Iron Chef Corn Recap

I have to admit, not every Iron Chef competition we've done has involved an ingredient that I particularly love. Melon, for example... not one of my favorite foods in general. Same thing with pumpkin. I even had my doubts about our ginger challenge, although it turned out pretty good. But corn? Man, I love corn. Who doesn't? It's sweet, buttery, juicy and fresh. It pairs well with just about anything. Corn is pretty much my favorite vegetable, mostly because it tastes so much better than any of the other vegetables. Sorry, broccoli. Too bad, asparagus. No hard feelings, kohlrabi. Yep. I knew this was going to be a great Iron Chef. And I was not disappointed.

We started the night with an appetizer offering from our lovely hostess, Laura. She made Corn Dip Filled Peppers with corn chips. The dip itself was cool and creamy, and Laura took it to a more elegant level by putting it into sliced bell pepper cups that added crunch. She also sprinkled corn chips on top of that for even more crunch and salty flavor. It was one of those dishes that stayed on the table all night because we constantly grazed off it and no one could bear to let her take it away. 

Next we enjoyed Chelyen's Jalapeno Corn Cakes with Cilantro Sour Cream sauce. They were sort of like little silver dollar pancakes made with corn and jalapenos, and I do love a savory pancake. They weren't all that spicy, but the cool sour cream would have taken care of it if they were. In fact, the Cilantro Sour Cream was so good it almost overshadowed the corn cake, and I would definitely love to try the sour cream on other Mexican dishes!

Cara originally chose to do a drink, but after trying the only corn drink recipe she could find, she decided not to subject us to it, for which we are eternally grateful. She switched to an appetizer and it turned out to be a great plan, since she had the winning dish of the night! Her Roasted Corn and Poblano Pepper Poppers were a big hit. Some were spicier than others, but the creamy insides and panko crumb topping helped keep it cool. These were cheesy, spicy, corny and clearly the favorite of the night!

Our first side dish was Doan's Truffled Corn with Maple Bacon and... um... corn, bacon, truffle oil? Those are some of the most delicious sounding words in the world. Doan did a great job balancing the truffle oil (which can be overpowering if overdone) with the flavors of the corn and crispy bacon. This was a little like creamed corn taken to another level of tastiness.

The other side for the evening was an offering from Shu: Grilled Corn, Black Bean and Mango salsa. Now, I'm not a big fan of beans, so I avoided them, but the other ladies say that it was a great combination. I thought the mango with corn was really interesting! It tasted really bright and fresh, and was a completely different flavor profile from all the creamy or sweet items everyone else made, which really made it stand out. 

There were two mains for the evening, starting with our second place finisher: a vegetarian Corn and Poblano Lasagna from Emily. It is difficult to make an entree that really features corn so this lasagna was a genius find. It was a white lasagna with plenty of cheesy, creamy goodness from the corn sauce, and just a hint of heat from the poblanos. Plus yellow squash and zucchini to give it some structure.

The other main came from me and there's no photo because it honestly was just a sad, sorry mess and I didn't want photographic evidence of my epic fail. Corn tortillas stuffed with a chicken-corn mixture that dried out in the oven... I don't even want to talk about it. Suffice to say, I decided to wing it, and that's not something I will ever do again!

Our foray into corn desserts began with Kim's Butterscotch Corn Cake. Made with butterscotch schnapps (a tongue twister for some of us at this point in the evening) and creamed corn, it was very moist and almost bread-pudding like. It was sweet and delicious, and I think that if you didn't know it had corn in it, you might not realize it. The butterscotch flavor really came through and was a great component of the cake. 

Our other dessert was also a corn cake, but Kristy's Sweet Corn Cake with Blackberry Compote tasted very different from Kim's. This one veered more towards cornbread, but sweeter, and the spiced blackberry compote was really complex and flavorful with hints of nutmeg. I think the compote would be delicious with ice cream as well! 

By the end of the night, we were all comfortably full and happy with all the dishes. Everyone highlighted the best parts of corn and it was a great choice for a summer competition. Congrats to our winner, Cara and runner up, Emily! We are looking forward to our next Iron Chef hopefully sometime this fall! Until then, try one of the dishes above or figure out what you would have entered in Iron Chef Corn!  

Braised Short Rib Pasta

I know I’ve mentioned my love of braising before. And I’m sure I must have told you how I love a great long-cooking pasta sauce. This recipe combines those two loves into one fantastic, meaty, saucy meal. Short ribs are great for recipes like this because they don’t seem to get as dried out and stringy as other cuts of beef do. This sauce is really flavorful with depth, and tastes great on homemade pasta (if you have the discipline to do it). I will say that although it’s a great dish, it doesn’t have the complexity that my Bolognese has, but it’s still very good and definitely worth a few hours on a lazy Sunday. Although it’s a long recipe, it’s not too terribly complicated. I found the recipe on The Tasty Bite blog and the only real changes we made were to add pancetta (why not?!) and some seasoning adjustments at the end.

Ingredients

2 tbsps extra-virgin olive oil

3 lbs. flanken-style short ribs with bones, cut 2 inches thick

½ cup all-purpose flour

3 oz pancetta, cubed

1 large onion, chopped

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

½ cup fresh parsley, chopped

4 cloves garlic

28 oz. canned tomatoes

2 tbsps tomato paste

1 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 tsp dried oregano

2 bay leaves

2 cups beef broth

1½ cups dry red wine

1 lb dried or fresh tagliatelle

Salt and pepper, to taste

Cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)

Start by chopping your veggies and setting them aside. Then pat dry the short ribs and season well with salt and pepper, then dredge lightly in flour. Add your oil to a dutch oven over medium heat, and then brown the ribs on all sides, in batches. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add in your pancetta and crisp it up for about five minutes before adding in your onion, carrots, parsley and garlic. Cook for another 10 minutes until the veggies are soft and then add in the tomatoes, paste, cocoa, rosemary, thyme, oregano, bay leaves, broth and wine. Stir well and bring to a boil.

Take it down to a simmer and return the ribs to the pot. Cover and cook for an hour and a half. Then remove the lid, stir and simmer for another hour and a half. After it’s done cooking, you’ll want to start your water boiling for pasta and cook as directed on the package. As I said, we used fresh pasta, but this would be just fine with dried as well. Take the meat out of the sauce and remove the bones and any membrane before shredding. Remove the bay leaves and discard them before using an immersion blender (or a regular blender carefully) to blend up the vegetables in the sauce and make a puree. Return the meat to the sauce and taste. This is where we had to add a good amount of salt and pepper, and also chose to add in about a teaspoon and a half of cayenne. We liked the subtle heat it brought, but it’s totally a personal decision.

Once your pasta is cooked, drain it and add to the sauce. Mix, and serve with some high quality grated Parmesan on top! Then spend the rest of the evening lying around with a full belly, groaning but happy.

Spicy Sesame Carrot Salad

Carrots are fine. To me, that's all I can say. I don't dislike them. I don't love them. They are just fine. But, the Hubs likes carrots a lot. And I found out as I was making this carrot salad, my two dogs also really like carrots. Well, one of them likes them, the other I'm pretty sure thinks they are just orange sticks and is a little confused by them. But that's neither here nor there. The important part is that even though I'm not a big fan of carrots, this Spicy Sesame Carrot Salad was really good. I even went back for seconds. I found the recipe on YumSugar and pretty much followed it exactly, although I skipped the sesame seeds because I just find them to be a nuisance. And I put about a half teaspoon more of sesame oil because I love it so. This salad is just a little tart from the vinegar, and has a building heat. The carrots are still crunchy but a little softer than an untreated carrot, and it gets some nice flavor from the sesame oil and cilantro. It's a great summer side! 

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (I added a little more)

1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted (optional)

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp if you don’t like spicy)

Kosher salt

1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled lengthwise into thin ribbons

1 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves

Start by peeling your carrots, then use the peeler to cut the clean carrots into ribbons. This was harder to do than I thought, and I actually had some of the centers of the carrots left where it was no longer viable for me to get ribbons of carrot without also getting ribbons of finger. So I gave the carrot centers to the dogs (and the Hubs). In a separate bowl, whisk together the garlic, vinegars, honey, sesame oil, seeds, flakes and salt. Pour this dressing over the carrots, add the cilantro, and mix thoroughly. I would let it rest for at least 10-15 minutes for the flavors to get into the carrots a little bit. And make sure to mix it again as you serve it because the dressing tends to sink to the bottom of the bowl. I’m sure this is a side dish that everyone will enjoy! 

Aloha Burger

I don’t often make burgers for home consumption, although I do often ORDER a burger at a restaurant. And I really do enjoy burgers of all shapes and sizes (with fries, gotta have great fries!) But I think they are one of those things that seem really simple to make, and they really aren’t. First you have the patty. Gotta figure out what kind of meat, and do you want to add any seasoning or anything to pep it up. It’s hard to make the perfect patty. Then come the toppings. And when do you prep those? Do they go on the burger while it’s cooking or after? And the bun! There are a thousand buns to choose from. English muffin is a personal favorite, but the classic is good too. So, as you can see, there’s a reason why I’ve never posted a burger on this site before. But I decided that I’d try one for the July Fourth weekend. This aloha burger caught my eye because it has pineapple on top! Yes, pineapple! It seems a little strange, but it actually tasted really good. We had some issues with our patty, but I’m modifying the recipe below to reflect changes I would make to solve the meatball effect. I would definitely make this again.

Patty Ingredients

½ pound ground beef

½ pound sausage (I used Hot)

1 medium onion, diced small

1 jalapeño, minced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried oregano (or basil)

1 tablespoon garlic powder

3 tablespoons barbecue sauce

Toppings

Barbeque Sauce

Pineapple Slices

Bacon

Cheddar (or your favorite cheese)

This makes about six big patties. We actually only cooked half and froze the others to make later! If you want to make it with all beef, that’s fine too. I just like the extra flavor that sausage brings. Take your beef and sausage out of the fridge while you prep so that when you mix with your hands you won’t freeze your fingers. Sauté your onion and jalapeno for just a few minutes in a little olive oil to soften them up. Add the garlic and stir for another 30 seconds before taking it off the heat and letting it cool. You can skip this step if you aren’t feeling it, but the heat helps bring out the flavors a little and I think helps it feel more incorporated into the patty. Sometimes raw veggies want to separate from the meat a little more than sautéed ones do.

In a bowl, mix together the beef and sausage with the cooled onion, jalapeno and garlic. Add in your spices and barbecue sauce and mix those really well with your hands. I’ve found that using cooking gloves really helps with the mess here. Seems a little excessive but no one likes raw meat under the fingernails.

Once the meat is thoroughly mixed, form it into patties and cook on your grill! Add the cheese towards the end to melt onto the patty. Give your buns a light toast while you’re at it. And don’t forget to grill the pineapple! Then build your burger. I opted to put the pineapple on top of the burger so that it wouldn’t get the bottom bun all soggy. So, cheese, pineapple, a little BBQ sauce (Stubb’s Spicy is my favorite!) and a few strips of bacon. Then say Aloha to your hunger!

Nutella Swirl Bundt Cake

Our friends hosted a Fourth of July cookout. We were asked to bring a side dish for those who wanted to bring something. I, on the other hand, wanted to bring a dessert. I know whenever I go to a cookout I always want something sweet after the main course. However, I wasn't sure what I wanted to bake. I contemplated bringing this lime pie, see's fudge, or finding something on the Internet that I've never made before. Ultimately, I opted to bring something I've never made. I found this recipe from My Catholic Kitchen , and I thought it sounded pretty good. You know how much I love nutella (at least you do if you've been reading this blog long enough) and a bundt cake is a fairly easy cake to make. Unfortunately, it didn't come out of the bundt pan too well. This is probably because I left to go to the pool and it sat too long in the pan. Oh well. It still tasted great. I thought it had the right amount of sweetness. Overall, it was a big hit as I had no leftovers to take home with me. And, the cook out was a smashing success. Lots of good food, great company, and we even got to see some fireworks.

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup softened butter
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs, room temperature
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Nutella spread

First take out your bundt pan and grease well with cooking oil spray. Set aside. Pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees. Now, take out your mixing bowl and add your softened butter and the sugar. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Then, add your eggs one at a time while the mixer is on low speed. Add in the vanilla. Then, add in the flour alternating with the buttermilk and finishing with the flour. Pour half the batter into the bundt pan. Then, microwave for 30 seconds the nutella. Pour as evenly as you can the nutella spread onto the batter. Then, add the remaining batter. Take a bamboo stick or chopsticks and swirl it in the batter. Bake for an hour to an hour and 10 minutes in the oven. Rotate the pan half way thru to ensure even baking. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan. Sprinkle with powder sugar if you desire.

Giada's Lemony White Bean and Arugula Salad

I know! I know! I'm posting another salad recipe. But, it is summer after all, and I'm trying to get healthy. So, why not help you get healthy, too. Ha. In all seriousness, this is a really delicious salad. I found this recipe on The Food Network. And, it's a Giada recipe, so it has to be yummy, right? Right. Last year, I made a similar recipe here, but this one you eat on a crostini. Yeah, not as healthy, but just as scrumptious. For this salad, I added pine nuts to give it a bit more crunch, but I think it need even more of a crunch. Perhaps pecans would have worked better than the pine nuts. But, it certainly didn't take away from the flavor. The dressing was really good, too. I think I'm going to incorporate this dressing in more salads than just this one. Overall, I really enjoyed the salad, and I know I will be making it again. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Salad:
5 packed cups (5 ounces) arugula
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini or great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
3 tbsp Pine Nuts or Pecans (optional)

Dressing:
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 large lemon)
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon lemon zest
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Take out a small bowl, and add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste, and whisk well. Set aside. To make the salad; take out a large bowl and add the salad, beans, chopped onions, capers (if using), and any nuts you may be using. Pour the dressing onto the salad, and toss to combine. Enjoy.

Chocolate Cupcake with Strawberry Buttercream

The last couple posts have been fairly healthy; a couple salads and a pasta salad. Even the smoked wings are fairly healthy except for the ranch dip, perhaps. Alas, I'm here to post a so not healthy recipe but it's a so very good recipe!! Recently, a friend turned 35, and I offered to bring something for her celebration. I was told that if I brought one of my baked goodies they would be very happy. I found out that our friend loves chocolate and strawberries. I've seen several recipes floating around for cupcakes with strawberry frosting, and I thought it would be the perfect thing to bake. I decided to use this chocolate cupcake recipe. But, I shouldn't have started cleaning my bathtub while the cupcakes were baking, because they ended up a tad overbaked. Doh! I don't think anyone noticed. Hopefully. I found the strawberry buttercream from Sweet Lavender Bake Shop. It was quite scrumptious. Granted, the recipe calls for 4 sticks of butter! Yowza! Alas, this isn't a frosting you want to make every day, but once a year should suffice. Overall, I think the cupcakes were a big hit. The birthday girl approved, too! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Cupcake Batter:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups good cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Strawberry Buttercream:
5 large egg whites
1 cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
4 sticks unsalted butter, almost room temp (cut into little cubes)
2 tsp vanilla extract
½-1 whole vanilla bean
3/4 cup fresh strawberry puree macerated with 2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cupcake pans with cupcake liners. Set aside. Take the bowl from your standing mixture and add in the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix together to combine. Take a medium sized bowl and add in your buttermilk, vegetable oil (I used canola oil), eggs, and vanilla. Stir. Slowly add the liquids to the dry ingredients while the speed of the mixture is on low. Once combined; slowly add in the coffee. Now, I was pretty concerned because the mixture was very liquidy (sorry, just made up a new word). Have no fear; just pour the mixture directly into your prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of a couple cupcakes. Remove from oven and cool completely.

Now to make the strawberry buttercream; take out your blender and puree the strawberries. I used a pint of fresh strawberries. Measure out 3/4 of the strawberry puree and pour into a small bowl. Add 2 tbsp of sugar. Stir and set aside. Next, get out a medium sized saucepan and add water about half way. Bring to a boil. Add the bowl from your standing mixer to the saucepan to create a double boiler. Add the egg whites and sugar and whisk constantly until the sugar melts. This should only take a couple minutes if that. Remove the standing mixer and attach it back to the mixer. Attach your wire whisk and whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. This takes about 10 minutes. Make sure they egg whites have cooled by touching the bottom of the bowl. Next, one square at a time add the butter into the egg whites. Continue to do this until the butter is fully incorporated. Add the vanilla and the vanilla bean. Lastly, add the strawberry puree to the mixture. Stir until full incorporated. Filly a pastry bag with a large star attachment and pipe onto the cooled cupcakes. Enjoy!

Chinese Chicken Salad with Red Chile Peanut Dressing

Recently, I flew to Florida for a little vacation. It was a wonderful trip. I got to fly in a little 4 seater Cessna plane. I went out on a boat in the Tampa Bay Harbor with my aunt and uncle. I went to the beach for a day, and of course ate a cuban. I always eat a cuban sandwich whenever I visit my hometown. After-all, that's one of the few states where you can get a "real" cuban. Also, while visiting my cousin in Bradenton, we made a quick trip to the store to get ingredients for a salad and for my mango and pineapple salsa. Well, the mango and pineapple salsa was such a hit that we ended up getting too full on it, and never made the salad. Well, I really wanted to try this salad because my cousin said the peanut dressing that goes on it is delicious. When I got back home to Richmond; I sent my cousin a quick text asking for the recipe. I didn't realize it was a Bobby Flay recipe. I should have known it was good just based of that name alone. And, indeed, it's delicious. The salad had a nice crunch with the peanuts, and the dressing had a nice kick with the peppers. I highly recommend this dish. I know I will be making it again. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Dressing:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
2 teaspoons chipotle peppers, puree
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup canola oil
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Salad:
1/2 head napa cabbage, shredded
1/2 head romaine lettuce, shredded
2 carrots, shredded
1/4 lb snow peas, julienned
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion
2 cups shredded rotisserie cooked chicken
1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
chili oil (optional)
grilled lime, halved for garnish

Whisk together the rice wine vinegar, peanut butter, ginger, pureed chipotle peppers, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, and canola oil in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Take out a large bowl and combine the lettuce, carrots, snow peas, cilantro, green onions, shredded chicken, peanuts, and mint leaves. Toss to combine. Drizzle with chili oil if using. Pour the dressing on the salad, and toss till well combined. Serve immediately.

Smoked Wings with Homemade Ranch Dip

It’s hard to believe it’s only been a year since we got our smoker. Since then we’ve smoked ribs, we’ve smoked pork butt, we’ve smoked salmon. And three times, we’ve smoked chicken wings. It all turned out fabulous, don’t get me wrong, but the wings are so easy (relatively) and so, so good. That’s why we make them so often. And I should clarify, when I say “we” I definitely mean the Hubs. The smoker is his baby and he handles everything from start to finish. I just make the sauces. Speaking of which, I have this great recipe for homemade Ranch dip that goes well with the wings. I found it on Carla’s Confections. It’s garlicky with a hint of dill, and a smidge thinner and slightly chunkier than the stuff you buy at the store, which makes it perfect for dipping your wings! The wings themselves are a tiny big spicy, with tons of great smoky flavor. We found the rub recipe on The Black Peppercorn.

WING RUB

¾ cup paprika

½ cup sugar

½ cup salt

¼ cup ground black pepper

3 tbsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp thyme

2 tbsp dry mustard

2 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp sage

This makes a ton of dry rub, so if you aren’t having a huge party, you might want to cut it down. Mix all the ingredients together well in a Tupperware container or mason jar. You can store leftovers in the fridge and use it for other chicken or pork or hey, more chicken wings.

The Hubs gets full wings and breaks them down instead of getting precut drummies. Cut it at the joints and toss the wing tips (unless you have some great recipe for them that I don’t know about). You’ll want to get the rub on the wings 24 hours in advance if possible. It just helps the flavor to seep into the wings a little bit. On the day you’re going to smoke them, put them in a single layer into a disposable metal tray (or two, or more) with a lip. The lip is important because your next step is to slice pats of butter and scatter them on top of the chicken. This is the Hubs secret for keeping the wings moist (and delicious!). I’d say roughly a stick of butter per 9 by 12 tray.

Hopefully if you are interested enough in smoking wings I don’t have to explain to you how to use a smoker. Get it up to 200-225 degrees and keep it there as you smoke the wings for around two hours. We use Mesquite wood, but I've also heard that any fruit tree is great for chicken. To make sure they are done, cut one open after the two hours and make sure the juices run clear. If you want to use a meat thermometer instead, just make sure the internal temp is up to 160 degrees. 

RANCH DIP

1 c mayonnaise

1/2 c sour cream

1/2 c chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

2 Tbsp green onion chopped small

2 large cloves of garlic

1/8 - 1/4 c milk (more if needed)

1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp white vinegar

1/2 tsp paprika

2 tsp fresh dill, bruised

1/2 tsp dried oregano

Salt and pepper, to taste

For the dip flavors to develop you want to make it ahead of time. At least two hours, but I think it’s better to make it a day ahead if you can. Mix all the ingredients together and stir well. I wanted my dip to be a little thinner so I was close to the ¼ cup of milk, maybe more. If the chunky texture bothers you, you can always make it in the food processor. This makes a good amount of dip, but if you have leftovers there are plenty of places to use good Ranch. I’m sure you’ll come up with something!