PEARS IN GINGER WINE

Pears In Ginger Wine

These pears, poached in ginger wine, are accompanied by delicate, crunchy almond wafers.

Ingredients

• 2 large oranges

• 1½ cups ginger wine

• ½ cup sugar

• 1½ cups water

• 6 firm ripe pears

Method

1 Use a potato peeler to finely peel the rind off one of the oranges, squeeze out the juice. Combine ½ cup orange juice, ginger wine, sugar and water and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Add the orange rind.

2 Leaving the stalks in place peel the pears and add to the ginger syrup, simmer gently for about 30 minutes or until the pears are tender.

3 Gently remove from the syrup with a slotted spoon. Boil the syrup until reduced by half and strain over the pears.

4 Serve warm or chilled with creme fraiche and almond wafers.

SICILIAN STYALE STRATA

Sicilian-style Strata

Yields: Makes 8 servings

Because they can be assembled ahead and baked at the last minute, stratas make great brunch entrées. 

Ingredients

1 loaf (1 lb.) crusty, Italian-style bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

4 ounces thick-sliced prosciutto or ham, diced

1/4 cup chopped canned roasted red peppers

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 can (14 1/2 oz.) chopped tomatoes

1/4 cup pitted black olives, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

6 large eggs

3 cups milk

2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning blend

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 tablespoons drained capers

Spread half the bread cubes level in a lightly oiled 9- by 13-inch baking dish. Top evenly with prosciutto, peppers, green onions, and parmesan cheese. Spread remaining bread cubes level on top, followed by tomatoes, olives, and mozzarella.

In a bowl, whisk eggs, milk, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper to blend. Pour over layered ingredients. Cover and chill at least 1 hour or up to

Bake in a 325° regular or convection oven until center of strata is set and top is lightly browned, 40 to 50 minutes. Sprinkle evenly with parsley and capers. Let stand 10 minutes, then cut into squares. Serve warm or at room temperature.

BASIL BREAKFAST STRATA

Basil Breakfast Strata

From The Silver Palate Cookbook

BASIL BREAKFAST STRATA

Time Required: Overnight

YIELD10 People

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Milk

½ cup White Wine (I generally use a Sauvignon Blanc)

1 day-old French bread, sliced thin

8 oz. prosciutto, sliced thin (optional)

2 cups arugula leaves

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb of cheese (I use shredded mozzarella)

3 ripe tomatoes (I slice a container of cherry tomatoes instead)

½ cup pesto (recipe to follow, I generally use a cup instead of half)

4 eggs, beaten

½ cup half and half

PREPARATION

The day before, mix milk and wine in a shallow bowl and dip slices of bread and gently squeeze out most of the liquid. Place layer of bread in a 12" round corning ware dish or whatever your favorite casserole dish Cover bread layer with ham slices (if using), then arugula leaves dipped in the olive oil, then cover with some of the cheese, tomato slices, drizzle with pesto Repeat layers until dish is full. Beat eggs with Salt and Pepper and pour over layers. Cover and refrigerate overnight In the morning, pull out of the refrigerator and let container warm to room temperature (to prevent your dish from breaking in the oven when exposed to the heat) Drizzle with half and half and bake until browned for about 45 minutes at 350 degrees. The sides should start to bubble. Pesto: 2 cups fresh basil leaves ½ cup fresh mozzarella ½ cup extra virgin olive oil 1/3 cup pine nuts 3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced Salt and fresh ground black pepper Combine basil and pine nuts in food processor a few times, slowly add olive oil in a constant stream. Stop and scrape down the sides of food processor with rubber spatula. Add grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add salt and pepper to taste. Makes 1 cup.

CHICKEN ENCHILADAS WITH SALSA VERDE

Chicken Enchiladas With Salsa Verde 

• YIELD
4 to 6 servings

• TIME
1 hour

Don’t let the one-hour prep time on these enchiladas scare you. Use some leftover roast chicken, or buy a roast chicken at the market on the way home, and you’ll save at least 20 minutes, making the dish a terrific weeknight feed, alongside a green salad. (At El Real Tex-Mex restaurant, in Houston, the great Tex-Mex scholar and restaurateur Robb Walsh serves his version with lightly smoked chicken, which if you can find or make is superb.) The salsa verde is dead simple to make and the rest is assembly — a task that grows markedly easier each time you do it.

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CHICKEN (OR USE 1 1/4 POUNDS LEFTOVER OR STORE-BOUGHT ROAST CHICKEN):

• 2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs or breasts, or a mixture

• 1 small white onion, cut in half

• 4 cloves of garlic

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

FOR THE SALSA VERDE:

• 1 pound fresh tomatillos, husked, rinsed and cut into quarters (use canned if you can't find fresh)

• 1 small white onion, peeled and chopped

• 1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped

• 2 serrano chiles or more to taste, seeds removed if you want it less spicy, stemmed and roughly chopped

• 4 to 5 tender stems of fresh cilantro, with leaves, roughly chopped

• Salt to taste

FOR THE ENCHILADAS:

• ½ cup neutral oil, like canola

• 12 yellow corn tortillas

• 1 cup crumbled queso fresco or cotija cheese

• 1 cup Mexican crema, or use crème fraîche or sour cream

• 1 medium-size white onion, peeled and chopped (optional)

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PREPARATION

1 Prepare the chicken: Place chicken parts in a large saucepan with onion, garlic and salt, and cover with water. Heat pan over high heat until liquid comes to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and let simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove chicken and let cool, reserving stock for another use. Using your fingers or two forks, shred meat from chicken and reserve, discarding skin and bones. (Alternatively, shred meat from leftover or store-bought roast chicken and set aside.)

2 Meanwhile, heat oven to 375, and make the salsa verde: Combine tomatillos, onion, garlic, serranos and cilantro in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth, adding water as needed to thin it out a little. Season with salt to taste.

3 Prepare the tortillas: In medium sauté pan set over medium-high heat, heat oil until it begins to shimmer. Using tongs or a wide spatula, place a tortilla in the hot fat; it should start to bubble immediately. Heat tortilla for about 10 seconds a side, until soft and lightly browned. Remove tortilla and set on a rack set over a baking pan, or just on a baking pan if you don’t have a rack. Repeat with remaining tortillas, working quickly.

4 Assemble the enchiladas: Use a ladle to put about 1/2 cup salsa verde in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and spread it out a little. Roll a few tablespoons of shredded chicken into each tortilla with a teaspoon or so of salsa verde and place it seam-side down in the pan, nestling each one against the last. Ladle salsa verde over top of rolled tortillas and sprinkle with about half the crumbled cheese.

5 Transfer to oven and bake until sauce bubbles and cheese is melted, about 15 minutes. Dot with crema, sprinkle with remaining cheese and, if using, chopped onion, then serve immediately.

PICKLED EGGS AND SAUSAGE

Bar style pickled eggs n sausage

Ingredients

• 2 cups white vinegar

•

• 1 cup water

•

• 3 tablespoons picklng spice

•

• 1 teaspoon salt

•

• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper

•

• 6 to 7 squirts Frank's Red Hot Sauce (optional for color or you can use beet juice)

•

• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic or powder

•

• 1 tablespoon dried onion

•

• 18 Hard Boiled eggs

•

• 3 packages of polish sausage

•

Steps

1 Hard boil 18 eggs and boil , then 3 packages Polish sausage until they float.

2 Arrange eggs and sausage in layers, pack to top. Take care not to split eggs.

3 Combine all other ingedients in a medium sauce pan and simmer for 5 minutes.

4 While still hot, carefully pour brine until full. Put lid on tight shake to mix for 3 days and enjoy!

ANGEL BISCUITS II

"These biscuits are just a variation of the old icebox rolls. The
dough can be used this way or to make sweet rolls. If it tastes too
sweet as it is here, you may leave out all but 1 tablespoon sugar."

1 package dry yeast

2 tablespoons warm water

5 cups flour

4 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

8 tablespoons each butter

and margarine

2 cups buttermilk

Extra melted butter

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a small bowl. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In the meantime, melt

the butter and margarine over a very low flame or a "flame tamer" - you

do not want it to brown. Put the sifted dry ingredients in a large bowl and add the yeast. Mix. (This will not mix very well, but that is all right.) Next add the butter-margarine and buttermilk. Mix carefully. You will wind up with a very sticky dough. Cover this with a dish towel and refrigerate until you are ready to use it.

To make the biscuits, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Take out a third

of the dough and knead it on a floured surface for about 10 minutes. This

is important, because the kneading heats up the dough and starts the yeast working. Roll out as you would ordinary biscuits, to about 1/2 inch thick. Fold each one over and pinch it shut. Brush with additional melted butter

and place on a generously greased cookie sheet. Bake for about 12 minutes until golden. Makes slightly more than 3 dozen.

HAMBURGER STEAKS WITH ONION GRAVY

HAMBURGER STEAKS WITH BROWN GRAVY

prep time: 10 minscook time: 25 minstotal time: 35 mins

INGREDIENTS

Hamburger Steaks:

• 1 pound ground beef

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Brown Gravy:

• 1/4 cup pan drippings

• 1/4 cup flour

• 2 14-oz cans beef broth 

• Salt & pepper to taste

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INSTRUCTIONS

Make the steaks:

Crumble ground beef in a medium bowl and add salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder; mix by hand until seasoning is evenly distributed taking care not to over-work the meat. Shape ground beef into four thin hamburger steaks (about 1/2 inch thick).

Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Once the pan is good and hot, cook steaks on each side for 4-5 minutes or until nicely seared. Remove steaks to a plate and set aside (do not worry if they are cooked through, they will finish cooking in the gravy).

Make the gravy:

Reduce frying pan temperature to medium. Pour off pan drippings into a cup or bowl, measure 1/4 cup of the drippings then add back to the pan (the hamburgers should yield almost exactly 1/4 cup of pan drippings but if you’re short, add vegetable oil or butter). Add flour to pan then whisk to incorporate. Continue cooking and whisking for about 3-5 minutes or until roux is medium brown. Add beef stock and continue whisking for 2-3 minutes or until gravy starts to thicken a little (gravy will be thin). Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add hamburger steaks to gravy, reduce heat to medium-low then continue cooking, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until meat juices run clear and gravy has reduced and thickened.

Serve with white rice or mashed potatoes.

RECIPE UPDATE: I updated this recipe to double the gravy from the original amount -

Read more at https://www.southyourmouth.com/2012/09/hamburger-steaks-with-brown-gravy.html#O8ApudYLTfG4i2S2.99