This commercial has been bugging me all holiday season. I don’t understand the scenario (other than cute chicks wanting coffee)

The single cup Keurig coffee makers are getting popular and this device shows up on the market (still has a Keurig relationship).

Stanley sits at the machine and brews a cup of coffee to be thwarted by gal after gal until he sees the gal he digs (so it seems).  It’s somewhat flirty or her manipulation.  I don’t quite understand it.

Where is Stanley in the scene?  Is it a workplace kitchenette?  Is this some upscale Hostel?  Soberhouse?  It’s weird.

Watch and ask yourself the same question.

Spicy Broccoli

If you are looking for a tasty way to consume broccoli without having to dip in ranch dressing, this is it.

This recipe is not an exact science.  There are variations depending on your tastes.  The broccoli can be firm or soft to your liking (I like it more al dente).

The spice can be ratcheted up or down to your liking as well.  More pepper flakes or more garlic.

- 1 head of broccoli, cut into bit sized florets.
- 2 tbl olive oil
- 1 tbl red pepper flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or chopped fine.
- salt and pepper to taste
- (optional) 1 tbl balsamic vinegar

Preparation:  Boil or steam the broccoli to your desired firmness, then drain.   In a skillet, saute the florets in the olive oil with garlic, pepper flakes, salt and pepper for 2 minutes on med-low heat (don’t overcook the garlic, it will get too bitter).   Toss it all around in the pan.  Optional: sprinkle on the balsamic vinegar and serve.

Hope and Garlic

I have made this deep dish pizza in an effort to duplicate a great Chicago style pizza we had in Chicago in 1993.

Recently a version of this pizza was added to the Next Door Pizza menu as the result of a fun Facebook discussion.  They asked for new pizza ideas, I shared mine, they chose it as one of their new items.  I am honored and happy to share its garlicky goodness.

The Next Door Pizza version was voted #2 in Kansas City by The Pitch.

If you want to make it at home, here is how.  Note: My version is more garlicky.  Next Door Pizza uses roasted garlic which offers a sweeter variance to the flavor (still good).

Pizza dough: This may vary.  I use 2 packages of Pizza dough mixes.  The kind you add water to and mix.  But you can do whatever you like.  This is not the best part of the pizza.

Cheese Mix:  8 oz of Mozzarella cheese.  12 oz of ricotta cheese.  1 cup of chopped spinach leaves, 1/2 can of artichoke hearts.   Mix together.

Marinara: 28 oz of tomato sauce, 2 or 4 cloves garlic (minced), 1/2 onion, 1 tsp basil (fresh is best), 1 tsp Oregano, 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp sugar.   Mix in a bowl and allow it to marry.

Build it and they will come: In your deep dish, layer the bottom with dough, bake about 10 minutes (at 350 degrees).  Remove from Oven and let stand a bit.   On the bottom, layer 3/4 of the cheese mix, layer on the the 2nd dough piece, then add the remaining cheese mix.  Cover with the marinara sauce and other 1/2 of the can of artichoke hearts.  Add more minced garlic and mozzarella cheese if you wish.  Sprinkle top with 1/4 cup (6 oz) of Parmesan cheese.

Bake 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes.  Or until bubbly.

Tomato Pudding

This recipe originates from Mary Beth’s side of the family.  Her Aunt Carol brought it around during Holidays.  Aunt Carol originally wanted the recipe from her former mother-in-law that would never share.  At one point, Aunt Carol serendipitously found the recipe out of a Christian Ladies Cookbook and started serving it at her family gatherings to spite her mother-in-law.  The recipe has moved on.

The name “tomato” and “pudding” don’t sound like tasty together, but this dish is good and I recommend it.  Yes, the dish is sweet.  It is also a rather simple dish as well.

Warning: Not Low Carb.

• 2 cups fresh white bread, cubed small
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• 3/4 cup tomato puree – add water to make 1 cup
• 1/2 tsp salt

Mix all the ingredients well and put in a greased baking dish (3 Qt) with cover.  Bake 30 minutes at 375 deg.  Remove and cover the last the 15 minutes.  Stir several times after removing cover.

Some people enjoy ham.  Who doesn’t?  Ham is good.  Salty.  Juicy.  Delicious.  We will get a big ham and eat on it for days.

My kids see the cooked ham (bone in) and always ask “what is this…?”.  Of course, I have to hold court and explain with clinical detal the section of a pig that makes up the ham.  They look at me with a slurry of confusion and disgust.  It will all come into focus when I explain that bacon comes from a pig and they accept that much better.  In the end they eat the wonderful creature with peas and sweet potatoes.

My point…  After you have a cooked ham, you can add to the enjoyment by removing the fatty skin and making a delicious treat.  I find a good filet knife with a flexible blade will do the trick.  Don’t just throw the skin out.  This is one of the most decadent pieces of the animal kingdom. I like to eat the rendered skin like bacon by chopping up and putting in my morning eggs.

Slice off the fatty skin pieces and place on a cookie sheet.  Heat the oven to 450 and cook them until they are crispy.  It might take about 5-10 minutes.  Don’t worry if your oven starts to get smokey a little.

When they come out of the oven, they will be salty and wonderful like a crispy piece of bacon.

Over the course of a few years, we have been collecting good/healthy recipes that we will double or triple and eat the leftovers for a few days (even take to work for lunch). The strategy saves money and keeps your pants fitting.

I would like to hear from anyone who has a good low carb recipe to share.

One of my favorite examples is picadillo. [link]  This recipe is great the first time and better as leftovers when all the flavors stew in their own essence.

For others, visit the recipe index for a short list.  Hope to hear from you.

Trout Cakes

This is great way to serve trout as an appetizer or main course.  The trout is baked first but you can also use smoked trout to add another layer to the palette.

• 1 lb trout – flaked up in a heap
• 1/3 cup cracker crumbs.
• 3 green onions
• 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper (green or yellow are fine too)
• 1/4 cup mayo
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 1/2 lemon, juice
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• flour
• peanut oil

Cook the trout at 400 degrees for 30 minutes until flakey.  Let cool about 10 minutes.  Remove head (if not already), skin and bones.  Throw the trout meat into a large mixing bowl.

Mix all the ingredients (not the flour and oil) and squish all together.   You could use a food processor, but it will make the mixture too fine.  I found that allowing the chopped ingredients to keep their chunky-ness keeps a nice texture to the recipe.  If the mixture seems too wet, add some cracker crumbs.  Make patties about 1/2 inch thick and 3 inches around.

Lightly dust the patties in flour and fry in the peanut oil until golden.  Note: not much flour is used in the recipe but as a low-carb alternative you can process about 2 cups of almonds into a powder and substitute for the flour.

Grilled Asparagus

Asparagus is great on the grill.  It is simple too.  At our house, we like to wrap 3 or 4 stalks in a slice of bacon and grill.  The bacon offers some fire protection so that you don’t over-char a naked spear.  Cook delicately until the bacon is cooked.  Simple right?  BTW, you can other types of fatty coverings too.

In the event you don’t eat all of your asparagus, you have a backup plan.  Leftover grilled asparagus is not that inviting (maybe for some, but not for me).

I like to cut the stalks into 2 inch pieces and store in pickle brine or any brine you have in the fridge (olives, banana peppers, etc).  Mix it up too.

Let the Asparagus stew in the brine for a day and then you can use those removed pieces on a salad.  They keep for a long time.  The flavor is outstanding on salads.

This post is brought to you by Guiness…

Buffalo Chicken bites (not from recipe)

This is from my friend Jacob.  Sounds good and pretty simple.

Buffalo Chicken Bites

Grill up 4 oz Chicken Breast, cut in bite size pieces

Crush 4 Melba Toast Rounds

Combine 1 tbsp each of Frank’s Hot Wing sauce, Dijonnaise and water

 Coat chicken with marinade, then cover with crushed melba toast

 Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or until done

 Dip in desired dressing.