This is a variation of a brisket recipe I got by watching Diners Drive Inns and Dives on Food Network. Guy Fieri said this brisket was amazing and I think my last brisket recipe was pretty much what I saw on TV. There is no searing or smoking. The hard part is trimming off the hard fat and deciding on how much fat that you want to leave on. Briskets were on sale so I picked one up. It happened to be a small one (around 9 lbs) I cut off not all but most of the fat. Then I just cut the brisket in half. Sprinkled a whole 1.41 oz box of Sazon all purpose seasoning. One pan got 2 lbs onions and some garlic and a 1/2 cup of water, smoked sea salt and black pepper. The other pan got red peppers, garlic, smoked sea salt, black pepper, and 1/2 a cup of water. Cover pans tight and 6 hours latter we had really great flavorful brisket. (one pan didn’t contain onions so my dogs could eat some and it still came out delicious anyway) Serving size will differ dramatically on depending on how much fat you trim and how much fat you are willing to eat. Jiggly brisket fat grosses me out so I trimmed mine far more than you probably would. My 9 pound brisket only made around 9 not so big dinners……..(but I think they gave me more fat than meat …..).
Ingredients for at least 9 servings
1 brisket (mine was 9 pounds) – trimmed to your liking and cut in half
1 – 1.41 ounce package Sazon con Colantro & Achiote (cilantro and annatto)
15 garlic cloves – chopped
2 lbs. onions – sliced and rough chopped
3 red bell peppers – slices and rough chopped
4 sweet potatoes – peeled – cut in half if large
1 cup water
a good sprinkle smoked sea salt
1 good sprinkle fresh ground black pepper
Directions
Set oven to 350 degrees F
Each pan gets 1/2 a brisket sprinkled with 1/2 the Sazon. One pan gets all the onions, 1/2 the garlic, a good sprinkle of smoked sea salt and black pepper and a half cup of water.
The 2nd pan gets all the bell peppers, the sweet potatoes, 1/2 the garlic, a good sprinkle of smoked sea salt, black pepper, and a 1/2 cup water.
These pans get covered tight with foil and go on the middle rack for around 6 hours.
I thought this was extra easy!
FORKING EASY and DELICIOUS Brisket
(Tip***** You will want to put the briskets in the refrigerator over night so you can slice them. The liquid you might want to chill overnight so you can remove the thick layer of fat. *****Another hint- You might want to keep that fat in your freezer. It can add a lot of flavors to other foods and it can also be used to make beef gravy.)
This recipe isn’t for everyone because you have to wing it depending on the heat and taste of your hatch Chile peppers. The Smith’s Grocery store near me has a really good Murray’s Cheese Counter and I almost always pick up the WOO HOO sales at the cheese counter for fun. As a result my hobby at Smith’s my refrigerator is usually packed with TONS of cheese that I hardly pay for. I know most people would never use this much cheese in a recipe but it came out really delicious. I also have many dried peppers I use to boost the taste since the hatch chilies I bought here are extra light on flavor and extra EXTRA light with heat. You will not be in the same situation.
I do make my macaroni and cheese different from most people no matter what flavor profile I’m doing. I do make a cheese sauce but I usually make it with a little corn starch (I HATE the taste of flour when I eat macaroni and cheese and cornstarch works better), nonfat dry milk, no butter, and LOTS of cheese.
Today I did something a little different. I was afraid I’d over cook the pasta. So I started the pasta out in a bowl of hot salted water for a few minutes. I noticed the pasta was softer and I drained it. Then I baked it with layers of cheese sauce and some added cheese.
When this all baked it did have some oil on the top and I added some crushed white tortilla chips and a masa, onion, crumb mixture that I added to the top.
Then I finished it with some chopped Mexican green onion, cilantro, and some pickled red onion.
According to my husband this came out to be a Masterpiece. It did come out FORKING delicious too!
Ingredients for around 12 servings
1/2 a pound box of pasta (either a point or twisty type) 8-9 ounces
1 teaspoon jalapeño flakes (or to taste) – cheese sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper – cheese sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper – cheese sauce
15 oz mature cheddar cheese – either shredded or chopped (This is used to layer between pasta and sauce)
4 oz butter – melted – I used salted but you can use either – crumbs
1/2 cup harina de maiz – crumbs
1/4 cup flour – crumbs
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used Mexican onion) – crumbs
1/2 cup hard shredded Italian cheese (I used grana padano) – crumbs
1/2 teaspoon chipotle pepper flakes – crumbs
1 teaspoon smoked paprika – crumbs
non stick spray
2 oz crushed white tortilla chips – for finishing
2 Tablespoons – scallions – for finishing
2 Tablespoons – cilantro , chopped – for finishing
Optional (but better if you make some) 2 Tablespoons pickled red onions – for finishing (EZ – 1 onion sliced thin, 1/2 C. water, 1/2C. white vinegar, 1 Tablespoon sugar, 1/4 teaspoon g. black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon g. coriander)
Directions
Microwave or put on a pot of water with salt to boil. The pasta only needs around three minutes and then drain the pasta and put to the side.
Make cheese sauce. In a pot mix together the corn starch and milk powder. Then whisk in the water. This needs to be on medium heat until thickened. Keep stirring the bottom because it can burn.After it is thick add the cheddar, goat, brie cheese, and hatch Chile peppers. You will need to lower the heat to low. Add the hatch flakes, jalapeno flakes, black and white pepper.. Take off the heat.
This gets layered like lasagna.
Preheat oven to 350.
Use a big pan or 1/2 pan and spray with non stick spray.
Start with about three serving spoons of cheese sauce.
Next add about 1/3rd of pasta.
next add about 1/3rd of the cheddar cheese.
2 -3 serving spoons of cheese sauce.
1/3 of the noodles.
about 1/2 the cheddar.
1/2 the cheese sauce that is left. then top that with remaining pasta.
Add more cheese.
use the rest of the sauce.
Cover with foil that was sprayed with non stick spray. This goes on the middle rack of a preheated 350F degree oven till it’s cooked threw. Oven DO FORKING DIFFER. In my old GE oven this would take around an hour. In my Whirlpool oven this took 1 hour and 20 minutes.
While it’s baking make the crumb topping.
In a small bowl combine the butter, harina de mai, flour, onion, italian cheese, chipotle pepper flakes, and smoked paprika. This goes on a baking sheet sprayed with non stick spray. This goes on your upper rack till done. In my oven this took 30 minutes but oven do differ. I’d look at it in 20 minutes and then decide if it needs more time.
After 30 minutes mine looked like this.
By now your baked pasta dish will be ready.
You need to assemble it.
It will have some oil on the top that separated from the cheese.
The crushed tortilla flakes are perfect for that add them first.
Then add the crumb topping.
Next add the cilantro and scallions.
Finish with pickled onions.
Extra Cheesy Hatch Chile and Cheese Noodle Casserole
I was thinking about a recipe by James Beard winner and Top Chef finalist Shota Nakajima. It was his Watermelon Salad in Miso Honey Dressing Recipe. I did my twist on it and it came out FORKING DELICIOUS.
Watermelon Salad with Miso Honey Dressing
So I changed it up again and still came up with something delicious!
Serving size always varies. The vegetables are different in size and so are we with different appetites. This for me worked out to 6 side servings for dinner so I’ll say 6 servings.
Ingredients for around 6 servings.
2 lbs carrots – remove skin if not organic cut however you like but that will change up the timing. I cut mine in a rough cut like this.
1/2 a cabbage – remove core and rough cut
1/2 onion – cut in slices and cut slices in half
2 Tablespoons butter – melted (doesn’t matter if sweet or salted because you adjust salt to your liking)
This is how I make my basic Deviled Eggs. If you eat two halves as a serving then this will make 9 servings with a few extra whites that you can snack on.
Ingredients for around 9 servings.
12 eggs – boiled till hard (10 minutes) soaked in ice bath till cold, then peeled, cut in halves. Rice the yolks.
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon piment d’ espelette + plus extra to sprinkle the cooked whites
2 Tablespoons Dijon but preferably Amora Brand
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
smoked sea salt – to taste
9 small celery leaves
Directions
Lightly sprinkle the egg whites on both sides with smoked sea salt and piment d’ espelette.
In a medium bowl the riced yolks, mayonnaise, 1/2 teaspoon piment d’ espelette, Dijon, dry mustard, white pepper, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire sauce together.
This mixture gets spooned or piped into the egg whites. Finish with a piece of celery leaf.
I got some sweet potatoes so I threw them in the oven with a little water to steam them till they got soft. Then I got the idea to make them into hand pies. I made them up real fast. I did have extra filling left over that you can heat and then eat. I got lots of compliments on my unique crust. If you mix it up by hand real fast like I did it comes out light and flaky like from a master baker.
Ingredients for around 10 servings
2 cups flour
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon course sea salt
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs separated (egg whites for inside dough for sealing and yolks for glazing)
1 lb sweet potatoes – cooked, peeled, and mashed
1 egg – lightly beaten
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sour cream
Directions
In a large bowl mix together the flour, oil, vinegar, salt, water, and baking powder. Make it into a short fat log and wrap with plastic wrap.
Mix together the sweet potato mixture (sweet potatoes, 1 egg, cinnamon, ginger, dark brown sugar, and sour cream. If it’s lumpy use a mixer.
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Either divide into 10 equal pieces or pinch off around a golfball 1.5-2oz piece of dough and roll it thin and flat and close to a round shape.
Brush the whole top with egg white.
Add small scoop or teaspoon of sweet potato mixture.
Bring up ends together.
crimp ends with your fingers or just use a fork.
These all go on a baking sheet lined with parchment.
Brush the tops with all of the egg yolks.
These go in the oven till golden……depending on your oven around 30-40 minutes.
Mostarda is a spicy Northern Italian Condiment. It is usually but not always made with candied fruit and mustard syrup. I read at www.LaCucinaItaliana.com that there are SIX basic kinds of mostarda (cherry, apricot, fig, peach, squash, tomato). According to La Cucina Italiana instead of mustard they use something called mustard essence instead of mustard to make mostarda. I used a combination of mustard and mustard powder to make my inspiration. I previously made a FORKING DELICIOUS acorn squash with mostarda and taleggio cheese….so this is a spin off of that. Serving size is always difficult to judge because I don’t know if you want a small or large serving. For me this made 6 side servings so I’ll say 6 servings.
Ingredients for around 6 servings
1 cabbage – core removed, rough chopped
1 onion – rough chopped
3 carrots – peel if not organic – slice on a slight diagonal around 1/4 inch thick
1/4 cup chives
4 oz gorgonzola – crumbled (or any blue cheese)
1 cup sugar
1 lemon – zest and juice but separate
2 Tablespoons mustard powder
3 Tablespoons whole grain mustard (I used Maille Old Style)
2 short Calabrian dried chili peppers – crumbled
1/2 teaspoon course sea salt
4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
sea salt – to taste
black pepper – to taste
Directions
Set oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large mixing bowl (or maybe a few bowls if you bowl isn’t very large) mix together the sugar, lemon juice (zest is for finishing), mustard powder, mustard, oil, Calabrian chili flakes, and sea salt. Mix well. Mix in the cabbage, onion, and carrots.
This goes on baking sheets with rims in an even layer.
Add a light amount of fresh crushed sea salt and fresh ground black pepper.
This goes in your preheated 400 degree F oven for 30-50 minutes or until lightly charred.
I was reading a recipe for Focaccia and I was very surprised that it had an egg and heavy cream in the dough. This recipe I would have not read but it was by an Italian Chef from Lombardy so I guess it’s for real. I didn’t have heavy cream at home but I did have a French cheese called Fromagerd d Affinois with herbs (basically Brie). I used that in the dough instead of cream and I changed up the flours due to what I had in my pantry. I also changed up the liquids slightly. I also had to figure out the oven temperature and timing. But WOW! It came out FORKING DELICIOUS! Serving size is always difficult to determine because I don’t know if you want a small serving or a large serving. This made 6 small breads……so that means between 6-12 servings depending on if you want a half bread or a whole bread…..so I’ll say 9 servings. That is my guesstimate.
Ingredients for around 9 servings
1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon water warmed up to 110 degrees F
1 pack active dry yeast
1 Tablespoon honey
1/4 cup brie cheese or something similar
1 egg – lightly beaten
1 teaspoon course sea salt
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
5 Tablespoons 00 flour
4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil + more for spraying the dough
4 Tablespoons water
6 pinches flake sea salt
1/4 red onion – sliced extra thin
12 sweet grape tomatoes – sliced thin
3 oz Grana Padano – shredded
3 small pinches rosemary
3 small pinches Italian seasoning (This is what I used…..I tablespoon sea salt, 1 Tablespoon black pepper, 1/2 Tablespoon garlic powder, 1/2 Tablespoon onion powder, 1 Tablespoon basil, 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 Tablespoon fennel seeds, 1 crushed small dried Calabrian Chile pepper)
non stick spray
a few pinches of cornmeal or semolina
Directions
Set oven to 425 degrees F.
Combine yeast, 110 degree water, and honey in a large bowl. Mix and wait about ten minutes till you see a foamy surface. Whisk in cheese, egg, and salt. Add flours, water, and olive oil. This mixes together very well. Knead it some and make a ball and put it in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. In around an hour divide the dough into 6 balls. 2 sheet pans get sprayed lightly with non stick spray and then spray the lightly with olive oil and add a light sprinkle of corn meal or semolina. Shape each ball of dough into a flat pancake. Three pancakes will fit on each sheet tray. Cover them loosely with plastic wrap. Let them rise 30-60 minutes.
Spray them with olive oil. Sprinkle them with a light sprinkle of sea salt flakes and rosemary. (Optional….you should make the dimples in the dough….I did but they didn’t stay dimpled)……Add a sprinkle of raw onions slices and tiny sweet tomato slices. Add a sprinkle of Grana Padano. Finish with a LIGHT sprinkle of Italian seasoning and another sprinkle of extra virgin olive oil.
This goes in your preheated 425 degree F oven till slightly browned. Ovens do differ. This took around 25 minutes in my oven on a middle rack. In my old oven I think this only would take around 15 minutes.
Anyway it really did come out FORKING DELICIOUS! (Below is one of the 6 small loaves sliced up)
Took some to a party I went to with my FORKING AMAZING chocolate chip cookies.
Focaccia Style Bread with Onions, Tomatoes, and Grana Padano
I didn’t make chef Mattia Agazzi’s recipe for Focaccia (only because I didn’t have the ingredients) but it inspired me to make what I got here so a Special Thanks!!!! to him!
I was thinking about calling this recipe FORKING TASTY cauliflower because when my husband tried it he said that this was, “FORKING TASTY Cauliflower. Sorry I missed photographing my dog for you……….. but even he thought it was FORKING TASTY too and STOLE a piece off of this plate while my back was turned. I used an orange colored cauliflower that is slightly tastier than the white ones but you can use a white cauliflower. Purple cauliflowers are more delicate and would probably burn up so I wouldn’t recommend using purple. Serving suggestion size may differ because we all have different appetites.
Ingredients for around 4 servings
1 cauliflower (preferably orange) – break down to florets
2 eggs
3 tablespoons mustard (I used Amora Brand Dijon mustard)
4 oz parmesan cheese – grated
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
non-stick spray
Directions
preheat oven to 450 degrees F
Spray your baking sheet(s) with non-stick spray and set to the side.
In a large mixing bowl mix together the eggs, mustard, cheese, pepper, and paprika. Mix well and then add the cauliflower florets. This mixture will be very thick. Mix well till it looks like the cheese mixture is all over the cauliflower. Then arrange the cauliflower on sprayed sheet pan(s) in single layer with a small amount of room around each floret.
These go on your middle rack for around 25 minutes or until cauliflower is cooked and slightly brown.
A long time ago I used to go to Eddie’s House Restaurant in Scottsdale AZ and he used to serve complimentary bread baskets. Those bread baskets contained an assortment of breads and these flat crisp breads with blue cheese butter and pistou herb sauce (pesto without nuts). A few years ago I published a similar recipe. I did get the crisp bread recipe from Epicurious. This is pretty much the same recipe for the crisps but in my current oven I need to bump up the heat 25 degrees for the crisps to come out the same. The rest is even easier than before because I decided that you don’t need to measure the butter and blue cheese. Just blend a stick of butter with a wedge of blue cheese. For the herbs I grabbed a handful of basil, some leftover marjoram, some green parts of scallions and olive oil. Portion size is always difficult to determine because I don’t know if you want one small piece or several pieces. This makes three flatbreads that I’m guessing are two servings so I will round this to 6 servings.
Ingredients for around 6 servings
1 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil + extra for brushing or spraying the flat breads
sea salt flakes – to taste
poppy seeds – to taste
sesame seeds – to taste
1 – 4 oz stick butter (doesn’t matter if salted or not) – room temperature
1 wedge (around 4 oz or more) blue cheese – room temperature
handful of herbs
extra virgin olive oil to blend
Directions
Here’s the difficult part………picking a temperature for the oven……….In my last oven I made these same flat breads at the Epicurious suggestion of 450 degrees F for ten minutes……I tried that and it doesn’t work in my current oven so I cranked it up to 475F and then the crips came out. You can try 450F and if yours is still raw then crank it up to 475F till done.
After you pick your oven temperature……In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, water, and oil. Divide the dough into three balls.
Roll the balls on parchment paper and top the dough with plastic wrap and roll the dough into a flat bread. Remove the plastic wrap and spray or brush with olive oil. Sprinkle sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and sea salt flakes. Transfer your raw flat bread on parchment paper to a sheet pan and place in your oven for about 10 minutes.
Repeat with 2nd and 3rd dough balls.
I’ve found out that you can bake two in the oven but in my oven the flat bread on lower rack needed two more minutes.
For the blue cheese butter just blend the blue cheese with the butter.
For the herbs remove any stems and blend with olive oil.
This is FORKING Delicious!
EZ Bread Crisps with Blue Cheese Butter and Herb Sauce
A special THANKS!!!!! to Epicurious for a FORKING fantastic bread crisp recipe and also to Chef Eddie that was from Eddie’s House for this amazing idea!
I had these baby bell peppers that I had to use so I was thinking cornbread…..Then I thought cheesy cornbread. Then I made them so darn cheesy they were pudding and I topped it with a FORKING AMAZING salsa macha. You can buy salsa macha from many stores and Mexican grocery stores but the recipe on The FORKING Truth is FORKING AMAZING. Don’t mean to brag…BUT…If I was on a competition show…I’d WIN for this. If a restaurant served this they’d be written in the newspaper for this dish. That is how FORKING AMAZING they really taste!…..Anyways…… This recipe makes at least 24 mini stuffed peppers…I ran out of peppers but had enough to do at least 5 more. I’m figuring around 8 servings thinking that you are going to eat about three mini peppers a serving.
Ingredients for around 8 servings
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup masa de harina
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup butter – melted (doesn’t matter if salted or not you adjust salt)
sea salt – to taste
1 egg – lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 cup shredded mature cheddar
2-3oz sliced mature cheddar (this is for topping the corn puddings)
3 Tablespoons salsa macha
24 mini bell peppers
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Directions
Set oven to 350 degrees F.
The baby bell peppers get sprayed with oil and go on a sheet pan. Roast the peppers until cooked. Ovens do differ…in my old oven this would take only 15 minutes. In my current oven this took 30 minutes.
Line mini muffin pan(s) with paper liners.
In a large mixing bowl add the cornmeal, masa de harina, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cheese and mix well, Add the melted butter, egg, milk, You will need a little salt. I used salted butter and added about 5 turns of salt from my salt grinder.
When the peppers are cool enough to handle remove cores and stems. Split them down the middle and put them in the cups.
Fill about 3/4 of the cup with corn pudding mixture. Then top each with a chunk of cheese.
This goes on the middle rack of your preheated 350F oven. For around 15 minutes.
Serve warm and top with salsa macha.
They are FORKING SCRUMPTIOUS!
Enjoy!
Cheesy Mini Corn Pudding Stuffed Peppers with Salsa Macha The Forking Truth
