Chicken Spiedini

Ingredients: 

Chicken marinade:

3 garlic clove, peeled and sliced

2 bay leaf crumbled

4 teaspoons sweet paprika

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon dried crushed chili flakes

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 tablespoons chopped cilantro

4 splashes sherry vinegar

6 tablespoons olive oil

Spiedini:

2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 loaf of sourdough bread, non-sliced, crusts removed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 large yellow onion, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cut cilantro leaves, coursley chopped

12 8-inch bamboo skewers

Directions:

For the marinade: 

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until coursely chopped.

For the spiedini:

Soak the skewers in warm water (so they don't catch on fire!). Place cubed chicken in a mixing bowl and mix with 2 tbsp (or more) of the marinade. Place bread cubes in another bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste. Skewer the pieces of chicken, bread, and onions on each skewer and repeat. Brush more marinade on the skewers before grilling. Grill over a BBQ or grill pan until the chicken is fully cooked and the bread is crispy, rotating the skewers so they are cooked uniformly. Top with extra marinade, a healthy splash of olive oil, and more fresh cilantro.

Tips and tricks: The marinade recipe above is already doubled, but you might want even more for grilling. I also tried to bake a few skewers, that turned out well. Definitely broil at the end to get the bread extra crispy, like they would on the grill. Enjoy!

Original recipe from Terzo Restaurant, SF

Recipe Revolution Resolution

It's a new year, and time for some new recipes in the repertoire! The quest is simple...attempt one new recipe each week. Ok, maybe not so simple. But it should pay off a few friendship dues in the months to come. Stay tuned! 

Stuff yo' face stuffing

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons (1/2 cup or 1 stick) butter, unsalted

2 medium onions, finely diced

3 cups chopped celery, (about 6 large stalks)

4 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1 pound breakfast sausage or italian sausage casings removed

6 teaspoons poultry seasoning

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves, (about 4 sprigs)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage leaves, (about 6 leaves)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves, (about 4 to 6 sprigs)

2 cups dried cranberries

1 box stuffing mix (not cornbread)  (recommended: Pepperidge Farm)

2 cups (1 pint) vegetable stock

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a large skillet and saute the onions, celery, apples, and sausage, breaking up the sausage as you cook. After about 10 minutes, add the poultry seasoning, fresh herbs and dried cranberries. Add the dried stuffing mix and moisten with the vegetable stock. Season stuffing mix with salt and pepper, to taste. (I like the stuffing a little wetter - if you don't, just add less stock) Place into a buttered casserole dish and bake for 45 minutes.

Seared Ahi Tuna Dip

Ingredients:

1lb tuna steak

olive oil

kosher salt

black pepper

zest of 1 lime

juice of 2 limes

1/2 tsp wasabi paste

1 tsp soy sauce

5 dashes of tabasco

1 avocado sliced

2 minced scallion - white and green part

1/4 red onion

1 tbs toasted sesame seeds

Directions:

Brush tuna with olive oil, salt, pepper. Cook for 2 1/2 min each side. Still a little rare. Whisk 2 Tbs olive oil, lime zest, lice juice, wasabi, soy, tabasco, salt, pepper. Cut tuna into cubes. Toss avocado in dressing, add tuna, red onion, scallion, sesame seeds. Chill for at least 30 min. And if it still not spicy enough in 30 min, mix a mini addition of the dressing and then toss again. Serve with pita chips.

Recipe courtesy of Kathleen Whittell

Rip'em Apart Ribs

Ingredients:
1 rack of ribs
lemon pepper
olive oil
BBQ sauce

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Place ribs on rack and douse in olive oil. Season with lemon pepper. Cover the pan with tin foil and place in the oven for about 5-6 hours. Remove from the oven, and pour out the olive oil. Now, generously cover the ribs with the BBQ sauce. Place back in the oven for our 2 more hours. And about 5-10 min before serving, remove the tin foil. This will allow the ribs to brown a little on top. When you are ready to eat, remove from the oven and serve!

Recipe courtesy of Annie Montgomery.

Honey Drenched Goat Cheese

Ingredients:
1 goat cheese log
1/2 cup of salted sunflower seeds or pine nuts
1 cup of blackberries
3 tbs honey

Directions:
Roll the goat cheese log in the sunflower seeds. Place blackberries on top and around the log. Drizzle honey, generously over the log. Serve with crackers.

How do you cut a mango?

Have you ever wanted to add a little flair to your salsa? Or a fresh topping for your seafood? Mangoes are the perfect choice! But seriously, how do you cut one? I have mangled dozens of mangoes until I finally gave in and found this perfect video to show me how. Enjoy!

Mini Peanut-Butterfinger Cheesecakes

Ingredients:
For the crust:
1 cup Vanilla Wafers, ground
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon table salt

For the cheesecake:
One 8 ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon table salt
4 fun size Butterfinger candy bars (I used 1/2 a king size Butterfinger, about 2 oz.)

For the topping:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2-3 Tablespoons heavy cream
Crushed Butterfinger

Directions:
Combine 1 cup ground vanilla wafers, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 2 Tablespoons melted butter and 1/8 teaspoon table salt. Divide mixture into bottoms of mini cheese cake pan and press until flat. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Beat cream cheese and 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter until smooth. Beat 1/2 cup sugar, 1 egg, 2 Tablespoons heavy cream and 1/8 table salt until well combined. Slowly stir in crushed butterfinger. The recipe suggested 4 fun size bars, I used half of a king size bar or about 2 ounces of Butterfinger.

Evenly pour batter over baked crust. Bake for 20-22 minutes until cheesecake is set. Don't forget to turn down your oven temperature to 300 degrees. Let cheesecake cool for 2 hours, then remove from pan (I refrigerated mine overnight before removing from the pan).

After cooling, your cheesecakes will depress a bit, creating a perfect well for the chocolate sauce.

Melt one cup chocolate chips in microwave in 30 second intervals. Stir in between intervals and do not overcook the chocolate. Add heavy cream in small doses to the chocolate and stir until chocolate is smooth and glossy. If you add the cream too fast you will get lumps. Microwave some more to get the lumps out. Spoon the chocolate over the tops of the cakes. Spoon crushed Butterfinger over the top of the chocolate.

Makes twelve mini cheesecakes.

Recipe courtesy of noblepig.com