the garlic, the flavors . . . there’s nothing I don’t like about it! And since the Mediterranean diet is considered one of the healthiest, there’s no guilt about it – just pleasure!

This recipe is super easy and big on flavor! I simply marinate the chicken overnight, and in return I’m rewarded with the most tender, tasty kabobs a girl could want!

Score major flavor points by serving this with large quantities of garlic sauce! For that, I don’t have my own recipe, I use the one found here.

Ingredients:

1 cup Greek yogurt

1 red onion

1/4 lemon juice (1 large lemon)

2 tbsp. olive oil

8 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. cumin

2 tsp. clove

2 tsp. paprika

2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. garlic salt

Preparation:

Cut chicken into 1-2″ cubes. Mix all ingredients together. Add chicken, coating well, and place in refrigerator overnight. A large, gallon sized plastic bag works great.

The next day, remove from the refrigerator and place on skewers alternating with pieces of red onion. (I skewer them over the sink to help contain the mess!)

Grill until cooked thoroughly. That’s it!

I eat mine with copious amounts of garlic sauce because Garlic sauce is one of my favorite things, but these kabobs pack plenty of their own flavor. Goes great with zucchini sautéed with similar spices and couscous.

If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next week for another Friday Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Oven Roasted Duck

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

There’s no denying that this past year’s been a rough one. We’ve all had to make sacrifices and changes. And unfortunately, like the rest of 2020, the holidays are taking a hit. It kind of makes it hard to celebrate, or even want to. Even those who rallied for Thanksgiving and still cooked a turkey despite the fact they were feeding far fewer people were then faced with what to do with all the extra leftovers.

But cooking a nice holiday meal on a smaller scale doesn’t have to pose a problem. And I know some people cooked chickens instead this year, but that doesn’t really feel special, does it? So why not give duck a try?

People tend to be reluctant to cook duck, but here’s the thing – they’re less hands on than a turkey. You don’t have to baste it. And while duck skin is fatty, if you prepare it right, not only will the fat render from your bird, the meat will be fork tender – no knives required! Also, for presentation, you can easily remove the entire breast with one cut!

Duck is a great option for special occasions, date nights, and even just for a change of pace!

A 6-7 pound duck will feed 3-4 people.

Ingredients:

1 duck

olive oil

spices (I use garlic powder, onion powder, garlic salt and Old Bay)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray your baking pan and wire rack with oil for easier cleanup.

Rinse your defrosted duck, making sure to remove all loose parts from the inside cavity, and dry well.

Using a very sharp knife – if you have a sharpener, give your knife a fresh blade – carefully score the duck skin diagonally, being careful not to cut through the skin into the meat. The bottom side will require much shallower cuts than the breast side, where the skin is more fatty.

Rub the inside with olive oil and spices. Using a lighter hand with the olive oil, do the same to the outside. A duck’s skin is fatty enough that you don’t actually have to use oil, and you certainly don’t have to baste the skin, but a light coat of oil helps the spices stick and keeps the meat moist and tender.

Even if your baking pan has a lid, cover the pan tightly with tinfoil. Your duck won’t take up as much room as a turkey, and cutting down on the cooking space helps it cook a little quicker, plus you can get a much tighter seal using tinfoil, which will help the meat practically steam off the bones.

Most ducks will have cooking instructions on the package. I’ve found the sweet spot is to bake them for about 22 minutes per pound.

When 1/2 hour of cooking time remains, carefully remove the tinfoil and let the duck roast uncovered.

And that’s it! Remove the duck from the pan, let it set for a few minutes, carve and serve!

When I cook this I’m just feeding two, so instead of carving the breast meat like a chicken or a turkey, I simply remove the entire breast in one stroke (possible because you just cooked a fork tender bird!) and serve it that way.

If you try it, please let me know if you liked it!

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: One Pan Creamy Pasta With Clams

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

I don’t know about you, but my least favorite thing about cooking is the cleanup. Dirty dishes aren’t my idea of a good time, so over the years I’ve developed certain hacks to reduce the work I have to do when the meal is over.

And every once in a while, I strike gold!

I first tried this recipe because my dishwasher was almost full and I didn’t want to have to wash a bunch of dishes by hand or have a sink full of dirty pots and pans overnight until the dishwasher was done doing its thing in the morning. Little did I know at the time that the result would be the creamiest, most savory pasta I’d ever had!

Ingredients:

1 box pasta

2 cups bone broth

1.5 cups milk

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Old Bay

garlic powder

garlic salt

2 dozen clams

Preparation:

In a large braising or frying pan with a tight fitting lid, add your pasta, bone broth, milk, crushed garlic, and spices. Cover. Bring to a simmer.

Stir every minute or 2 to keep pasta from sticking.

After 5 minutes, add well cleaned clams (so you don’t make your pasta gritty) and cover.

Keep stirring every minute or 2. Once the clams start opening, stir the unopened ones towards the bottom. After most if not all are open (approximately 5-6 minutes), remove lid and test tenderness of pasta. It should be about done. If it’s not, recover for another minute or 2. If it is, add a handful of fresh grated cheese, stir, and allow the remaining liquid to cook down, which should only take a minute, as most of the liquid should have absorbed into the noodles.

Serve, topping with more fresh grated cheese.

If you make it, please let me know how you like it!

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!

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Friday’s Flavors: Lamb Meatballs With Fontina Fondue

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

For a long time my experience with lamb was a bad one. Memories of inedible hunks of undercooked, gamey meat served to me overseas left me traumatized. Seriously. I never thought I’d make my peace with that particular protein.

My husband had no such qualms, however, and after a tense round of rock paper scissors during an anniversary dinner years ago, he won the right to pick the appetizer. Imagine how I felt when he chose lamb. >.<

But I tried it – and I liked it. A lot.

Had it not been for those meatballs, not at all gamey, served with a savory cheese sauce and just a hint of sweetness from a balsamic glaze drizzle, I’d probably still hate lamb. And once the door was cracked, I kicked it wide open. I’ve since expanded my horizons with multiple cuts and preparation styles, but nothing compares to the good old lamb meatball, and if you’ve been looking for a way to (gently) expand your diet to include lamb, this recipe’s for you!

This works well as an appetizer, an entrée, or as part of Fondue night!

Ingredients:

1 pound ground lamb

1 large shallot

6 large garlic cloves

yellow curry powder

tumeric powder

ground cumin

garlic powder

garlic salt

1 tablespoon butter

spray oil

balsamic glaze

Cheese Fondue Kit

OR

1.5 cups shredded Fontina cheese

1/4 cup dry white wine

2 cloves garlic

corn starch

Preparation:

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with spray oil.

Chop shallots. Melt butter in pan, add shallots and sauté until translucent. Add 4 cloves garlic, crushed, mix until fragrant, and put in a mixing bowl.

Add lamb.

Spices are subjective to taste, but I use about 1.5 tbsp yellow curry, 3/4 tbsp tumeric, 2 tsp ground cumin, 2 tsp garlic powder, and a touch of garlic salt.

Add the remaining 2 garlic cloves, crushed, and mix well. (I use gloves for this part.)

Shape into meatballs. If I’m serving them with the Fontina sauce and balsamic drizzle, I make large meatballs, 8-10. However, if I’m using a cheese fondue kit, I make smaller, bite sized meatballs, 24, and serve with an array of veggies for a fun, interactive meal.

Bake 20-25 minutes for larger meatballs, 15 minutes for smaller.

Some Fondue Fruits & Veggies

To make the Fontina sauce, grate the cheese and dust with just enough cornstarch to coat. Heat wine to a simmer, add garlic, then slowly mix in cheese, constantly stirring. You can get creative and add some spices, or keep it simple.

Then, either plate the meatballs, spoon some cheese sauce over them and drizzle with the balsamic glaze, or gather your fondue dippers and have at it!

If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next Friday for another Foodie Flavor!


1

Friday’s Flavors: Stuffed Green Lipped Mussels

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

I love seafood, and New Zealand Green Lipped Mussels are no exception – the only thing is that they’re quite big, and they usually come frozen, so:

1) They need to have good flavor so you don’t wind up with an entire mouth full of ick (and let’s face it, fishy ick is the worst kind).

and

2) You can’t just cook them any old way you’d cook a fresh mussel.

Luckily, stuffing and baking is a flavorful option that checks both the above items off the list! This recipe works great as either an appetizer or an entrée.

(This night I was going for a healthy, light meal so I left the bacon out, but I’m first to admit that everything’s better with bacon!)

Takes: 10 minutes prep, 15-20 minutes cooking time

Ingredients:

2 lbs. (about 2 dozen) New Zealand Green Lipped Mussels (usually sold frozen and on the half shell)

1 cup chopped fresh spinach

1 large shallot

3 – 5 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

(and if you wanted to add some bacon . . . bacon)

Preparation:

Place mussels in the refrigerator overnight to defrost. (Pro tip – make sure they’re in a bag in case they leak AND check to make sure they’re fully defrosted before you begin cooking.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove stems from spinach and chop. Cut shallots and peel garlic. In a small pan melt 2 tablespoons butter. (If you’re using bacon, you can substitute a little bacon fat for one of the tablespoons of butter). Add shallots. Sautee until translucent, add pressed garlic, stir until fragrant, and remove from heat.

Add chopped spinach and stir until cooked but not wilted. Add 1/4 cup of cheese (and bacon if your using it) and mix.

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and lay your mussels out. (Give each one a press to remove any excess liquid.)

Place about 1/2 spoonful of your cooked mixture onto each mussel. You don’t want to overstuff them because when you go to eat them, the toppings will fall off instead of sticking to the mussel.

Using the rest of the cheese, add a pinch to the top of each mussel.

Place in oven and bake 15-20 minutes (depending on size) until the mussels are cooked thoroughly and the cheese on top is melted.

It’s that easy!

If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next Friday for another foodie flavor!

2

Friday’s Flavors: Baked Coconut Shrimp (Keto And Paleo Friendly)

Hey, Foodies! Happy Friday!

Coconut Shrimp are one of those tropical treats that are hard to resist. But they’re breaded. And deep fried. And restaurants usually use sweetened coconut, so they’re sugary.

Then those dipping sauces! Orange Marmalade, Mango Sauce, Pina Colada Sauce, Sweet Chili Sauce . . . you get the picture. All are delicious, but quickly turn a treat into a dietary disaster.

But I’m all about finding healthy ways to still have the foods I want, so I created this recipe for Baked Coconut Shrimp using unsweetened coconut flakes and almond flour instead of bread crumbs. I’ll be honest – it’s not as good as deep fried, sugar coated shrimp, but it is tasty, and best of all, it’s guilt free and kind to your body. So, here it is.

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds shrimp, shells removed (you can leave tails on if you want)

eggs (I’ve found you need 1 egg for every 10 shrimp)

almond flour

unsweetened coconut flakes (you’ll use most of an 8 ounce bag)

garlic powder

onion powder

Old Bay Seasoning

Preparation:

In order of use.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray both sides of an oven safe rack and the cooking side of a baking sheet with oil.

I work in batches because when you use an egg wash, things tend to get clumpy fast, so I use one egg at a time and mix the seasoned flour twice. You can add more coconut as you go along.

In one bowl, beat an egg.

In a second bowl, mix your almond flour with the garlic powder, onion powder, and Old Bay to taste.

In a third, fill with coconut flakes.

Dip your shrimp in the almond flour mix, then the egg wash, letting excess drip off, then cover in coconut. Place on the rack on top of the baking sheet so the shrimp can bake from both sides.

When all your shrimp are coated, place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes for large shrimp (16-20 per pound), adjusting time accordingly for smaller or larger shrimp. If you want the shrimp equally crisp on both sides, you can flip them halfway through, but I’ve found you lose most of your coconut this way. They cook just fine (and it’s less work) if you don’t flip them.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. (I enjoy mine with a mustard based sauce.)

And there you have it! Coconut Shrimp with a fraction of the calories and fat, no fry oils, no sugar, no gluten, and no yeast.

If you try it, please let me know if you like it!

Check back next Friday for another Flavor!

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