Pear Salad with Hazelnut Orange Vinaigrette

I've said it before when developing my Summer Salad Series and I'll say it again: I am not a big fan of salads.  Contrary to what some may think, most salads are not that healthy.  Between the unhealthy ingredients and/ or the type of dressing used, some salads can actually have higher calories and higher fat content than a cheeseburger! This salad however, is not only healthy (depending on your protein choice), it also became one of the most delicious salads I've ever made.  I have adjusted this from a Scandinavian dish and really enjoy it as a starter dish to my Swedish Meatballs Family Dinner (Coming Soon!) or it makes a great light meal all by itself.
Ingredients:
2 Bosc pears
3/4 cup desired protein, sliced, julienne (I usually use salami, because of the blend of flavors as the first choice but for healthier versions I have also used deli slice ham, turkey or shredded roasted chicken breast)
2 bunches of Arugula
1 small red onion, diced

For Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup of hazelnuts
1/2 cup of orange juice, no pulp (I use the 50% less sugar juices)
zest from one orange or 1 tsp. of orange peel (seasoning)
1 garlic clove
1/3 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash pears, and cut in half (remove the core) and chop.
2. Combine chopped pears, thinly sliced protein, washed Arugula and onion in a gallon plastic zip lock bag and set aside.
3. Using a hand blender, combine all the ingredients for the vinaigrette and blend until nuts are completely crushed and mixture is smooth.
4. Pour vinaigrette over the salad mixture and seal bag.  SHake it vigorously until all slad contents are coated with vinaigrette dressing.
5. Serve and enjoy..!

Decadent Poached Pears

The Greek poet, Homer, once described the pear as a gift to humanity and when it comes to this dessert recipe, that is not an exaggerated depiction.  Although this is a simple recipe, the rich ingredients and red wine syrup over the whole pear is as aesthetically pleasing as it is delicious.  I love to serve these with my Braised Beef Short Ribs Family Dinner, but this dessert is a great finish to almost every meal.

Ingredients:

2 Bosc pears, ripened (if you have green, firm under ripe pears, adjust your poaching time for longer) and peeled

Juice from 1/2 a lemon

1.5 cups sweet red wine (fruity, dessert wines such as a sweet Shiraz)

1/4 cup of Truvia sugar (or preferred sugar substitute)

1 vanilla bean

1 cinnamon stick

Optional Plating Additions:

Strawberry slices

whipped cream

Dark chocolate syrup

Milk chocolate shavings

1. If your peeled pears are not standing upright on their own, cut the bottom, wide part of the pear to create a flat platform for it to sit upright.
   
2. Squeeze the fresh lemon juice all over the peeled pears.
3. Using a paring knife, split the vanilla bean down the center to open it, and scrape out the seeds (looks like fine coffee grounds) into a sauce pan.
4. Add the wine, sugar, vanilla bean skin (and seeds) and cinnamon stick and bring it all to a boil.
5. Lay pears into sauce pan and cover.  Cook pears for approximately 12 minutes on each side of the pear. (Gently turn over as pears will be softened and you want to avoid 'scarring')
6. Once each side is stained with the red syrup, finish up by standing pears upright in pan to get the bottom stained.
7. Place pears in a bowl or on a plate and refrigerate.
8. Continue to boil syrup until it reduces by about half, then remove from heat and let thicken and cool (about 15-20 minutes)
9. Place pears upright on serving plates, and drizzle red wine syrup evenly over pears.
10. Serve with strawberry slices, puffs of whipped cream, dark chocolate syrup (add sparingly) and sprinkle with chocolate shavings.
11. Serve and enjoy..!
    

The Falcons-tini - Super Bowl LI

It's that time of year and we're all getting ready for Game Day.  As always, TSD is ready with great dishes (Check out the Posh Super Bowl Menu) and team-themed libations, such as The Patriot-tini and the Falcons-tini!  Whichever team your cheering for, enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 part preferred vodka

2 parts sparkling cran-raspberry juice

ice

Optional glass decorations:

black icing

red icing

white sprinkles

black or maraschino cherry

1. Prepare glass rim by lining half the rim in black icing and the other half in red icing.
2. Pour white sprinkles onto a flat plate, and roll the rim of the martini glass in sprinkles where the icing is lined to adhere the sprinkles to the glass.
3. In a martini shaker, add vodka and ice, and shake vigorously (you can add the cran-rasperry juice if it's been open for awhile to let the carbonation settle, but I prefer the carbonation)
   
4. Pour vodka into martini glass, add sparkling cran-raspberry juice and stir with a spoon.
5. Finish off with dropping cherry in the bottom...Enjoy!

Please Drink Responsibly..!

Posh Super Bowl Menu (Super Bowl LI - 2017: by TSD)

I admit that even I tend to go for the popular, albeit common, party foods when it comes to my Super Bowl Spreads.  For Super Bowl 50, I had one unique recipe, 'MACHOS' Jalapeno Stuffed Boneless Buffalo Wings, and then opted for the usual football- themed food that we have all come to love and expect from our Super Bowl hosts/ hostesses. But for Super Bowl LI, I wanted to go for something a little different.  This posh Super Bowl menu will not only be unique twists on some of our favorites for the big game, but also adds a flair that will separate your party from all others.  Don't forget to check out TSD's team-themed Super Bowl-tinis, the Patriot-tini and the Falcons-tini to complete the party!

On the Menu

Maple Bacon Popcorn 

Cochon en la Oreiller 

Fries Couture 

Braised Short Rib Sliders

Chicken Satay Martinis

Click here for my Maple Bacon Popcorn recipe.

Cochon en la Oreiller 

Pigs in a Blanket..? Please! We're way too high class for that! So let's call these babies by their French translation of Pigs in a Pillow and up the ingredients!
Ingredients - makes 20-24 appetizers:
olive oil cooking spray
4 Andouille sausage links
2 sheets pastry puff, defrosted, room temperature
2 tbsp light olive oil
Optional Accompaniments:
Spicy brown mustard
Chipotle mustard
BBQ sauce

1. Preheat oven 425 degrees F.
2. Prepare baking sheet (I lay down tin foil for wasier clean up), spray with cooking oil
3. Cut pastry puff into approximately 14-16 squares per dough sheet
4. Slice sausages into 1" thick pieces
5. Wrap each sausage piece in a puff pastry square like a pouch, leaving a small opening at the top and pinch the top corners around the sausage. Repeat with all pastry puff squares and sausage cuts.
6. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until pastry puff "puffs out" like pillows and become a golden brown and sausages peak out and are sizzling.
7. Remove from oven and serve. 

Couture Fries 
Ingredients - 6-8 servings:
1 pkg frozen potato fries
8 oz Angus sirloin steak (boneless) 
1 tbsp teriyaki sauce
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2-3 strips bacon, cooked
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp. brown sugar
splashes of chardonnay wine
3/4 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
2 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced (optional)

1. In a small sauce pan, over medium heat, add butter, onions, brown sugar and a splash of chardonnay wine and mix well.
2. Cook until onions darken and caramelize, adding splashes of chardonnay wine as needed to deglaze the pan.
3. Once onions caramelize, remove from heat and set aside. 
4. In a skillet, add oil over medium heat.
5. Trim steak as needed and cut into small pieces (almost shredded).
6. Cook in skillet until no longer pink and mix in teriyaki sauce and garlic powder. 
7. Remove steak from skillet and set aside.
8. Cook fries in oven per package instruction.
9. While fries cook, make Spicy Aioli (per the below).
10. Remove fries from oven and transfer to a shallow, oven proof baking dish (I personally used a pie dish) keep oven on, at 400 degrees F.
11. Drizzle fries with Spicy Aioli sauce, then sprinkle the caramelized onions evenly over the fries.
    
12. Then evenly layer cooked steak and crumble bacon over the fries.
13. Last, add a layer of the shredded cheese.
14. Place fries back into the oven and cook for approximately 8 minutes or until cheese melts.

Spicy Aioli
Ingredients - 8-10 servings:
4 tbsp. thousand island dressing
2 tbsp. olive oil mayonnaise
1 tbsp. mayonnaise, hot & spicy
splashes of chardonnay wine

1. Mix thousand island dressing and the two kinds of mayonnaise together.
2. Add splashes of chardonnay to get a desired consistency, which should be like a thin salad dressing (thinner than most aiolis to make drizzling on fries easier).

Braised Short Rib Sliders
I personally like these sliders plain without additional accompaniments because the braised meat is already rich and flavorful, but for guests at your party it's nice to serve this with additional condiments and I found these options to be the most popular but any slider condiments will work well.  Click here for my delicious Braised Beef Short Ribs recipe.
Ingredients:
8-10 slider buns
2-3 short braised beef short rib meat, shredded
Optional Condiments:
sliced pickles
sliced onions
cherry tomatoes, halved
BBQ Sauce

1. Place approximately 1/4-1/2 cup of shredded braised beef short rib meat into each slider. 
2. Serve with condiment options.

Chicken Satay Martinis

These are a perfect substitute to the boring old buffalo wings and/ or chicken nuggets during the game. Serve them in martini glasses for that je nais se qua.
Ingredients - 4-6 servings:

2 chicken boneless breasts, cut into tender-size pieces
1 cup zero fat, plain Greek yogurt
1 tbsp turmeric
2 tbsp. sweet & spicy chili sauce
2 tbsp. garlic paste
1/4 cup onion, minced
2 pieces pickled ginger, minced
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup  spicy Thai peanut sauce

1. In a Tupperware container, mix all the ingredients together, except for the Thai peanut sauce and chicken, and blend until it is a marinade consistency (add more water if needed).
2. Add in chicken tenders and make sure each piece is coated in the marinade.
3. Refrigerate a few hours or overnight.
4. Prepare grill on low-medium heat.
5. Grill chicken tenders until outside is grill charred and internal temperature is 165 degrees F at thickest parts. (If the marinade begins to burn too easily on the grill, you can finish the chicken in the oven at 350 degrees F.)
6. Divide spicy Thai peanut sauce into martini glasses and lay 2-4 chicken tenders on the side of the glass and serve.

Maple Bacon Popcorn

I can report that I've been to some of the most cosmopolitan movie theater houses in the nation, and by far this recipe for maple bacon popcorn surpasses any seasonings and flavored butter popcorn bar out there!  If you enjoy mixing salty snacks with sweet treats, this snack is sure to satisfy your taste buds on all levels, not to mention it has BACON! Perfect for Romantic Movie Nights, Poker Parties and I enjoy this with my Posh Super Bowl Menu. 

Ingredients:

Bag of preferred microwaveable popcorn 

2-3 slices of bacon

2-3 tbsp. pure maple syrup
Salt to taste

1. Cook slices of bacon, reserve 2-3 tbsp. of the bacon grease.
2. Microwave bag of popcorn per bag instructions/ microwave settings.
3. Transfer popped popcorn to bowl.
4. Crumble bacon strips into popcorn bowl (add salt as desired), toss popcorn to mix in bacon at all levels.
5. Mix reserved bacon grease with maple syrup (in a coffee mug), and using a spoon drizzle the mixture all over the popcorn.
6. Toss popcorn one more time to evenly distribute the mixture and serve.

Braised Beef Short Ribs Family Dinner

This is a favorite winter time dish of mine; it always fills the house with delicious smells and with fall off the bone short ribs, it's a treat that we try to enjoy at least once a year.  Although the short ribs themselves can be expensive (I always try to buy them when their on sale) these recipes and family dinner spread, make it all worthwhile.  If there happens to be any left overs, it's perfect for Braised Beef Short Rib Sliders.

On the Menu

1st Course - Starters: Dinner Rolls & Healthy Mushroom Soup 

2nd Course - Main Dish: Braised Beef Short Ribs

3rd Course - Side Dishes: Garlic Mashed Potatoes &

 Brussels Sprouts Asiago

4th Course - Recommended Dessert: 
Decadent Poached Pear

1st Course - Starters: Dinner Rolls & Mushroom Soup - 

Breaking bread over delicious, earthy flavored soup is a great way to start a meal with family and catch up on everybody's week.  My Healthy Mushroom Soup is broth-based (much healthier than the creamy mushroom soups) and is part of my Winter Soup Series. Click here for the recipe.  The rolls are perfect for sopping up soup or the gravy-sauce from the Braised Beef Short Ribs.

2nd Course - Main Dish: Braised Beef Short Ribs

Ingredients:

4-6 bone in beef short ribs

sea salt & pepper to taste

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tbsp. light olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

3-4 carrots, washed, peeled, cut into large chunks

1 bottle of red wine (I use cabernet sauvignon, merlot and pinot roir work fine too based on taste preference)

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1 can diced tomatoes (I use Italian seasoned ones)

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. garlic powder

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Season short ribs with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Place flour into a Ziplock bag or in a bowl and coat the short ribs.
4. In a large skillet over medium heat, add olive oil and sear ribs on each side (don't over crowd and cook in batches as needed) place seared short ribs on a plate and set aside.
5. In the same skillet, add onions and carrots; cook until veggies begin to soften, scraping up the pan dropping into the mix.
6. Add wine, chicken broth, tomatoes and seasonings. 
7. Increase heat slightly(to achieve simmering) stir and allow flavors to blend (a couple of minutes).
8. Add short ribs back into the gravy-sauce and bring everything to a simmer.
9. (If you're not using an oven proof pan, transfer gravy-sauce and short ribs to a deep baking dish) transfer to the oven and cover with pan lid or tin foil. I make sure the short ribs are laying meatiest part down into the gravy-sauce to soak up as much flavor into the meat as possible.
   
10. Bake for approximately one hour or until the meat on the short ribs begins to shrink back from the bone (exposing the bone).
11. Then reduce oven to 350 degrees F and cook for approximately one more hour or until the meat is fork tender and falls off the bone easily.

The gravy-sauce should be a thicker consistency but if it's still too thin, you can remove the short ribs and place the gravy-sauce back on the stove over medium heat and cover and allow the sauce to reduce until desired consistency.

3rd Course - Side Dishes: Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Brussels Sprouts Asiago
Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

3-4 Gold Yukon potatoes, thoroughly washed

4-5 cups water

1/2 cup milk

3 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. garlic paste

1 tsp. garlic powder

salt to taste

1. Cut potatoes into 1-2" pieces and place in a medium-large sauce pan with the water and bring to a boil.
2. Continue boiling for about 30 minutes or until potatoes have softened.
3. Drain the water and turn off the heat, but return sauce pan with the potatoes back to the hot burner.
4. Mash up the potatoes and then add milk, butter, garlic paste, garlic powder and salt and continue mashing up until everything is well blended and soaked into the potatoes.

Brussels Sprouts Asiago

Ingredients:

4 servings of fresh Brussels Sprouts (click here to find out my technique to prepare these veggies under Tips)

1 tsp. sea salt

1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1/2 cup shredded Asiago cheese

1 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp. garlic paste

1/2 cup heavy whipped cream

1/2 cup red onion, chopped

2-3 bacon strips, cooked

1. Place Brussels sprouts in about an inch of water in a skillet over low-medium heat, covered.
2. Steam Brussels sprouts for about 10 minutes or until the begin to soften.
3. Drain from water and transfer to serving bowl and season with salt.
4. In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, add butter, garlic paste and heavy whipping cream and mix until butter has completely melted.
5. Gradually add in shredded cheeses, a small handful at a time, stirring frequently, to melt cheese and avoid burning the bottom.
6. Once cheese is completely melted (almost boiling) about 8 minutes, pour over Brussels sprouts. 
7. Add in onion and crumble the bacon over the sprouts and then mix everything together so that sprouts are evenly coated with cheese and onions and bacon are mixed through all layers of the dish.

Healthy Mushroom Soup (Broth-based)

When it's cold outside, there is nothing better than warming up from the inside out with delicious soup.  But many soups can be cream-based which, while very flavorful, can pack on the calories and grams of fat.  So this is a healthy broth-based mushroom soup, rich in earthy flavors and veggies.  I love to serve this as a starter to my Braised Beef Short Ribs Family Dinner and it's part of my Winter Soup Series.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. butter
3/4 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, sliced
1/2 carrot, diced
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 pkg of Bella mushrooms, thoroughly washed, stems removed, chopped
1/2 cup water
5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. sage
salt & pepper to taste

1. Over a medium heat, add butter and onions and carrots and cook until onions begin to caramelize.
2. Scrape up any pan drippings and add celery , garlic paste and mushrooms and the water. 
3. Once veggies soften and mushrooms shrink, add broth and seasoning and reduce heat to medium-low.
4. Cover and let soup simmer and blend flavors stirring occasionally for at least 15 minutes or allow to simmer for awhile over a lower heat setting.