February 2014 • Page 2 of 2 • The Traveling Epicurean

Fresh Mozzarella, Pesto, and Roasted Tomato on Crostinis

September 29, 2016February 14, 2014 by Michel

Fresh Mozzarella, Pesto, and Roasted Tomato on Crostinis

This crostini with fresh mozzarella, pesto and roasted tomato appetizer is absolutely delicious and is totally a make ahead dish! The Crostinis you can make a week before, they’ll taste no different if you made them that day and the pesto you can make a day or two before. As for the fresh mozzarella you can either buy the fresh balls if you have a nice cheese shop near by or you can even get the mozzarella logs that are packaged in water to keep fresh and soft and are even pre-sliced! I like to buy my roasted tomato’s from Foxglove & Madison Cheese Shop. It’s not difficult to roast your own tomatoes but it is time consuming and the roasted tomato’s available at the cheese shop are packed with intense flavor, a gorgeous deep red color and all the work is done for you. They also have fresh and creamy mozzarella balls there as well. If it’s not possible to find or roast your own tomatoes improvise and put a 1/8″ slice of a sweet cherry or grape tomato on top of the pesto. The pesto has so much flavor the freshness of the sliced cherry or grape tomato will balance out nicely with it. It’s all good ….just enjoy!

Ingredients:

20 crostinis (see Crostini recipe)
1 pesto recipe (see Pesto recipe)
2 logs of mozzarella sliced 1/4″ sliced
1 container roasted tomatoes (can use a 1/8″ slice of a fresh cherry or grape tomato to improvise if with out the roasted)

Directions:

Cut the roasted tomato pieces in half.
It’s packed with a lot of rich flavor and 1/2 of a piece is perfect on top of the pesto.
Place a slice of mozzarella onto the crostini then add a dallop of fresh pesto on top of that and place a piece of the roasted tomato on the pesto, plate and serve……Mangia!

TIP: You can make the pesto texture thicker so it stands up nice and plump on the crositni by adding a little more parmesean

Pesto

November 11, 2022February 13, 2014 by Michel

Pesto

Now there’s making pesto by means of mortar and pestle…..I admit I have spent many a day making it this way, but there’s another way which I will show you here that saves you time and energy which we all seem to run low on by the end of the day. If it’s the weekend and you have some time on your hands then be my guest and knock yourself out with the mortar and pestle. It is truly is a lovely way to make this paste, and useful in so many other ways like grinding spices for instance not to mention being therapeutic. Back to reality, being able to use my food processor to make pesto really is a wonderful thing! The pesto tastes the same and you still put all the love into it using good ingredients. You can play with this recipe also when it comes to amounts like adding a little more Parmesan if it’s too thin or drizzling in a tad more olive oil if it’s too thick. Making pesto is a very forgiving process…. just trust yourself and be sure to taste as you go along to see if you need to add a sprinkle more of salt and or pepper.

Ingredients:

1 pkg. 3.0-3.5 ounces of fresh basil leaves
1/2-3/4 cup grated Reggiano Parmesan
1 lg. garlic clove put thru garlic press
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper
dash of Tabasco

Directions:

Remove basil leaves from stems and place them into the food processor with the grated garlic, s & p
Begin to pulse while drizzling in all of the olive oil thru the top opening of the food processor
Once you finish adding the oil you may need to stop and scrape the sides with a spatula
Add in the parmesan and pulse once more (this is where you can add a little siracha)
The pesto is ready to use
If you want to save the pesto put it into a plastic container, drizzle about 1 tbsp. of olive oil right on top. Then lay a piece of Saran wrap right on top of the new layer of olive oil so there isn’t any air touching (This will keep the basil from oxidizing and turning brown)
At this point you can either keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or put it into the freezer
When you are ready to use the frozen pesto take it out the night before and let it thaw in the refrigerator
Now that you have this delicous pesto you can easily make the Crostinis with Fresh Mozzarella, Pesto and Roasted Tomato appetizer.

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Crostinis

March 12, 2020February 12, 2014 by Michel

Crostinis

Crostinis are an essential part of my entertaining. They can be used in so many appetizers with an unlimited number of toppings, with dips and spreads. They only take a matter of minutes to make and stay well for days on the counter in a zip lock and even longer in the freezer. That convenience of being able to make them ahead of time leaving you with one less thing to do and allowing you more time to enjoy yourself with family and friends goes with out saying!

Ingredients:

1 baguette sliced into 1/4″ pieces (you get approx 22 pieces in a baguette)
cookie tray

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400º.
Take all the slices and place onto a cookie….no need to coat cookie sheet with anything.
Bake for 12 minutes until golden around the edges.
No need to flip.
Let them cool completely and then you can store them in a zip lock baggie.
For a delicious crostini appetizers try my Pesto recipe or the Crostinis with Fresh Mozzarella, Pesto and Roasted Tomato recipe!

Baked Coconut Shrimp

March 4, 2015February 10, 2014 by Michel

Baked Coconut Shrimp

Who needs to go thru all the trouble of deep frying when homemade coconut shrimp can taste this gourmet and be BAKED. You don’t get that heavy fried taste …… it’s lighter, fresher and so flavorful with the crispy caramelized coconut. This Baked Coconut Shrimp recipe is from Bobby Deen with some minor altercations from me. I wanted to add a little more flavor and more volume so I made the addition of sweetened coconut, Italian seasoned bread crumbs and Siracha instead of Tabasco. I really like to have a hot pepper jelly to go with coconut shrimp this particular one made from Beth’s-Farm-Kitchen called “Mighty Hot Pepper Jelly”. Their web site is www.bethsfarmkitchen.com and you can pick up the jelly and the shrimp locally at a favorite fish market of mine Star Fish Market in Guilford, CT. This homemade gourmet baked coconut shrimp recipe is such a quick and easy recipe and you’ll just love the results. There isn’t any fussing or flipping over of the shrimp during the baking either because the bottom side does get the caramelization. Also your hot pepper jelly will of course be in that thick jelly form and you’ll want to put the jelly into a bowl and heat it in the microwave for 15 seconds to smooth out the consistency so it makes for a nice dipping sauce (it should be room temperature when serving). After heating the jelly briefly give it little whisk and that should do the trick!

Ingredients:

1 lb. med/lg shrimp ( peeled and deveined with tails off too!)
3 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup sweetened coconut
2 lg egg whites whisked til lightly frothy
a dash of Siracha or Tabasco in the EGG WHITES (Siracha is hot chili sauce found on shelf at store where tabasco is sold)
S&P
Pam canola oil spray

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 400º.
Spray cookie tray with canola oil.
Place all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and mix with a fork.
Add a dash of Siracha or Tabasco to the frothy egg whites-Optional. Add and coat raw shrimp with whisked egg whites.
Then dredge shrimp into the dry coconut mixture and place onto the cookie sheet in rows approx. 1″ from each other.
VERY IMPORTANT: spray a coating of Pam canola oil over all the coated shrimp and place into the oven.
Bake for 12 minutes. (No need to flip shrimp).
Using a spatula remove shrimp from cookie tray and place onto a serving platter flipping them over now to show the caramelized side and serve with your favorite hot pepper jelly.
Don’t forget to warm the jelly briefly and whisk it to get that nice smooth consistency serving it room temperature with the shrimp.

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

November 18, 2016February 7, 2014 by Michel

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

These bacon wrapped water chestnuts are sweet and savory. You have that slightly smokey and salty flavor from the bacon, a sweet candy-like carmelization from the brown sugar, a little kick from the dry mustard and a lovely crunch from the water chestnut. All those amazing flavors packaged up in one little morsel!

Nut or vegetable? Well I will tell you – a water chestnut is actually an equatic vegetable grown in marshes. Didn’t you always want to know that? This water chestnut recipe came about from a Trader Vic’s recipe called Rumaki . Except this original recipe was done with chicken livers and water chestnuts wrapped in bacon with a wet marinade. Now don’t get scared away . Even though I do love chicken livers sautéed with lots of chopped garlic and a crusty baguette this recipe is made without the liver or wet marinade for that matter.

It is some what comical too because your guests will think they are bacon wrapped scallops at first glance. These homemade gourmet little morsels are a must try for the holidays. Your guest’s will love them. In fact, you better grab one before the tray goes out because it’s coming back empty!

If you are on an appetizer roll you ought to try my Crab Cakes with Homemade Thousand Island Dressing, or Baked Spinach & Feta Spankopita Triangles with Metaxa Mojito’s are to die for, Homemade Salmon Gravlax are one of my all time favorites and so easy to make with fresh dill sprigs and vodka or eau de vie! My “Steakhouse” Cream Spinach is a huge crowd pleaser. For dessert, a Best Blueberry Pie with My 5 Minute Pie Crust always calls out to me! ENJOY! 🙂

Ingredients:

2 cans whole water chestnuts ( Geisha – approx 18 per can)
1 lb. Boar’s Head bacon (sliced into 3″ strips)
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tbsp Colemans dry mustard – (if you like it less spicy only use 1 tbsp)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375º
Whisk brown sugar and dry mustard together in a medium size bowl
Slice up the bacon into 3″ pieces
Wrap each water chestnut on the bacon strip and roll-up,
Then roll it around in the brown sugar mixture, you will need to press down a little to help the mixture adhere
Place the appetizer’s seem side down on a cookie sheet
You can use a silicone baking mat or Silpat to bake the bacon wrapped water chestnuts on, DO NOT USE FOIL because it will be stuck to the waterchestnut!
Bake for approx. 15 minutes
Do not flip them over
The bottoms will be more caramelized then the tops so flip them over when you plate them to see the carmelization
Be sure to let them cool a pinch before eating because the chestnuts get pretty hot along with the sugar
These are a great party item because you can prep a day ahead, BUT DO NOT DREDGE them into the brown sugar mixture until right before you put them into the oven or they will get watery
Just wrap chestnuts in bacon, place onto a cookie tray and pop them into the frig until you are ready for them

Best Mango-Avocado Salsa Ever

February 27, 2014February 6, 2014 by Michel

Best Mango-Avocado Salsa Ever

This truly is the most amazing salsa ever! In fact I found salsa difficult to photograph so I took many pictures of the finished salsa worried that you won’t be able to tell how delicious it is just by looking at the pictures. Gotta love those sweet and hot flavors together and just knowing that it is all so good for you makes it even better, if that’s possible. I make this for friends when they come over it’s the first thing gone. There really is nothing like refreshing mango-avocado salsa in the hot summer months but why should we have to wait until then when we can enjoy ripe mangoes in the winter too! When I go to the market to buy mangoes this time of year they are usually not quite ripe enough to eat right away. It’s one of those things where you need to plan a few days ahead so you have time to leave them on your counter to fully ripen. It’s definitely worth the 2-3 day wait for the mango to soften slightly and the juicy flesh to turn a deep golden color and taste as sweet as honey. Be sure not to let them get too soft….better to be slightly soft then mushy because that lovely golden flesh starts to turn brown.

Ingredients:

2 lg mangoes chopped 1/4″ cubed
1 avocado chopped 1/4″ cubed
2 med/lg size tomato’s or 5 small tomato’s chopped 1/4″ cubed
1/2 vidalia onion (or yellow) FINELY chopped
1 FINELY chopped jalapeno
juice from 1 lime
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
a dash of Siracha (optional)
S & P

Directions:

Add all of the ingredients to a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
We really love to eats this salsa with blue chips.
I have also served this salsa up on the tips of endive leaves, and or with a cooked shrimp on top of that ….yum!
I must warn you this salsa is highly addictive……consume at your own risk! LOL

TIP: There is an easy way to get the pit out of a avocado which I have displayed in the pictures above. After running the knife around the flesh of the avocado against the edges of the inside pit… put the knife down and twist the avocado halves and pull apart. Then stick the knife into the pit and do the same thing holding on to the knife with one hand and carefully twist the avocado pit and it will pop right out. Then knock the pit off onto the board away from your hands. This can be a little tricky the first time so I would advise that this would be for an adult to try. Finally, Insert a large spoon and scoop the avocado along the edge of the avocado skin to remove avocado flesh.

Frozen Berry Smoothies

February 12, 2016February 4, 2014 by Michel

Frozen Berry Smoothies

Making homemade fruit smoothies takes less than 5 minutes! They are healthy, satisfying, and scrumptious. What’s great about this smoothie is you use the frozen bags of fruit from the freezer section at your market. The frozen fruit and the Greek yogurt make up the thickness in the smoothie. You don’t have to worry about what season it is…..you can make them through out the winter. AND my very picky kids love them…what’s better than that! They say the smoothies remind them of my Fresh Berry Granita…..yeah!

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen berries (I use medley-if seeds bother you buy 1 bag of stawberries and 1 bag of blueberries
1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
1 cup Ocean Spray “Cran/Pomegranate” juice or unsweetened apple juice
juice from 1/2 lime

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients into the blender and purée!
You will need to stop the blender and stir once to move frozen berries around, then finish with the puree.
If you want it a little thinner just add a little water or juice.
Pour the mixture into a glass and serve with a spoon.

Easy Pulled Pork Sliders

July 22, 2018February 3, 2014 by Michel

Easy Pulled Pork Sliders

I love my easy pulled pork slider recipe because it works in an oven or in a crock pot! There are so many different versions of pulled pork out there but this one is super easy because we use pork tenderloins instead of a pork shoulder. You just have the moist and delicate meat of the tenderloin pulled apart in seconds and mixed with a homemade BBQ sauce made in mere minutes that’s sweet and tangy!

The Easy Pulled Pork Sliders are made with tenderloins instead of a giant pork shoulder. The reason I love to do this is it’s so darn EASY! The tenderloins are cut in 1/2 then coated with a mixture of light brown sugar, Colemans Dry Mustard, onion & garlic granules, s & P. Placed into a large baking dish with a small 7.5 oz. can of cola poured into the dish. The Coca-Cola helps to keep it moist and gives it a little caramel flavor. It’s baked for 1 1/2 – 1 3/4 hours, cooled and shredded apart. At that time the Bourbon BBQ Sauce has finished simmering and just waiting to be poured of all the pulled pork and warmed thru…YUM!

Ingredients:

2 pork tenderloins about 2.75 lbs.
1 cup Light brown sugar
1 tsp. garlic granules
1 tsp . onion granules
1 tsp Colemans dry mustard
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 cups Homemade Bourbon BBQ sauce
1 cup Coca Cola or Root Beer
Green Goddess Sauce
Broccoli Slaw

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 325º
In a medium size bowl whisk together the light brown sugar and all the dry spices
Wash and dry pork tenderloins, cut in 1/2 – across and place in baking dish
Rub the brown sugar mixture all over pork tenderloins
Add 1 cup coke to the baking dish and put into the oven, leave uncovered
Bake tenderloins for 1 1/2 -1 3/4 hour until falling apart
Remove from oven and let pork cool to touch
Begin to pull apart pork in the same bake dish with 2 forks to the desired size
Add the pulled pork tenderloin to a med. size pan and mix with BBQ sauce
Add 1/2 cup BBQ sauce at a time until you have the desired amount for the consistency you want
Pulled pork sliders are incredible with a little crunch from some broccoli slaw
Serve on dinner or Hawaiian rolls w/Broccoli Slaw & a drizzle of my Green Goddess Sauce

FOR PULLED PORK WHILE YOU SLEEP:

INGREDIENTS: NOTE – If you have extra brown sugar/spice mix because you’re making 1 pork butt just store in Ziploc baggie for next time!

14 lbs. (approx 2 6-7 lb.) Boneless Pork Butts
2 cups light brown sugar
1 tbsp garlic granules
1 tbsp onion granules
1 tbsp SMOKED Paprika (Spanish)
1 tbsp Chipotle spices
1 tsp Colemans dry mustard
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tsp finely ground pepper
1tsp finely ground Italian seasonings
2 cups coke & rootbeer OR 2 coke OR 2 rootbeer
1 lg vidalia onion sliced into 1/2″ slices
1 stalk celery cut up into 3″ pieces

DIRECTIONS:

Pre-Heat oven to 275º
Add all dry spices and sugar to a bowl and mix thoroughly
Place onion and celery pieces in the bottom of a lg 18″ x 13″ x 3″ approx. and place the pork butt(s) on top
Rub brown sugar/spice mix all over pork butt(s) and lay the pork so the fat side is facing up
Cover tightly with foil for 8 hrs. WHILE YOU SLEEP!
In the morning remove from oven and let cool so you can handle the meat
Remove all the fat and place in a bake dish
Skim fat off pan juices and add 1-2 cups of the juice back to pork to desired moistness
Add Homemade BBQ Sauce to desired texture ….enjoy!

Broccoli Slaw

July 21, 2018February 3, 2014 by Michel

Broccoli Slaw

In this recipe I am using pre-pakaged broccoli slaw from the store. Sure you can shred it yourself but sometimes with all our hectic schedules running here and there it’s nice to be able to take a short cut and still have great taste. Cole dressing is super simple as you will see below. I upped the mayo to 1/3 cup from 1/4 and the sugar from 2 tbsp to 3 tbsp because I like it a little saucier but I will leave that up to you!

You really ought to try my EASY Pulled pork sliders with this slaw and don’t forget the homemade BBQ sauce with Bourbon….outrageous!

Ingredients – NOTE For a LITTLE LIGHTER SAUCE USE 1/4 CUP MAYO AND 2 TBSP SUGAR:

4 cups broccoli Slaw (you can buy pkg slaw at the store)
1/3 cup mayo ( I use Hellmans only)
2 tbsp cider vinegar
2 Tbsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp sugar
1 Tsp Siracha or Tabasco (Siracha is a hot chili sauce sold next to Tabasco at the store)
S & P

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients in a bowl, mix and serve.
This slaw goes great with my Easy Pulled Pork Sliders done nice and easy in a crock pot.
And if you have a little extra time you can add a Green Goddess Sauce to the sandwich that can actually be done a couple days ahead and while you are at it don’t forget the Homemade BBQ Sauce!

Green Goddess Sauce

March 23, 2020February 1, 2014 by Michel

Green Goddess Sauce

I love to make sauces especially this green goddess sauce. Sauces are one of my favorite avenues of cooking and I’m always mixing things up to find the perfect one. The inspiration for this sauce came from a food truck episode on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives a couple of years ago. I have tried since then to find the recipe but cannot so this is one of my versions of a green goddess sauce. I remember her sauce having a mayo base and maybe other herbs. I really like the tang you get from using Greek yogurt in this one. You can use this sauce with so many dishes….fish, chicken, beef, lamb, pork, re-fried beans and the list goes on!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Greek yogurt
1/3 cup mayo (I use Hellmans)
1 cup fresh cilantro
1 garlic clove put thru press
1/2 jalapeño diced
1 tsp. grated vadalia onion ( or yellow onion)
1 tbsp each lime juice, sugar & “seasoned” rice wine vinegar
2-3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
s & p
dash of Siracha or Tabasco (Siracha is a hot chili sauce sold next to Tabasco at the store)

Directions:

Place all of the ingredients into a blender an purée and you will probably need to stop and stir everything a couple of times to get it going but do not add any more liquid (you will see that once it gets going it will be just right).
When you begin to purée start to drizzle in 2-3 tbsp of olive oil, it will help the sauce to emulsify and become fluffy and smooth
You can make this ahead of time and keep sauce in a plastic container and refrigerate. It stays nicely for days in frig. Yum!
This green sauce is absolutely delicious on so many things …… be creative.
Try it with Sautéed Chicken Breasts and Spinach or on Crock Pot Pulled Pork sandwiches, BBQ Pork Wraps, Sautéed Chilean Sea Bass or as a dip for Baked Coconut Shrimp!