Old Fashion Burgers

Gentlemen - check these burgers out. I felt like a good burger the other night, and I remembered watching a video from America's Test Kitchen about old-fashioned burgers, circa 1950. I ground my own meat, made my own special sauce, and finally put my mandoline to good use by slicing some crazy thin onions. Served it with some oven fries to round it all out (shout out to Jeff). The burgers were delicious - highly recommend this recipe. Here's the link: www.americastestkitchen.com/recipes/detail.php?docid=14774.

New Charcoal Grill, sorta

Well all of Simpkins mouthing got to me and I picked up a Weber Kettle Charcoal grill. I got it used off Craigslist for $20 bucks, and it's actually in great shape. It's the bigger one, 22.5" which is a bit nicer IMO. First meal I made was Urban's last meal as a free man, Bone in Ribeye, Loaded Smashed potatoes, and grilled veggies, I also added some BBQ shrimp for an app that were the Bomb, I'll post the BBQ recipe at some point. I used some Kingsford competition charcoal and added some Hickory chunks. Mighty good eating. I'm looking forward to attempting to smoke something in it. Probably start with some ribs or pork shoulder.

Cuban Style Pulled Pork with Mojo Sauce

I smoked some pork the other day on the ol' Weber grill and it turned out great. Made a spice paste out of freshly ground cumin and black pepper, salt, garlic, olive oil, and oregano. I let it marinate over night and then smoked it for about 3 hours, followed by a bake in the over for 2 hours (wrapped in foil). The mojo sauce is composed of one cup freshly squeezed orange juice, one cup freshly squeezed lime juice, salt and pepper to taste, 6 cloves of garlic mashed into a paste, and freshly ground cumin (about 2 tablespoons). Put the mojo ingredients into a sauce pan and reduce for a bit, until you get a good consistency sauce. Shred the pork once it is ready (after it rests for an hour wrapped in a paper grocery bag to steam the meat further). Serve with rice and beans and pass the mojo sauce.

Great recipe. I loved the citrusy sauce with the pork. I get tired of traditional pulled pork condiments/sauces and this is a refreshing change for the summer.

Shrimp and (why is Jeff posting this before Simpkins?) Grits

So after sleeping in until 1130 or so today I needed some breakfast, and the kitchen was bare. Then I remembered a bag of a few frozen shrimp, and some polenta way in the back of the cupboard, so with no other options I had my first go at shrimp and grits. Turned out pretty great, I can only imagine what professional (like those made by chris simpkins) S&G taste like. I didn't have any cream, but the polenta was still much better than my first attempt, also the only cheese I had was parmesean, but it is the King of cheeses, so it did the job.

Polenta was made with water, polenta, salt, pepper, butter, and parm.

For the grits I sauteed some onion, bell pepper, and shitake together. Then I added garlic and the shrimp that I seasoned with salt and cayenne. Sauteed that for a minute then I through in a splash of white wine and finished it off with a pat of butter. Poured the shrimp mix over the polenta and topped with some parm and parsley. Not bad for an impromptu first go. Would have been dank with some white cheddar and bacon fat of some sort. So come on Simpkins, show me how its done...

GARDEN GAZPACHO

Wondering what to do with all your fresh tomatoes?

I had a gazpacho recently at my parents' favorite restaraunt in Michigan, the River Crab. When my co-worker Rob gave me a bag full of tomatoes, I thought I would give it a shot. It wasn't as good as the River Crabs' but it held its own and is very refreshing in this late summer heat. It's also very healthy as it is primarily composed of all fresh and raw veggies. The only other addition I might make is some sliced avacado. (I have a feeling somebody is going to rip on me for posting 2 tomato soup recipes back to back....)

From The Columbus Dispatch
Makes 8 servings

Because a food processor (or blender) is used to puree the mixture, you need to roughly chop only a portion of the vegetables and dice the other portion for garnish.

2 pounds tomatoes, seeded
1 red bell pepper
1 green or yellow bell pepper
1 jalapeno, seeds and white removed
3 salad cucumbers
1 large shallot
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon hot-red-pepper sauce
1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium or no-salt-added tomato juice or vegetable juice
1 ear fresh corn, uncooked and kernels removed
2 teaspoons sugar
4 to 6 green onions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
Fresh basil, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste

Roughly chop about three-fourths of the tomatoes. Place in a food processor fitted with the metal blade or a blender. Dice the remaining tomatoes and set aside.

Roughly chop half of each of the bell peppers and add to the food processor. Dice the remaining bell peppers and set aside.

Remove seeds from jalapeno and roughly chop. Add to food processor.

Peel, seed and roughly chop two of the cucumbers and add to the food processor. Leave the peel on the remaining cucumber, slice in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and dice. Set aside.

Add the shallot, garlic cloves, olive oil, vinegar and hot-pepper sauce to the food processor. Process until smooth, about 1 minute.

Transfer to a glass bowl (or leave in the blender jar). Stir in the tomato juice, corn, basil, remaining diced tomatoes, sugar, half of the green onions and salt and pepper to taste. Adjust seasoning as necessary.

Chill for 2 hours. Serve in cups or bowls, garnished with a bit of the diced bell peppers, diced cucumbers, minced garlic and green onion slices. (I also added a splash of lime juice to this mixture to reduce the bite from the raw green onion)

Cream of Tomato Soup

"The New Best Recipe" cookbook is the bomb. I had a couple of cans of san marzano tomatoes sitting in the pantry and this was the best use of them I can think of. I served mine with a grilled bacon and swiss cheese sandwich.

Ingredients:

2 (28 oz.) cans whole tomatoes packed in juice, drained, 3 cups of liquid reserved
1 1/2 T dark brown sugar
4 T unsalted butter
4 large shallots, minced
1 T tomato paste
pinch of allspice
2 T all purpose flour
1 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half
2 T brandy or dry sherry (I've also used vermouth)
salt, pepper, and cayenne

Instructions:

1. Adjust an oven rack to the upper middle position and heat the oven to 450. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Seed the tomatoes and spread in a single layer (don't forget to reserve the juices and the solids in the strainer). Sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake until all the liquid has evaporated and the tomatoes begin to color, about 30 minutes. Let the tomatoes cool slightly and peel them off the foil.

2. Heat the butter in a large saucepan and heat until foaming. Add the shallots, tomato paste, and allspice. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are softened, 7-10 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly until thouroghly combined. Whisking constantly, gradually add the chicken broth; stir in the reserved tomato juice and the roasted tomatoes. Cover, incras the heat to medium, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, to blend the flavors, about 10 minutes.

3. Strain the mixture into a medium bowl, rinse the saucepan. Transfer the tomatoes and solids in the strainer to a blender, add 1 cup of the strined liquid and puree until smooth. Combine the pureed mixture and remaining straind liquid in the saucepan. Add the cream and warm over low heat until hot, about 3 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the brandy and season with salt and cayenne to taste. The soup can be refridgerated for 2-3 days.

Mac and Shrooms

First of all Simpkins, thanks for the foodnetwork magazine. Beth loves mac and cheese and this recipe came from the May issue. We substitued the milk for skim milk, tellagio for smoked gouda (trader joes), panko for bread crumbs, and used dried mushrooms as opposed to fresh. It was scrumdillyumptious.

Ingredients
Kosher salt
1 pound mezzi rigatoni
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound wild mushrooms, such as oyster or shiitake, stemmed and sliced
4 ounces cremini mushrooms,
quartered
8 ounces taleggio or brie cheese, rind removed, cubed (about 1 1/2 cups)
5 ounces pecorino cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Directions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/4 cup cooking water.

Meanwhile, melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the flour with a wooden spoon to make a paste. Cook, stirring, until the paste puffs slightly, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and gradually whisk in the milk until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking. Reduce the heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, until the sauce is creamy, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the nutmeg and season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons butter and the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the mushrooms and cook until soft, about 8 minutes. Season with salt. Push to the side of the pan and repeat with the remaining mushrooms.

4. Reduce the heat under the sauce to low and whisk in both cheeses until smooth. Stir in the mushrooms and pasta and toss, adding the reserved cooking water as needed.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the breadcrumbs and toast until golden; stir in the parsley. Divide the pasta among 8 small bowls. Garnish with the breadcrumb mixture.