Garlic Buttered Egg Noodles with Asparagus and Button Mushrooms

Growing up, my Mom was very very tricky. One of her favorite tricks was to make my brother Jason and I believe that cheap and mundane dishes were expensive treats to be had only on occasion. I love that trick.

One dish my Mom would make that I loved was garlic buttered egg noodles. I took my Mom's old recipe and jazzed it up a bit. It's cheap, delicious, and a great main vegetarian dish or side dish with my shellfish recipe.

Garlic Buttered Egg Noodles with Asparagus and Button Mushrooms

1 lb egg noodles
1 lb asparagus (cut in thirds)
1 package button mushrooms sliced
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp garlic salt
4 tbs salted Irish butter
A couple dashes of hot sesame oil
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup cilantro
1/2 cup red onion

First, cook the egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet (I use my wok), heat the olive oil. Saute the asparagus and button mushrooms until they are cooked to your taste. Remove the vegetables from the pan. Next, add the butter to the pan and melt the butter, next add the cilantro, garlic, and red onion. Cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Then add the noodles, sesame oil, vegetables, and garlic salt. Cook all together for 5 minutes. Serve it up and enjoy!

This recipe will run you about $5-$7 and will feed four people to the gills.

Shellfish Steaming Stock Base for Mussels, Cockles, and Clams

I have been searching for perfection in my quest for a blow your mind recipe for steaming shell fish. Last night I did. I considered simply updating my existing spicy mussels recipe with this new recipe, but there is enough difference in flavor and prep time that I decided to go ahead and create a separate recipe. Also, the side dish I prepared with these mussels balanced the flavors in a really simple and effective way.

And completely by accident I created a seafood soup stock that had my dinner guests asking for good Italian bread that they then used to dip and sop up as much of the stock as they could. One of my guests was allergic to shellfish, and she risked hives in order to sample the sauce from the mussels--more than once.

These mussels take a little bit longer prep time (adding an additional 20 minutes), but it is worth it. Sweet baby Jesus it is worth it. I will post the recipe for the side dish (Buttered Noodles with Asparagus and Button Mushrooms) in a separate post. I loved that so much that I may make another batch of it today.

So here it is:

Shellfish Steaming Stock Base (Mussels, Cockles, Clams)

2 to 4lbs of your favorite mussels, cockles, or clams
1 loaf of fresh Italian bread or baguette
4 cups sweet white wine (I use pinot grigio)
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp salt
2 tsps fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp fresh rosemary
2 tsp oregano
2 tbsp Brandon's Shut Yo Mouth Hot Sauce or two thai peppers diced
1 jalapeno diced
1/2 tsp hot sesame oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp salted Irish butter
1/2 cup fresh cilantro minced
1 bunch scallions minced
1/2 small red onion minced
1/4 cup sweetened cooking sake
1 package Goya Sazon con Azafran

Combine all the ingredients, except the shellfish and butter, in a large pot. Stir the steaming stock and make sure that all of the ingredients are well mixed. Then add the butter to the pot.

Next over medium high heat bring the stock to a simmer. DO NOT LET THE STOCK BOIL! If the stock boils it will weaken the flavor. Once the stock has reached a steady simmer, reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off the stock and let it cool for 10 to 15 minutes.

Next add your shellfish to the pot. Cover, turn the heat to high, and steam the shellfish for 7 to 10 minutes (cockles take less time, clams take the most time). Uncover, remove any shellfish that have not opened, and serve. Prepare to have your mind blown. Pour the juice in a dipping bowl and serve with fresh baguette or Italian bread for dipping.

Depending on how your kitchen is stocked in terms of spices, this recipe will run you $16 to $20, and it will feed four people comfortably. Consider serving it with my Buttered Noodles with Asparagus and Button Mushrooms.

Tostones con Ailoi a la Tasha y Nat (Fried Green Platains with Creamy Garlic Dipping Sauce)

Last night I made my spicy mussels dish for a group of friends at the Brooklyn home of my diva-licious friends Tasha and Natalie.

In addition to my spicy mussels dish, I made tostones (fried green plantains--a common side dish from the Caribbean) and a quick version of aioli that I made up last night as I went along. Natalie revealed that she had attempted to make tostones recently, but she wasn't able to get them to smash into round circles. It was revealed that she was trying to mash the uncooked green plantains, which would be akin to trying to use a rolling pin to mash a brick.

So, I decided, today, to reveal my easy tostones recipe along with the delicious "quick," aioli that I conjured up last night. And, just to note, I have named this quick and easy dipping sauce after my favorite two Brooklynite dykes: Tasha and Nat!

Tostones con Aioli (Fried Green Plantains with Garlic Dipping Sauce)

5 Green Plantains cut into quarter sized slices
1 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp garlic salt
1 small container sour creme
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 large paper grocery bags

First, prepare your dipping sauce. This is remarkably easy. Open the sour creme container. Scoop the sour creme out into a small mixing bowl. To the sour creme add the olive oil, and to that add the garlic salt. Mix thoroughly and let stand at room temperature. Set aside.

Next, in a large pan (a wok actually works wonderfully) heat your vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the plantains. Chances are you will have to cook the plantains in several rounds. Preparing tostones is a two step process. Fry the tostones until they are golden in color, then remove from the heat and place on one of the paper bags. Next lay the second bag atop the first and using a rolling pin or a large can, roll over the uppermost bag and smash the plantains. Continue to do this process (frying and then smashing) until all of the plantains are cooked.

Then, add fresh oil to the wok and fry the plantains again! Cook them until they begin to turn a deep golden brown. Remove from the heat, sprinkle with garlic salt, and serve with the dipping sauce.

This recipe will run you about $5 and will feed a horde of hungry friends (four people will be comfortably stuffed before you serve the main course).

Quick Spicy Mussels with Salad Greens and Avocado

I love dazzling people with dishes that look amazing, and sound sexy, but are ridiculously cheap and easy to make. I learned that trick from my Mother. I grew up extremely poor. There were times when it was touch and go if we were going to be evicted from our home, and for most of my life my Mom worked two jobs, usually two minimum wage jobs.

My Mother was a hero, period, but she was a goddess in the kitchen. One thing that she did was turn mundane, everyday food, into miracle treats. My little brother Jason and I were convinced that buttered egg noodles were a delicacy, when in fact it was nothing more than sauteed noodles in butter, salt, and garlic. But, my mother would only make the dish rarely, and she made a big deal out of it when she did. Presentation and flair when serving a dish can turn anything into a fancy treat.

Last night, I made my favorite mussel recipe. Other than the brown rice, the entire dish takes roughly 15 minutes to make INCLUDING cooking and prep time. The reaction, however, when I posted a picture of my plate to Facebook was astounding.

So here is the recipe for my dinner last night. Enjoy!

Spicy Mussels with Salad Greens and Avocado

2lb Prince Edward Island or Blue Mussels
3 garlic cloves minced
2 jalapenos sliced
3 Thai chili peppers sliced
1/2 red onion diced
3 cups white wine
1 to 2 ripe avocados
1 bag of mixed garden greens

Mussels are wonderful because you don't have to clean them first. They generally come in 2lb bags at your local grocer in the fresh seafood section. The first thing that you want to do when you get home is go through the mussels and toss out any broken mussels. Next, in a large pot, add the wine, peppers, onion, and garlic. Next add the mussels. Cover the mussels and cook over high heat for 8-10 minutes until the mussels are opened. After 10 minutes (MAX!) remove from heat. Do not cook longer or the mussels will start to get chewy. Do NOT eat any mussels that haven't opened. Throw those away as well.

To dish up the mussels, lay down a bed of salad greens on a plate, next add white or brown rice to the top of the salad greens. You can then add the mussels (in the shell or out of the shell) to the top of the rice, and add slices of fresh avocado to the plate as well. Salt to taste and ENJOY ENJOY ENJOY!

You can also serve the mussels as an appetizer. Just place the mussels, in the shell, in a large bowl, and provide a separate bowl for shells. Folks can just dig in and eat 'em up.

This dish will serve 2 people well and the total cost, depending on the price of mussels, will run from $8 to $11.

Roast Pork Shoulder with Ginger and Garlic

These days, I generally stick to chicken for my protein. That, though, is not a hard and fast rule. Now and again, particularly if I am out to eat, I will throw down on a juicy hamburger.

Every once in a while, my inner ethnic groups start clamoring for something a little more substantial than chicken. And even more rarely they start squealing like a pig to get their point across.

That happened today on the way back from the gym.

One of the reasons, among many, that I love New York is that there are still things such as butcher shops readily available in almost every neighborhood. It just so happens that my landlord is also a butcher, and his butcher shop is about a half a block away from my apartment. If you are in Midtown and looking for a great butcher, check out Sonny's Meat Market on 52nd and 10th Avenue.

I swung through today and found Sonny himself behind the butcher block. I requested a pork roast, and he brought out a beautiful pork shoulder. Sonny's is one of those great places that will slice and dice the meat just the way you want it. Sonny asked if I wanted the roast with slices in it for stuffing, and I said heck yeah!

Once I got the roast upstairs, I was in anticipatory heaven. Here's what I whipped up.

Roast Pork Shoulder with Ginger and Garlic

1 medium sized pork shoulder
8 cloves garlic sliced
1 medium size piece of ginger sliced
2 jalapenos sliced
1 bunch scallions diced
1/2 cup soy sauce

If you get your pork shoulder from the butcher, ask your butcher to slice the bottom of the roast and also to make slits into the top of the roast. Make sure the cuts on the top of the roast are deep and wide, as you will be stuffing the slits.

If you buy your shoulder at the grocer, the first thing you will want to do is make a series of slits both lengthwise and width wise on the bottom. Basically, you are going to cut into the skin and make a series of cuts that makes the bottom look like a crazy tic tac toe board.

Then, on the top, make a number of deep slits/punctures throughout the roast.

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Once you have the roast slit up, take your garlic, ginger, scallions, and jalapenos and stuff the hell out of the roast. Make sure to put some of each into each slit on the top of the roast.

Then, once you have the roast impregnated with goodness, place the roast in a roasting pan. Then pour the soy sauce over the roast. Then, cover the roast either with the lid to a good roasting pan or with tin foil.

Place the roast in the oven and bake it for 2 to 3 hours or until cooked all the way through.

This roast will blow your mind. A good sized pork shoulder will run you about $10 and you can feed 8-10 people easily.

Brandon's Julia Chicken

This week's creation goes out to Mrs. Julia Child. Last week, David and I watched Julie and Julia, and I once again found a deep love for Meryl Streep. This evening, I was thinking on Julia and her love of French cuisine and the fact that I can't even make French Fries.

So I decided to experiment with some ingredients that are classic to French cuisine. In the end, this treat turned out very well because I remembered, at the last minute, after tasting my uber bland creation that Julia says that butter makes everything better. I added butter to the recipe, and I literally considered licking the pan. Butter is evil, but it tastes soooo delicious.

Here is my homage to Julia Child. Bon appetit!

Brandon's Julia Chicken

1 large boneless skinless chicken breast
1 large portobello mushroom
2 cups white wine (may I suggest Pinot Grigio)
3 cloves garlic diced
1 jalapeno minced
1/4 large yellow onion diced
1 tsp dried basil
2 tbs salted butter
1 tbs olive oil
salt

This was a great leftovers recipe. I had already baked, en masse, chicken breasts that had been cut into serving size portions. I used two of these (roughly one half of one full breast or one whole breast as you would buy them in a package of boneless skinless breasts, I got mine from the butcher so they gave me the actual breast of the bird and not what we normally think of us the breast).

If you don't have already baked chicken breasts hanging around the fridge, the first thing to do is to bake your chicken breasts. In small greased (or sprayed) baking pan, bake your chicken breasts for 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees or until cooked. Remove from the oven and slice the cooked breasts width wise into eatable slices (imagine the breast is a portobello mushroom and cut it how those delightful mushrooms are often cut). Set the breasts aside.

Next, pour the wine into a medium size mixing bowl. Add the chicken to the wine and add a couple pinches of salt to the bowl along with the dried basil. Let that soak for about a half an hour at room temperature.

I served this dish with red potatoes that I boiled with broccoli, which gave a wonderful contrast. If you are inclined to do the same, start your potatoes and broccoli to boiling now.

About 20 minutes into your marinating session, heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Once your oil is nice and toasty, add the garlic and the onions to the pan. Saute the onions and garlic until the onions begin to soften. Do not brown the garlic. After about four minutes, add the chicken and white wine to the sauce pan. Then add the jalapenos and the mushrooms. Allow the dish to simmer, stirring occasionally. After about 10 minutes, add the butter to the pan. Allow the butter to melt and stir slowly the entire time it is melting. As the dish continues to simmer, the white wine and butter will thicken a bit making a rich sauce. You can add a dash of salt to the dish during this last bit of cooking. After about five minutes, remove from heat and serve with your delicious potatoes and broccoli.

This is one of my new favorites, and it is divine. I even managed to stay on my portion size, and I have plenty of leftovers. This little dish can be cooked (use three buck chuck from Trader Joe's if you can for the wine) for anywhere between $6 and $15 and will easily serve four people.

Pan Roasted Chicken Breast with Rosemary Marinara

So, thanks to a bought of major pharyngitis which managed to have me both afraid to swallow and afraid to be more than 10ft from a bathroom for almost two weeks, I have dropped about 5 to 7 pounds. If there is any side benefit to a stomach and throat bug it is an involuntary yet appreciated Mary Kate moment.

But you all know that I love food, so not being able to enjoy my food and having no appetite are also cruel and unusual punishment where I am concerned.

So in my quest to keep off the weight I lost, yet wanting to eat something healthy and delicious, and I am desperately trying to teach myself portion control while also continuing to cook efficiently by making sure I cook enough food at one go for at least two meals.

I also had several odds and ends in the kitchen that I wanted to finish up. There was a bottle of red wine that was 2/3rds empty, two frozen chicken breasts in the freezer that were in danger of some serious freezer burn, and a bunch of fresh rosemary that I purchased yesterday for use in my dinner. All of these things combined with some delicious crushed tomatoes is how I came up with this week's recipe.

Pan Roasted Chicken Breast with Rosemary Marinara

2 boneless and skinless chicken breasts cut in half
1 large can of crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup diced fresh basil
1 large sprig of rosemary cut in half
1/2 package of fresh button mushrooms
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup red wine
2 cloves fresh garlic or 1 tsp garlic salt
1lb of your favorite pasta
1 tbs olive oil
Salt
Crushed Red Pepper

First, in a large frying pan, over high heat, heat your olive oil. Once the oil is hot add the red onions and garlic. Cook the garlic and onions until the garlic and onions soften and the garlic starts to brown, but do not let it brown completely. Next, reduce the heat to medium and add the chicken breasts.

Brown the chicken breasts lightly. Make sure the surfaces of both sides are cooked. This helps to make sure that the chicken locks in some of the flavors and also that it cooks thoroughly. Next, add the red wine. Allow the red wine, chicken, garlic, and onions to simmer for a minute or two.

Next add the crushed tomatoes, basil, rosemary, and mushrooms. You don't have to slice the mushrooms, as they will shrink to edible size through the stewing process. Add a pinch or two of salt. Also add red peppers to your particular spice tolerance and taste. Then stir the sauce to make sure the breasts are thoroughly covered. Reduce the heat to low.

Allow the breasts to simmer in the sauce for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serve the chicken and sauce over your favorite pasta and enjoy!

This recipe should run you somewhere between $8 and $12, and it will feed four people comfortably.