Fun Deviled Eggs for Halloween

For a Halloween-themed rotation dinner, I made Deviled Eggs.

I simply made my own deviled egg recipe and topped them with red bell peppers for horns and a goatee; and black olives for the eyes.

My recipe includes:

Mayonnaise
Spicy mustard
Blue cheese dressing
A dash of Salt and pepper.

Combine until creamy.  Adjust to your taste.

Hungarian Meatballs

My friend Carol made these delicious meatballs for a rotation group dinner.

Hungarian Meatballs

Meatballs:

1 pound ground veal or beef, pork, chicken, turkey

1 egg

⅓ cup plain breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

2 tablespoons fresh chopped dill

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika

2 tablespoons oil for frying

Sauce:

1 tablespoon oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

3 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups beef broth

1 cup cream (lower calories: substitute evaporated milk)

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika

1½ tablespoons fresh chopped dill

½ cup sour cream

Directions:

Place all the meatball ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and knead to thoroughly combine. Shape the mixture into 1-inch balls or whatever size you prefer.

Heat some oil in a skillet and once hot add the meatballs, browning on all sides. Transfer the meatballs to a plate and discard all but a tablespoon or so of grease.

Add the onions to the skillet and fry until translucent and golden brown. Add the garlic and fry for another minute (don't fry garlic too long or it becomes bitter). Add the mushrooms and fry until they've released their juices and they're mostly evaporated. Transfer the mushroom mixture to a bowl and set aside.

Add the butter to the skillet and melt it. Add the flour and whisk until dissolved. Continue whisking vigorously for another minute or two until the flour mixture is a deep golden brown. (We're creating what's called a roux, a French term and the grand secret for creating an irresistibly rich and flavorful sauce.)

Pour in the hot broth while continually whisking to prevent clumping. Continue to whisk while bringing the mixture to a simmer. Add the cream and whisk until combined. Continue to simmer for another minute or so until the sauce is thickened. Return the mushroom mixture to the sauce and add the pepper, salt and paprika. Stir in the sour cream and dill.

Return the meatballs to the sauce, stirring to coat them, and simmer covered for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve immediately over hot buttered egg noodles, Spatzle, potatoes or rice along with a cool cucumber or leafy green salad and some rustic crusty bread. Garnish with some chopped fresh dill if desired.

Recipe Source: https://www.daringgourmet.com/hungarian-meatballs/

Roasted Lamb Shoulder

My friend Bruce K. made this wonderful lamb for Passover.

Roasted Lamb Shoulder

Ingredients:

6.5 Lb. lamb shoulder, whole bone in

2/3 C. olive oil

4-5 cloves of garlic, mashed to a paste

1/4 C. parsley, minced

1/4 C. cilantro, minced

2 t. thyme

2 t. cumin

2 t. paprika

1 T. Kosher salt

2 t. ground black pepper

For the Gravy:

1 C. red wine

2 t. cornstarch

Special equipment: A roasting pan with a rack.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix together all the spices with the olive oil, excluding the salt and pepper.

Use the salt and pepper to season the lamb, and then cover the lam with the olive oil mixture.

Place the lamb on the rack in a roasting pan. Add 1 cup of water and half a cup of olive oil to the bottom of the pan (this is for basting, make sure the liquids don’t touch the lamb).

Roast uncovered for 30 minutes while basting the lamb once or twice.

Cover the lamb for another 1 hour, 45 minutes (however see below for doneness temperature) while basting the meat every 45 minutes.

Remove the lamb and let cool off a bit and then remove the bone (it should come right off).

For the gravy: Take all the juices left over in the pan and add the red wine and cornstarch, stir to combine and reduce for 10 minutes.

Serve hot and enjoy!

The right temperature for the doneness you want:

Rare: 115 to 120°F

Medium-rare: 120 to 125°F

Medium: 130 to 135°F

Medium-well: 140 to 145°F

Well-done: 150 to 155°F

Crispy Brazilian Sausage with Yucca served with Herb Butter on top

I made the following recipe for a rotation dinner, in which the food theme was Brazilian foods. 

Crispy Brazilian Sausage with Yucca served with Herb Butter on top

1 1/2 lbs. sausage
2 small sliced white onions
2 medium yuccas

2 T melted butter

1 T thyme
1 T parsley
1 T oregano

Heat a large pan and cut the sausages into slices 1 inch or thinner.

Place the sausage in the pan and add 3 ounces of water, cover it, and leave on high heat until the water runs dry. The idea is to cook the sausage in its own fat. Meanwhile, stir to prevent the sausage from burning. Add the onions and stir until the onions are caramelized and browned.

In a separate pan, slice and fry the yucca.

While everything is cooking, mix thyme, parsley, and oregano into melted butter.

Plate the sausage and yucca and drizzle the herb butter on top.

Recipe Source: http://www.vogue.com/13464599/2016-olympics-brazilian-recipes-chefs-snacks/

Chinese Noodle Chicken Salad

Chinese Noodle Chicken Salad

Serves 20-30
Bon Appétit, June 1994

I’ve been making this recipe for years. If you use the full recipe (rather than half), it does make a very large batch; however, it’s a good amount for large parties.


Salad: 

2 lbs linguini

1/4 C. Sesame oil
2 to 2.5 lbs roasted chicken, skinned, boned, shredded

4 bunches green onions, sliced

2 bunches fresh cilantro, chopped

4 jalapenos, seeded, deveined, minced

1-1/4 lbs snow peas, stringed, thinly sliced lengthwise

Dressing:

3/4 C. low sodium soy sauce

1/4 C. water
1/2 C. Creamy peanut butter
1/2 C. Rice Vinegar
1/2 C. Sesame oil
2 T.  Sugar


Directions:

Combine dressing ingredient in a food process until smooth. Set aside.

Cook linguini until al dente.  Drain, place in a large bowl; cool. Add sesame coat so the linguini doesn’t stick together.

Cook snow peas for one minute. Drain well and cool. [I save the linguini water to blanch the snow peas].

Mix in the chicken, onions, cilantro, jalapenos, and snow peas.

Pour dressing and toss to coat. 

Note: Can be prepared 1 day ahead but add the dressing right before serving.


19 July 2016: I made this again for an office luncheon. I cut the recipe in half (except the dressing) and it was still a very large amount of salad.  Next time I'll make this recipe, I will work around using just 1/4 lb. of linguini.

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

A friend made this delicious mushroom soup (from Allrecipes.com) for our rotation group dinner.

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

Prep: 15 min

Cook: 35 min

Ready in: 50 min

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

4 T unsalted butter

2 C chopped onions

1 Lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced

2 t. dried dill weed

1 T paprika

1 T soy sauce

2 C chicken broth

1 C milk

3 T all-purpose flour

1 t. salt

Ground pepper to taste

2 t. lemon juice

1/4 C. chopped fresh parsley

1/2 C. sour cream

Directions:

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Sauté the onions in the butter for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 more minutes. Stir in the dill, paprika, soy sauce and broth. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.

In a separate small bowl, whisk the milk and flour together. Pour this into the soup and stir well to blend. Cover and simmer for 15 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finally, stir in the salt, ground black pepper, lemon juice, parsley and sour cream. Mix together and allow to heat through over low heat, about 3 to 5 minutes. Do not boil. Serve immediately.

Vinegar Marinated Cucumber Salad

I recently attended a party and wanted something light and refreshing for a hot summer day. I followed this recipe, but reduced the quantity of all ingredients for three cucumbers: 

https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/vinegar-marinated-cucumbers/

Easy Vinegar Marinated Cucumbers (Cucumber Salad)

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Total: 10 minutes

Serves: 10

Ingredients:

5 Cucumbers

1 Red Onion

1 C. Apple Cider Vinegar

1/2 C. Sugar (or more to taste)

1/2 C. Water

1 t. Salt

Instructions:

Peel and slice cucumbers into thin slices.

Cut onion in half and cut into very thin slices.

Combine onions and cucumbers in a large Ziploc bag.

In a separate, medium-sized bowl, combine remaining ingredients.

Stir until sugar dissolves. 

Pour vinegar mixture over cucumbers and onions in the bag.

Press out as much air as you can and seal bag.

Refrigerate at least 20 minutes.

Before serving, drain liquid and place in a serving bowl to serve.

This was delicious!! I'll make this again soon and will post a photo of the salad here.