Home Chef Cooking Tips

Fruit Smoothies – A Healthy Summer Snack

Last modified on 2010-06-02 03:52:25 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Sweet Potato Fries

Last modified on 2010-03-21 02:37:10 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Mr Sweet Potato-Henge

This is what happens after a long day at work when you promised your kids you’d make sweet potato fries when you get home. They don’t forget, & you tend to get silly.

The result – how Stonehenge was really built, if the world was inhabited by Mr Potato-Heads instead of people.

Sweet potato fries are a nutritious, easy to prepare, alternative to frozen, packaged french fries, that go great with everything from burgers to ham and turkey. Here’s how to do it.

Ingredients:

• 3 – 4 Med to large sweet potatos, scrubbed but not peeled
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable oil
• Ground Nutmeg
• Ground Cinnamon

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400F
• Cut sweet potatos in half lengthwise, then into 1/2 thick fries
• Place fries into a large mixing bowl, then pour vegetable oil over top and toss to coat all fries.
• Sprinkle in nutmeg and cinnamon while tossing to insure that all fries are evenly flavored (both of these can be added to taste, if unsure, start with 1 tsp each)
• Spread fries evenly onto two non-stick baking pans and place on center and lower rack in oven.
• Bake ~20* minutes, remove and flip fries.
• Return to oven, but switch shelves.
• Bake another ~20* minutes, fries should be browned on both sides and is easily pierced with a fork. (*oven temperatures vary so check occasionally to make sure they don’t burn).
• Transfer to a bowl and serve

Can also be cut into wedges, but reduce oven temp to 350F and increase cooking time to ~25 min per side.

These also make a great side dish at Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Aunt Millie’s Chic Pea Salad

Last modified on 2009-03-11 02:29:30 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

This is the recipe that started it all for me. It was the first dish that I enjoyed so much I wanted to learn how to make it for myself. Once my aunt gave me the recipe, I made it as often as I could, sometimes having as a meal in itself, not simply the side dish it was intended to be. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

Ingredients

2 cans chic peas, drained
1 6 oz jar marinated Artichoke Hearts
1 Cup of thinly sliced celery
2 Tbsp Italian Dressing
1 12oz jar olive salad, drained, and coasrely chopped

Combine chic peas with artichoke hearts and their liquid, celery and salad dressing in a medium sized frying pan. Heat until bubbly.

Fold chopped olive salad into artichoke mixture.

Spoon into bowl and serve warm.

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Molten Mushrooms

Last modified on 2009-05-15 02:44:07 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Growing up I didn’t really eat anything hot and spicy, aside from the occassional chinese take-out. Not until I went to college did I enter the world of hot sauces. It started simply enough with jalapeno peppers, and Tabasco sauce. Soon, if I wasn’t sweating, it simply wasn’t hot enough.

My Grandmother (Father’s side, from Northern Italy) would make this every once in a while, with the only heat being provided by a dash of crushed red pepper flakes. Once I got a hold of it, most of the tomato sauce was taken out and replaced with whatever hot sauce I had handy.

This dish can be served as an appetizer (as described below), or as a topping on burgers, hot dogs, and even pizza. It is also an excellent filling for Stuffed Mushrooms. Don’t worry if you can’t decide how to have it the first time, because you’ll want to make it again.

Molten Mushroom

Ingredients

3 Tbsp Olive oil
1.5-2 lbs Whole White Mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 med yellow onion, finely chopped
Dash of Salt
~1 tsp Pepper
~1 Tbsp Red Pepper Flakes
1/2C Tomato Sauce
~4 oz (or more) of Favorite Hot Sauce – to taste

Tortilla Chips or Plain Crackers to serve

Chopped Mushrooms in skillet

 

 

Preheat a large skillet over med-high heat. Add Olive oil and turn skillet to coat entire bottom. Add chopped mushrooms, onion, salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

 

 

Fully evaporated & slightly browned mushrooms

Allow mixture to saute ~15 – 20 min (stirring occassionally) until all liquid
from mushrooms evaporates and mushrooms and onions start to brown slightly.

Adding Hot Sauce

Add tomato sauce (be careful since it will tend to splatter once it hits the hot pan). Mix to coat. Add hot sauce and mix thoroughly with wooden spoon. Remove from heat, scoop into serving bowl.

Serve either warm or cool – with tortilla chips or crackers.

Leftovers (if there are any) can be refrigerated and either reheated, or served cold.

NOTE: Mixture should have a chili-like consistency before removing from pan. If too ’soupy’ continue to heat until some of the liquid evaporates. If you’re adding more Hot Sauce to increase the heat, cut back on the tomato sauce slightly.
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