Peanut Grilled Shrimp

This is one of our favorite new recipes - it makes a slimmed down version of our Pad Thai recipe. Pad Thai is more a principle than a recipe, but ours relied on the peanut sauce (lots of lime juice, ketchup, peanut butter and spice).

This recipe allows you to make a simple grilled (or broiled) shrimp then top dress it with some peanut sauce. We like to have it with steamed broccoli and then over some rice noodles. Toss the peanut sauce over the shrimp, brocc and noodles... very nice, simple, and fast (15 minutes from start to finish).

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 Tbs of lime juice
• 2 Tbs of sesame oil
• 1/4 cup of peanut butter (natural if you can get it)
• 1/4 cup of orange juice
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp of hot sauce
• 3 Tbs of ketchup (or to taste)

Steps:

1. Mix the lime juice and sesame oil together.
2. Marinate the shrimp with the juice/oil for 2-8 hrs in the fridge.
3. Mount the shrimp on skewers.
4. Grill the shrimp, 2 minutes per side. Or... turn on the broiler for 5 minutes. Place the skewers over a 9x13 pan on the top shelf of the oven. Broil 2-3 minutes per side.
5. In a small pan, heat up the peanut butter, orange juice, garlic, ketchup and hot sauce. Mix well until it has the consistency of a sauce.
6. Take the shrimp off the skewers and drizzle the peanut sauce over it.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

This is an adapted version of 101 Cookbooks adapted version of a Peter Reinhart crust recipe :D I love the ancestry of these things.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  
• 2 cups white flour
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
  
• 1/4 cup olive oil
  
• 1 3/4 cups water, ice cold
  

Steps:

1. Mix together the flour, salt, and instant yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer.
2. Add in the oil and the cold water until the flour is all absorbed.
3. With the dough hook, mix on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes, or as long as it takes to create a smooth, sticky dough that clears the bowl of the little fragments.
4. Transfer the dough to a floured countertop. Cut the dough into 6 equal pieces and mold each into a ball. Rub each ball with olive oil and slip into sandwich bags. Refrigerate overnight.
5. When you are ready to make pizza (anytime in the next few days), remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator at least 1 hour before making the pizza. Keep them covered so they don't dry out.
6. Place a baking stone on a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees (you can go hotter, but I like the results I get at 450).
7. Uncover or unwrap the dough balls and dust them with flour. Working one at a time, gently press a dough round into a disk wide enough that you can bring it up onto your knuckles to thin out - you should be able to pull each round out to 12-inches or so. If the dough is being fussy and keeps springing back, let it rest for another 15-20 minutes.
8. Place the pulled-out dough on the prepared sheet pan.
   
9. Add your toppings and slide the topped pizza onto the baking stone.
10. Bake until the crust is crisp and nicely colored (about 14 minutes with a solid topping load).

Makes six 6-ounce pizza crusts.

Lentils Ole!

This is one of our mainstays from the "Burlington days" - lentils are great: quick cooking and take up flavors very easily. This is our version of a Sloppy Joe - no beef, but you could just as easily drop in ground beef or pork for the lentils. And that would be much better than the crap Sloppy Joe mix or canned stuff.

Serve with bread (English muffins are great) and big salad. Or go light on the BBQ sauce and try it with some salsa. Then make some cornbread while the lentils simmer.

Always, finish with some fruit!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of water
• 1 cup of brown lentils
• 1 Tbs water
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 1/2 cup green peppers
• 1 cup BBQ sauce to taste (we use our KC style sauce)

Steps

1. Bring lentils to boil in a pot - then simmer 20 minutes until soft.
2. Add water, garlic and onion. Cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add green peppers and cook for 5 more minutes until all are soft.
4. Add BBQ sauce and simmer 5 more minutes.
5. Add lentils and simmer 10 more minutes.

Hilltown Barbecue Dry Rub

Another finecooking.com adaptation, this is the dry rub I cover every barbecued chicken with.  

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  
• 2 Tbs. Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 Tbs. seasoned salt
  
• 2 Tbs. garlic powder
  
• 1 Tbs. onion powder
  
• 1-1/2 tsp. celery salt
  
• 2 Tbs. paprika
  
• 1 Tbs. chili powder or seasoning
  
• 1 Tbs. black pepper
  
• 1-1/2 tsp. dried sage
  
• 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
  
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne

Steps:

1. Add the sugar and spices together in a bowl and stir to combine. 
2. Alternatively, put the ingredients in the food processor and pulse to combine.
3. Rub all over chicken. store the remainder (if any) in a jar in a dark place.

Kansas-City Style Barbecue Sauce

This is a KC style barbecue sauce from Finecooking.com - this style is much better than the commercial versions of KC Masterpiece etc.  Like Wikipedia notes, the KC style is noted for its "sweet and tangy sauces which are generally intended for liberal use."

I like to apply this to grilled chicken in the last 5 minutes or added to Lentils Ole.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar; more to taste
  
• 2 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
  
• 1 Tbs. dijon-style mustard
  
• 1 Tbs. chili powder or taco seasoning
  
• 1-1/2 tsp.  black pepper
  
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
  
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
  
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne or hot sauce
• 2 cups tomato ketchup
  

Steps:

1. In a large saucepan, combine all the sauce ingredients. 
2. Heat over medium, stirring well to mix and dissolve the spices. 
3. Reduce the heat and simmer the sauce, uncovered, for 30 min., stirring occasionally.
   
4. In final 2 minutes, add in 2 T of butter, stir to melt.
5. This can be canned, just skip the butter step - 10 minutes per pint in a boiling water canner.

Roast Duck with Sweet Cherry Sauce

This was Carol's b-day dinner - our own Muscovy duck and a sweet, dark cherry sauce to slather over it. Served with steamed fresh broccoli and a wild rice pilaf. Woof! Cherries and the dark, almost "roast beef" flavor of the Muscovy go together really well.

This was simple enough that cooking it was only a background thought while we seeded in tomatoes and peppers, cleaned up and got other chores down. Easy-skeasy and super-delicious. And there are 2 more Muscovy in the freezer!

Ingredients

• 1 duck (we raise Muscovy, best of the ducks, IMHO)
• 20 oz of sweet cherries, pitted (we chose organic frozen ones)
• 12 oz of strong dark beer (we used Sam Adams' Cherry Wheat)
• 2 cups of good broth or stock (our own turkey broth)
• 1 small onion, finely minced or 1/4 cup onion flakes
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• salt and pepper

Steps

1. Roast duck in a 250 F oven, breast side down for 3 hrs.
2. Raise oven to 350 F, flip duck to breast side up for 30-45 minutes. Watch the skin and remove when it becomes crispy, not dry.
3. While the skin crisps, in a pot place the frozen cherries, beer, and broth on medium-high until cherries thaw.
4. Add onions or onion flakes, sugar, and salt and pepper.
5. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes to develop the flavors. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Boca Negra Cake: Carol Says Yum

This was Carol's birthday cake this year.

From "Baking with Julia"

"A boca negra, or black mouth, is what you'll have after one bite of this intensely chocolaty cake - you'll also have a smile on your face. A chocolate craver's ideal, this cake calls for 12 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, and you'll taste every ounce, so choose chocolate you love."

"The cake is meant to be served warm or at room temperature, when it is as moist, dense and dark as the chocolate you use to make it. Chilled, it has all the appeal of fudge. The white chocolate cream, which is made a day ahead, is one you can use with other desserts, and neither the cake nor the cream is a challenge for beginner bakers. In fact, if you make it in the food processor; it takes only 5 minutes."

Here is the recipe from What's Cooking America

Ingredients

• 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/3 cups sugar, divided into 1 cup and 1/3 cup
• 1/2 cup bourbon, kirsch, chambord or red wine
• 1 cup unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces, room temperature
• 5 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Steps

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
   
2. Lightly butter a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment or waxed paper; butter the paper. Put the cake pan in a shallow roasting pan and set aside until needed.
   
3. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl; set aside.
   
4. In a 2-quart saucepan, mix 1 cup of the sugar and the bourbon; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a full boil.
   
5. Immediately pour the hot syrup over the chopped chocolate and stir with a rubber spatula until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth.
   
6. Piece by piece, stir the butter into the chocolate mixture, making certain that each piece of butter is melted before you add another.
   
7. Put the eggs and the remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a medium bowl; whisk until the eggs thicken slightly.
   
8. Beating with the whisk, add the eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until well-blended. Gently whisk in the flour.
   
9. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared cake pan, running your spatula over the top to smooth it. Carefully pour enough hot water into the roasting pan to come about 1 inch up the side of the cake pan.
   
10. Bake the cake for exactly 30 minutes, at which point the top will have a thin, dry crust.
    
11. Remove from oven and remove the cake pan from its water bath; wipe the pan dry and cover the top of the cake with a sheet of plastic wrap. Invert over a plate.
    
12. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature with the chilled Whipped Cream.