Chickpea Pancake with Pulled Pork, Lemon Gremolata and Eggs

Mixing breakfast with typical dinner items gives me great pleasure.  Why do we not have pancakes in the evening and pulled pork in the morning? Who imposed these limits?  I for one am not going to follow them.

Enter the chickpea pancake, topped with pulled pork, runny eggs and a tart lemon gremolata. Breakfast? Lunch? Dinner? Could be made for any of them- even brunch!

When you serve this, don't mention that this dish is gluten free, nobody will notice. The chickpea flour is filled with protein and gives a really yummy and hearty base for the eggs and pork. This is the perfect dish for left over pulled pork; of course you could substitute in chicken or turkey if you like. Lemon gremolata tops the dish with a touch of freshness.

Break through the meal time barriers for a fat and happy dish, you'll be glad you did!

Basic Pulled Pork

From a basic pulled pork recipe you can make a myriad of recipes. From bbq sandwiches, port tacos or even a chickpea pancake.

This isn't earth shattering, just an easy crockpot way to slow cook pork until it's so tender it just falls apart.


Cook, enjoy and then tell me great ways you ended up using this pork.

Spiced Candied Bacon on a Stick with Chocolate Drizzle

The end of summer is near and that means everyone is going to try to get in a final few barbecue parties before the first snow. Okay, maybe it really is too early to actually reference snow, but what I'm getting at is that you need look at these next few outdoor parties with reckless abandon. Go out with a bang. Throw caution to wind and get ready to WOW with bacon on a stick.

Bacon on a stick isn't exactly the healthiest thing I've ever made, but  everything in moderation is key. A little maple syrup, a thick slice of bacon and a dollop of chocolate - it's an appetizer and a dessert all rolled into one. It's a bacon bouquet. It's food art.

Fire up the oven or grill, warm the chocolate and tape your mouth shut so you don't accidentally eat all the bacon sticks before you get them to the party. These Chocolate Maple Bacon Sticks WILL be the hit of the party. We need more meats on sticks.

Pink Peppercorn, Cherry and Bacon Compote

       Yes, I've made bacon jam before.
   Yes, I do realize these are supposed to be the dog days of detox.
Yes, I anticipate reinventing bacon jam at least one more time. Maybe two.

In this version of bacon compote (or jam), the pink peppercorns reign supreme while the bacon gives that subtle, smokey pork thing that gives depth and makes us temporarily lose our wits enough to spout drunken marriage proposals to stubby legged animals. Fresh cherries are stewed into a luscious, rich sauce binding it all together.

Serve with a tangy goat cheese for an amazing bacon jam bruschetta, add to sandwiches, top burgers, dollop on roasted chicken, mix into meatloaf and chili or inhale with a spoon... just get this in your belly!

In small doses, bacon compote will give you a little reprieve from your New Years diet and the fat and happy strength to carry on.

Casual New Years Meal: Tequila-Drunken Mussels and Chorizo with Roasted Peppers

This New Years eve I'm looking forward to a simple night at home. No big fan fare, no cover charge and no waiting for a cab. The holiday season has taken its toll on me and I'm looking forward to curling up with a good movie; perhaps a rousing game of Wii tennis just to get the blood flowing.

The food for the evening needs to match my casual plans: comforting but not heavy. December is prime mussel month and it would be a shame to not take this last chance to enjoy them.

Adding tequila to a classic wine broth along with the lime really adds a punch to the mussels; these are stout, not for the faint boozer. The chorizo and roasted peppers add heartiness to the meal.

Enjoy Fat and Happy mussels and chorizo for the casual night at home. This dinner filled two of us with a few uneaten mussels and sausages left over. It could be stretched for four if you are light eaters and/or have an appetizer or dessert planned.

Recipe Swap: Pork-Stuffed Bread with Cherry Relish

The monthly Recipe Swap challenges a group of bloggers to recreate an old recipe by varying the ingredients or method. These recipes are chosen from old hymnals, pioneer journals and treasured recipe books; often they are quite intriguing. Take this month's recipe for example -  pork fruit cake. The recipe literally says to mix all the ingredients (a pound of pork and a pound of currants) and then bake very slowly. Priceless.


My recipe goal is to stick with most of the original ingredients while messing with the method. But wanting to be somewhat true to the original recipe, I wanted the pork to be encased in bread. Steamed buns were calling out. But I had an overload of Asian food leading up to my weekend cooking. So I decided to stuff the pork into fresh bread loaf and use the fruit aspect as a compote on the side.

I have to admit, time got away from me and and in a rare moment of weakness I decided to purchase the bread rather than make it from scratch. The baking gods wouldn't allow it - there was no frozen bread dough to be found. I was meant to make it from scratch. So I set my alarm for early and kneaded my way through it.

What did I end up with? Exactly what it sounds like. Luscious pulled pork wrapped in warm, buttery, crunchy, doughy bread with a titillating spicy, fruity relish. Freaking yummy! Seriously.

There is life in those old recipes yet, you just gotta make them yours. Make this delicious Fat and Happy pork bread in the mean time.

Chorizo Meatball Pozole

My love for pozole has been rekindled thanks to a recent trip to the land of tequila and flip flops. It's not that I stopped liking it, but rather that I stopped coming across it. When we lived in Denver, Mexican restaurants where Grandma was hand making the tortillas in the back were on every corner. But in chi-town, the choice is often between a chain taco joint or a trendy new joint that puts more focus on the party than on the food. The good stuff is out there, you just have to know where to find it!


I had the opportunity to talk with the head chef of an elite resort as well as a native who cooks for Gringos daily. My variation of this recipe is an amalgamation of their versions, with my interpretations added for fun. Chorizo meatballs replace calf head, dried oregano gives way to fresh and crunchy radishes sub in for iceberg lettuce on the top. The broth has flavor but is not overwhelming as it's meant to be the background; once you add on all the toppings, it becomes a really great blend of flavors. 

This recipe seems daunting at first look, and I'll admit - there are quite a few steps in the process and it does require a few pans. (Tip: I re-use the same pans and blender without rinsing, it really just adds more flavor!) The steps themselves are fairly simple.

Recipe Swap: Meat Pies with Maple Ginger Glaze

What: Monthly Recipe Swap
Goal: Change 3 ingredients and/or the method of an old recipe to create something new
Recipe: Maple Syrup Cake
Why: Why not?

My mittens made their first appearance of the season recently. Though the sun is still shining, my fingers are the tell tale sign to what is just around the corner. Starring out the window I watched the wind reek havoc on the lifeless herbs. My mind searched for ideas around recreating a maple syrup cake for the monthly recipe swap

Visions of a soft, buttery, maple frosting floated so close that I think I got a little on my nose, but the cake just wasn't speaking to me. Images chugged through my head like an old slide projector, layered cakes turned to cupcakes. Mini individual cakes are so elegant. The wind blew harder outside and my hands craved something warm. Cookies slid by. Then the slide projector rotated in a new image, this time it was pie with steam escaping out the top.  Pie dough is one of my favorite things to make, but not being a big lover of sweet pies made the image lurch one more time. It was still a pie, but this time it was filled with meat. A meat pie. 'Yes' I confidently announced out loud to nobody listening. Outside the wind blew even harder as if an affirmation of my decision and again my fingers yearned for warmth. Just then the slide projector turned one more time to what would be the final image - a handheld meat pie. Decision done.

Pork Tenderloin Wrapped in Bacon

For a while I tried to tell people that bacon 'jumped the shark'. Everybody seemed to be diving on the bacon bandwagon head first- bacon popped up in drinks and chocolate chip cookies, bacon air fresheners were hanging at coworkers desks and bacon gum was offered after meals. I felt like people were intruding on my private bacon love fest and I didn't like it.

So I turned to chorizo- which is spicy Spanish sausage and fun in its' own right. But the truth is, bacon is irreplaceable. The salty, smoky, sweet, crunchy, chewiness cannot be achieved with sausage, or turkey bacon and certainly not a tofu-bacon.

So to add to the deluge of pork recipes, I'm sharing with you my classic pork wrapped bacon (is that an oxymoron?) The bacon seals in the pork and it comes out with finger licking, dripping down the arm juicy.

Yes, there are times that sausage can suffice, and even be the right choice on occasion. But do not overlook the glorious under belly of the pig. And I'm here to tell you that bacon has not jumped anything... certainly not my fat and happy mouth!

Slow Cooked Porchetta with Macadamia Nut Pesto

It's no secret how much I'm into grilling. Yet there are times, yes even in the summer, that a slow cooked crock pot dish is the right choice. Case in point, we were hosting an evening barbecue for a friends birthday ... after an afternoon Cubs game ... in the Bleachers!
 
How that was ever agreed to is still beyond me. The most important point of the day is that the food needed to be easy to put together with all of the work done ahead of time.  

Without getting into too many details, porchetta is traditionally an Italian street food in which a pig is stuffed with herbs, roasted over a spit then sliced for sandwiches. I enjoyed this while in Amondola, Italy some years back and still crave it today.


My version takes on a different form being slow cooked in the crock pot, but it's still tasty and juicy; admittedly not the original though. However adding the macadamia nut pesto to this sandwich takes it in a whole different direction.

Grilled Pork Kabobs and Red Potatoes with a Spicy Tomato Aioli

An afternoon of Spanish tapas and sangria is a favorite way to waste away a day. What seems hard about making tapas at home is the variety you would typically order at the restaurant. That, and the fact the you don't have someone waiting on you refilling an empty glass!

If you think about narrowing down the at-home-tapas night to just two or three dishes at a time, you'll find it more manageable. Once you have those dishes under your belt, you can add more dishes each time you do tapas.

Today I made Grilled Spicy Pork Kabobs, which in the tapas world can also be know as Brochetas de Cerdo (essentially pig on a stick) or Pinchos Morunos (mini meat appetizers served in tapas bar that are heavily spiced). Served with simple Grilled Potatoes and a Spicy Tomato Sauce (which is also known as an Aioli even though this is not technically correct) it's a fun tapas-esque meal.

Cooked on the grill, the pork will achieve a nice crusty spice layer while the insides will remain juicy. With the Spicy Tomato Sauce and marinated pork, the potatoes can be kept pretty simple with just olive oil, salt and pepper.

Mix up a pitcher of sangria (red sangria or white sangria will do), invite the friends over and settle in for for a Fat and Happy Spanish afternoon

Traditional Pasta Making Party

Making homemade ravioli with a house full of friends and family is a tradition from my upbringing. Though miles from home, this custom is alive and well in my house. The goal is to have fun, enjoy the company of friends and make a little pasta. 

Imagine a room full of people working toward a common goal - to eat pasta! Some people need a little coaxing to get their hands dirty and some have flour in their hands before wine.

Breakfast Tostada with Red Pepper Coulis

Breakfast doesn't have to be boring, even if it contains just eggs and sausage. The key is to find a way to elevate it, spice it up and bring it all together.

In this breakfast tostada, a red pepper coulis (sauce) does just that.  Eggs are scrambled simply with onions and garlic which sit on top of sliced sausages with a crispy tortilla on the bottom. All great stuff - but by turning the red peppers into a sauce instead of chopping them  and adding to the scrambled eggs, this dish is elevated to restaurant quality. 

Change up your breakfast by creating a super easy sauce that will make you feel like you should be paying yourself for it.  I suggest taking it outside with a mango mimosa for a full fat and happy brunch effect.

Tips and techniques: Consider this a loose recipe, the type of tortilla, sausage and cheese are really up to you. And by changing each one of those items you can drastically vary the outcome.



Breakfast Tostada with Red Pepper Coulis 

2 tortilla (wheat or corn, your preference)
4 eggs
1 sausage (again, your preference -German, Italian or a Chorizo)
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1/4 cup diced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon of fresh oregano, minced
Red pepper coulis (recipe below)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cook sausage in a skillet pan and set aside. In the meantime, make the red pepper sauce, recipe below.

In the sausage pan add in the onions and saute; add in a pat of butter if needed. Place the tortillas on a sheet pan and place in the hot oven to begin to crisp.

Add in the minced garlic when the onions are softened, continue to cook for a few more minutes. Slice the sausages, divide them in half and place on the warming tortillas. Sprinkle the sausages with the shredded cheese and place back in the hot oven.

In the meantime, whisk the eggs with a tablespoon of water and a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour the whisked eggs in with the onions and garlic, move the eggs often with a soft spatula. Keep the eggs a little moist rather than overcooking and drying them out. Toss in the fresh oregano with the eggs.

Remove the cheesy tostada and sausage from the oven and top with the scrambled eggs. Drizzle a healthy amount of red pepper sauce on the top, garnish with a snippet of fresh oregano.  Serve immediately. Serves 2


 
Red Pepper Coulis



1 large roasted red pepper
4 garlic cloves
1 Tbls olive oil
1/4 cup water or broth
salt
pepper

If the red pepper isn't roasted, place it over the open flames of your stove top or under a broiler until the skin turns black. Remove the skin.

Chop the roasted red pepper into small pieces, place in a small saute pan. Add in the minced garlic, a drizzle of olive oil and the water or broth. Cook over medium heat to fully soften the pepper, about 5 minutes.  Pour into a blender with a good pinch of salt and black pepper, blender on high until the sauce is smooth. If the sauce is too thick, add a few drizzles of water until desired consistency is reached.

Sandwich Series: Shredded Pork in North Carolina Vinegar BBQ Sauce with Carrot, Blue Cheese and Caraway Slaw

 I don't claim to know North Carolina BBQ sauce, but I like it. This vinegar sauce is fashioned after that, but stops short of a tomato (ketchup) base. The tartness of the vinegar is soothed by the creaminess of the blue cheese. On it's own, the vinegar sauce packs a serious wallop, don't judge the sauce until it's paired with the meat, though. And if you've haven't married caraway with blue cheese before - you are in for a treat!

Remember, I'm not in any way saying this is a true North Carolina sauce so remember that before you write in your comments lambasting me on this. The combination of the vinegar, blue cheese and caraway seeds creates a super playful fun mixture on your palette. It's simple Fat and Happy sandwiches that rocks.

Tips and techniques:  Recipe makes 2 -4 sandwiches depending on the size of the naan. For the pork, see my posting for a classic crock pot pork.   


Shredded Pork in North Carolina Vinegar Sauce with Carrot Blue Slaw

2 cups shredded pork
Vinegar sauce (recipe below)
Carrot Blue Slaw (recipe below)
Naan bread, 2

Putting it all together: Warm the naan bread by wrapping in tin foil and placing in a 300 degree oven. Place the pork in an oven-proof dish and cover with the vinegar sauce, place in the oven next to the bread for about 15 minutes.

Remove the warmed bread and pork from the oven. On the naan bread, layer on 1 cup of pork with a drizzle of the vinegar sauce and a few scoops of the carrot blue slaw. Fold the naan bread over, enjoy immediately.

Vinegar Sauce

1 cup cider vinegar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbls brown sugar
1/2 tsp black pepper
pinch of red pepper flakes
pinch of salt

In a small sauce pan, heat all the ingredients over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Use immediately or store in the fridge for later use.  Pour over the shredded pork, allow the pork to sit in the the vinegar sauce to pick up the flavor.

Carrot, Blue Cheese and Caraway Slaw

2 carrots
1 celery
3 radishes
1/2 cup Greek yogurt (can substitute mayo or sour cream)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds
2 ounce blue cheese
salt and pepper

Using a box grater, shred the carrots, celery and radishes, place in a bowl.  Add the yogurt, caraway seeds and a good pinch of salt and pepper.  Stir to combine. Sprinkle the blue cheese over the top.

Sandwich Series: Shredded Pork with Balsamic Onions and Apple Lemon Slaw

Sandwiches are all the rage, why else would Graham Elliot, Tom Colicchio, Rick Bayless (among others) open simple sandwich shops?  And while I say these are simple sandwich shops, lets be honest - there was an extreme amount of planning that went into each mouthwatering handful as dutifully noted by the high prices!

With a large piece of pork begging for attention in my freezer but limited time to pay it proper attention, I dropped it in the crock pot for a day, thinking an idea would hit me later. Allowing cheaper cuts of meat simmer all day will render them tender and ready to use for a quick addition to many applications - a great addition to pasta, a topping for polenta, a lasagna layer, perfect filling for an omelet and a strata, toss with rice and beans for a quick salad or use in a sandwich.

In this sandwich, the sweet balsamic onions play off the tangy apple lemon slaw while the havarti brings a creaminess to entire bite. The great thing about pork is that the flavor is slightly salty and versatile enough to marry with these sweet, tart flavors.

Spending ten dollars on a sandwich is worth it sometimes, you probably can't afford to do that every day (I can't, anyway.) You don't have to. Invite your friends over, make amazing sandwiches at home and spend your money on a great beer or wine to wash it all down with. The Fat and Happy Sandwich Series is here for your tastebuds' enjoyment.

Tips and techniques: For the pork, see my posting for a classic crock pot pork. If havarti cheese isn't available, try Jarlsberg or a Swiss.


Sandwich Series: Shredded Pork with  Balsamic Onions and Apple Lemon Slaw Sandwich

4 cups cooked, shredded pork
1 green apple
2 lemons
2 ounces havarti cheese, shredded or thinly sliced
1 cup thinly sliced red onion
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
2 Tbls extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 Tbls grainy mustard
4 bread rolls
Salt and pepper to taste

Balsamic Onions
Saute onions and 1 tablespoon olive oil until the onions get deeply caramelized, have patience as this will take up to 15 minutes, add more olive oil if needed. Add in the balsamic vinegar and simmer 5 minutes to thicken the balsamic. Remove from heat, stir in the mustard and juice of 1/2 lemon, set aside until ready to use. Can do this step ahead of time, hold in the refrigerator until ready to use, warm over a small skillet adding in additional balsamic if the onions become dry

Apple Lemon Slaw
Slice the green apple in long, thin strips; I use a mandolin but this can be done by hand. Place the apples in a bowl, zest the lemon over the apple sticks and then squeeze all of the juice over the top. Toss well. This will give the apples a zesty zing while keeping them from turning brown.

Putting it all together
Warm the pork, place in an oven proof bowl, add a few drizzles of liquid (if the pork you are using does not have it's own liquid add in about 1/4 cup of broth or water) cover tightly and bake about 10 minutes until warm. If your pork needs more seasoning, now is the time.

Putting it all together:  Preheat a broiler to high.  Cut the bread rolls open and begin to layer the ingredients- place the shredded pork down first (roughly 1/2 - 1 cup of pork per sandwich depending on your meat to bun preference.) Add a layer of the balsamic onions, drizzling a little sauce as well, and then add 1/4 of the lemon apple slaw.  Cover the apple slaw with a few tablespoons of the shredded havarti. Brush the top half of the bun with the remaining olive oil.

Place both halves of each bun under the broiler (the top bun will get just a little crusty giving a great texture to the sandwich while the cheese will melt over the bottom half.  Remove from the broiler when the cheese melts, top each sandwich with the crusty top bread and enjoy.

Chipotle Risotto

It's officially January and time for warm, hearty dishes. This chipotle risotto resembles the creaminess of traditional risotto but gets a pop of spiciness from the chipotle pepper.

These cold weather dishes can become a bit unhealthy with too much cheese and cream; using a risotto cooking method helps to keep the dish creamy and allows to keep the amount of cheese needed to a minimum. My secret add to this dish is red lentils, they tend to disappear and are hardly noticeable yet they offer a huge boost of protein and nutritional value.
 
Finding ways to be creative with hearty and creamy dishes with out losing flavor is key to helping stay on track with any New Years Resolutions. Stay out of the cold, turn on the fireplace and eat fat and happy without all the fat!

Tips and techniques:  To make this dish vegetarian, simply leave out the pork and use a vegetarian broth in place of the beef broth.

Chipotle Risotto

1/2 cup diced red onion
1 Tbls olive oil
1 cup diced celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup red lentils
3/4 cup aborio rice
2 cups beef broth
1 cup tomato sauce
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground paprika
1 -2 large chipotle peppers with sauce, chopped
1 cup chopped or shredded cooked pork (optional)
2 Tbls fresh oregano, chopped
2 Tbls fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 cup chihuahua cheese,shredded
3 Tbls fresh parsley, chopped

Add the olive oil, celery and onions to a soup-like pan, cook about 5 minutes over medium heat until they begin to just soften.

While that is cooking, place the beef broth and tomato sauce in a pan and heat. 
Add in the lentils, the aborio rice, the cumin and the paprika to the onion pan, stir often to avoid burning the rice, saute for about 2 minutes.

Add a cup of the hot broth to the rice mixture and stir. Cover with a lid and set the heat to medium low and allow to simmer until the liquid has been absorbed by the rice, about 5 minutes.  Repeat with another cup of the hot broth, and then again with the final cup of broth, adding the chipotle peppers and the pork with the final cup of broth. .

Taste the rice, it should be al dente rather than hard and definately not soft. If needed, add another 1/2 cup of broth, you don't want the risotto to be dry.


Remove the pan from the heat; toss the cheese with the fresh oregano, thyme and parsley and add to the risotto. Cover and let the heat of the rice melt the cheese for about 3 minutes. Serve immediately with warm tortillas.

Elegant New Years Eve Dinner

5 Course New Years Eve Dinner Menu

Brussel Sprout Chips and Jam-Dipped Fork Bites

Horseradish Soup with Roast Beef and Chestnuts

Tilapia in a Pastry Shell atop Grilled Fennel and Radicchio Salad with Fig Vinaigrette

Crown Roast of Pork with Bacon Apple Stuffing

Chocolate Covered Bacon Caramel Popcorn

 

Of all the holidays, New Years Eve reigns as the most prestigious. It's a time to don the fanciest clothes (you could wear the fake Halloween tiara and get away with it!) and spare no expense for the champagne. 

The recipes below are not all exactly beginner level, but they are doable and many of them can be made ahead of time. Make a list that spans a couple of days, include shopping and decorating the table and then check it off as you complete each task, I do this for every party I throw.  Too many times I've realized at the end of the night the cranberries are still sitting in the fridge and I forgot to add the garnish to the desserts.

Go ahead invite your closest friends over, play dress up and and go for broke on the food; it's the beginning of a new year with 365 days to redeem yourself, if need be. Just remember the Fat and Happy way - if one of the dishes is less than stellar for some reason, pop the cork early... at least you'll look regal in your crown.

Tips and Techniques:  Dishes that can be made a day ahead of time: make the soup and the stuffing, but don't add the bread, roast the chestnuts, whisk the vinaigrette. season the pork and bake the chocolate bacon caramel popcorn.  Morning of: wrap the fish in the pastry shell and store in the fridge until ready to bake.

All recipes make enough for 6, the crown roast of pork can easily feed (8- 12 based on a 8lb pork).

The Recipes

Brussel Sprout Chips
10 brussel Sprouts
 1 Tbls olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 275 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Pick up one brussel sprout, cut the bottom of the brussel sprout off, remove the first layer of leaves and discard.  Carefully peel off the remaining layers and place on the cookie sheet.  I found it helpful to try to core out the little stem of the sprout as it got smaller. Repeat with remaining sprouts.


Drizzle the brussel sprouts with olive oil, using your hands to carefully toss the sprouts until they are all covered in oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in the oven. Some of the leaves will begin to roast faster than others, so shake the pan often and remove the leaves that are done and place in a shallow bowl.

Place the pan back in the oven until the rest are finished.  Each chip will have some crunchy roasted edges with still green chewy centers.

Serve immediately.


Meat and Cheese Fork Bites


1/4 lb thinly sliced turkey, prosciutto or deli meat of your choice, cut in half lengthwise
jam (fig, orange, blackberry or any flavors of your choice)
4 oz semi hard white cheese (manchego, cantal, white cheddar or cheese of your choice), cut into small chunks
Olive Oil
Blanched asparagus, green beans, fresh grape tomato etc, cut into bite sized chunks (optional)

Assume 2 per person, so have ready as many forks/spoons as needed. Stab a chunk of cheese, an asparagus (if using), then spread a jam on the cheese. Wrap the end of the fork with a slice of the deli meat.  Set on a platter, and repeat.  Lightly drizzle the whole platter with olive oil.


This idea is from Jamie Oliver, it's simple, fun and lends itself to unlimited flavor combinations. Don't be afraid of the jam, it will lend a tangy sweetness to the turkey and cheese. Let these be rustic, encourage your guest to just pick up the fork and pop the whole mixture into their mouth at once.

Horseradish Soup with Roast Beef and Chestnuts

1 garlic clove
1 large shallot
1 medium sized potato
1 Tbls olive oil
1 Tbls butter
1 cup + 6 Tbls grated fresh horseradish
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 Tbls mustard
1/2 cup cream
1 tsp white or champagne vinegar
Salt and pepper
6 roasted chestnuts*, chopped
1 cup of finely diced roast beef (deli meat is fine to use here, but go to a good deli)
Mini Pumpernickel bread, two slices per person, toasted

Place the olive oil, butter and shallots in a deep pot, saute for a few minutes and add the garlic and potatoes. Cook until the shallots are softened, stir often. Add the broth, cover and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.

Carefully use a blender or Cuisinart to blend the soup until it's smooth, do this in batches if needed. Return the soup to a pan and add in the mustard, cream and vinegar. Let the soup reach a very soft simmer, cook for about 15 minutes; the longer the soup the more mild the horse radish will become. Add a little salt and pepper. The soup can be served immediately, or cooled and refrigerated until ready to use (1-2 days).  Lightly butter the pumpernickel bread, place on a cookie sheet in a heated oven until toasted.

To serve: Place about 2 tablespoons of the chopped roast beef, 1 tablespoon of the freshly grated horseradish and 1 scant tablespoon of the chopped chestnuts in the bottom of each bowl. Carefully ladle in about 1 cup of soup and top with salt and pepper. For a dramatic effect, give each person their own craft of soup or pour it into their bowl for them. Serve with toasted pumpernickel points.

unroasted chestnuts.


Tilapia in a Pastry Shell atop Grilled Fennel and Radicchio Salad with Fig Vinaigrette

6 Tilapia fillets (spend the money and get a good piece of fish)
2 sheets of Phyllo dough
4 Tbls butter
1 egg, whisked
Lemon pepper

1 cup mayonnaise
Juice of 1 lemon
Fresh black pepper

Defrost the phyllo dough, roll the dough out slightly so it is not so thick.  Plan to cut 6 large circles out of the dough, place each fillet one one-half of the circle. Top each fillet with two pats of butter and a sprinkling of lemon pepper. Using a pasty brush or your fingers, wet the edges of one circle with the egg, pull the second half of the phyllo dough over the fish (this will shape a half moon or you can form what ever shape you would like) and seal the edges with a fork.  Repeat until all fish are wrapped. If you have extra dough, make little design for the top, stick on with egg.  Either bake immediately or place in the fridge until ready to bake.

Mix the mayonnaise with the lemon, add fresh ground black pepper and set aside until ready to use.

Before baking, brush the fish with the remaining beaten egg. Bake in a 375 degree oven until the phyllo dough is puffy and brown and the edges look bubbly (about 30 minutes).  Remove from oven and serve immediately with a dollop of the lemon mayonnaise and the Radicchio Salad.


Grilled Fennel and Radicchio Salad
1 head of radicchio
1 fennel bulb
Olive oil
1 lemon

Heat a cast iron grill on your stove top.  Core the radicchio and cut into half lengthwise and then half again.  Remove the fronds from the fennel and quarter.  Drizzle everything with olive oil and place on the grill.

Grill each side of the radicchio for about 4 minutes, remove from the grill.  Grill the fennel about 6 or 7 minutes per side and then remove.  Slice the radicchio and fennel, add to a large bowl, squeeze a fresh lemon over the top.  Toss with the Fig Vinaigrette (start with half of the vinaigrette, toss and add more as needed to moisten everything). Serve immediately as a base for the Phyllo-wrapped fish.


Fig Vinaigrette

1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot (about the size of a golf ball)
3 Tbls balsamic vinegar
2 heaping spoons fig jam
2 Tbls of chopped parsley
1/4 - 1/2 cup Olive oil
Fresh ground pepper, salt

Saute the shallot and garlic for just about 2 minutes, add the balsamic vinegar to pan, turn off the heat and let steep for about 20 minutes.

Whisk in the fig jam, parsley, salt and pepper. Add in the olive oil, use as much as needed until desired thickness is reached. Serve warm.



Crown Roast of Pork with Bacon Apple Stuffing

1 crown roast of Pork, mine was roughly 8 lbs
4 tbls dried rosemary
4 tbls dried thyme
2 tbls garlic powder
2 tbls seasoning salt
2 tbls dried oregano
olive oil


Have your butcher ready the pork for you; they will tie it up and put cute little 'crowns' on the tops of the bones (keeping your crown theme going!)  Combine all the seasonings in a bowl and then rub all sides of the pork (inside the crown and out) with the seasonings. Cover and set in fridge to marinate.


Remove the pork from the fridge 30 minutes before placing it in the oven to allow it to come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, stuff the center of the pork with the bacon apple stuffing, drizzle the pork with olive oil, cover the crown and stuffing with tin foil and place in the oven. Add a cup of water to the bottom of the pan.

About 2 1/2 hours later, remove the tin foil. Add a cup or two of water to the bottom of the pan if the bottom of the pan is dry.  Return pork to oven for another hour. Do check the meat thermometer often, remove at 150 degrees. Cover the pork with foil and allow the pork to rest 30 minutes before slices to help keep all the juices inside.

Simmer remaining juices in the pan with 1-2 cups of white wine, broth or champagne (what ever you have open); you are not making a full gravy but just reducing the broth a little. Taste and add a little salt and paper as needed.

To serve:  slice the pork between each rib, place on a plate with a scoop of the stuffing and drizzle the whole thing with a few spoons of the broth.

Apple Bacon Stuffing
5 slices bacon
1/2 cup red onions, sliced thin
1/2 cup yellow onion, sliced thin
3/4 cups celery, chopped
1 Tbls rosemary, chopped
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 green apple, peeled and diced
1/2 cup apple cider
4 cups dried bread cubes

In a large fry pan, cook the bacon just shy of your desired doneness. Remove from the pan and set on paper towels to drain. Remove most of the bacon fat from the pan, but keep about a tablespoon or two.  Add in the onions and celery, cook about 5 minutes tossing often.  Add in the rosemary, parsley and apples and continue to saute for about 5 more minutes. Don't over cook, the stuffing will be in the oven for a few hours too. Remove from heat and cool.  This mixture can be make a day head and placed in the refrigerator.

Add in the apple cider and bread cubes and stuff in the crown of the pork.  If the stuffing feels really dry, add in more apple cider.  Bake as directed above.

Click here for the amazing Chocolate Covered Bacon Caramel Popcorn Recipe on Fat and Happy

Tomato Sausage Ragu over Campanelle Pasta

 Pasta comes in more shapes and sizes than people!  And for a good reason; each shape is meant to hold various sauces. Smaller, thin, lighter pastas are best with simple oil based sauces while bigger shapes, which often have a bowl to them, are meant for heartier, chunky sauces.  And whimsical shapes amuses kids while enticing them to eat.

As much as I enjoy making fresh pasta at home, there are shapes that just cannot be created at home. Campanelle pasta is a super fun, funnel-like shape with ruffled edges, like little chewy flowers in your bowl.

Ragu is really just a meat sauce, today it's a sausage meat sauce.  A tomato, wine and sausage meat sauce packed with flavor from just a handful of ingredients. A simple sauce that does most of the work just by simmering for a couple of hours.  Fun pasta and one meaty sauce makes one fat and happy-shaped eater.

Tips and Techniques: If you can't find campanelle pasta, simply substitute another fun shape like fusilli or ziti or farfalle.


Tomato Sausage Ragu over Campanelle Pasta

3 spicy turkey sausages
1 tbls garlic powder
Canola oil
1 medium sized onion, diced small
2 carrots, diced small
4 cloves of garlic
1 cup broth
1/2 bottle of dry red wine (about 3 cups)

1 can fire roasted tomatoes, with juice (16 oz)
1 can whole tomatoes, with juice (16 oz)
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese, for topping

Begin by removing the casings from the sausage, crumble them into a cast iron pan with fresh ground pepper, garlic powder, and a little salt. Cook until just done; add a little canola oil to the bottom of the pan to help get them started. Remove the crumbled sausage from the pan and set aside.


Add the onions to the pan, cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add in the carrots and continue to cook until both the onions and the carrots begin turn a caramelized brown on the edges. Add in the garlic and a few grinds of fresh black pepper and continue to cook another  2 -3 minutes. By this point you should have a deep colored onions and carrots and the flavor should be filling the house; and some of the onions and carrots may be sticking to the bottom of the pan, this is ok!  The next step is to deglaze the pan which removes all those super tasty, browned little morsels from the bottom.

To deglaze, you simply add in a little liquid and move it around the pan using a wooden spoon, easily scraping off the deeply caramelized pieces from the bottom.  To do this add in only 1 cup of wine.  Once you feel the spoon move freely across the bottom, add in another cup of wine and the broth. Simmer this for about 1 hour or until the liquids reduce by half.

Add in the remaining wine, tomatoes (smash the whole tomatoes by squeezing with your hand or with the back of the spoon) and the sausage, cover, simmer on low for about 2 hours. Remove the lid, add in salt and pepper and simmer about 20 minutes or until ragu is reaches desired thickness. Add salt and pepper if needed.

The pasta will take about 10 minutes to cook, start a large pan of water about the time you uncover the ragu.  Always use cold water, it is the cleanest and will taste the best.  Once the water is boiling, add in a good sprinkling of salt as this is your only chance to salt the pasta.  Add in the pasta, stir immediately and test often.  The pasta should be al dente, still firm to the the bite.  Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water.  Toss the pasta back in the same pan and add in scoops of the ragu and a drizzle of the pasta water, toss.
Serve immediately with a fresh grated Parmesan cheese.

Cubanito Bowl

The crew at Gozamos is celebrating Latino heritage this month and that calls for a Latin recipe... my version, of course.  Let's take a look at the traditional Cubano Sandwich.  Any sandwich that can tout two layers of pork ranks high in my book. Add on the crispy pickle,a swipe of spicy mustard, the crunchy grilled bread and the melty cheese- oh man is this living.

As much as it pains me to admit this, I wanted to lighten  this dish up slightly. Substituting turkey for the shredded pork was step one, step two was to remove the heavy bread.  The result is a lighter, appetizer-esque version of the classic Cubano which I'm nicknaming the Cubanito Bowl. 


Tips and Techniques:  Make a larger bowl by overlapping a couple of the wonton wrappers in larger muffin tins.  Using pork will yield more flavor over turkey; the seasoning mix below is amazing on both.

Cubanito Bowl

Grilled Cuban Turkey (or Pork)

1 Tbls cumin seeds
2 Tbls peppercorns
1/2 Tbls coriander seeds
1 tbls sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 turkey loin, 1 lb

Toast the seeds in a dry pan over medium heat for just a few minutes, the pan will smoke. Grind all the seeds in a mortar and pestle or in a coffee grinder. Mix with the sugar and salt. 

Spread on turkey, cover and let it sit in fridge overnight. Remove from fridge 20 minutes prior to grilling to allow the meat to come to room temperature.  Grill until meat reaches 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.  If you don't have a grill or it's the middle of winter in the Midwest, sear the turkey on all sides and finish in the oven.

Remove from heat, rest 15 minutes and then shred with two forks.  You can do this step up to 2 days prior.

Pickle Slaw:
4 small cucumbers, grated and drained
1 carrot, shredded
1 cup red onion, sliced thin

1 Tbls champagne vinegar
2 tbls dijon mustard, black 1 tsp sugar
Juice of 1 lime
Fresh ground pepper
2 tbls fresh chopped parsley

Grate the cucumbers and set in a strainer for about 10 minutes, lightly salt (this will help draw out the juice).  Squeeze out any excess water.  Place in a bowl with the shredded carrot and the the thinly sliced onion. Add in the remaining ingredients and toss.

Mustard Yogurt

1 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
3 Tbls spicy mustard
black pepper

Combine the yogurt and mustard together, add a bit of pepper and  set aside.



Putting the Cubanito Bowl together:
Deli ham- 5 slices, chopped
1 cup of shredded jack cheese
1 package of wonton wrappers
2 tbls melted butter

Push one wonton wrapper into each cup of a muffin tin pan and brush lightly with the melted butter. Place in a 350 degree oven and toast until the wontons are lightly browned.

Add a few pinches of the shredded cheese into the toasted cups, top with the ham and some shredded turkey (stuff it full).  Place back in the oven for 2 - 5 minutes, just until the cheese melts. Remove from oven- serve immediately with the pickle slaw and mustard yogurt.