Vote for the winner in the Main Course section of our book

Hi All,

Please cast a vote for one of the following 10 recipes.

The winner will receive a bottle of Veuve Clicquot, and be featured in our upcoming cookbook.

Winners will be announced one week from today, Saturday, October 11, 2003


The Recipes:

Chicken Quesadillas with black beans
posted by Jespah

4 oz boneless chicken breast, cut into strips and baked in the oven with no seasonings or fat
1 pepper, diced
1 can diced jalapeno peppers (do not drain)
1/4 white onion, diced finely
4 mushrooms, sliced
1 avocado
lime juice to taste
fresh cilantro, to taste
grill seasoning, to taste
1 can, black beans, very well drained, rinsed, and well drained again
2 scallions, diced
sour cream to taste (low fat is just fine here)
shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, to taste
4 soft tortillas
oil

Cover the bottom of a skillet with oil and cook the first 5 ingredients together on medium high heat. While these ingredients are cooking, skin the avocado and mash it into a bowl. Add cilantro, grill seasoning and lime juice to taste. Cover with plastic wrap to keep this (it's guacamole) from turning dark.

Once the mixture is cooked, set it aside in a separate bowl and put a tortilla in the skillet. Cook it for about 1 minute on one side and flip over. Cover the cooked side with shredded cheese and a healthy helping of the mixture. Fold the tortilla in half and let cook for about another minute. Remove from heat and continue with the other tortillas. If you have mixture left over, just use more tortillas.

Once the mixture and tortillas are used up, add more oil to the skillet and add the beans and scallions. Once cooked, add a spritz of lime juice and some torn cilantro.

Serve the quesadillas with sour cream and guacamole, with the black beans on the side.
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Variations:

Add lime juice to the sour cream before serving. Use plain yogurt instead of sour cream. Use shrimp or steak instead of chicken. Tofu may also be substituted, and it need not be cooked beforehand, but it should be marinated in lime juice for about 20 minutes before cooking. Tofu should be sliced so as to make flat slabs. Extra firm works best.

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Marco Polos
posted by Jespah

1 small green pepper
1 small white onion
2 oz boneless chicken breast
3 large mushrooms (any type)
2 Tablespoons ricotta cheese
1/2 can chopped tomatoes
garlic
nutmeg
olive oil
4 - 6 egg roll wrappers

Dice the first 4 ingredients finely. These should still be recognizable and not puréed.
Cook in the liquid from the can of tomatoes, until the ingredients are well-cooked. Let cool.
Place ingredients into a bowl and add tomatoes and ricotta cheese. Add a pinch of nutmeg and mix everything together well. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the mixture isn't holding together.
Separate egg roll wrappers and place on a plate or other flat surface.
Place about a tablespoon of the mixture into the center of each egg roll wrapper. Fold the sides in and then fold the front and back over to make a pillow. Seal the pillow with a little water on your fingers.
Use up the egg roll wrappers until you run out of filling. I like mine to be not too well-stuffed as they hold together better.
Add enough olive oil to a saucepan so as to cover the bottom. Add a dash of garlic. Heat until the oil is hot enough that a tiny droplet of water will dance on the top.
Carefully place the wrapped Marco Polos into the oil. Brown both sides and remove from heat.
Serve with your favorite sauce or cheese, and a salad on the side.

Serves two.

Variations -
* vary the proportions if you want more chicken or less ricotta
* use this as a way to get rid of leftovers
* rather than frying the Marco Polos, top with mozzarella cheese and put in an oven (350 degrees, for 10 minutes, check often).
* try with different meats
* try tofu if you want to make the dish vegetarian

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Asian Tofu with Vegetables
posted by Jespah

1 14 - 16 oz. pkge. extra firm tofu, cubed
1 can sliced water chestnuts (drain well, rinse well, then drain again)
1 can bamboo shoots (drain well, rinse well, then drain again)
1 can low sodium vegetable broth or stock
4 mushrooms, sliced fairly thinly
2 handfuls mung bean sprouts
1 handful snow pea pods (chop if you like; I usually leave them whole)
1/4 white onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. wasabi powder (optional)
1/4 tsp. sesame seeds
2 scallions, chopped finely
garlic to taste
parsley flakes to taste
oil
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 cup white or brown rice

The night before or the morning of the dinner, combine the first 11 ingredients into a covered container (like a tupperware) and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes but no more than 24 hours.

Once the mixture has set for as long as you like (there isn't an enormous difference in taste between the minimum time and the maximum time), drain the broth into a saucepan for the rice. Begin to cook the rice according to package directions, but using the broth instead of water. Set aside when done.

While the rice is cooking, in a separate skillet, line the bottom with oil and add the sesame oil. Heat up the skillet on medium high and add garlic and parsley flakes to help add to the oil's flavor. Fry the first 11 ingredients, starting with the onion and tofu, moving onto the mushrooms and then the rest of the ingredients.

Once the 11 ingredients are fully cooked, combine in a serving dish and serve with the rice on the side and soy or teriyaki sauce as you prefer. Serves 2, and there are leftovers.

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Porchetta alla Perugina
posted by ossobuco

Intro: "This is an old fashioned way to prepare a nice pork loin. The final taste is very similar to that of the real porchetta, a full-grown pig cooked on a spit over an open fire and then sold in slices at street corner stands. We recommend, as do the Perugini, this recipe as practical for the family kitchen."

Ingredients:
For the battuto: 2-3 fresh sage leaves, 1 sprig rosemary, 2 fresh basil leaves, 1 clove garlic, 1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon salt, freshly ground pepper

4 - 5 pound pork loin, boned (Osso - I prefer pork shoulder to those long bland loin packages available now, and yesterday I cooked it with the bone in, still good. If you buy one of those long loins, you can use a fish poacher.. )
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil.

Procedure
"Prepare the battuto by mincing all the ingredients together until they are practically a paste. Spread this mixture on the thinner side of the loin (where the bones once were), and then tie the meat up as if it were a sausage, so that the herbs are held tightly inside. (Osso - if you buy one of those packaged loins, cut into it and stuff that, then wrap with string.) Put it in a heavy pot, just big enough to hold the roast, add enough water almost to cover the meat, add 1 teaspoon salt, and put over a low heat.

Cover and bring slowly to a boil, and then uncover and boil slowly until all the liquid has evaporated. (osso - I turn it at least three times; for a 4 lb porchetta this took over two hours at moderate simmer.) Pour on enough olive oil to coat the loin thoroughly, and continue cooking, turning the meat over and over until a good golden crust has formed. Slice and serve."

Let's see, first of all your home will smell good. Secondly, the only hard part was finding string. Grocery stores don't always have it, I had to go to the drug store to find string. Next, I tend to add more garlic, what could it hurt? When I did the pork shoulder yesterday, I sliced deep along the bone and stuffed the battuto in there all along the bone length. The timing didn't change.

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Pasta e Fagioli
posted by Frank Apisa

Pasta e Fagioli is an Italian peasant food (we call it Pasta Fazool in New Jersey) -- and is normally considered a main dish. But the "Two in One" aspect is occasioned by the fact that the basic recipe can be thinned with water to make it more a soup than the thicker main dish it is intended to be.

Obviously, this is a very dressed up version of Pasta e Fagioli -- the peasants do not have access to most of the ingredients we use here.



1/3 lb. Salt pork finely diced (if the salt pork has a skin attached, cut it off first)
1 Medium Onion, thinly sliced
2 -3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
Two celery stalks diced (split each stalk in half lengthwise -- and then dice into half inch pieces)
1 16 oz. can white or red kidney beans
1 35 oz. can whole Italian Plum tomatoes -- squashed as you would for a pasta sauce.
3 8oz. cans tomato sauce (not paste)
1/3 pound ground beef
1/3 pound Italian sausage crumbled (casing removed)
(In a frying pan, fry the sausage until almost brown -- add the ground beef and fry until both are browned, reserve)
1/3 stick of pepperoni diced (slice the pepperoni stick in half lengthwise and then cut into 1/2 inch pieces.)
Tbsp of Oregano (actually, to taste)
Dash of red pepper or hot sauce (optional)

1 lb. Medium Shell macaroni.


In a soup pot or Dutch oven (I prefer the Dutch oven), render the diced salt pork over slow heat until its oils are released. (Adding a couple tbsps. of olive oil helps this process) (If the salt pork had skin attached-put the whole detached skin into the pot - and leave in there until the cooking is over. Remove and eat separately if you like pig skin. It is delicious!)

Saute the onions in the olive oil/rendered salt pork (do not remove the pieces of fried salt pork.)

You want to saute the onions until they start to brown at the edges. As you see the onions get their first hint of brown -- add the garlic and continue the saute for another two minutes.

Add the diced celery and beans (do not drain) --- continue to cook over medium low heat for three minutes - stirring occasionally.

Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, oregano -- continue to cook for three more minutes - stirring occasionally..

Add ground beef, sausage mixture, diced pepperoni, and hot stuff (if you desire) - bring to a simmer - lower heat 'til just simmering and simmer for 15 minutes -stirring occasionally.

(All cooking to be done without a cover.)

In a separate operation -- best done during that last few minutes of cooking -- cook the shells in slightly salted, boiling water -- leaving them al dente. Do not overcook-they will continue to cook after integration with the tomato mixture.

When the shells are cooked and drained, put half of them into a large, deep bowl and ladle several scoops of the tomato mixture over them. Put in plenty of sauce -- it should look almost like a thick stew. Let it sit for five minutes to integrate. (You'll do the same for the other half of the shells -- as the first serving gets used up.)

On the table, you should have crusty Italian or French bread. Another bread option is to take some sliced Italian round loaf and toast several pieces. A bowl of grated Romano cheese is a must.

Some people don't like the mixture thick or prefer to serve the dish as a pasta soup early course -- so a bit of water added to thin it down is fine. I prefer to use a bit of the water the shells were cooked in - and always reserve a cup or two of it. (Be sure the water was only slightly salted!) A thinning done with a bit of red wine ain't bad either.



Halved black olives added as you add the tomatoes works fine. Anchovies added as you add the tomatoes are great also. A bit of diced green bell pepper works. Using a can of chick peas (garbanzos) in place of the kidney beans is a nice touch. And some people like pasta other than shells -- give any pasta a try.

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Barbequed Salmon
posted by safecracker

Take a nice center cut of salmon fillet (about 2 portions) and place it in the center of a large piece of aluminum foil. Cover the salmon with lemon and lime juice, and sprinkle with cilantro. You can also add onion, tomato, or sweet green pepper slices if you wish. Wrap the salmon in the aluminum foil, sealing the edges tightly. Toss the wrapped salmon onto the barbeque at medium heat for about 25 minutes, turning it about every 5 minutes. Remove it from the grill, open the foil and enjoy the aroma. Serve with brown rice and steamed broccoli. You can also a tbsp of olive oil before or after cooking for extra taste!

could also use tuna steak.

High in protein and very rich in the all needed fatty acids.

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Salmon with orange & basil sauce
posted by safecraker

1 salmon filet - skin removed
salt, pepper to taste
pinch of fresh basil

Sauce mix:
1/4 cup fat free sour cream
1/3 cup orange juice
non-fat milk to desired consistency

(Have the broiler on)

Salmon is naturally a bit salty, so go light with the salt - fresh black pepper on both sides. On one side add a pinch of fresh basil. Heat a non-stick skillet to Medium/High heat on stove top. Salmon has natural oils so you do not need oil. Sear the fillet on one side. Without turning the fillet over put it under the broiler until the top looks seared and it starts to flake.

For the sauce - add the orange juice first, then sour cream. Add a little of the non-fat milk and a pinch of basil. Stir until it reaches creamy consistency - add milk if you want thinner.

Pour some over the salmon and eat!

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GINGERSNAP SAUERBRATEN
Adapted by BumbleBeeBoogie

Marinade:
2-1/2 cups cold beef stock or broth
1-1/2 cups red wine vinegar
1 cup burgundy wine
1 cup thinly sliced onions
1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
1/2 cups thinly sliced celery
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon salt
2 bay leaves
6 crushed black pepper corns
4 whole cloves

Beef:
4 pounds bottom round of lean beef, trimmed
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon juniper berries
3/4 cup crushed ginger snap cookies
2/3 cup raisins

Place the bay leaves, pepper corns and whole cloves into a cheesecloth square tied with string for later easy removal. Combine all of the marinade ingredients into a container large enough to include the meat, and stir well.

Pierce the meat randomly with a knife or large-tined fork to allow the marinade to penetrate into the meat. Add the meat to the container and cover. Refrigerate for 72 hours. (If you marinate for less than 72 hours, the beef will be tough. If you marinate for much over 72 hours the meat will become dry and flavorless.)

Remove the meat from the marinade; wipe dry with paper towels. Place the meat in a large skillet and brown on all sides in the 1/3 cup of hot oil over high heat.

Transfer the browned meat and the marinade to a large pot. Cover, and bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for 2-1/2 hours, or until tender.

When the meat is done, transfer it to a dry pan, cover and keep warm.

Remove bay leaves from the marinade. Ladle the marinade and vegetables into a blender or food processor bowl and puree until smooth. Return the mixture to the pot; stir the raisins, juniper berries and crushed ginger snap cookies into the liquid, stirring until smooth. Simmer for five minutes over medium heat.

To serve, cut the meat across the grain and serve with a two-ounce ladle of sauce over the meat slices per person. Serves 4 to 6.

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PECAN-CRUSTED PORK CHOPS
Adapted By BumbleBeeBoogie

2 cups raw pecans
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
6 center-cut pork chops, 1 inch thick - about 6 ounces - trimmed of excess fat
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
fresh flat Italian parsley sprigs

Any kind of nuts can be substituted for the pecans. Try raw walnuts, hazelnuts (filberts), almonds or a combination.

Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Spread the pecans on a baking sheet and bake until lightly golden (5 to 7 minutes.) Let cool and then chop finely by hand or in a food processor. Place the chopped nuts, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl and mix well.

Raise the oven temperature to 375 degrees F.

Place the flour in another shallow bowl. In a third bowl, whisk the eggs until well blended.

Coating evenly and completely at each step, first dip the pork chops, one at a time, into the flour, shaking off any excess. Then dip the chops into the egg mixture and then into the chopped pecans.

In a large oven-proof frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the pork chops in a single layer and cook uncovered, turning once, until golden on both sides (5 to 6 minutes total). Place the frying pan I the oven and continue to bake until firm to the touch and pale pink when cut in the center (10 to 12 minutes). Do not allow the nut coating to burn.

Transfer the pork chops to a warmed platter and garish with the parsley springs. Serves 6.

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BUMBLE BEE BOOGIE'S SPECIAL CRAB CAKES
An original recipe by BumbleBeeBoogie

I don't like most crab cakes because they taste mostly of bread and are too dry. I created this recipe using fillet of sole the major binder to avoid the objectionable "bready" taste found in most crab cakes. The result is a moist, crab-dominating flavored crab cake.

1 slice white bread; crusts removed
1 pound flaked crab meat
1 fillet of sole
1 tablespoon finely minced green onion, white part only
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat Italian parsley
1/8 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Snipped fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon oil
lemon wedges

Place the fillet of sole in a food processor, pulse until pureed. Crumble the bread and add to the sole along with the Worchestershire sauce, mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and dill and pulse until blended into the sole. Transfer the mixture to a bowl; add the crab meat to the mixture.

Form the mixture into eight 1-inch thick cakes. Chill at least 1 hour.

Heat the butter and oil in a skillet, carefully saute in the the crab cakes until heated through and golden brown, turning once. Serve sprinkled with finely chopped green onion tops and snipped fresh dill accompanied by lemon wedges.