Stuffed Cabbage

This was a really good stuffing. I had tons left-over so I am planning to serve the stuffing as a side-dish sometime in the next few days.  Next time I will probably just make the stuffing and cut-up a little more cabbage than I used in this recipe. It would even make a great soup. Just add some chicken stock and you have a hearty soup w/o meat. Add some sausage, and you will please the meat eaters in your family.

printable recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/stuffed-cabbage
Ingredients:
1 medium head of cabbage- discard tough leaves and save 2 for a later use
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 red pepper, finely chopped
1 yellow pepper, finely chopped (I just used one red pepper)
2 medium onions, finely chopped (I just used one onion)
1 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons minced, peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup long-grain rice, cooked as directed on package
1 can (15-19 oz) white cannellini beans rinsed and drained
1 can (8 oz) water chestnuts-- sliced, drained, and finely chopped
1 can (28 oz) tomatoes
Directions
1. Remove 2 large cabbage leaves; set aside.  This is to cover the cabbage after you stuff it. Cut out core and center of cabbage, leaving a 1-inch shell. Discard core and dice 2 cups cabbage from center leaves.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add peppers and half of onions; cook, stirring often. (8-10 minutes)
3. Add diced cabbage, rice vinegar, garlic, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 tablespon ginger; cook 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in rice, beans, and water chestnuts.
4. Fill cabbage shell with vegetable mixture., packing mixture firmly but gently. Cover opening with reserved cabbage leaves, overlapping slightly; tie with string. In an 8 quart Dutch oven, heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add remaining onions and cook 5 minutes, or until tender. Add remaining 1 tablespoon ginger; cook 30 seconds.
5. Add tomatoes with their juice, remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and 1 cup water, breaking up tomatoes with back of a spoon. Place stuffed cabbage, core-end down, in tomato sauce and heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 hour, basting cabbage occasionally. To serve, place cabbage in deep platter; discard string. Spoon sauce around cabbage. Cut into wedges. Serve with French bread if desired.

Amaretto Cake

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/amaretto-cake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups chopped almonds - toasted for divided use.
1 package yellow cake mix without pudding
1  3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil I use Canola oil
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup amaretto liquor
1 teaspoon almond extract
--------------------------
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup amaretto
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Sprinkle 1 cup toasted almonds into the bottom of a well greased and floured 10 inch tube pan; set aside. Combine next 7 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat on low spead until dry ingredients are moist. Increase speed to medium and beat 4 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup almonds. Pour batter into prepared tube pan. Bake 325 degrees 1 hour. Test with a toothpick. Cool 10-15 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely.
Combine sugar 1/4 cup water and butter in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and gently boil 4-5 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup amaretto and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. Punch holes in top of cake and slowly spoon glaze on top of cake, allowing glaze to absorb into cake.

Crispy Oven Fish Fry with Mushy Peas

We really like this method of cooking fish. It made for a really crispy fish. I used tapalia instead of cod because that is what I had in the freezer, and it was wonderful. I can't imagine the cod being any better. I halved this recipe. FoodNetwork's Rachel Ray






Printable Recipe:https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/crispy-fish-with-mushy-peas


Ingredients:
5 T. butter
3 cups panko crumbs
1 T. seafood seasoning (old bay)
1 T. granulated onion
1 T. granulated garlic
1 lemon or lime, zested
2T. freshly chopped thyme leaves
2 teaspoons chopped chives
1 1/2 pounds cod, cut from the thickest part of fillets shaped into 8 rectangular batons
salt
2 extra-large egg wites, beaten to frothy
1 cup flat-leaf parsley
1 cup packed fresh mint
3 cups freshly shelled peas or frozen and defrosted peas, patted dry (this is what I used)
1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
2 large shallots, finely chopped
2 cups chicken stock
Freshly ground black pepper
Malt vinegar
Directions: Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange a baking rack over the top of a baking sheet. Melt 4 Tablespoons butter over low heat in small pot. Put the bread crumbs in a shallow dish and douse with the melted butter and toss to combine. Season with seafood seasoning, granulated onion and garlic, citrus zest, thyme, and chives. Clean and pat the fish dry, then season with salt, to taste. Coat the fish in egg whites, then gently press them into the bread crumbs to coat evenly, then arrange them on the baking rack. Bake on center rack of the oven until the fish is white and flaky and the crumbs are golden, about 25-30 minutes. Meanwhile, add the parsley and mint to a food processor and pulse to finely chop, then scrape into a bowl and set aside. Return the base to the processor, do not rince the base. Add the peas and pulse until very finely chopped. I do not have a food processor, so I used a blender. A food processor would have been much better. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil, and the remaining butter over medium heat. Add the shallots and saute for 5 minutes, then add the stock and peas and bring to a bubble over medium-high heat. Cook the peas for about 15 minutes, about 10 minutes into the process, add the salt and pepper and the parsley and mint. Remove from the heat when the liquid has evaporated.
Spoon pools of mushy peas onto each dinner plate and top with crispy fish. Douse the fish with lots of malt vinegar and enjoy! I didn't have malt vinegar and we enjoyed it w/o. It was great.

Coconut Cake

Make a white cake mix according to directions on box. Make it in a 9" X 13" cake pan. Punch holes in the cake after it is cooked. I used the end of my whisk. It made big holes, but they will be covered with cool whip. Pour 1 can of sweetened condensed milk over the cake and spread with spatula. Then pour over a can of coconut milk and spread evenly over cake. When cake is completely cooled spread with cool whip and top with coconut.  I toasted my coconut to give it some added flavor. The thing I love about making deserts on Monday or Tuesday is that Jud and I can enjoy it for a couple of days and then I can take it to church, and it will always get eaten.

Chicken Scallopine with Sage and Fontina Cheese

I also made stuffed artichokes, but they didn't turn out so well, so I will not add that recipe.  When Jud watches a cooking show with me, he always says, "I just wish once the chef would say, this is not so good.  We loved the chicken. I was cooking this when we got the call that Stacy was in labor with Nicholas. I had made extra to take to her, so the timing could not have been better. Hope you enjoy. I would probably serve this with some pasta, but I already had some cabbage, so I didn't add the pasta.




Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/chicken-scallopine

Ingredients:
6 chicken cutlets, pound thin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 sage leaves
3 ounces grated fontina cheese
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, halved
1/2 cup white wine
1 (28 oz) can whole San Marzano tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Toothpicks for securing the chicken breast
Directions:
Place the chicken cutlets on a clean work surface, narrow end facing you. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place one sage leave crosswise on each of the pieces of chicken. Sprinkle each of the pieces of chicken with 1/2 oz. (about 2 T.) of fontina cheese. Roll up the chicken and seal with one or two toothpicks.
Warm the olive oil and halved garlic clove in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken.Brown the chicken on all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan and remove and discard the garlic. Add the wine and simmer for 2 minutes while scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
Meanwhile, combine the tomatoes and red pepper flakes in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the tomato mixture to the reduced wine in the pan. Simmer for 5 minutes to let the flavors marry.
Return the chicken to the pan. Simmer the chicken in the tomato sauce for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken over and simmer until cooked through, 5-7 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the pan. Season the tomato sauce with salt and pepper. Spoon the tomato sauce onto serving plates or a serving platter. Remove the toothpicks and slice the chicken into 1" rounds. Place the chicken over the sauce and serve immediately. You can tell by my picture, that I did not slice the chicken into rounds. Jud and I took two of the whole chicken breasts and I packed-up the rest to take to the Martyaks.

Chicken Perigourdine

I'm not at all sure why this is called Chicken Perigourdine. I guess I don't know what a perigourdine is. I do know this:  It is a great dish.  I made rice and steamed broccoli to go with this dish and it was wonderful. The chocolate cake on the right is one of Stacy's favorite cakes so I plan to freeze some of it and take it with me to Austin when baby Martyak is born. 


Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/chicken-perigourdine

Ingredients for Chicken Perigourdine:
1/2 cup butter8 chicken breasts
8 mushrooms, sliced
1/3 cup flour
1 can chicken broth
2 Tablespoons light cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
Melt 6 Tablespoons butter in skillet. Add chicken breasts that have been salt and peppered. Cook over medium heat until browned on both sides. Remove chicken and set aside. Place remaining butter to skillet and saute mushrooms. I used a whole carton of mushrooms and I only had 2 chicken breasts. Remove mushrooms and stir in flour and salt. Stir until blended and add chicken broth and cream. Allow to thicken. Place chicken and mushrooms back in sauce and simmer covered 20 minutes.

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/texas-sheet-cake

Ingredients for Chocolate Cake
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
Melt 1 stick butter
1/2 cup shortening
and 4 Tablespoons cocoa  Bring to a boil and pour over flour and sugar
Add:
1 cup water
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes  I bake mine in an 11" X 15" baking sheet
Icing:
Melt 1/2 stick butter
1 box powdered sugar
1 teaspon vanilla
2 Tablespoons cocoa
milk to thin for spreading consistency
Pour the icing over the cake when it first comes out of the oven and spread a thin layer over the cake.

Poblano Stuffed with Chorizo, Shrimp and Rice

I made these tonight and decided to make extra to share with Stacy and her family when the baby comes. Can't wait to welcome another baby into our family.  Made a salad to go with it and called it a meal.  Great dish. I made two with bell peppers and the rest with poblano peppers.

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/poblano-stuffed-with-chorizo-shrimp-and-rice

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon oil
1/2 pound Mexican-style chorizo
1/2 red and 1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
1 red onion, diced
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 cup short-grain rice
1 cup low-sodium chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup water
4 large, fresh poblano chiles
1 pound shrimp, shelled, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup cheddar, shredded
3/4 cup Jack cheese, shredded
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, heat oil and chorizo, cook for 3 minutes. Add peppers, jalapeno, onions and garlic. Cook until translucent, then add rice and cook until all the grains of the rice are coated with oil. Add all liquids and stir over high heat for 3 minutes, cover and reduce heat to low. Check rice for doneness after 20 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Place poblano chiles on baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cool, cut top 1/4 of chile off and remove the ribs and seeds. I cut mine in 1/2 because I like less pepper and more filling. I would also suggest to salt the pepper before stuffing. I felt like the filling was fine because the chorizo was salty, but the pepper needed a little salt and this would be the best time to salt it.
When rice is finished cooking, fluff with fork and stir in shrimp. Stuff chiles with rice mixture. Place all the chiles on baking sheet and place into oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, mix cheeses together and cover pepper with cheese. Broil for 3 minutes to melt and brown the cheese.

Garlic Chicken Pasta with Prosciutto/ Cream Corn with leeks

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/chicken-pasta-with-proscuitto

Ingredients for Pasta:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup minced garlic
5 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
4 oz. prosciutto, cut into small pieces
4 chicken breasts, grilled and cut into strips
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup fresh basil, sliced into strips
3/4 pound linguine
1/2 cup grated fresh parmesan
1 roasted pablano peppers, peeled, seeded and cut into strips
1 roasted red pepper, peeled, seeded cut into strips
Fresh basil, chiffonade for garnish
Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet and saute garlic until soft and light brown. Add tomatoes, proscuitto, chicken and butter. Saute for 5-10 minutes. Add basil, and saute for another 5 minutes. In a stockpot, bring water to boil and cook linguine until firm, al dente. Drain pasta and transfer to a bowl, add the chicken/tomato mixture, chilies, roasted peppers, and grated cheese, toss gently to combine. Sprinkle ith basil and serve.
Ingredients for corn:
6 ears of fresh corn (3 cups)
2 cups 1% milk
1Tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 slices bacon
1 cup chopped leeks
Directions for corn:
1. Cut corn from the cob and with the back of a knife scrape the cob to release the milk from the corn. Place 1 1/2 cups of corn, milk, cornstarch, salt, and pepper in a food processor. Process until smooth.
2. Cook bacon in a skillet and reserve 1 teaspoon drippings to cook the leeks . Crumble the bacon and set aside. Cook the leeks for 2 minutes.  Add pureed corn and milk mixture and the remaining 1 1/2 cups of corn kernels. Cook for 3 minutes or until the corn liquid has reduced and is thick. Crumble bacon on top and serve.

Potato/Leek Soup

Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/potato-leek-soup







Ingredients:
3-4 oz prosciutto, diced
2 Tablespoons butter
3 small leeks- cleaned and cut in rings
3 cups diced potatoes
24 oz. chicken stock
1 cup whipping cream
parsley for garnish

Directions:
Cook prosciutto over medium heat until fat is rendered. Remove and set aside. Add 2 Tablespoons butter. Allow to melt and then add leeks that have been cleaned and cut in rings.I usually separate the rings a little as I  add them to pan. Stir frequently for about 5 minutes. Add potatoes and allow to cook with the leeks about 5 min. Add chicken stock and cook until potatoes are soft. Add whipping cream.  Using an immersion blender, blend the ingredients until the consistency you desire. You can also blend it in a blender in two batches. Top each bowl with parsley and prosciutto.

Spiced Chicken with Couscous Salad

Jud and I both loved this dish.  This was our meal. I was going to put some veg. with it, but decided it stood on its own. This is a keeper.
It comes from Cooking light - 2010




Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/spiced-chicken-w-couscous-salad

Ingredients for the Chicken:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
salt and black pepper
Directions for the Chicken:
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Season the chicken with the paprika, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Cook 6-7 minutes on each side. Transfer to a cutting board
Ingredients for the Couscous:
1 cup water (I used chicken stock)
3/4 cup couscous
3/4 pound cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
1/4 pound snap peas, thinly sliced (about 1 cup) The recipe says to cut them crosswise, but I cut them long. I guess I'm just a rebel. But I thought they were pretty that way.
1/2 cup torn basil
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Directions for Couscous:
Place 1 cup chicken stock or water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and add couscous.  Put the lid on the pot and let sit for 5 min. Fluff with a fork.  Add tomatoes, snap peas, basil, and lemon zest. Salt and pepper to taste.

Cake Balls

This is a very labor intensive dessert, and I'm not sure I will ever make them again. I will take them to church tomorrow night and see how they go-over. This dessert is not for the faint-of-heart or those who are watching their calories. I guess most desserts could fall into that category, but as you look at the recipe, you will see what I mean.  Susi Moore has something I don't have and that is patients. Dipping them in chocolate was very time-consuming and tedious for me. It is possible, though I haven't tried it, to make the cake like normal. Put the icing in the middle of the cake and then pour chocolate over the whole cake.  

Cake Balls dirrections:

Use any cake mix that you want adding melted butter instead of the oil that is called for on the box.  Bake accofding to directions in two round cake pans. Allow it to cool for about 15 minutes and then remove from pan. Cut the hard edges off the cake and crumble ito a large bowl.  Add about 1/2 a container of vanilla or chream cheese frosting.  I think I must have added about 3/4 can of frosting.  Just play with it. It has to be the consistency to make into balls.  Chill the crumbled mixture in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.  Make into balls about the size of golf balls. I put these on a cookie sheet and allowed them to harden a little in the refrigerator. Take them out and dip them in melted chocolate with 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil to keep the chocolate smooth. Place the dipped balls on wax paper and allow to harden.

Susi doesn't mention what kind of chocolate she used.  I used the chocolate bark that you find on the baking isle of the grocery store. This didn't need the olive oil.   It wasn't enough so I had to use part of a package of semi-sweet chocolate chips and I used a little olive oil for a smooth consistency.
* The balls where I used the semi-sweet chocolate with extra virgin olive oil did not get hard. The ones where I used the chocolate bark got hard, and we liked those best. They were certainly less messy.

Papillote of Striped Bass with Herbs and Quick Aioli

I had Anthony for a couple of days and knew I would be tired tonight so I took out some talapia to thaw and used this recipe. It calls for Striped Bass, but I used talapia.  I forgot to take a picture, but you can go to foodnetwork.com and type in this title and it should come up with a picture. We really liked this dish and thought the sauce would be good on veg.  It is submitted by Alex Guarnaschilli of Food Network.


Printable Recipe:
https://sites.google.com/site/whatscookingattheedwards/papillole-of-stripped-bass-with-aioli-sauce

Ingredients:
1 medium Idaho baker potato, washed and dried
8 Tablespoons extra- virgin olive oil
4 (8oz) pieces striped bass, pin bones removed, skin-on -My talapia did not have skin
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 Tablespoons fresh dill fronds
1 lemon, cut into thin slices and seeds discarded
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 limes, juiced
Arrange 2 shelves in the oven at a fair distance from each other. The foil-enveloped fish will need some room to puff and expand as it cooks. Better to rearrange the oven racks while the oven is not yet hot. Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Bake the potato until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Since I knew I was going to be at mini-town with Anthony all day and then taking him home, I used the microwave and cooked the potato before I left home this morning.
Spread about a 2 foot sheet of foil on a flat surface with 1/2 of it hanging off the counter in front of you. Put the fish, skin side down, horizontally, onto the foil near the end of the counter leaving about 1 1/2 inches of foil on both sides. Season the flesh side of the fish with salt and pepper, to taste, and sprinkle with some dill, parsley and a few lemon slices. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons olive oil on top of the fish. Fold the foil back over the fish and fold in the sides of the foil twice. Leaving some air in the package, roll the top of the foil down twice gathering the top to make a window. Leaving about 6-8 inches between the fish and the top. It should look like a small package, with all the sides sealed. There should be enough room left around the fish to allow for the steam to build up as it cooks, creating an inflated envelope around the fish. Repeat with the remaining 3 pieces of fish.  Just so you know, if you do it wrong and it doesn't puff-up, it will still taste wonderful. I was almost out of foil and didn't have enough foil.

Put the garlic cloves in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the garlic is finely chopped. Add the egg yolks and pulse to blend. When the potato is completely cooked and still warm, put it on a flat surface and split it open lengthwise. Use a tablespoon to scoop out the flesh, totaling about 3-4 tablespoons, and add it to the processor. Pulse to combine. With the processor running, slowly add the 1/2 cup of olive oil, through the opening at the top, in a steady stream. Add the sugar and lime juice and pulse to incorporate. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Cooks note:  If the mixture is too thick, add a little cold water to loosen the texture. Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl, cover and refrigerate.

Using 2 baking sheets, put 2 of the foil envelopes on each sheet and add a little water to the bottom of the sheet pan. This water will create additional steam in the oven as the fish cooks. Put the baking sheets on 2 shelves of the oven and bake., undisturbed, until the envelopes begin to puff, about 12-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately transfer to 4 dinner plates. To serve, break open the foil and drizzle with the aioli.
Raw egg warning: Food network kitchens suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly-cooked eggs due to the slight risk of Salmonella or other food-borne illness. To reduce this risk, we recommend you use only fresh, properly-refrigerated, clean, grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.