Beef Bourguignon

Cut bacon into small pieces. Brown bacon in large pan, remove and reserve bacon. Brown beef in pan, add garlic, sauté 2 minutes, add consommé, wine (reserve 1 cup), tomato paste, bay leaves and thyme. Reduce heat and cook covered for 40 minutes, or until beef is fork tender. Add butter to a second pan; sauté onions and mushrooms for 3 minutes until slightly brown. Remove onions and mushrooms from pan; add to beef pan, deglaze onion pan with remaining cup of wine, and pour into beef pan. Make a roux with the butter and flour, cook roux until just slightly beige, stir into beef pan. Cook until thick. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Hints: Make Bourguignon up to a day in advance and cool. Reheat when ready to serve.

Wine Pairing Ideas!

Hot Buttered Noodles

Cook noodles according to instructions on the package. Add butter and parsley while pasta is still hot. Stir and add salt and pepper to taste.

Caesar Salad

In a large bowl place oil, lemon juice and garlic, press garlic into bowl with a wooden spoon to distribute. Whisk ingredients together. Cut baguette into 1/4 inch slices, spray with PAM and place in a 350-degree oven for 4 minutes or until gold brown. Tear (don't cut) lettuce leaves into small pieces and place in bowl on top of dressing. When you are ready to serve, toss salad and add romano and toss again and add croutons broken into halves.

Chef Rick tells me he must have anchovies, if your wish, add four anchovy filets to the bowl with the oil, garlic and lemon.

Chicken Piccata

Pound chicken breasts in zip-lock baggie to 1/2” thickness, add flour and salt, shake to coat. Heat oil in pan, brown chicken; add zest, mushrooms, capers and lemon juice. Cook for 3 minutes, add chicken stock, reserving 2 oz. and white wine (optional). Cook for about 7 minutes, until chicken is done. Remove chicken, reduce sauce by half. Add remaining chicken stock to corn starch, add to pan, stir. Add the chicken back into the pan. Taste the sauce before you add salt as the reduction will add flavor. Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over rice or noodles.

Flame Roasted Asparagus

Cut bottom 1 -1 1/2 inch off of stem. Peel, yes I said peel the asparagus. Place in bowl, add oil and salt and pepper. Toss, retain bowl.
On a very hot grill, place asparagus crosswise to grill. Grill for 3 minutes. Remove and place back in bowl, toss with oil remaining in bowl. With a vegetable peeler shave the romano cheese over the top and serve.

Can be made in grill pan on stove top, cook for 4 minutes.

For the asparagus peeler click this link to Cookery Ware Shop

Wine Pairing Ideas!

Citrus Couscous Salad

Bring 1- 1/2 cups orange juice, water, and salt to boil in a medium saucepan; gradually stir in 1 box couscous. Remove from heat, cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and put it in a large bowl. Combine 1/2 cup orange juice, sliced dried apricots, raisins, and vinegar in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes. Add apricot mixture, cucumbers and remaining ingredients to couscous, stirring to combine.

Pulled Pork

Rub dry rub (recipe/misc/dry rub) all over pork roast. Place in oven-proof pan and cook in oven at 275 degrees for 4-5 hours or until meat pulls easily off the bone. Remove from pan and shred meat with two forks. discard the bone. Pour water, vinegar and ketchup into pan and stir to remove all fond (the brown bits) and juices. Pour over meat and stir.

Note: You may choose to serve pork with additional store-brand barbecue sauce.

Dry Rub

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. May be stored in an
air-tight container for months.

Note: Use on pork, beef and chicken.
Great on wings. Put wings in a bag, add rub, shake and bake.

Fabulous Coleslaw

Shred one medium carrot and mix with shredded cabbage and minced onion. In a separate bowl, combine sugar, salt, Nature's Seasonings, pepper, milk, buttermilk, vinegar, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and beat until smooth. Add cabbage mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Old Fashioned Chicken Soup

This recipe makes a lot of soup and you will have extra cooked chicken leftover for another use. Heat a large soup pot, add the olive oil, when it begins to shimmer add the cut up and dried chicken. Brown, don’t burn, the chicken on both sides. Add the onion, carrots, celery, salt, and stir. Lightly brown the vegetables; add the broth and water and stir. Cook on a low boil for 20 -30 minutes; until the chicken is fork tender. Remove the chicken to a platter and taste the broth. Depending on the chicken, the broth may need to be reduced to concentrate the flavors. Cook on the boil until the broth is tasty. In the meantime, remove the chicken from the bones. Cut half the chicken into small pieces and add back to the soup pot. Once the soup is done adjust the salt and pepper to taste. (It is important to not add the salt prior to reducing; as the soup will become too salty)
Bring the soup back up to the boil. Drop the spaetzle batter into the boiling soup to form small dumplings.

Use the remaining chicken in chicken salad or tacos.

Capt. Jim's Tomato Focaccia

Have water and milk at 120 degrees. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle or dough hook, add half the flour, salt, yeast, milk and water, chopped sun-dried tomatoes and half the olive oil. Mix, adding remainder of flour 1/2 cup at a time. When dough forms a ball remove from bowl, place half of remaining oil in bowl and replace dough, cover with plastic wrap and let sit in warm (80 degree) place until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
On a parchment lined baking sheet place dough in a circle, slice tomato and place evenly on top. Brush with remaining olive oil and bake for 15 minutes, lower temperature to 350 and bake for 20 minutes more or until golden. Cool for 10 minutes and serve.

Angel Hair Pasta with Garlic Shrimp

Heat oil in pan; add 1/2 the zest, all the scallions, garlic, and shrimp. Reduce heat and simmer until shrimp are done,( about 3-4 minutes) add lemon juice, tomato, and milk. Simmer 3 more minutes. Cook pasta in boiling water with 2 Tb salt. Add pasta to pan, mix well, plate. Sprinkle top with parsley flakes, black pepper, remaining lemon zest and romano.

Serve with garlic bread.
* See note

If your pasta is too dry add a little of the pasta water.

Wine Pairing Ideas!

Quick Garlic Bread

Split bread lengthwise. Brush olive oil on each half. Place on grill or under the broiler, toast until lightly browned. Rub garlic on bread halves.

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