Root Beer Bourbon Glaze

This recipe comes from one of my favorite chef's. Emeril Lagasse. I have a hard time watching his show, but he has some really good recipes out there. This one needed a couple of tweaks to make work (Sorry Emeril), but is delicious on various meats. I've used this on ribs (as the original recipe calls for), chicken, pork chops and shrimp. All of them, were great and have gotten numerous compliments.

Glaze:
1 (12-ounce) cans root beer
4 tablespoons hot pepper jelly
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons steak sauce
1 teaspoon Caribbean Pick-A-Peppa sauce
1 stick cinnamon
1 orange, zested and juiced
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 teaspoons bitters (recommended: Angostura)
1 cup bourbon
1 cup sugar

Dry Rub:
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon paprika
3/4 teaspoon granulated garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated onion powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup chicken stock

Directions
To make the glaze, place all of the ingredients for the glaze in a wide bottom pan, and cook over medium-high heat. Bring the contents of the pot to a boil, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once the mixture has come to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and allow the mixture to reduce to a glaze consistency, about 25 to 30 minutes longer. Remove the glaze from the stove and strain though a fine mesh strainer. Reserve and keep warm, until ready to use.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the kosher salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Stir well to incorporate, and use 1 tablespoon of the spice rub to cover each of the ribs. Rub the mixture into the meat and allow it to sit undisturbed for at least 20 minutes.

Depending on the meat you are using, there are different steps to follow. If using pork ribs or bone-in chicken follow the steps below:
Preheat oven to 275*. Rub meat down with dry rub. Place in baking pan and add 1/2 c chicken stock. Cover pan with aluminum foil and cook for 2 - 2 1/2 hrs. Remove from oven, and place on a plate. Heat grill to med-high heat. Place meat on the grill and baste with glaze.

For all other cuts of meat, heat grill to med-high heat, add meat and baste with glaze, and cook until done.


For all other meats

Seared Ahi Tuna Steaks over Ginger-Soy Noodles

A couple of weeks ago my husband took a trip to go tuna fishing off the coast of Hatteras Island, NC. He had a great time, and came home with 80 lbs of fresh from the sea tuna. What does someone do with 80 lbs of tuna. Why slice it up and give most of it away. However that still leaves a good amount of meat left over. Well of course there is the obvious shashmi. Mix up a little wasabi paste, mix with soy sauce, and just dip the tender raw strips, and enjoy. Now I would be happy with never making it any other way. What could be more perfect? No cooking, dinner done in about 30 seconds flat. However, I don't think my family would let me get away with that everyday. So I came up with this. This is actually an accumulation of several recipes, adjusted to meet our tastes. It actually was really good, and even my pickiest eater the 3 year old, tore this meal up, and asked for more.


Tuna Steaks


3 Tuna Steaks (sushi grade)
1 tbsp Dark Sesame Oil
1/4 c Soy Sauce (Low Sodium)
2 tbsp minced fresh ginger root
2 cloves minced garlic
2 scallions (thinly sliced, diagonally)
1 tsp lemon juice

Mix together, in a large plastic bag, the oil, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, lemon juice and green onions, leaving a couple of tablespoons of the onions
out for garnish. Add the tuna steaks and marinade
in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.


Ginger Soy Noodles
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp Minced garlic
2 tbsp Minced fresh ginger
1 Serrano pepper (seeded and minced)
1/2 ts Minced lemon zest
1/2 c Rice wine vinegar
1/3 c Reduced-salt soy sauce
1/2 c Chicken stock
2 ts Sugar
1 lb Soba or somen noodles
1/2 c Diagonally-sliced scallions

Add the oil to a small saucepan and saute the garlic and ginger over medium heat until they just begin to color. Add the Serrano pepper, lemon zest, vinegar, soy sauce, stock and sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce slightly. Remove from the heat and set aside. Keep warm. Cook the noodles in lightly salted boiling water until just al dente, according to package directions.

Drain and toss with half of the ginger-soy sauce mixture and the scallions.

In a large pan, spray with non-stick spray, and heat over medium-high heat until hot. Remove steaks from the marinade and sear steaks for 1-1 1/2 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and slice in 1/4" slices.

Serve the tuna steaks on a bed of noodles drizzled with the remaining ginger-soy sauce and sprinkle with remaining green onions

Jerk Pork Tenderlion

Yesterday we received over 2 feet of snow. I love the snow, but really this is enough now. This is the second historic storm this season. In our house we decided to have a luau. We are done with the snow now, and need a little warm weather inspiration. And what better way to spice it up than with some jerk seasoning.

3 lbs Pork Tenderloin
1 bunch green onions
3/4 tbsp mustard seeds
2 tbsp espresso ground coffee
1 cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup lime juice
7 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 tbsp lime zest
1 tbsp habenaro pepper sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar

Preheat oven to 425* Place all ingredients (except pork), into a food processor and blend until a paste forms. Rub the tenderloin down with the paste on all sides.

Please meat in the oven and bake for 15 minutes to sear meat. Reduce heat to 325* and cook until internal temperature reaches 160*. Slice and serve.

This will make a a delicious sauce that you can use to pour over the meat when serving.

London Broil Roulade

Marinade:
1/2 cup Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
3 cloves of Garlic
2 Tbsp parsley

Roulade:
2 lbs London Broil (Cut thin lengthwise)
6 strips of bacon (cooked)
1/2 lb Shitake Mushrooms (cleaned and sliced)
2 cups fresh spinach (collapsed)
1 large onion (sliced)
1/4 lb Provolone Cheese (sliced)
4 cups Arugula leaves
1 tbsp Brandy

Prepare marinade. Combine all ingredients for the marinade and place meat and marinade in a plastic bag and let sit at room temp for 4-6 hours.

In a small saute pan, melt 1 tbsp butter and heat 1 tbsp olive oil. Saute the onion rings until tender. Remove from pan and set aside. Add mushrooms to the same pan, add 1 tbsp of red wine vinegar and one clove of garlic and cook until tender.

Lay the meat on flat surface. Line meat with a thin layer of spinach, then layer bacon, add a layer of cheese, mushrooms and onion. Note: You won't use all of the mushrooms or onions. The remaining mushrooms and onion will be used later. Roll meat and secure with toothpicks. Sear the roulade in a large frying pan, seam side down first to seal it. Then cook on each side until done, about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile in a large saute pan, melt 1 tbsp butter and heat 1 tbsp olive oil, add arugula leaves and remaining mushrooms. As leaves start to wilt add the brandy.

When roulade is cooked through, remove from heat and slice approximately 1" thick.

Place wilted leaves on a plate, then add sauteed onions, and top with a slice of the roulade.

Chicken-Mushroom Rice Bake

Mushrooms, Chicken, Garlic and Wine, are there really any flavors that go so well together? Well sure there is, but this recipe is easy and delicious and that my friends make it the perfect meal.

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast (pounded and split)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup chicken broth
1 1/4 cup long grain rice (uncooked)
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 small onion sliced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
5 cloves garlic minced (divided)
1 cup dry white wine (divided)
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (grated and divided)
salt, pepper, garlic powder, papirka


In a saute pan, melt butter and heat oil. Add mushrooms and onions and saute until almost done. When mushrooms are tender and opaque, add 2 cloves of garlic and 1/4 cup white wine, and cook until mushrooms and onions are done and lightly browned. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a bowl combine cream of mushroom soup, chicken broth, remaining wine, 3 cloves garlic, 1 1/2 cup cheese and whisk. Stir in onions and mushrooms.

Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick spray. Pour in soup mixture, then stir in rice. Top mixture with chicken breast. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt, pepper, garlic powder and papirka.

Bake at 375* for 35 min. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of chicken and cook an additional 10 min.

Scallops in White Wine Sauce

A Black Friday Special. The day before Thanksgiving I had fixed beef. No sense in fixing poultry when the next day there would be 13 lbs of fowl on our dinner table. So for Black Friday dinner, I couldn't fix beef again, well because we just had that 2 days before, and no poultry for obvious reasons, so the only logical thing to cook is seafood. However the trick is to come up with something that a picky 3-year old would eat. Pasta!!! What toddler turns anything down with pasta in it?

I sort of just threw this dish together, because I had been out shopping since 4:30 am and well, I was NOT going out for some groceries to cook dinner. Thankfully I keep an assortment of yummy things on hand. It didn't turn out half bad.

1 lb of Argetine scallops

1 lb linguini (cooked)

1 head of fresh broccoli (stalks removed, and cut into florets)

2 shallots (finely chopped)

3 tbsp butter (divided)

1/2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup dry white wine

1 tbsp flour

6 cloves of garlic (minced)

1 tsp lemon juice

1/4 c water

1/2 cup heavy cream

garlic powder

black pepper

cayenne pepper

In a large skillet, melt 2 tbsp butter. Add shallots and garlic. Saute until tender. Then add the wine and , and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook, at a gentle boil and until reduced by half.

While wine is cooking, in a small skillet, heat olive oil and melt 1 tbsp butter, and saute scallops. Sprinkle with garlic powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper. Cook until done and set aside.

In a microwavable bowl, add broccoli, water and lemon juice, and microwave on high for 6 minutes until tender but crisp.

Back to the pan with the wine, add flour and stir until smooth. Stir in cream. Add scallops and broccoli, and stir to coat. Serve over pasta.

Real Green Bean Casserole

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and is still full from all the good eats. And what holiday meal would be complete with out a green bean casserole. However I just can not bring myself to make the Campbell's version. I don't like, it is bland and boring. So I make my own. I know it looks like alot of ingredients and like alot of work, but trust me in this, it is alot easier than it appears, and the taste is soooo worth it.

1 1/2 lbs. fresh green beans (cleaned & cut)

1/2 c flour

1/2 c + 2 tbsp butter (melted) divided

2 cups swiss cheese (shredded)

2 cups sour cream

1/2 lbs white mushrooms (cleaned & sliced)

4 slices of bacon (cooked and crumbled)

1 shallot (finely chopped)

4 cloves garlic (minced)

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup French's Fried Onions

spray oil

In a small frying pan, add olive oil, and 2 tbsp butter. Once butter is melted, add mushrooms on med-high heat and cook until almost done (about 4-5 minutes). Then add the shallots and garlic. Good until tender (about 2-3 minutes). Set aside.

In a large sautee pan, melt remaining butter, slowly start adding flour, stirring constantly, until you develop as very thick roux. Add sour cream until completely blended. Then slowly add in the cheese, stirring contantly so it becomes completely melted and blended into sour cream mixture. Once the cheese is melted all of the other ingredients (except fried onions) one at a time, until everything is coated.

Use spray oil to coat a 2 qt casserole dish. Pour mixture into casserole dish, top with fried onions and back at 400* for 45 min.