Thursday, 30 June 2011

Spicy Coconut Shrimp Bisque – It's the Besh!

This spicy coconut shrimp bisque recipe was inspired by a similar soup I saw Chef John Besh make during a demo I attended at the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival. As I watched him make it, I couldn't wait to get back to San Francisco to give it a try.

How close is this to his version? I have no idea, as I was drunk on tequila. Besides the coconut milk, I can barely remember what he put in it. After doing a pre-show shot with his assistants, Besh jokingly instructed the floor staff to pour the audience a shot. Minutes later, much to his delight, shots of tequila were distributed throughout the room.

Just that would have made for an amusing anecdote, but it didn't stop there. By the time the demo ended 45 minutes later, we had enjoyed five rounds of drinks, with Besh and his sous chef more than keeping pace. Remarkably, when the show ended, the well-oiled chef had managed to produce a seriously delicious looking bisque with dumplings. What a show off.

Anyway, I know it's been a while since I posted a real video recipe, but I really think this one will have been worth the wait. I loved how this turned out, and I think you will as well. I hope you give it a try, and maybe tweak it with some different combinations of seafood and garnishes. Cheers! Err, I mean, enjoy!


Ingredients:
1 pound shrimp, shells reserved
2 1/2 cups water
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/3 cup diced celery
1/4 cup diced jalapeno
1/4 cup flour
2 cups prepared tomato soup
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 teaspoon red curry paste, or to taste
salt and/or fish sauce to taste
basil chiffonade

Tuesday, 28 June 2011

Almanac Beer – Won't Help You Forecast the Weather, But Will Help You Not Care

I'd like to congratulate my friend, and resident Food Wishes beer consultant, Jesse Friedman, who has recently taken the plunge into the wild and wacky world of self-employment. You may know Jesse as the publisher of Beer & Nosh, but very soon, you'll also know him as the wildly successful co-creator of Almanac Beer. By the way, if you're going to quit your day job, and say goodbye to all the safety and security it affords, then having lots of craft beer around is probably not a bad idea.

After years of hard work and experimentation, Jesse and his partner Damian will be officially releasing their "farm to barrel" brew on Thursday, June 30. I had the pleasure of tasting some this spring, and was quite impressed. I've just returned from LA after three grueling weeks, and way too tired to come up with the appropriate adjectives to describe the beer, so instead I'll simply invite you to watch the video below, and then give the Almanac Beer blog a visit for more information.

FYI: I'm back in the kitchen tomorrow and should have a long overdue video recipe up by the end of the day. Stay tuned!

Sunday, 26 June 2011

Banana Pudding Milkshake...Say What Chick-Fil-A?

I love the person who thought of banana pudding in milkshake form!!


Banana Pudding Milkshake

If you follow me on facebook then you know how obsessed I am with Chick-fil-a's new banana pudding milkshake. Yall...like seriously...I was drinking one of those every single day!

It was like a milkshake full of comfort. It didn't matter how stressful my day had been I knew that all would be well once I got my banana pudding milkshake fix.

Then all of a sudden SOMEBODY(and I thank you) had to ruin it by sending me the calorie count ....780 calories!!! What in the milkshake hell!!!! I just lost my muffin top and I was not about to get her back....at least not before Thanksgiving.

I knew I had to stop but it was so hard!! It's not unusual for me become attached to fast food items. Not to long ago I kicked my McDonalds Real Fruit Smoothie addiction by recreating my own. That was exactly how I was going to handle this addiction! I would try to recreate Chick Fil-A's banana pudding milkshake!!!!

I played around with some ingredients and made it about 5 times before finally settling one that I thought was awesome (dare I say better) and had that same comfort appeal!!

I love this banana pudding milkshake and YES I think I am officially done buying them everyday. Well...not unless I'm out and about when the craving strikes.

I hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as I've been!!

Banana Pudding Milkshake (makes 1 serving)
1/4 cup plain soymilk
1 1/2 Tablespoons banana cream instant pudding mix
1 cup Homestyle, Slow Churned Vanilla Ice Cream (Edy's)
4-6 vanilla wafers, crushed
diced banana (optional)
Cool Whip (optional)
Cherry (optional)

Watch me make this banana pudding milkshake from start to finish!!


*Note*  You can add in more pudding if you prefer a sweeter, stronger banana taste. If you do that you will also need to increase the soymilk and ice cream as well. Otherwise, you run the risk of just have pudding. (Made that mistake a lot during my recipe testing)

Metaphorically Speaking

Wow, it's been three days since my last post, and six days since my last video, and that my friends, is a new Food Wishes record. That's how insane the schedule's been working on the show down here in Los Angeles.

Not only haven't I had much time to film, but I also haven't had any time to visit with my SoCal food blogger buddies, which means I haven't been going to any fabulous restaurants. However, I did have a very nice Korean lunch on Friday, at a place next to our office called, Genwa, where I filmed this 100% cotton-based excuse for a lame metaphor. 

Right about now, I feel exactly like those tightly wound wads of gauze, desperate to be soaked with lots of clean, warm time. I'll be back in San Francisco Tuesday, and I can't wait to get wet! Stay tuned!

Wednesday, 22 June 2011

Good News, Bad News, Good News from Hollywood

Photo (c) bdearth
The good news is that everything is on schedule and going great down here in Hollywood. The bad news is that the next few days are dawn to dusk television production insanity, and there will no time to post anything, not even one of my lame re-runs. 

The good news is that when I get back to San Francisco on Tuesday, my schedule is finally clear, and I'll have nothing to do except film video recipes – and believe me, I have quite an impressive list of dishes to share. Stay tuned!

Tuesday, 21 June 2011

Drunken Melon Balls...Aaaahhh Summer Is Here!!!

Give me these drunken melon balls, a good magazine and comfy porch swing
and I'm happy as a lark.

Who knew that letting melons chillax in a pool of triple sec, pineapple juice and raspberry vodka could make for such a refreshing summer treat.

I love making these in the summer time when melons are super sweet. Using the melon baller is a lot quicker than slicing the fruit up in my opinion. I keep the fruit ball cut-out close together to avoid too much wasted fruit.

I'm not really sure what the correct title is for these melon balls... vodka melon balls? Melons infused with vodka? Alcoholic fruit salad?  Drunken melon balls? There are just too many names for this, which makes sense because there are soooo many ways to change this up simply by switching up the alcohol.

Around here we call them boozy balls just because it's so fun to say. Go a'head, say it. Isn't it fun? They also make super fun kabobs! Just thread them on a bamboo skewer sit them out on a platter and watch how fast they disappear. (Just make sure you make an alcohol free batch for the kiddos because I don't know too many kids that can resists round fruit on a stick)

These 21 and older melon balls go GREAT for a girls night in party, wedding brunch, cookouts or just lounging outside on a hot day.

Melon Balls waiting to soak in their vodka pineapple juice triple sec bath!



They have a light alcohol taste that still allows for the natural sweetness of the fruit to come through. You can certainly double the alcohol if you prefer it the other way around and hey, I'm not here to judge.


Ingredients (I had roughly 7 1/2 cups of melon balls)
1 small, seedless watermelon
1 cantaloupe
1 honey dew melon
1 cup pineapple juice
1 cup raspberry vodka (or your favorite fruit flavored vodka)
1/2 cup triple sec


Watch me make these drunken melon balls from start to finish



*note* If you are making this recipe when melons are out of season (which I highly do not recommend) or are not as sweet, you may need to add some simple syrup (sugar water) to the mixture. Don't use super ripe fruit that is mushy. Ick! It will be just fall apart on ya.

CUSTOMIZE IT!!! Add in whatever fruity alcohol you enjoy but keep it simple! You really can't screw this recipe up... well unless you just start mixing up all kinda weird and crazy stuff. The raspberry vodka and triple sec is just what I had on had.  I love using midori which is a melon flavored liqueur or tequila, lime and triple sec for a margarita flavor.

Have fun and don't forget to drink (or eat in this case) responsibly! : )

Monday, 20 June 2011

Does this Hollandaise-less Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict Make Me a Traitor?

I'm probably not the first person you think of when discussing adapting high-calorie recipes into lower fat ones. I know I've done a few, but generally I believe one should make something in its full fat glory, or not at all. I hate to break it to you, but shredded, steamed chicken with fat-free yogurt on quinoa chips isn’t really "nachos."

This hollandaise-less smoked salmon eggs Benedict, however, has me on the other side of that argument. As promised, here is a video recipe for the plate you saw in the How to Poach Eggs demo. You'll have to take my word for it when I say that despite the absence of the traditional hollandaise sauce, it was really, really good.

As I explain in the clip, the dill butter spread, and the yolks from the poached eggs combine to form a fine substitute for the world's highest calorie sauce. I think this idea can be adapted to feature any number of compound butters and meat combinations, and I'd love to hear about any such breakfast experiments. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients for the Dill Butter:
1/2 stick butter
2 tablespoons dill
1 teaspoon lemon zest
salt, fresh ground black pepper, and cayenne to taste

View the complete recipe

Saturday, 18 June 2011

A Food Woolf in New Orleans

I've been thinking about using my iPhone to do more quick movies for days in between the recipe videos. You may have seen my recent, How to Eat a Hamburger demo, which is the only type of thing I thought I should be using the überphone for. 

That was until I saw my friend Brooke's short film teasing a post she's doing on a recent press trip to New Orleans. When I finished watching it, two thoughts immediately percolated up. 

The first was why the hell wasn’t I invited on this trip? Hey, Louisiana Seafood Board, expect a call from my people Monday morning. Supplying us with delicious, sustainable fish doesn't get you off the hook (see what I did there? I think I've made my point).

Then I thought, instead of making one-note, me-eating-something-somewhere iPhone videos, why don't I actually try telling a story? So, thanks Brooke, for making me look at something in a different way. Every time I do, good things happen. 

Speaking of good things, after you watch the video, be sure to head over to her thoughtful and extremely well written blog, Food Woolf, to read the full post. Enjoy!


Friday, 17 June 2011

In Case of Emergency: How to Make a Tomato Rose

I like to have a few short, all-purpose how-to videos, like this tomato rose technique, already done and ready for a quick upload, in case something unexpected happens and I can't film a regular recipe.

You know, for emergencies like if my equipment fails, or I get injured saving a fireman stuck in a tree (he was up there trying to save a cat), or like in this case, I get called down to Los Angeles to produce a historically-based reality food show. Enjoy!

Wednesday, 15 June 2011

Father's Day Garlic Steak with Garlic Confit - Oh, Daddy!

If your dad is a fan of garlic, this garlic steak with garlic confit will surely put a smile on his face. And not just any kind of smile; one of those, "maybe they really do love and appreciate me, and aren't just pretending so I continue to work like a dog so they can have food and shelter. One of those smiles.

I have nothing against mothers, in fact, if it wasn't for them, most of us wouldn't be here. But, when it comes to Mother's Day vs. Father's Day foods, I have to lean towards the dad. You know, less artsy, more fartsy. When I think Mother's Day, I think flowers, fancy brunches, and maybe a couple Mimosas. Father's Day is more like a bad tie, a sizzling steak on the grill, and a few cans of domestic beer.

Speaking of bad ties, do the old man a favor, and don't get him one this year, and instead use that money to go to a real butcher and get an expensive, nicely marbled piece of beef. As I mentioned in the video, I was forced to use a couple unremarkable supermarket steaks, which came out pretty well, but try and treat dad to something a little more special.

I will be post a longer more detailed recipe for the garlic confit, but it really is quite a simple matter – cover the cloves in olive oil, and cook on very low until soft and sweet – and do NOT discard the oil, keep it refrigerated and we'll use it on some upcoming stuff. Enjoy!


Ingredients:
2 NY Strip Steaks
8 cloves crushed garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 tablespoon good aged balsamic
confit garlic cloves, as needed

View the complete recipe

Tuesday, 14 June 2011

Refreshing Old Fashioned Strawberry Lemonade

I like to freeze this strawberry lemonade partially so that it gets slushy and super cold. So good!!

I don't know too many things that is as refreshing on sweltering days than a cold glass of  homemade strawberry lemonade.

I'm talking pure, authentic strawberry lemonade.  Not that artificial, bitter, chemically tasting stuff you get at most grocery stores.

Fresh, strawberries from the farmers market!

This recipe hit the spot if you are searching for a strawberry lemonade recipe that is smooth, pure of artificial dyes, flavors, and concentrates. It's sweet with just a nice hint of lemon.

 (If you prefer a tart strawberry lemonade simply add more fresh lemon juice.)


INGREDIENTS 
2 cups water
1 1/2- 2 cups sugar
zest of 2 lemons
1 cup fresh lemon juice (about 6-8 lemons)
25 large, fresh strawberries

6-7 cups of water (more or less to suit your taste)

Watch me make this strawberry lemonade recipe from start to finish!




MAKE IT BUBBLY!! Replace the water with sparkling water to make a fizzy strawberry lemonade

MAKE IT HARD!!  Replace 1 or 2 cups of water with vodka or alcohol of your choice.

MAKE IT FROZEN!! Add in some of the strawberry pulp and place some water and ice into a blender (this will need to be done in batches unless you have a really large blender)

Monday, 13 June 2011

How to Poach Eggs - Better Late Than Whenever

I mentioned in the recent Roasted Asparagus with Fried Prosciutto and Poached Egg video post that I'd be doing a new and improved "how to poach eggs" technique demo. I said I'd be doing it "soon," which to me means sometime this year, but apparently to many viewers that meant in the next day or two.

So, it's safe to say, this video recipe was truly "by popular demand." And by "demand" I mean constant harassment, and good-natured threats, or at least I hope they were good-natured. The lesson here is to never promise anyone anything.

In related news: I'm not saying exactly when, only that it will be in the future, but the breakfast I used as a destination for my poached eggs will also be turned into its own video recipe for a sort of hollandaise-less eggs Benedict, so stay tuned for that.

Anyway, this is fairly straightforward stuff, except for the fact that the really, really fresh eggs I bought to show how amazingly well they hold together in the hot water, were anything but. As you'll see, they spread out faster that a group of food bloggers in a free grand tasting tent. Enjoy!



Ingredients:
For 2 quarts of water
1 teaspoon vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Friday, 10 June 2011

An Upside-Down Burgers is Right-Side Up

You'll be happy to know I brought all my equipment with me down to LA, and I'll be spending my entire weekend filming a bunch of new videos recipes – none of which will include my "face for radio."

This little quick and dirty cell phone video shows a burger eating technique I've been wanting to share for a while. I like to leave my burger upside-down on the plate, so instead of the thinner bottom bun getting even soggier, the juices drain into the usually thicker, drier top bun. You're welcome. Enjoy!

Farmer's Market Field Trip!!!!!

I love the farmers market!! 
Today has been warm with a constant breeze, a nice change to the humid, blazing hot weather we've had the past few days.  It was the perfect day to hit up THE FARMERS MARKET!!!!!

I like grocery shopping but I LOVE farmers market shopping. It's actually pretty therapeutic and relaxing to me. I can take my time and stroll down the aisles checking out all the homemade creations and fresh farmed produced.

No need to wear makeup at the Farmers Market.
I think there is a rule that you can't because everyone always
 looks a hot ass mess in this place....soo I joined in!!

There is just something about a farmers market that makes me want to "go greener", make pies and eat healthier.  Since 95% of the produce is grown miles away from my home, it taste and look soooo much better than the stuff I get from the grocery store.

Every time I go I come back with something different whether it's fresh cheeses, organic produce or homemade jellies, it's always worth the trip.

This trip I snagged some GORGEOUS strawberries to make homemade strawberries and champagne jam. I've also been craving some strawberry lemonade and found some lemons for .25 cents!!

Check out my trip to the farmers market to see what else I picked up!




Do you shop at farmers markets??

Wednesday, 8 June 2011

"Can't Boil Water" Starring…Me?

A couple days ago I mentioned that I was down in LA on some semi-secret business. Believe it or not, I was hired on as the Senior Food Producer for a new ABC pilot called "Time Machine Chefs." 

I'll be here for a few weeks helping make sure this is the biggest smash hit cooking show since Top Chef. I wish I could give more details, but for obvious reasons I can't. 

I was brought in by my great friend, Jude Weng, a very talented and accomplished producer who specializes in unscripted television shows (she worked on the very first Survivor!). Speaking of unscripted television shows, the video below is the sizzle reel (which is a sort of quick and dirty mini-pilot) we did together a few years ago for a show idea called, "Can't Boil Water." 

It hasn't been picked up yet, but who knows, maybe now that she's given me permission to post it, a bunch of offers will roll in. I'm joined by my student, Becky Nuse, her fiance Mario, and my good buddy, Sara (aka Average Betty). Enjoy!

Tuesday, 7 June 2011

How to Cook Hamburgers So That Someone Like Me Would Like Them

I normally don't care too much about how absolutely accurate the color profiles of my photos are. I'm the video guy, so if the pictures are a little off, or my grammar's ain't perfect, I get a pass.

But here I was concerned that my average-at-best photography skills would give readers a false impression of exactly how cooked this hamburger was. You'll have to take my word for it, but this was a pretty perfect medium. It may have been the bright light, but the photo makes this look a little rarer than it was.

I'm not a big fan of rare burgers, as I've always believed the beef fat therein should be hot and flowing, not cool and flabby. If I want raw meat I'll make a tartar. At the same time, I do want to keep the burger somewhat pink, if possible, so it stays moist and tender.

The technique you're about to watch is fairly straightforward, but like any cooking methods, it takes a little practice. The good news is, once you get a feel for this "cook it just over halfway up" system, you should be a perfectly pink hamburger making machine.

By the way, I won't engage in any inane debates on the wisdom of eating less-than-well-done burgers. The topic's been covered online, ad nauseam (pun intended). Is it potentially dangerous to eat a pink burger? Of course, but so is crossing the street. Enjoy!

Egg-free Fried Rice Recipe


Richard and I love fried rice, but we can't order it at Chinese restaurants because of Sam's egg-white sensitivity. I decided to make my own egg-free version using ingredients I readily have in my fridge and pantry. The sesame oil and soy sauce flavor the rice beautifully, and the ham makes it extra tasty. This is a great side dish!

Egg-Free Fried Rice Recipe

1 cup brown rice
2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil

1 cup chopped sugar snap peas (a handful or so of whole snap peas)
1/2 cup diced carrot (1 - 2 carrots)
1/2 cup diced ham lunchmeat (5 or 6 slices stacked)
Olive oil

1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
Pepper to taste

First, cook the brown rice. In a medium pot add the rice and the water. Turn the heat up to High. When the mixture comes to a boil, put a lid on it, lower the heat to Low, and simmer it for 45 minutes. When the rice is done, add 1 tbsp of olive oil to the cooked rice and gently mix it in.

While the rice is cooking, prepare the peas, carrots and ham. Wash and dry the snap peas. Cut the ends off of each pea, then cut each pea into 4 or 5 pieces. Wash, dry and peel the carrot(s). Dice the carrot(s) into small pieces. Combine the peas and carrots into one bowl. Stack the ham slices and dice the ham into small pieces like the carrots. Keep the ham separate from the peas and carrots. Refrigerate the peas and carrots and ham until the rice is done and you're ready to make the fried rice.

To make the fried rice, spray a large skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Heat the skillet to Med. High and add the peas and carrots. Drizzle them with a little bit of olive oil and saute them for a few minutes. When they start to brown, add the ham and saute the ham with the peas and carrots for a couple of minutes. Next, drizzle the soy sauce and sesame oil over the vegetables and ham, then add the cooked brown rice and use a spatula to combine everything together. Pepper to taste. Fry the rice mixture in the pan for a few minutes, moving it with your spatula constantly, then turn the heat to Low until you're ready to serve it. Serves 4 - 6 as a side dish.

Monday, 6 June 2011

Coming Soon: How to Make Perfectly Pink Hamburgers

I just found out that amazingly delicious cheeseburger you saw in the Pinot-Glazed Mushrooms video can't air until July, 27th. It was a sponsored post, so I have no choice but to wait, however I did film some extra footage during that session on how to get a perfectly pink burger. I'm in Los Angeles on some semi-secret business, but I should have this hopefully helpful how-to up tomorrow evening. Stay tuned!

A Pickled Peck of Padron Peppers - Twist Your Tongue with Flavor

While I was at the inaugural Atlanta Food & Wine Festival a few weeks ago, I attended a demo by Donald Link, on the topic of working with hot peppers. When Link told the crowd he's used over 150 different varieties of peppers, we knew we were listening to the right dude.

During the presentation Chef Link made a quick and colorful batch of pickled peppers, and while they did look great, it was the vinegar they were brined in that really caught my attention. 

The James Beard Award winning chef said that every station in his kitchens have some of this spicy vinegar in it, and that this magic potion is used liberally in all kinds of things; rice, dressings, and marinades, just to name a few.

So, when Michele came home last week with a bag of oversized Padron peppers, I decided to give this a whirl. I was in one of those 'don't do any research before you start' moods, and just went for it. I decided to use vinegar and sugar, but no salt.

I know salt, and lots of it, is found in virtually all pickling brines, but I wanted to see what would happen if it was omitted. Since I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to use this vinegar on or in, I thought that would give me more flexibility

Of course, the only problem with an experiment like this is I have to wait a few weeks, at least, to taste my creation. I'm not a patient person, but hopefully I'll be rewarded. If you can't find Pardon peppers (see bonus coverage below), then any small fresh pepper will work, especially jalapeno or red Fresno chilies. Enjoy! 

Disclaimer: Like I said in the video, this is an experiment. Try this at your own risk!


Ingredients:
Enough peppers to almost fill a quart jar
3 cups white vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
4 cloves garlic, peeled, halved
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

View the complete recipe

Bonus Padron Pepper Coverage!

Padron peppers are such a fascinating fruit (yes, like tomatoes, they are technically a fruit), and I covered them in way more detail in this post I did last August. I've posted the video below, but I encourage you curious culinarians to go check out the full post here. Enjoy!

Friday, 3 June 2011

Mahi Mahi with Spicy Thai Chili Mango Sauce and a Lesson Well Learned

Making this mahi mahi with spicy Thai chili mango sauce recipe didn't have me dreaming of tropical beaches, or some exotic outdoor market in southeast Asia. No, it reminded me of getting yelled at in the back of some dingy prep kitchen, a very long time ago.

I was given a recipe to make by an old French chef for a tomato pasta sauce. The first step was sweating a finely minced mirepoix in some olive oil. Since it was a fairly large batch, I decided to use the food processor to mince the carrots, celery and onions. Le chef was not le happy.

After teaching me a few new, colorful French phrases, he explained that while a mechanically minced mirepoix may look similar to a hand minced one, they were very different. He told me when you use a food processor, the vegetables are torn into tiny pieces, as opposed to being cleanly cut.

There is way more damage done to the cellular structure, and depending on the ingredient, that can create a noticeably different taste and texture than using a sharp knife and a little elbow grease, or as I believe it's called in France, elbow butter.

Anyway, this mango sauce is an example of how much I took that lesson to heart. For all I know that culinary theory has been debunked by Alton Brown, or some other food wonk a long time ago, but I don't care. I'll always believe my spicy mango sauce tastes better because I cut it by hand. Thanks chef! Enjoy.

UPDATE: I just listened to this video recipe again, and am proposing a new drinking game where every time I say "beautiful," you have to do a shot. ;-)



Spicy Thai Chili Mango Sauce Ingredients: (note everything in this is "to taste")
3/4 cup finely minced mango
1/2 small Thai chili, minced very fine
1 teaspoon sambal chili sauce, or other similar chili paste
1 large clove garlic, crushed fine
1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar
juice from one lime
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

View the complete recipe

Wednesday, 1 June 2011

Stuffed Bell Peppers



Stuffed Bell Peppers:
Easy weekday dinner, fit for company!

Stuffed Bell Peppers
I was so happy to see green bell peppers on sale. Of course when I got them I couldn't think of anything I wanted to make. They sat there in the crisper drawer for a few days before I had to think of something quick before they started to get all wrinkly.

I pulled out my old recipe book that I made when I got married and there it was, a recipe for stuffed bell peppers that I got from a friends mom. I had these stuffed peppers at her house MANY years ago and thought they were pretty tasty so she gave me the recipe. I adapted the recipe slightly to suit my families taste.
The yummy filling for the stuffed green peppers


My hubby loves stuffed bell peppers and I can't believe out of the almost 9 years we've been married I've never thought to make them.

This recipe is so easy and hearty. The stuffing is full of ground turkey, smoked sausage, cheese, onions,  tomatoes, garlic, peppers, and few savory seasonings.


INGREDIENTS

4 green bell peppers
water or chicken broth (to boil whole peppers in)
1/2 white onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb ground turkey
1 smoked turkey dinner sausage link, diced
1 1/2 cups rice, cooked
16 oz can of diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons parsley
1/2-1 teaspoon salt
1/2- 1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2- 1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2-1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2-3/4 cup cheddar cheese
3/4 cup of mozzarella cheese


Preheat oven to 350

Watch me make these Stuffed Bell Peppers from start to finish!!



*note* Adjust seasonings to suit your taste. Be sure to taste after each addition to prevent over-seasoning it. If you're using seasoned diced tomatoes you may want to cut back or omit some of the seasonings.

Coming Soon: Grilled Mahi Mahi with Spicy Thai Chili Mango Sauce

I will explain all this later. Thank you. Come again. UPDATE: This was edited and posted during my IACP session (which explains the brief and cryptic first sentence), that I blogged about yesterday. It went very well! I'll be back in San Francisco tomorrow, and will upload the full video then. Thanks!

UPDATE to the UPDATE: I'm back in San Francisco, but will not be able to upload the video today...unless you want it without any narration. :-) Stay tuned!