Paninis and Sandwiches

Chili Lime Shrimp Pita Pocket

A Gorgeous Marcus Samuelsson Recipe

by Joi

Shrimp Recipe: Chili Lime Shrimp Pita Pocket by Marcus Samuelsson

Here’s another beautiful recipe from A Bullseye View! This is a Top Chef Master Marcus Samuelsson recipe…. so, yeah, you know it’s going to be culinary magic.  Not only is this a beautiful and delicious recipe, it’s healthy. Omega 3s are as healthy for brain health as they are heart health, and shrimp is a great source.  It’s also ridiculously tasty, so have at it!

Chili Lime Shrimp Pita Pocket
Serves four

What You’ll Need
1 pound jumbo shrimp, cleaned and cut into large pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 jalapeno, diced small
2 scallions, chopped
Juice of 2 limes
2 pita breads, each cut in half
2 cups shredded romaine

What You’ll Do

Step 1 – Season shrimp with salt and pepper.

Step 2 – Mix yogurt, chili powder, garlic powder and jalapeno in small bowl.

Step 3 – Heat olive oil in sauté pan on medium-high heat.

Step 4 – Add the shrimp and cook about a minute on each side.

Step 5 – Add the lime juice and remove from heat. Finish with scallions.

Step 6 – Stuff each piece of pita with 1/4 of the shrimp and romaine.  Drizzle on yogurt sauce, as desired.

 

Outside-In Bacon Cheeseburgers with Green Onion Mayo

from Rachael Ray's Top 30 Guy Foods

by Joi

Rachael Ray Cookbook: Top 30 Guy FoodsI have quite a few Rachael Ray Cookbooks in my cookbook collection.  She’s a favorite TV Personality and cookbook author, so if her name’s on it, I’m there.

My oldest daughter Emily (aka the Crazy Tea Chick) and I like a lot of the same haunts:

  • Starbucks
  • Olive Garden
  • Target
  • Kroger
  • Hobby Lobby
  • Bookstores
  • The Library
  • Wherever we happen to be eating lunch out at the moment!

Yesterday, we did it up right.  We hit about 4 of the different places in a matter of hours.  We roll like that - fast and caffeinated.

As I do on every trip to the library, I immediately began looking for my favorite types of books: Cookbooks, books about animals and/or birds, books about heart health and brain health, and biographies.  I also make a point of checking out at least one book that’ll teach me something or introduce me to something or someone I knew nothing about before.

If you love to cook, don’t make the mistake of over-looking your library. Most (like our library here in Owensboro) have amazing collections of cookbooks. You’ll find books about regional cooking, classic cookbooks, specialty cookbooks, and even (yay!) cookbooks by Food Network chefs.  I found an entire row of cookbooks by a personal favorite (Rachael Ray) yesterday. But, much to my 5’3″ chagrin, they were all on the highest shelf possible.  Fortunately, Emily (who isn’t much taller than me) has a killer reach and she retrieved a few down for me.

On this trip, I brought home Guy Food: Rachael Ray’s Top 30 30-Minute Meals. I’d never even seen it before but I have Guy Food / Comfort Food TOP 30 30 Minute Meals – 2 Set (Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals, Suggested Retail $25.90) and love it. Besides, it’s Rachael Ray – how are you going to go wrong?

When I get cookbooks from the library, if they’re excellent, I then find them on Amazon. If there’s only a certain number of recipes I want, I either make copies or go old school and write them down on index cards. Last night I told my husband that this is one I’ll have to DEFINITELY order on Amazon. Seriously, this is a fantastic collection of hearty, delicious-sounding recipes. I’m planning on making the one below, which also happened to be the first one in the cookbook, asap. Green Onion Mayo? I’m all about that and I’ve never even tried it.

Outside-In Bacon Cheeseburgers with Green Onion Mayo – by Rachael Ray

5 slices bacon, chopped
4 scallions, cleaned and trimmed
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
1 1/3 pounds ground beef sirloin
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, eyeball it
1 tablespoon steak seasoning blend or coarse salt and black pepper
1/2 pound extra sharp white cheddar cheese, crumbled
1 cup mayonnaise or reduced fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and pepper
4 crusty Kaiser rolls, split
4 leaves crisp romaine lettuce

Preheat grill pan over high heat.

In a medium pan brown bacon over medium high heat and drain on paper towel lined plate.

Brush scallions with a little oil and grill on hot grill pan 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Remove from heat to cool.

Combine ground beef with Worcestershire and steak seasoning or salt and pepper. Divide meat into 4 equal parts. Combine cheese crumbles and cooked bacon. Take 1/4 of the meat in your hand and make a well in the center of it. Pile in cheese and bacon, then carefully form the burger around the cheese and bacon filling. Make sure the fillings are completely covered with meat. When all 4 patties are formed, drizzle burgers with oil and place on hot grill pan. Cook 2 minutes on each side over high heat, reduce heat to medium low and cook burgers 7 or 8 minutes longer, turning occasionally. Do not press down on burgers as they cook. Transfer burgers to a plate and let them rest 5 minutes before serving.

Chop cooled, grilled green onions and add to a food processor. Add mayonnaise and cumin to the food processor and pulse the onions and mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper, to your taste.

Pile burgers on crusty buns and top with crisp lettuce leaves and a slather of green onion mayonnaise. As you bite into the burgers, you will find a smoky, cheesy surprise at the center.

Below are just a few of the other recipes in this great little cookbook:

  • There’s a very manly chili recipe with some surprising ingredients that will be tried in this very kitchen this week!
  • Blackened Chicken Pizza
  • A recipe for Mahi-Mahi Fillets, grilled
  • Tenderloin Steaks with Gorgonzola and Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary
  • If you or your guy (or kids! – they always love them) have a thing for chicken tenders, there’s a recipe for pecan-crusted chicken tenders you’ll flip for
  • Cheddar and Chive Bread
  • Corn on the Cob with Chili and Lime
  • Grilled Halibut Tacos with Guacamole Sauce
  • A lot more!

If you love great food, and especially if you have a guy you love to cook for, you’ll want to grab a copy of Guy Food: Rachael Ray’s Top 30 30-Minute Meals right away. It’s just a little over $10 and these are recipes you’ll use all year long.  Again and again.  And again!

Ultimate Guide to the Mediterranean Cooking and Eating

The Everything Mediterranean Diet Book

by Joi

The Everything Mediterranean Diet Book All You Need to Lose Weight and Stay Healthy!

I was recently sent a couple of books to review for the food blog and I’m getting a lot of mileage out of each of them:

  • The Everything Raw Food Recipe Book

In today’s post, I just want to focus on the first book.   We’ll serve up the Raw food tomorrow (trust me, you’re going to be impressed).

First of all, I have to say I LOVE The Everything… Series of books.  I’ve bought more of these books over the years than I can even begin to count.  Seriously, if there’s ever a subject you want to know more about, head to the bookstore (or to my favorite online destination, Amazon) and find The Everything book dealing with that subject.

Below are just a few of the zillions of subjects this series of books covers:

  • College Cooking
  • Fondue Party
  • Lactose-Free Cooking
  • Low-Salt Cooking
  • Health Guide to Thyroid Disease
  • Low Cholesterol Book
  • Reflexology Book
  • Stress Management Book
  • Civil War Book
  • Candlemaking Book
  • Cat Book
  • Coin Collecting
  • Cooking for Dogs
  • Green Living Book
  • Tex-Mex Cookbook (the next one I’m buying!)
  • Feng Shui
  • Guides to Writing
  • Countless Parenting Books
  • Foreign Language Guides
  • Travel Guides
  • Wedding Books
  • Writing Guides
  • Psychology Book
  • Etc, etc, etc.

I just wanted to give you a little idea of all the books in the series because I’m a “Learning Junkie” and book publishers like this make my life easier.

I have to say, I’ve always been fascinated by the Mediterranean Diet and the Mediterranean way of cooking and eating. What some people may not realize is that when we talk about the Mediterranean Diet, we aren’t talking about a stifling, 1/2 a grapefruit and 1/2 wheat toast for breakfast, broth and 1 boiled egg for lunch… type of restricted diet. No, no, a thousand times no. Believe me, I love food so much, I wouldn’t give anything like that the time of day!

The Mediterranean Diet is all about eating fresh, colorful, healthy, magnificent food. Part of my fascination with this type of eating lies in what it can do for you. I have written at length about the benefits of The Mediterranean Diet on my Self Help Blog (Self Help Daily) and my Mental Fitness Blog (Out of Bounds). The foods featured in The Mediterranean Diet are beneficial for your heart’s health, you waistline, your brain’s health, longevity, and just about every other corner of your life you can think of.

From page 3 of The Everything Mediterranean Diet Book: All you need to lose weight and stay healthy!:

Interest in the Mediterranean diet grew when scientists noted that people in the Mediterranean area had lower incidences of several diseases, but especially heart disease. Searching for the source of this lowered risk resulted in the examination of the lifestyles of those who live in the Mediterranean. Upon observation of lifestyle, the diet was an obvious point of review. The Mediterranean diet, while plant plentiful, is also rich in olive oil, a good source of omega-3 fatty acids. In addition to using olive oil for cooking, the Mediterranean diet has limited intake of solid or animal fats like lard. These factors are the likely cause of the diet’s impact on reduced risk of heart disease. While the diets of people in Mediterranean countries vary, the evidence related to health promotion is consistent throughout the region. To accommodate the varying eating patterns of the different countries, a multitude of Mediterranean food pyramids exist. The pyramids all reflect a similar look, with lots of plant foods, but each has a unique twist to represent the cuisine of the country. With this variety of pyramids, what constitutes a Mediterranean diet can be confusing, but a close look makes it clear that Mediterranean diets, no matter which cuisine they represent, are built around plant foods. – Page 3

On the next page, the reader is given a detailed Mediterranean Diet Pyramid, followed by many pages devoted to telling the reader why each step of the pyramid is crucial to good health. As I said before, I’ve been fascinated with this style of cooking and eating for a lot of years but this is the most concise, detailed, and thorough guide I’ve read. The authors don’t just lay it all out, they lay it out within reach of the reader!

The Everything Mediterranean Diet Book: All you need to lose weight and stay healthy! is more of an education than just a book/cookbook. I truly hope you’ll grab a copy and devote yourself to feeding your family and yourself the healthiest foods possible.

Below is one of the many amazing recipes from the book. We always have an abundance of zucchini and squash from our garden, so we’ll be having a lot of these this summer and fall! If I can convince my husband to put out some eggplant, we’ll really be set.

Vegetable Pita with Feta Cheese (page 228)

1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2″ pieces (lengthwise)
1 zucchini, sliced into 1/2″ pieces (lengthwise)
1 yellow squash, sliced
1 red onion, cut into 1/3″ rings
1 teaspoon virgin olive oil
fresh-cracked black pepper, to taste
6 whole-wheat pita bread
3 ounces feta cheese

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  2. Brush the sliced vegetables with oil and place on a racked baking sheet.  Sprinkle with black pepper.  Roast until tender.  (The vegetables can be prepared the night before – - – refrigerate; reheat or bring to room temperature before roasting.)
  3. Slice a 3″ opening in the pitas to gain access to the pockets.  Toast the pitas if desired.  Fill the pitas with the cooked vegetables.  Add cheese to each and serve.

Click HERE now to read more about this exceptional book. You’ll love it!

The Best Po’boys in New Orleans

I'd Crawl Across Glass for One Bite

by Joi

Po'boy

If you’ve ever had the honor of chomping deep into a Po’boy, you understand my pain… I’m now, officially, DYING for one of these outrageously delicious sandwiches!

Just in time for Mardi Gras, the Wall Street Journal is heading off in search of the best of New Orleans’ beloved po’boy. Writer and raconteur Steve Garbarino spent 72 hours of gravy-faced, napkin-thrashing, French bread-crunching taste-testing of the many variations of the Crescent City’s most famous sandwich.  Poor guy… I want to be him when I grow up.

He even shares with readers where to go outside of New Orleans to find the best po’boy, from New York to LA, Chicago and Baltimore!

In this week’s Off Duty section, he shares his reviews of 10 versions at restaurants and bars noted for their po’boys, both the iconic and “new.”  The result: none were bad, most were sloppy-delicious, and more than a few—good news—rose to greatness.

Check it out.  As for me, I’m trying to figure out the fastest route between me and a Po’boy.

Zesty New Bella Sun Luci Tomato Products

As Delicious as they are Good for You

by Joi

I recently had the delicious pleasure of reviewing some outstanding products from Bella Sun Luci. It was remarkable timing, actually, because I was in the deep stages of grieving for ripe tomatoes. As much as I love autumn and winter, I miss fresh produce badly!

When the box from Bella Sun Luci came, I tore right into it.  I happened to have a huge pot of homemade soup on the stove (beef, okra, tomato juice, carrots, potatoes, celery, corn, garbanzo beans, lima beans, asparagus…).  I’d tasted the soup about 30 minutes before the UPS man came and had determined that it needed a little pick-me-up.

As I took out the products, my eyes met the pick-me-up and off to the stove we went.  I added half the bag of Sun Dried Tomatoes with Zesty Peppers to the pot and stirred them in. Oh, the aroma!  I saved half the bag with omelets in mind for the next morning (they were amazing – the dried tomatoes and zesty peppers took them up to a whole new level.)

Later, when I served the soup for supper, my family (and I!) devoured several bowls.  The Sun Dried Tomatoes with Zesty Peppers gave the soup so much wonderful flavor – and it doesn’t get much easier than opening a bag and pouring contents into a pot.  Or an omelet.

The next product I was anxious to try was the amazing sounding Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Sauce with Whole Pinenuts.  Of course the obvious (and Heavenly) option for this sauce would be toasted bread.  However, I had a pot of homemade soup on cooking for supper and planned to serve rolls – not Italian or French bread.

It was still a few hours until supper, however, and I desperately wanted to try out the pesto sauce with pinenuts – so I fashioned a little snack.  I knew my husband and daughters would be up for a little mid-afternoon snacking as well so  I took a block of cream cheese out of the refrigerator and placed it on a plate.  Then I “painted” the white block with the pesto sauce.  It looked just like a little brick!  My youngest daughter thought it looked more like a baby meatloaf, but I’m sticking with the brick.

I placed a variety of crackers on a platter and put the brick in the middle.  Delicious!!!  All Bella Sun Luci products are packed with 100 percent Pure Olive Oil, which makes the flavor really something special.  Olive Oil also “ups” the ante on the health front as well.  Tomatoes are already packed with healthy goodness in the form of Lycopene, and when you add Olive Oil to the guest list – you’re doing something that’s as wonderful for your health as it is your taste buds.

Think of it as heart healthy omega 3 in every jar!

Did you know that Sun dried tomatoes have 12 times the Lycopene than a raw tomato?  12 times!  Lycopene is a phytochemical and proven antioxidant that may reduce the risk of certain cancers and heart disease.

It just makes good sense to include as many healthy foods in your families diet as possible and excellent products like Bella Sun Luci make it easy and delicious.

The sun dried tomatoes are as wonderful in tossed salads and pasta salads as they are in soup, chili, and omelets.  They also make exceptional pizza toppings.

The Pesto Sauce is wonderful on paninis, hamburgers, Boca Burgers, and other sandwiches. It adds a great deal of flavor – to say nothing of the health benefits.

In tomorrow’s post, I’ll tell you about more Bella Sun Luci products (including one that fans of Italian Food will flip for!) as well as more ways to enjoy them.  I’ll also share a couple of recipes with you I know you’ll love.

Leftover Turkey on Rye Sandwiches

Hellman's Mayo, Provolone and Avocado Make Great Co-Stars

by Joi

6 slices rye bread, toasted
turkey, thinly sliced
1 large avocado, peeled and sliced
1 cup Hellman’s Mayonnaise
Sargento’s Provolone Cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Squeeze a little fresh lemon juice on the avocado slices as soon as they’re exposed to the light of day. (brown avocado is just gross) Slather Hellman’s on 3 pieces of toasted rye bread and top with turkey, provolone, and avocado. Top with the other 3 slices of bread.

Serve with leftover Green Bean Casserole!

You can, of course, add dark leafy greens to your sandwich – but, personally, the flavor blend of Hellman’s, provolone, and avocado is so special – I hate for anything else to vie for my taste buds’ attention.

Another Leftover Turkey Idea:
Combine turkey, dressing, and cranberry sauce in pita pockets. Delicious!

Thanksgiving Leftovers, Meet Bobby Flay

Turkey Reuben With Thousand Island Coleslaw

by Joi

My family and I always have this discussion before Thanksgiving:

Me: I’m going to buy a turkey…

Them: Ewwww… get a ham instead..

Me (through clinched teeth): I’ll get both.

I’m a traditional kind of gal.  I want turkey on Thanksgiving and ham where it belongs – on Christmas and Easter.  But the majority of my family members simply don’t care that much for turkey. Go figure.

H-O-W-E-V-E-R, with the help of Hellmann’s Mayonnaise and Bobby Flay – I think I have them right where I want them.  Once they see this recipe, they’ll INSIST on turkey, for the leftovers, alone.

Ah, sweet success.

The recipe, below is from the collection of Bobby Flay recipes on Hellmann’s website. Each is, as you’d expect extraordinary.  To watch Bobby Flay make these Reubens, head over to the website for the video: Bobby Flay Makes a Turkey Reuben… and Saves Joi’s Traditional Thanksgiving.

Bobby Flay Turkey Reuben With Thousand Island Coleslaw

1/2 cup Hellmann’s® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise, divided
1/4 cup finely chopped dill pickle
2 Tbsp. ketchup
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 cups coleslaw mix
8 slices rye bread
8 slices Swiss cheese
1 lb. sliced cooked turkey

  1. Combine 1/4 cup Hellmann’s® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise, pickle, ketchup, vinegar and mustard with wire whisk in medium bowl. Season, if desired, with salt and pepper. Stir in coleslaw mix; set aside.
  2. Top 4 bread slices with cheese, turkey, coleslaw mixture, then remaining bread slice. Evenly spread outside of sandwiches with remaining 1/4 cup Mayonnaise. Cook sandwiches, in batches, in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, turning once, 8 minutes or until golden brown.

Cooking for Isaiah Has Recipes That’ll Astonish PLUS a Tailgating Recipe for Proof

by Joi

I was recently sent a new cookbook to review that I’m very excited about. Excited to tell you about and excited to cook each and every recipe in the 223 page book! You know how, sometimes, as you’re thumbing through a cookbook you’ll go, “I might make that… I’ll try that one… nah… nah… There’s one I might try…. nah…” With this cookbook, I thumbed through the entire book and each recipe was met with a, “I can’t wait to make that one!”

Not a single nah.

Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals was written by Silvana Nardone, founding editor in Chief of Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine. Rachael Ray, herself, wrote the foreword. Silvana is also a columnist for Every Day with Rachael Ray with the “No-Recipe Zone” and “Sweet Spot” columns.

However, in this particular interest, I’m certain she carries a much simpler name – one worn closer to the heart. When you get down to it, this cookbook was written by “Isaiah’s Mom.”

Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals is a labor of love. Silvana Nardone was challenged to create delicious meals for her young son, Isaiah, after he was diagnosed with food intolerances to gluten and dairy.

Description:
“The cornbread was flavorful, moist and light with a deliciously tender crumb. My only hope with this recipe was that Isaiah would love it… And then Isaiah took a bite. The look on his face was pure heaven.”
Cooking for Isaiah is a love story of Silvana Nardone’s journey to develop great-tasting meals for her son, Isaiah, after he was diagnosed with food intolerances to gluten and dairy. The results of her efforts are found in the pages of this book, through 135 recipes that are not only easy to make, but taste and look delicious.
From “S’mores Pancakes with Marshmallow Sauce” to “Double-Decker Toasted Cornbread and Spicy Greens Stack,” and “Chicken and Waffles with Maple Bacon Gravy” to “Chocolate Birthday Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting,” all of the recipes in Cooking for Isaiah are entirely free of gluten and dairy. Crafted with a variety of cooks in mind, an ingredient substitution chart shows you what to swap if, for example, you need to cook without gluten, but dairy is okay. You’ll also find Silvana’s tried-and-tested all-purpose flour and pancake mix recipes, sure to make gluten-free cooking and baking accessible to all. Written by Silvana Nardone, Editor in Chief of Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine, this charming, personal cookbook belongs on every cook’s shelf.

The cookbook is a labor of love.  Silvana Nardone was challenged to develop delicious (so delicious even a child would love them, without feeling like he was being robbed of a normal childhood filled with the kinds of foods kids love) meals for her son, Isaiah, after he was diagnosed with food-intolerances to gluten and dairy.

Remarkably, symptoms that had been plaguing young Isaiah cleared up almost immediately after his mom removed gluten and dairy from his diet.

While this cookbook would seem like a gift straight from Heaven for people of all ages who avoid gluten and/or dairy, I want to make one thing perfectly clear: Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals is an outstanding cookbook for anyone – even those of us who are bedfellows with gluten and dairy.

There are two groups of people who will want to RUSH over to Amazon and buy this cookbook the very minute they finish reading this cookbook review:

  1. Anyone who is gluten and/or dairy-intolerant – or loves someone who is.  These highly-original and creative recipes and meal ideas will knock your socks off.  The recipes will open up a whole new culinary world in which you’ll delight in exploring.  It’ll make eating fun and exciting again.
  2. Everyone else!  Even those of us who aren’t the least bit intolerant of gluten or dairy will fall instantly in love with this cookbook.  There is a wonderful chart on the inside back cover (as well as on page 17) that gives you substitutions to use if you want to… well… gluten-ize and dairy-ize the recipes.   Basically, it’s as simple as using your everyday flour, cow’s milk, pancake mix, and cornbread where the author has used her own gluten-free recipe for flour and pancake mix, or where she has substituted with Rice Milk (although I’m such a fanatic for Rice Milk, I wouldn’t dream of substituting for it… LOVE the stuff!).

The creativity the mom-author shows in these recipes boggles the mind while it leaves you drooling over the pictures (the ones in the book as well as the ones in your own mind).

About the Author, Silvana Nardone
Silvana Nardone is the founding Editor in Chief of Every Day with Rachael Ray, where she has been honored with the magazine industry’s top awards since its launch in 2005. She is the magazine’s “No-Recipe Zone” and “Sweet Spot” columnist. A writer, editor, cooking instructor, and food consultant, she is the coauthor of Saveur Cooks Authentic Italian, has been featured in many publications including the New York Times, and has appeared on NBC Weekend Today, WCBS News This Morning, WABC Eyewitness News This Morning, E! Entertainment True Hollywood Story, Fox News Fox & Friends, and the Food Network’s Roker on the Road. She was profiled by Big Apple Parent and About.com for her focus on gluten-free and dairy- free cooking. Silvana owned an Italian bakery, Fanciulla, when Rachael Ray hired her to launch her magazine. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband Stephen and two children, Isaiah and Chiara. Visit her blog at DishTowelDiaries.com.

The first recipe I made from this outstanding cookbook was the Toasted Ham-and-Tomato Cornbread Sandwiches with Jalapeno Mayonnaise.  I simply used my favorite Buttermilk Cornbread Recipe instead of the “Double Corn Cornbread” called for.  The Double Corn Cornbread recipe is found in the book on page 75 and sounds awesome.  In fact, I plan to give it a try – but I simply had the ingredients on hand for Buttermilk Cornbread, so I went with it.

Besides, I adore buttermilk cornbread and I knew there’d be enough left over for breakfast the next morning.  I love to split cornbread in half, butter it, and toast it lightly on the griddle, right beside eggs as they fry.  Then I top off the cornbread with a layer of Pepper Jelly and place the fried egg right up on top.  SO GOOD.  Then again, the cornbread with pepper jelly is a special experience, with or without the egg.

Toasted Ham-and-Tomato Cornbread Sandwiches with Jalapeno Mayonnaise

1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro or parsley leaves (I used cilantro)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt
4 (4-inch) squares Double Corn Cornbread (page 75) or store-bought cornbread – split and toasted
shredded lettuce (about 2 cups) for topping
1 pound deli-sliced smoked ham
4 tomato slices, for topping

1. In a food processor, combine the mayonnaise, jalapenos, cilantro, lime juice, honey, cumin, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Process until smooth. (This jalapeno mayonnaise is so good you’ll want to eat it straight from the food processor bowl – trust me on this one. Your’s truly spread some on a Ritz cracker and had a fine time.)
2. Spread about 1 tablespoon of the jalapeno mayonnaise on each cornbread bottom; top each with shredded lettuce, ham, and a tomato slice. Spread the remaining jalapeno mayonnaise on each cornbread top and set in place. To serve, cut diagonally.

I actually cooked my cornbread in a large round pan, so my sandwiches were triangular. They were all kinds of cute and even more delicious than I can tell you – however, next time (and there will be many, many next times) I’ll go the square route because it’d be easier to maneuver the tomatoes and lettuce on a wider playing field.

The jalapeno mayonnaise would be incredible on…

  • BLTs
  • Homemade Vegetarian Subway Sandwiches
  • Turkey Paninis
  • Chicken Paninis,
  • Egg sandwiches
  • Ritz Crackers…

The Toasted Ham-and-Tomato Cornbread Sandwiches with Jalapeno Mayonnaise would be an excellent recipe for tailgating.  You’d surely rack up points for creativity AND taste.

Recipes such as this one keep your family on their toes.  The reason I love creative, original recipes is this:  They show your family that you love them enough to make their meals extra-special.  Who wants to come home to the same meal every night?  Keep things interesting and unexpected!

Other Recipes in Cooking for Isaiah:

  • Penne with Walnut Cream Sauce
  • Tomato Live Black Bean Soup with Avocado Cream
  • Chicken Potpie Soup
  • Hash Brown Belgian Waffles with Apple Sausage and Fried Eggs (You should see the picture!)
  • Chocolate-Dipped Chocolate Doughnuts
  • Bacon-Apple Cornbread Stuffing
  • Creamed Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes
  • Grilled BBQ Onion-Smothered Double Bacon Burgers (I don’t think a teenager would even breath between bites.)
  • Raspberry-Lemon Meringue Layer Cake
  • Chocolate Birthday Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting
  • Super Fudge Brownies
  • Rocky Road Rice Crispy Treats
  • Grilled Vegetable Pesto Pizza
  • Chocolate Chip-Banana Split Belgian Waffles with Wet Walnuts and Hot Fudge Sauce
  • Grilled Corn Cakes with Strawberry Syrup
  • Isaiah’s Pumpkin Muffins with Crumble Topping
  • Asparagus Risotto Casserole
  • Creamy Corn Chowder
  • Isaiah’s Whipped Hot Cocoaccino (I’m enjoying one right this minute!!!  This is so delicious – it calls for rice milk, which I always have on hand.  Amazing – you’d know how amazing if you could see me licking my lips like crazy.)

Do yourself a huge favor and order a copy of Cooking for Isaiah: Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy Delicious Meals right now. You will not find recipes like these anywhere else.

As for me, my oldest daughter will be home on her lunch break in a few minutes, and I plan on meeting her in the kitchen with a mug of Isaiah’s Whipped Hot Cocoaccino. She’s kind of under the weather and I KNOW this will set her world right again.

A Must Have for Serious Cooks Is….

by Joi

Black & Decker Family-size Electric Griddle

My youngest daughter (Stephany) and her boyfriend (Rusty) got me a Black & Decker Family-size Electric Griddle last Christmas and I’ve used it nearly every day since. Bacon, grilled cheese, fried eggs, hamburgers, veggie burgers, French toast, pancakes, garlic bread – you name it, my beloved griddle and I whip it up.

It came in handy last night with our spaghetti supper. Stephany and I made a killer spaghetti sauce and we very much wanted garlic bread to accompany the meal. However, with our part of Kentucky registering in the late 90s and early 100s the past couple of weeks, we didn’t really want to heat the kitchen up with the oven.

So we heated the griddle, sliced the loaf, buttered and seasoned the slices and grilled them on the convenient, non-kitchen-heating-up griddle. Truth be told, even when the weather isn’t so intensely hot, I still prefer making my garlic bread on the griddle. It makes the outsides crunchy (if you leave it log enough) and golden brown while allowing the inside of the bread to stay soft, warm, and delicious.

The Black & Decker Family-size Electric Griddle has an extra large cooking surface for family-size meals but, frankly, I’d want this size even if it were just my husband and I. In fact, there have been times when we were the only two at home for breakfast, lunch, or supper and I’ve used my griddle. I love the convenience of cooking the bacon, eggs, and toast all in one place.

It makes clean-up so much easier!

I made myself a slice of cinnamon toast this morning and, like the garlic bread last night, using the griddle instead of the toaster left me with toast that was crunchy on the outside while remaining a little bit soft on the inside. Never underestimate a slice of warm cinnamon toast with a cup of hot coffee – an excellent way to start the day. What IS it about the aroma and flavor of cinnamon that’s so comforting and relaxing?

The Black & Decker Family-size Electric Griddle has something else that I love muchly – a warming tray. I use the warming tray to heat buns while cooking burgers or hot dogs. Nothing, I mean nothing, beats toasty buns.  The warming tray is also handy for keeping silver dollar or medium-sized pancakes warm while the rest finish cooking.

A removable drip tray collects unwanted oils for easy cleaning and I’m not even gonna lie, I’m all about easy cleaning.

I also use my electric griddle for heating tortillas for soft tacos, burritos, and wraps. All it takes is a few seconds on each side and the tortillas are perfectly warm and soft – just like they are in restaurants.

As I’ve said a gazillion times, a cook is only as good as the kitchen gadgets, appliances, quality ingredients, pots, pans, and equipment he/she surrounds themself with. The Black & Decker Family-size Electric Griddle is one of the best tools you can have in your arsenal.

I swear on my toasty buns.

Roast Beef Dippers With French Onion Soup

by Joi

I made these delicious Roast Beef Dippers for supper last night and they quickly disappeared.  I served them with a great tossed salad and fried apples.

Roast Beef Dippers With French Onion Soup

1 can condensed Campbell’s French Onion Soup
package of sliced quality roast beef
6 French rolls – about 3 to 4 inches long, each
6 Slices Provolone Cheese (I use Sargento)

Combine the soup and 1 can of water in a saucepan. Heat the soup until warm.  Add the slices of Roast Beef.  I bought deli roast beef because it simply tastes better than most of the varieties you find in the lunch meat aisle. However, there are some very good roast beef slices available – just be choosy and don’t pinch Penny too hard!  Roast beef slices are one of those things in the grocery store that you most definitely get what you pay for.

Heat the beef in the soup for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through.

Cut the rolls in half.  Using a slotted spoon, put the roast beef slices on the bottom halves of the rolls.  Put a few onions from the soup on top of the beef and top with the provolone cheese.  I folded the cheese in half and placed 1 piece of cheese on each slider – and, trust me, provolone is the cheese you’ll want to use in this instance.  Provolone is a Heavenly cheese and never more so than when it’s paired with roast beef.

Top each with the top halves of the rolls.

Divide the soup amongst 6 small bowls or custard cups.  Serve the sandwiches with the warm soup for dipping.

This is a very delicious, satisfying, and quick-as-a-wink recipe. These dippers can be served with a tossed salad, pasta salad, jell-o, or even a bag of Frito’s.  They’re as perfect for supper as they are for lunch.

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