Easy Roasted Olive Appetizer Plate using California Ripe Olives in the Can

I love an easy appetizer. Who doesn't. But sometimes we get in a rut and pull out the same old chips and dips and cheese and crackers we always do. Well I was recently at a gathering and thought I need to do something different. Something lighter and something tasty. Olives came to mind as one options. But how to make them more interesting than getting them from the deli olive bar and opening up a tub into a bowl? You know open a can! Well that got me thinking about olives in a can.

I really only knew there were 2 kinds of olives growning up. Green oilves that came in a jar with pimentos and California Black or Ripe olives that came in a can. Kalamata oilves and all the other varieties were just not on the tip of everyone's tongue in the US. when I was a kid. I didn't learn till much later the joy of the cultivated olive. When I did discover Greek Olives I was really blown away. The flavors and the textures were all so good and slowly I relegated the canned black olive to a culinary position which included mexican foods and salad recipes which called for them.

Recently I have been on a kick to try and reinvent uses for ingredients deemed old school or passe in the more modern kitchen. I used black olives for something the other day and thought they could be more interesting. I mean how is it that olives produced in the US. have this profile flavor-wise. Well I did some research and this is what I found out.

From the California Ripe Olive Producers:

The roots of the California Ripe Olive go way back. Wild olive (scientifically known as oleaster) once grew all over the Mediterranean, southeast Asia and other areas, but this unimpressive, straggly plant bore little resemblance to the graceful modern olive tree. That is, until about 5,000 years ago when it was first cultivated in Crete and Syria into the beauty as we now know it.

Once established, olive trees flourished in Spain, Tunisia, Morocco and other Mediterranean countries for thousands of years, featured in many of the regions culinary specialties. The Spaniards were the first to realize that this fabulous fruit could have international appeal and took the first cuttings to Peru in the mid-sixteenth century.

From there, Franciscan Monks took olives to the New World and moved north through the missions of Mexico. At last, in 1769, the first olive cuttings were planted in California at the San Diego Mission. As most transplants do, they responded quite well to the California climate-sunny days, cool nights, fresh air-and they set their roots.

Surrounded by such a cooperative climate, Californian’s started planting acres upon acres of olive trees in response to the high demand for olive oil in the 1800s. Then the market became saturated (with monounsaturated oil ironically) and prices dropped. Farmers who had used all of their land for olive oil were doomed if they didn’t come up with a new plan.

A resourceful German woman named Freda Ehmann and her son, Edwin, were part of this population. Who would’ve guessed that they would soon be the ones to figure out the solution? The Ehmann’s had trees that bore little fruit and selling pressed oil was not an option. After consulting with a Berkeley professor on processing methods, Freda began experimenting with 280 gallons of olives in barrels on her back porch. Thanks to her creative dreaming and stick-to-it-ness California Ripe Olives were created right then and there.

California Ripe Olives may not be prepared on the back porch anymore (in fact, we can assure you, they are always preserved in one of two state-of-the-art facilities), but they are made through the same exact process that Freda invented. This is what makes our olives taste decidedly American. Mild, versatile and meaty, they continue to add great flavor to everything from American country cooking to a melting pot of ethnic cuisines.

Who knew right? So obviously the flavor profile of these olives make them open to being used with other flavors to create something special. 

So having been to plenty of restaurants and events where a tasty olive bowl is available all mixed up with herbs some oil nuts and maybe garlic or citrus bits for flavor, I decided to make my own. However I would use the California Ripe olive out of the can!

So I did it. It was easy and it was well received. I used pearl onions, California Roasted Almonds ( staying with the state theme) some oilve oil, some garlic slices, fennel seeds, rosemary, sea salt  and of course California Ripe oilves. Stir it up. Saute lightly on the stove top then roast for 10 mins in the oven. Yum! So give this a try and mix up your nut bowl at the next party! Enjoy Ya'll!

Roasted California Ripe Olives with Almonds Onions and Herbs

preheat oven to 425 degrees

1 can 8oz California Ripe (black) oilves

4 tablespoons olive oil

10 pearl onions ( if frozen thaw)

1 large sprig rosemary leaves chopped

1 tablespoon fennel seeds

1/4 cup roasted almonds whole

2 cloves garlic sliced thin

Sea salt

Place oil in oven proof pan and heat over medium heat

add spices and allow to bloom a few minutes

add onions and cook till a little brown on one side

add the other ingredients and stir

cook for 3 to 5 mins then place into oven for 10 mins

take out and let cool on the counter, serve with bread.

7up Biscuits, Southern and No Joke Good!

Ok. I have to admit that sometimes I read the vast sea of recipes out on the internet and wonder, "who really cooks all of these"? I mean there are soooooo many out there. However, when I am researching a topic I try very hard to stick to classic ideas and recipe fornulas. In fact, I try to make up things myself, even if I find out later that my idea like so many things is hardly a new one or that someone has thought of before. Like they say there is nothing new under the sun!

But every now and then I stumble upon a recipe that I think, Really??? Oh come on, that's just ridiculous. And so it is with this one. I know it sounds crazy, but in this case it really is pretty AMAZING! No I mean could be the best biscuit I have ever made. I was just having a discussion with my friend Melissa at work and this came up. Well the subject of biscuits came up. She was telling me how she is a little bit obsessed with them and how she would like to make more of them. Well I said cool lets have a biscuit making day and we will experiment with all kinds of biscuits. Well that hasn't happened yet ( but it will and you all will get the full report when it does) but I found this recipe online while researching something random and decided last night for dinner to just try them out. Well let me tell you, they were so easy and stupid good, no I mean stupid good. So I can't take credit for them, but here is the well known recipe for 7up Biscuits. You can find them all over the internet but I thought I'd just write out the recipe for you. Enjoy Ya'll!!

7up Biscuits

3 cups Bisquick

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup 7-up

1/4 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 450.

Cut sour cream into biscuit mix, add 7-Up. Makes a very soft wet dough.( I had to flour the board and add more mix to the top to smooth out)

Sprinkle additional biscuit mix on board or table and pat dough out. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a 9 inch square pan.  Place cut biscuits in pan and bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

New American Cooking,Tortilla Sauce

So this sauce came about because I wanted a white or non red or green sauce for my food and did not want a direct sour cream sauce. I found this reference to a tortilla sauce from Emeril's Website and looked at it and thought, eh what the hay! Give it a try. Well it is amazing, so not what you think. It's kinda like a pureed Tortilla soup and it's really good. I have to credit the Big Guy for this one but of course I put my own touches on it. Give it a try. You'll like it!

Tortilla Sauce

32 Tortilla chips white corn crushed
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup finely diced onion
1 can green chili's mild
1/2 cup carrots
1/2 cup celery
4 cups chicken stock
1 Tablespoon finely diced pickled Jalapenos
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 teaspoons creole seasoning
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated white jack cheese or white cheddar cheese

Method:

Place butter in a hot skillet and melt
Cook onion,celery,and carrots till soft add garlic and cilantro and peppers and chili's
Add salt and pepper and seasoning
Pour in the chicken broth and let simmer over medium heat for 20 mins.
Add the crushed corn chips reduce heat and add the cream
Stir in the cheese and combine
Place sauce into a blender and blend till smooth
Hold warm or you can refrigerate for later use. Warm over low heat.

Enjoy!

New American Cooking: Mexican Gravy or Red Chili Sauce so Easy and so Good!

OK here is one of the sauces for the Enchiladas in the previous post, but it is such an awesome sauce it could just be my new favorite thing. I mean it is so tasty and so versatile that you could find a lot of uses for it. I think it's so good I should bottle it!

Anyway lets get down to the story. So Mexican Gravy, what is that? Well I did some research and found that this sauce is basically the basis for all foods Tex Mex. It's kinda like the Mexican or Tex Mex version of an Italian Sunday sauce or Sunday Gravy. It's red sauce with a whole lot of chili's in it. It's actually very simple. Chili, stock, flour, fat, some tomato sauce (though not a requirement), and spices. That's it. But it's how you put it together I think that matters. For me I decided not to roast the peppers boil them puree them and use them in the sauce. Although that might have been fun to do it seemed like a lot of work. So I found home recipes and they all seemed to use chili powder and basically one form or another of the elements described above. I found one that also added some Cacao.  It seemed like a good idea. So I threw that idea in there too. I also saw vast discrepancies between how much chili powder to use. I went wit the more is more camp on that one. So I am telling you this so easy it's crazy but if you make it you will never go back to bottled sauce again. So enjoy Ya'll!

Forrest's Mexican Red Chili Gravy

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
3 Tablespoons Garlic powder
2 Tablespoons Ground Cumin
2 Tablespoons Dried Oregano
1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt
1/2 Cup Red Chili Powder ( I used a mix of regular Store Brand Chili powder and ground Guajillo Pepper powder 30/70 blend ( but you can try other peppers like Ancho)
3 1/2 cups beef broth
1 15oz can of Store Brand tomato sauce ( no High Fructose Corn Syrup)
2 Tablespoons of hot Coco Mix with sugar added.

Method:

Melt butter and stir in the flour
Let cook for a few moments then pour in the other dry ingredients
Cook till starts to smoke stirring constantly
Then add the beef broth slowly combining the mix
When combine let it come to a bubble and boil
Then add the tomato sauce
Cook for 5 mins stirring often
At this point you are done but to get more combined complex flavor to can
reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 to 30 mins
If it gets too thick add more broth or just water
It should be thick and delicious
Add salt to taste if you like it more salty add it
Done. Done Done!

Enjoy on Enchiladas, as a flavor base for Taco meat ( good by little envelopes of salty seasoning), or on steak or braised beef or chicken. You could even use it as a sauce base for shrimp.
 Ya'll Enjoy this!

New American Cooking: Gourmet Enchiladas with Two Sauces, Tortilla Sauce and Chili Sauce

I absolutely adore Mexican Cuisine. It's one of the easiest, most accessible and tastiest cuisines by far. And one of my favorite dinners growing up was always Taco night or Enchilada night at home.

Being a navy family had some upsides and some downsides. My family lived in military housing when I was little and when we were stationed in Hawaii. Life on the base was pretty livable. There were playgrounds and ballfields, pool halls and bowling alleys, and clubs for both the enlisted and the officers. One of the downsides was facilities were not always near where you lived.  For example we would go shopping at the Military Commissary (Grocery) on the main base. It became a tradition that on shopping night we would have either "Taco night" or "Kielbasa, potatoes and kraut night "for dinner. It was a monthly tradition as my Mother and Grandmother would go shopping normally once a month for a"big shop"! I mean they would take a list of all the food needed to cook all the meals we would have for the month. It would end up being three grocery carts full of food. My brother and I would sometimes help but mostly just got dropped off to play or hang with my Dad. It sounds funny but everyone did that back then. Everyone was on a budget and a lot of people did not have the time or the transportation to go to the store regularly.

It is kind of interesting that we used to live like that. I mean in our world today, especially Mine in NYC. , where one can get anything by walking two blocks one would ever need, that we had to shop once a month for both convenience and budgetary issues. I mean it was a trek to the base where the store was and then there was all the planning that went into it. I mean those ladies in my family did a great job of keeping us happy and well taken care of. And it was a lot of hard work. We are so lucky today to live in a world where food is so easy to get. And most people don't even cook as much anymore, with the advent of "eating out" as the norm.  Thank goodness more are starting and many for the same reason's my Mom and Grandmother cooked, Money!

But back to Mexican food. My love of tacos and enchiladas began in the grocery isle with the advent of "Old El Paso" Mexican food products. They became widely available when I was little and our home kitchen jumped right onto that taco wagon. Refried Beans right out of the can mixed with spices and sour cream, red rice, taco shells, a packet of seasonings and ground beef filling was enough to turn our dinner table into a fiesta!  I still love a good taco night to this day as it's still a fun dinner. However, my vision of Mexican food, like the rest of the US, has grown up since then.

In the last 10 years chefs have been creating delicious and gourmet versions of the simple peasant foods of Mexico and South America. And Tex Mex which is different from other types of Mexican foods has taken a direction all it's own. Mexican cooking especially Tex Mex is real American Cooking. It is original and indigenous and takes from the cooking and food traditions of the peoples who came before us and whose traditions were older than the trees. Chef's like Rick Bayless show us the purity and simplicity of the mexican kitchen as well as the deep flavors and different authentic ingredients that make that cuisine soar.

So as I approach Mexican food these days I too find appeal in finding new ways to present "the same old things". I mean an Enchilada is an Enchilada. But I think we all know not all enchiladas are created equally! So as I was thinking about making an enchilada that would be unique I stumbled upon the concept of the Enchilada Banderas. Basically the idea behind this style of Enchilada plate is that it combines different colored sauces and fillings in a trio. The sauces were a red sauce (chili), a green sauce (verde), and a white sauce ( Suiza). All put together on one plate they represent the colors of the Mexican flag. It's a fun a tasty combo.

Well not wanting to make three different kinds of Enchiladas I settled on the idea that I would make two different sauces for one stella Enchilada. I also got the idea that the two sauces should be somewhat contrasting. Namely one creamy and one Spicy. I had recently read about so called Mexican Gravy or the red chili sauce that serves as the basis for all good Tex Mex. And wanting a different "creamy sauce" I stumbled upon and Emeril Lagasse recipe for a Tortilla sauce. So I thought lets combine the two and come up with a filling for the enchilada which is very tasty and different. Potato was a Rick Bayless idea and spinach or cooked Kale also sounded interesting.

So I worked on it and It really came together nicely. I added butternut squash and potatoes with sauteed greens, some white cheddar cheese and some salty crumbly Mexican cheese in a simple sauce of green chili's and  a little sour cream. Just enough to bind things together in the corn tortilla. Made the two sauces which were each a singular sensation and work of labor and love. But put together on the plate, amazing. So this recipe takes some time and effort. You could short cut an use a canned sauce for the red and figure out how to make the white sauce but the effort is worth it. Believe me it's good. So next time you want to kick your Mexican meal up a notch, try this Enjoy Ya'll!

Forrest's New American Enchiladas ( Potato, Butternut Squash, Greens, Green Chili and Cheese) with Tortilla Sauce and Mexican Red Chili Gravy

New American Enchiladas with duo of sauces

Ingredients:
Serves 6

6 large 8 inch Corn Tortillas
1 small onion chopped
1 large Potato cubed and cooked ( in Microwave)
1 cup cubed butternut squash cooked ( in Microwave)
2 cups chopped greens kale or swiss chard sauteed
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 can green chili's (mild)
1/2 cup sour cream
2 T milk
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp oil plus 1/2 cup oil
2 cups grated sharp white cheddar
1/2 cup Hard White Queso Fresca crumbled ( or Feta Cheese)

3 cups Tortilla sauce ( recipe to follow on this blog) held very warm on the stove top
2 cups Mexican Red Chili Gravy ( recipe to follow on this blog) held very warm on the stove top

Method:

Place onion in a large skillet with oil and over medium heat soften
Add potatoes and squash and spices and salt and pepper to taste
Cook till spices bloom but don't over stir and break up the potatoes
Add the green chili's and sour cream and milk and make sauce
Hold warm. You may have a little extra more than you need for 6 servings.

To make the Enchiladas:

Heat 1/4 cup of oil till hot and fry the tortillas till soft and not yet crispy.
Pull off and place 2 spoonfuls of the filling inside add some of the greens and then some of both cheeses and roll ( make sure you don't overstuff ) then place seam side down on a baking sheet. Repeat till all the Enchiladas are done. Hold in warm oven.

To Serve:

Place a enchilada with spatula into a flat bottomed serving bowl or pasta bowl.
Cover with both sauces first with the tortilla sauce on one end and the gravy on the other end.
sprinkle with remaining cheddar cheese. and garnish with a parsley sprig or cilantro leaf. Enjoy Ya'll!

Trofie Wife! Trofie Pasta with Fresh Basil Cream and Green Beans

One of my favorite flavors is basil pesto on a noodle. It is so overbearingly delicious. I mean pesto dominates everything it touches but also leaves room from shouts of flavor from beneath it's green delicious blanket. My friend Todd once made a homemade pesto that was to die for. But being from Wisconsin he also added some cream to the sauce which I took as brilliant.

I recently returned from a trip to the Midwest for a wedding and I was reminded once again of the Midwest's love for cheese. Wisconsin, especially, is a place where they take dairy to the extreme. They basically add dairy to everything except Sushi. Although, it has been done before, believe me. Wisconsin broadly described is a cheese and dairy lovers paradise. I mean even the burgers there are called "butter burgers" for heaven's sake! While I was working in Wisconsin at the Fireside Theatre in Fort Atikison, Wisconsin, I had the pleasure of seeing a lot of dishes during our potluck sundays which involved the locals bringing in the dairy goodness. My post about my White Enchiladas comes from that time. http://www.cookforrestcook.blogspot.com/2011/12/winter.html and if those aren't cheesy goodness i don't know what is!

So I thought about making a pasta dish that would be a little more sophisticated than just pesto and cream. I thought about a basil infused cream and I thought about my love of monochromatic dishes. So to stay along the green lines and stay with summer's bounty I thought why not add some fresh green beans to the dish and to add more flavor some smoked cheese as an accent. I suppose in the fall and winter you could add asparagus tips instead of the beans, but summer seemed a good time for the grean beans. Also I have learned that cooking fresh basil can be tricky. You have to get the green to set up in hot water by blanching it quickly and if you over cook it it will turn brown. The same principle applies if you saute it, so I knew I would have to work on keeping it green.

This recipe is so simple yet comes out so elegantly. If you want to impress people, even Italians, with your pasta proneness, this is a good recipe to start with. I also love the the fresh green color and the vibrant monochromatic simplicity of the dish. So try it and keep a little of summer's green with you into the fall. Enjoy ya'll.

Trofie Pasta with Basil Cream and Green Beans
makes 4 to 6 portions

Ingredients:

1 pound dried trofie pasta
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 pounds of fresh skinny green beans
1 1/2 cups packed basil leaves
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup grated smoked Mozzarella cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt and some white pepper to taste

Method:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. reduce to simmer and add green beans. Let cook till al dente about 7 mins.
Remove from the hot water and plunge into ice cold water to stop the cooking
When cool cut the beans into thirds.
Bring water back to a boil add pasta and cook for 7 to 9 mins or till pasta is done.
Meanwhile saute 1 cup of the basil till soft in the butter ( about 2 mins.) add the cream and the remaining basil and cook two more mins. Transfer mixture to a blender and puree till smooth.Add salt if desired.
Place the sauce in a large bowl
Add the beans and the hot pasta and toss till coated.
Add the cheese and toss serve it with chives and parsley leaves.

Toasted Sesame Garlic Dressing Recipe Homage to the Lobster Pot, Green Salad with Green Beans and Walnuts

Provincetown Mass. is probably one of the most beautiful places on the planet and definitely one of my favorites. It is a magical place full of the promise of freedom and Summer openness in a way that few places can mirror. It's setting on the hills above a blue bay curving around in on itself and capped with a light house that beckons as well as warns. Beckons "come and partake" but warns to ""leave all your judgements and prejudice" at the harbor's mouth. The houses rise in clusters and rows winding up the narrow streets that branch off from the water's edge. Gardens and flowers are everywhere, testimonial to the season and the Summer's rebellion against the harsh Winter that is bound to follow as if it were yet declaring,"I am here and blossom in my season regardless of what fierce cold and blustery winds you will bring in your time, this is mine and i am Alive"!

The town bustles with Families and groups of friends and strangers engaged in the business of summer fun. And that of course involves dining and eating. And that means Seafood and one of the landmark establishments that celebrates seafood is of course The Lobster Pot. www.ptownlobsterpot.com/ 

SO as you can tell I must be a fan! Well I am mostly in the sense that my friends and I who go every Summer have a tradition of going for dinner once during our time there. And we always have a great meal and a lot of drinks! 

One of the highlights which might seem silly it the salad that accompanies the dinners. It is nothing more than a big bowl of various lettuces and a tray of 4 dressings. Blue Cheese, Toasted Sesame, Creamy Garlic, and Italian. You can pick whatever dressings you want. Well somewhere along the way someone discovered that if you mix the Toasted Sesame Dressing with the Creamy Garlic you get a taste sensation! I mean this stuff is Yummy Good! So of course we always end up asking for more lettuce and eat a very healthy portion of salad with our meals. 

Well I came back from Ptown aka Provincetown, and decided why not just make a dressing that was a combo of the two. Well it worked and I created a dressing that was garlicky and thick and herbal with that toasted sesame undertone. With this dressing I decided on the fly to put together a salad for my dinner party that night. So I shredded up 1 head of romaine and some basil leaves and chopped up about 4 oz of french green beans. I also crushed up some fresh walnuts and thought that would add some more texture and make a nice topping. Also I added a touch of grated parmesan cheese but you could leave that out. I just love cheese. I cut some tomatoes into wedges and lined the out side of the plate. Piling the dressed salad in a mound in the middle and then garnishing with the crushed walnuts. I added in some chopped scallions ( the white parts ) and viola! I had a great salad! 

Creamy Toasted Sesame Garlic Dressing

3/4 cup Mayo
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Toasted Sesame Oil 
2 tablespoon garlic oil ( if you don't have garlic oil add another teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Worchestershire
1 teaspoon salt 
1 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon Italian Dried Herbs
2 teaspoons Dried Basil
1 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon grated romano cheese
1 teaspoon white vinegar

Put into a dressing bottle and shake everything together till creamy, add more sesame oil if you want it more pronounced.
Enjoy Ya'll

Steak salad...well a Salad that can stand up to steak

There are salads and there are salads. There was an amazing post on 101 cookbooks the blog, the other day about a yellow bean salad with a coconut dressing. Sounded delish and it inspired me to look at beans again as another source of side dishery for the summer. I make several mean green bean salads. I love them. They are lighter than a starch yet give you that feeling that you are eating something substantial. And salads are a source of summer culinary joy! But I mean there are salads that stand on their own and are an entree unto themselves, and then there are salads that are part of a collection of dishes in the summer that help to make up a feast. This post is about such a salad.

 The other day a friend brought over the most amazing rib-eye steaks ever. Aged for 30 days and so decadent. He wanted to serve it up grilled with some soft blue cheese from france melted on top and a dap of butter. Heart healthy I know! So I was to come up with some sides that would support this very ambitious red meat eating frenzy.

At first I thought I would make a potato salad and a tomato salad. This sounded pretty good. But as the evening approached and I went to the store I decided on a little something more summery. Inspired by the 101 cookbooks post I looked around the store and decided that a green bean and fresh corn salad with a warm bacon dressing and some other tasty tidbits was in the works.

Now before you scoff at this being another one of these "I love bacon things",  let me say that this salad actually came out very light. There was in fact very little dressing on it and because of the crunchy beans, corn,  onions and almonds it was hefty but not heavy. The dressing was really little more than the left over bacon drippings some red wine vinegar, some danish dill sweet mustard ( I had in the pantry) and a dash of olive oil. Believe me when I say lightly dressed yet delicious. The mustard and the dill helped a lot.

But the real tribute to this salad was that it really stood up flavor wise to the steak. And that's what's great about it. So the next time you are going to try and use some green beans, give this a try.

Haricot Vert and Fresh Corn Salad with a Warm Bacon Dressing.
make 4 to 6 servings depending on other sides

8 ounces Haricot Vert ( I used one package from the Trader Joe's Veggie Aisle)
2 ears of corn yellow sweet
2 stalks of celery finely diced
1/3 of a red onion finely diced
1/3 cup sliced almonds
3 oz slab bacon cut into lardons
1/3 cup french fried onions ( I use the fancy french ones you could use French's)
1 teaspoon pink peppercorns ( optional for garnish)

Cook beans in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes on high remove and cool
Cut beans into three segments
Cut corn off the cob
Cook the bacon slowly to release the fat. Remove leave drippings in the pan
Put all remaining ingredients into a bowl along with the beans, corn and bacon.
Toss in the dressing taste and season with S&P to taste and let stand at room temp for about an hour, or serve immediately if you want.

Dressing:

Warm the bacon drippings in the pan ( about 2 tablespoons)
Add 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoon Dill mustard ( Or mix dijon with some dill and sugar)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon water
S&P taste
Stir together over low heat till warm and mixed through, dress salad while warm.

Fresh Corn and Shrimp Salad

Every now and then I try to use the fresh ingredients that are totally seasonal and in the rawest form. This is especially true in the summertime when we have access to things being sold in their real growing season. I also have been trying to eat more fresh foods ( aka salads) in the heat wave we are having because grilling is hot!

Now being from coastal South Carolina. I have over time and upon reflection recognized that people down there are slightly Shrimp obsessed. I mean it's clear why. Shrimp are fresh and local and Shrimp are good eats. In any form fried, boiled, poached, bbq'ed, roasted, hot or cold Shrimp are good! They are also a great summer warm weather protein. Light and fresh they go well with the "it's too hot out to eat a big meal" mentality. I mean your could consume a pound of peel and eat shrimp and still have room for that burger right...but I digress.

So this summer for some reason I have also returned to my memory of eating fresh corn. I mean it's a memory because I only remember it as a small boy in the summer at my Big Mama's house. Corn right  out of the garden and right off the cob, blanched for a hot second and served up at the table with lots of butter and salt and pepper. Yum! It was amazing. So this summer I thought why not return to that goodness. And so I have, serving up a corn salad which I wanted to pair up with a seafood as an entree salad for a rooftop meal. I choose shrimp because they are so easy breezy cover girl to throw into anything right out of the freezer bag. Just thaw, de-tail and go! But I suppose you could use just about any seafood/shellfish.

The point is the corn salad is nice and crunchy and fresh. I mean it's not even cooked!
The seafood you could leave out and no one would miss it. In fact I made this again the other day and left out the tomatoes and the seafood and it was amazingly good! So eat a little corn Ya'll it's good!

Fresh Corn Salad with Herbs ( Shrimp and tomatoes optional)

Feeds 4 to 5 as a side dish

6 large ears of freshest corn cut right off the cob
1/2 small red onion finely diced
5 scallions chopped including whites
12 basil leaves chiffonade
1/4 cup of fresh chopped parsley

Dressing:

1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayo
4 tablespoons tarragon vinegar ( use cider if you don't have )
1 bunch of chives
1/2 cup parsley
4 tablespoons milk plus more added only if too thick in the blender
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Place everything in a blender and puree till smooth.

Mix dressing with the corn and other ingredients till lightly dressed and serve right away. Or chill in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight for a more marinated flavor.

Additions:

Add chopped multi-colored cherry tomatoes and some heart of palm sliced also some peel and eat shrimp for an entree salad.

Shrimp and Fresh Corn and Herbs Salad

Forrest's Famous Burgers, If you have had them, you know!

OK, it's summer and it's time for grilling and the roof here in NYC. I have a great roof deck. And I love to entertain. So that being said, work has slowed down in the catering business, the grill is on and the weather is hot, so it's up to the roof for some hanging out time.

Now one of the staples of the American Grill Experience has got to be the Burger. Oh and by Burger I mean Cheeseburger, cause what else is there really! When I was a kid we lived in very tropical and sub tropical climes. My Dad and Mom both were big fans of the grill, and as a little boy especially when we were stationed in Hawaii ( yes navy brat here ) we spent plenty of nights cooking out. Now my Dad did a lot of the cooking and he would whip up some tasty things. Especially loved the steaks, done Hawaiian style, which was popular at the moment. And I loved his burgers.

Now that being said I am not sure to this day who came up with the seasoning that went into the Hedden Family burger mix. It could have been my Dad or my Mom, but it could also have been my Grandmother Irene, my mom's mom, who lived with us from the time I was in 2nd grade on. She and my Mom split duty in the kitchen and so you never were sure where and who invented some of the wonderful recipes I remember eating growing up. So it is with the burger spice mix. but I will get to that. First let's just talk about burgers.

OK, now today we have an explosion of Burger technical knowledge going on. The Food Network has stars like Bobby Flayhttp://www.bobbyflay.com/recipe.php?id=200&v=2 and Tyler Florence http://www.tylerflorence.com/?p=877 providing no end of burger expertise and advice. The science of making the best burger is really amazing and people are invested fully in it. Chefs everywhere seek out the right custom meat blends and place emphasis on the most organic and obscure ingredients to differ their burger from the next. I mean short rib mixed with sirloin, mixed with pork shoulder. I mean come on, pork shoulder in a burger??? But nonetheless these guys are serious about what they are doing and take things to extremes of taste and texture never before seen. And we haven't ever started to discuss the bun or the cheese or the condiments! Wow, too much work Maria!

Well back in the late seventies we didn't have such luxuries, and even if they had existed, we were a poor military family living on foods from the commissary! No such meat blends there. No so as I approach making burgers I do it like my Dad did, use what you got! And that meant ground Chuck. Yes, the ole staple of the supermarket bargain brand. Now mind you they did try for the lower fat content, but ground Chuck is ground Chuck. And fat equals flavor, so they were onto something even with such a pedestrian meat choice!

The other element of the burger was the spices they put in them. Now I know what some of you are thinking! Sacrilege!! Spices in the meat. Well, yes that was the way it was done. I mean who wants just beef flavor? Well, believe me I know how good that can be and i know meat should speak for itself, but indulge me. I getting at a flavor profile here that is a little different. So, back to the spices. I am to this day not completely sure of the spice blend and have since made it my own but i can tell you the basic elements are the following, Worchestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, black pepper. That's it. Very basic but the quantities are important. Basically lots of the sauce, onion and garlic. A little salt and a good dose of pepper. Sometimes there would be chopped onions in it, sometimes not. I like the not, but sometimes there were. This when placed in the meat creates amazing beefy flavor. People love it. I have now been making these burgers for at least 10 years in NYC and I can say without exception people always want the recipe. I tell them what I will tell you, it's all in the feel, just add in what you want and how much you want. These are the ingredients, make it your own!

OK, now we get to the other elements of what makes my burger, my burger. I am talking cheese and condiments. So to make a Forrest Burger it's quite simple. But let me explain. When I make a burger I make you a burger. This is not Burger King and unless you have an allergy you will eat it MY way! Just kidding, well just a little. Actually when I do burgers I serve them fully dressed and skewered with a long pick to hold it together. So you get the full effect! I mean it's a chefs creation here so just go with it!

Ok Bun, let's talk Bun. I have to say I love a potato roll. Martin's potato rolls are some how amazing! But I would not say no to a really lovely seeded hamburger bun if top quality, nor to a brioche if very fresh and not all dried out. Or you could go old school and use a sesame bun. So those are the choices, mostly using the potato rolls cause I love them and they are very easy to find!

And then the Cheese, well I have to say I like yellow sharp Cheddar slices from the dairy case. Nothing too fancy I am afraid. Melted nicely on the patty and then served onto the bun.

Finally condiments, well  here's the trick. I use the basics and include one thing that's a little different but I find brings it to a home run. So that being said the condiments are mayo on both sides of the bun, on the top bun a little ketchup and mustard ( yellow), then a thin slice of tomato the same size as the bun, and shredded romaine lettuce mixed with a little bit of mayo. Then on the bottom bun a nice smear of hickory flavored BBQ sauce. Yes it must be hickory. Kraft makes a good one.

And that is it. So this is all stacked on top of the beef patty which sits directly on the bottom bun.  Skewered with a long pick and served up either on the plate or on a platter for a buffet. And that if it. Enjoy Ya'll!

Forrest's famous Burger's
Makes 10 burgers

3 pounds of ground meat 80/20 min fat content chuck or mix of sirloin and chuck
3/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce (I use the French's version of the bottled sauce)
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons of black pepper
1 tablespoon oil
salt to taste

The Cheese:
Slices of good quality sharp yellow cheddar cheese

Buns:
Martin's Potato Roll Large dinner rolls or burger buns

Toppings:
2 1/2 cups shredded Romain lettuce
10 center cut tomato slices from beefsteak tomatoes
1 cup chopped white onion
30 slices of dill pickles 3 per burger

Condiments:
Ketchup
Yellow Mustard
Mayo
Hickory flavored BBQ sauce

Method:

Mix meat gently with the spices don't over mix
form into 6 burger patties ( I use a metal burger form)
Before grilling use your thumb and press an indentation in the center of each burger this will keep them from puffing up during cooking.

Over a hot grill, coals or on a griddle cook 3 to 4 mins per side for med rare turning once and don't press the juice out of the burger just let them get a good sear on them. Melt the cheese 1 to 2 mins before you pull them off the grill.

Toast the buns on the heat and spread with a slather of mayo
spread a nice smear of BBQ sauce on the bottom bun and place the dill slices and onions on it
When burgers are done place on the bottom bun
top with lettuce then tomato slice
Place a good smear of ketchup and mustard on the top bun an close
Skewer with a 6 in restaurant wooden pick if you can find them or a skewer of any kind.

Serve up with a loaded baked potato or salads for a summer buffet

Enjoy Ya'll!!!

Chips and Dips are for Whimps! Avocado Spread with Rosemary Flavored Foccacia Toasts!

I love avocados in the summertime. I mean what's not to like about them. They are the basis for Guacamole which has got to be one of the best things ever. They are smooth and rich and buttery tasting, and have the most wonder ability to compliment a variety of starchy foods.

In this past month's issue of Food and Wine Magazine, one of the contributors talked about avocado toasts with sea salt and red pepper flakes. He explained that the simplicity of the grilled bread with the rich and picante flavor of the mashed ripe avocado was the highlight of his dinner party. Well he was right on. I tried this delectable recipe and I have to say it was good. However, you know I love to take something and make it my own so I decided to do just that. But lets not get ahead of ourselves here, this desire to do something different with it started with the Toast.

Now toasted bread is perhaps one the greatest things in the world as far as I am concerned! Toasted bread is crispy, crunchy, warm and can be savory or sweet, It can be topped with anything from butter and jam or vegetables to melted cheese. It is in short the most wonderful vehicle for savoring a variety of foods. But all toasts are not created equal. And when I thing of toast I want two things, excellent flavor and exciting mouth feel. I love good old plain bread toast for certain things. But for a toast or bread plate to really be special I think you need to move past the everyday bread into the realm of flavor and texture. And the one bread which I think has both these in spades in the Italian Bread called Foccacia!

So for those of you who do not know what Foccacia is let me explain. It is Italian in origin. It is a yeast bread which is baked into a flat load and is loaded with olive oil goodness. It is soft and sponge like yet firm and chewy. It is excellent plain but I have discovered it is even better toasted. Toasting the Foccacia gives it another layer of texture and brings out it's oily goodness even more.

Well using that as a starting point I thought, why stop at toasting the focaccia? Why not give it a grilled treatment, not unlike what grilled cheese bread goes through. Butter it and grill it crispy, crunchy and salty and serve it warm. Maybe with olives and olive oil. Yum. Well that's where my bread plate idea started. But where is ended was with the avocado toast idea.

So to make the avocado toasts normally you slather it on and serve it up. But I decided to make a play off the chips and dip idea and serve it already prepared like guacamole would be letting people put it on the bread themselves. And then substituting things like the sea salt and pepper flakes, lemon juice and good quality olive oil for the traditional Mexican flavorings Thus giving the spread an richness like green butter. Ah, and it was so good when I served it up!

So next time you are having people over make a little effort and try this instead of the old chips and dip. It will elevate your dinning experience a notch or two and make your guests so happy. So enjoy, Ya'll!

Avocado Spread on Foccacia Toasts
serves 4

4 small to medium ripe but not over ripe avocados
Maldon Sea Salt ( or other course flaky sea salt)
1 to 2  teaspoons red pepper flakes depending on your heat level ( plus more for garnish)
VERY good quality finishing olive oil about 1 1/2 tablespoons

Method:

mash the avocados in a bowl till very creamy add sea salt flakes to taste and red pepper flakes to taste.
Add the olive oil and stir together till creamy and combined
Place in a small dip or serving bowl and garnish with more salt and red pepper flakes, drizzle olive oil over the top till it rests in a small pool in the rim of the dish.
Serve with toasted bread

Forrest's Bread Plate

Foccacia Bread loaf
Good butter at room temp
olive oil
rosemary flavored oil
Maldon Sea Salt

Method:

Cut bread into rectangular pieces which are about 4 inches by 2 inches
Slather one side with butter
Place enough olive oil in a skillet till the bottom is lightly coated
Turn on heat to med high
When very hot place the bread butter side down in the pan and allow to cook till toasted and browned
Turn over and let grill till the other side is toasty
Drizzle the rosemary oil over the bread and sprinkle with the sea salt
Place on a plate and serve immediately or at room temp is fine but warm is better!

Enjoy ya'll

Sweet Corn Pesto Pasta (Italy and the American South collide!)

One of the great joys of growing up in the South and in a Southern family was that no matter where we might have been geographically,  my father made sure that several activities were a part of us where ever we would go. These included Church going, gardening, and an evening meal together. Because of that we also had several food items nearly always present with us. For instance tomatoes were grown in the house gardens, which we always built when we moved in. Those along with squash and zucchini and a few other random veggies. Summer time always meant tomato and onion sandwiches with mayo and black pepper, corn on the cob, and weeding! I can also remember visiting my uncle's garden where corn came right out of the field and onto the table. It was so tasty.  As a family we enjoyed our corn in a lot of ways during the year in our family from fresh to the creamed stuff in a can. But  to this day sweet summer corn was one of those things that really reminds me of family eating  that only came around in the summer time.

The other part of this pasta story ( which has nothing to do with corn)  is that I am wary of making pasta dishes in general. Yes wary!  Partly because I live in New York City, where one can access amazing or at least really good pasta very easily. And partly that one of my best friends in the entire world Angelo Musco is from Italy. And if you know an Italian, you know how picky they are about their pasta. You see several years ago I met Angelo through a dancer friend of mine here in New York. Well we hit it off quite well and he was voted the new best friend of 2002. And here we are 10 years later and he is still a major influence in my life and one of the most driven, intensely talented people I have ever met. That and one of the most willing to share his view of life and world, especially of food! And when I score with a dish, I get raves from him! You can see his work at his web page if you are interested at,  AngeloMusco.com. It is stark and rich, physical and spiritual, dark and vibrant  full of contrast and ultimately very fully human, which is what speaks to me.

Well Angelo has cooked and exposed my palette to a variety of amazing pasta dishes in the last 10 years. There was mushroom pastas, lemon pasta, spicy red sauces and white sauces, oil sauces even bacon sauces. There were noodles thin and noodles fat and wide. Let's just say it's been an education. But regardless of the sauce or pasta type, they were all super yummy! Which brings me to my issue. If I make pasta for this particular friend it either has to be really good or it has to be something he would never cook! So when I did the bow tie pasta with sundried tomato and black pepper cream sauce entry which you can see at http://cookforrestcook.blogspot.com/2012/02/bow-tie-pasta-with-bacon-sundried.html  I knew I had a winner cause Angelo would never cook this. And it got rave reviews!

So after hearing about a corn based sauce for pasta I was really intrigued. I mean something as Southern as corn in a sauce for pasta could potentially be an awesome thing. So I did a little research and found that this idea for a corn pesto was already out there. Not a lot of recipes but enough to make me think, well maybe I should try this. In fact one of the reasons I tried it was that people compared it to carbonara but a lighter summer version. So I did try it and let me tell you the results were nothing short of delicious. The corn cooks into an amazing sauce which you would swear has cream in it but it is really just the sweet fresh corn pureed down into a silken starchy sauce. So without further adieu I give you Sweet Corn Pasta Pesto. Enjoy ya'll.

   Corn Pesto and Bacon Pasta


  what you need:

• 4 slices thick bacon, cut into lardons
• 4 cups fresh corn kernels from about 6 ears
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 pound taglietelle, fettucini, or other pasta ( I think bow tie would work well too)
• 3/4 cup slivered basil leaves

            Method:

• 1.   In a large skillet, cook the bacon pieces over medium-low heat until chewy and beginning to crisp and the fat has rendered into the pan, about 10 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

        Add the corn and garlic to the skillet and toss to coat in the fat. Add a couple pinches of salt and pepper and cook until the corn is just tender, about 5 minutes. Reserve 3/4 cup of corn, then scrape the rest into a food processor. Add the pine nuts and Parmesan and pulse to combine. Add the olive oil with the machine running and blend until almost smooth. Add some of the cooking water right before the pasta finishes cooking and pulse to smooth it.

        In the meantime, bring a pot of salty water to boil and cook the pasta until al dente. Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water before draining.
  2.    In a large skillet, combine the cooked pasta, corn pesto, reserved corn, most of the basil, and 3/4 of the bacon. Over low heat, toss to combine, adding some of the reserved pasta cooking water until the sauce comes together and coats all the noodles. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3.    Divide the pasta among bowls and top with remaining basil, bacon, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and pepper if desired. Serve immediately. It's really good!

Pocono Mountain inspired: Kale Salad With Roasted Peanut Dressing, A salad for your summer!!

Kale. It seems to be the new national salad obsession. I mean people a few years ago would never have eaten Kale in the quantities and the manner they eat it now. I mean Kale is a hearty, bitter green with a lot of fiber and a chewy consistency. It's super good for you and can be a great cooked green, but eaten raw seemed a little challenging to me.

Now Kale is not a new green, but American's are very greens challenged in general. I mean spinach seems to be the green that everyone knows. In the south we have the collard, which is cooked down into a pile of goodness with pork fat,salt, vinegar and sugar and served warm with a little spicy kick to them normally. But kale is not as popular nor was it marketed as a grocery staple by Green Giant back in the day, which was how a lot of America got it's veggie knowledge. But now Kale is everywhere. In restaurants in food magazines, in cooking shows in cook books. Kale seems to be the new green. And as such new types of Kale are coming to light. I knew of curly kale but  the italian variety Tuscan or Black Kale with a straighter leaf seems to have come into the spotlight as of late. Although it must be said that California has been growing it a long time now!

Now my first real contact of cooking with kale was actually in a pasta dish which my friend George Moy prepared for me one weekend on a retreat in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. You see another friend of mine bought a very cute house up in the Pocono Mountains about 2 hours from NYC.  Now weekend getaways are a huge deal when you live in the city. People love to get out and enjoy a little of what suburbanites and country folk know all the time. Namely, nature is amazing and we feel better when we a around it! So this house for several years became my get away. My friend rarely was there and I had free run of the place anytime I wanted. So I took people up for weekend retreats. There were some amazing dinners during those weekends, and food was central to the themes of those weekends. Well that and lots of drinking!

So Kale, well as said George was responsible for one of the meals during a weekend and made a simple  and classic pasta dish with Italian sausage, garlic, onions, kale, red pepper flakes and a touch of cream. SO simple and yet so good! Comfort food at it's best. But  here the curly kale with was cooked down  and was delicious with this mix of ingredients. Again not raw. I really did not encounter a Kale salad again until I had one prepared at work for me by the Chef for a client tasting. Very good salad, with white anchovies and almost a caesar like dressing. However I was still not a fan. Then I was asked to make a kale salad on request and found that it was probably one of the most challenging salads I had made. Why? Well mostly because while it came out nicely it didn't have the look or the taste I was really wanting. I used black kale and white anchovies much like the chef at work but found the salad too bitter and somehow not quite....well good!

However kale salads kept coming up in articles and in recipe blogs. So I decided I should try one again. And again I took my love of green on green salads and a curious taste combo as a starting point and I think it came out a winner. I have said it before but I really love monochromatic foods. I think they pop on a plate and give great eye appeal to whatever they are served with. So that having been said they also have to be interesting looking. Texture and color have to be involved, like with my cole slaw recipe, http://cookforrestcook.blogspot.com/2012/02/greener-version-of-cole-slaw.html, which I have been enjoying this summer a few times so far. My favorite chain restaurant has a Kale salad with a peanut dressing also using cabbage and that was a starting point. The other flavor profile I chose was from a habit of eating parmesan cheese flatbread with peanut butter on them. Now Parmesan Cheese and peanut butter might sound like a strange combo but believe you me it is awesome! So decided to use that as a base for my salad with kale and when it all came together the results were, well kinda spectacular! I also went back to using curly kale, in honor of my first encounter with it in the Poconos, and added in chopped green cabbage for that green on green look I like so much. A few nuts for crunch some parmesan cheese and dressing of roasted peanut oil and wham! You got a good salad!

So here it is folks a salad for your summer, Kale Salad ala Forrest! Enjoy Ya'll!

Kale Salad and Cabbage Salad with Roasted Peanut Vinaigrette
makes 4 good sized portions

For the dressing:

3/4 cup Roasted Peanut oil
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons black pepper
1 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon dry Mustard powder
1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon water
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3 anchovies filets (optional)

Place in a food processor and mix well till combined.

For the salad:

 2 1/2 cups  curly kale ( not tuscan or black)  stems ribs cut out, leaves chiffonade chopped finely and then cut into three times really shredded ( Kale is tough so you want really fine small pieces but not confetti)
2 cups cups shredded and fine chopped green cabbage
12 mint leaves chiffonade chopped
1/4 of a bunch of fresh cilantro leaves and stems are fine finely chopped
3/4 cup finely chopped dry roasted peanuts no salt
1/2 cup whole dry roasted peanuts
1/2 cup  finely grated parmesan cheese plus 2 tablespoons

Method:

In a large bowl mix all greens with peanuts and cheese
Add dressing till nice and wet
Toss well
Let sit 5 to 10 mins
Serve in individual bowls or onto a large platter.

The Hillstone Hawaiian Rib Eye, the best steak I have ever made!

OK I have finally come to summertime and to the Grill! I love using the BBQ grill like most Americans do. And I am fortunate to have a really nice grill setup on my roof. This given that I live in an apartment building in NYC. Yes, but my roof is really great and we enjoy it as much as possible during the summer months. Especially in the evenings when the sun is out of the middle of the sky and it's nice out. I am just glad that few people in my building take advantage of it! I have grilled all manner of dinners up there including a very sad lamb dinner once! Yikes! Regardless of the options however, when company is coming I almost always choose steak.

Steak is one of America's greatest obsessions. We love steak, we cook steak , we dress up steak ,we grill it, pan sear it, oven broil it, smother it, marinate it, and even fry it! I can tell you that when I was working for the James Beard Pop Up Restaurant last year in 2011, where I managed the front of house, at least 8 of the 10 odd superstar chefs that came through as guest chefs cooked steak. Well that could have had something to do with the fact that Certified Angus Beef was one of the sponsors, but who cares, Steak is good and Americans love it!

My relationship with eating steak out started early on in grade school when my father took us to the first steak dinner I can remember. It was at an naval officer's club and I thought that having steak cooked perfectly medium rare and delivered to your table was pure genius! It wasn't very often however, that we got to indulge in this treat out at a restaurant. So my main memories of steak and actually those of my father cooking a meal centered around the BBQ grill and dinners under the lanai in our back yard. Now you might have noticed that I just said the word "Lanai". Well, that's because it was when we were stationed in Hawaii that my parents stumbled upon the BBQ smoker/cooker of all BBQ smaoker/cookers, the Japanese Kamato Grill. (Hence the word Lanai!)

What is a Kamato? Well it was a clay tower about 4 feet tall and topped with a dome lid that would swing open to reveal the grill. The dome had a round "chimney" like vent with a topper which could be removed to let out the smoke and or heat. It produced a taste that to this day I have found unparalleled in intense BBQ quatlity. it was indeed a smoker which most BBQ's are not and thus lent a really special flavor to meats cooked in it or on it.

The other part of living in Hawaii, and being that it was the 1970's, was that many of the BBQ sauces and marinades of the day had a soy sauce/teriyaki twist to them. It was all the rage! So my memories of my Dad's BBQ sauces and marinades had a sweet pineapple and soy twist to them.
I love this sort of Marinade, the flavor, the aroma, and appreciate it all the more when it is done with excellent execution on all sorts of meats. One taste and I am transported back to that naval housing lanai and backyard. The plumeria trees in full bloom, the tree fort in the backgound and the noise of the neighborhood kids at play on the playground in air. The family is gathered around the picnic table, and my father, mother, grandmother, brother and I are relishing another fine homemade masterpiece of a meal, and laughing and sharing time together. It is a happy and sweet memory sensation indeed!

But where does one find such a place which enlivens the senses and brings back such sense memory occasions. Well you may laugh, but it is at my favorite chain restaurant in NYC. Hillstone ( aka Houston's Restaurant in other parts of the country). And how you any ask? Well it wasn't always my favorite chain restaurant. You see I was introduced to it by my dear friend Liz Solmes. She loved it because of the dark masculine atmosphere with dark wood and dim lighting and excellent service. And the steak! The Hawaiian Rib Eye, the most popular item of the menu in the steak category I have since learned. She told me about this steak and when I tried it, in all it's Polynesian glory, I was hit by the taste memory of BBQ dinners with my Father and family and all those wonder times we shared together. Strange the power of taste and sense memory, right? Who knew that something like that would bring back such delicious and fond memories. Liz and I went there often over the years for the martini's and that steak, Sadly for me now that she is gone form NYC, but fortunately I have other friends who also know and share in the power and allure  of the Hawaiian Rib-eye at Hillstone!

But you know me. I don't want to eat out all the time. I want to cook! So I got the recipe from one of the servers ( at the least the ingredients) and have made up my own version using those tastes as a homage to my Dad and the power of his BBQ. So give it a try, you may have visions of a Lanai , Palm trees and a drink with an umbrella in it before you know it. Me, when I taste it I just remember being young, and having my Dad cook up delicious memories!! Enjoy ya'll!

BTW: Since I published this Hillstone has released their recipe through Bon Appetit Magazine. My recipe is very close to the one they printed. But if you want the one they offer up check it out. The main difference is they make a compound butter with sesame oil and butter and they melt a big dallop on the steak to finish it off while it's resting before serving. Yum, try that at home for sure.

                                             

Forrest's Hawaiian Rib Eye Steak ( Based on Dad and Houston's Hawaiian Rib Eye)

4 ribeyes 1-2 inches thick bone out or in ( prefer out for this)
salt and pepper

For the marinade:
1/3 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 1/2  6oz cans pineapple juice
3/4 cup soy sauce ( low sodium )
1/8 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tablespoon Sesame Oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsps fresh chopped garlic
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp ginger powder
2 tsps Grated Ginger

Season the steaks well on both sides with lots of salt and pepper

Place all ingredients  for the marinade in a sauce pan and heat on low for all the flavors to come together.

Bring mixture up to a boil then turn off the heat and let cool completely

Seal steaks in a ziplock bag with the marinade and let sit in the fridge for at least two up to three entire days. 48 to 72 hours. ( I know commitment right)

When ready to cook let come back to room temp. Season again and then grill steaks over high heat for 2 to 3 mins on each side. (They are so marinated they do not need long on the grill)

Please feel free to leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you.
--2 ribeye steaks

Fork and Knife BBQ Baby Back Ribs So Easy You Won't Believe It!

Ok it's summer and everyone wants to grill grill grill! Well that's what the food industrial complex would have you believe. But sometimes we don't have time to grill or space or even ...a grill. So how can I provide really great bbq to myself and my friends without a grill, well follow this and here we go!

So folks I live in New York City and I live in a nice building. We even had a bbq grill built in on our roof, But there are 420 apartments in my building. So you can imagine that finding time to make food in that space is a little tough and gaining access to the rooftop is not always a sure thing. I mean I don't mind sharing (after all I am from the Sesame Street generation) but sometimes you just want to do it when you want to do it and not wait to share the grill. So this summer I decided that making the most amazing Ribs is the goal I would have, and making them in my apartment was the caveat to that statement.

Now as many of you know I love the food at the Hillstone restaurants, some called Houston's Restaurant in some cities. Houston's BBQ "fork and knife" ribs are probably the best ribs I have ever eaten in a restaurant that does not specialize in BBQ. But I happen to know they cook their ribs via a process using a alto-shaam oven so that would not work for me. Cause I don't own one! What that process does however is cook the meat at 225 degrees for 4 to 6 hours and then at 150 degrees holding for about 8 hours total cooking time. The process is such that it breaks down the collagen in the meat to the point where they are "fork and Knife" tender. Well if you have been reading the blog you will have known that I discovered a shortcut for breaking down the collagen in meat when I made the Short Ribs Recipe earlier in the blog ( See the post ).

So what to do, well lets just use that process which will accomplish the same thing as the alto-shaam and is super easy and clean up is a breeze! HERE'S HOW!

                                  Hillstone's Fork and Knife Ribs

Forrest's Super Easy Best Ever Baby Back BBQ Ribs! ( In three easy steps)

Step one: Take 2 racks of baby back ribs for 3 to 4 people or more (depending on how much they eat). Carefully with a small knife remove the membrane on the back of the ribs or get your butcher to do this.  On wax paper season with garlic powder and black pepper, let sit at room temp for 30 mins. Then place ribs in a deep pan or large tupperware mix the following ingredients for a brine and pour over the ribs till they are covered)

2 cups prune juice
1 cup Hickory ( must be hickory ) BBQ sauce (Kraft makes a good one or if you can get Cattleman's Kansas City brand use it!!!)
1 cup water or more to make sure they are covered by the brine.

Cover and place in the fridge for 8 hours or better yet over night

Step Two: Carefully remove ribs from the brine and place each rack on a large piece of aluminum foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Brush generously with additional hickory flavored BBQ sauce until nicely coated. Seal ribs in the foil and place on a baking sheet.

Step Three: Place in a 300 degree oven for 2 hours. Remove from the foil carefully as ribs will be fall apart tender. Then slather with more sauce. Serve immediately!

Or to make ahead just cool the ribs down completely after baking don't unwrap them, and hold in the fridge. When ready, slather them with sauce and re-warm them uncovered in a 250 degree oven until heated through about 45 mins. to one hour. This will also make the sauce that much more thick and sticky ( This is what I like to do when i have time to prepare ahead!) The ribs can be made up to 3 days before and held in the fridge and just reheated when you want to serve them. Slather with extra sauce and serve.

The Magic Pan Bloody Mary!

When I was in college my friend Kai and I got summer jobs working as waiters at the Magic Pan restaurant located in the Tyson's Corner Mall in Mclean,Virginia. The Magic Pan for those of you who don't know was a chain restaurant of some national renown in the 1970's and 80's. In fact to this day many people still remember with fondness the Pan and it's panache both with the food and with the style it was brought to you in. The Pan was so chic that it even had an outpost in NYC right off of 57th street in a space that is now the Jekyll and Hyde Club. ( oh how the mighty have fallen!)

                                                         Magic Pan In NYC c. 1977


Waiting tables at the Pan was a tough job. Busy and crowded it had a loyal customer base and it was in the largest Mall in the area so it had traffic all day and night. It was also a favorite spot during lunch and the late afternoon for the ladies who lunch and their friends and daughters. This group ate salads and soups and drank gallons of white wine and white wine spritzers. Then there was the evening dinner rush of couples and families, mostly with adult children ( the Pan was not known as a kid friendly restaurant), and later in the evening the couples on dates looking for love over a crepe and a glass of champagne! A diverse customer base indeed but the Pan had something for everyone. Brunch on Sunday's was an interesting mealtime crowd. Brunch was a very 1970's thing and the Pan had jumped on that right away. A few egg dishes and the crepes from the lunch menu and you were ready to rumble. Of course what brunch would be complete without an exquisitely prepared Bloody Mary! Here again the Pan did not disappoint. I can remember Randy our bartender batching the bloody mary mix every Sunday. No pre-made stuff here, just the real deal. I have had many a Bloody Mary, in fact I still think the best one I ever had was at the Lobster Pot in Provincetown Mass.. But that not withstanding, the pan made one of the best mixes I have ever had as well. So here it is, the original recipe handed down from Randy at the Pan to me and me to you. Make this next time you have brunch at your house and you will be Pantastik! Enjoy Ya'll!

The Magic Pan Bloody Mary Recipe

                                           Tomato Juice is the Starting point!

In A Gallon Jug:


Add the following:

Salt                                            1 tsp

Celery Salt                                 1 tsp

Black Pepper Course Ground    1 tsp

Garlic Powder                            1/2 tsp
Horseradish                                 2 Tsp

Worcestershire Sauce                 3 oz

Sweet and Sour mix                   6 oz

Then fill to the top with 50% V8 juice and 50% regular tomato juice

Allow to marinate for 24 hours and use within the next 2 days as sour mix will slowly sour the mix.