Pepperoni Chips

I picked up a keto cookbook recently and found a recipe for pepperoni chips. This is inspired by that find.

I made these on a Saturday afternoon so that I would have them for my late-night Twilight Zone binge on Hulu.

I loved them after they were first cooked, but I REALLY loved them after storing them in the refrigerator for a couple of hours - which seemed to crisp them up further. The pepperoni chips have a texture much like a light-thin potato chip and feature a bacon-like crunch with all the great seasonings of pepperoni.

They are a great replacement for carb-loaded potato chips and I highly recommend these as a snack for anyone counting carbs or trying to stick to a keto diet.

I didn’t go crazy on these like I would Cool Ranch Doritos and wipe out an entire bag in one sitting. Just a couple handfuls of these chips and I had my snack fix. The seasoning, saltiness and heft from fat content go a long way, so it would be hard to eat copious amounts of these in one sitting even though they are delicious.

I made three pans of these and now have a few days supply in the fridge. These can be eaten alone but they also make for a great replacement for crumbled bacon as a topping.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Serves 2 to 3, 15 minutes

40 pepperoni slices

Place, cook
Place pepperoni slices 1/2 an inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 425° for 5 to 6 minutes, remove and flip pepperoni. Return to oven for 2 to 3 minutes or until crisp.

Drain, cool and serve
Place pepperoni on a paper towel-lined plate and drain excess fat, let cool to room temperature, then serve.

FIRST RUN: Cauliflower Pizza Crust

The purpose of this post is not to share an incredible recipe for a cauliflower pizza crust but as a guide to start with to create your own. I will be perfecting this in the future so a more definitive recipe will come later.

Hot out of the oven.

A friend was talking about pizza recently and I mentioned I had only eaten it once in the last three months because of my new "avoid carbs if possible" eating habits. I realized then that my lack of pizza was creating a dark culinary cloud in my kitchen. The wheels started turning, and later that night I did some research.

Cauliflower pizza crust stood out to me as the low-carb alternative for me to try because I had been working with cauliflower quite frequently over the last three months. I knew that it's mild flavor would be a nice canvass for the sauce and cheese of a basic pizza at the very least.

When it was all said and done, I really enjoyed the taste. The crust wasn't as stiff as I would have liked but it really was like eating pizza, and I enjoyed the process of making it. It's a bit more work than anything I would want to make three or four nights a week, but it was perfect for a Saturday afternoon when time was not of the essence.

Delicious cold leftovers.

The basic ingredient guidelines I used:
3 C of riced cauliflower,
(Use 1/2 to 3/4 of a head; remove as much stem as possible, then blitz into a grainy texture in a food processor)
1 C Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 C Parmesan cheese, shredded
1 egg

The key
Cook the processed cauliflower through, let cool and squeeze out as much moisture as possible before mixing everything together.

The crust
Mix cooked and drained cauliflower with other ingredients until well incorporated, then spread into the shape of a pizza crust (12 to 14 inches round, 1/4 inch thick) on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cook for 20 minutes in a preheated oven at 400° to solidify and turn edges golden brown.

The Pizza
Top the baked crust with pizza toppings and bake 10 minutes more. Let cool slightly, slice and serve.

The Takeaway
There are many options to play with here. Not just toppings, but the crust also.

I cooked the cauliflower with sauteed onion for added flavor and I used a lot, which made it very prominent in the overall finished pizza. Next time, I am going to leave out the onion and add a fresh herb instead, either rosemary or thyme, just to perfume the crust with a traditional Italian flavor.

I cooked the cauliflower in a skillet on the stove. In the future, I want to try and spread it out in a pan and roast it to see if I can evaporate more of the liquid through the roasting process rather than trying to squeeze as much as I can out after it's cooked.

I think this would work as a tortilla for tacos or even a wrap. What I made was very pliable and had to cool completely before it was stiff enough to hold like a normal slice of pizza. That may have to do with the moisture in the cauliflower, I don't know though. I will find out more when I make it again - In the very-near future!

Eat well, cook often ...

Microwave Spaghetti Squash

This is a visual guide to making spaghetti squash in the microwave.

Spaghetti squash can be used as a delicious replacement to spaghetti pasta and is a low-carb, gluten-free and keto-friendly ingredient! It has a mild taste and acts as as a great canvass to any flavors that are added to it.

This recipe image is designed for a tablet or phone screen and is meant to serve as a guide while it is being prepared. If you know someone who might need a guide like this, or someone you want to turn onto the magic of spaghetti squash, alert them - share the love!

Eat well, cook often ...

DIRECTIONS
Makes 4 servings, 30 minutes
1. Poke holes, soften
With a sharp knife poke several holes into squash lengthwise. (Creates a line the will be the mark for cutting in half.) Microwave on High 5 minutes to soften squash.

2. Cut in half, scoop out seeds
Handle with caution, squash may by hot. Along line of holes, cut squash completely in half. With a spoon, scoop out seeds. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Cut-side down, microwave
Place squash half (or halves) in a microwave-safe dish cut-side down. Pour half inch of water in dish. Microwave 15 on high, or until flesh is soft. (Cook times may vary with different microwaves.)

4. Let cool slightly, remove squash
Once squash is cooked through, remove from dish and let cool a little. Carefully scrape strands of squash out of shell with fork and serve.

Low-carb Munchies

Diced ham, cheese and almonds will tame the strongest snack cravings.

I stayed true to my "avoid-carbs-if-possible-diet" and purchased what amounts to a protein snack Saturday night.

Meat, cheese and nuts.

The almonds were "smokehouse" flavored and the ham was processed which made this high in sodium but it still helped keep the carb count down for the day, so I'll take what I can get. To wash it down I went with diet tea — 0 carbs.

I wolfed down my protein snack while watching an episode of Law & Order, and it occurred to me that this tasty treat would be a hit at any big-game party or movie watching gathering.

Among the millions of pounds of unhealthy food that lines miles and miles of grocery store shelves there are some alternatives – even for a guy like me that craves man-cave food. These snacks may not be as healthy as celery and carrots, but at least it's not something my body will turn into a mound of sugar that will eventually be stored on my belly, under my chin or across my ass.

Eat well, cook often ...


THE RECIPE
Smoked ham, cubed
Smokehouse almonds
Munster cheese with jalapeno, cubed

Dump and eat!

Low-carb Chips and Dip

Two sliced cucumbers and your favorite dip! That's all for this recipe!

Ok. They're not really potato chips. They're sliced cucumbers. Once you dip them in this sauce though, the chip won't matter!

I went to a friend's house for a dinner party a couple days ago and decided to take a tray of sliced cucumber and some Sweet Pickle Ranch sauce to dip them in. It was my low-carb chips and dip contribution to a carb-heavy spread of delicious party food.

In truth, I was worried that none of it would get eaten, but the tray went over well and there were just a hand full of cucumber chips left by the end of the night. The best reviews came mostly from the female population at the party, who seemed to like having a healthier option for after-meal grazing as part of the spread. The tray disappeared primarily from people grabbing a slice of cucumber and dredging it in the sauce as they passed by the snack table.

The chips and dip, along with a tray of ham pickle roll-ups (like these) that I made seemed to generate lots of good food conversation throughout the night. I couldn't be happier with how the health-concious snack approach was received.

I'm really starting to enjoy the unique challenge of healthier food in the quest for delicious bites!

Eat well, cook often ...

The Double Turkey Burger Eggplant Stack!

This low-carb mountain consists of sliced eggplant and ground turkey patties  - grilled, stacked and drizzled with my favorite homemade sauce - which for me, in this case, is Sweet Pickle Ranch sauce.

After preparing this breadless-manwhich I realized this could be a featured item at a low-carb Carl's Jr. The only thing missing was a beautiful vixen luring men ages 17 to 34 to buy it.

This is my first attempt at using eggplant in my own kitchen. I have eaten it several times and enjoyed it, but never sought to make it part of a my own recipe collection. I am really pleased with how the eggplant turned out and I am looking forward to experimenting more with it.

I started out thinking the eggplant would work like bread slices and allow me to handle the stack, but cooking it correctly left it too soft to handle and it needed to be eaten with a fork and knife, which was the only thing that slowed this mound of savory yum from entering my belly in record time.

I'm going to refine this for sure - I just thought it was worth sharing.

If you have any great grilled eggplant recipes please send them my way!

Eat well, cook often ...


THE RECIPE
20 minutes, serves 2
1 Eggplant, medium size, sliced into 1/2 inch-thick discs
1 lb Ground Turkey, pattied
4 slices munster cheese
Favorite burger sauce

Heat grill to medium high. Brush eggplant with olive oil and season to taste. Grill 3 to 4 minutes per side or until cooked through and soft, remove let rest. Grill turkey patties 8 minutes or until cooked through, turning once during cooking. After turn, add cheese to patties and let melt. Remove and rest, 5 minutes. On a plate stack eggplant and burgers, drizzle with favorite burger sauce or dressing, then serve.

Grilled Chicken Salad

I love leftover grilled chicken, the smoky grill flavor stays as long as it’s edible and provides an extra layer of flavor to whatever it’s used in.

This recipe features chicken grilled over charcoal the night before as well as pickled banana peppers in a spread for sandwiches or wraps.

I was in a hurry to work one afternoon when I lived outside of Chicago. I stopped at a gas station that had a pizza counter for a quick meal. Under a heat lamp I noticed a couple of burgers wrapped in foil with a yellow starburst sticker that said “Pizza”. I took a chance, grabbed two and was on my way.

The burgers featured a marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni and a kicker - banana peppers! The tart and spicy peppers had a great flavor of their own and really gave this burger it’s “pizza or Italian” mojo. This tasty treat became a guilty-pleasure for an occasional lunch until I left the area and moved to Austin — and I have kept a jar banana peppers in my kitchen ever since.

In this recipe the peppers impart a tangy and spicy kick and make for a nice compliment to the smoky-grill flavor of the chicken. The chives provide a hint of onion and there is just enough mayo to bind everything together. As a whole, it's a great filler for a sandwich or could hold up as the star of a bite-size appetizer.

To cut carbs I served the chicken salad on cucumber, which provided a garden-fresh vehicle to deliver the goods and made for a nice replacement to carb-loaded bread slices or a wrap.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
Makes 4 to 6 sandwiches or a party appetizer; 10 minutes
3 C grilled or fully-cooked Chicken, diced or shredded
1/2 C hot Banana Peppers, diced
3 Tbs Mayonnaise
2 Tbs Chives, diced
4 Cucumbers, peeled, seeded, cut

In a large bowl mix together the chicken, banana peppers, chives and mayo until well incorporated, let rest 20 minutes for flavors to meld. Scoop salad into cucumber boats or serve in a wrap or sandwich.

Fish Tacos (Tilapia)

I inhaled six of these like a wale feeding on plankton.

They were the small "street taco" size corn tortillas from Mission. Which helped them go down fast! Dinner on Friday is an event if I'm not going out on the town - and that is just what these are. There are three special elements to make for these and to add to the drama, I fried the tortillas in a 1/4 inch of oil just to take the meal completely over the top.

This is the first time I have used almond flour. It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't bad. Instead of a light crispy breading like AP flour would create, the almond flour created more of a "blackened" style crust when mixed with the other spices. The gluten-flour-to-fat reaction just isn't the same as the ground-nut-to-fat reaction and the result was different and unexpected — And totally delicious.

Eat well, cook often ...


THE RECIPE
Jalepeño tarter sauce
1/4 Mayo
2 Tbs Pickled jalapeño, diced
1 Tbs Chipotle in adobo, minced

Mix ingredients in a bowl, refrigerate until assembling tacos

Jalapeño slaw
1 C Cabbage, shredded
1 Jalepeño, thin sliced
2 Tbs Apple cider vinegar

Toss cabbage and jalapeño in cider vinegar, set aside until assembling tacos


Tilapia
4 Tilapia fillets
1/4 C Almond flour
2Tbs Chili powder
1 Tbs Cumin
1/2 tsp Cayenne pepper

Mix together almond flour and spices, spread on a plate. Dredge fillets in mixture, coating both side thoroughly. In a skillet over medium heat shallow fry fillets in enough oil to completely coat bottom of pan. 3 to 4 minutes per side or until cooked through. Gently turn half way through. Let rest a few minutes before assembling tacos.

Tacos
12 tortillas
Tilapia
Jalapeño tarter sauce
Jalapeño slaw
Cilantro for garnish

Light fry tortillas in a 1/4 inch of oil at 350°. Drain on paper towels. Flake fish apart into bite-size chunks. On a tortilla, stack fish, slaw and sauce then garnish with cilantro. Serve.

Creamy Spaghetti Squash Bake

This was a treat. I loved it — and it was an experiment! I will be refining this for sure, but it's worthy of a post.

I made this recipe low-carb by using spaghetti squash where I would have used regular spaghetti. The squash worked with the onion and red pepper to form a nice vegetable base and the turkey gave it extra heft in the belly. The star here is the cheese though, specifically - the cream cheese. It's a decadent and rich addition that really binds all the flavors together. Next time I will mix in the cream cheese a little more thoroughly — I used dollops of it in this recipe!

If you like spaghetti squash you have to try this, or a variation of it.

Eat well, cook often ...

Ingredients
1 2 to 3 lb. spaghetti squash
2 red bell peppers, seeded, diced
1 onion, diced
1 lb. of ground turkey (97/3)
2 C Mexican blend cheese, shredded
8 oz. cream cheese, room temp

Directions
Cut spaghetti squash in half length-wise and scoop out seeds. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper to taste. Place on a baking sheet and bake in a pre-heated 400° oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove and let cool.

In a large skillet over medium heat cook onion and red pepper in a little olive oil until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add ground turkey, breaking up and stirring occasionally until cooked through. 4 to 5 minutes more. Remove from heat and let cool.

Scrape spaghetti squash out of shell with a fork and into Turkey mixture, stirring to combine. Stir in 3/4 of the shredded cheese. Scoop mixture into baking dish. Top with dollups of cream cheese and remaining shredded cheese. Bake in a 350° oven for 30 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly. remove from oven and let rest 15 minutes before serving.

Eat well, cook often ...

Get Rid of It Frittata

The only thing in this dish not leftover or standing on the edge of spoiled are the eggs and chipotle ranch sauce made a couple days ago. I think the Gods of fresh food smiled on my effort to not waste anything because I really enjoyed this. The onion and red pepper are really the star here with a moderate amount of chicken to add a little heft. Bound with eggs and topped with gooey cheddar cheese, this was a winner winner low-card dinner.

Here's a rundown:
3 chicken tenders, diced: Leftover From Chicken Tenders with Peppers and Onions
1 red pepper, diced: Extra from Chicken Tenders with Peppers and Onions
3/4 of an onion, diced: Extra from Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Ranch Sauce

Garnish
Chipotle Ranch sauce: Leftover from Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Ranch Sauce
Cilantro: Extra from Shrimp Tacos with Chipotle Ranch Sauce
4 oz (1 C) shredded cheddar cheese: Leftover from a low carb snack

The binder
4 eggs (would have been six, but that's all I had.)

THE RECIPE
Turn on broiler

In a medium-sized pan over medium heat, saute the onion and peppers in a little olive oil until soft, 4 to 6 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Half way through toss in the chicken.

In a bowl, beat eggs until white and yolk are incorporated together. Once peppers and onion are cooked through, pour eggs into pan, shaking and jiggling to allow egg to get into space between onion, pepper and chicken. Let cook on stove top for 3 to 4 minutes or until egg at bottom is set. Top with cheese and place under broiler. Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly and egg on top is set and entire frittata is cooked through, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from under broiler. Garnish with chipotle ranch sauce and cilantro before serving.

Eat well, cook often ...

Shrimp Tacos with Chipolte Ranch Sauce

I'm not the biggest seafood fan in the world. In general, I like it best when the "fish" flavor is mild and it's breaded and fried.

Shrimp is a different story. As long as it's ultra fresh, I like it prepared almost any way.

For these tacos, I sauted the shrimp in olive oil with a little salt and pepper. That's it. The key was cooking them so they were firm but tender and burst in your mouth when bit into - that is the perfect texture for tacos!

The real flavor and seasoning for this dish is the chipolte ranch sauce that I made from scratch. I was heavy with the chipotle for it because I wanted it extra smoky with some good kick. The creamy base can really tame the kick, so more chipotle in adobo is required for extra zing.

I used corn tortillas which is not low carb, but I'm not really on a low-carb diet  — I'm just paying attention to my carb intake and trying to keep it as low as possible without being miserable. I'm not ready to throw away my corn tortillas. I'll limit my french-fry intake, but corn tortillas are off limits for now!

Honestly - I destroyed these tacos.

The bursting shrimp with the chipotle ranch sauce was mouth-watering. The onion and cilantro garnish added a real freshness to the bite. All of this wrapped in a lightly-fried corn tortilla made for some of the best homemade tacos I've had in a long time.

Try this if you are a shrimp taco fan.

Eat well, cook often ...

Chipotle Ranch Sauce
1 clove garlic
3/4 C sour cream
3/4 cup mayo
1 C buttermilk
1 pkg Ranch seasoning mix
1/4 C chipolte in adobo, minced

— With blade of a blender running, drop garlic clove in to mince. Add all other ingredients and blend 3 or 4 minutes. Stop blender and scrap down sides if needed during process. Pour into container and refrigerate 1 hour berfore serving.


Sauted Shrimp
1 lb of large raw shrimp, deveined, shell and tail removed

— In a little olive oil over medium high heat saute shrimp 1 min. to 1 min, 30 sec. per side or until just cooked through and translucent. Salt and pepper to taste.

Tacos
8 corn tortillas, street taco size
Sauted shirmp
Chipotle sauce
Finely diced onion and cilantro for garnish

— Cook tortillas through (microwave, griddle or lightly fry at 350°)


— Assemble tacos - layer shrimp, sauce, onion and cilantro — then devour!

Makes 8 street tacos, Serves 2

Note: The corn tortillas here are 19g of carbs for a serving of three.
(They are the small "Street Taco" tortillas made by Mission, that come made with either flour or corn)

Low Carb Burger and Fries

Ok. Its not actual fries - but one can dream. It's asparagus spears  — and they were still pretty tasty.

Using lettuce to wrap the double-cheese turkey burger — that's the real low carb thing about this meal.

No bun!

I really like throwing away the bread. The burger is what it's all about for me, so this gets rid of the gluten-loaded pillow that keeps your hands from getting messy and replaces it with a paper thin crunchy leaf. Not a bad trade-off in my book.

Here's what I cooked:
— 4 turkey burgers with a slice of munster cheese for each
— 1/2 bundle of asparagus, split length-wise and tossed in a tablespoon or so of Worcestershire sauce

The burgers were cooked over medium high heat in a little olive oil with salt and pepper to taste, about 5 minutes per side. The asparagus followed in the same pan for 3 to 4 minutes, tossed a couple of times and seasoned with salt and pepper — burgers rested while asparagus cooked.

I ate 2 of the burgers wrapped in big lettuce leaves with chipotle mayo as garnish and all of the asparagus for the meal. I have to admit — it was tasty. A nicely seasoned turkey patty with creamy cheese and smoky chipotle mayo really hit the spot. Although I would love to have had real french fries, the al dente asparagus tossed with Worcestershire had a crunchy, salty and slightly sweet taste that I really liked — but I have always liked asparagus when it's fresh from the produce isle and perfectly cooked.

I'm doing this again for sure.

The experiments continue! I'm not on a strict no-carb diet, I'm just watching them as part of an effort to adjust my diet and life-style to live more healthy.

Eat well, cook often ...

Chicken Tenders with Peppers and Onions

This plate is a perfect example of how I have been preparing diners with less carbs in mind. In the past, I would have served this — sauted onions, peppers and chicken — over a heaping mound of white rice. Afterword, I would have needed a nap and then a wheelchair to get around in until I had digested some of it.

I prepared:
 6 chicken tenders
1/2 of a sliced medium onion
1 sliced red bell pepper
All cooked over medium heat in a little olive oil with salt and pepper to taste. (I ate half for the meal, and saved the other half for leftovers.) I also ate a whole avocado as an added bonus.

I don't know the exact carb count but it's pretty low. I think around 20 grams. I'm still pretty new at the carb counting game but that is my best estimate.
Low carb or not, sauteed onions and red peppers are a favorite of mine. The sweetness that comes out during a 6 to 10 minutes saute in a little olive oil with salt and pepper really hits the spot. They were the star here, the chicken was just filler, especially now that the ultimate filler — rice — had been left out.

Eat well, cook often ...

Sauteed Radishes

I have had roasted radishes many times and really enjoyed them. They are a close substitute for a roasted potato. This is the first time I tried to saute radishes. I did it simple — with olive oil, salt and pepper in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. 10 to 15 min., Tossing occasionally.

They turned out ok. Edible, but nothing special.

They were a little inconsistent as far as doneness. Some were softer than others, and there was a peculiar taste to them - almost earthy in a way. Not sure if it was the radishes or the well-seasoned pan I cooked them in. It wasn't a bad taste, just something a little unexpected. This will need some work before I sing the praises of a radish-potato substitute recipe, but it was fun to try something new.

I wanted to post this because it's my first attempt at intentionally creating a low-carb side dish. As a way of trying to eat more healthy, I have cut back on the bread, potato, rice and pasta. (And sugary stuff in general). Not fully eliminating them, but have become conscience of carbs and want to limit my intake.

According to a quick (but credible) web search:

A 2 oz. serving of red potatoes has 10 grams of carbs.

The same amount of radishes contains 1 gram.

That's 10 times less on the Carb-o-belly scale!

Eat well, cook often

The Bites Awaken

There has been an awakening. I have felt it.

For the last year, I have been enjoying the great music and food culture that Austin provides. It's an amazing place for a life-long musician to live and experience. The capitol of Texas has a creative energy very similar to New York City and its driving force is music. That said, music has become the creative outlet that the food blog once channeled for me.

I still cook like a fool and have been enjoying the year-round grilling climate that comes with residing in Central Texas.

Recently, I received the ok to work exclusively from home creating information graphics for the properties of Gatehouse Media, the job that brought me to Austin. So I am now working from home just like I was in 2014 when food writing was my soul focus.

I like it.

Recently, an old college friend, Kevin Burkett, asked if my food column was available. I told him to pick a few samples from past post here at Behind the Bites and use them in the Pharos-Tribune, the daily paper in Logansport, Ind.

Kevin is the Editor of the Pharos-Tribune.

Long story short, my recipes are now a weekly feature in the paper.

I'll bet this will lead to more post here. No guarantees but ...

There has been an awakening.

Below you'll find one of the songs that I have written since moving to Austin. I created this by myself using Apple garage band with a condenser mic to record my vocals and midi keyboard to create the instrumental parts.

Eat well, cook often ...

Chili ATX

For the first time in my culinary career, I won a cooking contest!

In celebration of the NFL opening weekend, my work sponsored a chili cook off. Of the 250 or so employed at The Gatehouse Center for News Design in Austin, 10 entered. All of the entry's were tasty and the competition was fierce, but when the judging and voting finished I ended up taking home 1st prize — a $100 gift certificate to H.E.B., a Texas-based grocery chain. 

When our office manager told me I had won, I have to admit, it really made my day. I was hoping to place in the top three, winning was a nice surprise.

I went into the contest with a strategy. No beans, very simple and tons of depth.

No bean chili is a Texas thing so I honored that. I wanted to keep the chili simple and focus on technique to bring the most flavor out of each ingredient.

I built the base of the chili in layers, onions and jalepenos first, followed by the garlic and spices, then the tang of steak sauce and the acidity of tomatoes. The beef and liquid were the final additions. I also cooked the liquid out twice and let it rest in the fridge overnight – because chili is always better the next day.

The real secret to any great chili is a long simmer to evaporate the liquid and concentrate the flavor. That, mixed with building a balanced and flavorful base were the key elements to this recipe.

The strategy worked. I'm honored and proud to be this year's Chili cook off champ!

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE - Chili ATX

Serves a crowd
10 lbs Ground beef

4 large Onions, finely diced

5 jalapeños, seeded and diced

10 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/2 C plus 2 Tbs Chili powder

1/4 C plus 1 Tbs Cumin

2 Tbs Mexican oregano

1/4 C A1 steak sauce

1 28 oz can of crushed Tomatoes

1 28 oz can diced Tomatoes

2 Qts Beef Broth

2 Qts water

Tortilla chips for garnish

In a large soup pot (8 qt) over medium heat, brown ground beef in batches, salt and pepper to taste. Remove ground beef and drain all but a quarter cup of the drippings from the pot. 

Add onion and jalepeño, sauté until soft 6 to 8 minutes, salt and pepper to taste. Add chili powder, cumin, Mexican oregano and garlic, cook until fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Add A1 steak sauce and tomatoes, cook a few minutes more. 

Mix in ground beef and add beef broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 2 to 3 hours or until liquid is reduced by 3/4. Remove from heat, let cool and store overnight in the refrigerator. 

The next day return pot to stove, ad four quarts of water, bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer another 2 to 3 hours or until liquid is reduce by half or two thirds. Spoon into bowls and serve with tortilla chips for garnish.

Homemade French Fries

Great homemade french fries are not as easy as they seem to make. Getting the crispy outside and soft, pillowy inside takes some work. I think they are the greatest side dish of all-time and are totally worth going the extra mile for. In fact, I would rather overcook a burger or burn the pizza rather than screw up the fried spuds – they are just that important.

Most people just cut the potatoes and then drop them in oil. This results in decent fries but often they are way overdone and too crunchy or cooked just right without the crispy outside. Such high hopes for the work it takes to cut them often ends in the devastating realization that the french fries are below average or just plain suck.

In order to get the best results, good fries need to be cooked twice and cut as evenly as possible. Most restaurants that make fresh cut fries will first fry them at a low temperature until they are just cooked through, let them cool and fry them again at a hotter temperature to get the crispy outside.

In order to avoid the maximum grease intake, I like to boil the fries first in water to cook them through, then frying them to crisp them up. Just one bath in the hot oil results in less grease absorbed by the potato and there isn't much of a difference in taste.

The boil then fry technique is how I made this batch of fries, which resulted in some damn good crispy spuds. I used my knife to cut them instead of a french fry cutter and that turned out to be their one real flaw. The inconsistent size resulted in varying degrees of doneness and crunchiness. The batch was pretty good overall, but they would have been much better had I dusted off the fry cutter to get one consistent size. With french fries – consistent size matters.

After making these, I have decided to try and master the beloved homemade french fry, it will take some work but I consider this the beginning of a quest, a culinary journey to make the perfect fry. I have no disillusions that mine will ever top McDonald's, the greatest french fries the world has ever consumed, but something that comes close.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
2 Idaho potatoes, cut into french fries
1 quart of oil

Cover potatoes with water in a pot. Bring to a boil and cook through, 8 to 10 minutes. (This may vary according to the size the fries are cut into) Drain and let cool to room temperature. Heat oil to 375° in a large pot. Fry potatoes in batches until golden brown and crispy 4 to 5 minutes.  Remove to a paper towel lined plate or bowl. Immediately season with salt to taste. Let cool slightly, then serve.

Country Fired Chicken with Pepper Gravy

What do you do when you get home from a luau featuring a limbo contest and a surf-thrash band?

Make a batch of country-fried chicken and a side of pepper gravy is what you do!

That's what I did anyway.

I've been out and about in Austin lately feeling out the music scene in search of some like-minded musicians. Saturday was one of those nights. After a couple hours hanging with the head-banging beach crowd at Hole in the Wall club near the UT campus I decided it was time to get home and make a snack. I had eaten a huge breakfast plate for what normal people consider a late lunch/early dinner in the afternoon and wasn't really hungry before heading to the luau. By midnight I was ready for some grub.

I was planning to save the majority of the chicken for lunch the next day and just have a couple strips for a late night snack to tide me over until morning. After sampling a strip dipped in the gravy I couldn't resist though and just kept going back – I was like a moth to a flame. All told, I destroyed six of the 10 strips I made and a good amount of the pepper gravy.

There are two keys to making this dish.

Great breading and tasty gravy.

Knowing how to whip up a gravy as a side compliment to the main event is really the difference between putting out good food and great food. It takes a minimal amount of practice and adds some heavy artillery to any cook's culinary arsenal. Here it was key. The breading on the chicken was just how it was supposed to be, but the gravy, Oooooh that gravy! Peppery, garlicy and absolutely the bomb – that's what kept me going back.

Surf-thrash, limbo and country fried chicken with ridiculous pepper gravy. Not the perfect Saturday night, but a good one none the less.

Eat well, cook often ...

THE RECIPE
2 Chicken breast, cut into even strips
2 C Buttermilk
1/2 Onion, finely diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
2 Tbs AP flour
2 C milk
1 Tbs fresh crack black pepper
2 eggs
2 Tbs water
2 Tbs Hot sauce
1 1/2 C AP flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
Oil for frying

In a large bowl submerge chicken in buttermilk, cover and place in refrigerator. Let marinate at least one hour.

In a small pan over medium heat, saute onion in melted butter until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add garlic, cook one minute, or until fragrant. Stir in flour until completely absorbed by butter. Let cook three minutes or until slightly brown in color. Stir in milk. Bring to a boil and let thicken. Remove from heat and keep warm until serving.

In a large pot heat enough oil to submerge chicken strips to 350°.

While oil is coming to temperature set up breading stations. In one pan or bowl beat together eggs, water and hot sauce. In a second pan or bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Remove chicken from buttermilk and let drain. Coat in egg mixture then dredge in flour until completely coated. Place in oil until cooked through and golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from oil and drain.

Serve chicken with gravy for dipping.

Eggs over easy

I can plate up some mean biscuits and gravy, pancakes, frittatas, omelets and many other breakfast favorites but I had never been any good at making a fried egg over easy. Broken yolks and a glob of egg is how they usually ended up — which in turn would become scrambled eggs.

One of my goals in the kitchen over the last few months has been getting better at eggs over easy, so basically, I have made 2 of them for myself nearly every Saturday and Sunday since February. I might not be able to make them like Bobby Flay at this point, but I have learned to plate up a quality "dip" egg with a nice runny yolk and beautiful whites that feature tiny flecks of pepper.

The secret to a nice egg over easy? A thin, metal spatula.

I'm sure there are armies of people who use thick-plastic spatulas sold in big box-store bundles that turn out wonderful eggs, but for me, the right equipment was essential to get the eggs I wanted every time. The right spatula allows me to get under the egg for the flip in a nice quick thrust, once its on the spatula, turning it over is a breeze. It's the getting under it part that would always screw me up.

Two eggs over easy served on a hash brown with bacon and toast is morning bliss. That's what my Mom would often cook for us on weekends growing up. The eggs were holding me back from making it a breakfast staple for myself and whoever I cook for — but I can proudly say "not any more."

It took about 86 fried eggs to get it right. Sometimes you just have to be committed.

If you're in the Austin area on a given weekend morning — stop by — I'll make you some eggs over easy to get the day going.

Eat well, cook often ...

Nacho Cheesy Rice

I enjoy making dishes like this for work during the week. It stores well and reheats nicely in the microwave, but most importantly, it really is a tasty dish. I can eat it like a dip with tortilla chips or garnish with chili flavored corn chips for texture. The rice helps make this stretch to 3 or 4 servings and only a pound of ground beef is used.

I like to make a cheese sauce in dishes like this because it stays in a more liquid or gravy-like form after it cools. Its much easier to reheat and return to the creamy texture when eating as a left over. Just throwing shredded cheese in a dish like this is great if you're eating it hot, but it clumps back together once it cools. The sauce route is much better if left overs are part of the plan - which is the case for almost everything I make.

Eat well, cook often ...

Nacho Cheesy Rice
1 lb ground beef
2 Tbs unsalted butter
2 jalapenos, seeded, diced
1/2 onion, dice (1C)
1 Tbs chile powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp Mexican oregano
1 tsp garlic, minced
2 Tbs flour
2 C milk
2 C pepper jack cheese, shredded
2C cooked rice
Chili flavored corn chips for garnish

In a large pan or pot brown ground beef over medium heat. Salt and pepper to taste. Remove to paper-towel lined plate with a slotted spoon. Add butter to drippings in pan, once melted saute onion and jalepeno until soft, 3 to 4 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add spices and garlic, cook until fragrant, a minute or two. Return ground beef to pan, stir into mixture. Add flour, mix in to absorb liquid, stir and cook 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in milk. Bring to simmer and let thicken slightly. Add cheese 2 tbs at a time, stir constantly and let melt completely, then add more cheese. Repeat until cheese is gone. Stir in Rice. Remove from heat, let cool slightly, then serve. Garnish with chili corn chips.