Category Archives: Food & Recipes

Food is an important part of our family. I don’t believe in “secret recipes.” If I make it, I’ll share it. And if you like it, I hope you’ll share it, too.

April 18, 2011 · 9:21 AM

TCP Cooks: Flank Steak Sandwiches with Soy-Ginger Mayonnaise

TCP's Steak Sandwiches with Soy-Ginger Mayo - No one can eat just one!

This sandwich has become a Complete Package signature dish. He’s made it so often, family and friends consider it a trademark TCP creation. But the truth is the recipe came from The America’s Test Kitchen Cookbook (2001, Boston Common Press). Once he tried it, we were hooked. The recipe may sound less than dazzling at first glance, but it’s packed with tremendous flavor. It’s hard to describe, except to say that everyone who’s ever tried it loves it. Last week, when Mom and two of my sisters were here, TCP broke out the flank steak sandwiches, and they fell in love. They’re that good. The key is a good flank steak and the soy-ginger mayonnaise. If you’re not a ginger fan, don’t worry. Mom isn’t either, but she loved these sandwiches. All I can say is “try them…you’ll like them!”

First, mix up the Soy-Ginger Mayonnaise:
1/2 cup of Hellman’s Mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip, Hellman’s – TCP insists)
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon of honey
1/2 teaspoon of garlic, smashed to a paste
1 teaspoon of fresh ginger, grated on a microplane
1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until well blended. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. You can make this up to one day in advance, and it really tastes best if you make it early so all the flavors come together.

For the sandwiches, you’ll need:
1 1/2 pounds of flank steak, trimmed of fat & patted dry
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
Salt & Pepper, to your own taste
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil (if you use a skillet)
1 baguette of French bread (use a good soft one)
The soy-ginger mayonnaise (made in advance)
1/2 of a small purple onion, sliced paper thin
2-3 cups of arugula, washed, stemmed & dried

Season your flank steak with garlic salt, salt & pepper. If you’re using a cast iron skillet, heat it to blazing hot first, add the oil and then add your flank steak. If you’re using an outdoor grill, you can skip the oil and just season it first. Either way, cook your flank steak over high heat until the outside is seared and the inside is medium-rare. Remove from the heat and allow it to rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes. If you have a piece of foil handy, throw it over the steak to keep it warm. While the steak is resting, prep the rest of the sandwich.

Slice your baguette in half lengthwise and toast each half on the grill or in a dry skillet or griddle until lightly toasted. Spread each half liberally with soy-ginger mayonnaise. Cutting across the grain and on a bias (45 degree angle), thinly slice your flank steak and place it on the bottom half of the baguette. Top the steak with purple onion and arugula and put the lid on it. Gently press the sandwich to bring it all together, then slice into 4″ to 6″ segments and serve immediately.

We could talk about side dishes for this meal, but the truth is I never remember what we had with these sandwiches. Pickles? Chips? Maybe. I really couldn’t tell you. They’re so good, everything else becomes a blur. And really, you don’t need anything except a handful of napkins and something cold to wash them down with. Enjoy! And thanks for making these for the girls, honey. You da’ man!

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April 13, 2011 · 7:19 AM

Playing With Your Food, Recipe #3: My Big Sister’s Rainbow Tie-Dyed Cupcakes

Big Sis's Rainbow Cupcakes. I just drooled on myself.

Big Sis made these gorgeous Rainbow Cupcakes for our Hoegarden Weekend back in March. They were so awesome, I asked if she would share her recipe on my blog. Of course, she agreed. She’s a cake lover. A lover of cake. And it shows. The inspiration for these came from Andrea’s “Can You Stay For Dinner“ blog. Substituting her own favorite white cake batter and frosting recipe, Big Sis created the perfect Rainbow Cupcake. And this week, during her visit to Casa NanaBread, she agreed to share them with you because you’re special and because we love cake. Did I say that already? I’m distracted by that photo. It’s hard to stay focused looking at that gorgeous cupcake. Here’s how she did it.

Big Sis’s “Sam Houston White Cake” batter (makes 18 cupcakes):
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
6 Wilton gel food colorings in vibrant colors, not pastel
(we used red, orange, yellow, green, blue & purple)
One package of paper cupcake liners
One recipe for awesome cake frosting (link below)
One jar of colorful sprinkles for garnish

Using a mixer, beat the butter until it is soft and creamy. Add the sugar gradually and beat until it’s nice and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until combined. In a separate bowl, blend the flour and baking powder until well combined. You can sift it if you like, but it’s not necessary. In another bowl combine the milk, water and almond extract. Starting with the flour mixture, incorporate the dry and wet ingredients alternately into the butter/sugar mixture until it’s all combined, ending with the last of the dry ingredients. Line your cupcake pans with 18 paper liners and preheat your oven to 350F.

To color your cake mix, divide the cake batter evenly into 6 bowls. Big Sis likes to wear those disposable rubber gloves for this to keep the food coloring from staining her hands. An apron’s not a bad idea, either. Using a popsicle stick or plastic spoon because the food coloring gel really will stain EVERYTHING, add 1/8 teaspoon of coloring gel to each bowl. Beat to thoroughly combine each color so you don’t get streaks in your batter. You don’t want streaks in your batter. If the color looks too dull, add a little more food coloring.

Using a spoon, add approximately one tablespoon of purple batter to each cupcake liner. If you have leftover batter, divide it and distribute it until all the batter is used. Using a clean spoon, add the blue batter to each cupcake liner, then green, then yellow, then orange, then red. You don’t need to be dainty here, but you do want to keep your batter in blobs for the best results.

Once all colors have been distributed, it’s time to swirl your batter. Grab a toothpick, bamboo skewer or chopstick and insert it into the batter. Form a figure 8 swirl through the batter to create the tie-dyed effect.

Bake one pan at a time for 15-18 minutes (depending on your oven), or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Keep an eye on them. You don’t want to overbake these. Promptly remove from the oven and allow them to cool on wire racks until completely cool, at least 3-4 hours.

For the frosting, Big Sis used the “That’s the Best Frosting I’ve Ever Had” recipe by MissyDew off the Tasty Kitchen portion of The Pioneer Woman‘s website. Let me tell you, folks. They’re not kidding. This really is tremendous frosting. Click on the link to see the recipe. Generously frost each cupcake. Big Sis used a pastry bag with a nice star tip so she could pile it high. Immediately cover it with colored sprinkles so the sprinkles will stick. If you wait, the frosting will dry slightly and the sprinkles will roll off. And nothing could be more tragic than a cupcake without sprinkles. I exaggerate. But it really does make them prettier.

And that’s it, my friends. Grab a glass of cold milk and dig in. You won’t regret it. Your hips might. Your thighs might. Your jiggly upper arms might. But ignore them. You only live once. And a life without cupcakes is a life without joy.

Thanks for sharing your recipe, Big Sis. I enjoyed watching you work. The world is a groovier place with your tie-dyed rainbow cupcakes in it. Like totally.

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April 10, 2011 · 4:16 PM

Playing With Your Food, Recipe #2: Mom’s World Famous Piggy Buns

Mom's Famous Whole Wheat Piggy Buns

Sorry I’ve been absent from the blogging universe this week. My mother and two of my sisters came down to visit. It’s not that I wasn’t thinking of you, it’s just that we were busy hitting every antique shop in a 50 mile radius, stuffing ourselves at various local restaurants, and baking out the wazoo. Which brings me, in a round about way, to the first recipe from our fabulous week I want to share with you. Remember those photos I posted from our annual Hoegarden Weekend in March? One photo featured the fabulously cute piggy buns our mother made for pulled pork sandwiches. They were truly adorable until the barbecue sauce started pouring from their eyes. Then it got a little Zombieland on us. Then we laughed hysterically and ate them anyway. With gusto. This week, mom allowed me to photograph a tutorial so you can make these precious piggies in your own home. Thanks for sharing, Mom. Now, let’s make piggies!

Here’s what you’ll need:
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 packages of rapid rise instant yeast (or 1/2 teaspoon)
1 Tablespoon of gluten powder
1/4 cup of malted milk powder
1 cup of whole wheat flour
4 to 5 cups of bread flour, divided
1/4 cup of butter (1/2 a stick), softened
1 egg, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups warm tap water

Start by combining the sugar, salt, yeast, gluten, malted milk powder, whole wheat flour and 3 cups of bread flour in a large mixing bowl. I used my big KitchenAid mixer, since it’s got a big deep bowl and a bread hook. (I prefer to make the mixer do all the work. I’m lazy like that.) Using the mixer paddle, mix the dry ingredients on low speed just until combined. Add the butter, egg and water; beat on low speed until combined. Stop the mixer, scrape the sides of the bowl, and continue beating on medium speed for 5 minutes. It will be sticky.

After 5 minutes, stop the mixer and remove the paddle attachment. Replace it with the dough hook, turn mixer to low speed, and gradually add additional bread flour until the dough forms into a soft ball. Allow the mixer and dough hook to knead the dough at low speed for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Lightly flour your work surface. Scrape the dough out onto the floured surface, and gently knead the dough into a smooth, gorgeous dough ball.

Spray a large mixing bowl with cooking spray (or butter/oil it lightly) and place your dough ball in the center. Lightly spray or oil the surface of your dough ball. Cover with plastic wrap and a clean, dry towel and set aside to let it rise until doubled in size (approximately one hour).

Once your dough ball has doubled, remove the plastic wrap and using your fingertips, gently punch down the dough.

Dump it onto a lightly floured work surface and divide the dough into 24 pieces.


Tip: we used a bench scraper to divide it in half, then each half into half, etc. (like those old Faberge shampoo commercials, if you’re old enough to remember them – you’ll tell 2 friends, and they’ll tell 2 friends…).

Once you have 24 equal pieces, form each piece into a round ball.

Using a lightly floured rolling pin, flatten each ball into about a 1/4″ thick circle.

Place the circles onto baking sheets, about 1/2″ to 1″ apart. I used large insulated cookie sheets with non-stick silicone mats. I love those silicone mats. Best thing since slice bread, I think.

Now here’s the fun part: using a biscuit cutter approximately 1 1/2″ to 2″ in diameter and a fat wooden skewer, a chopstick, or a round wooden spoon handle, start to create your piggy faces. Feel free to unleash your inner arteest.

Step One: form the nose by pressing the cutter just below the imaginary center line in a full circle halfway into the dough (don’t cut all the way through!).

Step Two: turning the cutter at a 45 degree angle, cut a half circle creating a piggy smile. Pigs are so much cuter when they’re friendly, don’t you think?

Step Three: holding the cutter at a 45 degree angle, cut in each ear.

Step Four: using a fat skewer, chop stick, or the round handle of a wooden spoon, gently press in two eyes and two holes to form the snout.

If you’re wondering if you could make these 3-D, the answer is YES! Big Sis made one just to see how it would turn out. It takes a little more work to shape the dough, and you have to wet it a little to make it stick, but you can make a 3-D snout and ears for your piggy. Pretty cute, huh? Pays to be an art major… metaphorically speaking, of course.

Allow your precious piggy buns to rise an additional 15-20 minutes while your oven pre-heats to 375 degrees. You want your piggies to be portly… plump… chubby… uh, big-boned… healthy? You get the picture.

Bake one tray at a time for approximately 15-20 minutes or until your piggy buns start to turn a light, beautiful brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Did I mention these smell heavenly when they’re baking?

Once they are completely cooled, you can store them in freezer bags or containers in your refrigerator or freezer. Of course, there’s no hard and fast rule on how long they have to cool before you eat one. I can neither confirm nor deny that one of these bad boys died violently right after coming out of the oven.

But he was delicious.

These little piggy buns are cute and versatile. They make fabulous French toast, and are yummy toasted on a griddle and slathered with butter and honey or jam for breakfast. They’d make cute ham sandwiches this Easter. They make excellent pulled pork sandwich buns, as I’ve said before. And tonight, the Complete Package and I are making Squealer Burgers with them for dinner. Ever had a squealer? It’s easy. You just grind bacon into your hamburger meat, then shape and cook them like any other burger (although I don’t recommend medium rare here). Mmmm….juicy, smoky, moist. And perfect on a piggy bun.

However you choose to consume them, these little piggies are sure to be a hit. Thanks for sharing your recipe, Mom. You’re a baking rock star. Stay tuned, kids…later this week I’ll be sharing The Complete Package’s Steak Sandwiches with soy ginger mayo (to…die…for) and Big Sis’s gorgeous Rainbow Cupcakes. Better break out the yoga pants and Diet Coke right now because you’re going to want to make all of these. Fo’ shizzle.

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March 29, 2011 · 8:40 AM

Brisket at Black’s in Lockhart, Texas: OMG doesn’t begin to describe it!

Listen up, kids. We have serious business to discuss. Brisket business. And in Texas, that’s as serious as it gets besides football. This weekend, on our way to Austin for the big race, The Complete Package and I took a side trip to Lockhart, Texas for a barbecue lunch. What makes Lockhart unique is the sheer volume of BBQ heavy-hitters within one square mile of each other. Four of the best barbecue places in Texas can be found in Lockhart, and that’s bold talk for a tiny town. Barbecue is the main event here and trust me – these people aren’t playing around. Today, we’re following the big yellow arrow to Black’s Barbecue, just off the main square. Strap on your fat pants, people. It’s about to get tasty.

Sure there's a line. This place is a meat palace. Suck it up, mister!

Don’t let the line fool you. It moves pretty quickly, and in our case it wasn’t because it was crowded inside, it was because you go through a slow-moving lunch platter assembly line of home crafted pleasure. Once you get to the head of the line, you’ll have the opportunity to fill your plate with homemade sides from pickles to potato salad to mac & cheese and chili beans or candied yams.

You'll get misty eyed when you see all the sides. Stay focused. Eyes on the prize!

They even have banana pudding, cobbler and pie on that line. But be warned: you do NOT want to fill up on the sides and miss the main event. And once you try the meat, you’ll be sorry you wasted precious plate space on what will forever be thought of as useless filler. Delicious, homemade filler for sure, but still…meat is the headliner here. Because this was our first visit and I got side-tracked, I tried the chili beans and pickles with a yeast roll. TCP sampled the potato salad, coleslaw and mac & cheese. As for meat, we both went with what they’re known for – the “wet” brisket and homemade jalapeno cheese sausage.

A typical plate at Black's. Wait...there's nothing typical about the food at Black's!

Okay, here’s where we explore the “brutally honest” portion of this review. I cannot tell a lie. I love jalapeno cheese sausage, but I didn’t love it here. It wasn’t even in my Top 10. I saw the flecks of jalapeno and little blobs of cheese, but I couldn’t taste any of it. It was bland, and that’s not good for a sausage that’s designed to pack a punch. I’m sorry, sausage lovers, but the texture and taste of this one left me disappointed. That said, however, the brisket more than made up for it. Oh, that brisket! That gorgeous, fatty, smoke infused, blackened hunk of beefy perfection! I can hardly contain myself. It’s like buttuh, I tell ya’.

That smoke ring...that black crust...that layer of fat. I just want MORE!

Let’s just bottom line it, shall we? This is the best brisket I’ve ever eaten in my entire life. Bar none. Hands down. No competition even remotely close. Seriously. And no, my maiden name is not Black. I’ve sung the praises of the Salt Lick in Driftwood. I’ve dined on the picnic tables at Kreuz Market in Lockhart. But this one….this one is different. This brisket fell from heaven, carried by angels who obviously love their purebred Texas cattle. This one belongs in the record books. There are very few foods in the world that I could binge on until I feel nauseous, but this is one of them. I could eat it every day. I would surely die of a coronary, but I would argue that it might just be worth it. Like totally.

Come for the brisket, but stick around for the charming atmosphere.

The interior of Black’s is decorated in circa 1958 “Grandad’s Fishing Cabin” which adds to the charm. I didn’t even notice the dead animals on the wall until most of my lunch had been consumed. Yup, this place has charm. The clientele is as varied as the sides. You’ll find yourself in line with tour groups, couples, families and bikers. And that just makes it better. At Black’s Barbecue, people from every walk of life come together to celebrate smoky meat. And when it comes to brisket, Black’s is definitely worth celebrating.

Take Me Back to Blacks. YES, PLEASE!

To learn more about Black’s BBQ, you can go to http://www.blacksbbq.com/

Disclaimer: NanaBread is not related to or compensated by the Black family or anyone else associated with Black’s BBQ in Lockhart, Texas. She is just an outspoken, meat-eating, BBQ loving Texan seeking smokey perfection wherever she can find it. And there’s nothing wrong with sharing the gospel of brisket.

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March 14, 2011 · 9:29 AM

Easy Food Prep Tip: Herb Storage

Wow. That sounds really boring. I cannot tell a lie. It sort of is. But it’s also one of my kitchen routines that I feel strongly about, so I’m sharing it anyway. If you’ve decided to keep reading, grab a cup of coffee and try to stay awake. I’ll keep this as short or as entertaining as possible. Thanks for sticking with me.


Today, I’m washing and storing Italian flat-leaf parsley and cilantro. These two are like family. They’re always in the house, always in the fridge, and if you don’t show them some love, they’ll wither and die. I’ve learned that if I invest a little time in prepping them when they come home from the store, I can make them last longer. Let’s break it down. DJ…can I get a beat?

Home in a plastic store bag & unwashed = rotten in 3-4 days
Washed, prepped & bagged properly = good for 7-10 days

Step 1 – a bath & a trip to the carnival
I try to wash and prep my herbs within 24 hours of bringing them home from the store. I give them a cold water bath and a quick trip to the carnival with a long ride in the Salad Spinner. Then I dump them out onto paper towels on my counter so I have room to work. Each herb gets their own little party pad.

Step 2 – stem those little suckers
This step is especially important for the Italian parsley. Those stems gotta go. Yes, this step takes a little time, but the end result is worth it. Those little beauties will be all dressed up with their make-up on and ready to party if you spend a little spa time up front. Ha! That’s what SHE said!

The cilantro is a little different. Big stems are out, but little, thin stems can stay.

Once each herb is stemmed and ready to roll, fold the paper towels they’re sitting on as if you’re diapering a baby – opposite corners together, bottom folded up, then top folded down. If you’re not familiar with baby diapering, think of it as making a paper towel envelope around your herbs. It’s okay if the paper towels are slightly damp. You just don’t want them to be more than slightly damp. Place into labeled freeze bags and press most of the air out. If you’re really organized, you can write the date on the bag along with the name. Or you can be like me and peek in the bag. If it looks good, great! If it’s mushy and looks like a garden slug, it’s time to toss it out. Gross? Sure…but effective.

Place your herb bags in the vegetable bin in your fridge, and try not to stack anything on top of them. If you don’t have a veggie bin or use yours to store beer, pickles and Ding Dongs, stand them up on a shelf somewhere. Just try not to crush them, and don’t push them against the back wall of your fridge. It’s too cold back there, which can cause frost damage. Don’t throw your stems in the trash. Send them down the garbage disposal to make your kitchen smell good. I do the same thing with citrus fruits, once they’re juiced. That’s it! You’re ready to save money by having herbs that last longer, and time by having herbs that are ready to go when you need them. Simple and sensible. That’s how I like it.

Okay. I hid the caramel sauce behind the peppers for this photo. So what!?!

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March 8, 2011 · 12:34 PM

Recipe Review: The Pioneer Woman’s “Aunt Trish’s Salad Dressing”

Aunt Trish's salad dressing over a green salad & grilled haloumi cheese - YUM!

It’s not often that I make my own salad dressing, as evidenced by the row of salad dressing bottles on the top shelf of my fridge. Just last week, The Complete Package found a bottle of French that expired in 2008. Oopsie. And there is ALWAYS a jar of Marzetti’s Ultimate Blue Cheese Dressing in our fridge. Always. Someone whose name I shall not mention would lose his ever-loving mind if he didn’t have his favorite creamy blue cheese dressing to put on his wedge salads or fried potatoes (hint: not Ziggy). But this past week, I was craving something new. Something light. Something lemony. And The Pioneer Woman’s recipe for Aunt Trish’s Salad Dressing looked perfect. It’s light, it’s lemony, and it also has garlic and parmesan cheese. Duh, winning!

Here’s the cast of characters:
3/4 cup of olive oil or canola oil
the juice of 2 lemons
1 clove of garlic, peeled (leave it whole)
4 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. sugar
a dash of paprika
salt & pepper to taste

It couldn’t be easier. You put everything in a jar, shake it up, and let it stew in the fridge for 24 hours, then shake it again before using. I made a tossed green salad of romaine, shredded carrots, sliced radishes, cucumber, quartered Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced purple onion, kalamata olives, pepperoncini peppers and feta cheese. Then we shook up our jar of Aunt Trish’s and poured it over the top. To say that we both loved this salad dressing would be an understatement. It was so good, we were tempted to put our faces into our bowls and lick them clean. Or grab a straw and suck up all the remnants. But instead, we used some toasted garlic bread to sop it all up. No drop was wasted. We enjoyed it so whole heartedly that we could have put our salad bowls back into the cupboard without washing them first. We didn’t, of course, but we probably could have.

Besides being knocked out by how great this was on a salad, my mind was racing through all the other things I could use it on. It would be a great marinade for grilled meats. It would be fantastic drizzled over a sandwich in place of boring old mayonnaise or mustard. This would knock your socks off as a dressing for a pasta salad. You could cube up salami, mozzarella cheese, olives and Italian peppers and make a fabulous antipasto tray for parties. Don’t get me started on using it on a cold seafood salad. This is not a salad dressing, it’s an obsession.

As always, I’m going to refer you to the source so you can see the recipe the way Ree intended – with fabulous photos and an engaging back story. Click here to be transported to salad dressing heaven at The Pioneer Woman.com.

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March 3, 2011 · 7:47 AM

Rocky Road Cake Mix Cookies


Cake mixes are on sale at my grocery store. That’s a bad thing. Bad, bad, bad. Did I mention they were only 50 cents a box? Yeah. It’s not just bad, it’s dangerous. I bought six. Okay, I bought eight, but that does NOT make me a cake mix hoarder. Funny thing is, I’m not really a cake eater. In an effort to rationalize the irrational, I was thinking the kids love cupcakes, and I could bake them when they come to visit or vice versa. But then I started doing the math. Each box makes at least 20 cupcakes. I have 8 boxes. There’s a good chance that 160 cupcakes might just be too much for two small children. Way too much.

So now I have eight cake mixes that I got for the low, low price of 50 cents a box and I have to think of something to do with them. That’s when a light went off and I remembered seeing recipes for cake mix cookies on the internet. “I like a cookie!” (Name that movie…if you have young children and enjoy animated films.) With a little quick research, I found that you can covert a cake mix into cookies with a few simple ingredients. And that’s exactly what I done did.

Here’s what you’ll need:
1 chocolate fudge cake mix, 18.25 ounce box
3 large eggs
1/2 stick of unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (not pictured)
1 cup dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1 cup pecan pieces

Pre-heat your oven to 350F. In a mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract. This will start out very dry and take several minutes of hand mixing to get it to come together. I recommend using a heavy-duty wooden spoon, because this dough will be very thick. Once you’ve got it mixed together, stir in the chocolate chips, marshmallows and pecans. Using a cookie scoop or your hands, place golf-ball size dough balls onto cookie sheets lined with silicone baking mats or lightly sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake at 350F for 14-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on the cookie sheets for at least 20 minutes. Why? Because those marshmallows are going to be melted, gooey little napalm bombs and cooling them completely on the cookie sheets will allow you to remove them more easily. Would you like one? I’m happy to share. I’ve got a lot more cake mix where this one came from.


This recipe makes approximately 30 cookies. One last suggestion – make sure you have milk in the fridge before you mix these puppies up. Or a cup of coffee. Or a Slim-Fast.

RECIPE UPDATE: A reader on the Pioneer Woman’s Tasty Kitchen site tried this recipe and said hers came out too dry on the outside. I’m guessing her oven may get hotter than mine, since my batch came out soft and chewy. If your oven runs hot, you may want to reduce your baking time to 11-12 minutes instead of the 14 recommended. These don’t brown, so it’s hard to tell if they’re done by looking. The other option is to touch test them. If they’re relatively firm and dry on the outside, take them out of the oven. If they’re still sticky to the touch or too soft, leave them in a little longer. I appreciate your feedback!

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February 23, 2011 · 2:09 PM

N’Awlins-Style Muffaletta Sandwich: Aww, cher…make ya say “Aieee!”


One of my favorite sandwiches in this big wide world is a good New Orleans style muffaletta. Like most muffaletta virgins, I had my first at Central Grocery in the French Quarter. Once you’ve dined at the birthplace of any great food, nothing else will ever compare. And while our version comes pretty close, you should definitely stop by Central the next time you’re in the French Quarter and try the original. It’s a N’Awlins tradition – like Mardi Gras parades with beads, beignets at Cafe du Monde, or hurricanes at Pat O’Briens. Nobody does food and fun like New Orleans, but here’s how we try to harness the party at our house.


NanaBread’s Muffaletta Sandwich:
1 round sourdough bread boule
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound thin-sliced deli ham (not a sweet one; use old-fashioned baked ham)
4 slices of provolone cheese
1/3 cup of mayonnaise (not Miracle Whip, people; use the good stuff)
1 small can of chopped black olives (4.25 ozs.; you only need half of the can)
24 small pimento-stuffed green olives
2 Tbsp. of juice from the green olive jar (trust me)
3 Tbsp. Italian Olive Salad Mix (optional, but use it if you can find it)

Start by slicing your sourdough boule horizontally; you’ll want the bottom to be about 1″ thick. Using your fingers or a spoon, remove some of the excess bread from the top, leaving a deep indentation in the dome of your boule. Drizzle one tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil over each half of the bread. If you need to, use your fingers to work the oil out to the edges and into the nooks and crannies. Place both halves oiled side down on a griddle until the bread is a beautiful golden brown. (If you don’t have a griddle, a non-stick skillet works just as well.) I also like to weigh down the top so the surface is pressed down onto the griddle.

While the bread is toasting, chop the green olives, open the can of black olives, and spoon out 3 tablespoons of Italian Olive Salad mix; set aside. One quick side note about the Italian Olive Salad: you may be wondering why I use olives AND an olive salad mix together. The answer is that the olive salad mix also contains a mouth-watering mix of other vegetables (cauliflower, peppers, carrots, celery) and spices preserved in olive oil. Do you have to use it? No. But if you can find it, the olive salad will add another extraordinary layer of flavor. Trust me.

Once your bread is toasted to a beautiful, crispy golden brown, remove it from the griddle and place both sides face up on a cutting board. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise and olive juice and blend until smooth (it will be a little on the thin side). Dress each half of the bread with the mayonnaise mixture. Make sure you spread it all the way out to the edges. It’s imperative. Okay, really it’s just so all the olives stick. Next, sprinkle your green olives and olive salad on the top half, and the black olives on the bottom half. Don’t fret about separating friends. They’re all coming to the party in the end. You’ll see.

Layer your thin-sliced ham over the top of your black olives, making sure the ham goes all the way out to the edges again. (Remember – no honey or maple glazed ham, please! It will ruin the flavor of the sandwich. You really just need a simple old-fashioned or baked deli ham here.) Arrange your provolone cheese slices over the top of your green olives. Place both halves face-up on a baking sheet and toast them under the broiler until the ham warms and the cheese turns into this gooey, gorgeous golden hue. Remove from the broiler.

Using a spatula, flip the top half onto the bottom half to bring your sandwich together. Everyone is at the party now, and they are all getting along famously. It’s world peace in a sourdough boule. Allow your muffaletta to rest for at least 5 minutes before you cut it. It will be hard. It may even seem impossible. If you need a distraction, grab an Abita Beer, a bag of Zapp’s Cajun Crawtator chips, and a handful of napkins. Once you’re ready, grab a serrated bread knife and cut the muffaletta into wedges, like you’re slicing a pie. Mmmmm….pie.

Don’t get fancy here and try to serve this on a real plate. This is bar hopping food. You want to slap that sucker on a paper plate or wrap it in a little butcher paper. Then settle in with your muffaletta, your cold Abita beer, that bag of zesty, crunchy Cajun crawtators and let your mind slip away to an enchanted land of live oaks, Spanish moss, warm breezes, hot beignets and hotter jazz. Oh, New Orleans…you are unforgettable. Happy Mardi Gras, y’all.

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February 21, 2011 · 10:25 AM

Substitutions, Weights & Equivalents…sounds like my old science homework

Martha Stewart’s “Cooks Helpers” in my previous post got me thinking about emergency substitutions. For example: what happens if I need a cup of heavy cream, but don’t have any? What if a recipe calls for brown sugar, but I only have white? Is there a substitution for molasses if I don’t have any for my baked beans or cookies? {Perish the thought!} If I have only all-purpose flour, can I make it work if the recipe clearly calls for cake flour? I think you get the picture. A good substitution list is something I could really use when I’m in the middle of a recipe before I realize I’m out of something. Luckily, there are substitutions for just about anything. And since Al Gore invented the Internet (thank you kindly, sir), information is now at our fingertips. Unfortunately, it’s not always in the same place. After a little searching, here are a few I think are useful.

EMERGENCY SUBSTITUTIONS:

Baking Powder (1 tsp.) – sift together ¼ tsp. baking soda & ½ tsp. cream of tartar; use immediately

Brown Sugar, Light (1 cup) – process 1 cup granulated sugar & 1 Tbsp. molasses in a food processor

Brown Sugar, Dark (1 cup) – process 1 cup granulated sugar & 2 Tbsp. molasses in a food processor

Buttermilk (1 cup) – combine 1 cup of milk with 1 Tbsp. of lemon juice or white vinegar; let stand for 10 minutes before using; use in cooked applications only, not raw (such as Ranch dressing)

Chocolate, Unsweetened (1 oz.) – blend 3 Tbsp. of cocoa powder with 1 Tbsp. of vegetable oil

Flour, Cake (1 cup) – measure 1 cup of all-purpose flour; remove 2 Tbsp. and replace them with 2 Tbsp. of cornstarch; sift before using

Flour, Self-Rising (1 cup) – measure 1 cup of all-purpose flour; add 1 ½ tsp. baking powder & 1/8 tsp. salt

Flour, Whole Wheat (1 cup) – measure 1 cup of all-purpose flour; remove 2 Tbsp. and replace them with 2 Tbsp. of wheat germ

Half-and-Half (1 cup) – combine ¾ cup whole milk and ¼ cup heavy cream OR blend 2/3 cup skim milk with 1/3 cup heavy cream

Herbs, Fresh (1 Tbsp.) – use 1 tsp. of the same herb, dried

Milk, Whole (1 cup) – combine ¾ cup of 2% milk and ¼ cup half-and-half

Molasses (1 cup) – blend ¾ cup dark brown sugar with ¼ cup water

Wine (1/2 cup) – combine ½ cup of broth & 1 tsp. of lemon juice; add just before serving

And what if you don’t have a kitchen scale (don’t gasp, bakers), but your recipe is listed in ounces? Fear not. Here’s a basic guide to help you avoid a disaster.

MEASUREMENT VS WEIGHT:
Flour, All-Purpose (1 cup) = 5 ounces
Flour, Whole Wheat (1 cup) = 5.5 ounces
Sugar, White (1 cup) = 7 ounces
Sugar, Brown & Packed (1 cup) = 7 ounces
Sugar, Powdered (1 cup) = 4 ounces
Cocoa Powder (1 cup) = 3 ounces

That doesn’t cover everything, but it gets you started. One last helpful list:

MEASURING EQUIVALENTS:
3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon
4 tablespoons = ¼ cup
8 tablespoons = 1/2 cup = 4 fluid ounces
16 tablespoons = 1 cup = 8 fluid ounces
2 cups = 1 pint = 16 fluid ounces
4 cups = 2 pints = 1 quart = 32 fluid ounces
4 quarts = 1 gallon = 128 fluid ounces

Okay, I’m done. I don’t know about you, but I’m printing this and posting it in my spice cabinet with Martha’s Helpers. You never know when it might come in handy. And it might eliminate some of the cursing that comes out of my kitchen. Maybe. No guarantees. But there’s hope. Sort of. Maybe not. I’ll try. I promise.

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February 18, 2011 · 6:24 AM

Knock-Off “Chicken Bucket” Coleslaw: It’s Digit Smackin’ Good


Last night was fried chicken night, and that means we had crispy, crunchy chicken strips with all the fixin’s. And that means sour cream mashed potatoes with cream gravy, buttermilk biscuits, and coleslaw. The recipe is from one of those covert knock-off websites that like to duplicate restaurant recipes. It tastes just like the coleslaw you might find at a certain fast food chicken establishment famous for more than 10 but less than 12 herbs and spices. I have to say, this one’s a dead ringer. My 4 year-old grandson, Jonah Bear, calls the place “Chicken Bucket.” That’s not what he asks you to buy, that’s what he actually calls the restaurant. As in, “can we eat at Chicken Bucket?” My recipe for chicken strips is already posted. Now it’s time for the coleslaw.

Here’s how it’s done:
1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use Duke’s or Hellman’s)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bag (16 ozs.) coleslaw mix (cabbage & carrots)
1 tablespoon of pulped onion (see instructions below)

In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sugar, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, white vinegar, salt and pepper. Using a microplane or the fine side of a box grater, grate a chunk of onion until you have one tablespoon of onion pulp. Add the onion pulp to the mayonnaise mixture and whisk until smooth. Add the bag of coleslaw mix and toss to combine. Transfer to an airtight container to chill.

NOTE: You can serve this immediately, but it’s better if it sits in the refrigerator for a few hours. The flavors have more time to work their magic. I like to open the fridge and shake the container vigorously every half hour or so, just to make sure it’s “marinated” evenly. The final product will be a little soupy, so use a slotted spoon or drain off some of the milk mixture before serving (but not too much, because it’s really good stuff). Now all you need is chicken and biscuits!

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