Sweet! Brussels Sprouts that is!

Today I threw together an impromptu snack of awesome for my girlfriend. I know she enjoys brussels sprouts and thought that I should cook the ones I had in the fridge.








Ingredients:
Brussels Sprouts
Sake
Brandy
Teriyaki Sauce
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Italian Herb Mix
Butter

I began this recipe by rinsing off my Brussels Sprouts and then slicing them in half lengthwise. I put all of these into a mixing bowl I had on hand.

I then put a saucepan on the stovetop and turned the heat to medium. At this point I put in about a 1/3 of a stick of Butter. After it melts about 1/2 way or so, pour in about 1/4 cup of Sake. Just enough to cover the bottom of the pan. I put in about 1/4 of a cup worth of Brandy, just enough to make it's presence known. I swirled this all together and then tossed in the Brussels Sprouts. On top of this I added in a healthy dose of Onion Powder and then the same with Garlic Powder. Maybe a little more Garlic Powder? A healthy pinch of Italian Herb Mix went next. I then mixed all of this together and let cook for about 1 minute. Then I added in a healthy dose of Teriyaki Sauce; this is where the sweetness really shines through. The Brandy will make it quite sweet, but the Teriyaki Sauce throws it over the top and that is what we want here.

You'll know they are done when the white inside portions of the Brussels Sprouts are turned that brownish hue of the Teriyaki Sauce. Or just taste test, that always works as well. Enjoy.

Chef's Original: Worktime Lunch

Tonight I decided to cook up the mushrooms and bell peppers I had in my fridge. They were not going bad or anything, but were screaming at me to use them. So in spontaneous fashion, I threw together a Chef's Original dish.






Ingredients:
1 lb White Button Mushrooms (diced)
1 Red Bell Pepper (sliced)
1 Green Bell Pepper (diced)
Sake
White Wine
Port
Teriyaki Sauce
Soy Sauce
Sweet and Sour Sauce
Italian Herb Mix
Ground Black Pepper
Butter
Basil Leaves

I began by placing my saucepan on the stove and setting the temperature to medium. I grabbed the Butter and put about 1/3 of a stick in the pan. I poured in about 1/2 a cup of the White Wine to start things off, followed up by 1/4 cups of Sake and Port. To this mixture, I added in a dash or three of Teriyaki Sauce, Soy Sauce, and Sweet/Sour Sauce. I then threw the Red Bell Pepper slices into the pan. On top of that went the Mushrooms, which were quickly followed up with by the Green Bell Pepper pieces.

To top this off, I added in a healthy dusting of the Italian Herb Mix and Ground Black Pepper. I then used a pair of tongs to mix everything together evenly. Make sure to stir every once in awhile for everything to cook properly.

About 2 minutes into the cooking process, I added in some Basil Leaves. I want to say about 1/4 cup to 1/2 a cup. I'm not sure, I just grabbed a bundle of the Basil and started tearing them into small pieces and tossing them in the pot. So don't use a measurement here, use your love of Basil. Go Nuts!

I stirred them in and let the concoction cook for about 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally. You can check to see if the vegetables are done by observing the Peppers being soft, as well as the Mushrooms being spongey. If you can't tell, taste testing is always a good plan! Enjoy!

This is for my coworkers: If you are the first one to come to my desk tomorrow at work, and say I LOVE MUSHROOMS, you get a free lunch!

Shrimp a la Salad

I decided that a seafood dish was needed to be done. So, I created an amazingly tasty one.











Ingredients:
1/2 lb Shrimp
1/4 cup Soy Sauce
1/4 cup Teriyaki Sauce
3/4 cup Sake
1 cup Port Vino
1/4 cup Lemon Juice
1/3 cup Italian Herb Mix
dash of Ground Black Pepper
dash of Garlic Salt
Salad
Salad Dressing (I used Catalina)
1 sm Tomato
Asiago Cheese

I started off mixing all the ingredients together but the Shrimp, Salad, Salad Dressing, and Tomato. I then whisked it all together into a consistent mix, which of course the Shrimp then went into. I marinaded it this way for approximately 10 minutes.

I turned my stovetop to medium heat and put my large saucepan on. Once it was warming up quite well, I poured the Shrimp and marinade directly into the pan. I made sure each Shrimp was not overlapping another so as to not mess up the cooking times.

I stirred this on occasion and once the Shrimp turned orange/red then were done so I turned off the heat. I had a small salad ready with a small sliced Tomato. I then used two skewers to skewer 4 Shrimp and place on top of the salad. I added a small amount of dressing to the side of the skewers along with a pinch of Asiago Cheese. Enjoy!

Porto Port

After eating out last night and enjoying a Port demi-glase on my deliciously tasty Beef Tenderloin, I was intrigued by Port Vino. I have never cooked with this and thought, hmm... why haven't I!? So I picked a bottle up. This is the main result of the day after.





Ingredients:
2 Portobello Mushrooms
Italian Herb Mix
Sake
Port Vino

I put my saucepan on the stovetop and set the temperature to medium. I then put a 1/8 of a stick of butter in the pan since I love cooking with butter. Once that started to sizzle/melt, I poured in about 3/4 a cup of Port and a 1/4 cup of Sake, then I swirled it around to coat the bottom of the saucepan quickly. I put the Portobello Mushrooms in gill side down and covered the pan. I put the Italian Herb Mix in at this point, approximately 1/3 of a cup. After a few minutes I flipped the mushrooms. Check to see if they are spongey, which when they are it means they are cooked properly. Take off and serve to your own desire. Enjoy!

Appetizer: Asparagus

This was simpler idea than the previously posted Asparagus and Mushrooms. This is just the Asparagus, but a little different. I like to change my recipes a little bit here and there because the exact same thing is just too boring! Let's get to it...





Ingredients:
Asparagus
Butter
Italian Herbs
Ground Black Pepper
Garlic Salt
Sake

I began this recipe by cutting off the base of the Asparagus spears. I did this because I have noticed that the bottom end of the spear is the first part to get soggy and/or go bad. So instead of risking that ruining the entire thing, I just cut it off. Oh well, it's compost.

I put my large saucepan on the stovetop and turn the heat to medium. If you have not noticed by now, medium heat is my best friend for cooking. It lets me take care of many things at once since I have a pretty good idea how most things cook at that temperature. Back to point, I then grab a stick of Butter and cut approximately 1/3 of the stick off and toss it gently into the saucepan. It should melt pretty quickly, but good thing we have everything else ready.

The Asparagus spears should go in once the Butter is mostly melted. I just tossed them in there, no need to be gentle. Once they are in there, I moved the saucepan back and forth while stirring with a wooden spoon to make sure they are all liberally covered in Butter. I place the saucepan back down and turn to my spices. Ground Black Pepper first, followed by the Italian Herbs, and rounded out with the Garlic Salt. Choose your own amounts to fit your tastes, or to not fit your tastes and try something new!

About 3 minutes in, I grab my bottle of Sake and pour in about 1/3 of a cup. I do not recall how much exactly, I poured straight from the bottle. It sizzle right away, sounds amazing! Stir everything together to make sure the Sake gets to every one of the spears.

Taste test on occasion to make sure it's cooked properly. Once done, take out and serve. I chose to serve mine with a small Campari Tomato and a dash of those Italian Herbs and Sesame Seeds on top. Enjoy.

Spoonful of Mushroom Couscous

So in a lot of my posts, I have either Mushrooms or Couscous involved. Well, looks like it's about time they met up and made an amazing meal. I decided to make this today as a lunchtime meal, and it was just so simple to make that I was hitting myself for not figuring it out sooner!



Ingredients:
1/2 lb Shiitake Mushrooms
1 lb Cremini Mushrooms
Sake
Teriyaki Sauce
Soy Sauce
Lime Juice
Ground Black Pepper
Garlic Salt
Couscous

I began with a saucepan where I poured in a liberal amount of Sake. Added to that was a light amount of Soy and Teriyaki Sauce. The same for Lime Juice. I turned the heat to medium.

I then sliced the Cremini Mushrooms and Shiitake Mushrooms into smaller portions and tossed them all into the saucepan. To that, I added the Ground Black Pepper and Garlic salt. Not too much otherwise they will overpower everything else. Mix everything together with tongs to make sure everything gets equal flavor.

At this point, I started the Couscous in my rice cooker. It finished cooking right as the rest of the recipe was finishing up.

Back to the Mushrooms, stir them again. They should be spongey about now so turn the heat off. Get your food processor or blender and puree the Mushrooms as much as you can. They turned into a kind of paste for me, which turns out to work quite well.

Since the Couscous is done now, just put that down first and top with the Mushroom paste. Garnish with a sprinkling of Italian Herbs and you are good to go. Enjoy.

Sauteed Asparagus & Mushrooms

Today I decided an amazing feast was needed, so I took a look in my fridge. Low and behold what did I find!?! Asparagus and Cremini Mushrooms...what a great mix to make for an easy dinner! When I was growing up I stayed away from Asparagus due to that pungent aroma that wafted off of it, however now I have changed my ways and it is quite the tasty treat.

Ingredients:
Asparagus
Cremini Mushrooms
Green Onions/Scallions
Sake
Teriyaki Sauce
Ground Black Pepper
Garlic Salt
Celery Salt
Italian Herb Mix
Butter
Sesame Seeds

I began with putting butter in a large saucepan and set the heat to medium. Then I covered it to speed it up a little bit, patience isn't exactly my strongest quality.

Once the butter was about halfway melted, I added in approximately half a cup of Sake. I moved the saucepan around so the butter and Sake mixed properly. To that, I added a healthy pinch or two of my Italian Herb Mix.

On top of this goes the Asparagus, which I then mixed into the butter/Sake mix by using a pair of tongs. Once that was done, I added a light dusting of Ground Black Pepper. To this part, you will want to mix it up every once in awhile. To test if done, just pull one out, let it cool, and take a bite. That's how I did it and it proved very tasty...I mean successful!

Once the Asparagus is going grab a knife, cutting board, and your mushrooms. Slice these into strips like you see on a pizza. They can be thin or thick, depends on your preference. I went with thick since that gives me an extra iota or two of time to run around checking on the Asparagus.

I then grabbed another saucepan and turned the heat to medium. To this pan I added in about a 1/2 cup of Sake, a couple spoonfuls of diced Green Onions/Scallions, heavy dash of Teriyaki Sauce, a little bit of the Garlic Salt, and the same for the Celery Salt. I say a little bit and a heavy dash, but what I really mean is just use however much you think you will enjoy. I like Garlic so more of that went in than the Celery Salt, but it could be the reverse with you.

Experimentation in the kitchen is always a fun learning experience! At least until things blow up!

Check on the Asparagus and use the tongs to move them around if necessary!

Ok, stir the Mushrooms. I used the same tongs for the Mushrooms and the Asparagus since the mixture used to sauté them in was similar. Normally this is a bad things since you will have flavors intermingle, but I risked it. Oh well, it was still delicious!

The Asparagus should be done by now, so put it on a plate and cover it to keep it warm. Then get the Mushrooms out since they cook pretty quickly. Now put the Asparagus on a plate with the Mushrooms and sprinkle Sesame Seeds on top. I also mixed together a dash of Sake, Soy Sauce, and Teriyaki Sauce as an extra dipping sauce or to drizzle over everything. Enjoy.

Couscous Stuffed Mushrooms

So at work we are having a 'potluck' tomorrow, and I decided that an appetizer style contribution would go over quite well. Everyone who has perused my blog must have noticed my tendencies to cook using mushrooms, so that was where I decided to start. My lunch today was the Indian Spiced Chicken from Sunday and I thought that I should somehow use Couscous with Mushrooms.

The first thing that came to mind was Couscous with Mushrooms mixed in...that could be tasty. But no, that's been done before.

Secondly I thought of making a Mushroom sauce and putting that on the Couscous. Alas, I passed on this idea since this would not be served fresh and I do not want to serve the Couscous all soggy with Mushroom sauce.

So I came upon the idea to reverse the idea process I was using. Why not put the Mushroom as the main part of the dish rather than just a side ingredient!?! Well, I've made a few Stuffed Mushrooms in my day, so I went with that to start it off.

Ingredients:
Couscous (1 cup Couscous :3 cups Water)
2 lb Cremini Mushrooms
1 cup Scallions/Green Onions (diced)
Shredded Cheeses (4 cheese blend)
1/4 stick Butter
1 1/2 cup Sake (Does not include what you drink!)
dash of Teriyaki Sauce
dash of Soy Sauce
dash of Lime Juice
dash of Lemon Juice
2 spoonfuls of Indian Spice Mix*

*Previously mentioned in this very blog!

I began by putting my large saucepan on the stovetop and turned the heat to medium-high. Then I poured in the Sake, Teriyaki Sauce, Soy Sauce, Lime Juice, and Lemon Juice. Then stirred a bit.

Once the temperature got hot enough to almost boil the liquid mix, I put in the 2 spoonfuls of Indian Spice Mix. You don't really have to stir here but I did a little bit. Do not be alarmed by the foamy reaction right away, it will die down quickly. Turn the heat down to just medium.

I then grabbed the Cremini Mushrooms and proceeded to take out their stems. The stems went into a mixing bowl in the fridge to be used for a different recipe(I'm thinking sauce) and the caps go into the saucepan gill side down.

After a minute or two, flip the mushrooms. They should be almost spongey. Once they are spongey feeling, they should be ready to take off. So turn off the heat and do so with a tongs or spoon(easiest way in my opinion).

Now that you have them on a plate or dish, time to put the Couscous in. I used my rice cooker to cook the Couscous and a small spoon to scoop it out and place the Couscous in the Mushrooms. Takes awhile, but is worth it.

I then sprinkled some Shredded Cheese on top, along with an extra sprinkling of the diced Green Onions/Scallions. Now it's ready to serve, Enjoy!

Portobello Madness!

Who loves Portobello Mushrooms?? Well, I love cooking them. They are so easy to tell when done, which happens pretty quickly, and they are quite versatile.

Ingredients:
3 Portobello Mushrooms
Sake
Sherry
Teriyaki Sauce
Soy Sauce
Lime Juice
Italian Herb Mix
Herbs de Provence w/Lavender
Wasabi Powder
Water



I began by turning the burner to medium-high, and putting my saucepan on. I then filled it with about 1 cup Sake and 1 tablespoon's worth of Sherry. Careful on the Sherry, it is quite the strong flavoring ingredient. Once that started to boil, I added in about 1/4 cup worth of Teriyaki Sauce. The same for Soy Sauce. As for the Lime Juice, I would say about 2 tablespoon's worth.

Then I put the 3 portobello mushrooms in, gill side down. On top of them, I added a healthy amount of the Italian Herb Mix, most will end up in the liquid, but that's ok.

Once they've been on for a minute or two, I used a pair of tongs to flip them over and added the Herbs de Provence w/Lavender to the gills as they are now facing up. I would say a pinch per mushroom.

I let them cook for another minute or so, flipped again for about a minute, and then taken off.

I then sliced them into strips and arranged on plate, along with a wasabi sauce dip. The sauce dip is just the wasabi powder mixed with some water. (Asian hot sauce for the decorative swirl)

Saucy Stuffed Mushrooms

As many of you who read my blog know, I like to cook mushrooms. They are so easy and versatile that who wouldn't enjoy cooking them?

Well this time, I upped the recipe I used for Stuffed Mushrooms. Yes, it could be done and was so.

Ingredients:
Large White Button Mushrooms
Green Onions(Scallions)
Lemongrass
Anaheim Peppers
Garlic Cloves
Ground Black Pepper
Sake
Soy Sauce
Teriyaki Sauce
Asian Hot Sauce

For the Mushrooms:
You will start with your saucepan on medium high, about 1/2 inch deep filled with Sake, Soy Sauce, Teriyaki Sauce, and Ground Black Pepper.
In this you will place the mushroom caps face down, flipping every few minutes until cooked to your preference.

For the Stuffing:
I used a food processor for this part, seemed the easiest thing to do. You grab the stalks from your mushrooms and dice them up before putting in the food processor. On top of that you grab your Lemongrass, which is just like chives for appearances. Dice up a good sized handful and throw it in. On top of this, add 2 diced up cloves of Garlic. Throw in a dash or two (or three if you don't work the next day) of Sake. Puree it until it's almost soupy, but has a bit of texture left to it.

(Green Onions will be cut into small portions as evidenced by the pictures, do not need to put them in anything)

Once the Mushroom Caps are done, arrange on plate. Use a spoon to scoop some of the stuffing out and place in the caps. Top them with some Green Onions and use some Asian Hot Sauce to complete out the meal.

Indian Spice, Oriental Nice

So in addition to the Portobello's cooked tonight, I found some large White Button mushrooms causing trouble in my kitchen. They had to be cooked unless total anarchy break out!

I grabbed my cutting board and quickly severed the stems from the mushrooms by hand, placing the stems on the cutting board and caps to the side. Once this was done, I grabbed one of my kitchen knives and proceeded to chop up the stems into small pieces.

At this point, I grabbed my large saucepan (freshly cleaned for some odd reason?) and lined up the liquid portion of what they will be cooked in...sake, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, lime juice, and a small portion of spicy mustard. This all goes into the pan right as I turned on the burner to just above medium. Add the spices in and stir to make sure it mixed properly. Give it about thirty seconds before next step.

Add the diced up mushroom stems, stir into mixture of spices and such.

Leave the stems alone in there and grab your mushroom caps. Place these all gill side down. Cover saucepan. Proceed to have a drink or water (or something stronger perhaps?) because cooking is hard work!

Ok, your minute is up. Now uncover the mushrooms and flip them over so the gills face upwards. Leave it uncovered and enjoy the aroma fill your kitchen and beyond.

Let them cook this way until they are spongy, then take off to serve. The stems you mix in with the caps either on top of them or to the side, either way they will be tasty.

Spice Mix:
Oriental Hot Mustard Powder
Ground Tumeric Powder
Ground Black Pepper
Curry Powder
Shredded Tarragon Leaves
Smoked Hot Spanish Paprika
Garlic Salt