Tag Archives: Food

Jump In My Belly!

family, Food, Lap Band, Life, Recipe Leave a comment

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I’ve been working on getting more protein in my diet (insert dirty joke here). With my reconfigured guts chicken is pretty much a no-no, beef has to be cooked just right, as does pork. So I’ve been looking into less mainstream meats. I’ve tried goat as well as rabbit and they didn’t go so well. Since it’s a texture thing more than flavor I keep trying new things to see what else works.
I have had frog legs before when I was on a cruise an remember that I liked them. That was before my lap-band so I didn’t know if the texture would work out this time around.

For the uninitiated frog legs have the flavor close to chicken with a texture similar to fish. I purchased several pairs and a package of seasoned cornmeal normally used for a fish fry.

The result? Tasted just like I remembered. Did it sit well with my band? Nope. Well, it was worth a try.

FRIED FROG LEGS RECIPE
•1 pound frog legs (found in the seafood department at the store)
•1 package seasoned fish fry mix (I like Louisiana brand)
•1 cup milk
•4-5 dashes hot sauce
•Oil for frying

-Mix frog legs, milk, and hot sauce in zippered bag for 10-30 minutes
-Heat oil for frying to 350
-Remove each piece from the milk bath and coat evenly in the fish fry mix
-Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side
-Remove from oil and drain on paper towels
-Serve hot

An Experiment

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My family has quite a relationship with pomegranate jelly. It has been this way for as long as I can remember. A bit of history on this for you. My parents have been together since the early seventies and my dad’s mother was making this jelly back then. My dad worked for the railroad and we never lived near the rest of the family. More specifically the single woman that knew how to make this magic jelly. So it was really something special to get a jar in the mail. Grandma has been gone for more than a few years and the jars ordered from different companies are nothing special. So I’ve taken it upon myself to attempt this jewel colored family history.

I took this:

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Did some of this:

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And came up with this:

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It’s the perfect color and the little bit I got a taste of was spot on!

The color of magic:

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Smoking a Fatty

Food, fun, happy thought, Life, Recipe 2 Comments

I know some of you got excited by that statement.  Not THAT kind of fatty.  Ok?  Imagine log of Italian sasauge stuffed with mushrooms and cheese.  Now, imagine this creation completely encased inside of bacon strips woven together all mingling in a bbq smoker.  Toss in some dry bbq rub and some sauce on top.  There you have what is called a fatty or sometimes a bacon explosion.  I’m thinking about calling it a cardiologist’s nightmare.

For the recipe/method click here.

This is the first time I’ve attempted to cook anything in a smoker.  I’ve seen it done several times but I’ve never had a smoker of my own to play with.  After seeking the assistance of people that know what they’re doing I tossed aside the thought about my first attempt being ribs.  I was told that like cast iron smokers need to be seasoned with full flavored fatty food.  Damn.  Don’t you just hate that? Yah, me too.  Enter the sausage, bacon, cheese log!

It’s only about half finished (I think).  But here’s the pic I snapped just after I tucked it into it’s nice warm bed for a little nap.

Can't wait to see it all cooked up!

Meat As Promised

family, Food, Life, Links 1 Comment

Have you made any Magic Sauce yet?  I told you that I’d pass on my recipe for Italian Chicken Breasts (see I didn’t forget) so here you go.  It really is less recipe and more technique. When I made this batch we had a side of oh-so-fancy mac and cheese ala blue box but it’s perfectly suited to be chicken parmigiana.

1. Pound chicken breasts thin. I use a rolling pin in a ziploc bag (the hot pad is to protect the tile counters).

 

2. Add 1 egg and a splash of milk to the bag. Seal and squish it all up to coat the chicken.

 

3. Dredge chicken in seasoned bread crumbs (I like the Italian flavored kind).

4. Heat a skillet, add Magic Sauce, when oil is hot add chicken and cook on each side till done and crispy.

Perfect!