Tuna Melt

I’m almost embarrassed to post this. Almost, but not quite.

You know how to make a tuna sandwich, right? Open a can of tuna, drain it, add some mayonnaise and pickle relish, maybe some chopped onions, and voila! Tuna salad. Put it between two slices of bread and there you have it – a tuna sandwich.

Next time, try this: Butter a slice of sourdough bread, heat it up for a minute or so in a toaster oven, slather on the tuna salad mix, top with some slices of tomato and American cheese, then put it under the broiler.

Keep an eye on it and when the cheese starts to bubble, take it out.

You now have an open-faced tuna sandwich with melted cheese on top – a tuna melt. Enjoy!

Chicken Parmesan

This is one of those “nearly instant” type meals that you can whip up if you have some chicken.

All you need more are bread crumbs, cheese and a jar of marinara (or spaghetti) sauce that you can pick up at your local supermarket and keep in your cupboard.

Ingredients

·         CHICKEN, four large thighs (or two breasts halved), deboned, skin-on

·         BREAD CRUMBS, Italian flavored

·         OLIVE OIL, ¼ cup

·         PARMESANO REGGIANO CHEESE, ½ cup, grated

·         MARINARA SAUCE, from a jar

·         MOZZARELLA CHEESE, ½ cup, grated

Directions

1.       With a mallet, flatten the chicken until ¼-inch thin.

2.       Bread the chicken and brown in the olive oil over medium heat.

3.       Arrange the chicken on a wire rack in a cookie pan.

4.       Top with parmesan cheese, then spoon on marinara sauce to your liking.

5.       Top with mozzarella cheese.

6.       Bake in a 350˚ oven for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and turning golden brown.

7.       Serve immediately.

Date Nut Bread

It’s been a while since I’ve had date nut bread. Back in the ‘60s and ‘70s, I used to see loaves of date nut bread sold in stores, bakeries and farmer’s markets. Not so much today. I wonder why that is.

Anyway, I found a recipe and played with it a bit, until I got it the way I wanted it. One discovery: When it comes to the stirring together of the flour, sugar and date mixtures, it’s hard work. And perhaps that’s why you don’t see it being offered a lot.

It’s exhausting! Good, but tiring.

Ingredients

·         BOILING WATER, 1 cup

·         DATES, chopped, 8 ounces

·         BUTTER, 2 tablespoons

·         GRANULATED SUGAR, 1/2 cup

·         BROWN SUGAR, ¼ cup

·         EGG, 1 large

·         FLOUR, 2¼ cups, stir before measuring

·         BAKING POWDER, 1 tablespoon

·         SALT, ½ teaspoon

·         WALNUTS or PECANS, chopped, ½ cup

Directions

1.       Line the bottom and sides of a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan with parchment paper, cutting to fit.

2.       Pour boiling water over dates in a medium bowl; add butter and set aside.

3.       With an electric mixer, beat sugars and egg until light.

4.       In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the sugar mixture, alternating with the date and water mixture.

5.       Stir in the chopped nuts.

6.       Bake at 325° for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

7.       Remove from the bread pan and let cool before slicing.

Braised Short Ribs

Whenever I find thick and meaty beef short ribs at the market, I grab a few pounds and make some braised short ribs. It’s so easy and requires very little attention. The main thing is to cook it low and slow in the oven.

This recipe calls for a 300-degree oven, but if you have lots of time, do it at 275 degrees for four hours. I serve mine with a garden salad and steamed rice.

Ingredients

·         BEEF SHORT RIBS, 2 to 3 pounds

·         BEEF STOCK, 1 can

·         CARROTS, 2 large, diced

·         ONION, 1 large, diced

·         CELERY, 1 stalk, diced

·         GARLIC, 1 clove, smashed

·         GARLIC SALT, ½ teaspoon (or more to taste)

·         BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground to taste

·         FLOUR, 2 tablespoons

Directions

1.       Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

2.       Place short ribs in a Dutch oven and pour the beef stock over.

3.       Add the carrots, onion, celery, and smashed garlic to the pot.

4.       Add salt and pepper.

5.       Cover and bake in oven for an hour, turn the meat, and return to the oven for two more hours.

6.       Make a slurry with the flour and a little bit of water, whisking well.

7.       Remove the meat from the pot, skim off the excess fat, slowly drip in the slurry, whisking over a hot stove until gravy has thickened.

8.       Return the ribs to the pot and let simmer for a few minutes before serving.

Creamy Cheesy Broccoli Chicken

This is so easy to make, a little bit of knife work on some veggies, pop open a couple of cans of condensed soup (I use Campbell’s but you can substitute your favorite brand), brown the chicken, sauté the veggies, combine everything and cook slowly on top of the stove.

I made up this recipe when I was in college and had to cook for my roommates.

Ingredients

·         CHICKEN THIGHS, 8-12 whole, bone-in

·         OLIVE OIL, ¼ cup

·         WHITE WINE, ¼ cup

·         CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP, condensed, 1 can

·         CREAM OF CHICKEN SOUP, condensed, 1 can

·         CHEDDAR CHEESE, sharp, finely shredded, 1 cup

·         ONION, 1 large, sliced

·         MUSHROOMS, 8 oz, sliced

·         BROCCOLI, florets, 1 cup chopped

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground, to taste

Directions

1.       Combine the two soups in a mixing bowl, set aside.

2.       Butterfly the thighs, trimming the extra skin and fat away.

3.       Brown the chicken in the olive oil, take out of pan and reserve.

4.       Drain off the excess fat, deglaze with the wine.

5.       Sauté the onions, add to the condensed soup mixture.

6.       Sauté the mushrooms, add to the condensed soup mixture.

7.       Add the cheese to the soup mixture.

8.       Add a little bit of water to the pan and steam the broccoli until slightly tender. Add the broccoli to the condensed soup mixture and combine thoroughly.

9.       Replace the chicken in the pan and cover with soup mixture.

10.   Salt and pepper to taste, bring to a simmer over high, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 45 minutes until chicken is cooked through.

11.   Serve over steamed rice.

Sirloin Strips with Sweet Peppers

I was watching Rachel Ray on TV one day and saw her make something like this, except that she added fish sauce to the gravy and tossed the dish with whole wheat noodles at the end, creating a kind of Thai dish. This is my version, definitely not Thai cuisine.

It’s very economical and very easy once your slicing is done and your mise en place is set up.

Ingredients

·         SIRLOIN STEAK, 1 pound

·         SWEET PEPPERS, 3, red, orange and yellow (or any combination thereof)

·         ONION, 1 large

·         EDAMAME (SOY) BEANS, ½ bag, shelled, frozen

·         BUTTER, 2 tablespoons (vegetable oil can be substituted)

·         BEEF STOCK, ½ cup

·         CURRY PASTE, 2 tablespoons

·         CORN STARCH, 1 tablespoon

·         SOY SAUCE, ¼ cup

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

Directions

1.       Slice the sirloin into very thin strips about two to three inches long on a bias against the grain of the meat.

2.       Seed, de-vein and julienne the peppers.

3.       Slice the onions into half-moons and separate the layers.

4.       Thaw the frozen edamame beans.

5.       Combine the beef stock, curry paste and corn starch into a thin slurry.

6.       In a large pan over medium heat, cook the onions until soft but not browned. Season with garlic salt and set aside.

7.       Turn the heat on high and sauté the meat in the butter, removing the liquid into the slurry bowl.

8.       Add in the sweet peppers and stir until the peppers are heated through.

9.       Add in the onions and edamame beans and stir thoroughly.

10.   Add the curry slurry and soy sauce to the pan and stir to thicken the sauce. Season to taste.

11.   Serve with steamed rice.

Frittata

A frittata is one of the easiest breakfast dishes to make.

Basically, it’s a scrambled egg "pancake" mixed up with whatever leftovers you can find in the refrigerator. Of course, you can plan it and get your ingredients beforehand, but it’s fun to be creative and see what you can make with what’s on hand.

I usually use at least four eggs in my frittatas, so the wife can have some too.

In a non-stick pan with some olive oil, I begin a sauté of some chopped onions and bacon lardons , adding in a little left-over chopped meat (whatever I can find – hot dogs, char siu,  spam, lup cheong, Vienna sausages, steak, spare ribs, you name it), throw in some left-over veggies, some left-over potatoes if I have them,and  some shredded cheese (sharp cheddar is perfect, but any kind will do).

Then, I lower the heat to medium, add in the eggs, mixing it in well, slowly letting it set on the sides and bottom, lifting it with my silicone spatula so the runny part can slide under.

When the eggs are pretty much set but slightly runny in the center, I sprinkle more cheese on top and put it under the broiler to finish. Watch it and remove when the cheese topping starts to bubble and turn a golden brown.

Remove the frittata from the oven, let it set a few minutes, then slice it up like a pie and chow down.