Live the Live ™

My daughter wanted something special for breakfast a few Saturdays ago, and she brought a ready-to-mix box of Belgian waffle mix out of the cupboard. I read the instructions, and it required using the entire box, which made 10 gigantic waffles…way too much for us to eat in one sitting!

I figured there had to be a homemade Belgian waffle recipe somewhere online, and using ingredients I already had at home. The Food Network’s Alton Brown is usually my go-to source for recipes like this, and sure enough, he had a waffle recipe. But it used buttermilk and whole wheat pastry flour, neither of which I had in my pantry or fridge. Alton’s recipe would have to wait for another day.

I finally found one that used regular milk instead of buttermilk. I combined organic all-purpose flour with organic whole wheat flour; I like the richness in flavor whole wheat flour brings.

I try to always use organic unbleached flours, because wheat is another one of those crops that gets blasted with pesticides and chemicals in both growing and processing.

The Kitchen Aid might be overkill, but I don’t have a hand mixer!

*Separating eggs*
I like to take 2 small bowls and place them on the counter. I take an egg and crack it on a flat surface, which reduces the chance of a shell fragment getting into the egg. Going back and forth between eggshell halves, the yolk stays in the shell while the whites drip down into one of the bowls. The clean yolk goes in the other bowl. Repeat with the other egg.

It’s important to remember that you CAN have a little egg white with your yolk. It won’t hurt anything. BUT…you can NOT have any yolk with your egg whites! The whites will not whip up if there’s even the tiniest bit of yolk in them!

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 large eggs, separated
2 cups milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pre-heat the waffle iron, spraying it with cooking spray. (I like to use a high-smoking point oil like avocado oil.)

In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose and wheat flour, the sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon.

Carefully separate the eggs whites from the yolks, placing the yolks in a bowl with the milk, vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Whisk until combined.

Place the egg whites in a bowl and beat with a hand mixer until stiff peaks form. (I don’t have a hand mixer, so I used my stand mixer for this job.)

Add the yolk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well.

Next, fold the egg whites carefully into the bowl. You should have a beautiful, light airy batter, that has a wonderful cinnamon fragrance.

Ready to fold in…

Pour the batter into the hot waffle iron (according to your iron’s directions.)

Serve the waffles immediately with butter, syrup, fruit, whipped cream, or anything else you love!

I didn’t mean to cheat…honest. But I wasn’t thinking when I bought my corn in the supermarket, and I bought ears that were already shucked. Classically, Mexican street corn is made by throwing unshucked ears of corn on the grill to cook them. So I improvised.

I took the shucked ears of corn, placed them in a pot of cold water, and brought it to a boil. I boiled the corn for just 2 minutes, removing them from the water at that point.

I lit a grill. But you can also put them under a broiler, keeping an eye on them as they cook, rolling them back and forth so that they would have a nice char on them but wouldn’t burn. When I liked the color of the corn, I brought the ears inside and added the remaining ingredients, which can be prepared ahead of time.

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic

Combine these ingredients in a bowl and place it in the fridge until it’s ready to use.

Cotija cheese, crumbled
Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning
Fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Once the corn comes off the grill, brush on the mayo/sour cream mixture all over the corn. Traditionally, chili powder is sprinkled on, but I prefer the Tony Chachere’s. Sprinkle the cotija cheese on top, and garnish with a little cilantro.

Even if it’s too cold to grill outside, a nice barbecue sauce can make you feel like it’s summer!

I’ve probably got a dozen really great barbecue sauce recipes. But these days, it seems I’m always gravitating toward this one. It’s sharp and vinegar-based so it has that acidic kick, and goes great with beef and chicken, but especially pork.

I’ve used this sauce when making tacos with ground beef, pulled pork, ribs, and grilled chicken, as well as a whole roasted bird. Lip-smackin’ good!

Let’s make it…

2 cups ketchup
3/4 cup water
6 tablespoons cider vinegar
6 tablespoons white vinegar
6 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon granulated onion

Mix all the ingredients in a saucepan, and bring it to a boil. Then lower the heat to a simmer and cook until until the flavors have blended and it has thickened a bit–about 20 minutes.

If you store it in an airtight container in the fridge, it will keep for weeks.

This was an interesting choice by my daughter for Christmas dinner, but it came out great! It’s definitely not diet food, however, as you’ll see. We cooked up some twice-baked potatoes and stir-fried broccoli to serve on the side.

Lingonberry jam can be found at better supermarkets or you can easily buy it online.

Using gluten-free breadcrumbs and GF soy sauce are the only changes you need to make this dish GF-friendly. (See bottom of blog.)

For the meatballs…

4 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 eggs (whisked, in a bowl)
2 tablespoons beef stock
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 lb ground beef (preferably grass-fed)
1 lb ground pork (preferably pastured)
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
more unsalted butter and oil for frying

In a bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, half-and-half, eggs, and beef stock. Set it aside.

Fry the onion in some butter and then add it to the breadcrumb mixture.

Place the ground beef and pork in a large bowl, and add the salt and pepper to it. Add the contents of the breadcrumb and onion mixture, and mix everything together gently with your hands.

In the pan you fried the onions, add more butter and a little oil, and heat it to medium.

Roll the ground meat into meatballs, adding them to the pan. (If the meat mixture is mushy, just add more breadcrumbs until you get a consistency you can work with.) The meatballs might be sticky, so wet your hands every once in a while to make your job easier.

Fry the meatballs until they’re golden brown and cooked through completely, then remove them from the pan and set them aside.

For the sauce…

2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 cups beef stock
3 teaspoons soy sauce
2 oz unsalted butter
4 tablespoons lingonberry jam

In a bowl, whisk together the cream and the corn starch. Then add the beef stock and soy sauce, mixing well. Pour this into the pan you cooked the meatballs, and bring up to medium heat. Let it boil for a couple of minutes, to activate the corn starch, which will thicken the sauce.

Reduce the heat, add salt and pepper to taste, and the lingonberry jam. Stir it all together, then add the meatballs back to the pan. Let them cook for a few minutes, basting them in the sauce.

Serve with potatoes and more lingonberry jam, if you like.

Gluten-free note: As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, I have family members that are gluten-sensitive, so I only use gluten-free soy sauce. It’s easy to find in any supermarket and there’s no difference in taste. The brand I buy is La Choy.
And the best gluten-free breadcrumbs are ones that I make myself. I buy a loaf of Udi’s frozen GF bread and toast it. Then I place the toasted slices in my food processor. No one can tell the difference from breadcrumbs with gluten!

There are a handful of Italian dishes that can be considered classics. They don’t require dozens of ingredients…just a few quality ingredients prepared in a particular way. We all know their names: Pasta alla Carbonara…Fettuccini Alfredo…and Cacio e Pepe.

Carbonara requires pasta, guanciale, egg yolks, black pepper and a hard cheese (Pecorino Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano). Alfredo: just  pasta, butter, cream and cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano). And Cacio e Pepe: pasta, black pepper, cheese (Pecorino Romano), and a little pasta water. Simple, but simple requires the best quality ingredients and the right method of preparation.

1 lb. spaghetti
4 teaspoons roughly ground black peppercorns
7 oz. Pecorino Romano cheese, freshly grated

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the spaghetti until it just about reaches the al dente stage.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a dry pan and dry fry the roughly ground peppercorns until they start to release their aroma.

Add a ladle of the pasta water to the pan with the peppercorns.

When the pasta is ready, move it to the pan with the peppercorns, saving the pasta water.

Mix the pasta and peppercorns together, and then slowly start adding the grated cheese, stirring constantly. Keep adding the cheese until you use it all. If the pasta is too dry, add more pasta water. You want the cheese and pasta water to blend to make a beautiful, creamy sauce.

When you’ve achieved ultimate creaminess, it’s ready to serve!