Potato Leek Soup

SO we made this soup in class a couple days ago. It's really simple and it makes a hearty thick soup that's great with some good crusty bread. I made it for me and my wife and it turned out pretty darn tasty if I do say so myself. So here's the recipe. ENJOY!!

Stuff you'll need
5 oz.-Leeks, white, sliced thin
4 med.-Potatoes, cut into same size chunks so they cook evenly
3 Tbsp.- Butter
1 1/4 Pt. - Cream
1 1/2 Pt.- Vegetable stock (you can use water if you don't have veggie stock)
Parsley Stems
Thyme
Bay Leaf
Celery
Peppercorn

Boquet garni - Wrap parsley stems, sprig of fresh thyme,1 bay leaf, piece of celery, and a few peppercorns in two of the hard leaves of the leek and secure together with butchers twine. Or make small pouch with cheese cloth and do not add leek leaves. check out the link step by step to make your boquet garni


Garnish
2 oz.-Leeks, julienne (cut into very thin strips)
2 oz.-Carrots, julienne (cut into very thin strips)
Small crispy croutons (store bought or I made my own by frying them in butter then baking on 350 degrees until crunchy and golden brown.)


Method
1. Clean veggies
2. Thinly slice the leeks. Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in a large pan and sweat the leeks until translucent.
3. Cut the potatoes into small chunks. Add to the leeks and stir until coated. Add the boquet garni and water. Season with salt and pepper and gently simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes.
4. Once the potatoes are cooked through, remove the boquet garni and put everything else through a food mill or blend with an immersion blender (I used a regular blender and it worked great). Transfer to a clean pot.
5. Heat cream but DO NOT BOIL and add to the soup and let mixture gently simmer. Adjust seasoning as needed. (At this point, if you want a pure white soup, you can put it through a fine mesh strainer. If you don't care, then the soup is done.) Keep warm in the pan and pat the top with the last Tbsp. of butter to keep a skin from forming on the top of your soup.


Garnish prep
I treated my veggies like small french fries and deep fried them separately in a little oil until they were slightly brown.(the recipe calls for them to be sauteed in butter until soft then placed on the soup). ladle the soup into bowls then place a small amount of the fried carrots on top then a few slices of the leek. Sprinkle a few croutons on top or leave to the side, and if you want a little more color place a couple leaves of parsley on top to finish.

EAT and ENJOY!

Here it is but be creative and playful! I had a lot of fun with this soup and you should too! here's a picture of my plating and I was really happy with how it looked and tasted : )

Homemade Mayo

This is a simple post, and it's about the fattening substance that we all know and love to put on our sandwiches,burgers, and in our Utah Fry sauce (mixed mayo and ketchup for the non-Utah folks). Usually this substance comes in a jar that we keep in our fridge and we use it all the time to lube up our food without giving it much thought. In school last week we showed up to class and out of nowhere the chef said, "Pull out your whisks. We're gonna learn to make Mayonnaise". I'd heard of people making homemade mayo but I'd never tasted it or really tried to make it and I knew it had egg yolk in it. That was the extent of my homemade mayo knowledge. The chef proceeded to give us the demo on the oily goo then we all went to work. There are a bunch of recipes out there but I'm gonna give the one she taught us that tasted pretty good, and wasn't too difficult.


Ingredients
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
1 cup canola oil


Method
In a bowl, whisk egg yolk, lemon juice, and vinegar together until well combined, then VERY SLOWLY drip oil  in a small amount at a time until well incorporated. Repeat until oil is gone. Whisk like your life depends on it and as you add the oil it should start to look like mayo : ) Now if you don't want to do this by hand you can repeat the process in a mixer and it will be a lot easier. Also, add a little cayenne pepper to the mix for a nice kick. That's it ladies and gentlemen! Enjoy!

doesn't that look yummy!

Easy Vinaigrette

SO, here's a basic Vinaigrette that we learned in class our second week. It's super easy and tastes great!
The basic formula for any vinaigrette is 3-1, 3 oil to 1 vinegar. For example for me and my wife I use 2 tablespoons vinegar to 6 table spoons of oil. Adjust the recipe according to your needs. Make sense?? Hope it does cause i'm going to move on : ) I'm going to do the recipe that I like and that is really basic but if you know the formula you can tweak the recipe for any kind of vinaigrette you want.

Ingredients 
2 Tbs. Red Wine Vinegar
6 Tbs. Light Olive Oil
1 tsp. Dijon Mustard
1/2 Tsp. Fresh Garlic
Sugar
Salt
Pepper

Method
Get a small bowl and whisk, add vinegar to bowl and begin whisking. While whisking continuously slowly add oil a little at a time, only adding more after the previous addition has been incorporated until all oil is mixed in. Continue whisking and add Dijon mustard, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. You may be wondering why sugar? the sugar will bring down the acidity and make the flavor come out even more. add a pinch at a time tasting after each addition until desired acidity tang is aquired everyone's tastes are different so explore!

That's it! if anyone try's it let me know how it went in the comment section and if I need to change something in the recipe please feel free to comment. Thanks!

Killer Spaghetti Sauce!

Today I went to a family gig and I was surprised to find that I was put in charge of cooking spaghetti for the whole family. I am now here hanging out and was inspired to share my recipe for a fail safe, awesome spaghetti sauce. It's super easy and really tasty. I take pre-fab sauce and spice it up!


Ingredients:

1 large onion
3 Tbsp fresh garlic
1/2 lb. Italian sausage
1 large jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 Tbsp basil
1 Tbsp oregano
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms

Directions:

Dice onions and garlic and sauté onions first in olive oil. Add some salt to help onions reduce. Add garlic and sauté until brown. DO NOT BURN THE GARLIC! Burned garlic turns bitter. Add sausage and cook all the way through. Add jar of sauce and heat through. Add basil,oregano,parmesan,and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for twenty minutes or so on medium heat to allow all the flavors to come together. About five minutes before you serve, add the chopped mushrooms if you decide to do them. If you add them too early they get mushy and brown. For this recipe you just wanna cook them a little not murder them.

So there you go! Easy awesome sauce, it's fool proof and takes no time at all. It's a super crowd pleaser. I've used it at a lot at dinner parties and on river trips. Check it out and as always let me know what you guys think. I love feedback even if you think it needs to be changed tell me what you did to tweak it! Happy eating!

Tangy Pork Chop Marinade

This recipe originally came from my uncle. He always cooks pork chops like this during the summer on river trips. I took the recipe and made it my own and added a little more to it and it's always a big hit. I'm just gonna post the recipe for the sauce cause that's 90 percent of the battle and it's easy and delicious! Just as a tip, I love to use nice thick center cut chops just cause they are delicious and fairly cheap for me and my wife. Really any chop can be used depending on how much you're willing to spend, and what you can find. So here it goes.

Ingredients:

1 small bottle- Major Gray's mango chutney (doesn't have to be Major Gray's specifically)
1 cup- Apricot jam
2 Tbsp- Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp- Ketchup
3 Tbsp-FRESH Minced garlic
1/2 tsp.- Anise seed
Salt
Fresh ground pepper

Mix all ingredients together in bowl an hour or more prior to use to allow flavors to meld. Use as a marinade, or brush on top of pork during cooking. Also, amount of ingredients can be changed according to specific tastes I personally like more garlic than most.

Well that's it! It's super easy like I said and it's super quick. People will be begging you to make these pork chops! It's also really great on chicken : ) So check it out and tell me what you think in the comments section of the post!!

Sweet and Spicy Pork Tenderloin

So I never thought that I would have many culinary adventures where I work. Most meals consist of cream of mushroom soup,cream of chicken soup, or something similar. We try to spice things up with garlic powder and some other basic spices but it's something rare to have a legitimate culinary experience. Today the other staff James was wanting something different and a little more healthy than what we usually eat here. He brought a little cookbook with some low fat recipes and we picked a pork tenderloin with a spice rub and a topping of brown sugar garlic and hot sauce. It was delicious!! It was easy to make, it melted in your mouth, and it had a little spicy kick(tingle not burn). I wanna post the recipe cause it was killer.

Ingredients:

16 oz. Pork Tenderloin
1/2 Tbsp. Salt
1/4 Tbsp. Pepper
1/2 Tbsp. Chile Powder
1/2 Tbsp. Cinnamon
2 tsp. Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Tbsp. Garlic (a little more or less depending on what you like)
1/2 Tbsp. Tabasco or your favorite hot sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix salt, pepper, chili powder, cinnamon and coat pork well.
3. Sear in large pan with olive oil to seal in juices.
4. Stir garlic, Tabasco, and brown sugar. Pat on top of tenderloin. place in roasting pan and cook in oven for 30 minutes or until not pink inside.

5. Slice and enjoy!!!!!

So this recipe is super easy and has a lot of room for any curious cook to play around. Good luck and if you try it, leave a comment and let me know what you thought. Happy Eating!

Simply Thai

Here's a new tasty restaurant my wife showed me this week. So I've been dying for Thai food and haven't had time or cash to grab some. We stopped at a place in sandy that my wife tried a couple weeks ago called Simply Thai. We walked in and the power was actually out, so they didn't have fountain drinks but we wanted water anyway and they were still serving food. We were sat and the servers and management were great! they were super nice and made the best of the situation. The prices were very reasonable with a great price for a lunch special $7.00 for two entrees, rice, and two wantons. Me and my wife ordered fried spring rolls that came with a delicious dipping sauce as an appetizer and we ordered pad thai, and pad pa nang (pretty basic curry with chicken, peanuts, red and green peppers in a coconut milk and curry sauce). The servings were large and they came with plenty of rice. The service was great and the management gave us a complimentary serving of their homemade coconut ice cream just for the power being out. If I remember right we paid an even $40.00 for the two entrees an appetizer and tip. I will definitely be going back and I suggest that everyone who enjoys good Thai food to check it out! here's a link to their website it shows their menu as well as hours and other options like a to-go menu. http://www.simplythaiutah.com/ on the site it has their address as well. Good luck and happy eating!! and if anyone gets the chance come back and tell me what you thought.

Bruchetta Collin Style

 

So the recipe for this week is a simple yet tasty one. I love it as a easy appetizer or a side dish. I made this for a family barbecue and I think it worked nicely. It's a fresh alternative to all the fatty dips and other regular appetizers. It also made a great addition to scrambled eggs a day later!! try it and tell me what you think! here's the recipe. To be honest it's super easy and everyone has their own variation and may like a little more or less of something. so have fun and experiment! Also it's great served cold without broiling and using the baguette to dip. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 (1 pound) loaf Italian bread, cut into 1 inch slices
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Turn the oven on broil. 
2. Slice the baguette in half an inch pieces, drizzle with olive oil and toast until slightly brown on each side.
3. In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, onion, olive oil, oregano, basil and parsley. Place bread on a baking sheet, and top with tomato mixture. Sprinkle with Parmesan.
4. Broil in preheated oven for five minutes, or until cheese is melted. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.

Milagros= Mexican Ribs!

So yesterday while working, one of the other staff, James, mentioned a place off 8th north in Orem that had killer Mexican ribs. Now, I know you're all thinking, "What! Mexican ribs?" and that's what I thought! Oh man, was I surprised. James left for a bit and brought back a half-rack of killer mexican ribs! They were sweet but with a little heat and the meat fell off the bone. They weren't super fatty, and they really hit the spot. He also brought back the fattest steak quesadilla that I've ever encountered. It was cheesy and packed full of steak. All this food came with a ton of rice, fresh corn and flour tortillas, guacamole, and beans. Since we weren't a fan of beans we got double rice which came either spicy or regular. All this food was for about 20 dollars and the portions were generous. I wish I had more to say about the actual restaurant but that will have to wait for another time. I will definitely eat there again, and want to let everyone know that Mexican ribs are awesome! Here's a link to their site, it has their menu as well as prices.  Happy eating!

http://www.milagrosut.com/

Lemonade or Lemon Awesomness??

So this is my first post for this blog, but I really would like people to help me out with this one. I would reallllly like feed back, as well as comments about where I should go eat next and so on. So, to make lemonade or something with lemony amazingness cooked in? I think something with the amazingness cooked in, like this recipe that I found a couple of weeks ago that I'm hoping to try soon.

                                                          Lemon Butter Chicken
Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter                                               
• 1/3 cup Italian salad dressing
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 8 chicken tenderloins
• lemon pepper to taste
• garlic salt to taste
• onion powder to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place the butter in a 9x9 inch baking dish, and melt in the oven. Remove from heat, and mix in Italian salad dressing, lemon juice, and Worcestershire sauce.
2. Arrange the chicken tenderloins in the baking dish, coating with the melted butter mixture. Season both sides of chicken with lemon pepper, garlic salt, and onion powder. Sprinkle with lemon zest.
3. Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken juices run clear.

 I promise that not all recipes will have to do with lemon, but this particular recipe looks awesome! check it out, and if anyone tries this before me let me know what you think!