We all need to eat. But, how about waking up those taste buds...no more take-out, pre-package, frozen-in-a-tin-tray pretend-food give up your best recipe...

Here we go...

Salmon with Dill, Garlic and Lemon (Pan Fried, Oven Roasted or BBQed)

Equipment List
Pan/Skillet w/cover (10/12 inch will do) or baking sheet w/foil, or just foil if using open fire
Pan/Pot holder, towel or cooking mitt (don't want to burn your hand(s))
Wide spatula, to turn things over, tongs don't work so well (you will need a long pair of tongs if is using fire.)
Stove top, oven, BBQ or open fire
Plates, knives, forks...you know the rest.

Ingredient List
Salmon - individual fillets or steaks, or the whole fillet (I forgot, skinless fillets work best)
Dill, the real thing, several sprigs, stems and leaves (you will need enough to cover both sides of the fishy)
Garlic - thin or thick sliced, one or two or however many cloves you like
Lemon Juice - yes, squeeze it yourself (as little or as much as you like...don't drown the little fishy though)
Salt and Pepper (Sea Salt and fresh ground Pepper)
EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil (for cooking and drizzling)

All of the above ingredient amounts are your choice, light or heavy, I like lots of dill and garlic, the rest are just a pinch or two, and a tablespoon or two per fillet/steak of EVOO...more if you like.

One more thing, get all equipment out/ready to go and all ingredients prepared before you begin cooking

Lets get cookin...this is the pan fried version, for one or two fillets/steaks

Note, if your fishy is more than 1 inch thick increase the cooking time by a minute or two...this is not sushi

Steps

1 - Lightly rub some EVOO on your fishy, then lightly Salt/Pepper (both sides)
2 - Get yeole pan/skillet on the stove top...preferably the burner closest to you.

3 - Add the EVOO into the pan/skillet, yes no heat yet.
4 - Turn up the heat, to medium/high and let the EVOO warm up (not to the smoking point)
5 - Using protective device to not burn hand(s), tilt the pan to move the EVOO around...put pan back on burner
6 - Add the sprigs of dill to the pan (half of your sprigs/leaves), like a bed/blanket to lay the fishy in
7 - Next...the garlic (half of your sliced cloves), put it on top of the dill (as much as you like)
8 - Now the salmon, lay it (the fillets/steaks) on top of the dill/garlic

9- Cover, let cook for 5/6 minutes...don't let it burn, turn down the heat to medium if required.
10 - Remove cover, remove fishy, dill and garlic from pan
11 - Repeat steps 3 thru 8 above...okay, keep the pan hot.

12 - Next, plate and serve your fishy...Oh yea, remove the top layer of dill

What about the Lemon, drizzle a bit on top of your fishy...drizzle some EVOO too, it's a nice taste treat.

You might serve some wild rice and/or veggies with your fishy, a nice white wine is good also, I like Savignon Blanc (a very dry one).

Okay now, for the oven, BBQ or open fire...

- Oven, 350 or 375, extend the cooking time a bit more 7/8 minutes (use a sheet pan covered with foil).

- BBQ, you griller's know what to do, 350/375, about the same grillin time as the oven.

- Open fire, wrap all the ingredients in foil, close the foil pouch so your fishy doesn't escape, then toss it in the fire for about the same time as above. Be careful, fire is not predictable, if you let it cook tooooo long it may burn...also, use a long pair of tongs to pull your fishy out of the fire no burnt hands okay...


Happy cookin/eatin!

Great Topic! Here's mine

Sausages with Cider Gravy

Ingredients
2-3 large leeks
2 eating apples, peeled, cored
4 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
few sprigs each of thyme, sage and rosemary
olive oil
12 good quality thick pork sausages
flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
500ml/17fl oz cider (alcohol to our american friends, not the juice stuff that you call cider!)
400ml/14fl oz tinned beef consommé or fresh beef stock
For the mashed potatoes:
8 medium to large floury potatoes
olive oil
flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
salted butter
small handful of roughly chopped fresh herbs of your choice (e.g. parsley, basil, thyme or sage) or 1-2 tsp mustard (optional)

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
2. Stab the potatoes several times with a fork and sit on a very large piece of aluminium foil. Pour over some olive oil and add plenty of salt. Wrap the foil loosely around the potatoes and fold over the edges to seal. Place in the oven and bake for 1¾ hours. Rather than baking, they will steam in the foil, giving a fluffy centre and soft skin.
3. While the potatoes are cooking, slice the leeks fairly thinly and wash well, getting rid of any grit. Scatter into a roasting tray with the apples, garlic and herbs. Pour over some olive oil and place the sausages on top. Season the whole lot with salt and pepper, then place in the oven for about 45 minutes, turning the sausages occasionally and moving the leeks around to prevent them from sticking. If they seem to be catching in the base of the pan, add a drop of the cider.
4. To check the potatoes are cooked, carefully open the foil and insert a sharp knife into a potato. If it comes out easily, they're done. If they still seem a little hard, put them back and check again after a further 10 minutes. Once they are cooked, remove them from the oven and keep warm in the foil for about 5 minutes, then tip into a large bowl. (For some, the best part of a potato is the skin, with its lovely nutty flavour. If you'd rather, you can easily peel it away before smashing the potatoes.) Roughly smash with a potato masher, adding plenty of butter (olive oil can be used as an alternative), herbs or mustard, if using, and seasoning, resulting in a very rustic-looking fluffy mash.
5. Take the roasting tray from the oven and place the sausages on serving plates with the potatoes and keep warm.
6. Remove the herb sprigs from the roasting tray and place the tray over a high heat. Add the cider and bring to the boil. When the cider has reduced by half, add the beef consommi or stock. Bring to the boil and cook for a few minutes until the quantity of gravy has reduced by about a third, giving you a rich, full-flavoured, loose gravy. Taste and add seasoning if it's needed. Spoon the gravy and leeks over the bangers and mash and tuck in.

Alternatively, use 3 large sliced onions instead of the leeks, cooking them in exactly the same way.

Ooooh, and for dessert

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Sticky Toffee Pudding


2 cups plain flour

2 teaspoons Bicarb

3 eggs

1.1/2 cups castor sugar

1 tin apricots

Sieve dry ingredients
Strain fruit
put into blender with eggs

Put into a greased tin about 8"square

Bake 30-40 mins 350 F gas mark 5

Toffee
125grms butter
1/2 can evaporated milk (or 1 small can)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
3/4 cup soft brown sugar

Put into a saucepan and boil until toffee..this doesn't take long it will go a golden colour ...
Pour over sponge or serve separately

Chocolate Christmas Cake recipe:

Ingredients:

350g dried soft prunes, chopped

250g raisins

125g currants

175g unsalted butter, softened

175g dark muscovado sugar

175ml honey

125ml coffee liqueur (Khaluar is best) I'm going to do orange this yr ;)

2 oranges, juice and zest only

1tsp mixed spice

2tbsp good quality cocoa

3 free-range eggs, beaten

150g plain flour

75g ground almonds

(when I made it, I did half almonds and half flour, 112.5g each)

half tsp baking powder

half tsp bicarbonate of soda



Decorate with chocolate-covered coffee beans, edible glitter and edible stars. (I used top quality chocolate sprinkles, and I make a pretty ribbon to go round the cake, usually to match the runner).



Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150C

2. Line the sides and bottom of a 20cm, 9cm deep, round loose-bottomed cake tin with a layer of reusable silicon baking parchment. Ensure that the sides of the parchment are highter than the tin to protect the side/edges of the cake from over cooking.

3. Place the fruit, butter, sugar, honey, coffee liqueur, orange juice and zest, mixed spice and cocoa into a large wide saucepan. Heat the mixture until it reaches a gentle boil, stirring the mixture as the butter melts. Let the mixture simmer for 10 mins. Remove the saucepan from the heat and leave to stand for 30mins.

4. After 30mins, the mixture will have cooled a little. Add the eggs, flour, ground almonds, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda and mix well with a wooden spoon or spatula until the ingredients have combined.

5. Carefully pour the fruitcake mixture into the lined cake tin. Transfer the cake tin to the oven and bake for 1.75 to 2 hrs, or until the top of the cake is firm and has a shiny and sticky look. At this point, if you insert a sharp knife into the middle of the cake, the cake should still be a little uncooked in the middle.

6. Place the cake on a cooling rack. Once the cake has cooled, remove it from the tin.

7. Decorate as wished. Coffee beans in the centre of the cake are good, especially if it has sunk slightly to allow for a sticky texture in the centre.



Hope you enjoy this as much as we did last Christmas. It makes a pleasant change to boring fruit cake with marzipan and icing. We thought it was very yummy.

This makes an excellent dinner. Especially for autumn nights such as we are having now.


The Legendary Hot Brown Recipe

Ingredients:
4 oz. Butter
Flour to make a Roux (about 6 tablespoons)
3 - 3 1/2 cups Milk
1 Beaten Egg
6 tablespoons Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 oz. Whipped Cream (optional)
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Slices of Roast Turkey
8-12 Slices of Toast (may be trimmed)
Extra Parmesan for Topping
8-12 Strips of Fried Bacon

Melt butter and add enough flour to make a reasonably thick roux (enough to absorb all of the butter). Add milk and Parmesan cheese. Add egg to thicken sauce, but do not allow sauce to boil. Remove from heat. Fold in whipped cream. Add salt and pepper to taste.
For each Hot Brown, place two slices of toast on a metal (or flameproof) dish. Cover the toast with a liberal amount of turkey. Pour a generous amount of sauce over the turkey and toast. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese. Place entire dish under a broiler until the sauce is speckled brown and bubbly. Remove from broiler, cross two pieces of bacon on top, and serve immediately.

Rice Pud

6oz pudding rice
6oz brown sugar
3 pints of milk
pinch of salt
knob of butter
grate of nutmeg
scrapings out a vanilla pod {chuck it all in if you like}

stir

bake slowly for 2 hrs

stir a bit whilst it's baking if you dont like the skin

eat

espescially nice cold when you come in drunk

E-DOG'S WORLD FAMOUS HOT APPLE PIE

Go to grocery store
Shoplift apple pie (any brand will work, but, Mrs. Smiths is best) oh, and don't get caught!
Take home or to office (remove from package first so all will think you baked the dang thing)
Place in oven or under direct sunlight with magnifying glass
Heat (turn on oven or adjust proximity of magnifying glass)
While waiting for oven (or magnifying glass) to raise pie's temperature, initiate appetite augmentation process (roll and smoke joint)
Return to grocery store (memory lapse caused by years of appetite augmentation)
Shoplift 1/2 gallon WHOLE milk (why drink watered down milk, yer gonna eat a whole pie fer christs sake!)
Get the f*@k back home before pie turns to charcoal
Remove pie from heating device
Allow pie to sit there for a while to cool down (so mouth doesn't burn upon contact) (with the pie, dumb shit) and to further appetite augmentation
Snap out of stupor
Eat pie
Puke
Repeat as needed

E-dog

So THAT'S how you keep your girlish figure. Binge and purge.

Yo UB,
Are you hitting on me?
E

Sorry E-Dog,

I'm taken. My wife needs me.

Take 1 hungry man dinner, follow heating directions, add 5 tbs "franks red-hot" hot sauce. Eat

now you wont have to worry about constipation or going hungry!

Frank's is weak-ass. It's mostly vinegar...blech.
This is what you need. Wal-Mart, $1.66 a bottle, good stuff.

Click to view attachment

Ya know what we learned in school today?
sharing.

If stillfinger's sumptuous salmon dish isn't on the menu, here's an easy, quick fish option.

Fish for 4
Handful of flower
Oil
Onion/s, Capscium
Garlic
400mll Coconut Cream
Coriander
Salt&Pepper (Cayenne option)
Lemon

Take any fish for 3-4 people (I use white fish like monk or hoki or trumpeter or cardinal...) - cut into palm-sized chunks - dust in flour + salt

Chop and fry one or two onions - chuck in some chopped garlic towards the end. Throw in some chopped capscium if you have some or anything you think interesting (capers, chillies, mobile phones...)

Into a casserole dish, pour half of 400mll can coconut cream - add fried onion and floured fish - add rest of coconut cream - add 2 or 3 or 4 shakes of coriander - salt&pepper (cayenne if you like a hot dish) - cut lemon in half, squeeze juice from one half over fish and thinly slice other half and scatter over fish.

Stick lid on and bake at 180C for about 25min.

Serve with rice, fancy green salad and big glass of chilled NZ Sauvignon Blanc.

actually I'm known for my "box fan jerky" something i learned from Alton Brown of Food Network. I have also used this for Deer Jerky. I am going to cut and paste

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank steak
* 2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
* 2/3 cup soy sauce
* 1 tablespoon honey
* 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
* 2 teaspoons onion powder
* 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
* 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
* Special Equipment: 1 box fan, 4 paper air-conditioning filters, and 2 bungee cords

Trim the flank steak of any excess fat, place in a zip-top bag, and place it in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours in order to firm up.

Remove the steak from the freezer and thinly slice the meat with the grain, into long strips.

Place the strips of meat along with all of the remaining ingredients into a large, 1-gallon plastic zip-top bag and move around to evenly distribute all of the ingredients. Place the bag into the refrigerator for 3 to 6 hours.

Remove the meat from the brine and pat dry. Evenly distribute the strips of meat onto 3 of the air filters, laying them in the grooves and then stacking the filters on top of one another. Top these with 1 empty filter. Next, lay the box fan on its side and lay the filters on top of it. Strap the filters to the fan with 2 bungee cords. Stand the fan upright, plug in and set to medium. Allow the meat dry for 8 to 12 hours. If using a commercial dehydrator, follow the manufacturer's directions.

Once dry, store in a cool dry place, in an airtight container for 2 to 3 months.

Yummy Goat Cheese & Herbs (a great appetizer for any occasion)


6 ounce roll of plain goat cheese
4 sprigs (about 8 inches long) fresh rosemary
12 sprigs (about 6 inches long) fresh thyme
12 calamata olives
1 roasted red bell pepper (jar type is fine, I rarely roast my own fresh)
one half teaspoon fresh ground pepper
2 cloves of fresh garlic, crushed
4 ounces extra virgin olive oil




slice goat cheese into smaller medallions & arrange in a glass serving tray (one that has a rim so olive oil doesn't spill out)
cut about 2 inches of the top end of the rosemary off for garnish. pluck off all the rest of the leaves and sprinkle on cheese.
pluck off all of the leaves of the thyme and sprinkle it on the cheese. chop up the roasted red bell peppers and scatter on cheese
put the 2 cloves of garlic through a garlic press & scatter it on the goat cheese medallions. arrange the olives on the dish with cheese.
sprinkle on the fresh ground black pepper. drizzle the olive oil all over the entire dish covering the cheese & herbs as best as possible.
garnish with the 4 rosemary ends. cover with plastic wrap & put in the fridge for at least one day before serving so that the herbs' flavor is infused with the cheese & olive oil.
serve with crackers as an appetizer. I prefer stoned wheat crackers or keebler toasted sesame crackers.

Baked Halibut With Tomatoes And Capers

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups diced, canned tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon capers
4 halibut fillets, about 4 to 6 ounces each
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper

Cooking Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the tomatoes and capers, season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 more minutes.
3. Spoon a few tablespoons of sauce into a baking dish. Season the halibut fillets with salt and pepper and place them in a baking dish. Pour the rest of the sauce over the fish and bake until the fish is just cooked through, about 12 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish.

Whitebait

As many fresh whitebait as you can get (forget the frozen stuff, it has no taste)
Butter
Flour
S&P

Chuck some flour in a plastic bag, dribble in the whitebait and shake it all about.
Heat generous chunk of butter in pan at med-hot, throw in the floured whitebait and move it all about.
Once the bait turns from opaque to white (1-2min) remove and tip onto a plate.
Sprinkle lil' salt and pepper, maybe a squeeze of lemon if you're in that mood, and eat with a slice of buttered bread.
Best with a white wine or light beer and eaten on your own in total silence, orgastically savouring every mouthful to realise that heaven really is on earth.

Jamaican style baked beans.

sweat some onion in butter and season with black pepper, salt and a pinch of curry powder,
add a tin of beans and cook down slowly until they are all nice and mushed up.....

lob on your toast.


yeah man.

When you say a "tin" I recon you mean "can."
What kind of beans?
Pork and beans?
Already baked beans?
Young man, there are beans and there are BEANS.
Por favor, a little less syntactic ambiguity.
E

good point mr dog, if you were doin it the slow jamaican way you would probably use haricot and a little thyme.

In future posts I'll share something other than another fishy dish, but for today here goes..it's yummy with a light white wine; sweet or dry, and a veggie or two.

Fish with Sweet and Sour Onions
Serves 4, unless your really hungry, prep time is 10-15 minutes, cooking time 40 minutes and eating time idk...

Ingredients
4 cod, monk fish(kinda tastes like lobster, very yummy), snapper, flounder, halibut or sea bass fillets, 5 to 6 ounces each
1/4 cup olive oil
3 yellow onions, sliced 1/4 inch thick, about 4-5 cups
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, or to taste
1 teaspoon of clover or orange blossom honey, or to taste
1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, preferably oil packed, cut into thin slivers
3 tablespoons diced currants, plumped in hot water(or a good Sherry), drained and liquids saved; if currents aren't your thing use raisins
6 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
salt and pepper, to taste

Cooking Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add onions, sprinkle lightly with salt and cook over moderate heat until very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not let the onions brown.
3. Add the vinegar and honey and cook for 5 minutes. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, currants, and 4 tablespoons of the mint. Cook for a few minutes longer. Taste for seasoning. You may not need to add additional salt if the tomatoes have been salted, but you will want to add pepper. Adjust the sweet and sour ratio. If you'd like a sweeter taste, add some of the currant soaking liquids. Check again for salt.
4. Sprinkle the fish fillets with salt and pepper and place on to a lightly oiled baking dish. Cover with the onions. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. You may need to cook the fish a little longer if the onions were cool when you put them over the fish. Transfer the fish to serving plates and top with the remaining chopped mint.

For those interested this is a monk fish, but get the fillets, their easier to manage...

Click to view attachment

Okay...no fishy this time...just a simple dessert, serves two.

Bananas in Brown Sugar Rum Sauce

Ingredients
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon butter
1/2 teaspoon canola oil
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 teaspoon lime juice
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 small/medium bananas, quartered or sliced
1/4 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt

Preparation
Stir brown sugar, butter and oil in a medium skillet over medium heat until bubbling.
Add rum, lime juice and cinnamon and cook until slightly thickened.
Add bananas and cook, stirring, until tender.
Divide between 2 bowls and top with a dollop of low-fat vanilla yogurt.

We have had this a few times and love it, some variations include substituting Grand Marnier or a sweet Sherry for the rum, using vanilla ice cream instead of yogurt, and/or topping it off with walnuts or slivered almonds.

Hey, that's one of my long-time favourites. In place of low-fat yogurt I use full-fatty cream which may need some reconsideration. Sprinkle of dessicated coconut over the top doesn't go amiss, either.

Carrot and Ginger Soup
* 500g Carrots Peeled and Chopped
* 1 medium onion finely diced
* 1 medium Potato
* ½ tsp ginger powder (I always add more!)
* 1 tsp sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 tbsp Butter
* 900ml Water

- fry the onion in the butter in a deep pan until golden
- add the chopped carrots, potato and ginger and fry for 10 mins with the lid on the pan (you may need to add a little more butter here if desired)
- add the water & bring to the boil
- let the veg then simmer until cooked
- blend the ingredients in your food processor / blender until smooth
- return to the pan & add the sea salt and black pepper

Add a spoonful of creme fraiche to each prtion before eating

Sounds yummy...carrot and ginger soup...thank you Trinity

Lentil & Bulgur Pilaf with Green & Yellow Squash
Serve with warm whole-wheat flatbread or pita and a dollop of yogurt.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups brown lentils, rinsed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
Freshly ground pepper to taste
3/4 cup coarse bulgur wheat
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 small yellow squash, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or dill

Preparation:

Combine broth, lentils, onion, bay leaf, salt, allspice and pepper in a 3-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Add bulgur and cook until the lentils and bulgur are tender and the liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes more.

Remove the pilaf from the heat, discard the bay leaf and stir in lemon juice.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add zucchini, squash, garlic and lemon zest; saute for 5 minutes. Stir in parsley and cilantro (or dill). Season with pepper. Stir into the pilaf. Serve hot.

Hi Trin

WoW..must try your recipe..I would never have though of using ginger in a carrot soup, even though I love ginger.Your recipe is almost exactly the same as one I make without the potato and carrot but using parsnip,red apple and curry powder.

Stillfingers
I would love to try your recipe but I once tried to follow a recipe for a bulgar wheat salad, don't know what went wrong, whether I cooked it for too long or not long enough but it was...unusual. ..to say the least! and now my husband absolutly refuses to eat it.

Love reading the recipes..I have one for chocolate brownies which I will put up .

Catmint,

Good point, bulgur wheat can be tricky to cook, you could use brown rice; any rice for that matter, couscous, qinoua, kamut or any other whole grain.

Looking forward to your chocolate brownies recipe...

Jerry

So.... here is my recipe for Chocolate Brownies...I love it cos it's one of those things you can make any time from ingredients most of us have in our kitchen.

Also it's fine for people with egg or dairy allergies.

It is really scrummy....

Ingredients

250g unbleached all-purpose flour(I use wholemeal Self Raising)
300g white sugar(If you use brown it is really gooey)
65g unsweetened cocoa powder.(I use Green & Blacks,)
3g baking powder
235ml water
235ml vegetable oil
5ml vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Cent' or 350degrees Far'

In a large bowl stiir together the flour,cocoa and baking powder.

Pour in the water, vegetable oil and vanilla.

Mix well untill blended.

Spread evenly in a 9X13 inch baking pan.


Bake for around 30-35 minutes until the top is no longer shiny. ( I once forgot the time and left it in for 45 mins..it was fine. Although a little more crispy round the edges!

Let it cool for at least 10mins before cutting into squares.

I have made this and served it as a desert when still warmish with (soya) cream. I added cherries and every one loved it.

Also great if children want to have a try as every thing is made in one bowl and it's fun measuring the ingredients. ...and there's a yummy bowl to clean afterwards!

A note to my fellow chow hounds, twisted_ophelia has started a baked goodies recipes topic please share your sinfully delicious oven delights.

Okay, nothing special, just a simple potato dish...on the grill, yes you can bake this or throw it in the fire pit.

Grilled Potato Packets

Ingredients:

- 2 pounds Yukon Gold, or red/white new potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
- 3 medium shallots, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic power
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or regular
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

- Heat grill to medium-high.
- Meanwhile, place potatoes, shallots, oil, garlic power, salt and pepper in a large bowl; toss to coat.
- Place two 24-inch-long pieces of foil on the counter and lightly coat with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange potatoes and shallots in a single layer, slightly overlapping, on half of each piece of foil. Leave a 2-inch border on all sides. Fold foil over and pinch the edges together, making two packets.
- Place packets on the grill. Cover the grill and cook for 10 to 12 or so minutes; 12 to 15 minutes for new potatoes, or until potatoes are tender. (When you open a packet to check doneness, be careful of steam.) Serve immediately.

Stillfingers, those recipes are awesome!

Sugar and Nut Glazed Brie (mmmm I love cheese....)

1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped macadamia nuts or pecans
1 tablespoon brandy
1 (14-ounce) round brie
Apple wedges, for serving
Pear wedges, for serving
2 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice
Crackers, for serving

In a small bowl stir together the sugar, nuts, and brandy. Cover and chill for at least 24 hours or up to 1 week.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

Place the brie on an ovenproof platter or pie plate. Bake for 4 or 5 minutes or until the brie is slightly softened. Spread the sugar mixture in an even layer on top of the warm brie and bake for 2 to 3 minutes longer, or until the sugar melts. Brush the fruit wedges with lemon juice and arrange them around 1 side of the brie. Place crackers around the other side.

twisted_ophelia...yummy way to prepare Brie, here's a salad to go with it, some bitter/salty for your smooth, sweet, savory fromage. All we need is a crusty loaf of bread and a few bottles of wine...maybe a park and a sunny day as well.

Mixed Lettuce, Fennel & Orange Salad with Black Olive Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

Black olive vinaigrette

- 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Salad

- 3 medium navel or Valencia oranges
- 10 cups mixed lettuces (3 small heads), such as chicory, radicchio and leaf lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
- 2 heads Belgian endive, sliced
- 2 bulbs fennel, trimmed and sliced

Preparation:

- To prepare vinaigrette: Whisk vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in oil. Stir in olives and parsley.
- To prepare salad: Using a sharp knife, remove peel and white pith from oranges. Quarter the oranges; slice pieces crosswise.
- Just before serving, combine lettuces, endive, fennel and the orange slices in a large bowl. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad and toss to coat well.

That salad sounds amazing! I have some mixed greens I need to use up over the weekend and I will definitely try out the salad recipe. I love olives but I've only developed a taste for them in the last couple years, strangely enough. And they have to be the good quality olives, love black olives especially. I'm also a big fan of the sweet/salty combination. Picnic time!

Some of us like our fungi, for those that don't, please don't look, there are evil mushrooms lurking within

Savory Bread Pudding with Spinach & Mushrooms

Ingredients:

- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups low-fat milk
- 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, such as Tabasco; omit the hot stuff if you like...
- 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, divided
- 3 1/2 cups cubed stale whole-wheat country bread
- 1 10-ounce package frozen spinach
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup chopped onion (1 medium)
- 1 cup chopped red bell pepper (1 small)
- 4 cups sliced mushrooms; white button and/or brown cremini (12 ounces)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 cup grated Gruyère, Emmentaler or Manchego cheese (3 ounces), divided

Preparation:

- Whisk eggs in a large bowl. Add milk, hot sauce, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; whisk until blended. Add bread and stir to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat an 8-by-8-inch (or similar 8-cup) ceramic or glass baking dish with cooking spray. Put a kettle of water on to boil for the water bath.

- Cook spinach according to package directions. Drain, refresh with cold water and squeeze out excess moisture. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until tender and golden, 4 to 5 minutes. - - Add mushrooms and garlic; stir to blend. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Uncover and increase heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until any excess moisture from the mushrooms has evaporated and mushrooms begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the spinach, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook, stirring, 2 minutes.

- Add the mushroom mixture and 1/2 cup cheese to the egg mixture; stir until blended. Scrape into the prepared baking dish; sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheese evenly over the top. Place the baking dish in a larger pan, put in the oven and pour boiling water into the larger pan to about halfway up the sides of the baking dish. Bake until the pudding is set in the center, 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool slightly; serve hot or warm.

Hey, Stillfingers, do you have any vegetarian recipes for stuffed/roasted/grilled/etc bell peppers? I have a pack of four bell peppers that I need to use up. They're sitting in my crisper and I don't want to just cut them up and use them in a salad, I'd like to do something creative with them

Edited to add that I looooooove mushrooms... mmmm. One of my favorite foods! Edited again to add that if you have any brussels sprouts recipes, that'd be awesome too. I'm one of the few people out there who loves brussels sprouts. I usually just roast them in the oven with balsamic vinegar and sea salt but I'm getting a little tired of that!

TO,

Hmmm, peppers yes def i'll post a veggie one soon...do you like nuts; walnuts, almonds, macadamia, etc, and/or rasins...

brussel sprouts, i love them to...but they make me fart lol, so i dont eat them as much, we just split them in half, saute them in olive oil, sea salt, fresh ground pepper, sometimes add garlic too and replace oil with butter when going crazy, must have butter once in awhile

twisted_ophelia ,

Found it...hehehe...your veggie stuffed bells, we use red, orange, yellow or green, have even substituted chocolate bells, but only once, their not my fav. If you want to jazz it up a bit we sometimes add walnuts and/or raisins; and some hot sauce to just to be wacky...enjoy!

Roasted Red Peppers Stuffed with Kale & Rice

Ingredients:

Peppers

- 3 medium red bell peppers
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper to taste

Filling

- 8 ounces kale (6 cups lightly packed), trimmed
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup cooked short-grain brown rice (see Tip)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, divided (see Tip)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

- Peppers: Preheat oven to 400°F. Halve peppers lengthwise through the stems, leaving them attached. Remove the seeds. Lightly brush the peppers outside and inside with oil; sprinkle the insides with salt and pepper. Place, cut-side down, in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bake until peppers are just tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly. Turn cut-side up.

- Filling: Bring 2 cups salted water to a boil in a large wide pan. Stir in kale, cover and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water; squeeze dry. Finely chop.

- Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and chopped bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until onion is golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

- Stir in the kale. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Stir in rice, Parmesan, 2 tablespoons pine nuts and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Divide the filling among the pepper halves. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons pine nuts.

- Baking: Add 2 tablespoons water to the baking dish. Cover the peppers with foil and bake until heated through, 15 to 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 minutes more. Serve hot.

Tip:

- Brown rice: Place 1 cup brown rice, 21/2 cups water and a pinch of salt, if desired, in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer. Cover; cook over low heat until rice is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, 45 to 50 minutes. Makes approx. 3 cups.

- Toast pine nuts: Heat a small dry skillet over medium-low heat. Add pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes; or spread in a small baking pan and bake at 400°F for about 5 minutes...plez don't burn them, they get yucky.

- If adding walnuts and or rasins, add them to the filling raw.

- Hot sauce, add after cooking, otherwise it gets to mild

Cool, thank you! I love nuts and raisins, particularly walnuts and almonds. Not a big fan of the macadamia nuts though. I also love kale--though it was an acquired taste of mine. I think I'm one of the rare people on who brussels sprouts don't have a bad effect on the tummy. They don't make me fart and make for a happy poo during the next morning's BP I'd actually recommend them to anyone who's constipated!

Butter once in a while is good, yeah. My ex husband had sky high cholesterol a couple years ago (at the time he was 31 and he's not overweight! Yikes!) so we started removing all the saturated fats from our cooking, including butter. I started using light butters, butter substitutes, and cooking sprays but it's really not even remotely the same as the real thing. His cholesterol went down pretty quick after we took out those bad fats though.

Roasted Asparagus with Pine Nuts

Ingredients:

- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- 1 1/2 pounds asparagus
- 1 large shallot, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
- Freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Preparation:

- Preheat oven to 350° F. Spread pine nuts in a small baking pan and toast in the oven until golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl to cool.
- Increase oven temperature to 450° F. Snap off the tough ends of asparagus. Toss the asparagus with shallot, oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer on a large baking sheet with sides. Roast, turning twice, until the asparagus is tender and browned, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring vinegar and the remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt to a simmer in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, moving the pan occasionally, until slightly syrupy and reduced to 1 tablespoon, about 5 minutes. To serve, toss the asparagus with the reduced vinegar and sprinkle with the pine nuts.

Ok nothing complicated here, but its lovely over most anything; mashed potatoes tonight...not sure about pineapple tho

Portobello Gravy

Ingredients:

- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups chopped cleaned portobello mushrooms (2 medium); you can use cremini mushrooms instead
- 2 1/4 cups vegetable broth
- 3 tablespoons tamari or reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/8 teaspoon crumbled dried sage
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot powder
- 2 tablespoons water
- Salt and Freshly ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

- Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until they begin to release their juices, about 10 minutes.
- Add broth, tamari (or soy sauce), thyme and sage; simmer for 10 minutes. Mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Stir into the sauce and simmer, stirring often, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes more. Season with salt/pepper.
- If you prefer a smooth gravy, pass it through a fine sieve (discard mushrooms and onions).

Tip...to enhance the flavour a bit, dry or sweet sherry helps; just add a touch to the first step.

Mmmm I love gravy on everything....

Anyone got any good recipes using whole artichokes?

imagine that! A Canadian that likes gravy on everything! must be all the poutine.

It must be all the poutine, seriously! Mmmm poutine. We'll see how many people here other than me and you Dave (and those we explained it to in chat) know what poutine is! I must be an all-american girl at heart or something. Though my friend in Mammoth spent the week being amused by my Canadian "accent"--apparently I say "out", "house", "about", etc., like a Canadian. Every time I said something like "let's go out", he'd go "let's go what?" and make me repeat it.

I had poutine when I was in Canada. Turns out it's chips and gravy.

Not quite, no. Guess again.

OK there's a bit more to it than that. I miss Tim Hortons though, how come there aren't any outside of Canada?

Tim Hortons! Oh my, I'm amazed that you know about Tim Hortons, a Canadian staple. There actually are Tim Hortons (call it Timmy's if you want to sound like a real Canadian heheheh) outside of Canada because Tim Hortons was bought out by Wendys. They are now all over the place in Buffalo, Ohio, I think there are some in Michigan and Pennsylvania.... It's funny, when I was flying back from Los Angeles last week, it was night time and I looked out the window. First thing I saw flying into Toronto was a giant red Tim Hortons sign. I still prefer Dunkin Donuts to Tim Hortons though.

Click to view attachment Looks and sounds pretty yuk!

Trust me (and trust Dave, he'll back me up!), it's soooooo not yuck. It looks creepy as hell but it's far yummier than you can imagine. The gravy and cheese curds need to be good though and the fries need to be fresh. It IS possible to have bad poutine! It's a French Canadian invention.

Can some of you from the UK tell us about a sandwhich made with chips and butter? How exactly is one made? Is that all that there is to it chips (or French Fries to us in the U.S.)?

We saw a TV cooking personality having one while visiting England but we didn't get the whole story. We did hear her say that the butter was absolutely necessary. We usually eat ketchup on our chips.

A chip butty is literally bread (proper bread thick cut doorstep style) and butter with chips in the middle (thick cut chippy chips, not french fires!) then a good dollup or brown sauce or ketchup.
Total health food!