Cherry Preserve Cranraisin Brie Pecan Dessert Pizza

Over the weekend of Cinco de Mayo, we were served this Dessert Pizza for an appetizer that was amazing.

This is as close as I could get to the recipe for CranRaisin Cherry and Brie with Sugared Pecan Pizza.

Ingredients:

8 ounces butter (plus 1 teaspoon)
6 ounces chopped pecans
2 pounds of Brie Double Creme Cheese
2 premade pizza crust (16 inches)
8 ounces of CranRasins
1 10 ounces jar of Cherry Preserve
2 tablespoons Cinnamon Sugar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon corn meal 

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Melt butter and brush over the top and bottom, of the uncooked pizza crusts. Sprinking cinnamon sugar over the custs.

In a skillet melt the 1 teaspoon of butter and add the pecans. After the pecans toast for a minute or so, mix them with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Continue cooking for a few minutes and set aside to cool.

Line a baking pan with foil and sprinkle with corn meal. Place the pizza crust in the oven and cook for 6-8 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Turn down the oven to 350 degrees.

Spread the cherry preserve evenly over the surface of your pizza crust. Spinkle the cranrasins and pecans over the top.

Shave the outside of the brie with a micro plane and pull pieces of the brie cheese to dollop evenly over the pizza.

Bake the pizza at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cut into bite size pieces and serve. 

Deconstructed Beef Wellington Healthy Appetizer

Ingredients:

• 1 baguette, sliced about 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick
• 2 beef tenderloin steaks, cut 1-inch thick (total
• weight about 1 pound)
• 16 ounces button mushrooms, sliced then roughly
• chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 shallots, finely minced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 cup port wine
• kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
• Bearnaise Sauce
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon

Preparation: 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Drizzle a large baking sheet with olive oil. Lay the baguette slices flat on the baking sheet in a single layer. Drizzle the tops of the slices with olive oil and use a small brush to evenly distribute the oil on top of the baguette slices. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes until they are toasted to your liking. The longer they bake, the crunchier they become. Keep in mind that you will bake them again when making the appetizers.

Prepare the Bernaise sauce. Follow link for the receipe.

Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms and saute for about 5 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic to the mushrooms and saute for an additional 5 minutes. Do not allow the garlic to brown. Season with kosher salt and pepper, then add the port wine to the mushrooms, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the port wine has reduced and there is not liquid left in the pan. Remove from heat and set aside.

Heat a frying pan or griddle over high heat. Do not allow the pan to get so hot that it smokes. Season the steaks with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper and place the steaks in the hot pan or griddle. Allow to cook about 4-5 minutes, then using tongs turn the steaks and cook on the other side for about 4-5 minutes. They should be medium rare. Do not cut or pierce the steaks with a knife or fork. Using tongs, remove the steaks to a cutting board and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes and as much as 10 minutes. 

To assemble, place the baguette slices on a large serving tray. Top each slice with about a tablespoon of the mushroom duxelle. Slice the steaks so that the slices are about 1/8-inch thick and lay 2 to 3 slices of the steak on top of the mushroom duxelle on each baguette slice. Top the steak with a tablespoon or so of the warm bearnaise sauce and serve immediately.

Grilled Shrimp Chimichurri

Ingredients:

For the Shrimp

• 1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tablespoon rosemary, chopped
• 6 rosemary stems
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil, for drizzling

The Chimichurri

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 ounces bacon, cut into small pieces
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons onion, finely diced
• 1 cup packed fresh parsley leaves
• ½  cup fresh oregano leaves or 2 tablespoons dried
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• 1 ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon lime juice
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Preheat a hot grill, gas or charcoal.

In a small skillet, add the bacon and cook, stirring constantly until browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Reserve rendered bacon fat and set both aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the ingredients for the Chimichurri Sauce: garlic, onion, parsley, oregano, vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, lemon and lime juice. Pulse the mixture a few times until smooth. Finish the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.

Thread the shrimp onto the rosemary stems and brush with the rendered bacon fat.  Season the shrimp with rosemary, salt and pepper. On a very hot grill, cook for 2 to 3 minutes on one side; and no more than 2 minutes on the other. Before removing the shrimp check for doneness. Confirm that the shrimp has changed from a translucent to pink color, meaning it’s cooked through.

Arrange the shrimp on your platter. Drizzle with the Chimichurri and sprinkle with the bacon.  Reserve the left over sauce in a bowl and set on the side.

The Best Smoked Shrimp Andouille Jalapeño Popper Appetizers

These are the best, but they are not easy to make.  I recommend preparing them and smoking them the first day.  Then finish them off the day these appetizers are to be served.

Ingredients:

• 16 Jalapeño
• 16 ounces peeled and deveined shrimp (31-40 count)
• 1 tablespoon Cajun Seasoning (Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning)
• 1 package Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 1 teaspoon rosemary, finely chopped
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ small green pepper (2 tbsp) – minced
• ¼ small red pepper (2 tbsp) – minced
• ½ rib celery, minced
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, cracked
• 8 ounces Andouille Sausage, diced
• 2 lbs of thin cut bacon (16 slices per package)
• 2 tbsp rendered bacon fat or olive oil.

Preparation:

Begin by rinsing the shrimp and patting them dry.  In a bowl, toss the shrimp with your favorite Cajun seasoning. Cover the shrimp and let the seasoning work into them, in the refrigerator.

Prepare your smoker and set to no more than 250° F.  I used the Emeril Lagasse stove top smoker with apple wood smoke chips and adjusted the temperature with an infrared thermometer.

In the meantime, remove the cream cheese from the refrigerator and allow it to come-up to room temperature. While waiting for the cream cheese and the shrimp, mince all the vegetables except the jalapeño. Sweat the minced vegetables in a skillet with bacon fat or olive oil, until soft.  Remove from pan and add to a mixing bowl to cool.  

Wash and then split the jalapeño peppers in half. Scoop out the seeds and ribs with a spoon (try to keep the stem intact).

In the bowl with the softened vegetables, add and mix together with the diced Andouille sausage, rosemary, parsley, cream cheese and black pepper. Set aside to build the jalapeño poppers.

Stuff all the jalapeño pepper halves with the cream cheese mixture. Then come back around and place a shrimp over the top of the cream cheese and wrap them with a slice of bacon.  Dust them with more Cajun seasoning.

Place them in the freezer for 30 minutes or the refrigerator overnight.

After they harden, move them to the smoker and smoke them for 2-2 ½ hours at 250° F, per batch.

Before you can serve them, the poppers will need to cool.  Return them to the refrigerator or the freezer to harden again.  Just before serving, turn on your oven’s broiler to a medium low, place the rack in the upper part (not the top).  In a skillet, cook the bottoms of the jalapeño popper’s until they are crispy (approx 4 -5 minutes). Transfer the jalapeño poppers to a cooking tray and broil them for about 10 minutes, until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow them to cool and crisp before serving.

Habanero Cheees Fritters similar to those served at Salvador Molly’s in Portland

Hot, super spicy and delicious habanero cheese fritters will make you cry and smile at the same time!

Ingredients:

• 1 c. sifted flour
• ½ c. corn flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 eggs
• ½ c. buttermilk
• ¼ c. milk
• 1 tbsp. melted butter
• ¼ c. sugar
• ¼ c. ground black pepper
• ¼ c. garlic powder
• 1 tbs cumin
• ¼ c. granulated sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp black pepper
• 2 tbsp rosemary
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 15-30 habanero peppers, minced (depending on your heat tolerance)
• 2 c. mozzarella cheese, grated
• ½ c. sharp cheddar, grated

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients and mix well or place the ingredients in a food processor until peppers are well ground and ingredients are well mixed. Add more milk if the batter looks too dry.

Bring oil to temperature 350° F, using a small ice cream scoop, drop into hot oil – about 4 per batch. As they float up, roll them so they cook evenly. Cook them until browned, drain on paper towels and eat immediately.

You can pre-make them and finish them later by double frying.  Just remove them early and drain.  Then fry again right before serving at the same temperature for extra crispness.

Shrimp Wontons

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 1 pound shrimp, cut into small pieces
• 5 oz. water chestnut, chopped
• 3 fresh (large) basil leaves, chiffonade (roll up and finely slice)
• 1/.4 cup coconut milk
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 2 tsp tamari sauce
• 1 tbsp sherry
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp garlic, minced
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 1 small carrot, finely diced
• ¼ tsp sesame oil
• 1 quart of peanut oil (reserve 1 tbsp for sauté)
• 60 wonton wrappers
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 egg whites mixed with a tbsp of water

Preparation:

Sauté the carrots first, then add garlic and ginger in a skillet with 1 tbsp of neutral flavored oil – like peanut or grape seed oil.  Cook for a few minutes, and then add the water chestnuts cook enough to bring up the temperature. Finish with the sherry, tamari, coconut milk and rice vinegar. Cook to reduce for a minute or so and remove from heat. Toss and mix in the basil, place into a mixing bowl and into the refrigerator to cool.

While mixture is cooling, roughly peel and devein the shrimp. Roughly chop the shrimp into small pieces and put aside. Slice the Green Onions/Scallions into small ¼ inch slices.  Retrieve the bowl from the refrigerator and add the shrimp, green onions, fish sauce and cornstarch.  Mix thoroughly and return to the refrigerator for about 20 minutes while you clean up and prep to make the wontons.

Lay out a cutting board or place a towel over a large surface of the counter.  Wisk the egg whites and water together, in a small bowl, to use as the sealer for the wontons.  Lay out the wonton wrappers about 4 at a time. Make sure to keep a slightly damp towel, over the wrappers not being used. This prevents them from drying out. Dip a small brush or your finger into the bowl and paint half of the square wrapper.  You are going to make a triangle, by bringing the two halves together.  Scoop out a teaspoon of the shrimp wonton mixture and place it in the center.  Bring the two halves together and seal the edges from one corner to the next, while pushing out as much air as possible. Set aside and repeat the process until you are done.

Heat oil to 350° and drop in 5 at a time. Cook them for approximately 5 minutes (turning them half way).

Keep them warm in a 200° oven and serve with my Thai Sweet Chili Sauce or one of your faves.

Spicy Baked Sriracha Chicken Wings

Ingredients:

•  24 Chicken Wing Segments
• 1/4 cup Sriracha Sauce
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 4 tbsp Tamari Sauce
• 1 tbsp Sake or dry sherry
• 2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp Lawry’s Seasoning
• Spray oil (PAM)

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients (excluding wings) together in a bowl. Toss chicken into the bowl and mix well. Pour the chicken wings and marinade into a 1 gallon Zip-Lock plastic bag.  Marinate for 48 hours minimum. Remember to flip the bag every now and then.  (I actually marinated for 4 days)

Preheat oven to 425⁰.   Line a backing sheet with foil and spray with cooking oil.  Lay out chicken 4 to a row and 6 deep, leaving spaces between pieces.  Pour the residual marinade over the chicken. Bake for 30 minutes and turn off oven, leaving the chicken in the oven for an additional 20 minutes.

Do You Like Black Bean Dip?

Made this the other day as something we could snack on that was Weightwatcher PointsPlus friendly. As a matte of fact, the dip only has 2 points per serving and easily serves 3.

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves garlic, roasted
• 1/2 small onion
• 1/4 green pepper
• 1/4 sweet red pepper
• 1 small jalapeño pepper
• 1 tsp Ground Cumin Seed  
• 1/2 tsp ground oregano  
• 1/4 cup cilantro (loose leaves)
• 1/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth  
• 1 cups black beans, (15 oz can, of beans, will yield 1 cup)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 Scallion (green onion)
• ½ packet of Splenda
• Salt
• 1 tsp cracked pepper

Preparation:

Roast 3 cloves of garlic, cutting off the hard bottom and wrapping into an aluminum foil packet.  Place the packet in a 300⁰ oven, roast for 30-45 minutes.

Rough chop all the vegetables. In a food processor add the vegetable and 1 tsp olive oil until pureed. This is what I like to call, “Making a Sofrito.”  In a non-stick skillet, over low medium heat, sweat the vegetables.  To the skillet add the cumin and oregano and the roasted garlic cloves.  Mash the cloves with your wooden spoon or spoonula into the sofrito.  Continue to cook while you prepare the beans.

Drain and rinse a 15 ounce can of black beans.  This will only yield a tiny bit over 1 cup of beans. Puree the beans with ¼ cup of broth in the food processor.  Add the beans to the skillet with the sautéed vegetable mixture, increase temperature to medium and cook for approximately 20-25 minutes.  Scrape down the sides as you stir the mixture. This will help to thicken the dip. Add the half packet of Splenda, for a little sweetness. (Originally, I would have added a tablespoon or 2 of guava paste)

The dip is done when you can see the bottom of the mixture looking dry; but with some liquid still on the top.  At this point, remove from the heat to let cool. Return to heat and cook for another 10 minutes if the dip seems too runny.

Season to taste with salt and cracked pepper (I use Lawry’s Seasoning); remember canned beans already have plenty of sodium.  Garnish with scallions sliced on the diagonal.

Chicken Bacon Wrappped Appetizers with 11 ½ Secret Herbs & Spices

I have the pleasure of making these little amuse bouche for many birthdays, holidays, events. Pretty much anytime someone asks me to bring something or to cater an event. These are extremely time consuming tedious too make. Regardless, I love making these little bites because they are soooo DAMN GOOD!

Ingredients:

• 5 lb Chicken (10 x 8 ounce Boneless Skinless Breasts) I prefer Dark!
• 3 lb Uncooked Slab Bacon Strips
• Tooth picks

11 ½ Secret Herbs and Spices:

• 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
• 1 tbsp Onion Powder
• 1 tbsp Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Dried Oregano
• 1 tbsp Chili Powder
• 1 tsp Ground Sage
• 1 tsp Paprika (sweet if possible)
• 1 tbsp Black Pepper
• 1 tsp Ground Coriander
• 1 tbsp Lawry’s Seasoning
• 1 tsp Marjoram
• ½ tsp Cayenne Pepper

Brine:

• 1 gallon cold water
• 4 Large Maggi or Knorr Swiss Chicken Bouillon Cubes
• 1/2 cup sugar

Preparation:

Prepare Brine by combining all ingredients in a pot to dissolve.  Pour Brine into a non-reactive container to cool in the freezer/fridge. While the Brine cools cut the chicken into approximately 1 inch pieces (Depending on how big the breasts are you should get about 10-11 pieces) and set aside.

Once the brine has cooled down, place your chicken pieces into it for at least an hour (more if you can) not more than 3 hours. 

Cut the 16 pieces of bacon per package in half (giving you 32 pieces). To make it easier, make sure the bacon is chilled; and work with half the slab at a time (keeping the other half cold.

Combine your ingredients for the 11 ½ Secret Herbs & Spices in a reseal able container.

Remove the chicken pieces from the Brine, draining well, while reserving all the liquid.  Pour the Brine into a stock pot, big enough for you to pull out the pieces quickly (with a slotted spoon or large strainer spoon) add a tbsp of the seasoning.  Bring to a rolling boil.

Working in batches, put about 10 pieces of the Brined chicken pieces into boiling liquid for only about 60 seconds (for dark meat, you can go 2 minutes).  All you want is the color of the chicken to change and to harden the outside.  Sprinkle with the seasoning, then put into a plastic holding-bowl; and throw it into the freezer (this stops the cooking process).  Continue working in batches until all the chicken is done.

Assembly is simple.  Take a piece of chicken and wrap it with bacon, while securing the strip with a tooth pick. Continue until done, should yield approximately 96 pieces.

I put them into large storage bags and place them into the refrigerator until I am ready to cook them.

To cook them, lay the bites out onto a baking tray covered with aluminum foil (for easy cleanup). Place in the middle rack and bake at 400⁰ for about 25-30 minutes (times vary based on your oven) or until they look almost crispy.  Do not cook the pieces too crispy or they will become overly hard and dry. They continue to crisp as they cool down.