Pineapple Shrimp Skewers - Szaszlyki z Krewetkami i Ananasem

Bardzo proste i wspaniale szaszlyki z krewetkami i ananasem. Lekki posilek na gorace letnie wieczory, lub hawajskie luau party. Mozna serwowac na szaszlyku, albo zdjac z niego i ulozyc na kupce bialego, ugotowaneg ryzu w polmisku lub na talezu. Posypac zielona pietruszka. (Ja uzylam cilantro - kolendra, to chyba jest polski odpowiednik.)

Skladniki:

2 lyzki soku z limonki lub cytryny
starta skorka z jednej limonki, lub cytryny
2 lyzki oleju z oliwek
2 lyzki startego korzenia imbiru (najlepiej swierzego)
2 lyzki startego czosnku
2 lyzki soku z ananasa, swiezego
1/4 lyzeczki soli morskiej
1 lyzeczka suszonej ostrej czerwonej chili papryki (crushed red pepper flakes)
16 srednich, swierzych krewetek (nie gotowanych)
1 swierzy ananas, pokrojony w 2 cm kawalki

Rozgrzac grill. Skladniki wymieszac razem w misce i wrzucic krewetki. Marynowac przez okolo 30 minut. Nabic na szaszlki metalowe, lub bambusowe na przemian - krewetka i ananas... mozna zaczac i zakonczyc czerwona cebula. Polozyc na goracym grilu, na okolo 3-4 minuty na kazdej stronie. Podczas grilowania mozna posmarowac roztopionym maslem - dodaje to wspanialy smak.
Ugotowac ryz, i serwowac z ryzem, posypane pietruszka lub cilantro.

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Here is my first recipe for Hawaiian weekend. Hawaiian cuisine is very much an american dishes with Polynesian and Asian influence, with using locally grown, tropical ingredients. So a lot of known by us recipes can be transformed into a hawaiian by adding coconut milk, coconut, pineapple, banana leaves, and other commonly use ingredients in island's cooking. There are some old, traditional hawaiian recipes, used by people living on the isladn's long time ago. Like Poi - it's a tarro root smashed, ans cooked to a creamy consistency, very plain flavor that was consumed with dried out, preserved by salt meats. In times when there was no refridgeration - native would preserve their meat by using salt - that's why poi had to be so blend, with that salty meat it was a well balanced meal.

One of the recipes I always wanted to make was the shrimp-pineapple skewers. It's really east and tastes wonderful. I served it with jasmine rice and butter lemon sauce.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
lime zest from one lime
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root, plus 2 teaspoons
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
2 tablespoons of fresh pineapple juice
16 medium shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 small pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup fresh cilantro

Preheat a grill to medium heat. In a bowl, combine the lime juice, oil, 2 teaspoons of the ginger, garlic, and pepper flakes. Add the shrimp and pineapple chunks, toss to combine, and let marinate while the grill heats, about 15 minutes. Remove from the marinade.

Alternately, thread the pineapple chunks and the wrapped shrimp onto metal or bamboo skewers. Grill until the shrimp are cooked through and the pineapple chunks are marked, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove from the grill. (Alternately, the skewers can be cooked under the broiler, turning as necessary to cook evenly and avoid burning.)

I always like to brush whatever I am griling with some melted butter, it always taste better!

Brioche Bread

Just couple of days ago I posted the recipe for the brioche french toast, and I realized that it's not easy to get brioche bread in the grocery store or even bakery, for that matter. They just don't make it. Since I really want to make that french toast recipe tomorrow or on Monday, and it looks like I will be making Brioche bread tonight. Brioche is a type of enriched french bread, with high egg and butter content, and that is what gives the bread the rich taste. The outside is usually dark, and tender from the egg wash that is applied before baking. This type of bread is very popular in Europe, I remember my grandmother used to make brioche bread, it was always gone so fast - everybody loved it. Brioche can be made in many different forms: rolls, loafs and braided - which is what I remember from Poland. The delicate and little sweet flavor of braided brioche bread is what I am looking for right now. I researched for the right recipe on the net and there are several variations of them, but all of them consist of flour, water, yeast, sugar, eggs and butter!

The recipe I choose is by Barefoot Contessa - Ina Garten. She lived in Paris and I trust her with recipes. Let's say - everything I've made from her recipes is always outstanding.

Ingredients
1/2 cup warm water (110 to 120 degrees F)
1 package dried yeast
3 tablespoons sugar
6 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
4 1/2 cups unbleached flour
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk, for egg wash


Directions
Combine the water, yeast, and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. (If the bowl is cold, start with warmer water so it's at least 110 degrees when you add the yeast.) Mix with your hands and allow to stand for 5 minutes until the yeast and sugar dissolve. Add the eggs and beat on medium speed for 1 minute, until well mixed. With the mixer on low speed, add 2 cups of the flour and the salt and mix for 5 minutes. With the mixer still on low, add 2 1/4 more cups of flour and mix for 5 more minutes. Scrape the dough into a large buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.

The next day, allow the dough to sit at room temperature for 1 hour. Meanwhile, grease 20 mini brioche tins. Set aside. {This recipe is for Brioche rolls, but you can make 2 loafs of bread, or any other shape you want}

Place the dough in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the softened butter in chunks, and mix for 2 minutes, adding additional flour as needed to make a ball. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured board and divide the dough into 20 (1 3/4-ounce) balls and place them in the tins. Cover the tins with a damp towel and set aside to rise at room temperature until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. When the rolls have risen, brush the top of each with the egg wash and bake for 20 minutes, or until the tops spring back and it sounds slightly hollow when tapped. Turn the rolls out onto a wire rack to cool.

Fabulous and Light Coconut Shrimp

Shrimp. I always like it, and there are so many different ways to experiment with shrimp. They are super fast and easy to make. I've been buying my shrimp at Costco lately, they have a sea food stand at my Costco with shrimp, scallops, lobster tails and crab legs and I believe clams. Prices are pretty reasonable, also... so every time I am shopping at Costco I pick up shrimp or scallops... whatever I am in the mood for. I take it home and later on I try to come up with a simple but different recipe. I don't usually make the same thing too many times, because there are so many other, great ways to make the same main ingredient over and over... I get back to that recipe once on a while, but not too often. It's just more fun to experiment...



It's been so cold outside, seems like that winter is never going to end. Thinking about summer or being somewhere tropical makes me want to eat light and try summer flavors... so last week I decided to make my version of coconut shrimp. And they turned out awesome. This recipe has a very light coconut-panko crusting, not like some of the places serve those deep fried shrimp drenched in thick layer of flour and little coconut, the only thing you taste is the breading. I had a great share of those in my life. Always sounds so good when you read it on the menu and once you try it - not so much!

This is really easy and pretty fast. I know I will be serving those on my next Luau Party - hopefully this coming summer...



I had about a pound of larger shrimp, maybe 13-18 per pound. Not sure exactly. Butterfly the shrimp, cutting along the outside (where the vein was). Mix one tsp. of coarse sea salt with 1/2 tsp. of cayenne pepper. Sprinkle over the dried shrimp (I path dry them with paper towel). Make an egg wash - 2 eggs lightly beaten with about 2 TBS. of water. On the shallow dish mix about a 3/4 cup of sweetened shredded coconut and 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs.
Take the srimp, dip it in the egg wash, and roll in to the coconut-panko mix. Repeat several times. Heat some peanut oil and canola oil together, on the pan, set about 6-7 shhrimp on the hot oil, and fry until golden brown. Make sure to turn them every couple of minutes to get them brownes on each side.

The light part comes from nod deep frying those coconut shrimp, just lightly browning on 50-50 canola-peanut oil. And I served those just with a little bit of fresh squeezed lime juice. But a nice mango dipping sauce would be perfect. I will be making this one again, shortly - just because it was such a great dish, that I will try to make a dipping sauce to go with it, and I'll post it here to share my experiment with you...

Loaded Baked Potato Salad

This recipe I have from a friend of mine, it is Paula Deen's creation for the best potato side dish ever! Everything taste better when you put stick of butter to it, right! That's Paula's motto!
And She's so right. Believe me, once you try it you will be in potato heaven, it's soooo good. Also pretty easy to make. I made it quite a several times, and it never gets old. Simple comfort food for a winter Sunday afternoon, served with meat loaf, or perfect for summer dinner party - served with grilled filet mignon or chicken.



First, and this can be made a day ahead - we need to bake 5 lb. of baking/russet potatoes. I bake mine in 400 degrees for about 45 mminutes to an hour (depends on the size of potatoes). Once the potatoes cool down, peel them and dice them in about 1/2" dice. Set aside.

In a large bowl mix together:

1 - 8 oz. container of light sour cream
1 cup of mayonaisse (I also use light)
1/2 cup choped yellow/spanish onion
1 stick of melted butter
1 package of ranch dressing mix

Once combined, add diced potatoes, combine gently, to mix it all together. Transfer the salad to a buttered 9 x 13 caserolle dish and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of real bacon bits. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes, until hot and bubbly.
Another option for bacon is to mix it in with the potatoe mixture, but I like them on top. You can use more bacon bits and mix in 1/2 a cup, and the other 1/2 cup sprinkle on top befor baking. Whatever makes you happy!

Easy Superbowl Chili

Before I moved to States, I never even heard of chili... so when I first tried it I didn't think anything of it - and now I really like it and I think it's a super easy thing to make anytime. From my own experience I know it always taste better the next day, so if you can I would suggest it to make it the day before you want to serve it.

The seasoning I use is the McCormicks Texas Chili Mix, I like it because it makes my chili dark, and it taste good, too... It's hard to talk about proportions here, just add more this or that to make it taste right - that's how I cook... for this chili I haven't used a recipe, I just threw bunch of ingredients to the pot, seasoned it and cooked for 3 hours on low heat. You can also use your crock pot if you don't want to have to stir it every 15-20 minutes.



The reason I call it adult chili - is because I use 2-3 cans of light beer, and most alcohol cooks off, I think some still remains in fully cooked product. Beer and a can of diced tomatoes - that's the only liquid I add. And it might sound strange, but the chili came out great!

Here is what I put into a big pot:

1 large or 2 medium diced onions and 1 large red pepper - diced, also - saute those 2 together until they're done, than I added 1 can of chili tomatoes (diced), you can use regular diced tomatoes instead, 1 can of black beans, 2 cans of kidney beans - make sure you rinse your beans before adding to the pot. 2 lb of ground beef - brown on the separate pan with some chili seasoning before adding to the mix. Next I add 2 cans of light beer (Bush Light) and added one package of Texas Chili Seasoning. You can use beef stock if you don't want to use beer, but it just tastes better. I also made it once with Guiness Beer... Bring to a boil and lower the heat to simmer for about 2 - 3 hours. Stir every 20 minutes to make sure that it doesn't stick to the bottom. After about 1 hour of cooking I try it and see if the flavor needs to be adjusted. I like to add 1 or 2 TBS of sugar, juice from 1 lime and 1 or 2 TBS of apple cider vinegar. Cayenne pepper to make it hotter. And if you think your chili needs more than 1 package of chili seasoning - go ahead and add more. I usually add some sea salt and freshly ground pepper. This is just how I make my chili and it comes out great, but I taste it like 20 times and adjust the flavors to make sure I like it. Serve it with green onions, light sour cream, mexican cheese mix and Tostido's Scoops...

Shrimp with Cherry Tomatoes and Feta

One of my new year's resolutions for 2009 is to try to eat healthier and in moderations. It is going to be hard because I love butter, and I add a little butter to almost everything I make. Let's face it - butter makes it taste great!
But I need to make sure I stay fit and be healthy. So once on a while I will post a recipe from my light recipe collections. And I promise they will taste great.

This recipe comes from a book called 12 Best Foods Cookbook, by Dana Jacobi. This simple and quick shrimp dish you can make any night of the week. To keep it light serve it by itself, or to make it more substantial serve it with a small side of whole wheat pasta.
This dish contains of all my favorite ingredients - tomatoes, feta cheese, shrimp and garlic.
{By the way, did you know that feta cheese is the most healthy of all cheeses. It contains about 1/3 less fat that any other cheese like mozzarella or cheddar. Even the light feta tastes great.}



Ingredients:

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 pound medium shrimp, shelled
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (12-ounce) bag cherry tomatoes on the vine
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano, or 1 teaspoon dried
1/4 cup dry white wine, or fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and stir with a wooden spoon until they just lose their raw color, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the garlic, tomatoes, oregano, and wine or broth. Cook, using a spoon to roll the tomatoes around, until most of the liquid has boiled off, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the parsley and cheese, and cook 1 minute longer, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.

Little bit about this book: It's written by award winning food writer and chef this book identifies 12 best and healthiest ingredients (broccoli, black beans, tomatoes, salmon, soy, sweet potatoes, oats, onions, blueberries, walnuts, spinach, and chocolate) and provides us with over 250 recipes including those ingredients. This book has great reviews on amazon, and I would recommend it for everyone that wants to keep healthy lifestyle.

Tequilla Shrimp

This past fall we went to Mexico, to Cabo San Lucas, and I have had the best shrimp dishes there. It was really nice to be able to eat good quality seafood. Living in the Midwest pretty much everything that's available is previously frozen, and sometimes they don't even tell you that. Ok, we do have some good seafood markets here in Chicago, but it's not cheap...

One of the super popular dishes out there is Tequila Shrimp. I didn't have a recipe but it seemed pretty easy to recreate after tasting it in the restaurant. I love shrimp, and those are super easy and quick to make. Cooking time for shrimp is between 1 and 2 minutes - that depends on the size of shrimp you are cooking. if you overcook shrimp, they become rubbery and hard.

This simple and very favorful shrimp dish can be served over spaghetti, linguini or other pasta. or you can just serve it by itself - as tapas. I made it few times lately, once I served it with lemon orzo, next time with lemon spaghetti, and just this past Sunday over spaghetti with butter - I made enough of tequilla sauce to make sure I could toss the pasta with it.



Make sure you start with the pasta - whatever you want with your shrimp - cook according to directions. It is important to have pasta ready right before you assemble the dish, othervise your shrimp will get cold, and reheating it will couse overcooking the shrimp.

I usually get about 1 pound of uncooked shrimp (15-20 shrimp per pound). I wash them under cold water, path dry and season with sea salt and black pepper. Make sure to prepare your shrimp before you start making the rest. it goes quickly.

Here is what we need to make the wonderful tequila shrimp sauce (you can modify the proportions according to your preferences, i.e. use olive oil only, no butter... etc.)
butter - about 3/4 stick of unsalted butter,
olive oil - about 1/4 cup,
garlic - I use a lot of garlic, about 8-10 cloves, finely chopped,
shalott - 1 large or 2 small, finely diced,
juice of 1 lemon
white tequila - about a cup
fresh herbs like chives, basil and parsley - 1/2 of cup, chopped
freshly grated parmesan cheese
Preheat large pan with taller sides, add butter and olive oil, heat it through on low heat, add chopped garlic, let it simmer on low heat for 5 minutes. Add shalotts, and raise the heat to medium - cook another 3 minutes. Make sure that your garlic is not burning. It has to all cook slowly for flavors to infuse the butter/olive oil. Lower the heat and add tequilla and lemon juice, turn it the heat back to meadium high and let it cook for few 1-2 minutes, make sure you have enough liquid to have your shrimp half way covered. Add the shripm and cook until done. if you have too many shrimp, make sure you do it in batches - you don't want to overcrowd the pan.
turn the shrimp to cook on the other side, after about 30-45 seconds add a litlle heavy cream to the sauce to make it little thicker, taste to see if needs seasoning. Sprinkle with your herb mix and it's ready to serve over pasta. Put your pasta into a large bowl, pour the tequila shrimp withe sauce over the pasta and toss it with kitchen thongs. Freshly grated parmesan on top and few thin lemon slices, and it's ready to go... really great and simple dinner....

You can spice things up a little and a a dash of red pepper flakes at the same time as garlic.

Stuffed Cabbage

My in-laws came to visit for Christmas, they arrived few days before and I wanted to make something from my polish menu for dinner. I thought polish stuffed cabbage should work well. I could make it ahead, and that day just bake it in the oven.
I remember my mom used to make that dish, she didn't make it too often, as it as quite a labor intensive dish. First you have to boil the rice, brown the meat, saute onions and mushrooms (optional), mix the stuffing. Boiling the whole cabbage, and peeling the cabbage leaves slowly to make sure they came off in one piece, than stuffing and rolling those - it's more work that I imagined. But it's well worth it! To make it easier for myself - I used creamy tomato soup for tomato sauce base. I added a can of petite diced tomatoes with their juice, few crushed cloves of garlic and some lemon juice (the soup is little sweeter, and I wanted a tangy sauce) - let t simmer on low heat for about 45 minutes to an hour.



My polish cooking is based on what I remember what my grandmother or my mom used to make. Usually I don't have written recipes - I just try to figure out the ingredients by myself or sometimes call my mom and she tells me what she used to put in, or how she made it. I always tend to make it with a twist, always trying to figure out how to make it little different or find an easier way around. For this particular dish I wanted to make sure I have leftovers so I can freeze and enjoy it later without extra work. (This proportions made 22 pieces of stuffed cabbage)

For stuffing I used:
2 cups of uncooked long grain (or jasmine) rice
2 lb. of lean ground pork
1 medium onion, diced
10 medium baby bella (crimini) mushrooms, chopped
2 crushed cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Cook rice according to directions, don't cook it all the way through, aldente is just fine, as you will bake the stuffed cabbage in the oven to finish it. Brown the ground pork with garlic, season to taste. Saute onions and mushrooms until done. Mix the rice with pork and mushroom, stir well to combine all the ingredients. Make sure you taste your staffing and adjust the seasoning as needed.


Boil water in a large pot, season with salt. Cut out the stem portion of the cabbage with a paring knife. It's not easy, so be careful. Put the cabbage into a boiling water, cover and let it cook for about 10-15 minutes. The cabbage will change the color slightly, take it out, let it cool down for few minutes and start peeling off the leaves gently.

Butter baking dish liberally, and have it ready by your work station. That's where the stuffed cabbage will go. Before you start with stuffing the cabage, prepare your tomato sauce, it needs time to simmer. I used 1 carton of creamy tomato soup, pour the soup into a saoce pan, let it simmer on low heat. In food processor, puree 1 can of diced tomatoes with 2 cloves of garlic. Pour the mix into the soup, stirr, add lemon juice (1/2 of lemon) - maybe more - it depends what flavor you are looking for. I like it tangy... let it simmer for 45 minutes. Taste it, and add salt and pepper as needed.




Stuffing the cabbage leaves: Take a leaf put a liberal amount of stuffing on it, try to squeeze the stuffing to form it for a better fit. Wrap the cabbage leaf around the stuffing, tuck the sides in, and start laying them down in your buttered baking dish. Once you are done, pour tomato sauce over and bake in 350 degrees oven for an hour. You want to make sure that the cabbage is cooked. Use leftover sauce to serve the stuffed cabbage with. I like to serve it with chopped herbs like dill and chives.

Placki Ziemniaczane - Potato Latkes

I've noticed lately a lot of fuzz about potato latkes/pancakes. I see recipes on-line and in magazines, there are a variety of recipes for this simple dish. Potato latkes are very familiar to me as I am Polish and those are very popular in Poland. I remember my grandma used to make them all the time, we used to melt swiss cheese on top and eat it with ketchup - it tasted so great. Puts smile on my face!
I made those on several occasions, and always turned out great. It's such an easy dish to make, and it can be fun. You can serve those a side dish, they are great as an appetizer - if you make them smaller size, topped with a little sour cream and dill, maybe even smoked salmon... possibilities are endless...

Polish name for potato latkes is Placki Ziemniaczane - and for those who don't know what I am talking about - those are shallow fried pancakes, made out of grated potatoes, grated onion, egg, and little flour. Potato latkes are associated with traditional Czech, Ukraine, Polish and German cuisine, also popular in many other eastern European countries.



Here is the polish traditional way I remember, to make the potato latkes:

• 2 lb. of potatoes
• 1 large onion
• 1 large egg
• 1-2 TBS flour
• salt
• pepper

Make sure potatoes you are using are not the new potatoes, they usually have higher water content, it's better to use older, larger potatoes. I usually shred them in the food processor on my shredding disc, but I used to use the old fashion grater... like the one of the picture :)



Once the potatoes are shredded, you might want to squeeze the access water, the latkes will be crispier if you get the water off. Shred the onion also, mix it with potatoe mix, egg, flour and season to taste. I like to add a little bit of greenery to my mixture, chives are usually good, they blend with the flavor. If your mix is too runny, add little more flour, it all depends how watery the potatoes you using are.
Preheat the non-stick pan, with canola oil, and once the oil is hot, pour 3 separate pancakes on the pan.




Those taste the best straight from the pan - while fresh and crispy.

Sunset magazine published an article about potato latkes , you can find few recipes with an interesting take on this traditional dish, and also tips how to make them crispy.

Greek Burgers

This recipe reminds me of hot summer nights and grilling out on our deck. I miss it now, when it's so cold outside. I made it for the first time this past summer, and it's been a huge success since. It's a super easy recipe, I actually made it up by adding ingredients that make me think of Greece. I made it last week to bring up a little summer memory to my kitchen.



I use ground beef, usually the fatter one with about 10-15% of fat. Good burger has to have a little fat - it makes it taste better, and it doesn't dry out as fast. Next time I make those I will mix a little of ground lamb to make it more authentic. But just the beef taste really good, especially when I load it with garlic and oregano. I love to serve it on warm pita bread with my homemade Taziki sauce and fresh Creek salad.



Here is what you need to make the burgers:

• ground beef
• finely diced red onion
• chopped or pressed garlic
• chopped fresh oregano
  
• sea salt and pepper
• Dijon mustard
• Worcestershire sauce
• 1 egg (optional)
• fresh lemon juice
• crumbled feta cheese (optional)
  

The proportions might be little off, since I really never measure my ingredients. I always eyeball it, and it tastes great. You must use fresh oregano, the dried stuff will not add as much flavor. I use a lot of garlic and a lot of oregano - that what makes them taste Greek...

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, be gentle, do not over mix the beef - you want your burgers to be soft and fluffy, not hard and over mixed. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least an hour - it helps the garlic and oregano flavors to penetrate the meat. You can skip this step if you don't have time, but I would try to make it ahead of time, to make sure that the burger mix goes to the fridge.



After the mix is chilled, take out of the fridge and shape it in even portions to make even size burgers. You want to make sure those are more or less the same size, it will be easier to grill them, as they all will be ready at the same time. If you have few smaller ones and few big ones, the bigger ones have to stay on the grill longer.

I like to put them on a hot grill, around 400 degrees, it only takes 7 minutes or less (depends on the size of your patties) to grill those.

Homemade Taziki sauce is one of the things that makes this dish even more delicious!

• 1/2 of seedless cucumber, diced in a small dice
• 1 shallot or 1/2 of small red onion, diced
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, pressed through a garlic press
• fresh dill, chopped
  
• 1 cup Greek yogurt (might be substituted with regular plain yogurt)
  
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• fresh lemon juice
  
• 1 TBS red wine vinegar
  
• sea salt & pepper to taste
• crumbled feta (optional)
  

Mix all the ingredients together, adjust the taste if needed. Refrigerate before serving over burgers.

Greek salad is an excellent addition to this meal. French fries or Greek fries would be perfectly fine, but in the summer we want to eat light and this just tastes great with our burgers. This salad mainly consist of cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, crumbled feta, olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt and freshly grounded black pepper. Sometimes I mix it a little lettuce or mixed greens.
Cut cucumbers and tomatoes, mix with thinly sliced red onion, add salt, pepper, little lemon juice, mix it together and let it stand for 15 minutes until you see some juice on the bottom of the bowl. Add mixed greens, feta, sprinkle with olive oil, mix gently together to combine.



Serve burgers on warm, grilled pita, with Taziki and feta on top, with a side of Greek salad.

YUMM! or how they say it in Greece - OPA!

*** I only use sea salt in my kitchen. It is so much healthier than the processed iodized kitchen salt, and it makes the food taste so much better. Try it - you'll never go back to the old stuff!

{my pictures are still not coming out too great, sorry}

Cookie Collection: Paula's Snowflake Cookies

Holiday's are approaching quickly and the smell of freshly baked cookies is the air. I love sugar cookies! And I am always researching for a new recipe to add to my collection. This recipe is from Foodnetwork, and those are Paula Dean Snowflake cookies. They look amazing and I bet they taste awesome. I haven't made those yet, but I am going to in the nearest future.


Here is what you need to make those appetizing creations:

Cookie Dough:
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Edible Paint Icing, recipe follows
Garnish: silver dragees, sugar pearls, sparkling sugar

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in eggs, vanilla and almond extract until combined.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add to sugar mixture, beating until smooth. Wrap dough in heavy-duty plastic wrap, and refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with assorted snowflake cookie cutters and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Chill dough 15 minutes. Bake for 10 minutes, or until edges are very lightly browned. Let cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks.

Paint cookies with Edible Paint Icing. Garnish with silver dragees, sugar pearls and sparkling sugar, if desired.

Edible Paint Icing:
1/4 cup cold water
3 tablespoons meringue powder
2 cups confectioners' sugar
Food coloring, optional

In a medium bowl, combine water and meringue powder; whisk until foamy. Whisk in confectioners' sugar until smooth. Add food coloring, if desired. Use immediately.

My Favorite Pasta

Whenever I want to make a quick and easy dinner I think of this pasta dish. It's great if you cook for two or for a crowd. I've made it about thousand times and we love it every time we eat it.



It's almost like a simple meat sauce, but I spruce it up with onions, garlic, mushrooms, sometimes I add zucchini and/or yellow squash. You can serve it with thin spaghetti, fettuccine, penne, or any kind of pasta you wish.

This particular sauce I made using about a 1/2 pound of ground beef, and a package of Johnsonville Hot Italian Sausage , and that makes this taste superb. I never keep proportions making this dish, it's always a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, and every time comes out better than the last time. That night I used a large jar of Prego tomato sauce. Sometimes I make my own sauce by adding canned crushed or diced tomatoes and some tomato paste. This time we were starving and I always have a jar of tomato sauce in my cupboard, so whay not to use it.



So, to start I sliced a medium onion and crushed few garlic cloves, add some olive oil to the pan, heat on medium, add the onions and garlic, saute together until onions become translucent. Quarter few mushrooms, depends on your likings - I love them, so I put quite a few of them, I cpooed them roughly, to keep larger pieces. I want my sauce to have this nice, rustic feel. Add mushrooms to onions and saute together. Once done, I transfer it to a bowl and add meat to the pan. Cook the beef and sausage until done, I like the sausage without casings, but it's your preference... mix the mushroom onion mixture with meat, add tomato sauce, stirr wel to incorporate everything. I usually spice it up with a little crushed red pepper flakes and black pepper. I like to cook it all together for at least 15-20 minutes, it makes the sauce taste better, and the flavors mix in. Actually if you can make it the day ahead, it's best the next day!
You can serve it like that or you can add some heavy cream to make it more creamy, if you add creme, make sure you bring it to a boil. Check if it needs salt or pepper, season to taste. Cook your favorite pasta aldene, and serve the sauce over the pasta, sprinkled with paresan cheese and some fresh basil leaves.
Garlic bread and nice bottle of Argentinian Gascon Malbec wine would go nicely together.

Bon Apetit!

Turkey Leftovers - Sheppard's Pie

In the previous post I was raving about this potpie recipe I was going to make, it was going to include my turkey leftovers. I opened the fridge and saw the whole big container of leftover mashed potatoes. So, there goes my potpie... instead I made a turkey Sheppard's pie.
Few weeks ago my husband Tim asked me why I never made a Sheppard's pie before, and the answer is simple, I am not a big fun of those type of foods... I'll eat it, but if I have a choice of making something else, I'll make something else...



But this time, I decided to surprise Tim and make him one of his favorite childhood dishes. He was very excited to see the Sheppard's pie. I made a good size baking dish filled with bubbly mixture and mashed potatoes on top - he ate more than a half of it for dinner on Saturday!
LOL - and he loved it!

I didn't measure ingredients, just kind of eyeballed it.

I diced the medium Spanish onion, and sauted it with 2 tsp of butter and some olive oil. Slice about 6-7 medium mushrooms, and add to the onion, than add 2 crushed cloves of garlic, and about a 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped carrots, I skipped celery stalk, but you are more than welcome to add it. I sweat it all together on the skillet for a few minutes, and than I added chopped leftover turkey, mix it well and left to warm up on the low heat. The last we add some frozen peas.

In the other pan I malted 3 tsp of butter on low heat, and added 4 TBS of flour, whisk it all together well, so there are no curds. Add chopped thyme. Slowly add about 2 cups of stock (again, I eyeballed it - just add a little at the time, whisk and see how thick the sauce is getting. if too thick add more stock) Brink it to a boil. I also added a 1/4 of white wine, to break out the flavor. Seasoned with salt and pepper and a pinch of cayenne for a little kick...

After the sauce was done I pour the mixture of vegetables and turkey into the sauce, stir it well and pour to the baking dish. Put a layer of mashed potatoes on top, bake in 375 for 30 minutes, until bubbles.

It was fast and easy to make considering all the leftovers...

Individual Potpies - Chicken or Turkey?

So Thanksgiving is over, and now we have plenty of leftover turkey, stock, herbs and other goodies that we could make into something yummy.
I found this recipe in Sunset Magazine, and I made it with chicken before. I am not a big fan of potpies but this one was actually very good. And I think I liked it because it has mushrooms and thyme, those add a hint of earthiness to the potpie. So today, I was trying to figure out something for dinner to incorporate the leftovers, and I decided to make the potpies, but I will use the leftover turkey. Also instead of making those biscuits I will use the Pillsbury biscuits, that I have in the fridge. And if you don't have individual dishes, you can just put in a 9x9 square pan, and top with biscuits. This recipe makes 6-7 individual servings.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken stock
• 3 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and finely chopped (I will skip the potatoes)
  
• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 12 small cremini or button mushrooms, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 5 tablespoons
  
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken, preferably a mixture of white and dark meat (see Notes)
• 1/4 cup frozen sweet peas

Biscuits

• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups four
  
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh sage
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. well-shaken buttermilk
• Egg wash (1 egg yolk whisked with 1 tbsp. milk)

1. In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring chicken stock to a boil. Add carrots, potatoes, and celery. Lower heat to medium and cook until vegetables are tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain vegetables, reserving stock; set both aside separately.

2. In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt salted butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook 5 minutes. Add fresh thyme and 5 tbsp. flour and cook 2 minutes. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly, until combined, then add stock and cook, stirring often, until mixture thickens, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with nutmeg, 1 tsp. salt, and pepper to taste. Add parsley, chicken, cooked vegetables, and peas and divide filling evenly among 6 or 7 ovenproof containers (8 to 10 oz. each), leaving the top 1/4 in. unfilled.

3. Preheat oven to 425°. To make biscuit topping, sift remaining 2 cups flour with baking powder, baking soda, and remaining 1 tsp. salt. Using your fingers or a pastry cutter, work in unsalted butter to form a coarse meal, working quickly to keep the butter from warming up and melting into the dough. Stir in cheese and sage. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and buttermilk and add to the flour mixture, stirring gently until a shaggy dough forms.

4. Lightly flour a counter, a rolling pin, and your hands. Divide dough into 2 balls. Roll out first ball to a 1/4-in. thickness, then use a 2 1/2-in. biscuit cutter to cut into rounds, scraping and rerolling dough as needed. Repeat with second ball.

5. Place 3 rounds of dough on each potpie, overlapping as necessary (any unused rounds can be baked on their own as biscuits). Brush dough with egg wash, put potpies on a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil, and bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling, 17 to 22 minutes.

{Recipe from Sunset Magazine}

My Thanksgiving Dinner - Adventures of aTurducken

{my table setting}

Happy belated Thanksgiving!

I was so busy yesterday cooking my dinner, I had no time to even turn the computer on. It started pretty early, I opened my "turkey breast" package in the morning just to find out, that there was much more there than just a turkey breast - it was a whole turkey without wings and legs... yes, I had to wrestle the bird to get him off the bones. and that's never fun.
The other surprise was the duck. I don't make duck to often, actually I don't even remember last time when I made a duck. So I just bought 2 duck breasts, and didn't think anything of it. I know duck is fatty. But this one had about 1/2 inch layer of fat and about 1/4 inch layer of the breast meat, it was little too much fat... I had to pull the fat of the meat and make sure that the breast holds its shape. It worked. But between the turkey wrestling and duck de-fatting it took me about an hour, which I didn't count for...

And it's all because I decided to make my own version of a turducken! (I hope I spelled it right)... Instead of making the "whole" turkey stuffed with the whole duck, stuffed with the whole chicken - I wanted to make just the turkey breast stuffed with duck breast, stuffed with chicken breast.
And in the end everything worked out fine, but the stresfull morning got me little worry about the whole dinner. I even sent my husband to the grocery store to buy a rotisserie chicken, just in case if... he called me from the store, the chickens they had looked like they've been on the grill little too long, dried out and burned... he didn't get any... so the turducken just had to come out right! And it did. It was a very successful turkey dinner!

The plan was to season the layers, and to spread a herb butter inside and outside of the turkey. Butter always makes the bird taste so much better, gives it a layer of a moisture protection. The turkey was moist, and tender, with a crunchy layer on the outside. I don't have too many photos of the execution of the dish - my hands were covered with butter and all kinds of other stuff. Here is the picture of the final product - you can see the outer layer of the turkey, and the darker meat inside is the duck, the skinny lighter is the chicken... not bad, hmm?




Here is the recipe for my version of a Turducken:

1 double (boneless) turkey breast, keep the skin
1 double duck breast (boneless, and skinless, keep the skin)
1 single chicken breast (boneless and skinless)
makes 2 separate turducken "roulads"

Seasoning mix: sea salt, black pepper, pinch of cayenne pepper, poultry seasoning, garlic powder (I didn't measure, just use your judgment)

The herb butter: 1,5 stick of unsalted butter room temp, bunch of thyme, sage and chives; chop the herbs and mix with butter.

Butterfly each turkey breast to flatten it out, season it, and spread a layer of the herb butter. In the middle lay the duck breast, my duck was pretty thin, so I didn't have to cut it, but make sure the duck is not too thick, you need to have room to close the turkey and make sure that it doesn't fall apart. Use one duck breast, season it, add a thin layer of the butter and arrange the last layer - chicken. season it, and try to either roll it or bring the turkey sides up, use kitchen twine to tie it all together. Once assembled lift the turkey skin gently with your fingers to add the butter under the skin. It really helps to keep the turkey moist. Season the outside of it.
I melted the duck skin on the low heat, and put some of it on the bottom of the pan, and put the turkey in it, added few garlic cloves and onion. 375 degrees, until done, until your meat thermometer shows 180 degrees. I based the turkey every once on a while with the juices from the bottom of the pan. Make sure to rest it for 10 - 15 minutes before you start cutting it!



For the first course we had the lovely, creamy butternut squash soup.
And the turducken was served with:

• Monterrey Jack-Garlic Mashed Potatoes,
• Mushroom Sherry Gravy,with turkey drippings
• Vegetable Madly - Brussels Sprouts and Cauliflower,
• Honey Glazed Carrots,
• Stuffing,
• Dinner Rolls,
• Baked Onions with Parmesan Cheese, recipe by Italian Cook from Chicago, click here for the recipe
  

Wine of the evening was Barefoot Zinfandel - very affordable wine, pretty good for the price. Zinfandel is not usually paired with chicken or turkey, but I really like the flavor, it's pretty smooth and silky, so it went well with all the mushrooms I had in stuffing, and the mushroom gravy for the turkey. So in the end it all tasted pretty good.

Wild Rice, Cranberry & Walnut Stuffing

What a week! I am still fighting the cold, it got me pretty bad, I've been pretty sick, and not able to do much at all. Thanksgiving in 3 days and I am still finalizing the menu. I am so unprepared this year. Normally I know at least few weeks in advance what I will be making. I thought it was going to get less busy after the wedding, but for some reason, it's still going pretty fast.

I found this recipe on Whole Foods website, and I haven't made it before, but I bought it from the store, and it's pretty good. I am thinking about making something similar to stuff my cornish hens for Thanksgiving. I decided to make turkey and cornish hens, I want to keep it traditional but also at the same time add something different, it's going to be a surprise. They all expect just a turkey...



Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 yellow onions, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
7 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups uncooked wild rice or wild rice mix
2 cups uncooked basmati rice
2 cups dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons chopped thyme
1 1/2 cups walnuts, toasted and chopped
Pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add broth and salt and bring to a boil. Stir in wild rice, cover, reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 45 minutes.

Stir in basmati rice, cover and simmer until rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Stir in cranberries, parsley, thyme, and walnuts, cover and cook for 5 minutes more. Season with pepper and additional salt to taste.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9- x 13-inch baking dish. Transfer rice mixture to dish and bake until light golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Sweet Potatos

Last night I really wanted something with sweet potatoes, and I am not talking about marshmallows mashed sweet potatoes loaded with brown sugar and coconut... I say roasted! So I went to the produce market (my favorite in the city - Stanley's) and got some butternut squash and few sweet potatoes. I cubed them, sprinkled with olive oil and sea salt, placed on the baking sheet and to 400 degrees oven for 45 minutes.


It was sooooo yummy! I couldn't stop eating. The potatoes had a hint of sweetness, and the squash was just nice, soft inside and crunchy on the outside.
I even got Tim to have some. He actually thought it was just sweet potatoes, and after finish eating I told him what he really ate... ha ha ... I was surprised, he said he liked it... so, now we have a new side dish that he likes.... that means I can actually make it more often.



One thing I have to say - the squash is really hard, and it was very difficult to peel it. It is much harder than the sweet potato. I would suggest it to buy it already cut/cubed. I know Costco sells it, I saw it there. It will save you some time and it's safer... Oh, and I added one purple potato for some color... made it look more interesting...



This could be a nice, fall side dish for Thanksgiving dinner. Different take on the traditional sweet potatoes. And by the way, I am sorry to say that (no offense, please) - but I've been living in this country for over 8 years, and still can't get over the fact that sweet potatoes are mashed with bunch of brown sugar, coconut, and baked with marshmallows.... it's just so unappetizing! blehhh... is it a side dish or a dessert? I'm not sure, it's a potato but it's sweetened to its maximum.... I would rather eat an extra slice of apple pie or a huge piece of butter cream coconut cake... and it would taste 100 times better....
Sorry for all those who love this mushy mush... :)

Recipe Box: Easy Stuffed Mushrooms

Last Sunday, we were relaxing on the couch, watching movies, and all of the sudden I was craving a mushroom dish! I love mushrooms, all of them, at least all the eatable ones...
I had a package of baby bella (cremini) mushrooms, and a package ow white mushrooms, so I decided to make this quick and easy stuffed mushrooms.

First, I removed the stems from 12 bigger mushrooms, and cleaned them. I placed them on the glass 9 x 9 baking dish. I chopped (or you can use the grater, it works better, and saves time) the leftover stems, and added few (5-6) whole mushrooms to the mixture, make sure you chopp or grate those also, next I chopped one small spanish onion. Melted 3 tsp. of unsalted butter on the non-stick pan, added onion, cook for 3 minutes, next add chopped mushrooms, minced clove of garlic (or more - if you like), and saute it together until mushrooms are done. I added some freshed thyme and chopped fresh sage to bring up the flavor. Seasoned with salt and pepper, and added breadcrumbs, about 1/2 a cup or more. Mix it well on a low heat, make sure it's all combined in a paste. You can substitute breadcrumbs for cream cheese, it will make the stuffing very reach, and very tasty. Fill the caps with stuffing, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes... Sprinkle with fresh chives before serving... It tastes great!

This dish can be served as an appetizer or even a side dish! I made those last year for Thanksgiving as an appetizer, I served the version with cream cheese, and everybody loved it. It was gone in no time!

Recipe Box: Baked Orzo with Fontina Cheese

This is one of my favorite recipes from Giada de Laurentiis from the Foodnetwork. I made it several times before and I wanted to share this great side dish with everyone. It's fairly easy to make and very tasty. It could be made totally vegetarian if you substitute chicken broth for vegetable stock or even well seasoned (with salt) water. Just make sure to season the water enough, that is the only seasoning of your orzo pasta. I used this dish as a side dish with the steaks, and with grilled chicken. You can also make it as a main dish and add pieces of grilled chicken, I'm sure it would taste just great.

Here is what you need to make it:

4 cups chicken broth
1 pound orzo pasta
3 TBS butter, + more to grease baking dish
1 onion chopped
8 oz mushroom sliced
1 cup Marsala wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 oz (1 cup) shredded fontina cheese
4 oz (1 cup) diced fresh mozarella cheese
1 cup thawed frozen peas
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

For the topping we need: 1/2 cup of bread crumbs, 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan and 1 tsp os dried thyme.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees, butter 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Bring chicken broth to a boil and orzo and cook until almost tender, about 7 minutes. Important is not to overcook the pasta, as it still have to bake in the oven. Do not drain the orzo, just pour the whole thing into a large bowl.
Melt the butter over medium heat, add onions and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and continue to saute until mushrooms are turning golden around the edges, about 7 minutes. Add Marsala wine, scrape the bottom of the pan, cook until Marsala ha reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the mushroom mixture to the orzo, add cream, both cheeses, peas, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine all the ingredients. Pour into the baking dish.
In a small bowl combine the topping ingredients and sprinkle on top of the pasta. bake until golden, about 25 minutes.

Yummy....

Recipe Box: The Sunday Soup

Since I was a little girl I remember this wonderful soup my mom used to make every Sunday. It was a chicken-noodle soup. You probably think I am crazy raving about chicken-noodle soup, but this one is special for me. It reminds me of home, Poland. Sunday morning and my mom would start the soup, whole chicken cut into pieces, vegetables... whole house was filled with aroma of the soup, and the longer you simmer it, the better it tasted. It is a tradition in Poland that Sunday's first course is this chicken-noodle soup.
My mom lives here in Chicago now, and still on Sundays she makes that soup. I have been practicing it, also. Not every Sunday yet, but once on a while, on a cold afternoon, it's just great to have bowl of this wonderful homemade soup, that worms you up from inside, and just makes you feel better. Great for hangovers!
I just made it last week. We came back from Mexico, from the nice warm weather to cold Chicago and I just wanted soup. Picture is not the greatest - but you get the idea. It's a chicken-noodle soup, but we don't put the chicken meat into the plate, once the soup is cooked, I take the chicken out, take it of the bones, and make something with it. (I will talk about it later).
I do not measure the ingredients, I usually just eyeball everything, and once it cooks for a while (about an hour), I try it and see what is missing. Make sure you cook it long enough before you try it, there is a raw chicken in it. And I always make a huge pot of it, it's nice to have a homemade broth leftover...

Ingredients:

• whole chicken cut into pieces
• 2-3 large carrots, cut into pieces
• 1 parsley root, whole, or cut
• 4-5 celery stalks, cut into pieces
• 1 large onion
• bouquet of flat leaf parsley, tied with kitchen twine(for easy removal)
  
• 10 whole peppercorns
• 2-3 bay leaves
• salt
  
• 1 chicken and 1 beef bullion cube
• package of thin egg noodles
  

One, very important thing here is the onion. There is a special way to prep the onion before it goes into the pot - cut in in the half, and place it on the gas burner, lit the burner to medium-high heat and let the onion burn. It will slowly become black in some places. Use thongs to turn it around, to get both sides. After about 8-10 minutes it should be ready to go to the pot. Fill 3/4 of a big pot with water, put all the ingredients into it, add onion, and cook it on medium high until boils. Reduce the heat to medium (even low) and let it cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. It needs time, so be patient. Cook the noodles according to directions. Do not put them into the soup. Once the soup is ready, fill the bowl with noodles, add broth, carrots, fresh parsley, fresh ground pepper... and you're ready to go...

Now, the chicken we have left from the soup. Last week I made chicken pot pie. I had bunch of broth and chicken already cooked. I found this fantastic recipe in Sunset Magazine on-line. I am not a big fun of pot pies and casseroles - but this one was really good. Click here for the recipe. The thyme and mushrooms just make it so yummy! I used Pillsbury biscuits to top my potpie, it was too late to make them from scratch.