Celery Root Soup

Such an ugly root and yet it makes such a beautiful soup.

Celery root is combined with bacon, leeks, onion and rosemary to make this creamy delicious soup. Use chicken broth, vegetable broth or a combination of both. Its fast, easy and great for a cold day.

Ingredients:

4 cups of broth

1 bulb celery root - peeled and cut into pieces

1 leek- washed and sliced into small pieces

1 small onion - chopped

2 slices of bacon

a sprig of rosemary

Parmesan cheese

Olive oil

Method:

Slice down the bacon into small pieces and saute till browned. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat and add a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Add the sliced leeks and chopped onion. Add a piece of the rosemary. Saute for a few minutes but do not let the onions and leeks get to browned. Add the celery root and saute a couple minutes then add the broth. Let the whole thing come to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Remove the rosemary. Cook until the celery root is very soft. About 40 minutes. Use an immersion blender or a food processor to puree the soup. Return to the pan to keep warm. Sprinkle a little grated cheese and drizzle a little olive oil to finish. Garnish with a piece of rosemary or celery leaf. You may want to get creative with garnishes, try some thinly sliced apple or pear.

A white Trebbiano would go nice. Add a green salad and a good piece of bread and you got a real nice dinner.

Rolled Stuffed Loin of Pork

I made this to be served cold for a luncheon. Makes a great sandwich. You can also make this with other meats and a whole variety of fillings. If you have some prosciutto on hand put a layer down over the meat and then the stuffing on that.

Ingredients:

Small center cut loin of pork

1 cup plain panko bread crumbs

3 eggs

2 Tablespoons fresh Italian parsley - finely chopped

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1 garlic clove - minced

2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

Olive oil

Method for the pork:

When you are selecting your roast be sure to find one that is short and wide. This will help accommodate the stuffing and the whole thing will roll better. Heres the fun part. The cutting

The idea is to end up with a flat piece of meat with even thickness. This will be the surface that you will spread the stuffing mixture on to. Butchers call this a "roll cut"

Now with a sharp knife slice along a 1/4 of the way into one side of the roast. Slice down into the roast and as you get near the bottom stop when the amount remaining at the bottom is the same thickness as the side you just created by slicing downward. Make sense so far? Good. Continue slicing the meat at the bottom of the roast and stop again when the thickness on the other side is the same as what you already have cut. Still with me? Spread the meat out into a flat piece as you go. Now just continue till you have a nice flat piece of meat. A meat pounder will help even everything out. Be sure to cover the meat in wax paper if you take this step.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Method for the stuffing:

Place the plain panko breadcrumbs in a medium size bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the parsley, minced garlic, grated cheese and cranberries. Mix well. Add the well beaten

eggs. Mix well and spread and even layer of the stuffing on top of the flat piece of pork. If the mixture is to liquidy add some more breadcrumbs.

Roll. At this point you can tie it with twine.

Cover the roast with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper.

Roast at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes per pound.

Can be served hot, room temp or cold in a sandwich.

Fried Scallops over Herb and Garlic Infused Bean Puree

What a quick, easy and flavorful dinner! Lent is here and this recipe meets the lent requirements for a meatless meal. I love this puree of beans infused with a little garlic and herbs. Just about anything can go over it, meat, shellfish or roasted fish. I often make this with seared scallops but tonight did the breadcrumb coated fried scallops. Don't want to be to healthy! Hope you enjoy it.

Ingredients for the bean puree:

1 Can chick peas or other bean- drained

1 cup of vegetable stock

1 tablespoon of chopped mixed herbs. Fresh Thyme also works

1 clove of garlic - chopped

Ingredients for the fried scallops:

1 lb of scallops

1 beaten egg with a touch of salt and olive oil

flour

breadcrumbs

oil for frying

In a small to medium saucepan heat the stock to a boil, add the drained beans along with the garlic, cover and let simmer for several minutes. Transfer the beans to a food processor and puree till smooth. Mix in the chopped fresh herbs. Return to the pan, cover and keep warm.

Set up three bowls to prepare the scallops. One for the flour one for the beaten egg and one for the breadcrumbs. Working in batches, pass the washed and dried scallops thru the flour and then the egg and then the crumbs. In a saute pan large enough to fit all the scallops without overcrowding, heat some vegetable or light olive oil. Fry all together or in batches using a slotted spoon to move them around. This takes but a few minutes. When the scallops are browned, they are done. Remove to a paper towel to absorb excess oil.

Spoon out the puree into a shallow bowl and place the cooked scallops over the puree. Drizzle a touch of really good Extra Virgin Olive Oil over the whole dish.

You can serve this with a piece of lemon.

This recipe serves two.

A crisp white wine will go great with this.

DRAGON WINGS

Today is Chinese New Year so instead of Buffalo Wings I made Dragon Wings. So easy, so tasty.

Ingredients

Chicken wings - at least 6 sections per person

cumin - a couple tablespoons or enough to coat the wings

cayenne pepper - a dash

salt

For the Dragon Sauce

Hot sauce - 3 parts

butter - 1 part

white vinegar - 1/4 part

Method:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Coat the wings in the dry rub of cumin, salt and cayenne. Roast the wings for 40 minutes until golden brown. Melt the butter over low heat. Mix in the hot sauce and the vinegar into the melted butter and mix well. Remove the wings from the oven and place into a big bowl, add the Dragon Sauce and coat well.

Serve hot and with lots of napkins. Great with a cold beer and Blue Cheese dressing.

Beef, Tomato and Noodle Soup

I have been on a beef stock combined with tomato kick lately. I love the deep flavor the combination produces. It seems to go perfect on a cold winter day. Use this beef/tomato base for a hearty stew or a soup. Add some greens or beans if you like. I made this soup using beef base and canned tomatoes. Very easy and fast. Any pasta can be substituted for the egg noodles. Less liquid and potatoes instead of noodles and you have beef stew. Feel free to improvise.

Ingredients:

1 lb of beef - cut into very small pieces -

6 cups beef stock

1 cup canned tomatoes - pureed or squished

1/2 cup diced carrots

1/2 cup diced celery

1/2 cup of diced onion

1/4 lb noodles or pasta

Olive oil to saute the beef

Parmesan cheese (optional)

Method:

Bring the beef stock and tomato to a simmer over a moderate heat.

In a saute pan big enough to hold all the pieces of beef heat a little oil and when hot add the meat and cook till browned. Add the browned meat to the stock. Reduce the heat to a simmer.

After 40 minutes or so add the vegetables and continue cooking for an additional 20 minutes at a simmer, then add the noodles. Continue cooking until the noodles are just done. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if you like and serve piping hot.

Slow Cooked Pork Ribs with a Spicy Peach Soy Glaze

Really yummy and easy to make, but forget the fast part. These ribs take 3.5 hours to cook and are perfect for a Sunday afternoon when you have the time. I used Country Style ribs in the picture but Baby Backs are even better. Your choice. The glaze or sauce was inspired by what I had in the fridge, let your fridge inspire you. BBQ sauces or glazes are easy and fun to create and there are not to many rules.

Ingredients:

Baby Back Ribs - 1/2 rack per person but if your really hungry go for the full rack.

2 T Cumin

1 tsp Salt

A dash Cayenne pepper - 1/8 tsp

Olive oil

For the glaze: Mix in a small bowl

6 T Peach preserve (apricot also works great)

4 T Ketchup

2 T Soy sauce

A dash Cayenne pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Line a pan with foil that is large enough to hold the rack(s). I use a sheet pan. Rub a little olive oil on the front and back of the ribs

Mix the dry ingredients for the ribs, sprinkle and rub all over the ribs. If you want you can substitute your preferred dry rub. Cover tightly with foil and DO NOT make a slit in the foil.

Place in the preheated oven and go do something else for 3 hours.

When 3 hours have elapsed remove the foil, baste with the glaze and continue cooking for 15 minutes more. Baste again and continue cooking for an additional 15 minutes. The entire cooking time will be 3.5 hours.

The sweet hot mixture of the glaze and the savory ribs go great with sauteed greens and a starch, like rice or potatoes.

Be sure to leave a comment and let me know how it came out.

Faro Salad

Faro Salad Sarni Style

Faro is an ancient whole grain from Umbria in Italy. It can be made hot or cold. Very tasty and good for you to, very high in amino acids. This recipe is meant to be served cold or at room temp. I also like to add poached Salmon or Shrimp to this but is great just by itself.

Faro comes in two types. Pearled and Non Pearled. The non pearled is more healthy as it is a whole grain and the outside layer has not been removed in the par boiling.

Ingredients:

1 cup Faro

4 Cups of Vegetable or Chicken broth or use a combination of both. Salted water can also be used. Be sure to use plenty of salt

½ cup finely diced carrot

½ cup of finely diced celery

¼ cup finely diced red onion

¼ cup capers

1 fresh tomato chopped

¼ cup of finely chopped Italian parsley

Juice of 1 lemon

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method:

Bring Stock or salted water to a boil. Cook the faro 40 to 50 minutes until tender for Non Pearled or about 22 minutes for the Semi Pearled Faro. Drain well and mix in a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Allow to cool. Add all the other ingredients. Mix well. Taste for salt, pepper and adjust oil and lemon juice if needed. Serve at room temp. as is or mix in any of the following; Canned tuna, boiled shrimp, poached salmon or just about anything else you can think of like vegetables, fish, shellfish or chicken. This can be served as a side dish or if you mix in other things can be served as a main course.