Pages, Pucks and Pantry

Sweet and Saltines

Sometimes you just need something that is sweet, salty and quick to make. It helps if you already have all the ingredients in your pantry. This is one of those little treats.

It comes from the Home Cooking With Trisha Yearwood cookbook. And if you are like me, you probably have the required ingredients on hand right now...saltine crackers or graham crackers, butter, brown sugar and chocolate chips.

I've made these with both saltines and graham crackers. This photo was made with graham crackers.

SWEET AND SALTINES
(Home Cooking with Trisha Yearwood)

40 saltine crackers
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup light brown sugar
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips (about 1 1/3 cups)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large jellyroll pan with aluminum foil and the saltine crackers.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar together and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour over the crackers, covering them evenly. Put the jellyroll pan into the oven and watch closely. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes, or until just bubbly. Remove from the oven and pour the chocolate chips over the crackers. When the chips melt a bit, spread them over the crackers with a knife. Transfer the pan to the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until completely cold. They will form one big sheet. Break up into pieces. Store in an airtight container.

Serves 20 (uh yeah, not even close)

Note: Instructions for the recipe state you can substitute graham crackers for the saltines like I did. It will make a sweeter snack. Use 1 stick of butter instead of 2 for a crunchier, saltier snack. I used 1 1/2 sticks. Because of the lesser amount of butter, be prepared for things to get a bit crumbly.

Note: Use anywhere from 35 to 45 saltine crackers, depending on the size of your pan. When I used graham crackers, I just made sure the bottom of the pan was covered, I don't bother to count how many I used.

Note: The recipe calls for semisweet chocolate chips but you can use milk chocolate. I figure I might try this with butterscotch chips.

A nice quick snack when you don't feel like really baking or going to the store for more ingredients.

T-Bone Steaks with Chipotle-Cilantro Butter

I've made a couple of things with t-bone steaks lately. T-bones aren't my favorite steaks, I prefer an aged rib-eye or a skirt steak. But the last T-bone I used in a recipe turned out great so I thought I'd give this recipe a try.

This recipe is mainly for the Chipotle-Cilantro butter. I forget that making a compound butter to put over steaks is such an easy thing to do. I loved the flavor of this butter and I think that the leftover butter I have will go well over some potatoes or rice...or any other cut of steak I happen to cook.

The only problem were the t-bone steaks I used. They just didn't have the flavor or tenderness I wanted and since we paid top dollar for them, I was disappointed. I definitely plan on making this butter again so I'll try it with a different cut (and I'll remember to make a double batch of the butter since there are so many other things I want to put it on!)

This was so simple to do. Make the butter on a Sunday and then you can use it over the next week. Or you can do like I did, make the butter as soon as you get home from work and then you just cook the steaks whenever you get hungry.

The recipe came from the Relaxed Cooking with Curtis Stone cookbook.

And did I mention the butter had tequila in it?

T-BONE STEAKS WITH CHIPOTLE-CILANTRO BUTTER
(Relaxed Cooking With Curtis Stone)

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon tequila
Four 10- to 12-ounce T-bone steaks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Mix the butter, chiles, cilantro, and tequila in a bowl to blend. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap on a work surface. Spoon the chile butter onto the center of the plastic wrap and roll it into a cylinder. Refrigerate for at least 2 to 3 hours or overnight.

Heat a barbecue grill to medium-high, or preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the steaks with salt and black pepper. Grill the steaks on one side for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut the chile-butter log crosswise into 8 slices, and set aside.

Turn the steaks over and top each steak with 2 butter slices. Continue grilling for 5 minutes for medium-rare, or until the butter begins to melt. Transfer the steaks to plates, and serve.

Serves 4

NOTE: I used unsalted butter, so I added a bit more salt after the fact.

NOTE: I only used the required 1 tablespoon of tequila. I know you think I'd add more, but it really wouldn't have done much for the compound butter.

NOTE: I used a grill pan and cooked the steaks on the stove.

We actually split a rib eye so we had a ton of extra butter left. It really is good to use on mashed potatoes!

 

Pomegranate Martini

This was a nice summer drink on a hot summer afternoon. I realize that right now it isn't summer and it isn't hot, but I still think that this is a nice refreshing drink. Besides, pomegranates are supposed to be good for you. So why not have some with a little vodka!

I bought pomegranate seeds at the local Traders Joes. I don't think they are needed for the drink though. They don't float so they sink to the bottom of the drink. If you like pomegranate seeds then the seeds are okay to eat once you've finished the cocktail but neither Mr. L nor I were in the mood so the drink soaked seeds went down the drain. Maybe next time. Since it wasn't exactly pomegranate season when we originally made this drink maybe seeds more in season would taste better.

We used a fairly inexpensive vodka, Svedka. I honestly think this would taste much better with a higher quality vodka. They do say that when you add "sweet" to vodka the quality of the vodka doesn't matter as much. We like Svedka and usually use it when we make mixed drinks.

This recipe came from Relaxed Cooking With Curtis Stone.

POMEGRANATE MARTINI
(Relaxed Cooking With Curtis Stone)

Ice Cubes
1/3 cup pomegranate juice
1/4 cup vodka
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice
Pomegranate seeds, for garnish

Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add the pomegranate juice, vodka, and orange juice. Shake vigorously until the outside of the shaker becomes very cold and frosty. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with the pomegranate seeds, and serve immediately.

Serves 1

Current Cookbook - Relaxed Cooking with Curtis Stone

RELAXED COOKING WITH CURTIS STONE - Recipes to Put You in My Favorite Mood - by Curtis Stone

This cookbook has a copyright of 2009. My friend Chef Barbie bought this book for me and had it autographed when Curtis was at Sur La Table. I have cooked from this before.

A year or so ago I made a recipe and never put it on the blog. In the meantime I just made a dish from this cookbook last week, so it's high time I posted it and counted it as a cookbook I've cooked from!

I do have a confession to make. I think Curtis Stone is hot. During his first cooking show I seriously considered parking myself at the grocery store looking a bit lost with some pathetic food in my cart just in case he happened to come by. Trust me it's more than just that Australian accent!

Okay, now that we are through with that.

The book starts with a nice introduction, telling us how he got started cooking and how he ended up where he is today. The introduction also tells you a bit about the philosophy of the cookbook and what he considers "relaxed cooking". Chapters are divided into First Thing in the Morning, Brunch That Will Blow Their Minds, Weekend Lunches, Something to Eat on the Sofa, Daily Dinners, Crowd-Pleasers, Sides to Share and Sweet Dreams.

Recipes seem pretty straightforward, easy to follow, no real out there ingredients. The recipes don't seem "fussy" at all which goes with the "relaxed" title. Almost every recipe has a nice full page, glossy colored photo (there are several photos of Curtis of course). The recipes are nicely laid out and are easy to read. The index is quite good listing things by recipe, ingredient, type and even event (Brunch, Casual Bites).

Tons of great recipes I'd like to try: Caramelized Nectarines with Yogurt and Honey; Watermelon with Fresh Mint and Lime; Cinnamon French Toast with Caramelized Peaches; Greek Doughnuts; Portobello Mushrooms with Ricotta, Tomatoes, and Basil; Crispy Tortilla with Ham, Chile, Spinach, and Fried Eggs; Lobster Cocktail; Wild Mushroom, Spinach, and Goat Cheese Tarts; Simple Salad with p[Parmesan Wafers and Organic Pached Egg; Baby Spinach Salad with Crispy Bacon and Cheese Croutons; Iozza's Corn and Bacon Muffins; Sticky Çhicken Drumsticks; Honey-Glazed Ham Panini; Fresh Crab and Avocado Dip with Crispy Tortilla Chips; Rigatoni with Spicy Italian Salami, Baby Tomatoes, Olives and Capers; Crumbed Chicken Breasts Filled with Swiss Cheese; T-Bone Steaks with Chipotle-Cilantro Butter; Pan-Fried Pork Wrapped in Prociutto with Sage and Capers; Cheese Fondue; Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni; Chili Crab; All-American Barbecued Baby Back Ribs; Slowly Cooked Brisket with a BBQ Bourbon Sauce; Lamb Shanks Slowly Braised in Red Wine, Rosemary, and Thyme; Sangria; Pomegranate Martini; Acorn Squash Roasted with Thyme; Crispy Roasted Potatoes; Coconut Rice; Creamy Mascarpone and Parsley Polenta; Espresso Creme Brulee; Brownie Cupcakes; Peanut Butter Cookies with Chocolate Chunks; Amaretto Hot Chocolate Floats with Vanilla Swiss Almond Ice Cream; Banoffee Pie.

So many great sounding recipes, none which seem to hard to make, I'm not sure how I'll chose what to try!