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Posts Tagged ‘Eileen’s recipes’

Eileen’s Recipes: “Chicken peppadew” *

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, tagged on August 24, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Chicken peppadew. Eileen Goldfinger photo. 2016. Blogfinger.net

Chicken peppadew. Eileen Goldfinger photo. 2016. Blogfinger.net

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger.

 

3 skinless and boneless chicken breasts

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

15 small black pitted olives, sliced

15 peppadews, sliced

1/2 cup unsalted chicken broth

1/4 cup  marinara sauce

1/4 cup searing flour

2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

10 basil leaves

2 tablespoons of butter or margarine

1/2 lemon juiced

1/4 cup white wine

 

Cut chicken into 1 1/2 inch pieces and sprinkle with searing flour.

Heat oil in a 12 inch nonstick fry pan.

Add chicken pieces and brown on both sides.

Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

Slowly add chicken broth to pan and scrape up any brown bits stuck to bottom of pan.

Add margarine and wine; then stir. Sauce should be getting thicker and developing a creamy consistency.

Add peppadews, 5 basil leaves, olives, marinara sauce, and black pepper.

Cook for 10 minutes and stir.

Add chicken pieces and lemon juice, and stir, covering chicken pieces with sauce.

Add remaining basil leaves.

Simmer until chicken is heated and cooked through. (Approximately 10 minutes.)  If sauce is too thick, add a little more broth.

If the sauce is too thin, cook uncovered until sauce thickens

Serve over fettuccine or linguini (1/2 pound.)

Serves 2.

 

* Peppadew  is a sweet mildly spicy form of pepper from South Africa.  It gives a sense of “mild heat.”  Buy it in a jar or at the Wegmans olive bar.

Peppadew

Peppadew

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ALAN CUMMING:   From Sondheim’s Company.    ‘Here’s to the Ladies Who Lunch.”  Live from the Café Carlyle

 

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Eileen’s Recipes: Stuffed Flounder With Shrimp

Posted in Blogfinger News, Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on September 21, 2020| 1 Comment »

Stuffed Flounder With Shrimp

Eileen Goldfinger, Food and Garden Editor  @Blogfinger

Fish:

2 flounder fillets

1/4 teaspoon chili powder

1 tablespoon Smart Balance  margarine

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1/2 lemon

Stuffing:

6 medium shrimp, diced and peeled

1 scallion, diced

1 shallot, minced

1 small celery stalk, diced

1/2 teaspoon ground garlic

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

pinch of salt

4 tablespoons Eggbeaters

1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs

Prepare the stuffing:

Put the margarine and the oil in a 10 inch non-stick pan and heat on medium.

Add shrimp, scallion, shallot, celery, garlic, black pepper and salt.

Sauté until scallions soften, and shrimp turn pink, approximately  5 minutes.

Remove from pan and place in a bowl to cool.  Turn off heat under pan.

When the stuffing is cool, add Eggbeaters and Panko bread crumbs to the mix.

Prepare the fish:

Re-heat the pan on medium and add a little more oil if  necessary.

Rub the chili powder on both sides of the fillets. Lay the fillets, skin side down on the counter (the skins are removed), place half of the stuffing in each fillet. Pull the two ends of the fillet together, over the stuffing, and secure with a wooden toothpick.

Cook the fillets in the pan until they turn brown and then turn them over and brown the other side. While they are cooking, squeeze the juice from the lemon over them.

serves 2

Cookin’ Music:   Clifford Curry with “Mamma’s Home Cookin'”

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Eileen’s Recipes: Watermelon Tomato Salad with Feta

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, Music: Jazz on Blogfinger, tagged , , , , , on July 19, 2020| 2 Comments »

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger. Ocean Grove, NJ. August, 2013

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger. Ocean Grove, NJ.

 

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food and Garden Editor  @Blogfinger   Re-post.

2 cups seeded watermelon, 1 inch cubed (I used half red and half yellow watermelon)

1 large beefsteak tomato, 1 inch cubes

1 small red onion cut in half and sliced thinly on an angle from the side

3 ounces of baby arugula

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated sea salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground garlic (dry not fresh)

2 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar

4-5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Place watermelon, tomatoes, onion and arugula in a large bowl and stir.

Add salt, pepper and garlic to the salad.  Drizzle balsamic vinegar and olive

oil on salad and stir all ingredients together. Sprinkle feta cheese over the salad and serve.

Serves 2

Editors note: This salad was inspired in 2013 by Laurie Price at Laurie’s Farm Market **on Atkins Avenue in Neptune Township.

I purchased the yellow watermelon, tomatoes and arugula from her. All other ingredients were from Wegmans with the exception of the traditional barrel aged Italian balsamic vinegar which was purchased at Carter & Cavero in Sea Girt*.

* Carter and Cavero are at 2100 Rt. 35 in Sea Girt.   They also have a store in Red Bank.

** Lauri’s  Farm Market is no longer in business

 

GERRY MULLIGAN   “Home (When Shadows Fall’)    from his album Dream a Little Dream

 

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Eileen’s Cranberry Orange Muffins: an autumn treat.

Posted in Blogfinger Presents, Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on November 4, 2019| 1 Comment »

Eileen’s yummy cranberry muffins baked in her OG kitchen. Oct. 25, 2019. EG photograph ©

 

Cranberry Orange Muffins

By Eileen Goldfinger.

 

Preheat oven 425 degrees

Makes 12 medium sized muffins

 

Ingredients:

½ cup whole milk

1 ½ tsp fresh lemon juice

2 ½ cups all purpose flour

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp fine salt

½ cup vegetable oil

1 ¼ cup white sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp zest of an orange

1 tsp real vanilla

¼ cup orange juice

1 ½ cups of fresh or frozen cranberries (if frozen don’t defrost)

2/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

 

Topping:

2-3 tablespoons of superfine sugar

 

Hints for great muffins:

Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with Pam spray. Set aside.

Place all ingredients in individual bowls before starting the process of making the muffins.

This makes it easier and faster to prepare the batter.

Don’t over mix the batter.

Mix cranberries with 1 tsp of flour. This prevents them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin.

 

Preparing the batter:

Add lemon juice to milk, stir, and let it stand for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

In a medium bowl whisk together the milk/lemon juice, vegetable oil, sugar, eggs, orange juice, vanilla and orange zest.

Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing just until mixture is combined and no flour is visible.

Fold in cranberries and nuts.

Divide the batter amongst the 12 muffin cups and sprinkle the tops with sugar.

Bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes, then lower the temperature to 375 degrees.

If using fresh cranberries continue baking for 15 minutes.

If using frozen cranberries continue baking for 20 minutes.

Bake until golden and a tester inserted into the muffin comes out clean.

Remove from oven and allow to cool in tin.

Then remove from muffin pan and store in an air-tight container.

 

ELLA FITZGERALD AND  HER FAMOUS ORCHESTRA

 

 

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Stirring the Pot: Eileen’s Chicken Cacciatore

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, tagged , on January 18, 2018| 7 Comments »

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger

Photo by Eileen Goldfinger.  Re-posted from 2013 on Blogfinger.net

3-4 pounds chicken, cut in 4 inch pieces, wings cut at the joint

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup vegetable oil

5 tablespoons searing flour

2 bell peppers, any color, cut in ½ inch strips

1 large onion, diced

12 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced

½ cup red wine

½ cup chicken broth

1  28 ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes, crush by hand

½ cup marinara sauce

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (this is spicy)

½ teaspoon dried oregano

3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Sprinkle flour on both sides of chicken pieces. In a large fry pan, heat vegetable oil and brown chicken on both sides. Remove chicken from pan and set aside and discard the oil.

In a 5 quart Dutch oven, heat the olive oil.  Add onion and peppers. Sauté on medium heat for 10 minutes. Lower the heat and add the garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, San Marzano tomatoes, wine and broth; stir and simmer at a low heat for 30 minutes. Add oregano, red pepper flakes and black pepper, cook for 5 minutes.

Add chicken pieces to the sauce. Make sure the chicken is covered with the sauce. Cook at a simmer for 1 hour with pot cover ajar. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a small amount of broth.  Stir occasionally to make sure the chicken does not stick to the bottom of the pot. Taste sauce to adjust seasoning. If you want it spicier, add more red pepper flakes. Remember you can always add more but if you put too much in you can’t remove it.

Add mushrooms, stir and cook on low-medium heat for 30 minutes.

Serve over pasta.

Serves 4

SOUNDTRACK: Luciano Pavarotti, from the film “Quartet.”

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Baked Portobello Mushrooms

Posted in Eileen's Recipes, Vegetarian recipes, tagged , , on May 29, 2013| 5 Comments »

PG Photo.

Blogfinger Photo.  Ocean Grove, New Jersey

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food editor   @Blogfinger

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

2 large Portobello mushrooms

3  Campari  tomatoes

5 mozzarella balls (size of half a golf ball), halved

basil paste  (produce dept. of Wegmans) or substitute pesto

1 teaspoon shallot thyme finishing butter (dairy dept. of Wegmans)

extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

pinch of salt, per mushroom

4 turns of a pepper mill, per mushroom

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Remove the stem from each  mushroom. Wipe the top of each mushroom with a paper towel. Rub each one with extra virgin olive oil, and pour a teaspoon of the oil on the inside of each mushroom.

Place the mushrooms, top side down, on the baking sheet. Add a 1/2 teaspoon of butter thyme to the inside of each mushroom.

Remove the two ends of each of the tomatoes and slice the tomatoes so that you end up with 10 slices. Place the slices inside the mushroom with one slice in the center and the other slices surrounding it.

Add pinch of salt and 4 turns of the pepper mill to each mushroom.

Add 1/8 teaspoon of basil paste on top of each slice of tomato.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano on each mushroom.

Place each half of mozzarella ball  on top of each tomato slice.

Bake at 450 degrees in oven for 30 minutes or until the mozzarella has melted and the tomatoes have softened.

Serves 2

As a side dish I served half an avocado per mushroom.

Squeeze the juice from a quarter of a lime on each half of the avocado.

Mix a tablespoon of mayonnaise with 1/2 teaspoon of white horseradish (find it in a jar in the refrigerated department) and place the mixture in the center of the avocado where the pit used to be.

LOUIS PRIMA. “Buono Sera:”

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Eileen’s Recipes: Whole Baked Red Snapper

Posted in Blogfinger News, Eileen's Recipes, tagged , , on March 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Eileen's red snapper. PG photo. ©

Eileen’s red snapper. PG photo. ©

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food and Garden Editor @Blogfinger

1 2 pound red snapper (gutted and cleaned)

2 sprigs fresh dill

2 sprigs fresh parsley

1 lemon, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons herbed olive oil (Wegmans basting oil)

4 tablespoons Wegmans shallots & thyme finishing butter (substitute margarine with herbs)

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt to taste

black pepper, freshly ground to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Fish:

I bought this beautiful red snapper at Wegmans. They cleaned and gutted it for me; all I had to do was bake it.

In the cavity of the fish, place the dill, parsley, three slices of lemon, 1 tablespoon of herbed butter (or margarine,) and 3 tablespoon of herbed olive oil. Use butcher’s twine to tie the fish closed. Rub a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil on both sides of the fish. Sprinkle both sides of the fish with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and add the remaining 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil on the foil. Brush the oil on the entire surface of the foil lined sheet.

Place the fish on the sheet and then in the oven. Bake on one side for 10 minutes and then turn fish over and bake for another 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer should be inserted into the thick muscle behind the gill.

The fish monger/chef Paul at Wegmans suggested removing the fish from the oven when the temperature on the thermometer reads 138 degrees and then to let it rest out of the oven for 10 minutes. The fish will continue to cook and reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees.

Because I prefer my fish to be well done, I baked it to 148 degrees instead of 138 and then I removed it from the oven.

To serve the fish, gently remove the skin on one side. Use a fish spatula or butter knife to lift the fish off the skeleton and onto a serving plate. When the fish is removed from the first side, lift the bone out of the fish and discard. Use your spatula as above to remove the remainder of the fish without having to turn it over. There might be some small remaining bones.

Sauce:

While the fish is baking, place the remaining herbed butter in a small sauce pan with the juice of the remaining lemon (approximately four slices), salt and pepper to taste. Cook on low heat until the butter melts. Stir.

Ohh Noooo

Ohh Noooo

Drizzle sauce on fish and serve.

Serves 2-3 people.

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An Easy and Delicious End-of-Summer Meal

Posted in Recipes, tagged , on September 7, 2011| 3 Comments »

By Eileen Goldfinger, Food Editor @Blogfinger

This is an easy and delicious end-of-summer meal which consists of three components: flounder meuniere, grilled zucchini, and Greek salad.

Flounder Meuniere:

1/2 pound flounder filets

2 tablespoons pan-searing flour (purchased at Wegmans) or you can place regular flour through a sieve several times.

1/4 teaspoon of sea salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons Smart Balance margarine

2 cloves minced garlic

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a 10 inch non-stick fry pan add olive oil, margarine and garlic. Heat on low for 15 minutes. While the oil is heating in the fry pan, place a cast iron griddle on the stove and pre-heat on medium. This will be for the zucchini.

Use a paper towel and dry the flounder fillets. Sprinkle them on both sides with the flour, salt and pepper. Raise the heat in the fry pan to medium-low. When the oil gets a shimmering look to it, place the fillets in the pan. Add the lemon juice and parsley to the pan and sauté the filets for 10 minutes. Then gently turn them over and cook on the other side for 10 minutes.

Grilled zucchini:

While the fillets are cooking, slice the zucchini in 1/2 inch circles, rub with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and place them on the pre heated grill. Cook on one side until you see grill marks and then turn them over until you have grill marks on the other side. Cook them until they are fork tender. This should take about 15 minutes.

Greek Salad:

Greek olives : 6 black and 10 green, pitted and halved

feta cheese: 1 ounce, diced.

spring mix salad, triple washed ( I use about 5 ounces or 1/3 of the package)

Romaine leaves: 3 leaves sliced across in 1/2 inch pieces

English cucumber (also called a seedless cucumber): cut off a 4 inch length; then slice in half lengthwise; finally cut each piece crosswise into 1/2 inch pieces.

red radishes, 2 thinly sliced

Vidalia onion: 1/2 of a medium onion, diced

1 tomato, cut in cubes

Mix the above ingredients in a large bowl.

Vinaigrette:

4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon

12 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt to taste

freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese

Wisk these ingredients together and pour over salad and toss.

Serves 2

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