Orion Cooker Smoked Turkey
Another perfect turkey in a long series of my Orion Cooker Smoked Thanksgiving Turkeys! I patted the bird dry first Then brushed her with olive oil and applied a rub made of garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, black pepper, Tony’s Cajun seasoning and cayenne. This went into the cooker with about 2 cups of apple wood chips lining the outside of the drip tray, and no additional liquid added. The 15 lb Butterball Premium turkey cooked in a convection-style with indirect heat for 2 hours (it was still partially frozen, so I gave it an additional 15 minutes. The result was a perfectly moist, slightly smoked bird. The giblets were boiled ans thin sliced and added to a gravy made of chicken bone stock, McCormick’s Turkey Gravy packet, 3 rough diced...
Salmon Piccata
Salmon Piccata! Tonight I give you a wonderful, very quick, easy meal of Salmon Piccata. Ingredients Two salmon fillets1/2 cup dry white wine1/2 cup chicken or seafood broth3-4 cloves minced garlic1 diced shallot3-4 tbsps butter1/4 cup capers1/4 cup diced parsleySeasoning for the salmon (I used garlic and onion powder, black pepper and a hint of cayenne)1 Lemon for zest and juice Directions Season both sides of the salmon Heat the pan over medium heat with butter and avocado oil, and add salmon to the pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side until golden brown. Set aside and cover. Sauce Use leftover butter/oil to cook shallot and garlic add a tablespoon of lemon juice and a quarter cup of cappers and red pepper flakes (optional) to season the sauce. Reduce your sauce...
Pan Seared Crusted Herb Rib-Eye
I had the best intentions of having leftover chicken tonight. But I went to a local store to buy my Thanksgiving turkey, and the “Manager’s Special” on a rib-eye caught my eye. Trust me, this wasn’t Food Lion, I have been tricked by their ‘Manager’s Specials” before. Then, within seconds, I saw the whole, unique preparation before my eyes. I had to buy it, even though I’ve already had my monthly (once a month) steak quota. It kinda was already late in the month…right? So I give you a Pan Seared Crusted Herb Rib-Eye, served with a seasoned, pan-sauce filled potato boat and a butter lettuce salad. Trust me, it’s worth the crazy. I seasoned the steak with salt, pepper and cayenne and set it aside to come to...
Spicy Pan Seared Chipolte Haddock
For Thursday night, a Spicy Pan Seared Chipolte Haddock served on a bed of angel hair pasta with sun dried tomatoes,olives and feta . I’ve been dredging my fish and chicken recently in almond four, the result is a very satisfying crust. For this meal, the flour was seasoned with a good amount of chipolte powder, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, cayenne and a hint of salt. Just a dry dredge, no egg wash. This was seared in a cast iron skillet with olive oil. The cooked pasta was stirred with some butter, to which chopped sun dried tomatoes were added along with chopped kalamata olives, dried basil and a little black pepper. Minced garlic is good here too. The pasta is plated, topped with finely shredded parmesan, feta crumbles, and then the fish is...
Simple Pan Sauce
Tonight’s kitchen write-up is a simple pan sauce. I haven’t written this up as an individual item, but it’s a solid trick to have in your skill set. I had leftovers from last night’s wonderful Chicken Florentine, but there was no left-over sauce. So while the chicken and potatoes re-heated in the air-fryer (later to be joined in the last 4 minutes with some asparagus coated in olive oil with a dusting of garlic powder, onion powder and Italian seasoning), I worked up my pan sauce that I create when I have do pan drippings. 1 tablespoon butter1 tablespoon flour1/2-1 cup of water1 tablespoon Better than BullionThymeDried minced garlicCourse ground black pepper I melt the butter, stir in the flour, put in everything else but the water, heat...
Chicken Florintine
There was no doubt that tonight’s meal would take hours to prepare. But sometimes cooking a great meal is ABOUT the process. Wine was poured, a fire burned in the backyard, music played. All while preparing the meal. Tonight is Dons take on Chicken Florentine. Saara Przybylek provided most of the effort, since most of the effort was done by the sous chef. The result was a delightful, veggie-full meal. Wrapped in chicken. We’ll pound out 4 chicken breasts till they are about 1/4″ thin. Boil some small potatoes for about 30 minutes. Or, if you go the oven route, add them to the baking dish with the chicken rolls. In a bowl mix 2 cups of spinach, 1/2 cup of fine chopped onion, 1/3 cup of fine chopped red pepper, 1/3 cup of feta cheese, Juice of a...