Dans Gourmet Restoration

I actually made this some time back, and it was phenomenal. I had been looking for short rib recipes after I bought some on sale from the store, but it seemed I didn't have all of the ingredients for a single recipe...so, I figured I'd combine them. The result was sweet, smokey, and spicy fall-of-the-bone meat. These are great served over polenta, with grilled corn. To start: One package of short ribs usually contains 3-4 pieces of meat, bone-in. This is PLENTY for two people-- it doesn't seem like a lot of meat, but it's a very rich cut so it's very filling. -lightly dredge the meat in flour, brown in a dutch oven on medium heat. Add 2-3 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped. After that...it's pretty much throwing a bunch of stuff in a pan. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In the dutch oven, add: -1 can of black beans, undrained -1 1/2 cup beef broth -1 tsp ground coffee -2-3 sliced chilis in adobo, about 1/2 tsp of paste included. These can pack a lot ...

I have made this cold summer treat several times in my cooking classes, and it is always a hit!  It is "souper" simple to make - no cooking involved, and it only takes about 20 minutes to make.  Very tasty, and unusual enough to catch your guests attention!  Try it this summer!   Ingredients 2 Ripe Avocados 1 tsp Lemon Juice 2 Tsp Canned Diced Green Chilies 2 Tbs Diced Onions 2 Cups Chicken Broth 1 Cup Half and Half ½ Tsp Kosher Salt 1 6 oz pkg fresh crab 1 Tbs Chopped Chives (optional) Serves Six Directions 1.        Peel the avocados and cut into 1-inch cubes. 2.        In a blender or food processor, purée the avocado cubes with the lemon juice, green chilies, onion, and broth. 3.        Pour the avocado mixture into a bowl or airtight container. St...

I just did a team building cooking class at the Gray Goose Cookery,  and one of the things we made was risotto.  It was a huge hit, and I was asked to post the recipe.  I had posted this last winter with my Osso Bucco recipe, but I thought I would re post it as a single post as well. Risotto is a wonderful thing - creamy, decadent, and only 160 calories per serving.... yup thats right - only 160 calories - and yet it tastes SOOOO fattening!  Throw some shrimp and spinach in it and you have a yummy main course for only about 250 calories per serving - and trust me, a serving will fill you up! The trick to this rice is to keep stirring.  Yes, you will be chained to the stove for about twenty minutes, but get over it - the reward is totally worth it!  Do NOT make it like regular rice, and just add water, cover and forget it.  The stirring is essential to release the starches in the rice, which is what gives it it's creamy consistency.  I add shrimp, ...

Finished Product.... Yum! Well, we had some leftover ham from Mothers Day, and a box of peas in the freezer, so I decided to make a pasta dish for dinner.   Chopped up some baby bella mushrooms, some grape tomatoes, and onion, a couple of cloves of garlic – added some parmesan cheese, some blue cheese, half and half, white wine – and WOW, had an amazing pasta dish!   This is kitchen sink cooking at it’s best – a little bit of whatever you have kicking around to make something that tastes awesome!   So, here is the skinny: Ingredients: 1 small onion, diced fine 1 cup ham, diced fine ¾ cup sliced baby bella mushrooms, diced rough ½ cup ¼’d grape tomatoes ½ box 10 oz frozen box of peas ¾ cup half and half 1 tbs butter 1 tbs olive oil 3 cloves garlic, minced ¼ tsp each, basil, oregano, thyme ¼ cup blue cheese ½ cup parmesan cheese Instructions: In 3 qt sauce pot, cook 2 servings pasta, with ½ tsp powdered garlic, and ½ tsp basil in the water.   Cook till al dente, and s...

An Unusual Cali Chard - well worth the $11 bucks! This was an adaptation of a recipe from Cooks Illustrated – a few additions basically, couple of subtractions... the usual menu editing I go through..  My oven is a bit screwy – the 475 degree temp seemed a bit high to me, but my oven runs a good 50 degrees cooler than it should, so I had to run the chops under the broiler for about 2 minutes to finish browning them.  Other than that, they were excellent, crunchy, salty, tasty.  I had some leftover olive/mayo mix from the chops, which I added to the cauliflower for a little extra kick.  Served it with a really good Chard for about 11 bucks…. Overall a great meal, and super simple!  Here you go: Ingredients: 1 cup panko bread crumbs ¼ cup pan toasted slivered almonds (roast in dry skillet over med heat till brown) 5 tbs lite mayo 3 garlic cloves minced 1 tbs parmesan cheese 1 tsp basil 1 tsp oregano 2 tbs olive tapenade ( I used some muffaletta mix I had in the fr...

This is a great recipe - I sometimes add a jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced to it - but it needs to sit for an hour or so.   Press plastic wrap right up against the top of the finished product when refrigerating it so it doesn't discolor... Ingredients ·                                  3 avocados - peeled, pitted, and mashed ·                                  1 lime, juiced ·                                  1 tbs zest from lime ·          ...