Fruit & Cheese Display

Fruit & Cheese Display @ LGPAInternational

Wensleydale with Cranberries

Port Wine Derby

Aged Cheddar

Smoked Gouda

Provolone

Gold Pineapple

Honeydew

Cantaloupe

Berries

Easy Caesar Dressing

Store-bought Caesar dressing always tastes odd to me.  This recipe is very simple to make and all you need that you might not already have are the anchovies.  Anchovy paste can also be used. 

Caesar Dressing

4 Garlic Cloves

3Tbl. Lemon juice
2 Anchovies
2 Cups Mayonnaise
1 Tbl Worcestershire
3/4 teaspoon Ground Black pepper
2 teaspoon Dijon Mustard

             -Blend garlic, lemon, and anchovies until smooth, and mix into remaining ingredients.

Caesar salad- Toss romaine hearts, freshly grated parmesan, croutons, and dressing in a bowl until coated.  Serve immediately. 

The Urban Gatherer: Dry Your Own Herbs

The Urban Gatherer: Dry Your Own Herbs

Clean a Cast Iron Skillet- How To

Here is a simple step by step process for keeping your work horse pan clean and ready to go for the next meal.  First, don’t ever use soap!  Grandma should have taught you this…  Soap takes away the layer of “seasoning” that helps a cast iron skillet cook so well.  The seasoning is a layer of oil that penetrates the cooking surface of the cast iron and keeps food from sticking to the surface, while transferring heat evenly. 

                You will need:  paper towels, kosher salt, canola oil and water.

 Once you are done using your skillet, let it cool somewhat and fill with a thin layer of water from the tap.  Use a flat edge spatula and scrape the large bits from the bottom of the pan.  Rinse out the pan at this point with more water.  It should come pretty clean just by doing this, but there is a trick to getting the inside coating glossy clean again. 

                Kosher salt is added to act as an abrasive.  Take a paper towel and scour the inside bottom and sides of the pan with the salt.  Add a tablespoon of canola oil to the salt and keep scouring until the inside surface is clean, and smooth with no residue.  Once the pan is rinsed at this point, the inside should rinse clean like water on a waxed car. 

                Dry the pan with another paper towel inside and out and lightly add a small amount of canola oil to the inside of the pan again.  Use one last paper towel, and wipe the protective layer of canola oil to the entire inside of the pan and sides. 

                Do this every time you use your pan, and it will stay good as new…even better than new as time goes on. 

Prime Rib - How To

A rib roast ...AKA prime rib, can satisfy any carnivore.  When done correctly, the results are wonderful.  When we cook prime rib at the restaurant, we keep it simple.  We use only the highest quality Certified Angus Beef and do a small amount of trimming.  First, the fat cap is pulled back to reveal the slightest layer of fat on the top of the roast.  Then the "lip" is trimmed off down the length of the roast.  These trimmings will be used to make the jus.  They are roasted off to develop some caramelization and combined with beef stock, garlic, red wine, thyme, bay leaf, salt & pepper.

     Once the roast is trimmed we season with kosher salt and cracked black pepper.  This is where you need to be very generous with the seasoning.  Sprinkle on very heavily becasue the seasoning has a lot of meat to penetrate.  Once the roast is seasoned, we use roasted garlic puree (roasted garlic, milk to thin) to spread over the top to flavor.  Finally, fresh thyme sprigs are placed on top of roast to flavor as the roast cooks. 

     We cook at 340F for about an hour and a half or until the internal temperature is about 100F. Once this temperature is reached, we turn the oven down to 200F until the internal temperature is 125-130F.  (medium rare) This usually takes an hour or so more. 

     Most importantly, let the meat rest adequately before slicing.  Serve Au Jus, or "with juice" made from the caramelized trimmings and any juice left in the pan from roasting.  Enjoy

Prime Rib & Pork Shanks

The night begins...............

Sea Scallops

W/Smoked red pepper coulis

Grow your own Veggies!

These were all grown from our garden at work.  We have a small plot, about 10'x15' and successfully grew heirloom tomatoes, eggplant, cubanelle peppers, spaghetti squash, fennel, bibb lettuce, and aurora peppers.  We found that a simple drip irrigation system kept everything watered in the hot Florida sun.  We also have a small herb garden.  It is very satisfying to grow fresh produce.

Classic Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp Scampi

1-2 Lbs Just Cooked Pasta (linguine, fettuccini, penne, angel hair, etc…)

¼ stick butter
1T extra virgin olive oil
½ sweet yellow onion minced
1-2 cloves garlic sliced thin
Small pinch crushed red pepper
½ C white wine
2 Lbs. peeled & deveined white shrimp
1 Tbl. Italian flat leaf parsley minced
Remaining ¾ stick butter cubed
Zest of one lemon
Salt and Pepper
Juice of ½ Lemon

-add ¼ stick butter and olive oil to pan over medium heat

-add onion, garlic, and crushed red pepper and cook until just translucent, about 3-4 minutes
-deglaze pan with white wine and cook down for 1 minute
-add shrimp, parsley, remaining butter, and zest, and cook until shrimp are just cooked 2-3 minutes
-season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon
-tosswith pasta and enjoy! ...can be served with grated parmesan and Crusty Bread