JBug's Kitchen Antics

Warm Roasted Eggplant and Pepper Salad with Italian Burgers

Other than the fact the holiday's over, the second worse thing about the post vacation blues is getting rid of the excess weight. Too many full meal deal breakfasts and lots of dinners out never mind afternoon "beer thirty" all combined with the fact our little Rose Cottage was exactly midway between two local workout spots, one 9 miles north and the other about 9 miles south of us meant we had a built in excuse NOT to join a gym and exercise this year. Consequently the next month or more we'll be working on whittling the additional pounds off our 55 year old plus bodies. 

What it means for us is regular exercise, a relatively healthy diet, smaller portions and no alcohol; however, since this is a food blog I figured none of you would be too impressed if I told ya we were joining "Jenny", so here's the first of our "moderate" dinners.

Just because you're watching the old calories doesn't mean food has to be plain, boring or tasteless. I mean Rome wasn't built in a day and the pounds didn't come on overnight although they sure as heck pile on a lot faster than they disappear.

Anyway, I'm not saying this salad is totally without calories, but it is filled with roasted eggplant, assorted peppers, and dressed lightly with a touch of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Now personally, I would be satisfied to have eaten it as a stand alone item but you know who wouldn't think of coming home to such an obvious vegetarian meal, so to prevent Big Guy from hitting the burger joint on the way home for an appetizer, I fashioned this Italian burger sans the carb loaded bread. Simply extra lean ground beef along with chicken sweet Italian sausage and extra spices, I topped the burger with a sundried tomato, a couple of fresh mozzarella pearls and a hot pepper.

It's a flavorful meal that'll transport you to the sunny shores of Sicily and perfect for this time of year when peppers are plentiful and inexpensive and the eggplant's fresh too. The salad's great leftover too - on a sandwich, or crustini or even in an omelet. Add a few olives and a touch more cheese and you'll have all the bases covered for a superb lunch to take to work too.

Incidentally, I roasted the vegetables under the broiler because it's too uncomfortable outside to use the barbecue, but feel free to use your outdoor grill if you wish.

Warm Roasted Eggplant Salad with Bell Peppers and Tomatoes (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Idaho a la Carte cookbook)

Feel free to substitute 2 cups of cherry or pearl tomatoes because there’s a lot more flavor packed into those little things and they roast beautifully too.

1 large eggplant

Coarse salt

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

4 ripe tomatoes cut into halves

1 each red, green and yellow pepper, roasted

3 cloves garlic, minced

Fresh ground black pepper

Garnish with fresh mozzarella, basil or parsley

Cut eggplant into quarter inch slices leaving the peel on. Sprinkle with salt on both sides, and place on sheets of paper towels, wrapping it well. Place a cutting board and heavy pot on top to squeeze out the moisture. Allow to sit that way for 20 to 30 minutes before continuing. Preheat broiler. Brush excess salt from eggplant and dry well with paper towels. Brush both sides of each slice with olive oil and place on a sheet pan along with tomato halves. Roast until eggplant slices are golden brown on both sides and tomatoes start to brown.

Slice eggplant into narrow strips and cut tomato halves into wedges. Peel, seed and slice roasted peppers into thin strips. Add to eggplant in bowl along with garlic, any remaining olive oil and sprinkle with balsamic vinegar. Season liberally with freshly ground black pepper. Garnish with fresh mozzarella and chopped basil or parsley. Serve either warm or at room temperature.  Makes 6 servings

Italian Flavored Burgers (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Cooking Light via myrecipes.com)

3/4 pound extra lean ground beef

3/4 pound crumbled sweet Italian sausage (I used chicken)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1/3 cup cold water

Combine all ingredients together and form into four 6 ounce patties. Pan fry or grill for approximately 7 minutes a side or until internal temperature reaches 165. Serve on eggplant salad.

A year ago - Mexican Pot Roast in Soft Tacos

Two year's ago - Pizza con Proscuitto Coto

We're Back

The holiday's over and the journey successfully completed, car unloaded, bags unpacked, laundry started and I'm at the point it's all a dream. We arrived back in Tucson yesterday just ahead of a monster monsoon storm with the accompanying high heat, strong winds and pounding rain. It really brought to mind the significant difference between the Oregon coast and the Arizona desert - other than the obvious of course.

Ona Beach, Oregon's normally cool, often foggy summer mornings are but a distant memory this morning as we (fur boys and moi) endured a hot, muggy, buggy and dirty morning walk. They weren't very impressed and neither am I, especially after our quick trip to the Veterinarian's last night. You see, the other difference between Oregon and Arizona is this:

Pacific Tree Frog - sweet, pretty, often green, very tiny, totally innocuous and according to Wiki, the only frogs that go "ribit". We took this photo of it sitting on the gas barbecue in the back yard at Rose Cottage. Can you believe how tiny it is?  That's a regular ballpoint pen in the foreground. 

Sonoran Desert Toad - ugly, brown, warty, about the size of a baseball, poisonous and according to the Arizona Desert Museum, the toxins are strong enough to kill a full grown dog. According to Firefly Forest,"Dogs are at especial risk from Sonoran Desert Toads and can quickly exhibit potentially fatal symptoms of toad poisoning (excessive salivation or foaming at the mouth, head shaking, red or irritated gums, drunken gait, confusion, weakness or complete collapse, heart arrhythmia, vomiting, diarrhea, and pawing at the mouth). Seizures and death can occur in dogs within 30 minutes from a Sonoran Desert Toad poisoning. "

Finnigan decided to check one out on our before bedtime walk which caused some quick action and ended our month's vacation with a big bang! We washed his mouth out with water several times then took him to the Veterinarian's for a check up.

Thankfully he's fine, but he's ready to pack his toys, grab his favorite plastic bone and high tail it back to Oregon, pdq. Smart dog, eh? 

Unfortunately a  trip north isn't in the cards for us today because we've way too many other things on our list to do including but not limited to restocking the pantry so we can get back to our normal every day post on this site. 

Thanks for your patience everyone! See ya' tomorrow. It's been a great vacation but the party's officially over!

Big Beautiful Burgers Again

School's out on the best way to make burgers. There’s differing opinions as to how to prep the meat, whether it be ground beef, pork, veal, chicken, Italian sausage or any combination thereof.

Some just spice it up with grill seasoning and/or garlic powder, salt and pepper, and form it into patties (that’s how Big Guy does it). Then there’s decisions to be made as to the size and thickness of the patties, whether to stuff the cheese inside or put it on top and what kind of bun to use never mind whether to toast it, steam it or serve it naked out of the wrapper.  Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Personally, I don’t think there’s a wrong or a right way to make ‘em, I just know  I’d rather have a burger than a steak, although I live with a guy that begs to differ. Last night’s burger extravaganza included 80/20 ground beef mixed, combined with Italian bread crumbs, dry onion soup mix, various spices and an egg and water to bind and moisten because when I make ‘em, I like ‘em that way. I formed the patties into a thinner patty each consisting of a half cup of beefy goodness, then Big Guy took over.

He cooked them outside on a flat top grill and the patties ended up crispy, crunchy and yummy on the outside, moist and tender inside. Stacked in pairs on a grilled bun topped with mayo, blue cheese crumbles  and some of the bacon, onion and beer jam Big Guy cooked up a couple of days ago, it was enough to make the golden arches weep with envy.

In case you’re wondering, we’re prepping ourselves for the shock of leaving the lovely Oregon coast to return to the desert. Needless to say the euphoric moods enjoyed the past 3 weeks are a little less euphoric, in fact we’re all kinda’ quiet…down in the dumps if you really want to know the truth. We’ve had a blast visiting old haunts, walking the beaches and generally enjoying a place that’s really become our second home; however, yesterday was a day that needs to go down in history as a first!

You see, the owners of our lovely little Rose Cottage have a garden that just doesn’t quit and shared some fresh and I mean FRESH snow peas with us yesterday. If you’re a regular to this site, you’ll remember that Big Guy doesn’t do peas in any way, shape or form but yesterday he finally saw the light and ate a plateful, simply washed and uncooked. He says a guy'll eat anything if he's starving and I say maybe so, but why'd he look so darn happy while he was doing it if he didn't like it? Just sayin'. 

Beefy Onion Burgers (an original from JBug’s Kitchen)

2 pounds 80/20 ground beef

1 envelope dry onion soup mix (I used Lipton)

1/2 cup dried Italian flavored bread crumbs

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Montreal grill seasoning

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1 egg

2/3 cup water

Combine ingredients together and form into patties, using a half cup per patty. Refrigerate for a minimum 30 minutes to blend flavors and firm up patties. Cook on a flat top grill until crispy outside and medium inside (about 3 minutes per side). Serve on warmed hamburger buns with toppings of your choice. Makes 10 thin patties.

 

Bacon, Onions and Beer

Talk about in a jam, Big Guy took over the kitchen the other day and cooked up his version of Bacon Onion Jam. Of course he had to change it up a bit from our last version by increasing the amount of bacon, decreasing the onions to 3 monster sized ones and adding more garlic. He also cooked the whole mess in a nice dark beer – Obsidian Stout from Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon to be exact although he did add a little apple juice at the end because a taste test indicated it needed more sweetness.

We had our “BOB Jam” on a fresh baked baguette, hot from the oven slathered with a mild and oh so smooth triple cream brie. It was “divoon” darlings, simply divoon.

The power that be advised, however that he would be making it again (and again) to perfect his recipe. He thinks it needs more onions, some herbs in the form of rosemary or thyme, more cracked black pepper and naturally a bigger pot full.   I’ll let you know how that batch turns out too.

To fill you in on what we’re up to at the moment – Big Guy’s off surf fishing, trying to get the best use out of the annual fishing license he purchased, at least that’s his excuse seeing as he only has 4 weeks to use the darn thing unless I can talk him into coming back over Christmas break. The dogs and I just got back from a nice long walk although I think we might have stopped and talked more than we walked. There’s a neighborhood garage sale going on right now with lots of treasures available. Isn’t this the most perfect place in the world? I mean you don’t need a car, you don’t need wifi and for sure you don’t need to leave the block to go shopping. Cool eh?

Bacon, Onion and Beer Jam (adapted from Chef Rich Coffey)

12 ounces bacon

3 extra large onions, halved then sliced

7 large cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2 heaping tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 – 12 bottle dark beer (we used Obsidian Stout)

1/2 cup apple juice

Salt and course ground black pepper to taste

Chop bacon and cook in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until fat is rendered and bacon starts to crisp. Add sliced onions and stir well. Lower heat slightly and cook, stirring occasionally until onions are softened and starting to caramelize – about 1 hour. Stir in brown sugar, balsamic and beer. Bring to a simmer then lower heat and cook slowly stirring occasionally until mixture is thickened – approximately 2 hours. As mixture starts to dry out, add apple juice and cook until mixture is dark in color and has a thick consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm. Makes approximately 3 cups. 

 

Lorraine's Baked Beans

When Lorraine had us over for dinner on the 4^th of July, her incredible menu included a fabulous pot of baked beans (actually she had 2 pots). Loaded with “secret ingredients”, it was the most addictively delicious explosion of flavors I’d had all summer …that is, until she had us over for curry the other night but that’s a whole other story.

Had I not been trying to be so polite, I’d have taken a shovel and finished the whole darn thing but those old lessons from Emily Post’s book of etiquette prevailed so I just had to make them at home so we could gorge ourselves on the sly. There was only one slight problem – I needed a bean pot because that’s how Lorraine cooked hers. Thankfully during a quick foraging trip to the Waldport second hand shop Big Guy spotted one and we were off to the races. Now, we’re the proud owners of an official made in the USA Hull bean pot that didn’t look like it had ever been used. It’s a beauty, isn’t it?

Anyway, to cut to the chase - here’s the link to Fig’s & Artichokes for Lorraine’s recipe…I don’t know about you, but I was kinda’ surprised at a few of the ingredients but there’s no surprises with the final outcome. They’re the best!

By the way, I cut the quantities in half so we wouldn’t be total gluttons, reduced the sugar slightly and added a can of drained black beans to the mix, just because I had them and I’m ornery.  I’m also impatient so the beans cooked for exactly 1 hour less than the recipe called for, which means they’re not quite as dark and rich in color as Lorraine’s were, but they’re still delicious.

We had ‘em along with some gi-normous foot long hot dogs Big Guy cooked on the grill outside …that’s his plate you’re looking at. Mine had more beans and less dawg. Just sayin’. 

 

Baked Orange Stuffed French Toast

Leisurely breakfasts are a necessity when you’re on vacation so you can’t have the same thing you’d cook up during the other 11 months of the year. I mean vacation’s kinda’ like Christmas …it’s special!

When Big Guy and Sophia were out clamming at the crack of dawn yesterday, I whipped up a mess a’ French Toast to have waiting in the fridge to be baked when they returned from their gathering and got cleaned up.

This one’s a combination of 2 different recipes, from Jackson Hole Cooks and from the Best of the Best of Arizona – hey I know 2 good things when I see ‘em. Simply thickly sliced French bread, stuffed with a mixture of orange marmalade and cream cheese, the slices are dipped in a mixture of beaten egg and orange juice with a touch of heavy cream and head into a butter and sugar lined pan. After 20 minutes in a 400 oven the slices come out all puffy and golden with a crusty sugary caramelized bottom thanks to the sugar bed.

Flipped onto a plate and dusted with powdered sugar, it’s bliss on a plate or as described rather appropriately by one rather silent participant (except for the moans and groans) who said it’s an explosion of flavors – a powdered sugar covered volcanic mountain oozing an orangy cream cheese lava. Rather descriptive isn’t she!

Baked Stuffed Orange French Toast (Adapted from Jackson Hole Cooks and Best of the Best of Arizona Cookbooks)

4 tablespoons melted butter

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

Grated rind of 1 orange

1 loaf day old French Bread

4 ounces cream cheese

4 tablespoons orange marmalade

6 eggs

1 cup orange juice

1/4 cup heavy cream

Powdered sugar

Orange slices for garnish

Melt butter and pour into 9 x 13 baking dish. Combine sugar, cinnamon, salt and orange rind. Sprinkle evenly onto bottom of dish.

Cut French bread into eight 1-1/2 inch thick slices then cut a slit to make a pocket in each slice but do not cut all the way through. Fill pocket with a heaping teaspoon of marmalade and a finish with a slice of cream cheese. Press together to allow the cream cheese to seal the slit.

In a large bowl whisk together eggs, orange juice and heavy cream. Dip each slice of stuffed bread into mixture, being sure to cover both sides and arrange in prepared baking pan. Pour any remaining egg mixture over the bread. Refrigerate for minimum 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400. Bake for 20 minutes or until puffy and golden brown. To serve, flip bottom side up onto a warm plate or platter and dust with powdered sugar. Garnish with orange slices. Serves 8.

 

Braised Oxtails in Red Wine

There’s nothing quite like braising meat low and slow in the oven when the weather’s cool and a misty rain is falling. That was our excuse yesterday although I’ll admit we got peeks of sunshine throughout the day. It’s one of the reasons I love the Oregon coast so much – if you get tired of the weather, just wait a minute because sure as shootin’ it’s going to change.

I know we’ve been doing a lot of braising this month while we’ve been here at the beach but we’re just taking advantage of being here because back in Tucson where we live during the rest of the year it’s salad weather now.

As for the oxtails – considered by many to be merely a vehicle for making a pot of soup or stock, Big Guy has a fondness for this particular preparation that calls for the larger pieces braised in a vegetable laden red wine concoction and finished at the very end with a splash of cognac or brandy. Actually, I would have used some of his Knob Creek bourbon had he not been standing right beside me at the time. The richly flavored tender meaty morsels of the tail end of the bovine are perfect done this way; however, if eating this particular part of the animal gives you shivers just substitute short ribs but be sure to choose some that have the bones in them because that’s where a lot of the flavor comes from.

Served on a bed of creamy mashed potatoes, in our case loaded with horseradish and black pepper because we’re on a horseradish kick, along with a side of newly harvested locally grown carrots, it was truly the perfect dish for a perfect finish to another perfect day. You see, we happen to be entertaining “our” sweet Sophia, a true bonus that’s come into our lives as a result of the last ten years spent in Tucson. A former student of Big Guy’s, we couldn’t love her more if she were our own daughter …and that’s the honest truth.

Oxtails Braised in Red Wine (Adapted from Gourmet)

One 750 ml bottle good Bordeaux or Burgundy

2.5 pounds oxtails

Flour for dredging

Salt & pepper

1/4 cup unsalted butter

3 shallots

6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

2 medium carrots

2 medium leeks (white part only)

1 medium onion

3 small celery ribs with leaves

3 fresh thyme sprigs

3 bay leaves

1 bunch parsley stems

2 cans beef consomme’

Preheat oven to 325. Place wine in a heavy saucepan and reduce by half. Trim oxtails and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper, then dredge in flour. Heat butter in a heavy Dutch oven and brown floured oxtails over medium high heat. Remove from pot and set aside. Coarsely chop vegetables and add to pot and cook over moderately low heat until just softened. Place browned oxtails over vegetables, add wine, herbs and consommé to cover oxtails. Bring to a boil, then place in oven and cook covered for 3 to 3-1/2 hours or until meat is very tender. Remove lid from pot 30 minutes prior to finish to reduce liquid. If necessary you may thicken sauce with a cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch to quarter cup of water). Stir in brandy or cognac just before serving. Serves 4 people.

 

Summer's Bounty

Yesterday we took another trip into the Newport Farmer’s Market and if we thought last week was great, this week was the ultimate. Gorgeous sweet carrots, both red and the usual orange, along with zucchini blossoms, fabulous little new potatoes and lovely white turnips.

Big Guy made the main event while I watched and tried desperately to keep my opinions to myself. He sliced up last week’s lovely green tomatoes, coated them in flour and egg wash then covered them in crumbs and fried them in vegetable oil. Dusted with salt and dribbled with hot sauce, they were unbelievable – crisp, crunchy and just a little tart too.

The real hit of the evening though were the stuffed zucchini blossoms he concocted, adapted from this Bon Appetit recipe and loaded with ricotta cheese, chopped mint and lemon zest,  then treated to the same coating as the green tomatoes and fried to a perfect finish. They were mildly minty, totally creamy and crunchy too. I mean who’da thunk that zucchini blossoms would be the perfect vehicle for the ultimate taste sensation, never mind you don’t have to deal with 2 foot long 5 pound zucchini’s to get ‘em. I’d call that a huge bonus right there.

We mustn’t forget all the beautiful berries we picked up that went into the largest berry crisp I’ve ever made. Plump and juicy Boysenberries, tart Marion berries and oh so sweet Raspberries combined with a small amount of sugar, way too little flour considering the juice that formed in the pan and all topped with a buttery vanilla flavored, brown sugar, flour and oatmeal crumble baked up in less than an hour to put the so called frosting on the cake to our perfectly wonderful light (uh huh, right) dinner.

Makai Wide Eyed Arizonafied Chicken Chili

In case you’re wondering about the name of last night’s pot of gloriousness, Big Guy named this one so that means it must logical, right?

To clarify, Makai is the name of the community where we’re staying on the Oregon coast …wide eyed’s for the fact the chicken we used was leftover from our previous night’s dinner when Big Guy butterflied, deboned and  cooked the bird outside on the gas grill, slathering the whole glorious mess a’ meat in some of our Kicky Kumquat Marmalade. The habanero peppers hidden amongst the sweet marmalade can cause one to be rather wide eyed if you know what I mean.

As for the rest of the moniker, this chili includes lots of green chiles along with a chopped jalapeno and other assorted herbs and spices and there’s absolutely nothing pansy about it.  Garnished with sour cream to tame it a tadd along with a quesadilla made with corn tortillas stuffed with pepper jack and cheddar cheeses and fried till crisp, it fills the requirement for quick easy no fuss utterly delicious vacation grub.

Makai Wide Eyed Arizonafied Chicken Chili (inspired by Best of the Best from Arizona Cookbook)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 large shallot, finely chopped

1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon oregano

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon coriander

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes

1/2 cup white wine

2 – 10 ounce cans Rotel tomatoes with green chiles 

1 – 14 ounce can whole tomatoes

3 packages Swanson’s Chicken Flavor Boost

2 cups water

1 6 ounce can diced green chiles

1 large jalapeno, finely chopped

4 cups chopped cooked chicken

2  16 ounce cans white beans, drained and rinsed

Sour cream as garnish

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add shallot, onion and garlic and cook until onion is softened. Add oregano, chili powder, cumin, coriander, black pepper and red chili flakes and cook, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Add wine and cook, stirring for an additional minute, scraping fond from the bottom of the pot. Add Rotel tomatoes, whole tomatoes, chicken flavor boost, water, green chiles and jalapeno as well as chopped chicken. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 20 minutes. Stir in rinsed beans and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Ladle into bowls and garnish with sour cream. Serves 8.

 

Albacore Tuna Tacos with Avocado Cream

Fresh Albacore Tuna isn’t anywhere near the same as the stuff you find in the can and that’s the God’s honest truth. You could have knocked me over with a feather the first time I had it fresh because raised on a farm in Northern Ontario, Canada tuna of the fresh variety was only something I read about.

We hit the dock in Newport a couple of days ago and bought a whole fresh 11 pound fish right off the boat it came in on. The fisherman even cleaned it for us and so we came home with 4 lovely loins of boneless meat.

We marinated a loin for a couple of hours in purchased Sun Dried Tomato and Basil vinaigrette, courtesy of Kraft Co. and Big Guy grilled it outside on the gas barbecue. Flaked and loaded into corn tortillas along with cabbage slaw, peach and mango salsa, a few slivers of red onion and some avocado cream, it’s a meal fit for Neptune himself.

Here’s the recipe for the cream that we’ve had here before thanks to John Conley of Salsa Brava fame.  Not only is it stellar on fish tacos, but used as a dip or slathered on chicken chimies  or even moistening leftover tuna in a salad sandwich – it’s all yummy in the tummy.

I have a suspicion that when you give it a try, you’ll be keeping some in the refrigerator at all times.

Avocado Cream (adapted from John Conley, Salsa Brava Cochina)

1 cup sour cream

Juice of 2 limes

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 avocado, pit and skin removed

Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Store covered in an airtight container in refrigerator.  

 

Whole Stuffed Cabbage

Just because you’ve got yourself a cabbage that’s on the miniscule side doesn’t mean you can’t have cabbage rolls. Granted it’s a lot easier to make the things when you’re working with large cabbage leaves, but we found such a gorgeous little head of cabbage at the market on Saturday, I figured I’d think outside the box and stuff the whole thing. 

I cut around the core and steamed the leaves off the same as you would when making the rolled version then dried off the leaves and placed them into a small bowl, weaving them together like they were when God made the original head of cabbage.

I filled the inside of the bowl with stuffing consisting of sautéed onion and garlic, ground beef, and cooked rice spiced up with garlic powder, Herbs de Provence, salt and lots of pepper. Bound together with a couple of eggs, I packed it all in much like a giant meatball, then placed the rest of the cabbage leaves on top and folded the outer cabbage layers over that. Then I tied the whole thing up into a ball with string to keep it all together.

Placed in a casserole dish on a bed of rinsed and well drained sauerkraut and topped with tomato sauce along with a can of Rotel, it hit the oven for an hour and 15 minutes. It went into the oven looking list this ...

...and ended up looking like this!

Garnished with a dollop of Daisy, it tasted even better than I imagined and you all know me - I’m my own worse critic but I sure as heck couldn’t think of anything wrong to say about this experiment.   By the way, my version’s inspired by a recipe from Elise at Simply Recipes for pork filled cabbage rolls that we had here before so hit this link and follow the trail to Elise’s site.

Whole Stuffed Cabbage (inspired by a Simply Recipes)

1 small whole green cabbage (about 2 pounds)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound lean ground beef

1 cup cooked rice

2 eggs, beaten

2 tablespoons Hungarian sweet paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1/2  teaspoon cracked black pepper

1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence

1 large jar sauerkraut

1 -8 ounce can tomato sauce

3/4 cup water

1 10 ounce can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles

Sour cream as garnish

Fill a pot big enough to hold the head of cabbage with boiling water and heat over medium high heat. Remove any damaged outer leaves from cabbage and cut around the core. Place in boiling water, cover pot and steam to loosen leaves. Remove cabbage from water and remove leaves as they loosen. Arrange leaves in a bowl, overlapping them to cover bottom and sides, using the bowl as a mold. Return cabbage to boiling water and repeat process until you’ve used up all the leaves. Set some aside to cover the top of the cabbage once it is stuffed.

Heat oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat and sauté onion and garlic until onion has softened. Cool slightly and place into a large bowl. Add ground beef, rice, eggs, paprika, salt, pepper and Herbs de Provence and mix together well to combine. Pile the meat mixture into the cabbage lined bowl, packing it in and rounding the top slightly like a giant meatball. Place reserved cabbage leaves on top, then fold over sides of cabbage leaves to cover top. Flip the whole thing out of the bowl and tie tightly with kitchen twine so it stays together as it cooks.

Preheat oven to 350. Empty sauerkraut into a colander and rinse well under running water. Squeeze water out of sauerkraut and place into bottom of a large casserole dish with a cover. Place tied stuffed cabbage on top of sauerkraut. Top with tomato sauce, water and Rotel. Cover casserole and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

When cooked, remove string from cabbage and cut into wedges. Serve on sauerkraut tomato mixture and garnish with sour cream. Makes 6 servings.

 

Blueberry Cream Pie

By necessity vacation menus need to be simple for a few reasons:

a)      You’re lazy – as in the less you do, the less you want to do;

b)      There’s usually limited kitchen gear although this year we’re darned lucky because the kitchen in Rose Cottage is VERY well equipped; and

c)       One need not fuss too much because after all the fresh air (and sunshine, as luck would have it), even mouse droppings on a cracker would probably taste OK.

Don’t worry about the last one because it's highly unlikely we’ll ever give that a try. Our dessert last night met the requirements for quick, easy and tasty as this Blueberry Cream Pie calls for a package of cream cheese, a touch of sugar, a little sour cream and some vanilla to form a creamy base. Once whipped up, it gets dumped into a purchased graham cracker crust and refrigerated until the blueberry topping is completed. I suppose you could use a can of blueberry pie filling but since blueberries are a dime a dozen at the moment, I simply mixed a pint of the purple gems with a little sugar, water and cornstarch and topped the slightly tart creamy cheesy filling. Refrigerated for a few hours it came out looking like this.

If you’re into desserts that aren’t really sweet, this will be one I think you’ll enjoy and should you be feeling slightly adventurous, add some lemon juice and rind to the filling or maybe a little melted white chocolate. I’ve done both on other occasions and it doesn’t hurt the end result one little bit!

By the way, look who came knocking on our door the other night and such dears they are, aren't they?

 

Blueberry Cream Pie (adapted from Idaho a la Carte)

Add juice and rind of a half lemon to the blueberry mixture for a little added zing and/or melt 4 ounces of white chocolate, cool and fold into cream cheese mixture if you want something even more decadent.

 

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1 – 9 inch graham cracker crust

1 pint fresh blueberries

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup water, divided

1-1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

 

Using an electric mixer and a small bowl, whip together cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla and sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Spread onto bottom of graham crust and refrigerate. In a small pot combine blueberries, sugar, 1/4 cup of water. Heat over medium heat stirring constantly until sugar has dissolved and berries begin to give up their juices – about 5 minutes. Mix together cornstarch and remaining water and add to berry mixture in pot. Bring to a boil stirring constantly until mixture has thickened juices are transparent. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Spoon glaze mixture over cream cheese mixture in pie shell and return to refrigerator. Chill for 2 to 3 hours before cutting. Makes 6 servings. 

 

Braised Country Style Pork Ribs with Cranberries and Cider

How can something so simple taste so darned good? It’s a question I ask myself on many occasions and it was repeated last night when this braised pork dish came out of the oven.

Another fabulous dish from one of my favorite sources, Idaho a la Carte, I made several changes to the recipe including substituting lovely meaty boneless country style pork ribs for the pork loin suggested, purely as an excuse to enjoy the aroma coming from the Dutch oven. I don’t know about you, but I happen to think anticipation’s about 90 percent of the enjoyment.

I seasoned the ribs with plenty of salt, pepper and dried thyme, then dredged them in flour and browned them well before adding sliced onion and smashed garlic to the pot. Finished with a combination of apple juice and chicken stock, the covered pot hit the oven for 1-1/4 hours before I added dried cranberries – dried instead of fresh or frozen because they’re almost impossible to find this time of year.

The uncovered pot hit the oven for another 20 minutes so the sauce could reduce to a perfect consistency and meanwhile I steamed some tiny red potatoes and lovely little onions we picked up at the Newport Farmer’s Market. Finished with a simple white sauce flavored with fresh dill, kosher salt and lots of black pepper, it was on the plate and down the hatch before you could say “delectably delightfully delicious”. 

Granted the potatoes and onions would have paired better with a hunk of salmon or halibut and rice or plain old mashed spuds might be a better side with the braised pork because the sauce is just about to die for, but it was all good. Who can resist fresh produce! After all, there’s nothing like down home comfort food after a hard day at the beach.

Braised Country Style Pork Ribs with Cranberries and Cider Inspired by Idaho A la Carte Cookbook

2 pounds boneless pork country style ribs, trimmed of excess fat

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon butter

1 large onion, peeled, halved and sliced

3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

1 cup low sodium chicken stock

1 cup apple cider or apple juice (preferably unfiltered)

1 cup dried cranberries

Heat vegetable oil and butter in large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Preheat oven to 350. Cut ribs in half and season liberally on all sides with salt, pepper and dried thyme. Dredge in flour, shaking off excess. Brown well on all sides. Move to a platter when ribs are browned, lower heat to medium and add onions and garlic to the pot. Sauté until onions begin to soften. Add chicken stock and stir to release any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Return ribs to the pot along with any accumulated juices and add apple cider or juice. Bring to a simmer, cover pot and place in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until ribs are fork tender. Uncover pot and stir in dried cranberries. Return pot to the oven and cook uncovered for 20 minutes or until sauce is reduced to desired consistency. Makes 4 servings.

 

Dear Auntie Gert

Just a note to let you know we arrived at the beach without mishap and have been so busy relaxing, I haven’t had time to drop you a line. I ‘ve been waiting (and waiting) for a rainy day so I’d get caught up on my correspondence but so far we’ve had nothing but clear and beautiful sunny days with temps in the mid 60’s. Cross your fingers along with your knitting needles OK – I’d love a storm to hit and sock us in for a few days so I’ve an excuse to try that cinnamon bun recipe you sent me. I just know we’re going to love ‘em.

You must be wondering how the boys are. Max and Finnigan are both catching a few zzz’s at the moment because they’re a little worn out.  As you know, the beach trips are old hat to Max, but it’s Finn’s first trip and he’s  mesmerized by the waves, loves to try and catch sandpipers and has already been initiated into the joys of racing through tide pools at full bore. Wish you could have seen his face when he came through one and out the other side. They love taking walks in the neighborhood and neither fur kid’s complaining over parking their little butts in the grass to poop either – I hope my saying that hasn’t made you blush. Talk about doggie heaven!

Big Guy sends his love. He’s been clamming a couple of times, successfully of course, so we’ve already enjoyed a huge pot of Blush Clam Chowder from some cockles and gaper clams, and have some meat in the freezer for other clammy things in the near future.  He’s hoping for some success in digging Razor Clams during the next minus tide and plans on trying his hand at surf fishing as well. He’s in hog heaven.

He cooked up some bacon, eggs and biscuits on the gas barbecue this morning for breakfast which is a good thing because I haven’t exactly spent much time cooking myself as you’ve likely gathered.

After breakfast, we hit the Farmer’s Market in Newport and what you see is just a small sample of the glorious fresh locally grown produce we found there so I promise to get off my lazy butt and get cookin’.  We darn near bought the place out, didn’t we.

I’ve something special in mind for that gorgeous little cabbage you see hiding in the bowl, and I’m planning on making some of your favorite creamy dilled potatoes to go with tonight’s braised pork. Of course, I’ll have to make a berry pie or two though I won’t be making anything with rhubarb  if the rhubarb we saw’s any example. You’d no doubt have a hissy fit as it was green as grass so I didn’t buy any. I mean, who wants a green pie unless it’s a green tomato pie. Now there’s an idea!

Well my dear Auntie, I must fly. It’s almost time for our afternoon nap and heaven knows I wouldn’t want to miss it and face the chance of wearing myself out during the first week of vacation. We think of you often.  Hugs from Bug 'n the Boys! 

 

Summer Pudding Revisited

I know I’ve posted this before but there are a lot of things that need repeating and this just happens to be one of them. I mean honestly, you’d be hard pressed to find something easier to make never mind that we can’t let a summer go by without making a Summer Pudding, now can we? My personal favorite is adapted from Ina Garten’s, at Foodnetwork.com.

Simply constructed from fresh strawberries along with raspberries and blueberries with a small amount of added sugar, it truly shows off berry flavors at their finest in a semi tart oh so delicious manner. Best of all it suits the requirements of a beach dessert because there’s nothing fancy needed to put the whole thing together –just a pot to cook the berries in, a bowl to make the mold and a minimum 24 hours so it has time to ruminate in the refrigerator. While last night’s version used strawberries, blueberries and raspberries, the latter two were frozen but the strawberries were fresh and blackberries would have been a great addition too. It matters not what kind of berries, or their combination as long as there’s 8 cups of the flavorful little gems.

It was our contribution to a fabulous July 4^th dinner hosted by Lorraine, of Figs and Artichokes and enjoyed enormously by both of us together with her lovely MIL and friends.  Lorraine’s truly an extraordinary hostess and warmly welcomed us to her beautiful home with its fabulous dream worthy kitchen and incredible view of the great Pacific. The food was sublime, and the company exceptional, but I’ll have to leave it to her to tell you all about it…I just know I for one will be watching anxiously for recipes!

As for today – as I write this, Big Guy’s out on Ona Beach walking the dogs and checking out the clamming. We’ve got to burn some calories because otherwise another week of this vacation stuff and it is unlikely either of us will have any clothes left that’ll fit us. I sure wish we didn’t like to eat so much but otherwise I guess we wouldn’t like cooking either which means we wouldn’t be visiting like this now would we.

Of course after working out we’ll have to do something about breakfast and then we’ll need to hit the library for reading material and then it’ll just about be time for a nap, and then we’ll have to think about what’s for dinner before the ocean turns pink and we start thinking about bedtime.   Boy – vacationing is sure hard work.

Summer Berry Pudding (from JBug’s Kitchen, adpated from  Food Network, Ina Garten) 

If you’re unable to find brioche a regular loaf of good quality white bread works just as well. I used a pre-sliced Milk and Honey loaf for this one.

4 cups strawberries, hulled & sliced

1 cup sugar

¼ cup water

2 cups raspberries, divided

2 cups blueberries

2 Tablespoons orange liquor (or limoncello)

1 loaf brioche (1-1/2 pounds)

Combine strawberries, sugar and ¼ cup water in medium saucepan and cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Reserving half the raspberries, add the balance of raspberries, along with the blueberries and blackberries. Cook until mixture reaches a simmer. Remove from heat. Add remaining raspberries and liquor.

Slice the bread in ½ inch slices and remove crusts. Line bowl or soufflé dish with plastic wrap, being sure all areas are covered and leaving approx. 3 inches overhang on all sides.  Ladle about ½ cup of berry mixture into bottom of mold. Arrange slices of bread in a pattern (it’ll be the top when it’s unmolded, so make it pretty), then add more berry mixture to saturate. Continue adding bread, cutting to fit mold, and the berry mixture. Finish with bread, then berries, using all of the fruit and syrup.  Place sheet of plastic wrap loosely over the pudding. Weight with a plate, then heavy can, being sure the plate fits inside the pudding mold. Refrigerate with weight on top for a minimum of 8 hours. Remove weight, cover pudding with more plastic wrap & fold excess plastic wrap from sides of mold up over the top and refrigerate overnight.

Before serving, unfold plastic wrap & remove top layer of plastic wrap. Invert pudding onto serving plate. Shake to release from mold, or run a butter knife around the edge of the mold, being careful not to cut through the plastic wrap, then invert onto plate. Peel off all plastic wrap. To serve, cut into slices and serve with whipped cream.

 

Welcome To Rose Cottage

As I write this, it is early morning and Big Guy’s off on his first clamming expedition. Max is sleeping on the sofa wrapped in his favorite fleece blanket, Finnigan’s gone back to bed wrapped in the feather duvet and here I sit in the bay window of the dining room looking out over a perfectly beautiful garden and the endless sky filled with cotton batting clouds kissed by the early morning sun. What can I say …surely I’m in heaven. Welcome to Rose Cottage. Are we lucky or what?

Located at Ona Beach about half way between Waldport and Newport, our little home for the month is a miniature palace. In fact, I have to pinch myself ( Big Guy’s already done it for me) because there’s absolutely nothing and I mean nothing that we don’t love about it.  Light filled, warm and truly comfortable with a lovely ocean peek from the living room, it sits high on a bluff in a neighborhood filled with incredibly warm and welcoming people.  It’s cozy, comfortable and most important; the kitchen’s very well equipped and definitely big enough for all of us.

We broke it in last night as we shared our traditional first meal at the beach with fellow blogger Lorraine from Figs and Artichokes. That's her in the pic with Big Guy...go visit her site now ya' hear. It's fabulous!

Now, if you’re a blogger you’ll understand me when I say there’s a sisterhood that develops over time in the food blogging community and I’ve been incredibly fortunate to make some fantastic friendships thanks to this thing I call a hobby.

While Lorraine and I had met only briefly last year in person, we’ve spent the past 365 days getting to know each other so when she arrived for dinner last night bearing a huge beautiful basket of wines, cheese and incredible locally smoked salmon and bacon (stupid me, I forgot to take a pic) it was as if greeting a long lost sista’ from anotha’ motha’ if you know what I mean.  We’re so blessed but enough or I’ll get all gushy.

As for dinner, our  menu included a simple salad of mixed greens, dried cranberries, crunchy almonds, creamy goat’s cheese and a purchased raspberry vinaigrette followed by our traditional first real cookin’ night entrée of 5 Hour Stew. Of course we got talking and I forgot to take a picture of the main course, but here’s the one from last year …oh and the year before too. Served on a bed of creamy horseradish mashed potatoes – it was a perfect way to initiate a new to us stove to fill the air with delicious smells and warm the soul of our little cottage.

Dessert  was simply a plum kuchen made with huge and incredibly tart red plums in one of our favorite sweet treats. We’ve made it here before; however, I had to do some quick thinkin’ and substituted sour cream for the heavy whipping cream the recipe asks for – so here’s last night’s “new” version. As you can see, it was crunchy on the bottom – or would have been if most of it hadn’t stuck to the pan…. But the creamy custard filling and crumbly top were darn near perfect. Along with a scoop of Umpqua’s finest vanilla, it was a tart, not too sweet and every bit satisfying end to a laughter filled evening.

Incidentally – as I mentioned yesterday the only thing missing at this perfect little place is internet service so posting won’t be as regular as it is the other 11 months of the year. Keep checking in though, OK because while you might be able to pry  JBug away from her computer, you sure as heck can’t keep her out of the kitchen.

Easy Five Hour Beef Stew (adapted from Slicing, Hooking & Cooking, Jackie Eddy)

2 to 3 pounds good quality stewing meat (I use chuck)

Flour, black pepper

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 large carrots, sliced

2 cans golden mushroom soup

1 cup red wine, plus more if needed

1 package dried onion soup mix

Cut meat into 1-1/2 inch cubes. Sprinkle liberally with black pepper. Dredge in flour and sauté in large Dutch oven until well browned. Work in batches so pan isn’t crowded and meat browns well. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add onions and garlic to casserole and cook until onions are softened. Scrape browned bits from bottom as onions cook. Add carrots, mushroom soup, red wine and dried onion soup mix. Return meat to pot and stir well to make sure meat is well coated with liquid. Cover pot and cook in 275 oven for 5 to 6 hours. Check pot after 3 hours to make sure there is enough liquid and add more red wine if needed. Serves 4 to 6.

Plum Kuchen

1 cup sugar

1-1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into pieces

6 large red or black plums, cut in half and pit removed

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup half and half

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla                                                                  

Whisk together sugar, all-purpose flour, salt, cinnamon and baking powder until well mixed. Add cubed butter and using a pastry blender or your fingers, rub butter into dry ingredients until crumbly. Reserve 2/3 cup of mixture then press remaining crumbs into the bottom and 1 inch up the sides of a 9 inch pan. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 20 minutes until slightly golden in color.

Remove kuchen from the oven and maintain oven temperature. Place plums cut side down onto par baked crust. Beat together egg, sour cream, half and half and vanilla until well mixed.  Pour custard mixture over top of plus and sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.  Bake for an additional 30 minutes or until custard has set and top is golden brown. Cool to room temperature before serving.

 

Happy in Oregon

We've landed and we're all fine and getting settled in. The only minor issue is the lack of internet service so we'll be getting back to you shortly as soon as we've stocked our rental kitchen and made some arrangements. Catch ya' later.