Taste Level: VGR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 15-20 min.
Cook time: 0-5 min.
1/3 cup Italian Bread crumbs
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp essence
1/4 cup Zo's San Marzano Marinara
1 egg
4 cups peanut oil
In a small bowl whisk together breadcrumbs, and seasonings. In a separate small bowl whisk egg until smooth.
Heat oil in a medium sauce pan.
Dry softshell crabs with paper towels. Once dried use a fillet knife to separate the back half of the top shell from the crabs (make sure to leave the front connected.) Take a piece of prosciutto and starting inside the crab, tightly wrap around underside of crab and then all the way back around to under the top shell. Soak crab in egg wash and then roll in bread crumb mixture until coated well. Repeat with other crab.
Take coated crabs and place into heated oil, cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oil using a slotted frying spatula and place on a plate covered in paper towels. Spoon 2 tbsp of marinara sauce onto plate and lay crabs atop. Enjoy!
Taste Level: VGR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 1-2
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Cook time: 15-20 min.
Difficulty: 1
Taste Level: VG
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Cook time: 10-15 min.
Difficulty: 1
2 1/2 cups steamed rice
1/2 cup yummy sauce
1 1/2 tsp fresh baby dill (diced)
1/3 cup red onion or green onion
kosher salt (to taste)
fresh crack pepper medley (to taste)
1 tsp olive oil
Prepare rice according to directions on packaging.
Taste Level: GR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Cook time: 0 min.
Difficulty: 1
Ingredients:
Chicken
3/4 lb boneless chicken strips and thighs (sliced to be no larger than a stick of gum)
1 slice of deli smoked bacon (optional, crisped and crumbled)
3 garlic cloves (minced)
1/8 tsp smoked paprika
1/8 tsp ground oregano
1/8 tsp ground thyme
1/8 tsp liquid smoke
fresh crack pepper (to taste)
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 seeded 6 inch hoagie rolls
Sauce
crack pepper (to taste)
1/4-1/2 tsp of hot sauce (I used red rooster)
1 tbsp butter
Sauce
In a medium bowl whisk together all ingredients except butter, onions, bell peppers and mushrooms until smooth. Sit to side until ready to use Melt the butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Saute the onions, bell peppers and mushrooms for 5 minutes and then pour in the remaining sauce ingredients, whisking until smooth. Simmer for 2-3 minutes over medium heat and then turn heat to low and simmer for 3 more minutes. Keep warm until ready to use.
Chicken
Spoon meat and sauce into your hoagie roll and enjoy!
Taste Level: TF
Taste Level: GR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 5-10 min.
Cook time: 15-20 min.
Difficulty: 1
Zo got home from dinner last night and said to me, "Aunt Patty was saying she reads Cooking for Zo everyday hoping to see something about her." So I thought to myself, "I will name that Italian Gravy I made this morning in her honor!" Maybe I should have called this Ptuo (Greek for spit) Gravy. Why you ask? Aunt Pat constantly cracks me up when she talks about something or someone she does not like because she will end her thought of it in a spitting noise. Something about this is not only endlessly entertainment to me but also very endearing. I especially love it when Zo has just been around her Aunt and will be filling me in on what they were jibber jabbering about. She will be telling me about their conversation and add in the patuwie sounds. I LOVE IT! I can just imagine Aunt Pat doing it and it makes me smile inside and out! So Aunt Pat, try out this Italian themed gravy and enjoy! (I hope you don't go Patuwie after having it.)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups milk
3 tbsp flour
1 tsp fresh basil (diced)
1 tsp fresh Italian parsley (diced)
1 tsp fresh chives (diced)
1 tsp fresh oregano (diced)
1/4 tsp fresh sage (diced)
1/8 tsp ground thyme
4 slices Coppa (diced)
1 slice deli bacon (diced)
kosher salt (to taste)
fresh crack pepper (to taste)
In a small bowl whisk together seasonings, herbs, milk and flour, till even. Sit to side until ready to use.
Over medium high heat fry bacon and Coppa for 7-9 minutes or until crisping. using a wooden spatula slowly stir in the flour, milk, herb mixture until even. Cook for 5 minutes stirring occasionally, then turn heat to low and let simmer for 3-5 minutes until thickened. Serve over biscuits.
If you do not like spicy meals you are going to want to use about half of the Thai chilies we used. if you like spicier foods than we do, well you are going to burn a whole through your belly and I can only advise that you seek medical treatment. Now that I disclosed that wisdom get ready to eat some great curry! Zo cooked this up to go along with the Ginger Panko Softshells I made. We and our company really enjoyed this Curry. I hope you do to!
I got this idea thinking about a totally unrelated idea involving lobster tails. I do not know how I got side tracked but Zo is glad that I did. She loved these! I mean really loved them so much that she made me make three. When I said that I was only going to make two she looked so heart broken I just had to go to the store and get one more poblano so she could have two. She had her first one finished before I had even gotten half way through mine. I think I may have to start making these more often!
Ingredients:
Soak the shredded white cheddar in 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium mixing bowl combine all ingredients except white cheddar, lime juice and poblano peppers. Mix together well. Stuff three poblano peppers with stuffing. Sit up right over a baking safe dish (I did this by using a roasting rack.) Cover tops with lime soaked cheddar and bake for 30-35 minutes or until done. Serve hot!
While Zo was visiting her family for the weekend I started tossing together this Anti pasta to keep me fed for a couple of days. Zo called in the middle of my preparation and asked me what I was doing. I told her what I was making and she told me that I had to save some for her. You see Zo always tells me before she goes anywhere not to make anything special. She wants to have any of my new recipes before anyone else. I told her I would save her some and put some to the side. After two days all of mine was gone... And I had to "borrow" a little of her's for lunch! Don't tell her though! She still had enough for two work lunches. Zo wanted me to give this a "TF" rating but I really do not think it deserves that high of a rating. It was good but not taste bud festival good! Enjoy!
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 4-6
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Cook Time: 20-25 min.
Difficulty: 1
I got the idea for these mashed potatoes when a little bit of guacamole got onto my backed potato. I am one of those weird eaters where I have to separate everything, eating one item at a time in order of least favorite to favorite. So when one of my foods touches another I always feel a twinge of disappointment. In this circumstance however I was pleasantly surprised. So pleasantly surprised that I filed away the idea of making a guacamole themed mash potato recipe for a future trial. Do not let the green color throw you off they are fantastic! Just make sure to eat them warm!
Ingredients:
5 large red potatoes
1/2 cup fresh cilantro (chopped)
4 garlic cloves (minced)
1/2-2/3 cup red onion (sauteed in butter)
1 large ripe avocado
3 tbsp Italian volcanic lemon juice
1 red or green jalapeno (seeded, diced)
2/3 cup chipotle cheddar (shredded)
1/2 cup half and half
2 tbsp unsalted sweet European butter
kosher salt (to taste)
Fresh crack pepper (to taste)
In a large sauce pan bring enough water to just cover the potatoes to a boil. Once boiling add potatoes and boil for 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain the potatoes into a strainer and add back to the now empty sauce pan.
Use a potato masher to mash potatoes half way, add the remaining ingredients and continue until potatoes are completely mashed. Cover and keep warm until ready to serve. Enjoy!
(Do not save these in the refrigerator for more than 24 hours. They will loose consistency soon after.)
Taste Level: GR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 1
Prep Time: 5-10 min.
Cook time: 0 min.
Difficulty: 1
Here is a quick wrap that will leave you and your company blow away by how great it is. I ate this wrap three days in a row for lunch. I would have kept eating it if it had not been for the eventual lack of chengdu rib meat. So if you make some of our Chengdu ribs, make sure to make some of these wraps with the left overs.
Ingredients:
1/4-1/4 cup Chengdu rib meat (shredded)
1 1/2 deli slices of provolone
1/2 leaf of romaine lettuce split down the middle
2 tsp creole sauce
3 tbsp avocado
1 1/2 tbsp shallots (chopped)
1 8 inch flour tortilla
Spread creole sauce on one side of tortilla, combine the rest of ingredients in your desired order, roll up tortilla and enjoy!
Cost: $20 and over
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 25-30 min.
Cook time: 30 min.
Difficulty: 2
I had some fresh pineapple, some shrimp and some time, so I made up these delicious enchiladas. Or so Zo said they were. I burnt my tongue and mouth tasting the sauce and could not really taste either by the time we ate. As I write this my tongue is still in a bit of pain. Was it worth it? My taste buds will not know until the next time I make this meal. I know the sauce and filling were great though! Heck the sauce was so great I thought about using it for some other ideas I have been having. The filling was great when I taste tested it. I just will never know what it all tasted like together, until next time. Don't burn your mouth while preparing these so you can tell me how they were!
Ingredients:
Stuffing
1 lb shrimp (shelled and chopped)
1/4 cup sharp cheddar (shredded)
2 tbsp Monterey jack cheese (shredded)
1 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
kosher salt (to taste)
fresh crack pepper (to taste)
2/3 cooked white rice
1/4 cup fresh cut pineapple (diced)
2 tbsp chipotle peppers in adobe sauce (save 2 tsp of adobe sauce before rinsing and dicing)
8 fresh corn tortillas
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Sauce
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp adobe sauce (from chipotle can)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/3 cup green onion (chopped)
1/2 cup dice fire roasted tomatoes
1 tbsp 1/4 tsp diced green chilies
1/2 cup Pepper Jack chesse (shredded)
1/4 cup chipotle cheddar cheese (shredded)
Filling
Mix together all ingredients except shrimp, tortillas and sauce in a medium mixing bowl and sit to side.
Sauce
Mix together all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and sit aside. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in large skillet over medium heat until heated. Add chopped shrimp to oil and crack fresh pepper and kosher salt over shrimp to your taste. Cook for 4-6 minutes or until shrimp are pink and cooked through. Remove shrimp from skillet and sit aside. Turn heat to medium low and add in the sauce mixture. Simmer for 5 minutes stirring occasionally or until cheese is melted and cheese is fully melted. Turn heat off and add 2/3 cup sauce to your filling mixture.
Filling
Add 2/3 cup sauce to the filling along with shrimp and mix together well.
Enchiladas
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a baking safe dish spread 1/3 cup of sauce evenly across the bottom of the dish. Take fresh corn tortillas, add 3 tbsp of filling per tortilla, roll closed and place into the baking dish. Continue until all tortillas have been filled. Place the enchiladas into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Add the remaining filling to the sauce and mix together well. 10 minutes before enchiladas are done turn heat on sauce to lowest setting and let warm for 10 minutes.
Remove enchiladas from oven and spoon 2-3 tbsp of sauce over the top of each one. Serve hot and enjoy!
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Chill time: 20 min.
Difficulty: 1
Ingredients:
6 radishes (sliced)
2 green onions (chopped)
1/2 cup carrots (shredded)
2 tsp Gorgonzola (crumbled)
1/4 cup red apple (diced)
1/4 cup red cabbage (shredded)
1 tbsp fresh chives (diced)
Taste Level: GR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 4
Prep Time: 10-15 min.
Cook Time: 10-15 min.
Difficulty: 1
More Soft-shells! We are starting to run low on Soft-shell crabs or are we? In my previous Soft-shell post I said we bought a dozen soft-shells... Well it appears we purchased 30 Soft-shells. That means we got one heck of a deal on them! I think maybe they gave us the wrong box, either way we are up to our ankles in Soft-shells and I am running out of ideas on how to cook them. So I am taking old ideas and making them new! I really wish I would have photographed these after putting some Sriracha sauce over them. The red drizzled lines really made everything look great. I hope you enjoy!
Ingredients:
4 Soft-shell crabs
2 eggs
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp essence
1/4 tsp Chinese 5 spice
24 fl oz peanut oil
Sriracha (optional)
Dressing (optional)
Dressing
Crabs
Whisk eggs together with ginger, essence and 5 spice until smooth.
Pat crabs dry with paper towels (may take a few repeats until dry.) Dip crabs into egg mixture and then roll in Panko until coated well. Repeat with all crabs. Immediately add crabs to oil and cook for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown.
Create a bed for the crabs using romaine, lay crabs over lettuce, drizzle with dressing and Sriracha (if using.) Enjoy!
Taste Level: VGR
Cost: $20 and under
Serves: 1-2
Prep Time: 5-10 min.
Cook time: 20 min.
Difficulty: 1
After a hard day of working on our house, I looked at Zo and said, "I really feel like steak tonight!" She didn't argue, so I decided to try out an idea I have had rolling around in my head for who knows how long. Some of my simpler ideas stay on the back burner for a long time before they make it to our table. I think this is because, I constantly want to impress ZoAnn. I keep thinking that if I don't keep her palate happily entertained, she might realize, I'm not as great of a catch as she thinks I am. So when I get around to making some of my simpler recipe ideas, I think we can both be really surprised at how great some of them are. Take this recipe for example. It has only 7 ingredients but tastes like something Zo and I have paid 40 bucks a plate for at a restaurant! When I make meals like this, that are so easy but so great I just can not understand why people go out to eat. Stay at home and have fun cooking together! We did not have to drive anywhere, it took us less than a half hour to make, it cost us less than 15 bucks and we got to have a great time in the kitchen together. Cooking for someone you love really is heaven, try it sometime! Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 1 1/4 inch thick cut Rib eye steak (at room temp)
2 green onions (chopped)
2 slices of smoked deli cut bacon (cut in half)
2 tbsp Gorgonzola (crumbled)
1-1 1/2 tsp white truffle oil
kosher salt (to taste)
fresh crack pepper medley (to taste)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat a medium non-stick skillet over medium high heat.
In a small bowl mix together the onions and Gorgonzola.
Rub truffle oil into both sides of steak then lightly dust both sides with salt and pepper. Immediately place in skillet and sear both sides for 1-1 1/2 minutes. Remove steak from skillet and place on a baking safe dish. Lay the slices of bacon diagonally across the steak. Evenly spread your cheese and onion mixture over the bacon.
Place steak on an oven safe dish and bake for 10-15 minutes at 400 degrees (depending on your favored doneness.) Remove the steak from the oven and turn oven to broil. Move the racks in your oven one down from the closest position to the broiler. Once heated. Place steak on rack and broil for 3-5 minutes of until bacon is crispy and cheese is fully melted.
Remove steak from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving hot! Get ready to enjoy one great steak!
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