For Rebecca

One of my sisters is undertaking the "No Meat November" challenge and I am here to support her. She asked me to put together some great recipes that are either vegetarian or pescaterian. Here are some of my favorites:

Vegetarian:

Quinoa Salad with Candied Walnuts:
A great dish that I love to throw together. It features quinoa, which is a high protein grain that works
great in cold salads.

Mushroom Risotto:
This was really intimidating to make, but it is actually really simple. A lot of recipes have really confusing descriptions and instructions and I tried to make sure mine were very clear and user friendly. I served this with some seared tofu to make a good full meal.

Black Bean and Corn Salsa:
This dip is really good, but I slightly over complicated the recipe. It is pretty easy to make this recipe in a skillet as I described or can just be stirred together cold.

Guacamole:
Guacamole is actually one of my favorite things to make in the winter because I love to make it with pomegranate and you can only really get a good price on those around this time of year.

Not Beef Stroganoff:
This one takes advantage of the fact that mushrooms are really meaty. It is pretty simple to take a traditional and replace the meat with mushrooms. While this is a great recipe, I do need to take a new picture for it.

Here is a link to the rest of my vegetarian recipes, which, given how much I like meat, I have a surprising amount of.

Seafood:

Shrimp Bisque:
Dear God this stuff is good. As the weather gets cold, this is a perfect thing to warm you up with a little spice and a little alcohol.

Cream of Crab Soup:

Another fantastic soup for this time of year. This one is made that traditional way, only white ingredients, but it is easy to make it Maryland style, just add Old Bay!

Maryland Crab Cake:

I have nothing else to say about this one, just make it. It's amazing.

Miso Soup:

While I provided a traditional set of ingredients for this one, it really is fridge velcro. You can put pretty much anything into it that you want.

Crispy Skin Salmon:

This is a easy and simple application of my new favorite way to make salmon. This recipe includes detailed instructions on how to make this amazing dish. 

Bourbon Maple Pepper Salmon:

Ok, the title is a bit of a mouthful, but this is really good stuff. If you have not made crispy skin salmon before, I would recommend taking a look at the previous recipe to get a really good idea of how to do it.

Steamed Mussels:

Pretty much the best mussels I have ever had. It is spicy, but amazing. It is not strictly speaking pescatarian, since it includes sausage, but it is easy to leave that out and still have a great dish.

Super Bowl Party!

We are only one week away from game time, and it can be pretty stressful to put together a great Super Bowl Party. I've gathered together a list of my favorite recipes to serve on the day of the big game. Hopefully these will give you some ideas on how to make your Super Bowl Party a great night, no matter who wins.

Finger Foods:

Grilled Ham and Pineapple Skewers
Deviled Eggs with Crab
Pigs in a Blanket
Barbecue Meatballs
Meatballs
Sausage Rolls
Tortilla Chips
Pot Stickers

Dips:

Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Dip
Guacamole
Roasted Tomato Salsa
Pico de Gallo
Black Bean Salsa

Sides:

Nachos
Root Beer Pulled Pork Sliders
Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork Sliders
Bacon Wrapped Cheddar Dogs
Corn Dogs
Caprese Salad

Cocktails:

Fruit Punch Beer
Scotch Sour
Maple Old Fashioned

Roasted Sea Bass with Herbed Quinoa

This is my last recommended meal for Valentine's Day. Like my beef and vegetarian suggestions, I've provided instructions on how to get both parts of the meal out at the same time. This dish is another show stopper that will be sure to impress your significant other this Valentine's Day.

Ingredients:

Sea Bass:

12 oz sea bass filet
1 t of salt
1 T of shredded dill
Lemon slices
1 T of butter

Quinoa:

½ C of quinoa
1 C of vegetable stock
1 T of shredded dill
Zest of 1 lemon
Salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Start with zesting the lemon you are using for the sea bass since you can use that lemon zest for the quinoa. Butter the bottom of an oven proof dish, be it skillet, casserole, or baking dish, and place the sea bass, skin side down, on the dish. Evenly salt the sea bass and evenly distribute the dill and the lemon slices on top of the sea bass.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the fish flakes easily or reaches an internal temp of 145.

While the sea bass cooks, boil the quinoa in the vegetable stock until the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Stir in the dill and the lemon zest and salt to taste.

To serve, portion the sea bass and the quinoa and enjoy a pescaterian dinner for two.

Seared Tofu with Creamy Mushroom Risotto

This is my menu for a vegetarian Valentine's Day dinner. I think that the umami in the marinade on the tofu pairs well with the similar flavors in the mushrooms, and both components have complimentary creamy textures.

This meal makes it pretty easy to get everything out at about the same time, with just the risotto warming while you finish the tofu.

Start by getting together all the ingredients you will need for making the Mushroom Risotto and the Marinated Tofu. This will make assembling the dishes, faster, easier, and way less stressful.

Prep the tofu, place it in the marinade, and set it in the fridge to marinade while you make the risotto. Once the risotto is finished, place it on your smallest burner over the lowest heat to just keep it warm, then pan sear the tofu.

Arrange the seared tofu on your plates, portion out the risotto, and enjoy a nice romantic evening with your significant other. Pro tip; serve the dinner with the same wine you used in the risotto, it will tie the flavors together nicely.

Sauteed Peach Salad

My wife and I celebrated our anniversary recently, and while we were on our little vacation we stopped at a restaurant and had this absolutely amazing salad. I've recreated it here, with some slight modifications, to the best of my ability. I served this salad alongside pan seared rib eye steak and quinoa.

Ingredients:

1 peach, peeled, halved, and cut into wedges

1 T butter

Candied sesame walnuts

Goat cheese

2.5 oz (by weight) spring mix lettuce

Lemon white balsamic vinegar

Directions:

Dress the salad to taste, but keep in mind that a little goes a long way with balsamic vinegar. Portion it onto 2 or 3 plates. Sprinkle with the candied walnuts, as few or as many as you like. If you want to buy your own candied walnuts, feel free, but the recipe is pretty simple and the sesame seeds add good flavor. I posted the recipe here earlier.

Sauté peaches in the butter in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until heated through and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Distribute the peaches over the salad, and while they are still warm, crumble the goat cheese on top. Again, use as much cheese as you like, but moderation is important.

I followed this procedure for the rib eye, but with one modification. I don’t season with spices, like pepper, until cooking is done or nearly done. Spices burn and create bitter flavors that you don’t really want. Salt, being a rock, doesn’t burn and so can be added whenever.

Tea Party Menu

I did a culinary demo for a few of my friends, and I wanted a spread that would wow them so I decided to throw together a tea party. I made a variety of finger sandwiches and here they are in case you want some ideas. None of these are particularly complicated, but they are tasty.

• White bread with cucumber and a citrus butter
• White bread with cream cheese and sweetened strawberries
• White bread with ham, Swiss cheese, and pea puree
• Wheat bread with chicken breast, bacon, and pesto mayo
• Wheat bread with turkey breast, muenster cheese, and cranberry mango pepper jelly
• Wheat wrap with cream cheese, spinach, tomato, and a little salt
• Sun-dried tomato bread with ham, cheddar cheese, and mayo

Obviously no tea party would be complete without scones, jams, butter, clotted cream, and, of course, tea. I also served a fruit tart, that I bought, and mimosas.

Update: Here is the recipes for some of the spreads I made

Don't worry, posts about meat are coming.

Southern Style Biscuits with Sausage Gravy and Hash Browns

One of my favorite breakfasts to make because it's pretty impressive when you get everything ready and on the table at the same time. I go back to my southern roots with these biscuits, despite the fact that I'm not that southern, I just really love the food.

Ingredients:

Gravy:

1lb breakfast sausage

1T flour

1pint heavy cream

Black pepper to taste

Hash browns:

1T butter

1 Idaho potato
Salt

Biscuits:

2 cups AP flour

1 T plus 1 t baking powder

¼ t baking soda

½  t salt

2 T butter

2 T shortening

1.25 cups buttermilk

Directions:

Starting with the biscuits: preheat your oven to 450 then sift together the flour, baking powder, backing soda, and salt. Cut the butter and shortening into small pieces, make sure the butter is chilled, and work into the flour mixture using the tips of your fingers, so you don't melt the butter. Make a well in the dough and pour in the buttermilk, mix until the dough just comes together. Place the dough on a floured surface, flour the top of the dough, then fold the dough over itself 5 or 6 times. Press the dough into an inch thick square then cut out your biscuits using a 2 inch cutter. Reform the scraps and repeat.

Place the biscuits "shoulder to shoulder" or next to each other on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Make sure to gently press the top of each biscuit with your thumb to ensure that the biscuits rise evenly. Bake for 15 minutes or until the biscuits are nice and golden on the top.

Making the gravy starts with heating a 10 inch cast iron skillet over medium high heat and then breaking up 1lb of breakfast sausage into chunks then cooking them in the skillet. Once the sausage pieces are cooked thoroughly, remove from the heat. Sprinkle the flour on top of the sausage and stir the mixture until all of the moisture in the pan has been adsorbed by the flour. Then, slowly pour the pint of heavy cream into the skillet, being sure to stir constantly to keep the cream from breaking. Once all the cream is in the pan, return the heat to low and simmer until the gravy reaches the desired consistency. Season with fresh ground black pepper to taste. When the gravy has thickened, serve over biscuits split in half or reduce the heat further to keep it warm until it is time to serve.

The hash browns start by heating a 10 inch non-stick over medium high heat. Clean the potato and grate using the largest size opening in your box grater. Grate into a tea towel and squeeze out the extra moisture. Melt the butter in the skillet then add the potato and lightly salt it. Once the top starts cooking, flip over the potatoes, in once piece if possible. Cook until brown on both sides and then portion and serve.

I served all these elements together, but feel free to mix and match. I chose to serve this alongside a small fruit salad with scrambled eggs and the left over sausage links.