Traditionally we served fish for our Christmas Eve dinner. My mom loved her herrings in sour cream. Today, I will share my favorite dish and that is Crab Meat stuffed Flounder. This incredible dish can be served as a main entrée using the method below; or a side dish using smaller fillets; wrap a smaller flounder around a small scoop of crab meat mixture, secure with a toothpick. I have also served this crab mixture scooped on top of salmon or trout. You will enjoy this dish however you decide to serve it. Happy Holidays.
FLOUNDER FILLETS
4 to 5 Large fillets
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Sprinkle flounder with salt and pepper. Using a fillet knife, carefully open the flounder by cutting along the left and right sides of the seam down the middle of the fish to make pockets. Lay the cut sides back.
CRAB MIX
Ingredients
2 green onions, thinly sliced (about 1/4 cup)
1 clove garlic minced
1 minced red pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 1/2 tablespoons spicy mustard
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
10 saltine crackers, crumbled medium to fine
1/2-pound lump crabmeat, picked clean of shells
1/2-pound claw crabmeat, picked clean of shells
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
In a medium skillet, melt the butter and sauté the onions, garlic, parsley and peppers until soft. Let cool.
In a mixing bowl, combine the egg, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, heavy cream, mustard, lemon juice and mayonnaise together. Gently mix in the Saltine crackers and crabmeat. Add salt and pepper, if needed. Set aside to stuff in flounder.
Stuff the flounder with the Crab Mix and press the sides down to cover the filling. Sprinkle with paprika.
Coat a glass baking dish with cooking spray. Place the fish in the dish and bake for 20 minutes.
Without removing the dish from the oven, turn the oven to broil and broil for 5 additional minutes.
When the fish is done, remove it from the oven.
*Optional: Melt ½ cup of butter and drizzle over fillets when finished baking.
Here is a terrific recipe for chicken thighs, great for a party or a special dinner. Or use legs/thighs. Yes, you do have to love garlic, so be sure only to invite those who have an acquired taste for this tasty allium.
This recipe should be prepared the day before and as a note, the longer you marinate it – the taster it becomes. It is best to marinade for at the very least, 6 hours up to 24 hours in advance. Please use only fresh herbs and fresh garlic cloves with this recipe, or you will rob yourself of the intoxicating aroma and flavor of this dish.
INGREDIENTS
3 – 4 pounds of skin on and bone in chicken thighs
1 cup of olive oil
16 fresh garlic cloves
2-tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
2-tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 cup (or more) fresh parsley, chopped
MARINADE
About 1 cup of olive oil – more or less to cover the chicken pieces
6 peeled and smashed garlic cloves – cut in half after you smash them
½ cup of fresh minced flat leaf Italian parsley
PROCESS
Wash, and trim extra skin and fat from chicken thighs, pat them dry.
Spread them flat in a baking dish large enough to hold all thighs
Combine olive oil, garlic cloves and parsley and pour over thighs
Cover baking dish with plastic wrap or lid and refrigerate for up to 24 hours, turning only once during that time.
After 6 – 24 hours
Remove chicken from marinade and scrape off excess olive oil and place chicken in a shallow, foil lined, rimmed cookie sheet.
With a slotted spoon, scoop up garlic and parsley from marinade and spread on top of chicken.
Reserve 1/3 cup of olive oil from marinade.
Preheat oven to 400F.
In a bowl combine
8 more garlic cloves, minced or grated
1/3 cup reserved olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
Pour this mixture on top of chicken in pan.
Bake at 400F. for 45 minutes – do not turn chicken during baking.
*Note: do not crowd chicken pieces in roasting pan – this will steam the chicken rather than roasting it.
If you’re preparing a ham for the holidays, consider adding a special dish to your table. I recommend trying a pineapple gravy. This flavorful gravy can enhance your holiday meal, making it more delicious and memorable. Pineapple gravy is easy to prepare and adds a sweet and tangy touch that complements the savory ham perfectly. Whether you’re hosting a large gathering or a small family dinner, this recipe is a great addition to your holiday menu, providing a unique and tasty accompaniment to your main dish.
Ingredients
8.5 ounce can of crushed pineapple
½ cup orange juice (or pineapple juice)
½ cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Process
Add all ingredients to a small saucepan and stir until well combined.
Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat. Boil for 1 minute or until thickened.
It’s all about Sunday dinner on a cold winter day. How about Baked Ziti, an old time favorite, a wonderful comfort food. Served with a green salad and toasted garlic bread. Today you can buy the old-fashioned white pasta or replace it with whole wheat, protein or high fiber pasta. I use jarred spaghetti sauce in this recipe, but you can use your own homemade sauce, I have been known to cook Italian sausage or meatballs (my recipe – search meat balls) and add to the mixture. Use fresh parsley, easy to cut if you bunch it and just slice it with a knife at the top of the bunch into thin ribbons.
INGREDIENTS:
18-ounce box of Ziti, cook and drain as directed on the box. Do not rinse
3-1/2 cups (32-ounce jar of sauce) spaghetti sauce
2 cups Ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup chopped, fresh parsley
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon oregano
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
DIRECTIONS
Cook pasta according to directions, drain but do not rinse (rinsing pasta prevents sauce from sticking to it)
In a large bowl combine all ingredients and only ½ cup spaghetti sauce
In a 3 quart casserole pour another ½ cup of spaghetti sauce on bottom of dish and spread out
Pour contents of ziti mixture into casserole and spread out
Pour remaining spaghetti sauce on top of ziti mixture, sprinkle with parmesan cheese
Bake covered with aluminum foil in a 375 F. degree oven for 30-35 minutes or until hot and bubbly
I received three baby Bok Choy, also known as Chinese cabbage in my Bountiful Basket (a local food co-op) today. I was stumped as to how I was going to prepare them since I have only eaten this cabbage in stir fry or marinated. I decided to experiment tonight with an oven cooked bok choy.
A little about boc choy that you may not know; this vegetable contains glucosinolates. These compounds have been reported to prevent cancer in small doses, but, like many substances, can be toxic to humans in large doses, particularly to people who are already seriously ill. Cultivated in China since ancient times, bok choy is found in soups and stir-fries, appetizers and main dishes. Bok choy’s popularity comes from its light, sweet flavor, crisp texture and nutritional value. Not only is bok choy high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C and calcium, but it is low in calories.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Ingredients
1 baby Bok Choy
Olive Oil
4 cloves of fresh garlic, grated or chopped very fine
Kosher salt
Pepper
Parmesan cheese
Directions
Bok Choy
Remove outer leaves if they look torn or bruised, or just cut short with scissors.
If leaves are overly long you can trim them with scissors, otherwise leave long, they will crisp up when cooked.
Wash with cool water and drain and dry on paper towels.
Slice the Bok Choy lengthwise into 4 quarters leaving the stem on each piece to hold leaves together.
Drizzle with olive oil, rub the olive oil into the leaves
Grate the garlic cloves and spread all over the Bok Choy and into the leaves
Sprinkle with kosher salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese
Place on a flat baking sheet covered with aluminum foil – do not use a pan with a lip, you want them to roast not steam.
Bake in 350 F. oven for 20 minutes, turn over and let bake for another 5 minutes
Be careful not to overcook, the Bok Choy should be crisp tender, at this point you can cut into chunks and serve or drizzle with a good quality balsamic vinegar and serve.
Purgatory Meatballs, yes the heat factor is there, but the pineapple and apricot preserves dial it down to a spicy sweetness. You can add additional hot jalapenos to dial up the heat factor. Start with this recipe and then add if it is not spicy enough.
I needed a fast, quick entrée to bring to work for an impromptu party. Off to the market I went to try and figure it out. Here is what I walked out with, I put it all together and decided it is yummy and great enough to post. Great as an appetizer, party food, over rice or great for a last minute potluck. I put it in a crock pot and was all set for the event.
Ingredients:
1 medium sweet onion, diced
½ cup of Italian parsley or cilantro, chopped fine
1 jar of chili sauce
1 large can of pineapple tidbits
1 jar of apricot preserves
1 jar of HOT Mango Chutney (I used half)
1 can of HOT jalapeno peppers (diced)
1 can of medium hot chilies peppers (diced)
4 bags of frozen, fully cooked meatballs (about 15 in each bag),
4 large green peppers, cut into chunks
Directions:
In a large saucepan, sauté the diced onion in 1 tablespoon of oil or 1 teaspoon of coconut oil until soft
On medium heat, add the next 6 ingredients, I only used ½ jar of the HOT Mango Chutney, but you can use the whole jar
Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly for 10 minutes, remove from heat. NOTE; because there is sugar in this mixture it will come to a boil quickly so keep the heat on medium and stir so the bottom does not burn.
After removing the pan from the heat, bring to room temperature if not using right away and refrigerate until you are ready to use.
When you are ready to serve; about 4 hours before the event, put the sauce in a crock pot and cook on high until hot, turn down to low and add the peppers, and meatballs, stir to coat and put the lid on and heat until meatballs are heated through.
Brussel sprouts with bacon, garlic, and Sweet Onion
The Brussels sprout, not a favorite with many people, but I love them; they remind me of tiny cabbages (also a fav, must be my Germanic upbringing). Everything is “better” with bacon, right? As well as garlic and sweet onion, so give these little morsels a try with your next dinner. Brussels sprouts are hardy, and fair well with beef or pork dishes. Raw Brussels sprouts contain excellent levels of vitamin C, and vitamin, with more moderate amounts of B vitamins, such as folic acid and B6, essential minerals and dietary fiber. Brussels sprouts, contain sulforaphane, a phytochemical under research for its potential anticancer properties. Although boiling reduces the level of sulforaphane, steaming and stir frying do not result in significant loss. Brussels sprouts are also a source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical being studied for how it affects DNA repair in cells and appears to block the growth of cancer cells in vitro. So there you have it, the almighty Brussels sprout. I hope this dish helps you on your way to acquiring a taste for these little gems. Enjoy.
Brussels Sprouts with Bacon, Garlic, and Onion
Ingredients
6 slices bacon
½ cup sweet onion, diced
1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
4 garlic cloves, grated
1/2 cup fat-free chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon red currant jelly
Directions
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bacon, and sauté until bacon begins to brown. Remove pan from heat. Remove the bacon from pan, reserve 1 tablespoon drippings in pan (discard the remaining drippings).
Chop bacon into small pieces
Return pan to medium-high heat, and stir in bacon pieces, onion, and Brussels sprouts; sauté 4 minutes.
Add garlic, and sauté for 4 minutes or until garlic begins to brown, stirring frequently.
Add the chicken broth, and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes until the broth reduces almost completely gone and the sprouts are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat; stir in salt and red pepper flakes, toss with a tablespoon of current jelly.
For a colorful, special Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner or any holiday dinner, try stirring in pomegranate seeds.
Not sure what to call this dish, so I researched other recipes that claim they are “oven cooked herb chicken” but most of them incorporate flour or breadcrumbs, and a stick of butter and/or olive oil. They didn’t seem all that healthy too me and took too much time in the oven. I decided to stick with my tried and true herb crusted chicken breast, coated with my own fresh herbs that I cut from my garden, from start to finish it took all of 15 minutes to prepare and cook. Yes, my chicken breast is “sautéed” in coconut oil I feel it is so much healthier than the alternative. This recipe is for an individual 7oz chicken breast, if you have two chicken breasts to add to the pan, you should probably increase the cooking time by one minute on each side or until done. My recipe does not use flour, breadcrumbs or an colossal amount of grease, oil or butter to cook with and it only takes 8 minutes to cook, so I consider this “fast food” for dinner.
Ingredients
7oz chicken boneless, skinless
¼ cup of chopped fresh herbs, I used a combination of: parsley, sage, oregano, rosemary
¼ tsp kosher salt
2 tsp of coconut oil
1 tsp of butter
Directions
Place chicken breast inside a plastic quart bag or between two pieces of plastic wrap and using a meat mallet begin to gently pound the chicken on both sides until all the same width
Take half of the chopped herbs and spread on one side of chicken breast, sprinkle with salt and gently pound the herbs into that side of the chicken breast
Turn chicken over and spread remaining herbs and salt on other side of breast and pound into the chicken breast.
Melt coconut oil and butter in a heavy pan or non-stick pan over medium high heat, when oil is hot place the chicken in the oil and cook uncovered for 4 minutes each side.
Turn the heat down to medium if it looks like it is browning too fast. When the chicken is ready to flip to the other side after 4 minutes, be careful not to splash yourself. Cook the second side for 4 more minutes. Slice the chicken breast to be sure the meat is white (cooked) before serving.
*Note: Melted oil must be hot before adding the chicken breast or it will absorb the oil as it is cooking. Hot oil will sear the meat as it hits the pan.
Pounded chicken breast cooks relatively fast, prepare your salad and vegetables while it is cooking.
The humble meatball, its beginnings tell early meatballs would have been made from leftover meat dishes and hand-shredded or pounded with a heavy object and minced with primitive tools. Food history tells us that meat was rare across the world and was enjoyed mostly by the rich. It was precious, so it can be assumed that it was never wasted, and no parts of a cut of meat or the leftovers would have been thrown away. Simply put, the meatball was a way to utilize this extraneous meat and squeeze another days’ meal from it, not to mention another days’ nutrition.
Italian immigrants brought along their own meatball (polpette) recipes, many of which had evolved according to family tradition. The polpette were not initially served with spaghetti. Spaghetti was typically served alone. The two forces came together in order to appease Americans who frequented Italian restaurants and wanted meat served alongside their pasta dishes.
The meatball was recorded in a 1754 Swedish cookbook by Cajsa Warg. The k”ttbullar were served with a cream-based gravy and loganberry preserves. Buttered noodles also became a popular side item, and nowadays are thought of as the expected accompaniment for Swedish meatballs.
There are meatball recipes from 25 AD. The Romans, as evidenced in an ancient recipe book written by Marcus Gavius Apicus (aka Apicius) called “De re coquinaria libri decem (Cuisine in Ten Books)”. Book II is devoted to “minces”, or mixtures of meat and other ingredients.
So to conclude, where did the first meatball come from? No one knows for sure. Every country has their own version of the meatball dating back in time throughout history using different meats, vegetables, and ingredients.
This is Kitchen Moxy’s version, I hope you enjoy these little morsels as they are a favorite of mine served with traditional spaghetti sauce or brown gravy. In this day and age we are all trying to watch our nutrition, fat, and calorie intake. Beef can be substituted with veal, venison, elk, which ever red meat you desire. The pork adds moisture and flavor, so your meatball does not end up dry. Eat well and rejoice.
½ pound of ground pork
½ pound of veal (or other meat)
½ pound of beef chuck (or other meat)
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup finely chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
2 teaspoons of kosher or sea salt
¼ to ½ cup of grated onion (food processor works great)
3 cloves of grated garlic
1 large beaten egg
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup olive oil for frying. See methods of cooking below
1 cup of breadcrumbs, if using seasoned, dry breadcrumbs toss with 1/3 cup of milk to re-hydrate.
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together with your hands just until the mixture comes together.
Form meatballs with your hands, rolling into golf-ball sized balls. Do not pack the meat into tight balls or they will become tough.
May be refrigerated up to 24 hours at this point.
Cooking Methods:
Method #1: Drop raw meatballs into your sauce. By the time your sauce is finished cooking, your meatball will be too. This is the easiest way, no prep, no mess. But no crusted sides. But it does flavor the sauce. Both my mom and I used this method many times. We were making our own marinara sauce from scratch. So cook time was long enough to cook the meat.
Method #2: Bake your raw meatballs in the oven at 350F. for 15 minutes. Your meatballs are done when no longer pink in the center. The internal temperature of a meatball should be 160F. You can finish cooking your pink centered meatball in your sauce.
Method #3: Fry your meatballs in olive oil. This is the traditional method. Your meatballs are crusted on all sides as they simmer in hot oil. Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the meatballs and cook, turning occasionally, until well browned on all sides, about 6 minutes. Transfer the meatballs to a plate. Drain the oil and wipe out the skillet, return to the heat, and repeat with the remaining oil and meatballs.
Notes:
Great meatballs contain Parmesan cheese! Freshly grated Parmesan cheese is tasty, but you can use any hard Italian cheese like Grano Padano, or Pecorino Romano.
Fresh Parsley: Use fresh parsley either Italian parsley or common parsley. Use a food processor to mince fine or mince your parsley the old-fashioned way with a chef’s knife. But do not skimp on the parsley
Garlic: You need to smell the garlic in the meat! Use fresh garlic use a press, mince, or grate. Do not skip the garlic. You can also add a teaspoon of garlic powder with your fresh garlic.
Onions: Do not skip the onions! They add so much flavor. You can use either Yellow, white or sweet onion. they all add a different note of flavor.
Be sure to rehydrate your breadcrumbs before adding to the meat mixture. Add 1/3 cup of milk to 1 cup of breadcrumbs. Let sit for about 5 minutes.
Meat: I find that using 85% lean ground beef is the perfect amount of fat. If you do not eat beef, you can substitute ground turkey, ground chicken, venison, or veal. You can also add Italian sausage to the mix for a different flavor note.
These smoky treats are really easy to prepare, and you may even have most of the ingredients hanging out in your fridge already:
Smoky Jalapeno & Bacon Poppers
12 fresh jalapeno peppers
12 slices of bacon
24 little smoky links
1 package of cream cheese (room temperature)
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
Sweet barbecue rub
1.To start the construction of these treats you’ll first want to wash and trim the jalapeno peppers. I highly recommend wearing plastic food prep gloves during the trimming portion to keep the jalapeno oils from soaking into your skin.
2.Trimming jalapeno peppers is a relatively simple task. Simply chop the stem off and slice the pepper lengthwise to expose the seeds and vein. Using a spoon, scrape out the white vein and rinse under water to wash away the seeds.
4.In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, paprika and cayenne pepper. Fill a pastry bag with mix.
5. Using a pastry bag, fill each jalapeno half with a generous portion of the cream cheese mixture.
6.Top each one of the filled peppers with a little smokey sausage link.
7.Wrap each of the smoky links topped jalapenos with a half slice of bacon, making sure that the seam is directly on top.
8.Secure the wrap by inserting a toothpick straight down through the overlapping edges of the bacon. Stop just short of going through the pepper, this will ensure the cream cheese will not melt through the hole.
9.Mix ¼ cup brown sugar and ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper. Season the treats with the sugar-based rub.
10.Bake at 325 degrees for an hour or until bacon is crisp. Do not overcook – the peppers will become too soft and the cream cheese will melt all over your oven.
11.Remove from oven, spread with a raspberry chipotle sauce, or brush on a sweet jam while hot. Let cool for about 10 minutes to set.
Traditionally we served fish for our Christmas Eve dinner. My mom loved her herrings in sour cream. Today, I will share my favorite dish and that is Crab Meat stuffed Flounder. This incredible dish can be served as a main entrée using the method below; or a side dish using smaller fillets; wrap a smaller flounder around a small scoop of crab meat mixture, secure with a toothpick. I have also served this crab mixture scooped on top of salmon or trout. You will enjoy this dish however you decide to serve it. Happy Holidays.
Sprinkle flounder with salt and pepper. Using a fillet knife, carefully open the flounder by cutting along the left and right sides of the seam down the middle of the fish to make pockets. Lay the cut sides back.
Kitchen Moxy 