Recipes: Mr Epee's Kitchen

[sabreur]

A simple one, but essential.

Basic tomato sauce.

Two onions
4-6 cloves garlic
1 large can tomatoes or 6-8 ripe cored Italian tomatoes, chopped very finely.
Italian herb mix (preferably either fresh or whole in one of those nifty disposable grinder things)
Salt
Red pepper flakes.

Dice onions, relatively finely. Chop garlic extremely finely. Put a generous amount of good quality (virgin) olive oil in a preheated, heavy sauce pan. Add garlic and onions, and saute until onions are transparent/translucent/you know they are done. Be careful NOT to burn garlic. Add chopped tomatoes (if I'm using canned, I press the top of the can down onto the tomatoes above the sauce pan to get as much liquid out of them as I can, then chop the tomatoes and add to the sauce). If I'm using fresh tomatoes, which I only do when I can get absolutely killer ripe tomatoes, I core them, but don't peel or seed (I'm lazy and it doesn't seem to make that much difference). Add hefty amount of Italian herbs, salt to taste, and good tablespoon of crushed red pepper. Bring to a near boil, serve over fresh pasta. Note: if you want, you can cook the sauce at a low simmer for an hour or so--different but also good.

Serves 4. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Mark's "you can't buy this in a restaurant" pasta with garlic sauteed in olive oil, with grated Crotin

8-10 cloves garlic
High quality olive oil
1 well-aged crotin (hard French goat cheese)
Fresh pasta of your choice, for 4 people.

Chop the garlic extremely finely. Heat a good quantity of olive oil in a heavy skillet or sauce pan. Add garlic and saute until garlic is soft and has lost its bite, but not until it become crunchy/toasted. Serve over fresh regular or stuffed pasta (cooked al dente, of course) with grated crotin and fresh ground pepper.

Serves 4.

Note: get French crotin, if at all possible. They are made with raw goats milk and have a significantly more complex flavor than the American crotin I've had, which are nicely made, but suffer greatly from having been made with pastuerized milk. I keep 4-6 crotin aging in my refrigerator--they can be used basically anywhere you would use Parmesan, and give things a whole different taste....

[RITFencing]

Kabobs I made at a Fencer/Referee BBQ yesterday... ask Mauler or Parrythis how they are.

1 Uncooked Chicken breast for every 2 kabobs desired
1 Uncooked Slice of Bacon for every kabob desired
Vidalia Onions chopped into about 1 inch square bits
Green Bell Peppers chopped into about 1 inch square bits
If desired, other vegetables can be used; mushrooms would work well
Lemon Pepper Seasoning
Garlic Powder
Wooden Skewers

The night before serving: Cube up the chicken breasts so that each bit is about 1 inch on a side. Each breast (depending on the size of it and the length of the bacon) should be good for about 2 kabobs. Take the end of a bit of bacon and stab a skewer through about half an inch to an inch in. Stab a piece of onion on there, and then slide one piece of chicken on. Fold the bacon over, push the skewer through, and slide down a bit. Repeat the process, alternating which side the bacon is on and switching between pepper, onion and whatever other vegetable you like. The bacon should take a serpentine path through the kabob. When the bacon is all on there, push down a bit and the kabob is done. Season with the lemon pepper and garlic powder for a dry rub. The next day, grill it until the outside is charred. Ask around on the forum as to quality, several people here just had some last night.

[wrdbrn]

Ok... this is not for the calorie counting - but if you happen to have a large dish of mussels in white wine... or a good gilled tenderloin... i suggest

1 loaf of crusty french bread
4 oz of bleu cheese ( or as desired)
1 shallot sliced thin and broken into ringletts
1/2 stick of butter sliced the long way and thin ( i stick it in the freezer for a few minutes)

lay down a generous piece of aluminum foil split the french bread and place the bottom on the foil. layer butter cheese shallots and butter ... put the top on the breard... Roll it up tight .

You can then slip it in a hot oven for 20 minutes or so... or on the grill for about 30... unwrap and slice with a serrated knife.

My family of 3 will eat 2 of these in a week... well a setting if the mussel dish is present..

[Fencergrl]

Bacon wrapping is a must when i cook bambi.

While it does add a nice flavour and some fat (which can be needed depending on how you cook it). I eat game meats/ bison/ organic meats because they have less fat. So I generally don't add a lot of additional fat, but prefer add moisture instead.

Both achieve the same goal.

[latenight]

While it does add a nice flavour and some fat (which can be needed depending on how you cook it). I eat game meats/ bison/ organic meats because they have less fat. So I generally don't add a lot of additional fat, but prefer add moisture instead.

Both achieve the same goal.

Yeah, I do half venison half pork in sausage too.

[Fencergrl]

Well sausages you HAVE to put some pork in them if you use game meat of any type. There's just not enough fat to make a proper sausage otherwise.

[latenight]

Well sausages you HAVE to put some pork in them if you use game meat of any type. There's just not enough fat to make a proper sausage otherwise.

Yup.......but all my recipes are old Mine/French ones, so there is lots of mixing of meat going on in all my venison dishes.

[needle]

Needle's recipes:
I. Wife wants to cook:
1. Come home
2. Ask "Honey, what's for dinner?" (3 seconds)
3. Eat (30 minutes)
4. Kiss wife, say "thank you" (5 seconds)
5. Have great sex (optional) (rest of the evening)

II. Wife doesn't want to cook:
1. Discuss what restaurant to go to (20 minutes)
2. Arrive to restaurant (20-40 minutes)
3. Get seated (1-40 minutes)
4. Discuss the menu (10 minutes)
5. Wait for food (15-30 minutes)
6. Eat (30 minutes)
7. Drive home (20-40 minutes)
8. Have great sex (optional) (rest of the evening)

For obvious reasons I like the first recipe a lot more

[RITFencing]

You really should inculde the optional part; it makes the meal so much more special. And if it happens more often, I'm eating at your house!

[needle]

You really should inculde the optional part; it makes the meal so much more special. And if it happens more often, I'm eating at your house!

Well, I'll have to organize a "bring your own sushi" night, then

[TrainingDummy]

From TD's Dorm room kitchen:

One (1) package of Maruchan Ramen noodles
One (1) cup water

Add water to noodles, microwave on HIGH for three (3) minutes. Let stand for one (1) minute. Enjoy!

Stay tuned for next week; I'll be cooking with the world-renowned Chef Boyardee!

[Goofy]

Artichoke Dip

14.5 oz can artichoke hearts, well drained
1 c mayo (or Miracle Whip)
¾ c pkg. of shredded Parmesan cheese (from the dairy case)
½ t garlic, minced
paprika
crackers (Triscuits)

Cut the artichoke hearts into eighths, mix them well with the mayo, cheese and garlic, and place the mixture into a small casserole that can be used for baking and serving. Sprinkle paprika over the top, and bake for 20 minutes at 350° (or until lightly brown). Serve as a dip with crackers (Triscuits taste best).

Note: I always use a little more garlic and a little more cheese.

[Pointy]

This one's a bit more involved. I've made this a few times and you can adjust/adulterate the recipe as you see fit. You can also throw in bits and pieces of shredded chicken meat in the broth for more flavor.

Ingredients :

400 g. of lean ground pork
1 onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, grated
1/8 cup of finely chopped onion leaves (green onion shoots)
1/4 tsp. of finely grated ginger
1/2 tsp. of soy sauce
1 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of pepper
1 egg, beaten
6-8 cup of beef or chicken broth (chicken broth preferred)
1 tbsp. of cooking oil
1 tbsp. of minced garlic
1 onion, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
chopped green onion for garnishing
50-60 pcs. of wonton wrapper (sizes vary)

Mix first nine ingredients together. Get ready to get dirty. Put a teaspoonful of the mixture at the center of each wonton wrapper, wet the edges with a little water and gather them to form parcels. Make sure that the edges are well sealed. (This part of the operation is done by hand in front of a blaring TV.) Wash hands thoroughly afterwards.

Heat the cooking oil in a large saucepan or casserole. Saute the garlic until golden. Add the sliced onion and continue sauteeing garlic and onion until soft. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil. Drop the dumplings, one at a time. When the broth starts to boil again, lower the heat, cover and simmer for 12 minutes. Turn off the heat and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a soup tureen and sprinkle the chopped onion leaves on top. Serve hot.

Note: Season the broth after the dumplings are cooked. Some of the salt in the dumplings will go to the broth while simmering and you might be putting in more salt than needed.

Do not simmer the dumplings for longer than 12 minutes. Otherwise, the wrappers will get soggy and disintegrate.

You could also garnish the soup further with two (or three) raw eggs. Once the broth's ready, crack two eggs and slowly stir the eggs in the broth. Voila -- egg-drop soup with wontons.

I'll see if I can find my recipe for hot and sour soup.

[ChrisBrasel]

I find with dumplings, making the "wrap" part takes too much time. What brand do you use?

Also with dumplings, I dont use a time system to boil them, I just add to hot water, and pour one cup of cold water in everytime it starts to boil. Do this 3 times, and put in from of a fan to cool the moisture on the outside of the shell off. When they are a bit sticky on the outside is when they taste the best.

[Pointy]

I find with dumplings, making the "wrap" part takes too much time. What brand do you use?

Also with dumplings, I dont use a time system to boil them, I just add to hot water, and pour one cup of cold water in everytime it starts to boil. Do this 3 times, and put in from of a fan to cool the moisture on the outside of the shell off. When they are a bit sticky on the outside is when they taste the best.

Brand? I honestly don't look at the brand of the wrapper -- I think the packaging is orange colored?

I guess it depends what I want to use the dumplings for. If I'm making egg rolls or dumplings for a thicker soup, then I use egg roll wrappers (cut in half or so). If I'm making dumplings for wonton soup or for dimsum type appetizers (to be deep fried or steamed), then I use the spring roll wrappers. Spring roll wrappers are lighter and have a crispier texture when they're fried.

As for the timing method, I guess I really don't use one, regardless of the recipe. I tend to do things by feel and taste. After making dumplings a few times, you tend to get the hang of knowing whether they're done or not.

(Oh, and I forgot to mention that one nice touch to the wonton soup would be to add chopped water chestnuts in the wontons. It gives them a nice crunch when you bite into them.)