Notes on Entertaining

The way things are at our house, relatively open to friends and family, there have been times where we have had some additional guests at dinner that may have been...shall we say...unexpected.  I found an article that helped me put into words what we usually do...
Adapted from an article on TastingTable.com..

PORTION CONTROL

How to plan the right amount of food for a dinner party 

We don’t do a ton of large dinner parties, but we do ‘entertain’ the family and friends on a regular basis.  It doesn’t always happen, but every once in a while we’ll have ‘extra’ guests show up.  I have come to realize a couple of things: a) it’s never a bad idea to cook a little more than you think you'll need, and b) As long as the cook is calm, the guests will be calm. I don't think they even had a clue that I had to stretch the food. Nevertheless, here are a few tips for figuring out how much to make for your next dinner party.

Sketch out your menu first. Once you've decided what you're having, you can start thinking about portion sizes. As a general rule, the more dishes you serve the less of each you need to make.

Play the numbers game. Throw out the old-school recommendation for eight ounces of protein per person: With individual pieces of meat or fish, plan for about four ounces per person instead, or roughly the size of a deck of cards. For pasta, plan on about one cup per person, and for other sides like grains or vegetables, shoot for about a half cup each—unless it's a leafy salad, in which case you should budget about ¾ cup per person.

Sometimes less is more. With roasted meats and stews, the four-ounce recommendation can go out the door. If you cook a large chunk of meat and slice it thinly, people will end up eating far less than if you serve individual steaks, pork chops or a rack of lamb. The same goes for a stew or casserole.

Recipe servings are merely a guide. Recipe amounts are written as though that dish is the only thing you're eating for your meal. So if you see a salad recipe that says it serves four, and you're making it as part of a large buffet spread, chances are that salad will stretch to feed six or eight people.

Plan pre-party bites carefully. Limit appetizers to just one item you have to make—say, wings, crostini, cheese plate, or shrimp cocktail and fill things in with other things you don't have to prep much, like little bowls of olives or roasted nuts. You don't want people filling up before the main event—you're just providing something for them to nibble on while you finish. If you're having cocktail hour before dinner, plan on serving enough for people to have three to five bites of food along with their drink.

Keep dessert servings small. At the end of a three-hour dinner party, your guests aren't going to want a big slab of pie or wedge of cake—just a little something sweet will suffice. A flourless chocolate cake recipe might say it feeds eight, but you can slice it into 12 slivers and garnish each with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and raspberries to fill out the plate. The goal is to leave your guests wanting more, not waddling home stuffed.

Bottom line…Relax and enjoy the party as well!

Drill Comp

We're here at a high school in our region for a drill team competition, so no cooking for today, but this next week I plan on adding a bunch of easy and quick recipes for during the week. I'll keep you posted...
So, about Drill Competition...don't get me wrong, I love and support my girls, so I don't mind sitting in a high school gym for 16 hours, but come on! We got here at 5:20am, stood in 27 degree weather until they let us in at 6:00 and were seated at 6:30. Awards are planned to start at 9:30pm...you do the math!!!

Munchies!

For now, I'll add to both of my blogs since I'll probably want some of this in both places.

There are a couple of things in my repertoire that are a go-to for munchies, whenever or whenever...Grilled PB&J and Ramen.

Although the PB&J has been around for a LONG time, grilling it just seemed like a natural - to me at least.  Most people kind of cringe when they hear it, but after they have tried it...damn!  and they keep coming back. 

GRILLED PB&J

Serves: 1 (so multiply this by as many people as you have)

INGREDIENTS
2 pieces white sandwich bread
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
2 Tbsp. Strawberry Jam - any kind of jam will do
1 Tbsp. Butter
1 Tbsp. Best Foods Mayonnaise - NOT Miracle Whip or any other shitty brand

DIRECTIONS
You are going to basically make a Peanut Butter and Jam sandwich, so spread the peanut butter on one of the pieces of bread, and the jam on the other piece.
Put the sandwich together.
Preheat an 8" non-stick pan on Medium-Low heat.
Combine the butter and mayo together.  This may seem odd, or even repellent, but the butter will melt into the bread, and the mayo give the mixture a higher burning point and provides a nice browning quality.
Apply 'butter' liberally to the outside of one of the sides of the sandwich.  Place the sandwich, butter side down, in the preheated pan.  Butter the other side of the sandwich and cover the pan.
Cook the sandwich for about 2 minutes, checking for a light-medium brown crust, then flip the sandwich and cook for another 2 minutes, covered until that side is light-medium brown.
Remove from pan, cut on the diagonal and serve with a cold glass of milk...ENJOY!

As for the Ramen, yes it is Ramen...from the package, but it's not your basic Ramen from college.  Amazing how adding just a few ingredients really changes the flavor and overall ramen experience (yes, I said experience).  I like to add an egg, but you can add frozen veggies, left over chicken, or any other grilled meat you have, cheese, etc. the sky's the limit with this one!

 

BIG PAPI'S RAMEN

Serves: 1 (so multiply this by as many people as you have)

INGREDIENTS
1 Ramen Noodle packet, I prefer Maruchan Chicken flavor, noodles and seasoning packet
2 cups water
1 tsp. Low Sodium Soy Sauce
5 drops Sesame Oil
1 tsp. Sriracha Sauce
1/2 tsp. Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar
1 egg beaten
1/2 cup frozen veggies
2 oz. grilled chicken, diced.

DIRECTIONS
In a small saucepan, bring water, seasoning packet, soy sauce, oil, Sriracha and vinegar to a rolling boil.  Add noodles and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally and breaking apart the 'block' of noodles into single strands.
Stir noodles and slowly pour in beaten egg, let cook for an additional :30 seconds.
In a bowl, layer meat on the bottom, frozen veggies on top then pour noodles and broth over everything.  Stir, and let cool for a few minutes, then ENJOY!

Off the Cooking Subject...

Had to post this link Jules sent me...
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/the-ultimate-suit-wearing-cheat-sheet-every-man-needs.html
Tons of great, time-honored tidbits about how to dress!

Also, Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert's Chocolate Bar - Good & Evil (http://www.eater.com/2012/11/7/6524685/heres-bourdain-and-riperts-good-evil-chocolate-bar)   and http://www.eclatchocolate.com/product/good-and-evil-bar/ was SOLD OUT when I tried to buy one...Dammit!
Going to keep an eye out for the 2014 Harvest.  I'll let you know what I think...

A NEW Blog...

So, I created a new blog that has more to do with cooking than this one started out doing.  I'm probably there now, but I'd like to see if I can get some of my recipes out there and let people know how easy it really is to create and have fun with food.  The name is: Real Dads Do Cook (realdadsdocook.blogspot.com).  I'd like to hear what others think about the name, but that's for another time.
Jules and I were watching Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives the other night and this restaurant in Texas was making these pop-overs that are the same process I use for my Yorkshire Pudding.  Oddly enough, or maybe not, Tasting Table had the recipe today, so I thought I'd copy it and try...we'll see how it goes.

GRUYÈRE AND BLACK PEPPER POPOVERS

Recipe adapted from: Foreign & Domestic Food & Drink, Austin, TX

Yield: 16 popovers

INGREDIENTS

2 cups whole milk
4 large eggs
1½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 ounces Gruyère cheese, cut into 16 small cubes, plus freshly grated cheese for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375˚ and position a rack in the bottom third. Place 2 muffin pans (or enough to make 16 popovers) in the oven to warm.
In a small saucepan, warm the milk over medium heat until it is hot (about 125˚) but not boiling. Remove from the heat. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the salt and black pepper until smooth. Slowly whisk in the warm milk. Add the flour and whisk until the batter is just combined. (It may be slightly lumpy.)
Remove the muffin pans from the oven. Spray the pans generously with nonstick cooking spray. Pour about ⅓ cup of the batter into each of 16 muffin cups. Set a cube of the cheese on top of the batter in each cup.
Bake the popovers until puffed and deep golden brown, about 40 minutes (do not open the door or they may collapse). Remove the popovers from the pans, sprinkle with the grated Gruyère and serve immediately.

Wow, I never knew pop-overs were so easy, just in case I'm posting this recipe as well...

POPOVERS

(Makes 6 large or 12 small popovers)

 

One classic American breakfast roll is the popover. It's a breakfast treat very similar to Yorkshire pudding and it's often served with fruit jams or whipped cream and it makes for a perfect dish to include with an Easter brunch.

Typically, popovers are served in a specific popover pan. They are characterized by their tall, straight walls unlike the angled walls of muffin or cupcake pans. That being said, not many of us actually have popover pans on hand mostly because they are good almost exclusively for popovers. We wanted to share a recipe that would work just as well in a muffin pan.

 

INGREDIENTS

2 cup whole milk heated to 110°F

3 large eggs

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

Shortening to grease the pan

 

DIRECTIONS

Grease a muffin pan with vegetable shortening, then dust lightly with flour. Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl until light and foamy. Slowly whisk in the milk and melted butter until incorporated.

Combine the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Whisk three quarters of the milk mixture into the flour mixture until no lumps remain. Whisk in the remaining milk mixture. Transfer the batter to a large measuring cup and cover with plastic. Let rest at room temperature for 1 hour.

Just before the hour is up, preheat the oven to 450°F. Place the muffin pan in the oven for 2 minutes to warm. Remove from the oven. Whisk the batter to recombine then pour into the prepared muffin pan, dividing evenly between the cups. Bake until just beginning to brown (15 minutes). Do not open the door to the oven after you put the popovers in. Reduce the heat to 350°F and bake for another 15 minutes, still not opening the oven door until after the 15 minutes are up.

Remove the popovers from the oven. Turn them onto a wire rack and pierce the bottoms with a knife to allow the steam to escape. Cool just enough so they can be handled. Eat immediately and serve with jam. Enjoy!

Notes on Prime Rib Roast

Found this in Fine Cooking...

We’ve all been there. You’re cooking a big, expensive roast for a large family gathering when the doubts begin to set in: Is it done yet? It is undercooked? (Or worse: Is it overcooked?) Well, I’m here to take that worry away with a simple method: Reverse Searing.

When you cook a roast, you typically brown the outside first to develop a deeply flavored crust before finishing it in the oven. Reverse searing is the opposite. You cook the roast slowly in a low oven until it’s just about done, and only then do you sear it in a scalding hot pan or blazing oven. Not only does the reverse sear work, but it works beautifully, keeping the inside of the roast cooked to the same rosy color from the center to the very edge, where a savory, deeply browned crust meets it.

Here’s why it works: Large cuts of meat, such as standing rib roast or even beef tenderloin, cook more evenly at lower temperatures. As the roast nears doneness, the lower heat prevents the meat’s internal temperature from spiking to overdone, which can happen in a blink when roasting with high heat. As an added benefit, searing already-cooked meat takes less time than searing raw meat, and less time searing helps keep that sad gray outer ring of overcooked meat at bay.

With this genius method, you can cook the meat hours ahead of the final sear, allowing you to pull the rest of the meal together without worrying about when the meat will be done.

Good to know…

Temperature Trumps Time

The times given for roasting in the following recipes are a guide and will vary depending on your oven, the size of the roast, and whether you use grain- or grass-fed beef. Use an instant-read thermometer and rely on temperature to gauge doneness.

Sitting Out Is Safe

The USDA, which errs on the conservative side, says it’s OK to leave an almost-cooked roast out at room temperature for up to 2 hours.

Two Ways To Sear

Searing on the stove allows for more control since you can see the browning, but the oven is hands off with less smoke and spattering. The choice is yours.

No Rest Required

If you roasted well ahead of the final sear, you don’t need to let the roast rest before slicing. Go ahead and carve away.


As the time gets closer to that Christmas meal, I need to do a little planning ahead.  I'll add anything I can think of that will help.

Holiday Eats Part 1

Time for the Holidays!
We have some holiday traditions every year, like Prime Rib on Christmas, tons of munchies on New Years Eve, etc. and each year I try to add another item for the tradition.  Doesn't happen every year, thank God, but on occasion I like to make it something everyone can get behind and know is going to happen.
So...even though Julie really doesn't like Onion Soup, it is a higher end, classic, comfort food for me. I found the following recipe on Tasting Table, so we'll see how this goes...

IRISH ONION SOUP

Recipe adapted from James Klucharits, ABV, New York City, via Tasting Table

Serves: 4
Cook Time: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp. Unsalted butter
2 medium Yellow onions - halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise into ½-inch-thick pieces
3 Tbsp. Irish whiskey
1 Tbsp. Granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp. plus a pinch Kosher salt
1 ½ Tbsp. All-purpose flour
1 clove Garlic - finely chopped
½ cup Dark Irish beer (such as Guinness)
6 ½ cups Beef stock or broth
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Day-old baguette, eight ¾-inch-thick slices
Sharp cheddar (preferably Irish cheddar), eight ¼-inch-thick slices

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet set over medium heat, melt the unsalted butter.  Once the butter has melted and the white foam subsides, add the sliced onions cook, using a wooden spoon to stir occasionally, until the onions are soft and golden, about 20 minutes.
Add the Irish whiskey, if you have a gas burner; carefully tilt the pan toward the flame to flambé the onion-and-whiskey mixture. If you have an electric or induction cooktop, use a long match to flambé the whiskey (or you can skip the flambéing altogether).
Stir in the granulated sugar.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions turn a darker shade of brown; 4 to 6 minutes.
Stir in the pinch of kosher salt, all-purpose flour, finely chopped garlic.  Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Then, while stirring, pour in the dark Irish beer.
Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the dark beer is reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes.
Add the beef stock, remaining 1½ teaspoons kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper.
Bring the soup to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 20 minutes.
Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the broiler to high.  Divide the soup among 4 oven-safe bowls and set them on a rimmed baking sheet. To each bowl, add 2 bread slices.
Cover each slice of bread with 2 pieces of the sliced sharp cheddar.
Set the rimmed baking sheet on the upper-middle oven rack and broil until the cheese is melted, golden and bubbling, 3 to 5 minutes (watch the cheese closely, as broiler intensities vary). Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

I'll also be trying the following, since Julie is such a fan of 'funeral potatoes'...

Scalloped Potatoes

Serves: 6
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1½ pounds firm, waxy potatoes (such as russets)—peeled, thin slices (crosswise)
1 onion, finely chopped
¼ pound cheddar cheese, grated
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 tablespoons butter, plus more for greasing
1 egg
1¼ cups whole milk

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350º. Grease a shallow, 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
In the dish, arrange the potato slices in layers, sprinkling each layer with onion, cheese, salt and pepper. Finish with a thick layer of cheese and dot the top with the remaining butter.
Beat the egg and milk together. Pour this mixture carefully over the potatoes. Cover the dish with buttered foil.
Bake in the center of the oven until the potatoes are tender and the topping is golden, 1½ hours. If you'd like the top to be more browned and crisp, remove the foil 15 to 20 minutes before you finishing baking. Serve warm.

And, one for breakfast?  Let's see how this goes over...

OVERNIGHT TEX-MEX EGG BAKE

Serves: 10
Prep time: 20 min

INGREDIENTS
12 oz. bulk spicy pork sausage
5 cups frozen hash brown potatoes – cubed or shredded
1 can (4.5 ounces) chopped green chiles, undrained
3 cups shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese (12 oz.)
6 eggs
1 ½ cups milk
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup salsa
Sour Cream
Avocados

DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 350°F.  Spray 13x9-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray.
In 10-inch skillet, cook sausage over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink. Drain on paper towel.
Spread frozen hash browns in baking dish. Sprinkle with sausage, green chiles and 1 ½ cups of the cheese.
In a medium bowl, beat eggs, milk and salt with fork or wire whisk until well blended. Pour over potato mixture.
Sprinkle with remaining 1 ½ cups cheese. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours but no longer than 12 hours.
Bake uncovered 50 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut into squares. Serve with salsa, avocado slices and sour cream.