My Favorites

My Braun Emersion Blender

 

My Rachel Ray Dutch Oven Cast Iron Pan

 

My Tupperware Microwave Pressure Cooker

 

My favorite Appetizer

Polish Mistakes

1 lb. Hamburger
1lb. Jimmy Dean Hot Ground Sausage
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Onion Powder
1 tsp. Oregano
1 tsp. Worchester Sauce
1 Loaf of French Bread or Baguette
1 32 Oz. Block of Original Velveeta Cheese

Instructions:

1)Brown hamburger and sausage. Drain grease. Return

2)Add garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and Worchester sauce.

3)Cut whole block of Velveeta Cheese into small cubes. Cubing the cheese makes it easier to melt.

4)Continue on low heat stirring meat and cheese mixture until all cheese is melted and mixture is bubbly.

5)Remove meat and cheese mixture from heat.

6)Slice French bread loaf straight on in small baguette sized slices for appetizer but you can slice loaf at an angle for larger slices for a meal.  

7)Spread meat and cheese mixture on each slice of bread.

8)Place each Polish Mistake on a baking sheet and place sheet in the oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees until Polish Mistakes are bubbly and begin to have a glossy finish. Serve.  Makes as many as you have slices.

9)Polish Mistakes are easy to freeze for future use.  Just remove frozen Polish Mistakes and place on a baking sheet in the oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

My favorite One Pot Meal

Curried Sausage and Vegetable Rice

On the stove, in a Dutch Oven pan on low to medium heat,

Add,

1 lb. Jimmy Dean Hot Ground Sausage
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. Onion Powder
1 Tbls. Worchester Sauce

Cook until browned.

Add to browned sausage,

4 Shredded Carrots, mix into meat, cook for 15 minutes until carrots begin to tenderize.

Add to sausage mixture,

1 tsp. Curry, stir into meat mixture until blended.  I tend to add a little more as I like a strong curry taste.

Add to sausage mixture,

Chop or slice finely,
Small Bag of Baby Sweet red, yellow, and orange peppers
1 Medium sized Onion

Let mixture cook for about 15 minutes until peppers and onion begin to tenderize.

Add to sausage mixture,

1 C.an Diced Tomatoes with juice
1 Can Whole Kernel Corn, drained

Blend all ingredients

Add to sausage mixture,

1 C. Jasmine or Basmati Rice, stir until blended and allow to begin cooking in meat mixture for 10 minutes

Add to sausage mixture,

1 1/2 C.  Chicken Broth, stir until blended

Maintain low heat, cover and allow to cook until liquid cooks off and rice is tender.

Serve.  Since it has meat, rice and vegetables, I do not serve it with anything usually.  You could add another vegetable as a side such as asparagus or broccoli or dinner roles.

For those cutting carbs, I have made this with riced cauliflower and turns out just as well.  Leave out the rice and chicken broth.  Cauliflower sweats and so mixture is a little looser than with rice but just as delicious.

My favorite Food Network Chef

Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli

My favorite Restaurant

Best roof top restaurant in the world, in my estimation!

The Sirocco in Bangkok Thailand
1055 Silom Road
Bangkok, Thailand

My favorite dish I made for The Thursday Night Gourmet Book Club

Lady Baltimore Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a mixing bowl combine dry ingredients,

Mix together dry ingredients,
2 1/4 C. All purpose flour
2 tsp. Baking powder
2 tsp. Baking soda
1/2 tsp. Salt

In a sauce pan combine and simmer on medium until sugar is dissolved and clear,
2 C. Sugar
2 C. Water

Remove from heat.
Add,

6 Tbls. Butter stirring until melted in sugar syrup.  Let cool completely for about 30 minutes.  You can place in refrigerator to hasten the process.

Whisk in,
2 Tbls. Vegetable Oil
1 Tbls. Vanilla

Beat in,
2 Eggs

Add and thoroughly mix dry ingredients until batter is smooth

Divide batter evenly into prepared 9" pans.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 mins or until toothpick inserted into center of each cake comes out clean.
Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Merengue Frosting
4 Egg Whites
1 1/3 C. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

In a double boiler, cook over bottom pan of boiling water, the top of double boiler with egg whites, sugar, and baking powder whisked and beaten constantly with a hand mixer until frosting is satiny, fluffy and forms peaks.  Remove from heat.

Frost 1st 9 inch round cake with merengue frosting, sprinkle,
1/2 Package of candied pecans
1/2 Package of candied walnuts
1/2 Package of craisins
1/2 8 Oz. Carton of candied cherries - cut into small pieces

Layer with 2nd 9 inch round cake and frost with remaining merengue frosting until completely covered and designed to your liking.

Sprinkle top with,
Remaining package of candied pecans
Remaining package of candied walnuts
Remaining package of craisins
Remaining carton of candied cherries

My favorite tableware

My Latin inspired dishes are among my many favorites.  I use these dishes when we travel to Mexico, South America and Spain for The Thursday Night Gourmet Book Club.  A great way to enhance your experience is by utilizing different tableware patterns to further inspire the theme or location.  It's fun to shop the Goodwill.  Often you can find perfectly good full sets of dishes to help augment your meals for very reasonable prices.  Another idea is if shopping the Goodwill, thrift store or garage sale, collect and assemble a set of different plates and creating a beautiful set of eclectic dinnerware to augment your table décor instead of a set of fully matched dinnerware. 

My favorite specialty drink

Pour into cocktail or martini glass and serve

My favorite Cocktail

The Bloody Mary

I like my Bloody Mary's thick and rich in consistency and flavor.  I sometimes make my own mix but my favorites utilize preprepared products combined to create my own concoction popular amongst my friends and family.  As you've noticed if I can make it easier and quicker I do so.  So here goes:

In a large pitcher combine,

1 Liter bottle Mr. and Mrs. T's Original Bloody Mary Mix - To further spice it up you can use Spicy Mt. & Mrs. T's Bloody Mary Mix
1 Liter bottle of Clamato Juice
2.5 C. Grey Goose Vodka
1/2 C. Dill Pickle Juice
1 Tbls. Fresh Horseradish
Dash of Tabasco or other hot sauce
1 Tbls. Steak Sauce
Squeeze juice of Lime or Lemon and place wedge of lime or lemon in mixture

My favorite garnishes;

Wet the rim of glass with a lemon or lime wedge, pour celery salt, margarita salt or seasoning salt in a shallow bowl and dip wet glass rim in bowl to coat rim with salt.

Place ice cubes in glass.  Pour mixture in glass.  Leave just about an inch below the rim because as you add the garnishes, the glass will fill to rim.
Place a celery stalk in the glass
Place a piece of crispy bacon in glass - Cook bacon ahead of time until crispy and refrigerate overnight to provide strength and stands firm in glass.
Place a beef stick in glass.
Place a cold peeled shrimp on edge of glass.

On a skewer add,
1)Olive stuffed with feta cheese or garlic clove
2)A pearl onion
3)A cube of sharp cheddar cheese
4)A dill pickle and/or asparagus spear 
5)A marinated mushroom

Place skewer on rim of glass and serve

Other fun items to skewer and serve with Bloody Mary,
Hardboiled eggs
Cheese burger sliders
Chicken wings 
Mozzarella stick

Another great addition, Bloody Mary's can be served with a beer chaser. A tasty chaser option is Budweiser or Modelo Chelada. Check with your local liquor store.