Some of my more yummy concoctions

 

My cholesterol went up 30 points just looking at this

Turbaconducken. Making and eating something like that has just found its way onto my bucket list. That, and the fact that there is a web site devote to bacon just made my day. Hat tip to the most well armed, Baconiest librarian I know

At least the food has been good

Yeah, I'm in a poopy mood but I have to admit at least dinner this week has been nothing short of amazing. Tonight, the Mrs. made pasta fagioli which was phenomenal. And the other day, we had balsamic glazed chicken which literally was painful to make (both because I had a paper cut on my finger and the fact that the marinade smelled so good it made my stomach hurt). We topped it off with grilled asparagus, one of my girls' favorite foods. I highly suggest you try that recipe. You might want to use drumsticks rather than drummetts, but...

Hula Bagels

My wife found this recipe a while back, and let me tell you it has been a family favorite ever since. You'll need the following ingredients Fresh pineapple rings. The canned stuff just doesn't cut it. Cheddar cheese (I like the chipotle slices if I can find them) Sliced ham Bagels BBQ Sauce. I highly recommend Sweet Baby Rays, especially the chipotle kind if you like a little heat First, toast the bagels a little. Smear each half of a bagel with BBQ sauce, top with ham, then pineapple, then the cheese (My...

How do you make vegetables even better?

Wrap 'em in meat!. Yes ladies and gentlemen, when it comes time to enjoy asparagus, nothing beats coating them in olive oil, kosher salt, and pepper, then wrapping their little green carcasses in partially cooked bacon and shoving them in a 425° oven for 12 minutes. Nothing. My oldest daughter runs around the house all excited when we make asparagus. It's her favorite. She ate two of those bundles you see up there. Oh, how the tips simply turn crispy and how the fat from the bacon just absorbs into the green flesh. When the bacon is all cooked,...

Chicken Breasts with Lemon Pan Sauce

This tangy dish is so easy to make and yet amazingly delicious. You will need a large, oven proof pan to cook the chicken in. The skin becomes almost bacon like in its crispness and flavor. Ingredients 4 10 oz. chicken breast halves (bone in - skin on)*2 tbsp vegetable or extra virgin olive oil1 large shallot minced1/2 cup chicken stock1/4 cup lemon juice6 medium sprigs thyme3 tbsp butter cut into thirdskosher salt & freshly ground pepper * I use a whole chicken and simply cut it up, but you need the skin, trust me Instructions Season the chicken with salt...

Life is good

Not only did I get to make a delicious lemon chicken last night, tonight I'm preparing the world's most kick ass potato leek soup. Picked up some ciabatta bread and will make spice dip to go with it (the same stuff they serve at Carabba's). The whole house smells like sauteed leeks, shallots, celery and garlic. Then, I'm making a tres leches cake. Have I mentioned I love to cook?

Slow Cooked Spaghetti Sauce

2 8oz cans of tomato sauce2 6oz cans of tomato paste28 oz water (each can from above)3 large onions, chopped fine2 cloves of garlic, minced4 tbsp olive oil2 bay leaves1 tsp oregano1 tsp basil1/2 tsp thymegenerous grinds of peppersalt In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil to medium high. Add the garlic and sauté for a minute or so, then add the onions and turn the heat down to medium. Sauté for about 8 minutes until all the onions are soft and clear. Add the tomato sauce and paste, water, and all spices except salt. When adding the herbs, rub them...

Spaghetti Blogging

Since the mother is down for the weekend, I decided I'd make my super famous (at least in my family) spaghetti sauce. 3 1/2 hours of pure love go into this, not to mention 3 large onions, 6 cloves of garlic, 2 8oz. cans of tomato sauce, 2 6oz. cans of tomato paste, 1 tsp of basil, 1 tsp of oregano, 1/2 tsp of thyme, 2 bay leaves, generous helping of fresh ground pepper, 4 tbsp of olive oil, and a bunch o' salt.Heat up the oil in a large stock pot (medium high). Push in the garlic and onions, lower the temp to...

Recipe Idiosyncrasies

I made flan from scratch tonight (I actually had to make the sweetened condensed milk!). It turned out ok, but next time I'm just using condensed milk from a can.What caught my eye was one of the recipes online that called for 3 egg yolks (separated)3 egg whitesI wonder how many people read that recipe and wasted (ok, Nathan, "used". Happy now?) 6 eggs?

Bread Help

I like to make bread. My wife finds this funny because I don't usually like to actually eat it once I've got it baked.Anyway, yesterday I made a loaf of whole wheat since it's magnanimously cheaper than buying it and I have such a dandy time doing it. This loaf I did 100% by hand, no bread machine! Well, like usual, my whole wheat turned out to be fairly dense. My wife wants super light & fluffy bread like you buy at the store, not something resembling the density of a cinder block.Any bread-heads out there have any good recipes...

Taco Seasoning

I'm one of those people who like to make things myself rather than buy it at a store if I can do it for cheaper. One of my favorites is my taco seasoning. I find this to be much better than anything I can buy at the store and I always have the ingredients on hand. Ingredients: 1-2 Teaspoon minced dehydrated onion  1 Tablespoon chili powder  1 Teaspoon cumin  1 Teaspoon garlic powder  1 Teaspoon hot paprika  1 Teaspoon oregano  1/2 Teaspoon salt  1/4 cup water  (adjust accordingly if more sauce is desired) 1 Pound ground beef Mix salt, oregano, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, onion, paprika, and cayenne. In a medium...