Cutting Tips To Avoid Cutting Tips – Plus Bonus “Creamed” Corn Recipe!

While the grilled salmon with bacon and corn relish recipe we posted Monday was extremely well received, some viewers had a problem with my extremely dangerous and difficult to perform method for shaving the corn off the cob.

So, just in case you’re one of these people who prefer your culinary techniques not to be dangerous or difficult, I’m posting this alternative method. Sure it’s just as fast, just as easy, and way safer, but you do have to admit, my style was way more exciting.

Anyway, since I had freshly cut corn at my heavily-scared fingertips, I decided to show you my new favorite recipe for creamed corn. This lower-cal take on the classic side dish features Greek yogurt and a little Indian spice, and I was absolutely thrilled with how it came out. 

The flavor was great, and the tangy yogurt gave the dish such an interesting texture. I couldn’t stop eating it. So, if you’re looking for another easy, and relatively healthy way to enjoy fresh, sweet corn, I hope you give this a try soon. Just be safe, and as always, enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

2 large ears sweet corn

2 tsp olive oil

salt to taste

2 cloves garlic, minced

cayenne to taste

1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp garam masala

3 tbsp plain Greek yogurt (or more if you want it creamier)

2 tsp freshly sliced chives

Southern-Style Green Beans – Slow Beans for Fast Times

One of the sadder side effects of the American culinary renaissance we’ve enjoyed over the last thirty or forty years, has been the chronic under-cooking of green vegetables. Sure, there was a time when we cooked everything too long, but now, if it’s not bright green and still crispy, it’s considered ruined.

That’s why every once and a while you have to enjoy something like these slow-cooked, southern-style green beans. These beans are cooked forever in a bacon-spiked, aromatic broth, and when they’re finally done, you’re almost shocked at how good they are. It seems so wrong, yet tastes so right.

I think two hours is perfect, but if your beans are fatter/thinner, you’ll have to adjust the time. What you’re looking for is something that literally melts in your mouth. Vibrant, quickly blanched green beans are many things, but “melt in your mouth” isn’t one of them. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 portions:
2 pounds green beans, trimmed
1 handful sliced bacon (6 oz)

1 sliced onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup tomato sauce

3 cups chicken broth

salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste

View the complete recipe

Spicy Peach Coleslaw – An Apple Is an Excellent Thing – Until You’ve Tried a Peach

You may remember this peach coleslaw from such video recipes as, Grilled Coffee and Cola Skirt Steak. It was a beautiful match, and as I ate, I couldn’t help but wonder why you don’t see peaches used in these cold cabbage salads more often.

People have no problem loading up their ‘slaws with grated apple and diced pineapple, so it can’t be an anti-fruit bias. I think the real reason is that a perfectly ripe peach is such an incredible experience, that it seems almost criminal to consume it any other way.

I think George du Maurier put it best when he said, “An apple is an excellent thing – until you have tried a peach.” So, is that it? Just too good to not eat as is? That could explain some of it, but just in case the real reason is that you simply hadn’t thought of it before, I’m posting this. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6-8 portions:

1 pound thinly sliced cabbage

2 diced peaches

1 tbsp thinly sliced chives

for the dressing (everything is “to taste”):

2 generous tablespoons mayo

1 rounded teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon sambal chili sauce

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon sugar

salt and cayenne to taste

View the complete recipe

Shrimp & Pasta Shells Salad – And They (incorrectly) Called It Macaroni

I really wanted to call this a "macaroni salad," since that’s what people sitting around picnic tables call it, but I decided to be technically correct (for once) and call it a shrimp and pasta shells salad. Hey, I'm no slave to Google's algorithm.

Macaroni is a specific type of elbow-shaped pasta, so while all macaroni is pasta, not all pasta is macaroni. Raise your hand if you missed that one on your SAT. Anyway, now that I have enough “macaroni’s” in here for the search engines, we can move on.

Actually, there’s not a lot left to discuss. This is a very straightforward, and quite adaptable recipe. I list a few potential additions in the video, but this is the kind of thing you can really make your own. Hey, you could even do it with macaroni. I hope you give this easy, and crowd-pleasing summer salad a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 8 portions:

For the dressing:

1 1/4 cups mayonnaise

2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tsp ketchup

1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 lemon, juiced

1 tsp salt, or to taste

cayenne to taste

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

The rest:

12-oz package pasta shells

1 pound bay shrimp, or other small cooked shrimp, drained well

1/2 cup small diced red bell pepper

3/4 cup diced celery

salt and pepper to taste

View the complete recipe

Not the Same Old 4th of July Side Dishes

We'll assume you have all the main courses figured out for your 4th of July cookout (if not, we can help), but just in case you're still looking for some side dishes, here are a few out of the ordinary ideas that should work beautifully. Just click the caption link to see the post and video. Enjoy!

Cold Broccoli Salad

Peach and Escarole Salad

Apple Jicama Coleslaw

Boston Baked Beans

Succotash Salad

Pickled Grilled Vegetables

Cold White Bean & Herb Salad – Mmm, Good Stems!

I’m showing this quick and easy white bean and herb salad for several reasons, not the least of which is to give you a perfectly delicious way to use up the end of that already used once bunch of parsley or cilantro. 

You told yourself you were going to add them to your next stock, forgetting you don’t make stock, and the sheared remains end up in the back of the vegetable crisper where they die a slow, slimy death. Well, this may be the answer.

Both cilantro and Italian parsley have tender stems that pretty much taste exactly like the leaves. By slicing the last half of the bunch thinly, across the stems, you have a perfect addition to any simple, cold bean salad. Besides herb stem recover and utilization, this recipe deserves to be in the rotation for two other very good reasons. It only takes like five minutes to makes, and goes beautifully with any and all of the traditional grilled or barbecued summer meats.

This video also reminds me that you wannabe food snobs need to stop making fun of people that don’t like cilantro. For about 10% of the population, due to certain receptors on the tongue, cilantro tastes nasty, which explains why so many people detest the stuff. The good news is that parsley works even better, so everybody wins.

On a spice note, I used Aleppo pepper here instead of cayenne or pepper flakes, and I hope you do the same. I only discovered this pepper recently, and just love it. It’s hot, but not too hot, and has a bright, fruity flavor I think you’ll really enjoy. Please note: In the video I said it was my new favorite pepper, but I only did that to make cayenne jealous. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

1/2 bunch (the stem end) Italian parsley or cilantro, chopped

1 can (15-oz) white beans, rinsed and drained

3 cloves minced garlic
1 rounded tsp Dijon mustard
salt, freshly ground black pepper, and Aleppo pepper to taste
2 tbsp white wine or champagne vinegar (or rice vinegar if you want it a little sweeter)
3 tbsp olive oil

Fondant Potatoes – A Creamy Crusty Blast from the Past

Every once in a while I get a food wish that instantly takes me back to culinary school. Things like aspic (not happening), larding a tenderloin (not happening), and pulled sugar (sort of already happened) always transport me back to those demos where the instructors fully admitted that we’d probably never use these skills, but since they were considered “classic techniques,” we’d have to spend time covering them anyway. Sure, makes perfect sense.

This fabulous fondant potato technique is a prime example. Made them a few times in school and loved them. Made them a few times at a hotel early in my career and loved them. Haven’t made them since, and not exactly sure why. They taste amazing, and as I try to make clear in the video, the texture this method provides is unlike anything you get by just roasting. The way the crusty, crunchy edges outside, works with the uniquely rich and creamy inside is truly a magical thing. 

I just think that we’re so used to the usual rotation of potato side dishes; fried, roasted, mashed, etc., that it’s hard to push ourselves to do a potato recipe that has multiple steps. In fairness, the multiple steps are super easy, but still. Anyway, if you’ve never experienced the old world awesomeness that is the fondant potato, I hope this video inspires you to try. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 fondant potatoes:

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 large russet potatoes (other varieties will not work as well)

salt and pepper to taste

a knob of butter (a 2 or 3 tablespoon size chunk)

4 thyme sprigs

1/2 cup chicken broth or stock, more if needed
*Roast at 425 F until tender, about 30 minutes

View the complete recipe

Pan-Roasted Marble Potatoes – A Short Post About Little Potatoes from a Small Town

You’ll have to excuse the smaller than usual blog post, but I just flew across country, and boy are my arms tired…sorry, not arms, I meant jokes. 

Anyway, I’m back at my mom’s for a few weeks to help her out after some shoulder surgery, and despite a very late, turbulent, and sleepless flight, I had just enough energy left to post this marble potatoes video.

I generally try to stick with ingredients that can be found at any large grocery store, and I hope that’s the case here, but to be honest I really didn’t care, as these were just too damn cute not to film. If at all possible, I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

4 stripes bacon, sliced

1 pound marble potatoes

salt and pepper to taste

2 tsp chopped rosemary

1 tbsp rice vinegar, or any vinegar

View the complete recipe

Pizza Monkey Bread

When my family gets together we love to ask each other questions like "If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?" or "if you could pick your real dream job, not having to worry about making enough money etc, what would you do?" or "what is your honest opinion about ."

It makes for some riveting discussions and I always end up learning something new about the very people who I grew up with.  One day someone (probably me) asked, "if you had to eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?"  Tough question!  Especially for a person who essentially likes everything, with the exception of goat cheese, I know, I know.

But truth me told, I'd have to say pizza.  Not a very foodie answer, but I've got to be honest.  I LOVE pizza.  And I love how versatile it is, there are endless combinations which would keep it from ever getting boring.  Plus, I mean, c'mon, it's pizza.  It's hot, gooey, comforting, full of flavor, and always ready for a party. 

I got really excited when Barbara from Barbara Bakes posted her Pizza Monkey Bread.  Not only does it have all the great elements of a food I already love, but it's in a different and fun form that kids love.  Who wouldn't want to tear off a piece of this and dunk it into it's warm, homemade marinara.  It really is a party.

Click here for the original recipe and for a great video on how to make them.  Enjoy!

Tzatziki Sauce – Can You Say Delicious?

Whenever I do ethnic recipes like this Greek tzatziki sauce, I’ll usually go online and listen to an audio dictionary or some YouTube videos to verify the pronunciation. Of course, just listening to it doesn’t mean I’ll actually be able to pronounce it that way. A western New York accent is a strange and unpredictable thing, but at least I know how far off I am.

This time things were a little different.  I must have listened to a half-dozen examples, and they all were fairly unique. Everything from how I say it, TA-ZEE-KEY, to something that sounded a lot like CHA-CHEE-KEE, which, by the way, is my new favorite way to say it. Just for fun, maybe you all can leave your best phonetic spelling of “Tzatziki” in the comments section, and we’ll see what the consensus is.

Unlike the pronunciation, one thing that everyone will agree on is that this garlicky yogurt sauce is truly of one of the world’s great condiments. This is quite literally delicious on anything savory, and with grilling season upon us, you’ll want this one in your regular rotation. I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Make about 3 cups of Tzatziki:

2 cups Greek yogurt

1 large cucumber, peeled, grated, tossed with 1/2 teaspoon of salt

4 cloves garlic, very finely minced

juice of half a lemon or vinegar to taste

3 tbsp chopped fresh dill and/or mint

salt, pepper, cayenne to taste

View the complete recipe

Oven “Grilled” Parsnips – Could These Replace French Fries?

No chance – but that doesn’t take anything away from this simple, delicious, and quite dip-able roasted parsnips recipe. As I mention in the video, I was inspired by some grilled parsnips that showed up as a side dish at a recent meal, and I wanted that same effect without having to go out to the backyard.

The combination of a very hot oven, the generous cooking time, and a pre-roast, lemon-olive oil soak gets you pretty close to grill marks country. Also, this method seems to mellow the root’s bold flavor, and while the outside remains pleasantly fibrous, the inside gets creamy and sweet.

One note about the use of lemon here: As anyone who has ever tried to cook raw green beans in a tomato sauce will tell you, an acidic cooking liquid can toughen the surface of a vegetable. I learned why in culinary school, but that was in 1984, and I’m kind of fuzzy on anything before the Clinton administration. I’m sure one of our resident scientists will chime in with a concise explanation.

Anyway, whether you’re looking for a new and exciting side dish, or something to dip into aioli besides potatoes, I hope you give this oven “grilled” parsnips recipe a try. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 servings:

2 pounds parsnips
juice of one lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
*Aleppo pepper, to taste

*Aleppo pepper is my new favorite ground chili pepper! It’s a moderately hot and fruity pepper that’s said to have “cumin-like undertones,” as Wikipedia puts it. For more information, click here.

Bourbon-Glazed Carrots – An Easter Side Dish that Really Shines

Before all you cardiologists out there start a petition drive to have my channel removed from YouTube, let me add the following disclaimer: These butter-soaked, bourbon-glazed carrots should be enjoyed no more than twice a year. 

Okay, now that we got that out of the way, I can go ahead and tell you that this is, in my humble opinion, the greatest, special-occasion carrot side dish of all time. Sweet, savory, and oh so glossy.

And yes, as unreasonable as it sounds, you do need bourbon to make bourbon-glazed carrots. What happens if you just make this recipe and use water instead of the whiskey? You get glazed carrots. Close, but no cigar. By the way, in related news, bourbon also pairs very well with cigars. Anyway, if you’re looking for a stellar, and very shiny vegetable side dish for your Easter celebration, I hope you give these bourbon-glazed carrots a try. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6-8 Portions:

1 stick (4-oz) butter

2 or 3 pounds carrots, peeled, cut into equal-sized pieces

1/2 to 1 tsp fine salt, or to taste

1/2 cup bourbon or any kind of whiskey

1/3 cup brown sugar

freshly ground black pepper and cayenne to taste

fresh thyme leaves to garnish, optional

View the complete recipe

White Beans with Prosciutto

For dinner it always seems like I work really hard on a main dish, but then my side dishes always end up being...how you say...LAME.  It usually ends up being a mess of veggies roasted on a cookie sheet, or on my most desperate nights, some medley from a can or frozen bag.  I let it pass on the merit that we actually have some sort of green on our plate at all, but sometimes it's nice to have a thought out side dish to really complete the meal.

I rarely serve beans as a side dish, which is a shame, because they're awesome.  They're creamy, filling and lend themselves to a ton of possibilities.  I loved these white beans with prosciutto.  They are packed with flavor, but aren't too overpowering to sit alongside the main course.  The fresh herbs and white wine make them taste very fresh and bright, with just a hint of smoky/salty from the prosciutto.  Enjoy!

White Beans with Prosciutto
From The New Way to Cook Light

Ingredients

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons dry white wine
3 tablespoons fat-free chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 ounce thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped

Directions

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add oil to pan; swirl to coat.  Add onion to pan; saute 2 minutes.  Add garlic and rosemary; saute 30 seconds.  Add wine; cook until liquid evaporates.  Add broth, pepper, and beans; cook 3 minutes or until beans are thoroughly heated.  Stir in parsley adn prosciutto.

Serves 4: 1 serving is 1/3 cup

Per Serving: 94 cal, 31g fat, 5.9g prot, 10g carb, 2.9g fiber

Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins

Is there anything better than a chunk of warm cornbread next to a hot bowl of full flavored chili?  Especially when the cornbread is slightly sweet, soft in texture, and the perfect palate for butter, honey, or jam?  Nope, there really is nothing better!  (Well, except maybe a Swedish massage or an all expense paid trip to Tahiti, but let's focus on the simple things.)

I made this to accompany the delicious Chicken Barley Chili I featured in my previous post.  It was the perfect side kick to the robust flavors.  The pumpkin really does something to the flavor of the cornbread, not to mention the beautiful orange hue it gives.  And forget about dealing with anything dry or crumbling, these are so soft, you could eat them plain, I did!

This whole meal was a total kid pleaser!  I fed five kids with this and every single one of them ate everything, some even asking for seconds.  Definitely a keeper.

Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins
By Nancy Creative

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 large eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup plain yogurt 
1/4 cup canola oil
1 Tablespoon molasses
1/2 Tablespoon honey

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease an 8×8″ baking pan or line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, and cornmeal (using a whisk to blend these ingredients works well); after blending ingredients well, set aside.
In a large bowl, beat eggs, then stir in the pumpkin puree, plain yogurt, canola oil, molasses, and honey.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until combined. Pour batter into the greased 8×8″ baking pan, smoothing the top, OR spoon batter into 12 lined muffin cups (each cup should be about 2/3 full of batter).

Bake CORNBREAD (in 8×8″ pan) at 375 degrees for 22 to 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or almost clean (be careful not to over-bake cornbread, or it will be too dry).

Bake CORNBREAD MUFFINS at 375 degrees for 14 to 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or almost clean (do not over-bake, or muffins will be too dry and may brown on the bottom).

Duck Fat Roasted Brussels Sprouts – P.H.A.T. with an “F”

With all the rich and decadent football party food I’ve been sharing lately, I’d thought I’d take a little break, and post a nice, simple green vegetable side dish. Of course, these beautiful roasted Brussels sprouts were just a prop so I could demonstrate using leftover duck fat, but still.

If you watch any amount of celebrity chef TV, you’ve undoubtedly heard them going off on the virtues of duck fat. They mostly pontificate on its deep, palate-coating richness, which is true; but they also like to point out the health benefits. That part is a little cloudy…you know, like saturated fat when it cools down.

Duck fat does have much less saturated fat than butter, and is higher in oleic acid, the stuff that makes olive oil so popular with the healthy eating gurus, but make no mistake, this is still an animal fat, and should be used in moderation. The good news: “in moderation” totally works!

A few tablespoons and a very hot oven is all you need to turn some sleepy vegetables into something much more special. As I mention in the video, bacon grease will make a fine (and even more flavorful) substitute, but if you do cook duck, saving the leftover fat is nothing short of mandatory. I hope you give this technique a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Brussels sprouts (about 4-6 per person)

salt, pepper, cayenne to taste

enough melted duck fat to coat vegetables generously (about 2-3 tablespoons per pound of sprouts)

fresh squeezed lemon to finish

*Roast at 450 degrees F. until tender but still a little firm, about 15-20 minutes

View the complete recipe

Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad

I'm going through a bit of a Buffalo Chicken obsession right now.  If it even slightly resembles the flavors of the classic chicken wing, I have to have it, or pin it :)  Who in the world though that chicken, drenched in hot sauce, smothered in blue cheese would be so good?  I don't know, but I sure would like to give whoever it was, one heck of a high five.

I found this wonderful salad on Shelbys page a few months ago and I've been in love ever since.  I've been known to whip up a huge bowl, and enjoy it for lunch every day until it runs out.  And I'm always sad when that day comes.

The flavors of this salad go so perfectly together.  The sauce has a great kick, thanks to the hot sauce and is balanced out with the pungent blue cheese.  It's spicy, but not too spicy for kids.  It's creamy, it's crunchy, and it really hits the spot when you need a savory dish full of flavor.  It's the perfect side dish for pot lucks and picnics, even if they are on your living room floor in front of the TV :).

Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad
By Grumpy's Honey Bunch

Ingredients

8 oz dried rotini pasta, cooked according to package directions
2 stalks celery, diced
1 green onion, thinly sliced, including green top
1/3 cup roasted red pepper
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed (I used canned chicken once when I was in a hurry, it turned out great)
1/2 cup Mayonnaise (I used low-fat)
2-3 tablespoons Frank's Red Hot Sauce (use according to taste, I like a lot, but if you're feeding a crowd, you may only want to do 2)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 tablespoon roasted red pepper brine (the juice the peppers are in)
2 tablespoons crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

Directions

Mix pasta, celery, onion, roasted red pepper and chicken in large mixing bowl.  Set aside.

Mix together Mayonnaise, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper brine and crumbled Gorgonzola cheese. 

Toss mayo mixture with pasta mixture and chill.  Enjoy

Garlic & Blue Cheese Green Bean Almondine – I Just Couldn’t Do It

When I went to culinary school in the early Eighties, the chef instructors used “Green Beans Almondine” as a prime example for the kind of stodgy, clichéd, faux-fancy, vegetable side dishes that we were supposed to eradicate shortly after graduation. 

This was the dawn of a new age of American cookery, and something so old-fashioned as green beans almondine had no place along side our newfangled raspberry vinaigrettes and cajun fish.

There was only one problem with this prohibition...green beans and almonds tasted really good together, and made for a lovely side dish once in a while. Of course, fearing you’d be laughed out of the young, hot cooks club (hot from heat, not from hotness) you just didn’t dare make or serve such a dinosaur.

Anyway, to make a long story short, I’ve finally done a green beans almondine video, but added roasted garlic and blue cheese to it, just in case any of my old classmates are watching.  I actually did this at Thanksgiving, sans nuts, and it got rave reviews, so I had a feeling the addition of the slivered almonds would work just fine, and they did! I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4-6 portions:
1 pound green beans, blanched in boiling, salted water until almost tender

3 heads garlic

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

cayenne to taste

1/3 cup sliced almonds browned in 1 tsp butter

2 oz Pt. Reyes blue cheese, or other blue cheese

400 degrees F. for 15 minutes

View the complete recipe

Sweet Corn & Wild Mushroom Spoonbread – Best Cornbread Dressing I’ve Ever Accidentally Made!

It’s always nice when you start out making one thing, and it unexpectedly turns into something else, which ends up being far better than you expected. Such was the case with this quite homely, yet amazingly delicious sweet corn and wild mushroom spoonbread.

I was trying to do a simple, wild mushroom-studded, sweet corn casserole to reinforce our holiday side dish repertoire, and before I knew it, I was eating the best, most flavorful cornbread dressing I’d ever tasted. Not only that, but we completely eliminated the step of having to make corn bread first!

Of course, I wish I could do stuff like this on purpose, but like my golf buddies used to say, “better lucky, than good.” The only drawback, as I obsessed over in the video, was the less that stellar appearance when it came out of the oven. 

I may try some type of gratin topping next time, but honestly, this was so wonderful tasting that I can’t even pretend to be upset over such superficial concerns.  I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 12 portions:

1/2 cup dried porcini mushroom pieces, softened in 1 cup hot tap water, squeezed dry

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon fine salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

cayenne to taste

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup milk
1 pound sweet corn, drained well

1/4 cup chopped green onions

oil to grease baking dish

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30-35 min

View the complete recipe

Forbidden Rice Risotto

comfort food.  that's what cold weather is all about...

but with a HEALTHY TWIST

let's just say that this is NOT your typical "risotto".

i would call it "risotto-like"...but it definitely fits the comfort-food category

all the deep rich flavors from the slow cooking and reducing are there, but the black rice has a different texture...almost "al dente-like" to regular rice.  it maintains it's shape no matter how long you cook it.  i cooked this for a good 1 hour and 20 minutes!  the black rice does not act like the Arborio used in classic risotto, but it does make an interesting twist on a popular comfort food dish.  

the end result was delicious and worth the effort, but i think i'll leave the risotto up to the professionals.

on the other hand....

for a fabulous easy recipe using this super-food rice...one on the sweet comfort food list, check out my post on "Black Rice Pudding".  i'm not sure i will make the risotto again (due to the time and effort), but i will surely be making the rice pudding for a healthy dessert alternative or breakfast treat..

Forbidden Rice...once revered for Emperor's only...is now considered one of the new "super-foods".

not only is it full of antioxidants, it is packed with a load of health benefits and more are being discovered.  for more information you might want to click HERE  and  HERE.

FORBIDDEN RICE RISOTTO

original found at Sparkpeople by user LITTLE_NIKKE

1 cup dried forbidden rice

2 1/2 - 3 cup vegetable or chicken broth

NOTE...i ended up using 4 cups homemade broth AND almost 1 can of low sodium broth (see more notes)

1 tbsp butter

1/2 medium shallot chopped fine

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 big Tbsp shiitake mushroom powder

1/3 cup white wine

1/8 cup grated parmesan cheese

fresh thyme, basil or Italian parsley for topping

8-10 crimini mushrooms, sauteed and browned for additional topping

in a saute pan, melt the butter over medium heat and saute shallots until translucent.  do not brown.  add the forbidden rice and cook for a minute, stirring well so that the rice is well coated with butter and shallots.  deglaze the pan with the white wine and stir to incorporate.  when the wine reduces turn the heat to medium-low and add warm chicken stock...1/2 cup at a time.  add the dried thyme and shiitake mushroom powder.  when 1/2 cup has absorbed, add another...then do this again and again until all stock has been used and risotto looks creamy, done and delicious.  i guess this is "risotto 101".  i have never made risotto, but this is what i was told to do.  i'm sure it takes practice for a perfect risotto.

when you feel it is done, check for seasoning, stir in some grated parmesan and top with fresh thyme, basil OR Italian parsley...and sauteed crimini mushrooms.

A FEW NOTES...if i were to cook this again...i would probably pre-cook the black rice.  then go on with the risotto-like instructions.  i bet it would shorten the overall cooking time, make for a softer bite and it would take less stock.  the recipe called for 2.5 cups of stock and i went through about 5-6 cups of liquid AND it was on the stove for about 1 1/2 hours before it was done..

also when reheating (i had left-overs) just add a little more stock.

Old-Fashioned Cracker Dressing & Stuffing – Do You Dare?

Here we go again, delving into the treacherous topic of changing up your traditional Thanksgiving side dishes. This time, it’s an old-fashioned cracker dressing vying to be that surprise, uninvited guest.

Sure some you alternative lifestylists may go for the cornbread, but generally, bread-based variations rule the day. There’s a great reason for this; they’re easy, delicious, and most importantly, very familiar. Therein lies the problem.

Why mess with past success? Your loved ones wait all year for your Thanksgiving feast, so why take the chance of disappointing them on the big day? You have the entire rest of the year to do that.

Anyway, I’m not going to try and convince you that this is a superior dressing, or that you should change your regular routine, but if you’re someone who's looking for a change of pace dressing, that’s still very familiar and comforting, this could be the one.

Of course, you can use whatever ingredients you normally add to your bread dressing, and it should work just the same. By the way, I never stuff my turkey, so if you choose to use this as a stuffing, please refer to the roughly one million Thanksgiving turkey cooking guides linked online. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 16 portions:

1 pound saltine crackers (4 sleeves)

1/2 cup butter

1 large or 2 small yellow onions, diced

3 or 4 ribs of celery, diced

1 tsp salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

cayenne to taste

1/2 tsp dried sage

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried rosemary

2 3/4 cups chicken or turkey broth

1/2 cup cream or milk

1 or 2 eggs

*Tip: you can cook a small nugget in a pan and taste for seasoning

Bake at 375 degrees F. for bout 45 minutes

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