German Currywurst

O-M-G.  I know it's been a while since I posted a recipe, but gosh, I've been busy!  Brother's wedding, school, and work!  Whoa, buddy.  But don't fret, I've been cooking.  Oh man, have I been cooking!  And although I didn't make it to this week's round of Project Food Blog, I'm still going strong!  In the 3 challenged I was in, I learned an indefinite amount about blogging, food, and made a few new friends along the way!  That's a win in my book! 

So during this little break of mine, I've decided to change up a few things on the blog, as well.  I'll still be posting recipes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays... but in addition, I'm going to blog on Tuesdays and Thursdays, as well!  It may not necessarily be a recipe, but maybe just a short post... maybe on an interesting article I've ready, some new kitchen gadget I've discovered, my book club (which I've just recently joined and majorly excited about!), and hey, maybe even some actual wedding plans or ideas!  I just figure, the more I blog, the more I learn.  And learning is half the battle, right?  So let's got on with a recipe, why don't we!

German Currywurst is a pretty popular German "fast food" type meal.  It's usually served out of food trucks (spanish and asian cuisines aren't the only ones with food trucks, ya know!)  It's usually a hot pork sausage that contains generous amounts of curry powder and served with curry sauce on top.  I don't know what gave me the idea to do this, but I figured hey, it couldn't hurt to make my own version of this sucker! 

And as a bonus, I've added a sweet potato fry recipe that would go perfectly with this!  We've got boatloads of the little guys, so I've been making fries, mash, and whatever else I can cleverly come up with!

Currywurst Ingredients

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
4 bratwursts, split in half
3/4 tablespoons chili sauce
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon white sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 pinch paprika
Curry powder to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon Garam Masala
1 green pepper, sliced and seeded
½ onion, sliced thinly
Hot dog buns (optional)

Heat medium saucepan under medium high heat.  Pour tomato sauce into saucepan, then stir in the chili sauce, onion salt, sugar and pepper. Let simmer over medium heat, occasionally stirring. Bring to a gentle boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer another 5 minutes. 

 
Meanwhile, under high heat, sauté onions and peppers for about 5 minutes, or until starting to soften.  Remove and set aside.

In same skillet, cook bratwurst halves for about 3-5 minutes per side, or until browned.

Slowly stir in paprika, garam masala, and curry powder into tomato mixture.  Season with salt and pepper, if needed.  Let simmer for a few minutes and top bratwursts, along with grilled veggies.

 

You can choose to put your brats in hot dog buns, like I did, or just forget the bread and mix them with the grilled veggies and sauce.  Either way is pretty tasty!  I definitely love the Indian flavors in this traditionally German dish!  Definitely a keeper in my book!

 

 

Sweet Potato Fries Ingredients 

      

 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges or fries

 1 teaspoon paprika 

 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper 

 Salt and pepper to taste 

 1 tablespoon olive oil

 

Heat oven to 425 F.  

Mix all ingredients in bowl and toss well.   

Place sweet potatoes in an even layer on baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes, or until fries are golden brown.

Serve with bratwursts or whatever else you're cooking up!  The currywurst sauce also makes a great substitute for ketchup!  

And it's Wednesday, so you guys know it's CSA day!  Here's what awesomeness we got this week:

1 Bunch of Radishes

1 Pie Pumpkin

1 Bunch of Tender Greens

1 Bunch of Bok Choy

2 lbs. sweet potatoes

2 lbs. Fuji apples

1 French Baguette

I'm baaaack!

Great news!  After 30+ hours of driving (to and from, of course, not one way!) we are BACK from Florida.  I've got one more day away from work and have to take 2 tests tomorrow, so there won't be much enjoyment out of that last day.  But it was quite a great trip and pictures will be posted soon... just not today, because as you might guess... I AM EXHAUSTED!

Be back Wednesday with a recipe (finally! I know!) and some vacation pictures!

On Vacation!

Well... sad to say, but my run with Project Food Blog is over.  At first, I was pretty disappointed, but then I got to thinking... this competition really got me to step out and try new things, be a better blogger (I hope!), and to just be honest with what I do.  As much as I wish I could have moved on, I realize that this is survival of the best, and the best seriously did move on.  There's always next year!  And you better believe I'll be cheering on the sidelines.

As most of you know, I'm in Florida at the moment, hanging out with family and checking out the sites.  So I'll leave you with my two favorite pictures I've taken so far... they both make me smile, and I hope they do you too!

Mushroom Meatloaf

Halfway through the week and I've been one busy bee.  Trying to get last minute school-work done, finishing up errands to do before we leave for our Florida trip tomorrow, and getting the dogs situated with some dog sitters (thanks Kendra and Ike!).  I just know that I'm going to forget something!  But I know it will be a great time to be with family and our new family in celebrating my brother's wedding!  Will definitely post pictures next week!

And just a reminder, just about a day and a half left to vote for Challenge #3 in Project Food Blog!  I'd be extremely thankful if you took a minute out of your day to do so!  I didn't get this far without you guys, and of course, you guys are awesome!

I don't know about you, but the more fall-like it gets outside, the more I crave some really great comfort food.  Meatloaf, being one of those grand comforts.  I found this really great mushroom version that was an instant hit, and if I didn't already know that I used mushrooms, and despite there being some beef added in, I would never have thought that the majority of the loaf consisted of mushrooms!  So it's definitely a way to "sneak" some good mushrooms into a meal!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Rocco Dispirito's Now Eat This! - Meatloaf w/ Portobello Mushrooms

8 oz. baby portobello mushrooms
2 garlic cloves
2 eggs
1/3 cup ketchup
1/2 lb. ground beef
small handful parsley, chopped
1/2 cup panko breakcrumbs
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 450 F.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.

Add mushrooms to a food processor and pulse until they are finely chopped.  Scrape into medium bowl.  Add garlic cloves to processor and pulse until finely chopped.  Add eggs and 1 tablespoon of ketchup to the garlic and puree until smooth.  Add garlic/ketchup mixture to mushrooms and mix well.

Add in beef, parsley, and panko bread crumbs to mushroom mixture, as well.  Using your hands, mix well until everything is well combined.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Form the meat/mushroom mixture into a log and place onto prepared baking sheet.  Brush remaining ketchup on top of loaf.  Bake until meatloaf is cooked through, about 25-30 minutes. 

Allow the loaf to rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.

We served this with some roasted sweet potatoes and simple gravy.  It was absolutely delicious and a great way to welcome comfort food back into our lives!  Enjoy guys!

(I'll edit the post with our CSA goods later on today after we've picked them up!)

Grilled Peaches

Happy Monday!  This Monday is especially great because I officially started vacation today!  I don't have to go back to work until next Wednesday!  Major excitement there because I've needed a break from that place for quite some time.

Just a reminder, voting for Challenge #3 of Project Food Blog has started today and continues until Thursday, so if you would be so kind, check out my entry here, and vote here.  As always, you guys are THE best!

This past weekend was the first time I had to bust out my green pea coat because it was a tad on the chilly side.  I love this fall weather!  So to reminisce about the summer, and I'm sure this can count as an early fall snack too, I've included this grilled peaches recipe!  I just absolutely love grilled fruits and peaches are BY FAR my favorite from the grill.  It's simple, it's flavorful... and there's nothing better than having that juice run down your chin.  Yes, it's sublime.  So let's remember summer together and bring in the fall with these peaches!

Ingredients:


4-5 peaches, cut in half and pitted
2 tablespoons butter, melted
8 tablespoons brown sugar
cinnamon (optional)

Preheat charcoal grill to medium high heat.

Brush each peach half with some melted butter and sprinkle 1 tablespoon brown sugar on top, as well as a dash of ground cinnamon, if desired.

Grill peaches face down for about 5-7 minutes.  Flip over and grill about 2-3 minutes longer, or until peaches just start to wrinkle and get juicy.

Remove from grill and enjoy pure happiness.  Seriously... grilled peaches are one of the simplest pleasures that I find absolute joy every time.  Enjoy guys!

P.S. The blog Torview is doing an awesome Food Palette series and a couple of my dishes are featured on there right now... so check it out!

Project Food Blog: Challenge #3

Hot diggity!  I never thought I would even make it past Challenge #1, and here I am, at Challenge #3!  All thanks go out to you guys!  Without your votes, I wouldn't be here, and I GREATLY GREATLY appreciate the love!

Challenge #3 is as follows:

"You'll be asked to channel new and exotic flavors for a luxurious dinner party menu. Voters will pick which feast they'd like to RSVP to." 

One thing I love about cooking, is the end result of feeding people.  So naturally, I love to have people come over and eat!  And of course, my co-workers, jumped right on the bandwagon to come on over!

I blogged earlier this week that my favorite season was now upon us - the fall!  And so it's truly the fall season that inspired this menu.  I wanted to bring out something that my guests would enjoy, and would be new to them.  Turns out, 3 of my guests had NEVER had duck before, so that just made this main course all the more perfect!

 

The first course was just a group appetizer:  Carmelized Onion Dip w/ House Made Pita Chips.  I love the simplicity of this and it allowed for the guests to "share" and converse with eachother before the other courses rolled out.

Second course was a simple salad of Arugula, Baby Greens, and Watercress.  Topped with freshly sliced strawberries, goat cheese, and a raspberry vinaigrette.  It was a nice refreshing salad that brightened up the palette and had a great depth of flavor. 

Main course was the entree of Roasted Duck Breasts with a Pomegranate-Chile sauce.  Served with a brown rice pilaf that included golden raisins, dried apricots, and walnuts.  There was also a side of sauteed swiss chard.  The "Duck Virgins" said that they really enjoyed their first experience with duck and one of them even said that duck may be their new favorite!  Score!

 

The fourth and final course was the dessert:  Pumpkin Cheesecake w/ Caramel Bourbon Sauce & freshly made Whipped Cream.  This was a perfect night cap to end the dinner.  The cheesecake was thin and light, with an Oreo crust that matched perfectly with the pumpkin cheesecake layer.

At the end of the dinner, I asked everyone what their favorite course of the meal was, and it was a unanimous vote that the Duck definitely reigned supreme.  I'm glad, because personally, it was my favorite as well!

I want to thank my awesome sister, Frances, for decorating our back deck, also!  She did such a great job and really made it look elegant and classy!  My guests were awesome and at the end of the day, all you need are great friends and great food to have an amazing time!

 If you guys dug the menu and found yourself drooling the whole time, please please please, don't hesitate to vote for my entry in Challenge #3 of Project Food Blog (you can either click the link or check out the right sidebar to vote!)!  And thank you thank you SOOOO much for getting me this far!  You guys are awesome!

Jerk Fried Flounder w/ Green Pepper Sauce

It's Friday!  And it's also another Friday that I have to work until 10:30 tonight.  Bummer, I know.  But I have the whole weekend off and I've got a pretty busy one planned.  Thanks to everyone who voted for me in Challenge #2 of Foodbuzz's Project Food Blog!  I'm crossing my fingers that I get to make it to Challenge #3, which is to throw a luxury dinner party.  Win or lose, I'm having a dinner party on Saturday with a few friends.  So we can either discuss my victory or drink a bunch of wine over good food to drown my sorrows!  Either way, it'll be a good time, with good friends.  And that's all we need right?  Right.

I made this flounder a few weeks ago and it was just beaming with great flavors and color.  It was simple, yet sophisticated.  And above all, it was absolutely delicious!


Ingredients:


2 6 oz. Flounder fillets
2 tablespoons Caribbean Jerk Seasoning
salt and pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup chicken stock
juice from 1 lime
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 roasted green pepper, minced
small handful cilantro, chopped
Homemade Hot Sauce (optional)

Season the flounder fillets w/ the jerk seasoning, and a little bit of salt and pepper, if desired.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet under medium high heat.  Pan fry the fish for about 3-5 minutes today, flipping once.  Transfer fillets to 2 serving plates and tent with aluminum foil.

Add chicken stock and lime juice to same skillet used for fish.  Simmer until the mixture is reduced by half.  Whisk in the butter, hot sauce, and green bell pepper.  Heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

Pour the mixture over the fillets and garnish with cilantro.

I served this over a Corn & Sweet Pepper Hash (which I will post in the near future, of course) and it was absolutely perfect.  Fresh vegetables, perfectly flaky fish, and quick turnaround.  This should definitely be put on your to-make list very soon!  Enjoy the weekend guys!  And hopefully I'll be posting a luxury dinner post on Sunday, thanks to you guys!