There are lots of recipes people claim taste better if made by hand, but there’s no easier case to prove than pesto. That the name means, “to crush,” should tell you something, and while this method does take considerably more physical effort, when you taste this you’ll forget every pestle-pounding minute.
The intensity of the flavors is beyond compare, and as if by some kind of magic, this gorgeous spread develops an addictive spiciness. You can taste each ingredient, and yet when smashed together, new and wonderful flavors are released. If you’re in the market, I recommend the marble mortar seen herein, as long as the inside has some texture to it. If it seems smooth and glassy, keep looking.
Of course, you can play around with the ratios of the five ingredients, and easily adjust this to your tastes, but no matter how they’re combined, taking the time to crush them by hand is well worth the effort. I hope you give this fresh basil pesto a try soon. Enjoy!
I bet fava beans would be a lot more popular if people knew how to cook them, or even what they were. For many people, these are just those mysterious, semi-scary, oversized green beans that they’re not sure what to do with.
Which is a shame, since they’re not only delicious, and easy to prepare, but also very versatile. Fava beans shine in salads, and pastas, as well as on pizzas.The also, as I demonstrated the end of the video, make for a wonderful spread.
By the way, the ingredient amounts below are pure guesses, since this is not the kind of recipe we're going to measure stuff for. Let your conscience be your guide, but remember what we're eating is inside that charred pod, so season generously.
Fava beans should be readily available this time of year, especially at farmers markets, where they tend to be much cheaper that your high-end grocery stores. Regardless of where you find them, I really do hope you give this great bean, and even better technique a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 2 large or 4 small portions:
2 pounds whole fava beans
olive oil, as needed
2 lemons
1 tablespoon kosher salt, divided
3 whole, peeled, bruised garlic cloves
red pepper flakes to taste
2 tablespoons freshly sliced mint leaves
- Grill over high heat for about five minutes per side, or until the pods are soft and charred, and the beans inside are just tender.
WARNING: Some people have an allergy to fava beans. Make sure you don't.
I love that my wife, Michele, follows Questlove on social media, but not just because it makes me feel cooler by extension, which it does, but also because he’s a huge foodie, and this enticing eggplant “bacon” came from his Instagram.
Links were followed, and I discovered the recipe was from Minimalist Baker, and although I did tweak the technique and ingredient amounts a bit, the recipe is basically thieved from this gorgeous blog post. Thank you, Dana! By the way, there they were brushed, but I decided to dip. Because my slices may have been wetter, they did take way longer to cook.
Personal taste being what it is, you’ll have to experiment with not only your sweet-salty-smoky ingredient ratios, but also with how thick you cut your eggplant, as well as how long you cook it. I went for thin and crispy, but it was closer to a bbq potato chip in taste/texture than bacon. I may slice it thicker next time, and see if I can get some chewy bits, woven through the crispy bits.
These would make for some tasty vegetable chips, but were especially enjoyable in a BLT, which I inexplicably didn’t photo. I blame low blood sugar. Regardless of how you enjoy them, I really do hope you give this eggplant “bacon” a try soon. Enjoy!
Makes enough “bacon brine” for 2 medium-sized eggplants:
2 tablespoons maple syrup
4 tablespoons tamari, or soy sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 to 1 teaspoon liquid smoke, depending on strength
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, a little coarser than usual
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 eggplants, sliced to about 1/8th inch
The original recipe calls for a 225 F. oven, but I would probably start this like I finished it, and that’s in a 250 F. oven. I’d plan on at least an hour baking time, but that will depend on thickness, pans, etc. Simply cook until they are how you want.
I’m not sure these are actually prawns, and I’ve never been to Provence, but this great appetizer was called Prawn Provencale when I learned it working for a caterer, back in the 80’s. It was a crazy time, or so I’m told, and this delicious garlic and herb shrimp pop is one of the more vivid memories I have.
It does take some time to butterfly the prawns, but as I mentioned in the video, everything can be done ahead of time, including the crumbing. Just pan them up, and bake them off, once your guests arrive. Preferably in waves, so they can be enjoyed warm.
In case you’re wondering, while biologically different, culinarily speaking, shrimp and prawns are the same thing. I used to know the difference a long time ago, like in the 80’s, but my brain must’ve erased it for more storage space.
One major tip here is to be sure and season your breadcrumb mixture very well. You can season the shrimp also, but I don’t, and instead make sure the mixture has plenty of everything. Once they’re baked, you can serve with any number of dips, or just some fresh lemon. So, whether you’re making these for a party or not, I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 2 pounds shrimp (about 32 pieces)
2 pounds shrimp (16-20 per pound), butterflied
olive oil for brushing pan
For the breadcrumb mixture:
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed fine with dried herbs and salt)
I’ve always wanted to show my method for making chicken nuggets.Not because I’m proud of how well they came out, which I am, but more so to plead my case for what I think qualifies as an actual chicken “nugget.”
Somehow people got the idea that a chicken nugget was supposed to be a solid piece of chicken. That’s not a nugget. That’s just a too small piece of fried chicken. A real nugget, at least in the fast food context, is more of a deep-fried, mostly-chicken sausage patty, fabricated from various parts of the bird, such as, every legal part.
I love any and all types of fried chicken, but the typical nugget, when made from a piece of breast, just makes me want to get a bucket of the full-sized stuff. No, as far as party food goes, I’ll take the classic, seems-bad-for-you version every time. Plus, since we’re making a paste out of the meat, we get to flavor it any way we want.
I loved the Buffalo approach, and it allowed me to dip something in blue cheese dressing, which is always nice, but there are lots of directions you can go with this. So, whether you make these as directed, or come up with your own game plan, I really hope you give these delicious chicken nuggets a try soon. Enjoy!
1/3 cup self-rising flour (or mix 1/3 cup all-purpose flour with 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/8 tsp salt)
1/4 teaspoon salt
- After coating, let sit in fridge until starch on surface is absorbed. For best results, flip over once while in fridge.
- Fry for 1 minute at 300 F., then chill, and finish when ready to serve by frying for 2 minutes at 375 F., or until cooked through. Exact time depends on size and shape of your nugget.
Don’t let the catchy name fool you; this sloppy Joe-inspired dip really shouldn’t cause that big a mess at your Super Bowl party, just as long as your guests aren’t too sloppy themselves. You can test them by having them pronounce, “sloppy dip.” If they say it more like, “shloppy dip,” cut them off.
For me this checks all the boxes for a hot party dip. It’s relatively cheap, and easy to make, but maybe more importantly, it’s great hot, warm, or room temp. It’s also incredibly versatile, and I can think of about two-dozen things off the top of my head that would be great in this.
Like I said in the video, you don’t have to present this as a baked dip. You can just leave it on the stove, on low, for guests to dip into. People are always hanging out in that area anyway. Otherwise, you can broil it in any oven-safe casserole dish, or do it in a sauce pan like I did, which can also be kept on low heat after browning the cheese. No matter how you serve it, I hope you give this great, and sloppy dip a try soon. Enjoy!
Every once in a while, I get a food wish that has nothing to do with a specific recipe, but rather it’s a request to post something complicated, and challenging to do. Well, this country-style pâté is about as close as we’re going to get.
Calling this recipe complicated is sort of a stretch; "involved” would probably be more accurate. There are many steps, and the ingredient list isn’t short, but none of the techniques are very difficult, or particularly time-consuming.
Coarsely grinding the meat is probably the most crucial step, but as you saw, if the meat is very cold, the attachment on your stand mixer will do an adequate job. If you don’t have one, you can pulse on and off in a food processor, and as long as your meat was partially frozen, this will work.
Another option is just to place your meat order with a real butcher, and ask them to coarsely grind it all together for you, after which you can simply process the rest of your ingredients, and add them to your already ground meat and fat. Speaking of fat, I used some chopped up bacon, but virtually any kind of pork fat will work.
If you do use bacon, either in the pâté, orto wrap with, I suggest using one that’s lightly smoked, so as not to overpower the rest of the flavors. Anyway,I realize this may seem like quite a production, but if you enjoy charcuterie, this would make for a very fun, beautiful,and quite delicious project. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for one Pâté de Campagne (16 portions):
6 ounces duck leg meat (meat removed from 2 or 3 legs)
4 ounces fatty bacon, chopped
4 ounces chicken livers, roughly chopped
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
4 cloves minced garlic
1/3 cup chopped Italian parsley
25 grams kosher salt (about 5 teaspoons)
1/8 teaspoon “instacure” pink curing salt
3/4 teaspoon *pate spice mix
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup cognac or brandy
1/3 cup plain dry bread crumbs
2 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 cup dried cherries, optional 1/2 cup pistachios, optional
8-10 sliced of bacon, or a few sheets of caul fat to line the **mold * For the Pâté Spice:
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
** My bread pan was a little smaller than standard, but a regular 9 x 5 inch loaf pan should work perfectly here. -- Cook in water bath at 350 F. until internal temp of 155 F.
