All it takes to make one is some fruit ,yogurt and milk.The most common fruit is strawberry blueberries raspberries and banana.I like cherries and I was told kiwis go best with apples.You can use nonfat yogurt or full fat.The same goes for skim milk or whole milk and all the percentages in between.If the fruit is not sweet enough just add sugar or splenda.Almost any sweetener will do.Use a blender to mix all these ingredients. really it's that easy.
Polenta is made is made by heating a yellow corn meal mixture in a pot with some water and turning it with a wooden spoon till it is done.You can then pour it into an oven dish and let it set.You can then melt cheese on top of it.I used a munster cheese and grated aged petit Basque.Petit Basque is a small cylinder of French sheep's milk cheese from the Pyrenees.It turned out to be quite a mild dish so you may want to add some black or red pepper to spice things up a bit.Next time I would like to try this with a bleu cheese and Devonshire cream.
Boudin is a pork sausage made in southern Louisiana and a specialty of the area. There are as many variations on the recipe as there chefs and butchers in the area. The traditional French European version is called Boudin Blanc De Rethel and it is made of pork,whole eggs and milk.It cannot contain bread flour or starches according to European standards.As I said before in southern Louisiana there are many varieties of this type of food.Now that it is fat Tuesday may be the time to taste one of these regional delicacies.
No flame needed! All you need is a large microwave safe bowl.Pour in the amount of milk needed.Microwave until just before boiling.The milk will foam slightly and become frothy on the surface. The temperature should be at about 120 degrees Fahrenheit.Blend in your starter yogurt using about 1 or 2 large tablespoons.Mix it in slowly and completely.At this stage if the milk solids start to appear making for large chunks then you must start over because the temperature is too high.However if everything appears to be homogeneous then you are ready to pour the liquid into individual glass containers.Place each glass container into its own well and plug in the yogurt maker.Wait 12 hours and you will have made yogurt!
If you are hungry and in need of a quick pick me up then try this.Take one toast cracker apply a thin spread of tofu cream cheese or you may substitute regular cream cheese or italian mascarpone.Spread a layer of peanut butter onto this and a layer of your favorite jam.Cut a piece of banana bread to the same size and place on top.Now turn this upside down and repeat the process.You will have a tidy little homemade snack to be served with your coffee or tea.
As the name implies this is one sinful dessert.Translated it means pick me up. In spirit and energy that is exactly what it does.So satisfying you will beg for more.This dessert is a combination of lady finger cookies dipped in Italian espresso coffee and arranged with a mixture of egg yolk mascarpone and sugar.If mascarpone is not available you may substitute with soft cream cheese and whipping cream or soft cream cheese with cream or butter.Dust off the finished product with some cocoa powder.You may add your favorite liqueur such as a dark rum or a flavored brandy or a coffee or chocolate liqueur.Any left over mixture may be used to stuff cream puffs.so many sinful ways to gain weight.Don't you love the holiday season! Here is a tiramisu cocktail a devil would love.Take one oz.of absolute vanilla vodka,1/2 oz. of frangelico hazelnut liqueur,1/2 oz. of amaretto almond liqueur and 1 oz. of Italian espresso coffee. Pour in a shaker with ice.Shake.Pour into a chilled cocktail glass laced with chocolate syrup.
Three seafood pasta is a dish I enjoy using New Zealand mussels,fresh sea scallops and shrimp.I start by chopping some fresh garlic and fresh parsley in a blender.I will then heat this mixture of garlic and parsley in a pan with some olive oil.I will add my fresh scallops till they are almost done.then I will add some cooked mussels and shrimp. To this mixture I could add some fresh lemon juice or 1/2 cup of chardonnay.Allow some time for the alcohol in the wine to evaporate, cooking on low heat for a few minutes.Let the flavor of the seafood, garlic, olive oil the wine and even butter if desired to come together slowly.I also add some red pepper flakes at the end.Cook the pasta in salted water using sea salt.I prefer the linguine cuts but angel hair also works and cooks faster.Once the seafood and the sauce are perfectly blended add your cooked and drained pasta. Save some of the pasta water if the mixture is too thick.Bring everything together and cover for five minutes.Remember when cooking with wine only use wine that you would enjoy drinking with the meal.Don't use too much and give the alcohol time to evaporate and the flavors to concentrate in the sauce.Don't rush take your time and if you don't have the wine use fresh lemon juice instead.
It is not an easy thing to do the prosciutto ballet.This is an intricate and well choreographed art form.Each step is a calculated move.Every day at the deli counter people are requesting prosciuttos.These large hams are mostly imported and sit on the top shelf at the deli case.Each one can weigh from 17-20 lbs.That's 17-20 lbs of oily slippery meat to pull down and gently place in the cradle of the slicing machine.Once the slicing is finished it goes back to the upper most shelf.NO wonder that my shoulder can ache for days from this sort of activity.Do that for twenty years and it may lead to some type of chronic inflammation of the joints involved.Anyway clearly we love our prosciuttos or we would not be doing the prosciutto ballet day in and day out.So folks pay tribute to these great hams and the people who dance with them.Remember that anyone can eat a ham but to dance with one that is something else.
September 29th 2011 03:01
Today for lunch I put together a plain croissant with 2 oz of Prosciutto de parma and a few slices of Pont l'Eveque.Chased it with a cup of mocha java latte. How satisfying.If only I had some sweet melon.Dinner consisted of fussilli pasta cuts with a basil pesto sauce mixed in with some creamy goat cheese and some aged grated sheep cheese.Mixed in some haricot vert.These are longer thinner and more flavorful than average string beans.Washed it all down with a few glasses of Montepulciano D' Abruzzo and called it a day.
Beef and chicken kabobs are easy to put together and cook nicely on a charcoal grill.All you have to do is to obtain several skewers be they metal or wood.Use boneless and skinless chicken breasts for the poultry meat and boneless chuck steak for the beef.Cut the meat into bite size pieces and slide the pieces onto the skewer.Alternate a piece of meat with a vegetable.I like to use red onions and red and yellow peppers.Once the meat and the vegetables are on the skewer brush on your favorite marinade.I like to use an extra virgin olive oil with salt and coarse black pepper with some herbs.Place them on a hot grill and sear on each side.Cook on all sides till done.
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