This is for all you guys who have finally moved out of your mama’s house and ventured into the real and grown up world. This is an exciting time for you; I mean you finally have a place in which to entertain a lady without your mom interrupting! Now guys remember, we ladies require a little wooing and one sure way to impress us is to cook for us. Actually almost any guy can benefit from these recipes; well I guess not Tyler Florence. (Oh I would love it if he cooked for me).
Now during my research into the diets of single guys I discovered that a good majority of you are enamored with frozen food. Now don’t get me wrong I also use frozen foods, of course they are in the form of vegetables, not wings; but it would be a cold day in Miami before I eat a frozen dinner or pizza. I did however have the opportunity to choke down the worst tacos in the history of tacos; and thanks to that dude I will never be able to eat them again. (Hey what can I say; I was bored when I said yes. God I’ll never make that mistake again, standards are there for a reason!). But have faith; there is no reason you have to suffer and be as terrible a cook as Mr. Taco; all you have to do is put a little effort and care into your food and voilá your lady is impressed.
So what I want to do for you is take some of your staple meals and make them date-friendly. My friend SS recently loaned me his copy of A Man, A Can, and A Plan, a cookbook for guys and a very informative research tool for me. Cooking is not hard and doesn’t need to be time consuming; if women can do it, men can do it at least half as well. Well maybe I’m being optimistic, but I like to give everyone at least one chance to prove me wrong.
Let’s start with a guy favorite, pizza. First you need to get your hands on one of those pre-made pizza crusts like Boboli. This can be topped any way you want, but I am going to do a Hawaiian version. Top the pizza crust with a little store bought pizza sauce, some diced deli ham, chopped up precooked bacon, half a can of crushed pineapple and a nice thick layer of shredded Mozzarella cheese. Bake this at 350 degrees for ten to fifteen minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly then top it with some diced green onion. Serve this to your lady friend with a side salad; and make sure she knows that the pizza is homemade and not delivery. Actually wait until she gets to your place before you start making it so that she can observe your mad cooking skills.
Now, in the grocery store they sell these great already cooked rotisserie chickens that you can use for two meals; you can eat half the chicken one night and then turn the rest into a date-worthy Chicken Ala King. Start by tearing up the meat that was left on the chicken into small bite-size pieces without the skin. (I am assuming that you chowed on all the skin the night before when no one was watching you shovel it in like a wild animal.) Begin this dish by baking some of those pop-can refrigerator biscuits according to the package’s directions. Next pour one regular sized can of condensed cream of whatever you grab off the shelf into a pot with a half-cup of milk and a couple shakes of garlic powder. Let this come to a boil and cook for about ten minutes before you stir in an eight-ounce tub of chive cream cheese, cook this until melted. Finally add the torn chicken, some frozen vegetables and about a teaspoon of dried thyme. Let this heat through and serve it over the biscuits. You can score extra brownie points if you serve an extra side of vegetables, and sorry dudes corn is not a viable option.
Finally here is a jazzed up version of another guy favorite, steak. This recipe may sound really weird, but trust me it is fantabulous, Coffee & Chipolte Steak. Start by combining two tablespoons each of regular coffee grounds, light brown sugar and molasses, one tablespoon of tomato sauce mixed with one teaspoon of adobo seasoning, a few dashes of Chipolte hot sauce, one teaspoon each of cumin, garlic salt, and paprika. You can find adobo seasoning in the Spanish section of the grocery store. Slather this mixture onto both sides of the thin cut steaks and then panfry them to your desired doneness. I do not suggest using the grill; it’s way too saucy. Now stop your whining I know that the grill is like an appendage for you but it just won’t work for this dish. I would suggest serving this with something simple like rice and a salad. Just so you know this will make a mess in your pan so you might have to soak it in cold water for a few days. (Not that you don’t already do this).
Ok so there you have it; I have given you three meals that you can be proud to serve any dinner guest, whether it is your girlfriend or momma. And most women find it a turn on when their man cooks for them, take that little tidbit and run with it guys because I won’t give you too many incites into our psyche. Just stay away from the nasty taco, because no one finds that sexy.
Okay so now I’m going to give you guys a few tips that you can use in your everyday cooking.
Sometimes you run across a recipe that you really want to try, but it serves four or more people and what’s a guy to do. Well you could loosen that belt, pull the TV tray closer and just power through it or you could just cut the recipe in half.
If you really insist on making the whole recipe then by all means do it because you can always freeze some of the dish. I have a whole cabinet full of Glad Ware that I can fill and put in the freezer. I do this a lot, see not only can you make the recipe as it was written, but also you also have dinner all ready to be mircowaved after a long day. Some things that freeze well are meatloaf, shepherd’s pie and spaghetti sauce.
Also at the grocery store there are individually wrapped fresh chicken breast. I usually have these in the freezer because they defrost quickly for a super fast meal. Honestly the individually wrapped breasts are a little more expensive but in my opinion worth it, so stop being so cheep! But if penny pinching is your thing then buy the regular pack of chicken and bag them up yourself. Just remember cheapmiser, you have to buy the freezer bags.
Okay, I think that I have given you enough tips; I can’t reveal all my secrets! So go forth, cook, be merry and please, please stay out of the freezer section of the grocery store.
“Homemade” Hawaiian Pizza
1 Boboli Pizza Crust
½ Cup Pizza Sauce
½ Cup Deli Ham, diced
½ Cup Bacon, cooked and diced
½ Can Crushed Pineapple, drained
1 8oz Pkg. Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
4 Stalks Scallions, diced
Spread the pizza sauce onto the precooked pizza crust in an even layer. Top with the ham, bacon, pineapple and cheese, in that order. Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes. Top cooked pizza with the scallions.
Chicken A’la King
1 Can Refrigerator Biscuits
1 Can Condensed Cream of Whatever Soup
½ Cup Milk
½ Tsp. Garlic Powder
1 8oz. Tub Chive Cream Cheese
1 ½ Cups Cooked Chicken, Diced
1 Cup Frozen Mixed Vegetables
1 Tsp. Dried Thyme
Bake the biscuits according to the package directions. Mix the soup garlic powder and milk in a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling add the cream cheese and stir until it has melted completely. Stir in the chicken, vegetables and thyme. Serve over the biscuits.
Coffee & Chipolte Steak
2 Small Rib eye Steaks, thin cut
2 Tblsp. Coffee grounds
2 Tblsp. Light Brown Sugar
2 Tblsp. Molasses
1 Tblsp. Tomato Sauce
1 Tsp. Adobo Seasoning
1 Tsp. Chipolte Hot Sauce
1 Tsp. Cumin
1 Tsp. Garlic Salt
1 Tsp. Paprika
Combine all of the ingredients except for the steaks in a bowl. Slather the sauce onto both sides of the steaks and panfry over high heat until the desired doneness.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Restaurant Favorites
During these unstable economic times many people are tightening their belts and eliminating luxuries and extras from their lives; and one of the cut backs involves retail outlets and restaurants. Personally I dine out significantly less, especially at run of the mill restaurants. Seriously why should I pay ten to twenty dollars plus tax and tip for a meal I can make at home for less money and with better ingredients. Plus there are some restaurants out there that have kitchens staffed with “cooks” that have absolutely no culinary training. This is too bad for their patrons who are the ones to suffer from dishes prepared in unimaginative and inconsistent ways. I feel that to have a truly great kitchen you have to staff it with people who love experimenting with food. That is what makes their meals so fabulous; they truly care about the food they send out to each patron.
But really, why should you give up all of your favorite restaurant fare, I didn’t. What I have been doing instead is to make my restaurant favorites at home; and trust me you can do a better job than most of the kitchen staff out there. Anyone can follow a recipe but when you are cooking for yourself and loved ones you tend to put a bit more effort into the final product. Give these recipes a try, none of them are hard and you might surprise yourself.
I want to start off with something restaurants use mostly as a special, Prime Rib. First of all a prime rib is nothing more than a big ribeye (club) steak that is baked. And honestly it is cheaper for you to buy a prime rib instead of steaks for however many you need to serve. Now if you order this out at a restaurant nine times out of ten it is seasoned with salt and pepper and served with a simple Au Jus. You can do so much better than that! Begin by purchasing your meat and remember that choice is better than select (which a lot of restaurants use), and just so you know, a three to four pound prime rib will serve six to eight people; I did it and had leftovers. I know it doesn’t sound like much but I am assuming you are serving sides with the meat. Let the meat rest at room temperature because cold meat will seize up and turn out tough. Next pull out or borrow a food processor and puree five garlic cloves, a half-cup each of prepared horseradish, salt and olive oil 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and a fourth of a cup of freshly ground black pepper. Take this paste and schemer it all over your meat, and then bake it at 350 degrees for and hour and a half to two hours. Once again let the meat sit for a few minutes so that the juices can redistribute. Both my friend TW and I made this for Christmas and our families thought that we were rockstars. Warning: if you are watching your sodium cut back on the salt because the crust is kind of salty, but seriously yummy.
If you don’t groove on horseradish substitute a half-cup of Dijon mustard for it. Or if that still isn’t your thing season the meat with Montreal Steak Seasoning and then cut small pockets in the uncooked meat and fill them with smashed garlic cloves. But the lesson I am trying to get by you is that Prime Rib should not be reserved for special occasions only, it really isn’t that expensive and super simple to make at home.
Another restaurant favorite is Shrimp Scampi, which is insanely easy to make. Start by melting two tablespoons of butter in a skillet, add two minced cloves of garlic and sauté for a minute. Next add about a fourth of a cup of either vermouth or white wine, and a tablespoon or so of lemon juice. Once this is warmed through add one and a half pounds of uncooked, peeled, deveined shrimp and cook just until the shrimp turns pink and begins to curl up. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in a fourth of a teaspoon of lemon zest. I serve this over pasta, traditionally linguini is used but I actually prefer short pastas like penne. If you want to up the wow factor on this dish and make it “Bistro-Style” just add a handful of halved grape tomatoes and a teaspoon of capes. This is a meal that I make on a regular basis because it is quick, easy and I always have the ingredients on hand.
A staple menu item at any decent Italian restaurant is Chicken Piccata; and if you can make the Shrimp Scampi then you can make this. I found a recipe that amps up the flavor of this dish by adding Parmesan cheese. Before I give you the recipe I want to mention that a few years ago I bought a wedge of real Parmesan cheese and after trying it decided to never go back to the junk in the cardboard shaker. It costs more but is so worth it, and you can use less cheese because the flavor is so intense. Start by dipping four boneless, skinless pounded out chicken breasts in first flour, then two scrambled egg whites, and then into freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Cook them in olive oil over medium heat until a deep golden color, about ten minutes. In the same pan you cooked the chicken in add two cloves of minced garlic and a quarter cup of capers. If you don’t have nonpareilles capers you should give them a rough chop because the larger ones can be a bit much if left whole. Cook this for about two minutes and add half a cup of white wine and bring to a simmer. Next stir in half a cup of chicken broth, two tablespoons of butter, half a box of drained frozen spinach and the juice of one lemon. Heat this through and then serve over the chicken breasts and your favorite cut of pasta.
Finally I want to share a steakhouse specialty, steak with herbed butter. The addition of an herbed butter, or even bleu cheese, gives the beef a velvety finish and extra flavor. To make the herbed butter take four tablespoons of unsalted softened butter, one and a half tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions, one tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, one tablespoon of lemon juice and salt and pepper. It doesn’t matter what kind of steak you cook, just spread the butter onto the cooked meat and let it melt. Also a traditional steakhouse dish is Creamed Spinach. I actually love spinach and this dish is something that I make as a treat. Make a roux from three tablespoons of butter and a quarter cup of flour, and cook this for a minute or two before you add two and a half cups of milk, two teaspoons of salt and a half-teaspoon of nutmeg. Bring this to a boil, whisking until it thickens and then remove from the heat. In a deep skillet cook two pounds of fresh chopped spinach with a pinch of salt until wilted. Mix the thickened sauce into the spinach and enjoy.
Basically I am trying to get you to believe in yourself as a cook, anyone can cook, all you need to do is read the recipe and put in some effort. Restaurant owners want you to think that you can’t do what they do in the kitchen, bull, it is not hard and as I said most of the time the people in restaurant kitchens are no more qualified than you to do their job. So pick your favorite restaurant dish, find a recipe and make it. I’m sure that you will surprise yourself and find that you can do it! And why don’t I put my money where my mouth is? Because I am really not interested in getting out of my current position and into the “service industry”, besides working in a commercial kitchen makes you smell terrible and sweat, and there is nothing worse than smelling like a sweaty French fry. No thank you I will stick to my own kitchen cooking for family and friends. The most important ingredient in any meal is love, which I try to put into every meal that comes out of my kitchen. (Hey at least I have never given anyone food poisoning, that’s something to be proud of).
If I have still not convinced you to try your hand at making your own restaurant favorites then let me give you a few ideas for your dining pleasures. During my concierge days with Cranwell Resort I had the opportunity to dine in a number of area restaurants and I still love trying new places with my friends, these are the top picks.
Casual Dining
The Westwood in Westfield. We patronize this restaurant quite often both for dinner and entertainment. The menu has a little something for everyone and is prepared consistently well. It is also a great place to drop in on for a drink and to listen to local musicians. This place has the biggest bar I have seen in the area, a great atmosphere and is patronized by a nice professional clientele.
Casual Outdoor Dining
Sloane’s Tavern at Cranwell in Lenox. Not only do you get a good low-key meal with a sophisticated twist, but also you can sit on the deck and watch both the pros and shankopotomus’s play the first three holes of the golf course. Incidentally this golf course is one of the best in the area and no they didn’t pay me to write that.
Food the Knocks Your Socks Off Dining
School Street Bistro in Westfield. This sophisticated bistro has a well-varied menu full of items that are all impeccably prepared. There really is nothing here that is not out of this world good. Listen carefully to their specials, because this is where you will find their best dishes. It is classic French cuisine with an American twist and oh so good!
Special Occasions
Onyx Fusion Grill in Springfield. This relative new comer to the area has made a huge splash. They have a fabulous menu of sushi and American cuisine fused with Asian influences. Also there is an outdoor dining area and bar to take advantage of. I suggest the Shrimp Scampi with squid ink pasta.
Extra Special Occasions
Blantyre in Lenox. This restaurant takes fine dining to a new level; your meal is spread out over a few hours and takes place in three different rooms. The food is of the highest quality and the service is impeccable. This was by far the best dining experience of my life.
Steakhouse
The Dakota in Pittsfield. This has been in my top five restaurants for years; I have never had a bad meal here. The meals are consistently great and I love the salad bar. They also do and out-of-the-world brunch on Sundays, but make sure to get a reservation because I think all of Berkshire County shows up.
Pizza
Arizona Pizza in Lenox. I know that this is a chain restaurant, but they do a really good job with their pizza and have a nicely varied menu. I prefer to have not your ordinary pizza toppings and this place fits the bill. My personal favorite is the BBQ Chicken pizza.
Fast Food
Katie’s Takeout in East Otis. Hey, what did you expect, they do pay me. Seriously Zagat’s did vote the fried chicken as the best in the Berkshires. And now that we have a real restaurant trained chef watch for our summer specials and new additions to the menu.
The Best Prime Rib
3-4 lb. Prime Rib
5 Garlic Cloves
½ Cup Prepared Horseradish or Dijon Mustard
½ Cup Kosher Salt
½ Cup Olive Oil
¼ Cup Black Pepper, freshly ground
2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary leaves
In a food processor blend all the ingredients, then spread all over the meat that has come to room temperature. Bake at 350° for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
Shrimp Scampi
2 Tblsp Butter
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
¼ Cup Vermouth or White Wine
1 Tblsp Lemon juice
1 ½ Lbs. Shrimp, uncooked & shelled
¼ Tsp. Lemon zest
Sauté the garlic in butter until soft, add the vermouth and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Add shrimp and cook until pink and curled, stir in the lemon zest. Serve over pasta.
Parmesan Chicken Piccata
4 Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 Cup Flour, seasoned with salt & pepper
2 Egg whites, scrambled
1 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
¼ Cup Capers
½ Cup White Wine
½ Cup Chicken Broth
2 Tblsp Butter
½ Box Frozen Spinach, defrosted
1 Lemon, juiced
Dredge the chicken in flour, egg whites, and Parmesan cheese. Sauté until golden brown, 5 minutes each side, remove from pan. Sauté garlic and capers in the same pan, add wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until hot. Serve with pasta.
Herbed Butter for Steak
4 Tblsp Unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ Tblsp Chives or Scallions, chopped
1 Tblsp Parsley, chopped
1 Tblsp Lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
Mix all of the ingredients until well blended and serve on top of a cooked steak.
Creamed Spinach
3 Tblsp Butter
¼ Cup Flour
2 ½ Cups Milk
2 Tsp. Salt
½ Tsp. Nutmeg
2 Cups Fresh Spinach
Melt butter in a skillet, whisk in flour to make a roux. Add milk, salt and nutmeg, bring to a boil and let thicken. In a separate pan sauté spinach until wilted and then fold the thickened sauce in to it.
But really, why should you give up all of your favorite restaurant fare, I didn’t. What I have been doing instead is to make my restaurant favorites at home; and trust me you can do a better job than most of the kitchen staff out there. Anyone can follow a recipe but when you are cooking for yourself and loved ones you tend to put a bit more effort into the final product. Give these recipes a try, none of them are hard and you might surprise yourself.
I want to start off with something restaurants use mostly as a special, Prime Rib. First of all a prime rib is nothing more than a big ribeye (club) steak that is baked. And honestly it is cheaper for you to buy a prime rib instead of steaks for however many you need to serve. Now if you order this out at a restaurant nine times out of ten it is seasoned with salt and pepper and served with a simple Au Jus. You can do so much better than that! Begin by purchasing your meat and remember that choice is better than select (which a lot of restaurants use), and just so you know, a three to four pound prime rib will serve six to eight people; I did it and had leftovers. I know it doesn’t sound like much but I am assuming you are serving sides with the meat. Let the meat rest at room temperature because cold meat will seize up and turn out tough. Next pull out or borrow a food processor and puree five garlic cloves, a half-cup each of prepared horseradish, salt and olive oil 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and a fourth of a cup of freshly ground black pepper. Take this paste and schemer it all over your meat, and then bake it at 350 degrees for and hour and a half to two hours. Once again let the meat sit for a few minutes so that the juices can redistribute. Both my friend TW and I made this for Christmas and our families thought that we were rockstars. Warning: if you are watching your sodium cut back on the salt because the crust is kind of salty, but seriously yummy.
If you don’t groove on horseradish substitute a half-cup of Dijon mustard for it. Or if that still isn’t your thing season the meat with Montreal Steak Seasoning and then cut small pockets in the uncooked meat and fill them with smashed garlic cloves. But the lesson I am trying to get by you is that Prime Rib should not be reserved for special occasions only, it really isn’t that expensive and super simple to make at home.
Another restaurant favorite is Shrimp Scampi, which is insanely easy to make. Start by melting two tablespoons of butter in a skillet, add two minced cloves of garlic and sauté for a minute. Next add about a fourth of a cup of either vermouth or white wine, and a tablespoon or so of lemon juice. Once this is warmed through add one and a half pounds of uncooked, peeled, deveined shrimp and cook just until the shrimp turns pink and begins to curl up. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in a fourth of a teaspoon of lemon zest. I serve this over pasta, traditionally linguini is used but I actually prefer short pastas like penne. If you want to up the wow factor on this dish and make it “Bistro-Style” just add a handful of halved grape tomatoes and a teaspoon of capes. This is a meal that I make on a regular basis because it is quick, easy and I always have the ingredients on hand.
A staple menu item at any decent Italian restaurant is Chicken Piccata; and if you can make the Shrimp Scampi then you can make this. I found a recipe that amps up the flavor of this dish by adding Parmesan cheese. Before I give you the recipe I want to mention that a few years ago I bought a wedge of real Parmesan cheese and after trying it decided to never go back to the junk in the cardboard shaker. It costs more but is so worth it, and you can use less cheese because the flavor is so intense. Start by dipping four boneless, skinless pounded out chicken breasts in first flour, then two scrambled egg whites, and then into freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Cook them in olive oil over medium heat until a deep golden color, about ten minutes. In the same pan you cooked the chicken in add two cloves of minced garlic and a quarter cup of capers. If you don’t have nonpareilles capers you should give them a rough chop because the larger ones can be a bit much if left whole. Cook this for about two minutes and add half a cup of white wine and bring to a simmer. Next stir in half a cup of chicken broth, two tablespoons of butter, half a box of drained frozen spinach and the juice of one lemon. Heat this through and then serve over the chicken breasts and your favorite cut of pasta.
Finally I want to share a steakhouse specialty, steak with herbed butter. The addition of an herbed butter, or even bleu cheese, gives the beef a velvety finish and extra flavor. To make the herbed butter take four tablespoons of unsalted softened butter, one and a half tablespoons chopped fresh chives or scallions, one tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, one tablespoon of lemon juice and salt and pepper. It doesn’t matter what kind of steak you cook, just spread the butter onto the cooked meat and let it melt. Also a traditional steakhouse dish is Creamed Spinach. I actually love spinach and this dish is something that I make as a treat. Make a roux from three tablespoons of butter and a quarter cup of flour, and cook this for a minute or two before you add two and a half cups of milk, two teaspoons of salt and a half-teaspoon of nutmeg. Bring this to a boil, whisking until it thickens and then remove from the heat. In a deep skillet cook two pounds of fresh chopped spinach with a pinch of salt until wilted. Mix the thickened sauce into the spinach and enjoy.
Basically I am trying to get you to believe in yourself as a cook, anyone can cook, all you need to do is read the recipe and put in some effort. Restaurant owners want you to think that you can’t do what they do in the kitchen, bull, it is not hard and as I said most of the time the people in restaurant kitchens are no more qualified than you to do their job. So pick your favorite restaurant dish, find a recipe and make it. I’m sure that you will surprise yourself and find that you can do it! And why don’t I put my money where my mouth is? Because I am really not interested in getting out of my current position and into the “service industry”, besides working in a commercial kitchen makes you smell terrible and sweat, and there is nothing worse than smelling like a sweaty French fry. No thank you I will stick to my own kitchen cooking for family and friends. The most important ingredient in any meal is love, which I try to put into every meal that comes out of my kitchen. (Hey at least I have never given anyone food poisoning, that’s something to be proud of).
If I have still not convinced you to try your hand at making your own restaurant favorites then let me give you a few ideas for your dining pleasures. During my concierge days with Cranwell Resort I had the opportunity to dine in a number of area restaurants and I still love trying new places with my friends, these are the top picks.
Casual Dining
The Westwood in Westfield. We patronize this restaurant quite often both for dinner and entertainment. The menu has a little something for everyone and is prepared consistently well. It is also a great place to drop in on for a drink and to listen to local musicians. This place has the biggest bar I have seen in the area, a great atmosphere and is patronized by a nice professional clientele.
Casual Outdoor Dining
Sloane’s Tavern at Cranwell in Lenox. Not only do you get a good low-key meal with a sophisticated twist, but also you can sit on the deck and watch both the pros and shankopotomus’s play the first three holes of the golf course. Incidentally this golf course is one of the best in the area and no they didn’t pay me to write that.
Food the Knocks Your Socks Off Dining
School Street Bistro in Westfield. This sophisticated bistro has a well-varied menu full of items that are all impeccably prepared. There really is nothing here that is not out of this world good. Listen carefully to their specials, because this is where you will find their best dishes. It is classic French cuisine with an American twist and oh so good!
Special Occasions
Onyx Fusion Grill in Springfield. This relative new comer to the area has made a huge splash. They have a fabulous menu of sushi and American cuisine fused with Asian influences. Also there is an outdoor dining area and bar to take advantage of. I suggest the Shrimp Scampi with squid ink pasta.
Extra Special Occasions
Blantyre in Lenox. This restaurant takes fine dining to a new level; your meal is spread out over a few hours and takes place in three different rooms. The food is of the highest quality and the service is impeccable. This was by far the best dining experience of my life.
Steakhouse
The Dakota in Pittsfield. This has been in my top five restaurants for years; I have never had a bad meal here. The meals are consistently great and I love the salad bar. They also do and out-of-the-world brunch on Sundays, but make sure to get a reservation because I think all of Berkshire County shows up.
Pizza
Arizona Pizza in Lenox. I know that this is a chain restaurant, but they do a really good job with their pizza and have a nicely varied menu. I prefer to have not your ordinary pizza toppings and this place fits the bill. My personal favorite is the BBQ Chicken pizza.
Fast Food
Katie’s Takeout in East Otis. Hey, what did you expect, they do pay me. Seriously Zagat’s did vote the fried chicken as the best in the Berkshires. And now that we have a real restaurant trained chef watch for our summer specials and new additions to the menu.
The Best Prime Rib
3-4 lb. Prime Rib
5 Garlic Cloves
½ Cup Prepared Horseradish or Dijon Mustard
½ Cup Kosher Salt
½ Cup Olive Oil
¼ Cup Black Pepper, freshly ground
2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary leaves
In a food processor blend all the ingredients, then spread all over the meat that has come to room temperature. Bake at 350° for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
Shrimp Scampi
2 Tblsp Butter
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
¼ Cup Vermouth or White Wine
1 Tblsp Lemon juice
1 ½ Lbs. Shrimp, uncooked & shelled
¼ Tsp. Lemon zest
Sauté the garlic in butter until soft, add the vermouth and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Add shrimp and cook until pink and curled, stir in the lemon zest. Serve over pasta.
Parmesan Chicken Piccata
4 Boneless Chicken Breasts
1 Cup Flour, seasoned with salt & pepper
2 Egg whites, scrambled
1 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
¼ Cup Capers
½ Cup White Wine
½ Cup Chicken Broth
2 Tblsp Butter
½ Box Frozen Spinach, defrosted
1 Lemon, juiced
Dredge the chicken in flour, egg whites, and Parmesan cheese. Sauté until golden brown, 5 minutes each side, remove from pan. Sauté garlic and capers in the same pan, add wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until hot. Serve with pasta.
Herbed Butter for Steak
4 Tblsp Unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ Tblsp Chives or Scallions, chopped
1 Tblsp Parsley, chopped
1 Tblsp Lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
Mix all of the ingredients until well blended and serve on top of a cooked steak.
Creamed Spinach
3 Tblsp Butter
¼ Cup Flour
2 ½ Cups Milk
2 Tsp. Salt
½ Tsp. Nutmeg
2 Cups Fresh Spinach
Melt butter in a skillet, whisk in flour to make a roux. Add milk, salt and nutmeg, bring to a boil and let thicken. In a separate pan sauté spinach until wilted and then fold the thickened sauce in to it.
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