Don’s Stuffed Mushroom Cap Apps

For a dinner party on Friday night, we decided to bring an appetizer I hadn’t made in years, and to do a little new spin on it. Stuffed Mushroom Caps, but instead of leaning to a spicy Italian sausage filling, I wanted to try something savory (with a ‘little’ kick). So I give you Ham and Cheese Stuffed Mushroom Caps. Thank you Saara Przybylek for your sous chefing and mushroom-stuffing skills. Three (quart?) boxes of white button mushrooms were used. Since these were to be baked, I wanted to keep them from steaming. So they were cleaned with a moist cloth. The stems broken off and they were minced to be a major part of the stuffing. The minced stems went into a pan of melted butter with a diced onion and this mixture was cooked down. To this...

Don’s Egg Bites

Not knowing what to have for breakfast, I stood and stared at the contents of my fridge this morning. And then it hit me…Egg Bites! So in my continuing breakfast series I give you a Broccoli and Cheddar Egg Bite, as well as a Ham, Swiss Cheese and Sun Dried Tomato Egg Bite. In a large measuring cup I cracked six eggs, poured in two tablespoons of Half & Half, ground in some black pepper and gave the mix a dusting of garlic powder, onion powder and cayenne. I also added some dried parsley and basil. I blended this with my hand held immersion blender till it was nice and fluffy. I poured half of this into a bowl on the side. To the egg mix in the measuring cup I added some “Broccoli Rice” (I finer-chopped off the crowns of two broccoli florets...

Haddock with Garlic Thyme Beurre Blanc

I started off tonight with the idea to make a Beurre Blanc sauce, generally a ‘white butter’ and vinegar or wine reduction to make a sauce for a pan seared haddock. But I took some liberties, and it still turned out great. So we’ll call this a Garlic Thyme Beurre Blanc, sans shallots. In my cast iron skillet I heated some olive oil, grass-fed butter, some thyme (from my new indoor garden) and some whole garlic (thank you Saara for sous cheffing). Once heated to a shimmer, I added two haddock fillets, dredged in a lightly seasoned flour (salt and pepper). Cook on a medium/high heat for a couple minutes. On the flip, tilt the pan and spoon the butter/olive oil/garlic/thyme wonderfulness onto the fish and cook for another minute or two. Set them...

Breakfast Tacos!

Breakfast Tacos!In my continued breakfast series, I give you one of my favorite morning meals. This originated with my good friend, John Moran. On our canoe trips, I would usually make dinner, and he makes these for breakfast.Building from the bottom to the top…1 Warm flour or corn tacoA Smear of sour cream (or Greek yogurt)A Couple tablespoons of guacamoleA sprinkling of shredded cheddar cheese.1 Over-easy fried egg, seasoned with fresh ground black pepper.Half a sliced green onionA sprinkling of hot sauceQuick, easy and full of...

Pad Kra Pao

Pad Kra Pao, or at least my version of it, is one of my favorite meals. Simply put, Thai Basil Chicken. I cook it often, it is an easy meal, and I usually have all the ingredients around the kitchen. It’s good for clearing the sinuses. I threw in every pepper from the garden, including my last Thai chili’s. Thank you Anne Schweitzer Crank. 1 chicken breast, cut into small pieces 5 cloves of garlic 4 Thai chilies (I used a mix of peppers from my garden) 1 tablespoon oil for frying 1 teaspoon of oyster sauce ½ teaspoon light soy sauce ½ teaspoon sugar (I used a tbsp of agave) 1 splash of dark soy sauce 1 handful of basil leaves A cup of fine sliced french green beans Toss in any fine veggie you like, as well. In a hot skillet with high-heat oil, add a...