Maybe if we all “think” Spring on March 1, we can prove that bossy ole Ground Hog wrong. Denver has had it better than a lot of you East Coast folks, but nonetheless, I’ve had snow on the ground in my yard since October. I’m ready for Spring.
So tell me, are you a dipper or a smasher?
It seems there’s been a small revival of Dippy Eggs, and my friend Vickie in Montana is responsible. She recently went to California to stay with her Grandson for a week and posted a great piece about their daily breakfast, Mad Dippy Eggs. You can take a look at that post HERE.
Then Larry over at Big Dude’s Ramblings chimed in with his offering of Dippy Eggs. You can review Dippy Eggs ala Larry HERE.
I’ve never made Dippy Eggs, but I have enjoyed lots of Smashy Eggs. It’s somewhat the same concept. I just gently smash, which is not to be confused with mashing.
Dictionary.com tell us the definition of mash is: To reduce to a soft pulpy mass as by beating.
They go on to tell us the definition of smash is: to break to pieces from a violent blow or collision, to dash with a shattering or crushing force or with great violence; crash.
Ok folks, just cut out all the violence and noise and you’ve got a gentle smash. Let’s take a look:
As with Dippy Eggs, the key to this dish is a perfectly cooked sunny side up egg. To achieve this, I so gently flip the egg over for a few seconds at just the right time. And by the way, I use butter to cook the egg.
Clockwise from upper left:
Smashy or Dippy.
It’s What’s for Breakfast.
You want to know how easy this recipe is? It’s such an easy fix that you can prepare this at an altitude of 10,000 feet at a rustic Colorado campsite, after having three glasses of high alcohol content red wine, on an empty stomach…nuff said.
Of course I must admit I did some pre-prep at a home altitude of 5,280 feet, with no wine, before traveling to said 10,000 foot camping site. I mean you have to know the ins and outs of this high altitude, no oxygen camping business folks. (wink)
I really have no problem with recipes or meals that take a couple of hours of tinkering, fussing, adjusting, tasting, more fussing and tinkering…but you can’t beat a “quick middle of the week, I’m tired from working all day” easy meal. This is one of those.
I’ve had this recipe for too many years to count. I was watching a salmon demonstration one Saturday afternoon at a local supermarket. The fish counter guy was searing a chunk of salmon filet that had been topped with a sprinkle of cumin, some lemon zest, a slice of lemon and topped with a pat of butter. So over the years it’s evolved into this. Somehow I feel it’s not done evolving, but for now, here’s what we have.
I happened to use a salmon steak this go around
Lea Ann’s Lemon-Lime Salmon
1 lemon
1 lime
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic — minced
1 Tbs olive oil
3 Tbs butter — softened
2 salmon filets, total about 3/4 pound
Grate lemon and lime peel, thinly slice 1/2 of each. Juice the other halves. Combine 2 Tablespoons of the lemon/lime juice, cumin, garlic and olive oil. Place salmon on a sheet of parchment paper. Sprinkle with some of the lime and lemon zest, and pour the lemon-lime juice mixture over top. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper then arrange lemon and lime slices uniformly over the filet. Wrap up with the parchment paper. Place in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 8 – 15 minutes depending on the filet.
Mix butter, remaining juice and peel in a bowl. Microwave for a few seconds to melt.
Serve with lemon-lime butter for dipping.
Servings: 2
This recipe is so easy that you have time to take photos of your goofy cat, who thinks she’s hidden and in a green plastic box that’s on the kitchen table and trying to figure out how to lunge for my throat checking my every move as I prepared the fish.
It’s What’s For Dinner.
Enjoy.
Did I ever tell you that we have a son who lives in Tucson that’s a trained Chef??? That’s right, about 20 years ago we loaded him up on Amtrak and sent him West to Portland, Oregon to Culinary School! Even though he’s not currently using his skills in the restaurant arena, he loves to cook and you can imagine some of the wonderful dishes that come out of his kitchen.
I’ve been nagging asking him to email me some of his creations for my blog and here’s the first offering, Barbacoa!
One of my Christmas gifts this year was a subscription to Bon Appetit Magazine. I saw this recipe for Mexican Meatball Soup in the first issue I received and fell in love.
While this dish is incredibly delicious, it is somewhat of a production to make. This Saturday was cold and snowy in Denver, so I couldn’t think of a better time to spend a couple of leisurely hours in the kitchen with this recipe.
Pungent, earthy, cleverly spiced, complex, and just full of unexpected little delights, this soup will not disappoint. Not falling short in presentation, the brick-red color of the broth is really breathtaking. The meatballs are genius in many ways and the addition of grated zucchini adds a delicate moistness to their texture. So with all that said, here’s the recipe for a great Mexican Meatball Soup.
Our Valentines Day, by choice. was very low-key. Quiet and relaxing. I can give or take the pomp and circumstance and am also perfectly happy just to go out for a good burger as long as I’m with Bob This year I was going to make steak and shrimp, but that Chipolte Buffalo Chili from Saturday night was so good, we decided to have it for leftovers.
I did however, surprise and impress him with this cake. Not only is it cute as the dickens, but it is extremely luscious, rich and delicious.
It’s Black Forest Upside Down Cake. I saw mention of it coming out of the Martha Stewart camp, but couldn’t find it. So, found a Black Forest Cake over at All Recipes, and a Plum Upside Down Cake over at Martha Stewart and just winged it.
Buffalo Chili with lime crema, flavored with chipotle and lime flavored sour cream. A delicious riff on a traditional dish. I’m starting off this post with a photo of the Lime Crema. This mixture of sour cream, lime zest and lime juice is key to the uniqueness of this chili. Michele, who originally posted this recipe and judge at the chili cookoff contest noted that she was unimpressed with the stand-alone flavors without this Crema. I agree, it is a fabulous addition.
As promised, I’m posting the recipe for the salad our friend Teri brought to our Super Bowl Party. Wanting to contribute a Louisiana-themed salad she turned to our friend Google and came up with this tasty recipe from the Palace Cafe in New Orleans, Louisiana Sunburst Salad.
The first part of this week was spent enjoying leftovers from my Super Bowl party. Man was that jambalaya good. Thursday demanded that I try to use some things lingering in the fridge. I found this recipe over at Foodandwine.com. I had everything on hand. Don’t you love it when that happens?
With a chicken breast in the freezer, feta cheese that I keep on hand for salads, a tomato that’s been basking in the sunshine on the kitchen counter, black olives from the relish plate from the Super Bowl party and some corn tortillas in the freezer, I was able to throw this super easy recipe together for dinner.
Here’s the recipe and an absolutely horrible photo. I mean look at that – Tastespotting would reject that photo so fast those olives would spin. If you’d like to see a professional photo over at Food and Wine, here’s the link to the recipe. http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chicken-and-feta-tostadas
Chicken and Feta Tostadas – Food and Wine Magazine:
3/4 pound plum tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cup black olives, such as Kalamata, pitted and chopped (I used plain old ripe black olives)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (you know me well enough by now that Cilantro was on that tostada)
1 roasted chicken, bones and skin removed, meat shredded (about 1 pound boneless meat) (1 chicken breast from my freezer, cooked and shredded)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
3 tablespoons cooking oil, plus more for brushing tortillas
8 small or 4 large flour tortillas (all I had was corn tortillas, so I briefly sautéed them in olive oil until they were crisp – I actually think this would have been better with flour tortillas)
1/2 pound feta cheese, crumbled (about 2 cups)
Directions
1.Heat the oven to 450°. In a large glass or stainless-steel bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives, parsley, chicken, salt, pepper, vinegar, and the 3 tablespoons oil.
2.Brush the tortillas on both sides with oil and then put on baking sheets, overlapping if necessary. Bake the tortillas until starting to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the tortillas and brown the other side, 2 to 3 minutes longer.
3.Remove the baking sheets from the oven and top each tortilla with an equal amount of the feta cheese. Return the baking sheets to the oven; cook until the cheese is just melting, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Top the tortillas with the chicken mixture. (oops, I didn’t notice this part, I put the whole kit-and-caboodle under the broiler)
This is a really easy and delicious recipe that will become a staple around our house. And of course with tostadas, there are so many variations available if you don’t have all the exact items on hand.
And speaking of Tastespotting. Remember when I said I’d faint if they actually accepted a photo of mine? Well they did accept the photo of my little Scallop Sandwich appetizer and I didn’t faint. http://highlandsranchfoodie.wordpress.com/2010/01/02/a-gallery-of-new-years-food/
Chicken Tostadas with Feta Cheese…It’s What’s For Dinner
