Tag Archives: #recipe

Using the Spiral Cutter is MUCH EASIER for Forking Great Hash Browns – Recipe

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Hash Browns

I was thinking about hash browns. I was wondering if my hash browns would come out better if I used the spiral cutter instead of a box grater. The box grater just makes so much surface on the potatoes it is very different to get all the moisture out. I found that when I spiral cut the potatoes it becomes very easy to dry the potatoes so I made them that way and it made a big difference. This is recipe is only 4 potatoes, 2ounces of butter and fresh crushed sea salt and pepper to taste. You can add a little paprika if you want to go old school. Did you know that when you add onions, flour or egg that you are actually making a Latke and not hash browns?

Ingredients for about 4 servings

4 average size potatoes

2 oz sweet butter

fresh crushed sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

Directions

You need a large bowl of cold water and set it to the side. Peel the potatoes one at a time. Spiral cut the potato like spaghetti. It’s a good idea to put a cloth or a piece of foil underneath to keep your counter clean.

Afterwards put your spaghetti cut potato in the bowl of cold water.

Repeat till you did all four potatoes. Put the potatoes in a towel or a colander with a towel and squeeze out the water. (I was going to use my salad spinner but it BROKE..just then)

Get a non stick pan on medium heat and add 2 ounces of sweet butter to it. When the butter is melted scoop or blot out most of the white floaty fat.

Then add the drained potatoes and squash them in with a spatula.

Cover the pan with a lid or foil.  The pan only needs to be covered with foil for 15 minutes…..then remove the foil (or lid). The pan needs to keep cooking on medium heat for about another 35 minutes or a total of 50 minutes on this side. But I NOTE that this timing WILL DIFFER…..due to everything will differ, size of potatoes, cut of potato, pan and heat source. In other words you just have to cook till you have a nice crisp bottom…..

Then you flip it over….there are many ways to do this… some people like to use a plate but I like to use an extra large spatula.

Sorry it was impossible for me to hold my phone (camera) and flip the hash brown.

Then after the flip it needs about another 35 minutes in the pan. (again your time may differ)

Then you add fresh crushed sea salt and black pepper to it. It’s old school and classic to add some sweet paprika. Usually people like ketchup with hash browns.

Hash Browns

This is a Forking Great Recipe for Hash Browns…..just using a spiral cutter is much easier for crispy delicious hash browns!

The Forking Truth

 

Italian Style Neonata (Nunnata) Baked Crispy Potato Balls Recipe

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Italian Style Neonata Crispy Baked Potato Balls

Neonato (Italian spelling is Nunnata) is an Italian Spicy Fish Condiment. Neonata is considered a delicacy and can only be made a few weeks a year when fish are very young. Different parts of Italy use different fish to make Neonata.  Anchovies, Sardines and Mackerel are popular in some parts but all kinds of other fish are used. The Coluccio Brand I used is made with ice fish. I was watching a cooking competition TV Show and Neonato was the ingredient the chefs had to use. The judge on the TV show said that Neonata is one of his favorite things. He also said many of the items on his menu in his restaurant have Neonata in them. I haven’t found Neonata at any of my local stores so I mailed away for some. I got the same exact brand they used on TV. It’s full of olive oil, not a strong fish taste…..maybe almost like tuna but lighter and it taste a bit like Calabrian Chili peppers. I since found out that most people spread the Neonata on bread or they mix it into pasta. I thought the Neonata would go pretty well with potatoes so I made Baked Crispy Neonata Potato Balls. This recipe makes around 40 balls.

Ingredients for about 10 servings

2 lbs potatoes – peeled – cut in half – in pot covered with cold water

1 Tablespoon salt – to put in pot of water with potatoes

4 Tablespoons Neonata

1 egg

1/4 cup scallions

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt

1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 cup flour (bowl one)

1/4 teaspoon cayenne (bowl one)

4 eggs – lightly beaten (bowl two)

2 Tablespoons dijon mustard (bowl two)

2 cups whole wheat panko bread crumbs (bowl three)

2 Tablespoons dried basil (bowl three)

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt (bowl three)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (bowl three)

non stick spray

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F

Spray baking Sheet(s) with non stick spray and set to the side.

Add a Tablespoon of salt to pot of potatoes and put on a medium boil. Cook till potatoes are tender (about 15-20) minutes. Drain the water off of the potatoes and take off heat and then mash. Then mash with Neonata. Then mash with one egg and add the scallions and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt and 1/8 teaspoon white pepper. Put pot of seasoned potatoes to the side.

Now set up your breading station with three large bowls.

Bowl #1 is 1 c. flour and 1/4 t. cayenne – Then mix.

Bowl #2 are 4 eggs (two eggs are pictured but I figured out I needed to double) and 2 Tablespoons dijon. Then mix.

Bowl #3 is 2 cups w.w. panko 2 T.basil 1/2 t. sea salt and 1/2 t. ground black pepper. Then mix.

Use a small scooper and put ball first in flour, then egg mixture, then crumb mixture and then onto sprayed baking sheet. You can do 5 or 6 balls at a time.

They go in 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes or until done.

I made an aioli with lemon juice, lemon zest and a touch of bomba calabrese.

They don’t really need a sauce but sauce is fun…..I think a marinara sauce would be fine…. a lemon-ee parsley sauce would also be great.

Italian Style Neonata Crispy Baked Potato Balls

A tasty different appetizer or side dish…….Enjoy!

The Forking Truth

One Ingredient Banana Frozen Confection Recipe is Really Forking Good!

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One Ingredient Frozen Banana Confection with added cinnamon and crushed chocolate chips

We all heard about one ingredient frozen Banana Ice Cream. Everybody says it’s very easy and delicious. I literally had a BUNCH of Bananas so I thought I’d give it a try. The Forking Truth is that it’s not as easy as everyone says. But honestly after I figured out how to blend it up the “fake Ice Cream” did indeed come out delicious.

Get a bunch of bananas….I hear that you want them ripe but firm. (P.S. you can sometimes get a HUMUNGOUS bunch of bananas just like this once in a while from the 99cent store)

Peel the bananas and cut them in slices and then freeze over night.

I used a tub….

after doing so I think a big ziplock bag would have been a little better because it wouldn’t have been a thick of a frozen brick.

“Wow I got a Rock”

I got a big rock of banana.

I have to let it sit till I can hack off banana slices and blend them with a stick blender…..a little at a time…….I seriously think this recipe will only work with a professional strength stick blender like what I have.

I keep going about a cup at a time till I’m done and the bananas need to firm up a little more in the freezer.

To my surprise the bananas are very sweet and this doesn’t even need a thing but I add a spoonful of cinnamon and swirl it through just for fun. This goes back in the freezer to firm up.

Four hours latter it’s a nice consistency….Firm but very creamy.

One Ingredient Frozen Banana Confection with added cinnamon and crushed chocolate chips

It creamy and almost like Ice Cream. It has a really great banana flavor. I thought a little bit of cinnamon in it would be good ( and it is). I also thought a little crushed milk chocolate would go well here too. Many other variations can be made….A natural peanut butter swirl would be yum!……..Banana/Cocoa……..Banana/Melon……… Banana with Butterscotch …..Banana Malt……Banana/Strawberry……..Banana/Walnut…..How about Banana with Coconut? ……Maybe Banana Rum Raisin….I think Banana, Mango and Lime would be great too.

I think this is a much healthier and maybe tastier alternative to Ice Cream. (well most supermarket ice cream)

This one Ingredient Banana Confection really is Forking Good!

The Forking Truth

 

Vegetarian Crab Boil Corn and Potato Stew Recipe

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Vegetarian Crab Boil Corn and Potato Stew

The supermarkets have practically been giving away corn the last few weeks here in Phoenix so it’s necessary to make something with corn. This recipe has a lot of steps but it is easy. You cook the corn in the oven and make an easy corn stock at the same time. 1/2 the corn get blended in 1/2 of the corn stock and the other 1/2 of corn stock cooks the potatoes with the crab boil seasoning. See it’s easy and delicious. Just be careful and only use 1/4 cup of the potato/crab boil liquid to season the stew. The potatoes get a nice seasoning on them but the liquid is very strong tasting so you only need a little bit to season up the stew. Also I cooked off 8 ears of corn but I only needed to use 6 for this recipe. You will have two extra ears of corn for latter or you can remove the kernels and freeze for a latter use. This came out very much like a Chowder…but since it’s without cream or crackers to thicken……..technically this is closer to a stew so that’s what I called it.

Ingredients for about 6 servings

8 ears corn – peeled

2 bay leaves

2 celery ribs – quartered

1 large onion – cut in half and then thick slices

4 garlic cloves – smashed

2 carrots – cut in half

1 banana pepper – cut in half

4 oz unsalted butter cut in quarters

2 Tablespoons course sea salt

water to almost cover corn

2 lbs potatoes – peeled and cut in large chunks

1 Zatarain’s 3oz Crab Boil in Bag seasoning (mustard seeds, coriander seeds, cayenne pepper, bay leaves, dill seeds, allspice)

1/4 cup potato/crab boil cooking liquid (ABOUT) – ******Note you might need a little less or a little more depending on the amount of water was used. Add a tablespoon at a time till you think the flavor is right…my guess is around 4 tablespoons or a 1/4 cup.

1 teaspoon dried thyme

sea salt to taste

black pepper to taste

6 teaspoons scallions – chopped

6 teaspoons parsley or celery leaves – chopped

6 pinches piment d’ espelette

Directions

Turn the oven to 350 degrees F.

In two large pans add 4 ears of corn each. Then in each of the two pans add a bay leaf, 1 rib celery, 1/2 onion, 2 garlic cloves, 1 carrot, 1/2 banana pepper, 2oz butter, 1 Tablespoon sea salt and fill the pan 3/4 high with water.

Cover the pans tightly with aluminum foil.

Place both pans on the middle rack of oven and leave in oven for two hours.

After two hours take the pans out of the over. Be care because hot steam is going to come out and loosen the end of the foil and let the pan cool off a little for an hour. Take the corn out of the pans and remove the vegetables and bay leaves from the liquid in the pans.

Cut the kernels off of 4 ears of corn and blend with one pan of the corn stock. Set to the side.

In a large sauce pot add the liquid (corn stock) of one pan. Put the potato chunks and crab boil bag in the pot and boil until potatoes are tender (about ten minutes). Drain the potatoes in a colander that is over a bowl.

Add the creamy thick corn to the drained potatoes. Remove the kernels from two more ears of corn and add to the stew. Add 1/4 cup of potato/crab boil liquid to season the creamy thick corn and potatoes. Season with thyme. Mix. Salt and pepper to taste.

Finish with scallions, parsley or celery leaves and pigment d’ espelette.

Vegetarian Crab Boil Corn and Potato Stew

It substantial but delicious and not as heavy as it seems. Very small amount of butter was used but no heavy cream, milk or extra starches were used. It’s just delicious and satisfying.

The Forking Truth

 

Vegetarian Chili with Jackfruit Beans and Corn Recipe

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Vegetarian Chili with Jackfruit Beans and Corn

I thought I’d do something different with Jackfruit. Today I made a Vegetarian Chili with it. It was slightly difficult because this particular Jackfruit was much more flavorful and sweeter than any other Jackfruit I ever had before. I didn’t know they differed so much so preparing Chili was difficult with a very sweet flavorful Jackfruit but somehow I managed to do it. I also note that Jackfruits always differ. They are always made of the pulled part that looks like pulled meat. The Bulbs that are the sweeter and fruitier part and there are the seeds that are sort of edible…….The seeds are very good and taste like a cross between a bean and a chestnut but are almost impossible to peel. The peels are edible but not so enjoyable……When the seeds are still hot you can get the seed meat out but within minutes that opportunity ends so you can try or just throw them out. You don’t always get the pulled meat out of a Jackfruit. That will depend on ripeness…..*****VERY IMPORTANT******This recipe will not work out for you if you can’t get the Jackfruit meat out.*******This came out very hardy but not as meaty as the vegetarian burger recipe on this site. If you are going for really – like -meat I suggest the Vegetarian Burger recipe. I’ll come out with a more meaty-like vegetarian chili recipe next time….You won’t be hungry after a bowl of this Vegetarian Chili.

Ingredients for about 6 servings

2 lb chunk of Jackfruit – in pot. Cover with water and boil for 45 minutes

2 oz Guajillo Chile Pods – Wash first then first then Soak in about 4 cups of boiling water (*****Water needs to be saved)

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 large sweet onion chopped

2 Tablespoons canola oil

1 green bell pepper – chopped

2 teaspoons course sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 cloves garlic – shredded

1 lb seven hour reduced tomatoes – ( LIGHTLY sprinkled with olive oil salt and pepper cooked at 225 degrees for 7 hours) (( regular tomatoes and plum tomatoes need to be cored with skin removed and cut in halves….cherry tomatoes just cut in half)

40 oz can pinto beans – drained and rinsed at least three times (if you can find reduced sodium they are better)

2 chipotle peppers (from adobo) – chopped fine

1/4 cup masa

1 teaspoon cumin

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon granulated onion

1 teaspoon urfa pepper

1/4 teaspoon hot smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon liquid smoke

2 cups cooked corn kernels

2 cups cooked rice

1 -1/2 cup scallions – chopped (the half cup to finish)

3 oz pepper jack cheese shredded (or more) – to finish

3 oz sharp cheddar cheese shredded (or more) – to finish

6 oz corn chips or and corn tortillas – to finish

salt and pepper to taste

hot cayenne sauce to taste (Franks Red Hot is preferred)

Directions

When cool enough to handle break down the Jackfruit.

Rough chop the bulbs and set to the side.

Remove stems from guajillo chilies. Rough chop and blend them in the water.

Put to the side.

In a medium to large sauce pot add the oil and heat on medium high heat. Add the onions and bell pepper and cook till onions are translucent and peppers are soft. Reduce heat to medium. Add the tomato paste and stir well. Add the garlic salt and pepper cook till fragrant.

Add the tomatoes, beans, jackfruit bulbs, chipotle chiles and blended chilies.

Whisk in the masa.

Add cumin, chili powder, thyme, smoked paprika, granulated onion, urfa pepper, hot smoked paprika, cayenne, white pepper and stir a little and turn down to simmer. Let it simmer about 30 minutes.

Add apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke, corn and jackfruit meat. Simmer about 15 more minutes.

Add cooked rice, and scallions.

Adjust seasonings, cayenne pepper sauce and add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with shredded cheese, corn chips and or corn tortillas and scallions.

Vegetarian Chili with Jackfruit Beans and Corn

You won’t be hungry after this!

The Forking Truth

 

 

 

 

Baked Breaded Poblano Peppers stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese Potatoes Recipe

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Baked Breaded Poblano Pepper stuffed with Potato and Pepper Jack Cheese

These Stuffed Peppers are sort of inspired from the Chile Relleno. I wanted to do a lighter healthier Stuffed Pepper that wasn’t fried and wasn’t solid with cheese. As delicious as real Chile Rellenos are sometimes they can be like a Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza and can feel like an over dose of cheese. The potato cuts out a lot of the fat from all that cheese. This stuffed pepper has a baked whole wheat panko baked crust enhanced with masa for a sort of taco-ish flavor. I made them two different ways.  One was cooked down skinless tomatoes with a little onion, garlic, oregano  salt and pepper and for a different taste the other was covered with enchilada sauce. These Baked Breaded Roasted Poblano Peppers Stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese Potatoes are very tasty……People will enjoy them! Depending on the size of your peppers you might have leftover potatoes. My poblanos were very small so I had leftover that I just rolled into balls and rolled the balls into the masa, eggs and panko and baked them off along with the stuffed peppers….it was like two treats in one.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

8 poblano peppers – roasted with skin, seeds and stem removed

2 lbs potatoes – peeled, cut in half, covered with cold water in a sauce pot

1/2 onion – peeled (to boil with potatoes)

1 banana pepper – cut in half (to boil with poatoes)

1 garlic clove (to boil with potatoes)

1 Tablespoon kosher salt (to boil with poatoes

8 oz pepper jack cheese – shredded

2 oz sweet butter – room temperature

1/4 cup scallions

1/4 cup cilantro

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

pinch oregano

fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 egg – lightly beaten (for potato mixture)

1 cup masa (for batter bowl #1)

2 eggs beaten (for batter bowl #2)

1 Tablespoon dijon (for batter bowl #2)

splash water (for Batter bowl #2)

2 cups whole wheat panko bread crumbs (for batter bowl #3)

1/4 cup masa (for batter bowl #3)

Fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

Non stick spay

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F

Spray baking sheet with non stick spray

Put your sauce pot with potatoes, onion, banana pepper, garlic, kosher salt and cold water to cover contents of pot on medium high heat. Cook until the potatoes are tender.

(about 20 minutes) Discard the garlic, onion and banana pepper. You might want to save the potato water for a sauce, soup or bread making or throw out if you are not using it for something else. After the potatoes are drained hand mash them till smooth with butter, cheese, scallions cilantro, white pepper, oregano, sea salt and black pepper to taste. After you are satisfied with the taste hand mix in one egg and set the mixture to the side.

Set up the breading station.

Bowl #1 is masa

Bowl #2 eggs, splash water, Tablespoon dijon

Bowl # ww panko, 1/4 c. masa, salt and pepper

Poblano pepper gets coated in bowl #1 with the masa, then get a coating of egg mixture and then gets panko coated. Repeat till all the peppers are coated.

Cut the end of a disposable pastry bag off.

Fill half way with potato mixture and fold end down over your hand.

Twist end so mixture doesn’t fall out.

Grab a pepper with your non dominate hand and hold it open so you can fill it.

Squeeze filling into pepper but leave enough room so you can seal pepper shut.

Fold down the ends.

Put the pepper on a sprayed baking sheet and repeat till all the peppers are stuffed and sealed.

They go in the oven for about 25 minutes.

Serve with either a cooked oregano laced tomato sauce or enchilada sauce.

Enjoy!

Baked Breaded Poblano Pepper stuffed with Potato and Cheese

Baked Breaded Roasted Poblano Peppers stuffed with Pepper Jack Cheese Potatoes

The Forking Truth

Dukkah Feta and Barberry Bread Recipe

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Dukkah Feta and Barberry Bread

I made Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi’s recipe for Dukkah. WOW! it’s really delicious!….You might be wondering what is Dukkah? Dukkah also spelled Duqqa and is an Egyptian blend of nuts, seeds and spices that are toasted and ground….but not to powder and not to paste…somewhere in-between. I only had Dukka a few times at FnB restaurant in Scottsdale and it might have been served on a vegetable?……. Or maybe not but I think that’s how I had it so I thought I’d make dukkah and put it on a vegetable too………..I read about 20 different recipes for dukkah and they differed so much that they didn’t even seem like the same thing. Some recipes were very short. Others were long. Most on the internet are pistachio based but I read the real thing is usually hazelnut based. I narrowed the recipes down to two that seemed like they’d be the best…..and went with the Y.O & S.T. recipe because they are award wining and this recipe was hazelnut based. After I made the Dukkah I didn’t want to put it on a vegetable because of the taste. It was delicious but it didn’t seem like it was for the vegetables I had around. The dukkah was very flavorful and very fragrant, sort of nutty, a little sweet and slightly spicy, maybe a little spice cookie-ish – peanut-ee like but yummier. My first thought was to bake it into cookies. I thought the dukkah would be great in either butter or peanut butter cookies but I didn’t want to eat cookies this week so I baked it up in bread so I can eat some and freeze some………guess I could have froze cookies too…oh well. I do also think the dukkah would be great to flavor chicken. I latter read that dukkah is suppose to be served with bread and oil……..You dunk your oiled bread in Dukkah to make it tastier……..I can see that now………This dukkah is quite delicious I don’t know if most other dukkahs are this good? You can purchase dukkah at the store these days or follow one of the more simple recipes for dukkah but your results will differ. The bread recipe is very easy. I just made a basic dough. Rolled it out. filled it and rolled it up like a jelly roll. Cut the jelly roll in half long ways. braided it around and in the oven it went on a quilon lined baking sheet.

Ingredients for around 14 servings

1 packet active dry yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons or 1/4 oz)

1 1/2 Tablespoon sugar

1 1/2 cups potato water at 100-110 degrees F or water

4 cups bread flour

1/4 cup scant extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons course sea salt (you might need 3 teaspoons if you use water instead of potato water..)

1 cup bread flour – this is for kneading, letting the dough rest in and for flouring surfaces

2 oz sweet butter – room temperature

dukkah recipe – the whole thing – I will post the ingredients after the recipe at the end of the page if you want to make Dukkah based on Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi’s recipe

4 oz feta – the creamy, not so salty or too tangy type……or use goat cheese – crumbled

1 Tablespoon barberries – if you don’t have skip – nothing will be similar

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil for drizzling over the top of the bread

Directions

Set oven to 400 degrees F.

In a big bowl add the yeast, sugar and potato water and wait maybe 30 minutes for a foam to develop.

Now add 4 cups bread flour, 1/4 c olive oil, sea salt and mix well and make it into a ball. Add another cup of bread flour to let the ball rest in and knead some of that into the ball so it doesn’t feel sticky.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rest till doubled.

Punch down and knead a bit more. Flour surfaces. You can roll out the dough into a something like a 23 inch by 16 inch rectangle and spread the butter on it.

Top the butter with the dukkah, feta cheese and barberries.

Then roll it up like a jelly roll.

 

Split roll in half.

Braid and put ends together.

Drizzle with oil.

After 15 minutes  turn pan around so it browns evenly.

Bread might be done 10-15 minutes later for a total of around 25-30 minutes.

Dukkah Feta and Barberry Bread

Dig in!

Dukkah, Feta and Barberry Bread

Most people will enjoy this! Ummm it’s like a sophisticated Entenmann’s Cake.

The Forking Truth

I used Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi’s Recipe for Dukkah…..I didn’t mean to but I changed their recipe JUST SLIGHTLY due to what I found in my kitchen. This is how I made their recipe. If you use the Dukkah to bake with like I did then I wouldn’t bother toasting everything or the Dukkah might get burnt. I think baking it is enough.

1/2 cup hazelnuts

2 Tablespoons sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon cumin (not in Y.T. & S.T. recipe)

1 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (instead of the cumin the recipe should be 1 Tablespoon of cumin seeds but I couldn’t find them at first so I did a teaspoon cumin and later when I found my cumin seeds I just added 1/2 of what the recipe to make up for the cumin I added)

1 Tablespoon green peppercorn or substitute white peppercorn (I used white)

3 Tablespoons coriander seeds

1 1/2 Tablespoon sesame seeds

1/2 teaspoon nigela seeds (I know I have them but couldn’t find so I used caraway seeds)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

Basically everything gets toasted and then gets ground up till course. ENJOY!

 

Strawberry Salsa Recipe

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Strawberry Salsa

La Santisima Mexican Restaurant in Glendale AZ offers a very large Salsa Bar and one of the salsas they offer is Strawberry so I thought I can do Strawberry Salsa too. With all the great deals we had on strawberries lately and the humid weather we’ve been having strawberry salsa seems just right for this time of year.

Ingredients for about 6 servings

1 lb strawberries – green leaves removed, strawberries chopped

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 red bell pepper – roasted, skin, stem and seeds removed and then chopped

1/4 cup sweet onion – chopped

1 clove garlic – grated

1 lime – the zest and the fresh squeezed juice

1 pickled jalapeno – preferably my recipe or from a farmers market (jarred from store are nasty)

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon mild chili powder

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

.3 oz fresh cilantro chopped (about a 1/3 of a bunch or loose 1/4 cup)

.3 oz fresh mint chopped (just leaves no stems) (about a 1/3 of a bunch or a loose quarter cup)

optional – 3 chitepin chiles – hard to find but worth seeking if you like spicy because they are very delicious tiny peppers with flavor. If you don’t use these peppers you might want use another pepper or more jalapeno.

Directions

Strawberries, sugar and salt go in a medium/large bowl. Mix the bowl contents up and let them sit about 20 minutes. The sugar and salt pull out lots of juice from the strawberries. After the strawberries get really juicy you want to blend half of the mixture so your salsa will have a better texture. Now add the remaining ingredients bell pepper, onion, garlic, lime juice, lime zest, jalapeño, vinegar, cumin, chili powder, black pepper, cilantro, mint, optional chitepin chili peppers. Taste and adjust salt, pepper and chilies to your liking.

Strawberry Salsa

Strawberry Salsa

Strawberry Salsa

Goes really well with melted pepper jack cheese on a chip.

The Forking Truth

 

Levant Inspired Shishito Peppers Recipe

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Levant Inspired Shishito Peppers Recipe

I gave my husband some of Shishito peppers to try. He said they are REALLY DELICIOUS but I don’t know what I’m tasting. That is what I expect that most people would say when they try these peppers. I think almost everybody would love the flavors but they might not be able to figure out what they are tasting. I used a lot of uncommon ingredients that most people wouldn’t have in their pantry. Zahtar, Aleppo pepper, Sesame Seeds, Sumac, Cumin and Urfa Pepper these seasonings are amazing together. I tasted a lot of this kind of food at FnB restaurant in Scottsdale over the years so I developed a taste for this kind of food and sought out to find these seasoning and especially Urfa Pepper. They might sound spicy but they actually are more flavorful than spicy. I’ve found all these seasonings at the Asiana Market that is in or near to Deer Valley. Also added a few fresh herbs and creamy mild style feta cheese and that’s what makes this dish  irresistible!

Ingredients for about 4 servings

6 oz shishito peppers

3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon urfa pepper

1 Tablespoon zahtar

1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1 teaspoon sesame seeds

1 teaspoon sumac

1/4 teaspoon cumin

fresh ground sea salt to taste

fresh ground black pepper to taste

3 oz creamy style sheep’s milk feta cheese – crumbled

1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro – chopped

1/2 Tablespoon fresh mint – chopped

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium-large bowl add peppers, olive oil, urfa pepper, zahtar, Aleppo pepper, sesame seeds, sumac, cumin, salt and pepper and mix well.

Place evenly on a baking sheet and place in oven till peppers start to char and burst. About 15 minutes depending on size of peppers.

Evenly apply feta cheese and then fresh herbs.

ENJOY!

Levant Inspired Shishito Peppers Recipe

The Forking Truth

Italian Style Baked Mashed Potato Fries Recipe

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Italian Style Baked Mashed Potato Fries

These Italian Style Baked Fries are Forking Delicious!  To start out with the Potatoes are extra great because they were boiled with a hot banana pepper and an onion to season them to get super yummy. Then they get  mashed with a small amount of butter, a little seasoning and a cup of grated parmesan cheese. The potato mixture gets squirted out with a pastry bag and then after around thirty minutes in the oven they are done! I didn’t measure out the dipping sauce I made but it’s extra delicious with these fries too! All that’s in it are some home made tomato sauce, some Bomba Calabrese and a lighter canola mayonnaise. It’s delicious and even my husband loves it and he almost NEVER LOVES any creamy sauce….I haven’t found Bomba Calabrese at any store so I mailed away for it….Bomba Calabrese is a delicious spicy condiment. If you are a fan of spicy I recommend that you mail away for some. This recipe make around 72 fries…..That’s about 8 servings based on two pounds of potatoes but it’s totally likely you will have way less than 8 servings because people are going to woof these down. I know after I served my husband a plate of them he ran back for more…everyone will run back for more.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

2 lbs poatoes – pealed – cut in half

cold water to cover the poatoes

1 Tablespoon kosher salt

1 banana pepper – cut diagonal long ways (I buy them at the Asiana Market……these peppers turn any potato that you boil amazing)

1/2 large sweet onion

5 oz parmesan cheese – shredded

2 oz sweet butter

1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

pinch ground white pepper

a few grates fresh nutmeg

optional a little fresh ground sea salt and pepper to taste – for finishing

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

Cover three baking sheets with Quilon Coated paper or parchment paper and set to the side.

In a large sauce pot add the potatoes, kosher salt, banana pepper and onion. Cover with cold water. Bring to a medium high boil and boil till the potatoes are fork tender. (usually around 20 minutes). When the potatoes are done discard the onion and banana pepper. You need to drain the potatoes. ****You might want to save the liquid for a soup or a sauce because it’s very flavorful***but you don’t need it for this recipe so you can toss it if you want.

The drained potatoes get mashed with parmesan cheese, butter, black pepper, rosemary, oregano, basil, white pepper and nutmeg. Hand mash till mixture is lump free. (I didn’t add salt because the potato mixture is salty enough from boiling and more likely from all the cheese)

Add a large star tip to your pastry bag and start squirting out some fries on to the quilon covered baking sheets. The fries come out a little better if you shake your hand slightly while piping.

Keep going till your done.

Put the sheets of fries in the oven.

In about 15 minutes the top rack will be browning so switch it with the bottom rack and check the fries in another 15 minutes.

After 30 minutes I thought the bottom rack needed another 5 minutes but the two other racks I switched around again and they needed about ten minutes more. But my oven doesn’t cook evenly so you might not have the same issue.

I pulled the fries out when they all looked like this.

Let them cool a few minutes and then you can remove them easily with a spatula.

“Oh God they smell Forking so good!” “I’m so hungry for them!”

Italian Style Baked Mashed Potato Fries

I think everyone will love these fries. The fries have a nice light fluffy center. They have crisp edges, an appetizing aroma and have a really tasty flavor from the parmesan cheese and seasonings. Also everyone will love the sauce. Again I didn’t measure the sauce but it’s only made from home made tomato sauce, bomba calabrese and a small amount of canola mayonnaise.

This one is Forking GOOD!

The Forking Truth