Mike's Coooking Page

Baked Italian Sub

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 11:09:26 -0400

Sub rolls
Prosciutto
Ham
Salami or Pepperoni
Provolone Cheese
Artichoke Hearts
Fresh Spinach
Pesto

Slice open the roll, layer the 3 meats, provolone, artichoke hearts, spinach and pesto. Wrap in foil, and bake at 375 F for about 10-15 minutes until the cheese is melted.

Mongolian Beef

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 10:22:54 -0400

Had this for supper, and it was pretty good.

Ingredients:
1 pound of thinly sliced beef
1 Bunch of green onions
2 tablespoons oil
2 garlic cloves (to taste)
1 inch ginger piece, shredded (to taste)

The sauce:
1/2 Cup corn starch
1/4 Cup soy sauce
1/2 Cup water
1/3 Cup brown sugar
Red Pepper flakes to taste

Read on, serve this over rice for an easy meal.
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Pork Tacos

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 10:36:17 -0400

The local grocery store had pork loin for sale, and it was cheap. That got me in the mood for tacos. They were great, and just as good reheated when my brothers came to visit.

I only used half of the pork loin, and froze the other half. I don't think I could have eaten all of it in time...

Ingredients:

The meat:

1/2 pork loin
1 can chicken broth
1 Onion - halved
Garlic powder
Salt Pepper

The salsa:

1 Jalapeno
1 Onion half (the other half of the onion from the meat)
2 Limes
1 Bunch cilantro
Salt

Extras:

Tortillas (corn or flour)
Sour Cream
Cheese (if desired)

Continue reading "Pork Tacos"

Chicken Gumbo

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 12:48:18 -0400

Gumbo is an easy, great food to make. It does, however, take time. It's a lot like the curry recipe on this site. There's not much to it, if you do it right, but it takes a long time to make. Just like the curry is all about the onions, the gumbo is all about the roux.

A roux is nothing more than flour and fat cooked together. In this case, it's flour and vegetable oil. You can use peanut oil, but I didn't have any for this recipe. This is the #1 most important ingredient in your gumbo, so don't mess it up.

Luckily, there is a fool-proof way to make roux. Traditionally, roux was made by putting flour and oil in a pan, and stirring like hell for about 20 minutes. This is very time consuming, but it works. However, the roux is very easy to burn, and burnt roux is good for only 1 thing. Throwing away.

That said, here's my gumbo recipe (the ingredients are in the order they are used):

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Cheesey Scalloped Potatoes

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 08:26:59 -0400

I was looking for some comfort food last night, after a day of beer making (2 batches fermenting at the moment...). This seemed like the perfect way to use some of the potatoes and shredded cheese I had laying around.

6 Potatoes (I used the small white kind)
1 Pint of whole milk
2 Tbs butter
Salt and Pepper
3 C Shredded Cheddar cheese
Salt and Pepper
Non-stick spray

This is similar to my other recipe, but with more cheese, and less other stuff.

Chop the potatoes into chunks, and grease a pan. I used a large cast iron pan with a lid. Put a layer of potatoes, a layer of cheese (about 1/4 of the cheese per layer), some salt, and some pepper. When the pan is full, top it with some cheese, pour the milk over it, and stick it in the oven at 450 degrees with a lid on it. After about 30 minutes, when the potatoes are done, take off the lid and cook for another 25 minutes or so, until it dries out a little and the cheese on top is browned.

Pumpkin Beer

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 08:21:38 -0400

Had an interesting day of brewing yesterday. I made a trashcan ale, with a bunch of old, leftover grains I had laying around. Who knows what it will turn out like, but I suppose we will find out in a few months.

We also made a pumpkin flavored beer, which was a first for me. It was made just like a regular batch of beer (i.e. steep some grains, boil some extract, cool it, add yeast, and stick it in the fermenter), but with a twist. While the grains were steeping, we cubed up a pumpkin (about 5 or 6 pounds worth), and boiled it on my turkey fryer burner for about 15 minutes. When it was done, we put the chunks into the steeping water, and added about 1.5 gallons of the "tea" from the pumpkin water into the main pot.

The pumpkin steeped for about 30 minutes, and then it was the regular boiling and adding malt extract. I cooled it, pitched some yeast, and stuck it in the fermenter with some pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon.

I'll post an update when it's drinkable, as it's in the garage now, fermenting away...

Pasta and Shrimp

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:33:52 -0400

Simple Pasta and Shrimp recipe.

1 Large tomato
1 Pound of shrimp (shell on)
5 Cloves of garlic
10-15 Kalamata olives
5 Cloves roasted garlic
1 Roasted red pepper
1 Pound of dry pasta (Eliche, Tortiglioni, Spirali)
1 Tbsp Old Bay
1/4 Cup of milk
1 Tbsp flour
1 Bay leaf
2 Tbsp butter

Peel the shrimp, and put the shells in a pot. Add enough water to cover them by about an inch, and put it on the stove to boil. Add the old bay, bay leaf, and raw garlic (I leave it in the papery shell). After it boils, simmer until it's reduced to the tops of the shells, and strain it back into the pot

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Creamed Spinach

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 08:42:21 -0400

1 Package of fresh spinach (mine was about 12 ounces or so)
1-2 Tablespoons of butter
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
1-2 Tablespoons flour
1 Cup milk/cream
1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese

I don't really measure for the sauce, so this is approximate.

Rinse dry the spinach, if needed, I buy the pre-washed stuff. Put a little olive oil in a pan, and heat it to medium or a little less. Add the spinach, and stir this every now and then to get it good and wilted.

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Salmon Scampi

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Fri, 25 May 2007 09:11:18 -0400

Salmon Scampi: Easy, quick pasta dish with canned pink salmon. The large can of salmon makes 2-4 servings, depending on what you're serving with it. I use the bone/skin in salmon, it's got more of the healthy stuff in it, but you can use boneless/skinless if you like.

For the pasta, something like macaroni or shells or something other than spaghetti or angel hair works well, because the stringy pasta is hard to toss at the end.

1 14-16 oz Can salmon (Drained, reserve about 2 tbsp juice)
1 Bunch of cooked pasta, drained and warm.
1 Chopped tomato
2-4 Cloves of chopped garlic
1/4 Stick of butter
3 Tbsp Olive Oil.

Season to taste
1 Tsp salt
1 Tsp pepper
1 Tsp red pepper flakes

Topping:
Grated Parmesan Cheese

Heat the butter in a pan on medium/medium high.
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Braised Turkey Legs with gravy

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 11:39:23 -0400

2 (or more) turkey legs
1 C Chicken/Turkey broth (per 2 legs)
1 Tbsp oil
1 Onion, chopped
2 (or more) cloves garlic
Salt and Pepper to taste

Optional:
Chopped Celery
Chopped Carrots

For Gravy:
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp flour

Pat dry, and salt and pepper the turkey legs. In a large skillet (with high sides and a lid) brown the turkey legs in a little oil. When they are browned, throw in the garlic, onions, and any optional chopped vegetables.
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Channa Masala (Chick peas in gravy)

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Tue, 19 Sep 2006 11:50:55 -0400

1 can rinsed chick peas
med-large tomato, chopped into chunks
1 large onion chopped
3 cloves garlic
3 tsp ginger powder (or paste)
1 tsp Turmeric (halidi)
1 tbsp Garam Masala (available in most big grocerys now...)
1 tsp Ground Coriander
2 tsp Salt, to taste
1 tsp cumin

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pot, and fry the onions. Fry until they are soft, over about medium heat, stirring often so they don't burn. After about 10 minutes, add the ginger, garlic, and fry for about 3 minutes.

Then, add the tomato, and the rest of the spices. Fry this for about 5 more minutes, and dump in the chick peas. Add a few ounces of water, maybe 6 or 8, to start a nice gravy. Bring this to a boil, then lower to a simmer for about 30-90 minutes, until the gravy is your desired thickness.

If the gravy is not thick enough, simmer some more, and stir in a little bit of cornmeal to thicken. Serve hot with rice, or naan, or pocketless pita bread.

If you want it hotter, add some chili peppers when you add the ginger/garlic.

Grilled Pork Chops

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 07:53:10 -0400

Marinade:

2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp Vinegar
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Tbsp soy sauce

Marinate pork for a few hours, and grill until done. Simple.

Cocunut Curry with Shrimp

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 09:42:57 -0400

Coconut Shrimp Curry

1 dozen large shrimp (peeled and de-viened)
2 Medium jalapeño peppers
1 12-14 oz can of coconut milk
3 green onions
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp crushed ginger
3 cloves garlic
5 basil leaves
1 tsp salt
¼ c crushed cilantro

We made this the other night, and it was great. Serve over rice.

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Roasted Cauliflower Soup

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 09:25:56 -0400

Roasted Cauliflower Soup

2 Heads of cauliflower
4 Cloves of garlic
1 Medium purple onion
3 Tbsp olive oil
4 Cups of chicken stock
1 Cup of cream
1 Tsp pepper
1 Tbsp Thyme
1 Bay leaf
Salt to taste (depending on how salty your stock is)
Grated Cheese (if desired)

I saw this recipe on some cooking show or another, and it sounded good. This is not the exact recipe, but an approximation. I don't have any pictures yet, but will post some next time. This soup is awesome.

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Smoked Pork Ribs

nospam@example.com (Mike Baranski) — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 12:40:19 -0400

Here are some ribs from the other weekend...

A limb fell off of our apple tree, so that was the wood we smoked with. I had them on around 300 or so for about 5 hours. I usually do at least 8, but we were pressed for time...

The smoker. It's getting to be a piece of crap, and has taken 2 direct hits from falling tree limbs, but it still works.

I made up a rub with some spices from the cabinet, "basted" with a spray bottle full of vinegar and apple juice, and they turned out pretty good...

You can also see the smoked potatoes, but smoking, to me, does nothing for a potato that baking won't do. I'd just bake them next time. Putting them under the pork to catch the drippings (above the water pan), might work too, if they don't combust...