Chicken Piccata


This is a super easy and flavorful dish that is one of my top favorites. 
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2-inch thickness
salt and fresh ground black pepper as needed
cayenne to taste
all-purpose flour for dredging
2 – 4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon capers, drained (tip: for more intense flavor, mince 1 teaspoon of the capers, leaving the rest whole)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup water or chicken stock
3 tablespoons cold butter, cut in 1/4-in slices

Red or White Beans and Rice (updated)

White Beans with a Side of Catfish
1 lb. dried premium Great Northern or Red Kidney beans 
3 Tbsp butter
2 cups diced yellow onions
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced green bell peppers
3 bay leaves
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2+ Tbsp of diced garlic
1 Lbs. meaty smoked ham hock
1 Lbs. smoked sausage 
1/3 Lbs. pickled pork (optional)
Cajun/Creole seasoning
Steamed rice 

There are three fantastic variations to this recipe. Go to the Notes below for a surprise.

The Night Before –

Place the beans in a large bowl and cover with
salted water by 4″ and a healthy dose of salt

Let soak for 8 hours or overnight, sometimes I do it for 48 hours. Drain, rinse 2 times if necessary and set aside.

Boil the ham hock in a saucepan for 50 minutes then add bite sized pieces of the pickled pork (if using) and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Total boiling time should be 60 minutes even if the pickle pork is not used.  Reserve the broth. 

Cut the sausage into 1/3 inch rounds and fry until brown in a large pot (I use a porcelain coated cast iron pot) then remove the sausage set aside.  

Add butter to the pot over medium-high heat. Add finely diced onions, celery and bell peppers to the pot and cook until tender, about 10 minutes adding water if necessary.

Add the bay leaves, parsley, thyme, and garlic, cook for about 5 minutes.
Add the beans, stir. Add water to cover the beans by about 1 inch.  

 Bring to a boil, stir again and reduce the heat to a slow simmer uncovered for about an hour stirring every 20 minutes. Make sure you scrape the cooked beans from the bottom of the pot with a wide wooden or plastic spatula. Add water as necessary. 
After 1 hour, remove the bay leaves and add the ham hock and pickled pork along with its juices. 

After simmering for another hour place the hock on a cutting board and separate the rine and bone from the meat. Put the meat back into the pot. 

Simmer until the beans cook down and become  become creamy, adjust the seasonings (if necessary) with Cajun/Creole seasoning.  

But remember, particularly with respect to salty seasonings, you can put it in but you can’t take it out so be judicious and sprinkle in a little stir and taste until you are happy. 
Serve over steamed white rice and enjoy with catfish or not – better with! 

Note 1: I was messing around the other day and decided that I’d try something different so instead of using rice for my white beans. I boiled up some Fettuccine pasta, after draining I cut the strands into about 1 inch long pieces and mixed it in with the beans. It was an amazing departure from the standard rice.

Note 2: Serve red or white beans with catfish or any other white fish. 

I saved the best for last so here it is.

Note 3: My Cajun friend MikeZ told me to pitch in a few pieces of fried chicken legs and/or wings in the pot of red beans during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Try not to knock off the breading as you stir the beans. When done, remove the chicken to a plate, put down a bed of rice in a bowl and ladle the red beans on top. There is no doubt that this is the only way that I’ll make them from now on. Yes, they were that good!  




  

Tone’s Italian Spaghetti Seasoning Blend

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There is little to say other than if you want a really good tomato sauce in minutes instead of hours Tones’s Italian Spaghetti Seasoning Blend is for you. 
Just add tomato sauce (or diced/crushed) and simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes uncovered so the dehydrated onions, garlic, etc. have a chance to rehydrate and soften and the spices to blend together.  

Great with cooked ground beef, Italian sausage, chicken, pork, veal and seafood. Serve over pasta or rice depending on your preference or serve in a bowl for a great marinara sauce for dunking a nice crusty hunk of bread.   

Shake the container well before dispensing. 

Tuna & Egg Salad

1- 7 ounces water packed solid albacore
3 large eggs steamed for 10 minutes
1 tsp spicy brown mustard
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 heaping tsp diced red onion
1 tsp tarragon
salt
pepper
Barr’s Homemade Mayo or Hellman’s
slices of water packed roasted red peppers

After the the eggs have been steamed, rinse them in cold water until cool. Peel and take to a small chopping board.

Cut the eggs in half, remove the yolks and them place in a small bowl. Add a Tbs of mayo and mix until the yolks form a stiff paste. Then add in a few tablespoons of mayo and stir to combine. Remember, its better to add too little mayo than too much. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, add the tuna and break up the chunks with a fork. Then cut the egg whites into semi-large chunks, add to the bowl and gently mix to combine.

Into the mixing bowl add the mustard, lemon juice, red onions and tarragon with a pinch or 2 of salt and pepper, mix to combine. Add additional mayo if needed and salt/pepper if needed.

Place in the fridge to give the salad a chance to let the different flavors to meld.

Serve on bread or a green leafy bed.

Enjoy!

Spaghetti Carbonara

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Simply said, Spaghetti Carbonara is pasta tossed in a delicious creamy mixture of eggs, bacon, Parmesan cheese and pepper.

2 whole large eggs + 1 yolk
5 ounces roughly chopped thick bacon or small cubed Panchetta
½ cup  Pecorino Romano (packed) 
lbs Spaghettonior Linguine 
salt for water
freshly ground black pepper
Mushrooms (optional)

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and then add in the cheese and a 1 tsp of pepper and incorporate. Set aside.

Place a large pot of water on the stove and salt well. Bring the water to a boil, break the pasta in half and cook until the pasta is al dente.

As the pasta is cooking, saute the meat in a large pan until slightly brown and add in a ladle full of the boiling pasta water. Turn off heat.

Drain the spaghetti (save 1 cup of the water) and immediately dump the pasta in the pan with the meat and mix thoroughly with tongs.

Then add the egg mixture to the pan and combine until all of the pasta has been coated. Add some of the saved pasta water (if need) until the carbonara is creamy.

Add salt and/or pepper to taste. 

Plate the carbonara, lightly garnish with a small amount of pepper and cheese.

Enjoy!

Note: If you want to include mushrooms they should be sauted with the bacon.

Muffuletta (muffaletta) Italian Sandwich

Muffaletta
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In terms of its primary ingredients, the very flavorful muffuletta sandwich is not much different than an Italian submarine sandwich, aka, a hoagie or Po Boy.

The traditional muffuletta replaces the condiments like tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, etc. with Italian olive salad.
So what is Italian olive salad?
Well my favorite is Boscoli brand who lists its ingredients as a medley of pickled cauliflower, carrots, celery, green olives, black olives and capers, combined with our special blend of spices and select oils. Note that green olive is the primary ingredient … hence the name – olive salad.
You will need:
Nice crispy bread
ham
salami
provolone cheese
mozzarella cheese (optional)
Italian olive salad
Before you build your sandwich, spread several tablespoons of the olive salad on both the top and bottom halves of the bread. Cover and let the oil and penetrate into the bread for one hour turning over after 30 minutes.
Then layer the meats and cheeses in the proportions you decide. I like to put down a foundation of ham and salami, then slices of each of the cheeses and continue upwards.
You can eat a muffuletta at room temp or warm in the oven. I always warm mine so you have to build the sandwich on a large sheet of aluminum foil and then seal tightly.
Place the sandwich onto a baking sheet and then into a preheated 400 degree oven for 45 minutes or until the meat is warm and the cheese has melted. 

Even better, insert the probe of a corded digital thermometer sideways through the foil and into the center of the sandwich. Set alarm for 135 degrees. 

Unwrap, slice and enjoy!

  

Pork Chops with Spinach, Cheese and Sun Dried Tomatoes


This recipe is at its best when made with either 1 or 2 inch thick pork chops. 
Make a brine by dissolving salt and sugar and garlic powder in a bowl with about 1 cup of water. Stir to combine and the add in a few shakes of Thyme. Place your chops into the brine and add water until the meat is covered, stir once again and refrigerate for 4 or more hours. 
Before cooking, rinse the chops in cold water, pat dry and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides and set aside for 30 minutes to allow the meat to come to room temp.

Set your oven to 325 degrees and the rack in the center.

The Spinach Mixture

1 packet of frozen Spinach defrosted and excess         water squeezed out
4-5 large Garlic cloves diced
6 Sun Dried Tomatoes patted dry, diced
1 1/2 Tsp dried Thyme
1/4 Cup Cream Cheese
1/4 Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 slice Provolone Cheese 
1 slice Mozzarella Cheese
In an oven proof fry pan heat 3 Tbs vegetable oil to medium-high heat and brown both sides of the chops until brown. Place the pan in the pre-heated oven until the internal temp registers 135 degrees on an instant thermometer and place back a stove burner set at medium heat.

Add into the pan 1 Tbs salted butter followed by and 1 tsp Thyme and some garlic powder if you care to do so. 

Scrape the bottom to de-glaze the pan. Continue cooking until the butter turns brown and spoon the butter over the chop(s) turning 1 time. 

Remove the meat from the pan onto a plate and let rest for 5 minutes. This will allow sufficient time for the juices to be retained in the meat. 

As the meat is resting: 

In a separate pan, add 1 Tbs olive oil and over medium heat fry the garlic for 1 minute. Then add the spinach and thyme. Cook until well heated and then add the cheeses until hot. If the mixture is too thick, add some milk. 

Make a bed of the spinach mixture and place the chop(s) on top. 

Note: You can boil some potatoes until tender (in advance) and fry them in the pan that you fried the meat in by adding some oil or butter.   

Italian Sausage Infused Pasta Sauce

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3 – 15 ounce cans Tomato Sauce
10 ounces Ground Chuck
8 ounces Italian Sausage (casing removed)
4 ounces Mushrooms
1 TBS Garlic Powder
2-3 TBS dried Basil
1-2 TBS dried Parsley
Pepper Flakes as desired

In a pot, brown the chuck with the mushrooms until most of the liquid has evaporated and then sausage contently stirring for a few minutes more.

Add in the tomato sauce and well as the garlic powder, basil, parsley and pepper flakes is using. Stir to combine and simmer for 10 minutes.  If the sauce is too think add water and readjust the spices if necessary.

Use immediately or let the sauce cool and/or place in the refrigerator for later use.

Serve over pasta or possibly a bed of rice.