All posts tagged: Garlic

Filet Mignon with Shallot Garlic Butter Buttons

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Filet Mignon, considered the king of steaks and once relegated as a cut of beef only consumed on special occasions because of price, has now crossed over to the “healthy” side of beef and consumed in  larger quantities by steak lovers, since it has little to no visible fat.  It is the most tender steak you can buy, but unfortunately not always the most flavorful. Because of that I have moved up the flavor a couple of notches by adding the herb butter buttons on top, along with a slight hint of Rosemary at the end.  Makes for a flavorful and tender bite! Ingredients: Two 4 oz filet mignons Olive Oil Hawaiian Salt Fresh chives, chopped 1 cube butter 4 cloves of garlic 2 medium shallots, sliced 4 sprigs of Rosemary Parchment Paper Method: 1. Take filet steaks from refrigerator and let them sit out for about 20 minutes – heat oven to 400 degrees at same time. 2. Remove skins from shallots and garlic and put in a garlic cooker or tin foil and pour olive oil on top – put in oven 20-30 minutes till golden …

Garlic bread with cream cheese

Insanely good garlic bread with cream cheese and herbs

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  If you enjoy garlic bread, and I mean really, really like garlic, then you will adore this recipe. Because the garlic is very prominent I don’t use regular sized slices of french bread, but rather demi baguettes, (slices are a bit larger than a long baguette loaf.) The flavor of the garlic is toned down by using the cream cheese and the slice of grape tomato.   Unfortunately these breads don’t hold their crispness to the next day, but if tossed in a fry pan with olive oil for a minute or two, (don’t put in microwave) they bounce back and work well broken up and used as garlic croutons in a salad. They are the best!

Flat Iron Steak Argentine Style – Chimichurri Sauce

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  Flat Iron steak is my new best friend – at least for this month.   Talk about scads of flavor – and it costs less than a NY steak or tenderloin.  I generally like a steak with a lot of fat (as I think it provides so much flavor, even though it isn’t so great for your heart or figure.)  The flat iron steak is flavorful because of the significant amount of marbling in the meat – if it’s Wagyu or Kobe beef, even better.  It can sometimes be a little tough (similar to skirt or flank steak), so marinating the steak will go a long way – shoot for 4 to 6 hours, or overnight if possible.  Toss it on the grill – it takes to the grill like wild fire!

Shrimp Scampi (Low Carb)

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You can only eat so much beef when on a low carb diet, so I want to have a nice variety of seafood to choose from.  Shrimp Scampi is a goody – quick to make, intense flavors, and only 2 carbs per serving.  If you are not on a low carb diet I would serve this over toasted garlic crostini, or an ample serving of linguine.  I on the other hand, will serve mine over spaghetti squash – yum!

Carmelized Onion Dip with Chips

Caramelized Onion Dip with Cottage Fried Chips

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Onion dip is readily available at any grocery store silently sitting beside the ranch dip, like an old married couple.   But if you look closely to the ingredient list on the bottom of the tub, you might think twice on taking it home to serve family and friends.  Why?  Just check out some of the ingredients found on the label: trio calcium phosphate, guar gum, xanthan gum, vegetable gum (really needs 3 GUMS?), corn starch, distilled vinegar, sugar, caramel color, onion flavoring, dried onion flakes, dried parsley, malteddexrin, and a whole lot of other things that don’t look either nutritious nor appetizing.   With homemade caramelized onion dip you know exactly what you are eating, and will enjoy pungent flavors of robust onion and garlic with a touch of lemon zest that provides a delightful freshness to this dip.

Black and White Canape: Caviar Crostini

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New Year’s Eve is almost here, oh yeah I already said that in the other Black and White Canape post.  So here is the second B&W canapé that is quick, but elegant.  Any time you use caviar the canape/appetizer becomes elegant, right? You start with a basic crostini, add some caviar, a little creme fraiche and you are on your way to an elegant canapé in a relatively short period of time.  I know, you are thinking, she said the same thing in the other B&W post.  I know, I know, but time is running out on 2012 so I don’t have a lot of time to be clever.  Here we go….

Hot shrimp puffs with Aioli

Hot shrimp fritters with Aioli

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This was one of my contributions for appetizers this Christmas Eve.  They went quickly – so assuming they were well received.  I love shrimp and if you add some onion and garlic to it, and then fry it, I love it even more!   Will be looking to add more fruits and vegetables to my diet in 2013, but for the next few days till the end of 2012 I am concentrating on foods that I really, really like!   So before I change my ways for 2013 I will make these again for New Years Eve – only more, lots more.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Company’s Here: Stuffed Mushrooms with Vermouth

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Mushrooms, mushrooms, mushrooms.  I add them to sauces, soups, chinese food, atop pizzas, sliced raw in salads, chicken casseroles, beef bourguignon, and on and on and on.  They are minced, sliced, cubed, chopped, braised, stewed, fried, sautéed, used in place of beef (the Portobello is perfect for this) and they are even mashed if you are making Mushroom Pate.  They are one of the most versatile vegetables, though technically they are really a fungus.  And today I stuffed them with cream cheese, vermouth, bread crumbs and herbs in the traditional manner.

Lyonnaise Potatoes

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Lyonnaise Potatoes is a french dish of pan-fried potatoes, that originated around 1845 in the city of Lyon, which is located in a region called Rhone-Alpes in France.   In French, a la lyonnaise means the dish contains onions – think I originally learned how to make this dish watching Julia Child on TV way back when.  A lot of recipes suggest blanching or par-boiling the potatoes in advance of the pan-frying to help expedite the cooking of the potatoes.   I eliminate that step as I think it makes the potatoes too soft or mushy, and I definitely like this dish to be crispy!

Stuffed artichokes

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I realized yesterday morning that there were only 4 more weekends left to visit my local Farmers Market before closing for the season and not re-open till May. So it seemed logical to go check out the 85 vendors and see what they were hawking this weekend in terms of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and crafts.  As I hadn’t been for a few weeks, I noticed lots of new items not featured earlier this summer, so I struggled to stay focused on the fruits and vegetables and not get caught up in all the colorful crafts that were displayed.   In particular I found lovely artichokes, and the reddest of raspberries and ripe red pomegranates.  You are likely thinking what do the three items have in common – well nothing, except all three were exceptional each in their own right.  So I started with the artichokes using a recipe I adapted a few years ago from Biba Caggiano (From Biba’s Italian Kitchen).  As to the raspberries and pomegranates, well….hmmm…