Buffalo Wings (and Barbecue too!)

Buffalo is built on wings, I mean when the President visited I had no idea what he was here for, all people were talking about was that he was going to Duffs, not the Anchorbar.

Whenever a relative visits we have some wings delivered, but lately my dad hasn't been satisfied with the wings we've been getting. 20 wings for $10, isn't exactly a good deal.
However, you can buy a bag of 100 frozen wings for $16, even with the cost of hot sauce, barbecue sauce, and butter, when you sit down and do the math, you make out pretty good.

Besides they're crazy easy to make!
The ratio of hot sauce to butter is really up to you, I like my wings medium, but if you like them hotter, add more hot sauce. You could also add a dash of garlic powder or red chili flakes, but I wanted to keep mine as simple and classic as possible.


Medium Buffalo Wings
15 wings
1/4 cup of melted butter
1/3 cup Franks hot sauce

Preheat your fryer to to 385 degrees (that's as high as mine will go).
My fryer basket holds 15 wings, so that's how many I make per batch.

(Note: If you don't have a fryer, a pot full of vegetable oil on the stove with a cooking thermometer will work fine. Just be careful not to overfill it and watch for splattering oil.)

es).
Fry the wings for 12 minutes, or to desired crispiness. 12 minutes gets them crispy on the outside and moist inside.

Mix the melted butter and hot sauce.

Once the wings are done, give them a good shake and place in a big bowl, pour sauce over the top and toss to coat.

Barbecue Wings
1 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce
15 wings

For authentic barbecue wings, you should grill them, but if you're short on time lazy, or busy making other flavors, it works pretty well to just thicken the barbecue sauce and then coat the wings. To thicken the sauce, pour it into a saucepan, heat on the stove at about medium heat, stir occasionally until reduced.

Fry the wings at 385 degrees for 12 minutes, give them a good shake and place in a big bowl, pour thickened barbecue sauce over the them and toss to coat.

Serve your wings with carrots, celery and blue cheese dressing. Be prepared to make these all the time once your family realizes how cheap, easy and delicious they are.

Quick Carrot Cake Cookies

On a routine visit to see some family in PA, I was astounded to discover a huge vegetable garden at my grandparents house.
They gave me a huge bag if carrots, beets and garlic. I've been trying to make good use of them, and of course my primary focus has been sweets.
I stumbled upon this recipe and it seemed like the right fit.
The dough was easy to put together and the cookies baked up quick.

I should stress though, that you use real maple syrup, the fake stuff will just make these taste funky.
Quick Carrot Cake Cookies
(the original recipe)

1 cup All-Purpose Flour

1/2 cup Old-Fashioned Oats
1/2 cup Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Canola Oil
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 cup Grated Carrots
1/2 cup Raisins
1/4 cup of chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well blended.

Scoop out 1 tablespoon sized portions unto a greased baking sheet. (As you can see mine are too big, so do as I say, not as I do on this one.)
Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown.

Salsa Verde

Admittedly, I'm not a big salsa fan. Salsa Verde it seems is an exception though. I tried it a few weeks ago at a party and immediately needed to recreate it.
I never got the recipe from Hans, so I looked at a couple of recipes and incorporated in what I saw Hans doing. What I created came pretty close to what I'd had at the party.
This salsa is tasty and refreshing.

(Salsa Verde just means 'Green Sauce')
Salsa Verde
2 lbs tomatillos
1 onion, peeled and cut in half
1 jalapeno pepper
2-3 garlic cloves
juice of half a lime
1 poblano pepper roasted
olive oil
salt/pepper to taste

Peel the tomatillos (if they have their husks on when you buy them) and soak them in warm water.

Cut the larger tomatillos in half.
Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a pan. Add the tomatillos, onion, jalapeno, and garlic. Fry them until they brown and smell delicious.
Let everything cool and then roughly cut the onion and jalapeno (wear plastic gloves while you do it).

Put everything in the blender, including the poblano and lime juice, then blend to desired chunkiness.

Find some chips and enjoy!

Shepherd's Pie

As much as I love warm summer days, I'm more in love with warm comforting winter foods. The kind of foods that bubble away in the oven and make the whole house smell good.
Of course in the summer these foods are way too rich and make the house incredibly warm, so I have to obstain.
However I was recently treated to a perfect cool, preview of Fall kind of day and my sister requested Shepherd's Pie. I jumped at the opportunity, Shepherd's Pie is the epitome of comfort deliciousness, cheesy and smothered in mashed potatoes. It's also the most delicious leftovers.

My recipe is a variation of Gordon Ramsay's. My mashed potatoes are pretty basic, but you can make them the way you prefer them.

Shepherd's Pie
2lbs ground hamburger
1 small can tomato paste
2-3 cups of beef broth
1 packet beef stew seasoning
several splashes of worcestershire sauce
1 medium onion, grated
1 carrot, grated
1 bag of frozen corn (or vegetable of your choice)
2.5 lbs of russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
milk
2 tablespoons butter/margarine
salt/pepper
olive oil

Brown hamburger, breaking it up into small pieces and drain.

Heat a few splashes of olive oil in a pan and add the onion and cook for a few minutes until soft.

Add the hamburger, tomato paste, beef broth, seasoning packet, and worcestershire sauce, stir, cover and let simmer for 10-15 minutes until thick.

Boil the potatoes until fork tender, and drain.

Mash them together with butter/margarine and enough milk to make it smooth. Season with salt/pepper.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Add corn to the filling once it's finished cooking.
Pour the filling into a 13x9 glass.

Cover with the mashed potatoes. Then cover with cheese.

Bake until the cheese is melted and the filling is bubbling (10-15 minutes).

Serve a generous portion with a big slice of crusty bread.

Salmon Patties

While my family doesn't like much seafood, they do like salmon.
Excited that my family members liked something new, I overzealously purchased large chunks of salmon several weeks in a row. They finally told me they were sick of it, but it was one 3lb piece of salmon too late.

Not wanting to waste $20 of quickly spoiling product, I decided to try to make a slightly fancier version of dish my grandma makes. I didn't change much, just substituting olive oil for crisco, using fresh salmon instead of canned, and sauteeing onions before adding them., I kept the Saltines though, partially because I had them on hand, but mostly because I wanted bigger chunks than I would get in breadcrumbs.

Cooking the salmon ahead of time (makes sure you do it the same day though), makes the cooking time on these super low.

Salmon Patties
1lb piece of Salmon (you could just as easily use canned though)
1 small onion, chopped finely
2 eggs
1 sleeve of Saltine crackers
salt/pepper

Roast the piece of salmon on a baking sheet (sprayed with nonstick spray) at 400 degrees until cooked through (10-20 minutes). Let cool.

Saute onions in a pan, in a tablespoon of butter/oil.

Flake the salmon.

Crush Saltines to desired texture. Add onions and Saltines to the salmon.
In a separate dish, whisk eggs. Add them to the salmon and combine everything gently.

Divide salmon mixture into hockey puck sized portions. Press them to hold their shape.

Place on a tray and let set in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Fill a saute pan with enough oil to completely cover the bottom, and place on a medium heat.

Once the oil is hot, fry small batches of the patties, flipping when the bottoms are golden and crisp.

Serve with whatever you want!

Poached Eggs in a Spicy Tomato Sauce (Shakshuka)

In my effort to look into more savory and healthier recipes, I've been thinking a lot about alternatives to meat.
I tried this recipe a few months ago and liked it, but it wasn't filling enough for me. This time I added lentils and it was perfect.

I also modified the recipe to scale it down a little so that it was just enough for two people, since it doesn't really work as leftovers, and I blended the sauce up, because chunks of cooked tomatoes just weird me out. Feel free to leave it unblended.

Poached Eggs in a Spicy Tomato Sauce (Shakshuka)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 jalapeños, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1 14 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
Kosher salt, to taste
4 eggs
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
Warm pitas, for serving

Saute the onions and garlic in oil till the onions are translucent. Add jalapeños and tomatoes and let simmer till thick, about 7-10 minutes. Add the paprika and cumin, and season with salt and pepper.

(I blend it at this point.) Carefully add the eggs, don't crowd them. Then cover the pan, let simmer till the yolks are just set, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley.

Serve over lentils (prepared basically by the recipe on the back of the bag) with toasted pitas and lots of crumbled feta cheese on top.

Everyday Chocolate Cake

Chocolate cake is happiness.

I'm not a "chocoholic" by any means, my chocolate Halloween candy was often traded away, but I love chocolate cake.

Perhaps I should clarify enough farther, I love simple chocolate cake, with a little vanilla frosting or some whipped cream and raspberry sauce. No "death by chocolate" for me.

So when Felicia Day retweeted this recipe by Smitten Kitchen, I knew I had to try it.

I had everything it called for except buttermilk. No buttermilk, is not a reason to stress though, in fact, unless you use it regularly I wouldn't recommend ever buying it. They only seem to sell it in really large containers and I never need more than a cup.
Instead use this simple buttermilk substitute. It worked great.

Everyday Chocolate Cake

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup Dutch cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter/flour a 9x5x3 loaf pan.

With an electric mixer, combine the sugars and butter until creamed.

Add the egg. Mix.

Add the buttermilk and vanilla. Mix. (Don't worry that it doesn't combine completely).

Sift in all the dry ingredients.

Mix with a spoon until combined, but try not to over mix.

Pour into loaf pan.

Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool, cut and enjoy. (Perhaps with some marscarpone and berries.)