Showing posts with label fusion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fusion. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Deal Breaker

     Looking for something that's easy to make and quite delicious?  Look no further than breakfast tacos with eggs and sausage.  First brown the sausage in a dutch oven.  I used 3 packaging of Jimmy Dean.  I thought all three were "Original"; However, one turned out to be Maple flavored.  The syrup smell woke us up and screamed breakfast!  Next add a ton of eggs.  We used about 60 for this pot.  Put the lid on, heat to medium low, and let the eggs cook.  It should take about 15-20 minutes for all the eggs to cook.
     A Dutch oven is an essential cookware to every kitchen.  After cooking, the lid can be flipped over on the burner and used as a skillet to warm up the tortillas.  This dish was perfect for an early tailgate and just as easy to prepare!






     Next we fired up the grill to finish cooking our pork shoulders.    I woke up at 6:30am to put 29 lbs of pork into the oven.  They rest there at a temperature of 250 degrees for 3.5 hours.  Pulled Pork is easy to prepare with a dry rub (let marinate for at least 3 hours before cooking).  Just be sure to be patient and give yourself plenty of time to cook.  Slow and low is the trick; usually about 7-8 hours.

It fell off the bone and everyone was extremely satisfied.  I'll be cooking another one or two this Wednesday for our weekly youth group gathering: JAM.









     I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for not blogging as much as I had envisioned.  I've been somewhat busy with work (understatement) and even though I have been cooking, I haven't taken the time to take pictures.  I'M SORRY!  Here are some more photos from my recent trip to Baton Rouge for LSU's Homecoming Game against Western Kentucky.  It was Nicki Rivers' first LSU game!  Geaux Tigers!



She made it in!!


oh yeah, and Happy Plates!
   

Saturday, October 1, 2011

It's GAME DAY!

Chorizo Stuffed Omelet with a side of Grapefruit and Grapes.

      This is a three egg ode to the Fighting Tigers of LSU.  A breakfast (or brunch) not for the faint of heart.

     It was a simple plan really.  My parents woke me up extremely early to help a family friend move this morning.  Honestly, if I had been in Baton Rouge, I probably would have been awake by 6:00am so technically I got to sleep in.
     Our friend lives on the north side of the interstate which is kinda near Michoacana. Kinda near is a Katy term I've made up that means 15 minutes for those of you reading from out of state.  Michoacana is the coolest grocery store I've ever seen.  They sell everything Mexican.  I purchased some purple (red)onions, grapefruits, and CHORIZO!  They have the best "fresh" chorizo in Houston in my opinion.  To compare, I haven't bought fresh chorizo from anywhere else. 
     Flipping omelets takes practice and patience. After you conquer the technique, you can amaze people with food that not only looks good but also TASTES amazing.  I would proudly put this dish up against anything Bobby Flay shows on his show "Brunch with Bobby Flay". 

     Now it's time to sit back and watch my LSU Tigers play!  Holler at all my Mean Streak Tailgaters! Geaux Tigers!!
    
    
Extreme Happy Plates!!

Friday, September 30, 2011

Chew on This

Stuffed Pork Loin. Marinated Mozzarella Stuffed Peppadews.
Hipster View
     A few weeks ago, I bought a book as a going away gift for one of my students moving to Malaysia.  It is titled "How to Grill" by Steven Raichlen. He enjoyed grilling hamburgers with our youth group so I found  it was only appropriate to give him an ultimate guide to grilling.  It also worked out well because I'm constantly looking for new inspiration and this picture book was just what the doctor ordered.  I picked up my own copy online and the rest is history. This is my version of the stuffed pork loin.
     The tricky part to this dish is cutting the pork loin the right way.  I unfortunately cut too deep and actually punctured through the meat.  Anways, this loin of the pig is stuffed with diced onion, bell pepper, green olives, capers, salt, pepper, oregano, and olive oil.  oh, I added the tomatoes for some fun color.  All this jazz is spread on the inside of the loin, rolled up, then tied together with butcher string (which was free from my nice friend's at Kroger).  It is also laced with bacon to keep in some moisture and flavor.  Lacing any meal with bacon is dangerous, so use extreme caution.  This heap of love was grilled on my dad's gas weber for about 2 hours or until the center was 160 degrees.  It sliced up nicely and has the unique spiral effect for the plate.  Hopefully the next time I try this, my hands will be steady enough to cut the loin thinner and my brains will be smarter to know when to stop cutting!  Happy plates (except I had no side dish...which is another story in itself hehe)

mini hipster view
Now, onto those sexy red peppadews...One day while shopping at my local Kroger store, I came across peppadews on the olive bar.  I can't lie, they were checking me out.  I was planning on using them for my pulled pork pizza (which i did and it was delicious. i might recreate the pizza because IT WAS THAT GOOD).  A really nice lady working that day told me something that would forever change my list of appetizers.  "Add cheese to pepper" she said (in an asian accent.)  It took me a while to comprehend what she had said.  I would compare it to Mr. Miyagi teaching the karate kid "wax on, wax off". Anyways....Yes, she was asian and her idea ...was BRILLIANT!  They are super easy to make (stuff a mozzarella cheese ball into the pepper), look pretty cool, and even my mom likes them!  Happy plates tonight!

Spread the word and let me know something you want me to try.  Things coming soon: Boneless Stuffed Chicken, Homemade Teriyaki Chicken Legs, and Triple Stuffed Potatoes....I'm seeing a recurring theme with "stuffed stuff"

please note:  #1. if i ever use the term hipster and fusion FOR REAL when speaking about food, please slap me. I am so serious.
#2.  "hipster view" is a joke but also a camera angle i invented.  you cannot borrow it unless you give me credit.

 Thanks for reading! <3  I'll try to do better next time!