Potato Leek Soup, topped with cheese curds, chives, and croutons (oooh all “c” words at the end there, I didn’t plan that)
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Category: Cooking
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Green Garlic
I found this at the farmer’s market. The guy behind the table said, “Have you seen our green garlic? It’s our special today and it’s not going to last long.” I asked him if you could use the green stalk portion and he said yes. At home, I dis-assembled the stalk of my green garlic and only used the heart of it like I would a leek. The stalk is basically a small version of a leek except it has a mild garlic flavor instead of a mild onion flavor.
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Rocka-Guaca-Mole
This guacamole recipe serves: 2 very hungry men or 4 mildly hungry chicks:
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Campfire Chicken
This is one of the few times I’ve ever been camping in an RV and it is pleasantly strange to have things like a microwave and a fridge. However, the fire pit on the site had a grill rack on it and I was excited to do something with it. Enter campfire chicken. Once I had a decent fire going (and I felt the rack in the pit was sterilized enough) I seasoned my chicken breast with mesquite seasoning (just used a packet I brought) and put it over the fire. Luckily, the rack was adjustable so I could ensure that the chicken was far away enough from the fire so that it cooked and did not burn. Also, the chicken needed to be close enough to the fire to get some char and cook in a reasonable time frame so that it did not just taste like smoke. If the rack were not adjustable, I just would have had to be really thoughtful about where and how I built the fire in the pit so that the rack was in the right place.
I don’t remember how long the chicken cooked for, I didn’t really keep track. I just flipped it a few times and took it off when it was the proper firmness. I believe the cooking time was something like 15-20 minutes. The chicken had a great smoke flavor from the oak wood we were burning and it was perfectly crispy. It was also a nice break from eating burgers. I lost count on how many burgers Gar and I grilled up and ate with our small propane BBQ.
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Thin Crust Pizza
I had such a good time eating and making my Margherita pizza, I decided to make another pizza the next night. This time, I wanted a pizza with a really thin crust so I used about ¼ less dough than I did for the Margherita pizza. I also found that hand stretching the ball of dough initially, then hand-tossing is the quickest and easiest way to stretch it out. Also, don’t forget to continue to lightly flour your working surface and your pizza pan. The dough is more likely to tear or stick to your working surface the thinner it is. I topped this pizza with diced mushroom and onions, it was really good. If you want the best thin crust pizza, just make it. No one can make a pizza exactly the way you want it like you can.
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Margherita Pizza
Margherita-style is one of my favorite pizzas, especially when it’s home made. I started by picking up plain pizza dough from one of my favorite stores. I haven’t really had much desire to make my own pizza dough when I can buy a bag of it for a little over a dollar and it always comes out perfect.
Make your pizza after the jump …
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Antipasto Salad
Here’s another great application for pickled onions! Antipasto salad can have many things in it, I used the ingredients I found in my fridge. I started by chopping red leaf lettuce and putting it in a bowl. Then I added pickled onion and thin strips of havarti cheese and italian dry salame. While Gar and I were waiting for our dinner to cook, I grabbed some tongs and filled up some small bowls with salad. Finally, I drizzled some of our favorite Italian dressing on top and stored the rest of the salad in the fridge until lunch the next day. If I had some good ham in the house, I would have used that for the salad as well. Although mozzarella or even provolone would have been a more common choice, the havarti worked incredibly well. Other great options to add to this salad includes tomato, olives, peperoncinis, roasted red bell peppers, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, basil, and parsley.