Lemon Butter Garlic Shrimp, Oven Baked & Homemade Cocktail Sauce

I love shrimp. It's just how it is. I'm sure there are others of you out there who feel the same way. I haven't found a shrimp that I don't like to chomp. Unfortunately, however, I am landlocked and sequestered high up and away in the Rocky Mountain West. My shrimp is generally found frozen. I work with what I have.

I am also a Pinterest aficionado. It would be great if all of the things I pinned would just work themselves out on their own. I pin and I pin, and sometimes, sometimes, I try.

Well tonight, I tried a Pinterest recipe I set aside about a year ago for oven baked shrimp. As I usually do, I made a variety of adjustments to appease my own palate. The shrimp turned out amazing and we are definitely going to put this into the regular rotation.

I also really like to make homemade sauces and the homemade cocktail sauce is an easy winner that we have made on a number of occasions.

So tonight: Lemon Butter Garlic Shrimp (oven baked) and Homemade Cocktail Sauce. I served it with crusty rolls as sops for the delicious lemon-butter-herb sauce that was in the bottom of the pan when everything was done cooking.

Happy eating . . . now go have a party in your mouth! :)

Homemade Cocktail Sauce

1.5 C. Ketchup

2 Heaping Tbsp Ground Horseradish, Beaver Brand Extra Hot Prepared Grated

1 tsp. Chili Garlic Sauce, Huey Fong Foods

½ of a small lemon, juiced

1 tsp. Salt

½ tsp. Black Cracked Pepper

Combine all ingredients and whisk together. You can serve immediately or refrigerate to let the flavors mingle.

Lemon Butter Garlic Shrimp, Oven Baked

2 Lg. Lemons

1 small bouquet of Thyme, Parsley and Dill

1 Stick of Butter, melted

1 pkg. 31-40 Frozen, Raw, Peeled, Deveined, Tails-on Shrimp

2 Tbsp. Minced Garlic

Garlic Powder

Salt

Italian Seasonings

In a 350 degree oven, melt butter in the cooking tray that you will be using.

Slice 1.5 Lemons, fairly thin. Chop the parsley and the dill.

When butter has melted remove from the oven and lay out the sliced lemons. Spread out the chopped parsley and dill. Sprinkle the minced garlic over the herbs and lemon slices. Pour and arrange the shrimp onto the prepared tray, arranging for them to be as flat as possible. Squeeze the remaining ½ lemon over the shrimp, then sprinkle with garlic powder and the Italian seasonings. Top with the thyme.

Place tray back into the oven and cook for 22 minutes. Remove and serve immediately, or you can chill them and serve them cold or over a salad.

If you shrimp are fresh or thawed, not frozen, cook them for 15-17 minutes.

Additional Options:

Firecracker Shrimp: Substitute given herbs for Cilantro and Parsley, substitute Italian seasoning for salt, pepper, cayenne pepper powder, onion powder and garlic powder. Squeeze fresh lime juice over the top of the shrimp in addition to the lemon. Bake per the given.

Paprika Onion Garlic Butter Shrimp: Melt butter, layer lemons and thinly sliced onions and minced garlic. Arrange shrimp per the given. Mix together ½ C. of melted butter, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley and paprika. Pour over the shrimp. Bake per the given.

Holiday Hodge Podge: Ham Bone Stone Soup

I’ve been wanting to cook with the post holiday ham bone for quite some time. I have brought bones home. I have put bones in the fridge, all for naught, as they regularly end up disappointingly in the garbage weeks later.

Not this year. This year I was bound and determined to make The Soup. The Ham Bone Holiday Hodge Podge Soup, and so I committed, and I achieved. I was inspired by this particular recipe http://www.thekitchn.com/ham-bone-greens-159337 though I modified it for what I had and what I wanted to do. Don’t skip the cabbage, the splash of vinegar or the hot sauce, those things really add some delightful details to your bowl.

I am really happy with how this turned out. No doubt there will be a little refinement here and there, but this is a new, hearty, holiday winter staple. I decided to call it Stone Soup because as the old story goes, you add what you have, some of this, some of that, and before you know it you have a hearty, steaming pot of deliciousness . . . or at least something like that.

Happy Cooking!

Holiday Ham Bone Stone Soup

Into the Pot . . .

Ham Bone

Ham chunks trimmed and cubed

1 Bag Black Beans, soaked overnight, or Pinto beans (soaked overnight)

1 large white onion, chopped

2 large stalks of celery, chopped

1 Tbsp Minced Garlic

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 C. Chopped Carrots

1 Can Muir Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes

3 Tbsp Tamed Jalapenos

After Pressure Cooking

1 small Green Cabbage, chopped, 7-8 cups

4-5 C. Fresh Spinach

Additional Personal Seasonings

Louisiana Hot Sauce

Red Wine Vinegar

Salt & Pepper

Soak your beans overnight . . . no really . . . do.

In a pressure cooker combine the following: all ingredients except for spinach, cabbage, hot sauce, vinegar, salt and pepper. Add water to just cover the ham bone, do not overfill the pressure cooker. Pressure cook according to directions for the type of bean you are cooking. The ham bone has already been cooked so you do not need to process for raw meat. Once my cooker came to a rollicking boil with a steady head of steam, I set the timer for 10 minutes. Let the pressure cool down on its own or for at least 20-30 minutes before you quick cool it.

Once the cooker is able to be opened, please follow your manufacturer’s instructions for this, put the pot back on medium heat. Bring to a simmer. If you want to thicken your soup a bit, mash some of the beans along the side. Add green cabbage, stirring in, and cook for an additional 20 minutes. Taste the broth to see if it needs additional salt, add the salt and pepper to taste at this point.  You can continue to cook the soup longer if your cabbage is not as tender as you would like it. When your soup is at the finishing point, meaning the cabbage has the texture you want and you are ready to serve, add in the fresh spinach, stirring it in, cooking for 3-5 minutes. Serve the soup.

Each individual can add a splash of vinegar and Louisiana Hot Sauce as their palate may call for it.

Delicious on the first day. Fabulous every day after that.

Serve with crusty bread and butter and a salad if you must.

One Pot: Capellini with Tomatos, Garlic and Clams

Over the Thanksgiving weekend I kept hearing people raving about the "Post Thanksgiving One-Pot Meal." I wondered what all the hype was about, so I Googled which landed me in Martha Stewart-land to which I thought "That figures. Well, let's see it then."

Now don't get me wrong, I do love me some Martha every now and then and use to be an avid follower and fan prior to the whole prison thing  . . .  and even after the whole prison thing, I mean, she knows how to lay out a table and a bazillion things that can be done with gourds, glitter and a glue gun.

Anyway, my interest was piqued, and though I hadn't planned on it, towards the end of the weekend I found myself experimenting with her basic recipe, and like you all know I do, I tampered with it to make my own.

Here's the Martha video, seriously, super simple. http://www.marthastewart.com/978784/one-pan-pasta#One-Pot%20Meals|/275672/one-dish-dinners/@center/854190/comfort-food-recipes|978784

 And my recipe based on her instructions:

• 12 ounces capellini
• 12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large 
• 1 6.5 oz. can of chopped clams, drained
• 1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce
• 3 C. raw spinach, washed and dried 
• 1 onion, thinly sliced 
• 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes 
• 1 Tbsp. dried chives
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and black cracked pepper, to taste
• 1 C. White Cooking Wine 
• 4 1/2 cups water
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving 

In a deep skillet, add pasta, chopped tomatoes, onion, garlic, red-pepper flakes, olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add clams and tomato sauce, bringing back up to a low boil. Turn heat down to medium/medium high and continue to boil mixture, stirring and turning pasta frequently with tongs. 

Capellini cooks in roughly 5-6 minutes so at the 5 minute mark, add in the spinach, chives and white cooking wine, stirring gently into the mixture. Dish is done around the 6 minute mark or whenever your preferred pasta consistency has been achieved.

Plate and top with Parmesan. Serve with crusty bread with butter and a simple salad, or not, just as a delicious one bowl dinner.

The Terrific Tomato Dinner: Cream of Tomato Soup, Cucumber & Tomato Salad, and Grilled Cheddar Cheese Sandwich with Tomatoes

I must have been in a tomato mood the other night because tomatoes ended up in everything I made and that doesn't include the snitching of a fresh piece of tomato here and there with a little salt and sprinkling of some red wine vinegar. I love that. It's making my mouth water as we speak!

Let's start out with soup!

Cream of Tomato Soup

The base of this soup, the bones of the soup, is called Sherried Tomato Soup and is taken from the Pioneer Woman http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/02/sherried_tomato_soup/.  It is my go-to creamy Tomato Soup base recipe. I change it according to what I have on hand. The recipe below has my variations incorporated into it.

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 Whole Medium Onion, Diced
1 46 oz. Bottle of Tomato Juice (T: I used Campbell's Brand)
1 28 oz. Can Crushed Tomatoes
2 Tbsp. Chicken Base (T: I used Better Than Bouillon mixed with some hot water and then poured in to the soup)
2 Tbsp. Sugar.
1 Pinch Salt
Black Pepper to Taste (T: I used 1/2 Tbsp.)
1 C. White Cooking Wine (BTW you can find this in the oil and vinegar aisle at your grocery store. It is salty, so do not add additional salt until you have combined and tasted your soup.)
1 C. Heavy Cream
2 Tbsp. dried Chives
1 Tbsp. dried Basil

Additions:
Garnish with fresh Parmesan and croutons.

In a soup/stock pot, Sauté diced onions in butter until translucent. Then add crushed tomatoes, tomato juice, chicken base, sugar, pepper and stir. Bring to a near boil, then turn to a low simmer. Add in the dried chives and basil. Add in cooking wine, let simmer briefly, 1-2 minutes. Turn off the heat and add cream, stirring until thoroughly blended. Taste, add additional salt if needed.

Garnish with a hearty handful of the cheese and croutons if desired and serve with crusty bread and butter.

Beginning to end I cranked this out in 20 minutes. It was excellent hot and fresh...and no doubt will be even more so tomorrow.


Cucumber & Tomato Salad with Simple Dressing

1 lg. Cucumber
2 medium sized Roma Tomatoes
Red Wine Vinegar
Olive Oil
Salt

Peel the cucumber, slicing it lengthwise down the middle and then width wise in half circles. Wash the tomatoes and slice them in the same fashion as the cucumber. Place them in a dish. Be generous with your salt but not ridiculous, meaning you want to taste some salt but not feel like you need a pitcher of water next to you while you eat. A lot of people fear the salt and because of it they really miss out on some beautiful enhancing of flavors . . . don't miss out. Next drizzle your salad with Olive Oil, probably about 3-4 Tbsp. Next splash liberally, amply, delightfully, tartly, with Red Wine Vinegar. You want to taste the vinegar. Probably about 3 Tbsp. Toss your salad. Taste it. Is it salty enough? Tart enough? Great! Success!

Grilled Cheddar Cheese Sandwich with Sliced Tomatoes

2 pieces of Sliced White Bread (or whatever else you might love) = 1 Sandwich
Sliced Cheddar Cheese, enough to fully cover one piece of bread, likely 2-3 pieces, plus other pieces cut to fit the remaining open spots
Sliced Roma Tomatoes
Butter

On medium heat, heat your frying pan. Butter one side of each piece of bread. Place the bottom piece of the sandwich, butter-side down into the pan. Next add your cheddar cheese so that you do not have empty spots on your bread, then add the slices of tomato, I like to leave space for the cheese to melt between the pieces, then add your top piece of bread, butter side out.

Keep an eye on your sandwich, it takes a while to toast and heat, but it will burn in a snap if you're not careful. With a spatula, flip your sandwich over. If your bread is toasting too quickly and your cheese is not melting quickly enough, turn your heat down just a bit. You want the bread to be a deep gold, toasty - to - dark caramel brown color depending on your preference.

Once your bread is toasted enough and your cheese has completely melted, remove the pan from the heat, serve your sandwich slicing diagonally into triangles.

Warning: your tomatoes on your sandwich will be hot--give it a minute or three to cool down or you will burn your mouth, I did it just the other day . . . again . . . because I didn't want to wait, but you should wait. Your mouth will be happier.

Overall this is a super easy dinner that is fast and homemade. What's not to love about Soup, Salad, Sandwich?

Happy Eating!

Japanese Delight: Miso Soup

Japanese delight aka Miso Soup. One of my favorite soups of all time. 

Served piping hot with...floaties...and sinkies. Seaweed, green onions, tofu, maybe a little thinly sliced mushroom...it's delicious, simple, comfort food. 

In my research of the how-to's of making Miso Soup I came across an article that indicated that Miso Soup is to the Japanese what Chicken Noodle Soup is to Americans, a big, fat bowl of comfort and everybody's mom makes it a little differently. 

I was ecstatic and trepidatious to give it a shot. In my readings I found out that you needed to first make the Dashi, and that you needed seaweed and Bonito Fish Flakes. Dashi is the preliminary broth, it is the simplest of things to make but required two things that were not in my cupboards: fish flakes and seaweed. The hunt was on.

As most of you may know, Amazon.com has almost anything you could possibly want to buy, so they were my first stop, one stop, shop for the Bonito flakes. As to the seaweed, at the time, I didn't realize I needed the thicker stuff, and I had just bought a huge package of the Kirkland Roasted Seasoned packs of snacking seaweed, so I shredded it up by hand and tossed it in with the Bonito Flakes to make the Dashi. I'm still planning on using the proper seaweed, Kobuku, but this worked beautifully well as a substitute. 

The recipe below does not use the homemade, from scratchy-scratch Dashi. I used fish sauce and Tamari to make the broth, but I am including the Dashi recipe as well so you can decide how you want to roll it out. Both versions are delicious.

 My basic ingredients for Miso Soup, plus a few extras just for info.

 My Bonito Flakes

Miso Soup: Simplified: Tracy Davidson

8 C. Water (in lieu of making your own Dashi, which is not complex but does take a few minutes to do, I will include the recipe for Dashi below)

4 Tbsp. Three Crabs Viet Huon Fish Sauce

2 Tbsp. Tamari, Gluten Free Soy Sauce

1 Tbsp. Minced Garlic (I use the large Costco bottle of this stuff and just scoop it out)

1 Bunch Green Onions finely chopped

2 Tbsp. thinly sliced and chopped Red Onion

1/3 C. Fresh Mushrooms, thinly sliced: I used baby Portabellos because it’s what I had on hand.

2 heaping Tbsp. Cold Mountain Light Yellow Miso (Japanese Style Shiro Miso)

½ Container of Extra Firm Tofu, drained and cubed

Bring water, fish sauce, and soy sauce to a low boil, add in garlic, 2/3 of the green onions, red onions and mushrooms. Let simmer 15 minutes. Lower the heat so it is under a simmer but still piping hot. Stir in Miso until fully dissolved. Do not boil the Miso as it has healthy bacteria in it that are good for the belly. If you boil it, you will kill these and lose the benefits. Once the miso is completely dissolved, add in the tofu and the remainder of the green onions. Keep it on low heat until ready to serve.

This soup is rich in Umami or “delicousness”…this is a really great thing. Now go get some. 

http://somethingnewfordinner.com/culinary-concepts/culinary-concepts-umami/ 

Here is a partial list of umami-rich foods:

Anchovies, asparagus, balsamic vinegar, carrots, catsup, celery, aged cheese (particularly Parmesan, Emmental and blue cheeses), chicken, corn, dried beans, edamame, eggs, garlic,  green tea, hoisin, kimchee, konbo, marmite, meat, miso, onions, potatoes, prosciutto and other dry-cured meats, red peppers, red wine, salmon, sardines, shellfish, sauerkraut  soy sauce, spinach, sweet potatoes, Thai fish sauce, tofu, tomatoes (particularly the seeds), walnuts and Worcestershire sauce.

Dashi:  I've included two great links to how-to's and background information. If you really want to master the Dashi, these will be helpful.

• http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/10/how-to-make-dashi-asian-miso-soup-bonito-flakes-kelp-kombu.html
• http://www.lafujimama.com/2010/01/how-to-make-dashi/

The Dashi is really simple, and really easy to make. It requires three ingredients: Bonito Flakes, Water & Kombu Seaweed. In my one instance of making Dashi from scratch I didn't have Kombu so I used what I had, this is the recipe I am including below. Dashi made with Kombu Seaweed is next on my list.

8 C. Water
2 C. Dried Bonito Flakes
3-4 Sheets of Kirkland Roasted Seasoned Seaweed, crushed directly into the water...this will make your hands messy so prepare your mind.

Bring water to a boil, then add in all ingredients and turn down to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes. Using a strainer, filter out the bonito and seaweed. What you have left is your Dashi, proceed to make your Miso soup.

Cold Udon Noodles With Spicy Tamari Garlic Chili Sauce

I love Japanese food. I love Filipino food. I love Thai food. I love Chinese food. I love...I love Asian food in general. I have recently acquired several Japanese cookbooks. They are beautiful and full of every kind of savory, strange, beautiful food you can imagine, delicious. Makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

In particular, I have been enjoying the study of NOODLES. I love a good bowl of noodles. Once passing through Hong Kong on a business trip, with time to kill, I thought "I can't come to Hong Kong, airport-only or not, and not eat noodles! I mean this is CHINA. Noodle Central." So I found myself a nice lounge, ordered a delicious bowl of noodles drenched in hot, savory, vegetable-laden broth and I have been soup-sold ever since.

Anyway, while I was making Miso Soup and salad I decided that some noodles would be just about perfect with it, plus I had a large, brand new package of uncooked Udon noodles that I'd been wanting to try. With Udon noodles you can cook them up and eat them hot or cold so the noodle world then mostly becomes your oyster.

The following is easy, simple and tasty. You can modify it according to taste, and you can pretty much add anything you want to it.

Two servings of uncooked Udon Noodles
Tamari Soy Sauce
1-3 Tbsp. Chili Paste: this is completely according to taste and your spice tolerance
1- 2 Tbsp. Sesame Seeds
8 C. Water

Optional: sliced green onions, limes, finely minced peanuts...when is lunch?

Bring your water to a boil, add in the noodles, stirring periodically. Make sure you use a decent sized pan otherwise your starchy noodle water will boil over, not so awesome. Cook your noodles as directed on your package. In my case this was for 10 minutes. Drain in a strainer and rinse thoroughly with cold water, add into a serving bowl.

Add enough soy sauce to cover all of the noodles without making it a soup, in my case I probably used 2-3 Tbsp of Tamari Soy. 1-2 Tbsp of the Garlic Chili paste (you could also use Sriracha sauce instead if you like that as well), and 1-2 Tbsp of sesame seeds. Toss so that all of the noodles are coated and the chili sauce and sesame seeds are well distributed. Eat it up.

That easy. That delicious. Happy Eating!

Addendum:
O.k. I made this for a family party on Sunday, quickly, here is what I did differently:
4 servings of the raw Udon noodles cooked according to the package
1/2 Red Onion sliced as thin as you can get it and then cut in half

Sauce: Mix together
3/4 C. Tamari Soy Sauce
1.5 Tbsp. Minced Garlic
2 Tbsp. Chives
2 tsp. Crushed Ginger
2 tsp. Sambal Olek Chili Paste

Pour over the cooked, drained, cooled noodles, add onions, add 1.5-2 Tbsp. of Sesame Seeds, toss, serve immediately, or cover, chill and serve. If you delay in serving, give it a stir right before to bring the sauce that will have settled at the bottom to the top.

Now go eat some noodles!

New Adventures: Christmas Cookbooks Plus One

I am a reader of cookbooks.

I am a lover of words.

I am a purveyor and a taker of food photographs.

I am an uber lover of cookbooks, with good words, and lots of photos. If you don't have photos with your recipes I usually find it disappointing. I want to know what things are suppose to look like when they are done. There is an aesthetic culinary appeal to it all. My imagination is sparked by ingredients and the photos just put the "happy" into the whole thing for me, plus it helps me moderate and plate my own food.

I have too many cookbooks. What is "too many?" Almost 200. There is no stop in sight, I'm going with it, it's what I do, it's what I love.

I have been collecting them for close to two decades. Some have been hand me downs from family, some found in second-hand bookstores, some of them sweet discoveries in my browsing online, and a handful of total duds which I can't quite part with because they are so awful. Amazon.com should love me for all of the business I have given them through the years. I keep waiting for them to make me the world-wide-prize-winner-of-awesomeness customer extraordinaire, and they reward me by sending me everything on my wishlist. I continue to wait. I think they might have a coronary if I won something like that, boxes would be coming to our house for days and days.

But I digress, as I periodically do.

Anyway.

In the above photo you will see several lovely, colorful covers of cookbooks that I received for Christmas . . . and as very-soon-after post Christmas gifts from my beloved, plus one that was a rediscovery from the bookshelf.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks A Year of Holidays by Ree Drummond
I love the Pioneer Woman. I have both of her other cookbooks and have cooked recipes out of both of them. I love, love, love the step by step processes that she gives, and the photographs. Fantastic photographs every step of the way, making the cooking easy. I have just begun to browse this particular tome and am loving it so far.

Ivan Ramen Love, Obsession, and Recipes From Tokyo's Most Unlikely Noodle Joint by Ivan Orkin
I have been on a quest for a recipe and ingredients to make homemade Miso Soup. I love Miso Soup. I think the bowls they use in Japanese restaurants are cute and way, way too small for this simple, flavorful, comforting soup. Because it seems so simple, and because I have read that miso soup is to the Japanese what chicken noodle soup is to Americans, I know that it can't be overly complex. People have their variations but every mama makes her own and I want to be one of those mamas.

In my quest for Miso Soup, I came across this book on noodles. I love noodles.

I once had to catch a connecting flight through Hong Kong, and even though I would not be leaving the airport, I was on Chinese soil, and I was going to be there long enough to relax. I thought "How can I come to China, be in Hong Kong, and not eat noodles??" So I ate a delicious bowl of airport business class lounge noodles. I was tired, exhausted really, the soup was hot, and everything was piping-burn-your-mouth-delightful. The chef smiled at me as he handed me my bowl and I promptly took my chopsticks, found myself a quiet corner table and slurped to my hearts content. By the way, slurping, it's what you do. It's how it should be done. You are suppose to eat this stuff scaldingly hot, and the slurping helps as it goes in. Don't argue about it, just slurp it up.

Ivan Orkin is a Jewish kid from New York. He goes to Japan, he lives there, he works there, he falls in love there, he eats noodles and noodles and noodles. He comes to the U.S. suffers tremendous tragedy, picks himself back up, and without ruining the story with additional details, ends up back in Japan and opens a noodle shop and is the Gaijin wonder boy of noodles.

This book is a fascinating read, inspiring in one man's pursuit of a passion, a little rough here and there with the language but not overly obnoxious, and the story of victory of man over noodle, and the recipes that come with it are worth it. I read a bunch of it tonight after work and got all fired up about it and can't wait to try it out.

Washoku Recipes From the Japanese Home Kitchen by Elizabeth Andoh
I love Japanese food. Seconds ago you read about my obsession with Miso Soup. It bleeds over into other things as well. This is simple, homemade, down home Japanese food. This volume is nicely done, beautiful photographs, though not enough for my taste and also worth my time.

I'm looking to simplify the foods we eat, making them more natural and less processed, but without losing elegance, style and flavor. I'm embarking on some new recipes, flavors, songs that I want to add to my existing repertoire of Brazilian, American, Italian, Mexican and French culinary skills. Japanese food should help to round me out.

Japanese Hot Pots Comforting One-Pot Meals by Tadashi Ono & Harris Salat
We work. We spend a lot of time away from home because of said work. By the time I get home, get changed, relax for a minute or two, there is no time left for meatloaf and mashed potatoes. There is no time left for lasagna or chicken enchiladas and rice and beans. Besides, it's usually too late to start that kind of endeavor. Those kinds of meals are being gently relegated to days off, vacations and weekends. But I don't want to be a house of the lonely sandwich, or the can of soup, or the same ole same ole salad, and so I picked up Japanese Hot Pots.

There are some crazy ingredients in here . . . but there is also delightful broth, vegetables, dumplings and savory meats. I'm down with it. We'll see how it goes.

and

The Big Book of Juices and Smoothies 365 Natural Blends for Health and Vitality Every Day by Natalie Savona
This is the one book that is not new, but it is a new adventure. I bought it a couple-few years back when the whole juice/smoothie thing started trending. Cracked it open. Put it on the shelf and that was it.

I recently inherited my grandmother's Vitamix 3600. This thing is a beast, but it is also a well-tended beauty. I saw the shiny new red ones at Costco for $400-ish dollars, and it would look fabulous in red, in my kitchen, but, the times being what they are I figured I would crack the 1982 version out that I got for free and see if it is still in good working order. So, I yanked the juicing smoothie book out, blew the dust off, and bought a bunch of spinach, some kefir, carrots, meyer lemons and I'm getting ready for takeoff. I'm a little nervous about it. That's a lot of healthy vitamins in one place. I hope my body doesn't recoil in shock.

So there you have it. This is what is happening, right here, right now, in the kitchen of The Tempting Table. No doubt I will periodically regale you with tales of tragedy and success periodically. I'm excited about it and I think it will be fun. As is, my Bonito flakes arrived and I bought new tofu to begin my Miso Soup adventures. I'll let you know how it goes.

Happy cooking kids!

Happy New Year! Roast Beef Au Jus With Swiss Cheese

Well, I've been away for awhile. A lot of changes in my life, good stuff, but they have kept me busy. I still love cooking and photography, I still love storytelling, so it's time to get back to all of it. What will you get here? Sometimes just recipes and the how to of it all, sometimes quips, sometimes memories, sometimes stories, sometimes the unexpected. It's how I roll.

So to kick off the new year we are going with an easy family favorite: Roast Beef Au Jus

• 1 lb. of Boar's Head London Broil, sliced as thin as you can get it
• 2-4 Crusty Rolls, Sub style
• 1 lb. Lacey Swiss Cheese (I used two slice per sandwich, you can definitely use more. I bought a pound, but then I'm making additional sandwiches for lunches this week.)
• Sea Salt
• Black Cracked Pepper
• Mayonnaise
• Extra Hot Horseradish, or just regular
• Sambal Olek: ground fresh chili paste
• 1-2 Packets Johnny's French Dip Au Jus, prepared according to directions (With just two of us, I usually make one packet, which provides for two sandwiches nicely. If you are preparing four sandwiches I would definitely make two packets.)

 Prepare the packet according to directions. Might I add here that there is a concentrate liquid version of this stuff that I am interested in trying, it sounds tasty, so that's on my least and I can't speak to it just yet.

Slice your rolls open, I leave a very small hinge to hold it together but otherwise cut them all the way through. Lightly toast these rolls under the broiler. Keep an eye on it, they will burn easily and quickly if you leave them in too long. Pull them out.

On one side of the toasted bread spread your desired amount of mayonnaise. On the other side spread your horseradish or the Sambal Olek. On the mayonnaise half generously layer your roast beef, add salt and pepper to taste if needed. On the other half lay your cheese across both sides so the cheese melts on the toast and on the roast beef when you put it under the broiler.

Place sandwiches back under the broiler until cheese is melted. In the interim ladle the hot au just into dipping dishes (you can use dessert bowls, regular bowls, square bowls, whatever it is that you have that is wide enough to accommodate the sandwiches.)

Serve your sandwiches while still hot. 

Serve with pickles, peppers, chips, avocado slices, or whatever else your family might like with this kind of a sandwich. Have plenty of napkins and dip away. Happy eating!