I am old enough to remember the days of the stodgy old steakhouses. They had white table cloths, huge hunks of beef and a standard set of appetizers and side dishes. One of the common dishes was Shrimp Louie, shrimp in a tasty pink sauce. It was a rich appetizer served in a chilled glass. I have updated it to a more modern version with shrimp on skewers to make them a finger food with a tasty dip. Continue reading Shrimp Skewers Louie
I really like to have sausage rolls on hand particularly in the holiday season. I make them up and freeze them uncooked. When company comes over, I take as many as I want out of the freezer and bake them for 25 minutes in a 375 F oven. Voila! Hot sausage rolls. Continue reading Sausage Rolls
I had a special occasion for a couple of friends. They like ABTs (Atomic Buffalo Treats or words to that effect) but you have to kick it up a bit for special occasions so I put more cheese in them! Continue reading Three Cheese ABTs
When you have guests you don’t want to spend all your time preparing food, you want to spend time with them. This is an appetizer that you can make in advance and just bring out when your guests arrive. It doesn’t hurt that it is very easy! Continue reading Shrimp & Buffalo Remoulade
I posted another chicken lollipop recipe a couple of days ago, Mexican Drumstick Lollipops. I had bought a large tray of drumsticks and only used 1/2 of the tray. I decided to try the other 1/2 with some changes for comparison. Continue reading Barbecue Chicken Lollipops
Meat is expensive. There are fewer and fewer “cheap” cuts. One that is only obscenely expensive is chicken drumsticks. But how do you make them into a classy meal or appetizer? By trimming them into Drumstick Lollipops. Add some Mexican Seasonings and you have Mexican Drumstick Lollipops! Continue reading Mexican Drumstick Lollipops
I really liked smoke cheese but there are two problems with it. First, it is expensive to buy. Second, if you are going to make it yourself, it helps if it is cold outside.
I made several batches last winter but not enough. By the time it got cold here in the Canadian Rockies, I was totally out!
So, when the temperatures dropped last week, I bought some old cheddar, havarti and extra old marble cheddar. Home smoking works better with cheese that is at least somewhat firm.
You want to expose the cheese to smoke but the temperature has to be cool enough to not melt the cheese. Generally, you have to keep the temperature in the smoking chamber below 70 F. This means you want the temperature to be well below 70 F because most methods of generating smoke create some heat. I have smoked with warm outside temperatures but I have put blocks of ice in the smoking chamber to keep the temperature down.
The next thing you want to do is choose a smoking chamber. Some electric smokers like the Bradley Smoker allow you to burn wood pucks without turning the heating element on. Alternatively, you can use your gas barbecue or any closed container that allows a decent airflow. You want the smoke moving around the cheese.
If your smoking chamber does not have a method of generating smoke, you will need a smoke generator like the A-Maze-N Tube Smoker or Pellet Smoker. These allow hardwood pellets to slowly smolder and generate smoke with minimal heat production.
I used my Louisiana Grills smoker as my smoking chamber. I didn’t turn it on, I just used is as a chamber. I filled my A-Maze-N Tube Smoker with Oak Whiskey Barrel pellets. You can use any pellet you like but most people prefer milder smokes like apple or cherry.
I lit the tube smoker and put it in the chamber with the cheese. I let it smoke for 3 hours. I brought the cheese in and sealed it in vaccum bags.
You need to know that the cheese will taste like an ashtray immediately after smoking. All the smoke is on the surface and it takes time to spread through the cheese and that helps the smoke flavour mellow. You need to let it sit in the fridge for at least two weeks, eight is better.
After a couple of weeks I opened one of the packages and had a nice cracker and cheese snack.
The Verdict
This is one of my favourite snacks. Cheese has that nice sharp flavour that seems to blend with smoke. I will make sure to make more this year!
The Old Fat Guy
My seventh episode of my community TV show, You Can Make It on ShawTV East Kootenays has me making Cherry Cobbler, Salt and Pepper Wings and Candied Salmon!
The Old Fat Guy
One of my favourite bloggers is Foodie Home Chef. She uses fresh ingredients and treats them with respect, my definition of a truly great cook. She has kindly given me permission to reproduce this http://foodiehomechef.com/recipe of hers from her blog. Take a look at her site at:
This salsa salad pairs up nicely with both Mexican & some Seafood dishes. It’s so healthy, amazingly easy to prepare & if you have more than 2 people to serve… just double, triple or quadruple the recipe & you can serve the whole gang!
Serves: 2
Ingredients
1 mango, halved, seeded, peeled & cut into short strips
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
2″ length of cucumber, peeled, cut in half lengthwise & thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup)
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
1 small jalapeño, seeded & finely chopped or 2 tsp La Victoria Green Salsa Jalapeña extra hot
2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice
1/8 tsp kosher or sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper, 3 pepper mill turns
Directions
1. Prepped ingredients.
2. Add all the ingredients to a 1.5 quart bowl & toss gently till well combined. Cover & refrigerate 2 to 4 hours to allow ingredients to marry & attain maximum flavor. Serve.
My mind worries me sometimes. I was trying to decide whether to make wings with honey mustard sauce or honey garlic glazed wings. My eyes bulged and my ears rang as it became obvious I had to make Garlic Honey Mustard Wings. I’m sure I need professional help.