Salmon Dip

My dad makes this AMAZING salmon dip, and I am going to share it with you.

Traditionally, it should be made with fresh home smoked red salmon,  but not many people have an uncle who used to fish commercially like me.  SO!  It's ok to use the canned stuff.  In fact, that is what this recipe will use.

Like many of my recipes, simplicity is key.  No need to muddle up a good tasting protein with a lot of fancy doodads.  Salmon is lovely just how it is.  So, to start, you are going to need a can of red salmon. The can I picked up had a lot of bones, so make sure you go through and pull all those bones out.  It's fine if you smush the meat, you're going to be doing that anyways.  Once you have all the bones out, go ahead and  smash the meat up with a fork until it's nice and crumbly.  Then, stir it with half a package of cream cheese until it makes a bit of a paste.  Then, my favorite park, jalapenos!!!

You can use fresh if you want, but I like the pickled kind.  Take about 10 slices of pickled jalapenos, diced, and mix that in as well.  You can use more or less, depending on how much heat you can stand.  And I like a lot of heat, so I tend to go a little heavy on the jalapenos.  Remember to leave the seeds out, those are the parts that burn the most.

And there you have it, a very tasty dip that's perfect on chips, crackers or baguettes.  Or just on a spoon (that's how I eat it, hehe.  One of the few things I can eat without blending because it's so creamy).  Try it at your next family get together or work party, it will be gone in minutes I promise.

Brie Stuffed French Toast

This is an idea that I had while rummaging around my fridge tonight, trying to think of something to make myself.  I love cheese, and the other day I bought myself a small package of spreadable Brie, because it is a cheese I can eat by itself.  Not to mention it has fantastic flavor, and can be used in so many preparations.

My idea was to use some of the slices of Cinnabon bread I had to make french toast, and make a creamy filling out of the Brie.  And it turned out even better than I had expected.  Way better than any stuffed french toast I've gotten at IHOP.

And it is very simple as well.  To start, mix 1 tbsp of spreadable Brie and 1 tbsp cream cheese until it's smooth.  Then add a drop of vanilla and stir it in.  Next, add powdered sugar, just enough to make the mixture nice a creamy.  You want it thick, but spreadable.  Set it aside.

Beat together 1 egg, drop of vanilla, and 1 tbsp half and half.  Set aside.  On a slice of Cinnabon cinnamon bread, spread the Brie filling evenly over one side.  Dip the other side until it is soaked in the egg mixture.  Place in a hot buttered pan.  Dip another slice of bread in  the egg mixture, only soaking one side, and place it dry side down on top of the slice already in the pan, creating a sandwich.  Brown and then flip.  When both sides are sufficiently browned, remove from the pan, butter, and then douse with syrup and powdered sugar.

And then if you are me, toss in the blender with some milk and puree away.

Of course this recipe is only for one serving, I can't get my husband to eat french toast to save his life.  But, obviously you can easily double or even quadruple to feed however many people you want!  It's a super tasty treat for any meal, enjoy!

Dutch Oven Tenderloin

We love pork tenderloin, it's a very succulent meat that can be very juicy if cooked right.  Very flavorful as well.  Like you know, I've never been a huge fan of pork, but I have to say, this cut is actually pretty ok, to me at least.  My husband and son gobble it right up.

And yes, for this dinner, I cheated a bit.  I used part of a premade spice pack.  The pork tenderloin spice pack by McCormick actually.  I usually buy it to make cream sauce for perogies, but I decided to try it for it's intended purpose.  I only used about half the pack, but it turned out lovely.

First, I made a broth using the spice pack, olive oil, water, garlic powder, onion powder, color peppercorns, fennel seeds, and chopped onion.  I didn't take exact measurements, sorry……..so use your creative liscence!  Obviously, more water than oil…..haha

In a dutch oven, I laid two whole tenderloins around the edges, leaving a hole in the middle.  Remember to remove that yucky silver skin before putting your loin in!  I then drizzled olive oil over the loins.  Then, I added the broth, enough to almost over the loins, but leaving the tops dry.  Next, I used a color peppercorn grinder, and ground the pepper over the meat.  Last, I added a couple handfuls of chopped white mushrooms.  And it was ready for the oven.

Preheated to 350, I let the loins cook for about an hour and a half, making sure the temp got to 165 before it was done.  This is important, once you take the meat out, do not immediately cut into it!  Put the loins on a plate to rest for about 10 minutes.  Using a flat strainer, remove all the onions, seeds and mushrooms from the reserved cooking liquid and spoon over the loin.  Then, whisk cornstarch into the left over cooking liquid to make a gravy.  I like mine pretty thick, so I used about 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch.

And for my side dish, golden mashed potatoes.  I always mash them with salt and onion powder, a whole stick of butter, and heavy whipping cream.  That's the only way to do it, I'm telling you!

Cut your loin into medallions to serve, and drizzle the gravy over top.  My husband said it was the best cut of pork he has ever tasted.  And I gotta tell you, it made an amazing blended soup as well.  And that gravy!  I was eating that for days after.

Dole Salad Contest

Watching the Food Network, I saw a commercial for Dole Salad with Clinton Kelly.  He said there was a contest where you could write in something about salad that inspires you and win a trip to California. I thought, hey what the heck, I can write something up!

So I went to the contest page and read through the rules.  You needed to write a 350 word entry about how salad inspires you.  So I wrote up this awesome thing, tried to paste it into the submission box, and it didn't work.  I read again, and it said 350 CHARACTERS.  Yikes!  How was I going to condense all that into a paragraph?  Ah, I thought, a poem.

I wrote up a little poem in the submission box to make sure I didn't  go over my character limit, read it over, and submitted it.  I let my husband read it and he said, wow, I didn't know you could write like that, I bet you are going to win.  I thought he was just being polite.

A week later I got a call.  I had been chosen as a finalist!  Voting would be on facebook, and six winners would be chosen by popular vote to go to California on a 3 day culinary adventure.  Oh my gosh!  

So!  Here it is, the poem that won me a slot in the finals:

Were I Able

Taste is priceless, more lovely than words

Sensations to tickle the senses and more

Crisp are the leaves, so fresh and so light

That bring me to dine on a warm summer night

Wish that I could taste, not only to smell,

But health troubles forbade me, desires to quell

Oh lovely the sight of the dressing I see,

One day we shall dine, my salad and me.

And if you would like to vote for me, there is still time!  Go here .  Voting ends on 12/11.  Help send me on a culinary adventure!

Creative Coffee Cake

Who doesn't like coffee cake, am I right?  The richness of sour cream, the spice of cinnamon, the flaky, crumbly, streusel topping….mmmmmmm!

Well, I decided to get creative with a pretty simple recipe by merely adding a bit of coffee mate.  Yes, that's right, coffee mate into the coffee cake.  And what kind did I choose?  Pecan Praline.

Like, I said, all you have to do is add a little of the coffee mate, maybe a table spoon or two to your batter before you bake it.  I also added a little to the butter for my streusel, and instead of using pecans because Nick hates them, I picked a bunch of almonds out of a bag of trail mix I found in the cupboard and smashed them up with my rolling pin.

The result was a very moist cake with the essence of pecan, which made my house smell very festive.  Here is the recipe I used for the cake, but you can use any old recipe you favor.

Cake:
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
ADD 2 tbsp Pecan Praline CoffeMate

Topping:
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsbp melted butter
1 tsp Pecan Praline CoffeeMate
1 tbsp cinnamon
ADD 1/2 cup crushed almonds

Cream the butter and sugar, mix in sour cream and eggs.  Add vanilla and CoffeeMate.  Mix in flour and powder.  Pour into a greased pie pan and set aside.

For the topping, mix together all the ingredients until a crumble is formed.  Add more sugar if needed to get the right texture.  Sprinkle all over the top of the cake batter.  Bake at 350 for about 35-45 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.  It took me a little longer because I'm at such a high altitude, but just watch it close so it doesn't get burned.

And hey, if you can use the Pecan coffee mate, go ahead and try all the other seasonal and not so seasonal flavors out there!  I bet you can come up with some pretty tasty treats.