Spicy Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients

3 medium red potatoes, cut in 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
1 tablespoon canola oil

Directions

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine all ingredients; shake to coat. Place potatoes in a 9-in. square baking pan coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake, uncovered, at 450 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until tender, stirring once.

Creamy Skillet Potatoes

Ingredients

7 cups cubed uncooked red potatoes
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (1 ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 cups fat-free milk

Directions

Place 1 in. of water and potatoes in a large nonstick skillet; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until tender; drain. Coat skillet with nonstick cooking spray; add potatoes and onion. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
In a saucepan, combine the flour, salad dressing mix, parsley and salt. Stir in the sour cream. Gradually add the milk, stirring until blended. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Pour over potatoes; toss to coat.

Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

3 pounds potatoes, thinly sliced
salt to taste
9 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons butter, diced
1 quart milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
Arrange one layer of potatoes in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt, 3 tablespoons flour and 2 tablespoons butter. Repeat layering 2 more times, until all of potatoes have been used. Slowly pour milk over the potatoes until the dish is 3/4 full of milk.
Bake until the milk comes to a boil (check after 5 minutes), then reduce heat to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for another 45 to 60 minutes.

Swiss Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients
5 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 (4 ounce) jar diced pimientos, drained
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese, divided
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter or margarine

Directions

In a greased shallow 3-qt. baking dish, layer a third of the potatoes, onion, pimientos, garlic and Swiss cheese; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a dash of pepper. Repeat layers once. Top with remaining potatoes, onion, pimientos, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour broth over the top; dot with butter. Bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees F for 1 hour.
Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 30 minutes longer or until liquid is absorbed and cheese is melted. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Oregano Potatoes

Ingredients

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
5 1/2 teaspoons olive oil or vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper


Directions
In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Transfer to a
greased 1-qt. baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 425 degrees
45-50 minutes or until tender, stirring twice.

Rachael's Spitfire Shrimp

Ingredients

Seasoning:
1 lime, juiced
2 ounces (1/4 cup) hot cayenne pepper sauce
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon crab boil seasoning
Shrimp:
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
2 shallots, chopped
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
2 pounds jumbo shrimp peeled and de-veined*
12 to 15 blades fresh chives, chopped, for garnish

Directions

*Ask for easy-peel raw deveined shrimp at seafood counter of market
Preheat large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.
Combine lime juice, hot sauce, cumin, red pepper flakes and seafood seasoning blend.
Quickly saute garlic and shallots in oil and butter for 1 minute, add shrimp and cook 3 minutes, tossing and turning frequently. Dump pink, firm, cooked shrimp from hot pan into hot seasoning blend and toss in seasoning mixture to coat shrimp evenly. Garnish with chopped chives. Serve warm or chilled.

Emeril's Stuffed Shrimp with Crabmeat

Emeril’s Crabmeat Stuffed Shrimp

Ingredients

1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
2 teaspoons Essence, recipe follows
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus 3 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1/2 cup minced yellow onions
1/4 cup minced celery
1/4 minced green bell peppers
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce
1 1/2 cups crushed buttery, flaky crackers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
20 jumbo shrimp (about 2 pounds), shelled, leaving tail and connecting shell segment, deveined, and butterflied lengthwise
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 pound kale, chiffonade
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chopped parsley, garnish
1 lemon, cut into wedges, garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a large baking dish and set aside.
Place the crabmeat in a large bowl and season with the Essence. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
In a large skillet, melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery, and bell peppers and cook, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the parsley and the garlic, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool.
Add the cooled vegetables to the crabmeat and toss to combine. Add the mayonnaise, egg, lemon juice, Worcestershire and hot sauce and stir gently with a large wooden spoon. Add 1 cup of the cracker crumbs, the salt, and pepper, and stir gently, being careful not to break up the crabmeat.
Mound about 2 tablespoons of the crabmeat stuffing into each shrimp, press gently to close, and place, stuffed sides up, in the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of the flaky, buttery cracker crumbs over the stuffed shrimp and drizzle with the remaining melted butter. Bake until golden, about 20 minutes.
While the shrimp are baking, heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the olive oil. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring continuously, for 1 minute. Add the kale and saute until the kale is just wilted, about 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Place the kale on 4 plates. Remove the shrimp from the oven and divide among plates, on top of the kale. Garnish with parsley and lemon wedges. Serve immediately.

Easy Stuffed Shrimp

Ingredients:
1 pound large shrimp, uncooked
3/4 cup Seasoned Breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 (6-ounce) can minced clams or Crab meat
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup sherry (dry or sweet)
Parsley sprigs for garnish
Lemon wedges for garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Peel and devein the shrimp, leaving tails on. Using a sharp knife, butterfly shrimp by cutting along the inner curve or underbelly about halfway (almost completely through), leaving the tails firmly attached. Press the shrimp down flat like a butterfly.
In a medium bowl, combine the crumbs, butter, clams (including liquid), parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. Stuff each of the shrimp with the mixture. Arrange the stuffed shrimp in a large baking dish; pour sherry around the shrimp.
Bake approximately 10 to 15 minutes or until shrimp are opaque in center (cut to test). Remove from oven. To serve, arrange shrimp on a serving platter. Garnish with fresh parsley and lemon wedges. Serve warm.
Makes 4 servings.

Daisy's Guacamole

Recipe from Daisy Martinez

Makes about 2 cups, enough for 8 or so as a dip.
(You can omit the garlic if you like)

4 to 5 small Haas avocados
Juice of half a lime
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 plum tomato, cored, seeded, and chopped
1 small Spanish onion, chopped fine
1 jalapeno, cored, seeded and chopped fine
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
Freshly ground black pepper
Fine sea or kosher salt



Pit and peel the avocados. Cut the avocado in to rough chunks and toss it in a bowl with the lime juice. Add the cilantro, tomato, onion, jalapeno, and garlic and mash-mix with a fork until everything is evenly distributed and the guac has a nice, chunky texture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve right away, preferably, but if you are making it ahead of time, refrigerate, with a piece of plastic pressed directly to the surface to prevent discoloration, up to 4 hours.

Carne Asada Marinade

Ingredients

3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup lime juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon finely chopped canned chipotle pepper
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
3 pounds flank steak

Directions

Combine the orange, lemon, and lime juice in a large glass or ceramic bowl along with the garlic, soy sauce, chipotle pepper, chili power, ground cumin, paprika, dried oregano, black pepper, and cilantro. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until marinade is well combined. Remove one cup of the marinade and place in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for use after the meat is cooked.
Place the flank steak between two sheets of heavy plastic (resealable freezer bags work well) on a solid, level surface. Firmly pound the steak with the smooth side of a meat mallet to a thickness of 1/4 inch. After pounding, poke steak all over with a fork. Add the meat to the marinade in the large bowl, cover, and allow to marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat, and lightly oil the grate.
Remove the steak from the marinade and grill to desired doneness, about 5 minutes per side for medium rare. Discard used marinade. Remove meat from heat and slice across the grain.
Pour the one cup of reserved, unused marinade over the hot meat and serve immediately.

Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients:

8 ounces Linguini pasta
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
3 TBS butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
zest of one lemon
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley, divided
1 pound uncooked cleaned shrimp
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp red pepper flakes


Directions:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, saute the chopped garlic in the butter until browned.  Add in the broth, lemon juice, zest, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and 3 tablespoons of the parsley. Bring to a boil.

Add shrimp; cook for 3-5 minutes or until shrimp turn pink. Drain pasta, toss with the shrimp mixture. Top with remaining parsley.

Julia Child's Sauce Beurre Blanc (White Butter Sauce)

Julia Child’s Beurre Blanc Sauce

“Butter is essentially a smooth mixture of fat and water. The secret to making beurre blanc is to preserve its makeup by allowing each addition of butter to melt smoothly into the sauce, as you whisk it, before adding the next piece of butter. Also, never let the sauce come to a boil once the butter is added; that will cause it to separate. Some restaurant cooks add a little heavy cream to the wine reduction before whisking in the butter, to ensure a smooth and stable sauce. This recipe is based on one in Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck (Knopf, 1977).”

3 sticks cold unsalted butter (24 tbsp.), cut into chunks
1⁄4 cup dry white wine
1⁄4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tbsp. minced shallots
1⁄4 tsp. kosher salt
Pinch of white pepper
1⁄2 tsp. fresh lemon juice


1. Have butter ready. Bring wine and vinegar to a boil in a saucepan; add shallots, salt, and pepper. Lower heat to a simmer; cook until most of the liquid has evaporated- reduced to ~1.5 tbsp. (If reduced too far, add 1 tbsp. water to remoisten.)

2. Remove pan from heat; whisk 2 pieces of butter into the reduction. Set pan over low heat and continue whisking butter into sauce a chunk at a time, allowing each piece to melt into sauce before adding more.

3. Remove sauce from heat; whisk in lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning, then strain through a fine sieve into a bowl. Serve with fish, poultry, or vegetables.

Aromatic Christmas Ham

Submitted by: Mark O'Neill
This aromatic ham is great for anytime of year!

* 6.5kg smoked gammon, with knuckle bone
* 250ml red wine
* water to cover
* 1 large onion, halved
* 2 cloves garlic (unpeeled)
* 1 head fennel, halved
* 2 star anise
* 1 x 15ml tablespoon coriander seed
* 1 x 15ml tablespoon fennel seed
* 1 x 15ml tablespoon mixed peppercorns

FOR THE GLAZE:

* 20 whole cloves approx.
* 4 x 15ml tablespoons cranberry or redcurrant jelly
* ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
* ½ teaspoon red wine vinegar

Method

* Put all the ingredients, except those for the glaze, into a large pan, on the stove but off the heat, adding water until the ham is covered.
* Turn on the heat and bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer and partially cover the pan. Cook for about 31/2 hours. (This may not seem long for a big joint, but as it will carry on
* cooking as it cools, and this is going to be eaten cold, I don’t want it overcooked. Nor do you.)
* Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Lift the ham gently out of the hot liquid, sit it on a board and let it cool slightly, not too much but just so that you can touch it without burning yourself.
* With a sharp knife, strip off the rind, and a little of the fat layer if it’s very thick, but leave a thin layer of fat. I love this work: it is peculiarly gratifying seeing the hot blubbery fat slither off. Use the same knife to score a diamond pattern in the remaining fat on the ham, in lines about 2cm apart. Stud the points of each diamond with a clove.
* Put the cranberry or redcurrant jelly, cinnamon, paprika and red wine vinegar into a little saucepan and whisk together over a high heat, bringing it to the boil. Let the pan bubble away, for about 5 minutes, so that the glaze reduces to a syrupy consistency that will coat the fat on the ham.
* Now sit the ham in a roasting tin lined with foil, as the sugar in the glaze will burn in the oven as it drips off. Pour the glaze over the diamond-studded ham, then put it in the oven for about 45 minutes, or until the glazed fat has caught and burnished. Take the ham out of the oven and sit it on a wooden board to cool (2–3 hours) before you carve it. You'll have to convert these ungodly metric numbers.

Panettone Bread Pudding

Recipe from: Barefoot Contessa.com

http://www.barefootcontessa.com/recipes.aspx?RecipeID=293&S=0

Prep Time: 20 min

Inactive Prep Time: 25 min

Cook Time: 1 hr 40 min

Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

1 Italian panettone, about 1.2 pounds

Unsalted butter, for greasing the dish

3 extra-large whole eggs

8 extra-large egg yolks

5 cups half-and-half

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 teaspoons pure almond extract

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup sliced almonds

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Trim the dark brown outer crust from the panettone. Cut the rest of the loaf in 1-inch cubes and place on a sheet pan in a single layer. Toast the panettone for 10 minutes, until lightly browned.

Grease a 9 by 12 by 2-inch baking dish with the butter. Place the panettone cubes in the baking dish.

In a large bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, half-and-half, vanilla and almond extracts and sugar. Pour this custard mixture over the panettone. Set aside for 10 minutes so the bread soaks up the custard. Scatter the sliced almonds over the top of the pudding.

Place the baking dish into a larger pan and add very hot tap water to the larger pan until it's halfway up the side of the baking dish. Cover the larger pan with aluminum foil, tenting the foil so it doesn't touch the pudding. Cut a few holes in the foil to allow steam to escape. Bake the pudding for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 40 to 45 more minutes, until the custard is set and the top of the pudding is light golden brown. Allow to cool for 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Easy Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 45 min
Makes: 6 servings, 1-1/3 cups each

Ingredients:

(double recipe for leftovers)

1 6 oz package of Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 6 0z package of Instant Mashed Potatoes:
1-1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces and sauteed in EVOO until browned.
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 pkg. (16 oz.) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed, drained (or 2 cans of any vegetable of your choice)
1/2 TBs herbes de provence (or herbs of your preference)

Directions:

HEAT oven to 400ºF.
PREPARE stuffing and potatoes as directed on packages, set aside.

MIX all remaining ingredients in bowl, then pour into a 13x9-inch baking dish which is sprayed with butter flavored spray.  Top the filling mix with a layer of the mashed potatoes and the stuffing on top.

BAKE 30 min. or until stuffing is brown and crunchy.