Coming Soon: Stuffed Baby Bell Peppers

Shrimp Scampi with Parsley Fettuccine and Roasted Tomato Crostini

T-BONE STEAKS..The best of both worlds!

I love Beef and that passion went to another level with the Filet Mignon I had at the Miami Marquis.

At local restaurants, steaks are WAY overpriced as in a couple hundred dollars for one serving. To indulge I have to purchase and prepare the steaks myself.

Fortunately a colleague's father is a butcher and so I get okay prices. The meat is a little tough and so requires some skill to get it to the tender fall off the bone state. I achive that by first marinating the steaks for 30 minutes then slow cooking them for 2-3 hours. At the end of that tenderising process its off to the cast iron skillet to produce the grill marks and the rich color and flavor that makes a steak a STEAK.

Things are about to get way better as a Chef friend of mine introduced me to an associate of his that supplies local restaurants with A1 USDA steaks! I cant wait to work with animals that were reared specifically for producing the finest cuts as opposed to what I have been using.

Better Steak days are coming soon!

LOW, SLOW & SMOKING PERMITTED..BBQ 101

Saturdays should be declared as the official BBQ day of the week! It the end of the stressful week and the only day that is really yours to kick back and do just what you want to do.

I wanted today to be a special bbq day since I ve been craving this all week. Furthermore this is the place that my passion for cooking started so from time to time I need to take the pilgrimage back to the place of divine intervention!

There it is ...... marinated for a couple hours in cider vinegar and other dried seasonings. Since I was using my kettle grill today and not any of the smokers I decided to get these partially cooked in the oven at 140C for 1 hour then it was off to the grill to get the charred look which took about 45 mins. I then reduced the flame and allowed these to slow cook while basting them in a marinade of seasoned pan drippings from the pre cooking process another 40 mins or so.

Once cooked through as indicated by the meat pulling away from the bones I started the glazing with the BBQ sauce and then left them a further 40 mins to be smoked with a wood chip blend.

You need some of this!

Let me Cater to you!

On May 5th my wife's office had a breakfast sale and based on the pics I shared with her colleagues and the many samples shared, I was asked to produce 144 bite sized pastries.

My famous Donut Muffins, Pepperoni Pizza Puffs and Cheese/Garlic Biscuits were prepared with the assitance of my loving wife (she did all the sampling).

This was my first major order and based on all the +ve comments and kudos received this is the beginning of a wonderful dream.

Spinach Crostini

I have been experimenting lately with Italian bread based sides to accompany our meals. So I have entered the realm of Crostini & Bruschetta.

In the Parmesan Meatball post I added the tomato and basil crostini which were a hit not just with their appearance on the plate but the subtle yet distict taste they confer on the meal.

Tonight I made these Spinach Crostinis with Parmesan and Mozzarella and they accompanied a Corned beef stew, Lentils, my signature Parsley rice and Iceberg salad.

Look out for more combinations as these delights are as customizable and endless as a professional LEGO set!

Good Stuff!

Bacon, Cheese, Tomato Strata. T Minus 10, 9,8......

A couple months ago I signed found an interesting recipe at the back of a can of marinara sauce and since the dish turned out great I decided to signup for additional recipes.

So periodically I receive recipes via email from HUNTS and they are usually quite easy to prepare and features one of their products which reduces preparation time by half- easily.

One of those recipes is the focus of today's post. From the first time I saw the recipe I knew I had to make it not just any day but part of the most special breakfast time at our home - Sunday Morning.

So I got up a little earlier than usual and made this fantastic dish. Prep time was about 15 minutes, bake time 30-35 minutes and the time it took for the portion in the pictures to disappear- 5 minutes which includes the before and just before the end of it all pics.

Great breakfast! Many many thanks to hunts.com!