Marinated Grilled Chicken

Click Here for Printable Version

3 or 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced thin
Marinade:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vermouth
1/4 cup lemon juice
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
fresh or dried thyme

Place chicken in a large zip-lock bag. Mix together remaining ingredients and pour into bag. Refrigerate for a few hours, turning bag occasionally.

Grill chicken for 4 -6 minutes per side (depending on thickness).

Final Harvest

With the temperatures dipping pretty low at night, it looks like we are at our final garden harvest. Guess I will be making cacciatore this weekend with all these peppers!

Shami Kababs

On my last grocery shopping trip I stocked up on the ground beef which was on sale. I wanted to make something last night with some of it, but not just the usual burgers, tacos, or meatloaf. I went searching online and came upon a few different varieties of Shami Kababs - spicy burger-like patties from Pakistan. Decided to give it a try. The menu...

Shami Kababs
Jasmine Rice
Homemade Naan

Click Here for Printable Recipe
Shami Kababs
Ingredients
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c. chickpeas
1/2 c. mashed potatoes
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 large red onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 tsp. garam masala
1/2 tsp. cumin powder
1/2 tsp. ground ginger powder
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1 Tbsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. red pepper flakes
2 egg whites
Chop onions finely. Mash chickpeas from can. Mix all ingredients (except egg whites) thoroughly. Shape into round patties. Dip each round patty in well-beaten egg white, then pan fry until brown on both sides. Serve hot.

UPDATE ... We had some of the meat mixture left over and made them again this week. This time we breaded them like regular cutlets. We shaped the patties, dipped in beaten egg, and then in seasoned breadcrumbs.

14-16 Shami Kababs.

Chef Salad

We got home from the gym a bit late, so I just started grabbing stuff out of the fridge. The result - a chef salad including everything but the kitchen sink. Tasty & semi-healthy.

Geyser Peak Reserve Chardonnay

2003 Geyser Peak Reserve Chardonnay

The Perfect Balance... thats about as good as we can describe it.

Aroma:
Craig: Butterscotch.
Jenn: Granny Smith Apples

Palate:
Craig: Caramel Apples. A bit mineraly
Jenn: Apples, Almonds
Both: The wine had a perfect acidity and crisp finish.

Verdict: Not over-oaked. Craig thought this paired perfectly with our roasted chicken dinner (as did I), but I also thought I would have loved this wine alone or with just some nibbles of cheese and crackers.

Honey Roasted Chicken

I tried something a little different last night on the whole roasted chicken. I brushed a little bit of honey on the skin before seasoning and baking.



I didn't use too much, so the flavor was very subtle, but it gave the skin great color. (I won't go into how long it took me to take that photo of the honey)



Craig picked out a fantastic wine to accompany dinner - 2003 Geyser Peak Reserve Chardonnay.

Chicken stuffed with roasted peppers

Craig roasted a big batch of peppers, so I thought I would put together a recipe using some of them for dinner. Chicken Stuffed with Roasted Peppers was the result.



Not a very detailed recipe, but Click Here for Printable Version

Start by butterflying boneless skinless chicken breasts.



Cover each with salt, pepper, roasted pepper strips, shaved romano cheese, minced garlic, and fresh basil and oregano.



Roll up chicken. Tuck ends in, close with a long skewer, and coat in a breadcrumb/cheese mixture. Brown both sides in a pan with garlic and olive oil.



Once brown, put in a 400-degree oven for 20-30 minutes until cooked through.

That's It!

Football = Nachos

Easy Sugar Cookies

Last night I tried the sugar cookie recipe off the side of a bag of Publix sugar. Pretty good.



Click Here for Printable Recipe

Sugar Cookies
Source: Publix Apron’s Simple Meals

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter, softened
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

- Combine flour, baking powder and salt, mixing well. Combine sugar and butter in large bowl, with electric mixer on high speed, until well mixed. Add egg and vanilla; mix well. Add flour mixture; mix well.
- Chill two hours until firm.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Roll dough to ¼-inch and cut into shapes. Place on lightly greased baking sheet.
- Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely.

Mint Tea

Another recipe for a guy with a cold... tea with honey and a minty stirer from the garden.

No Fuss Beefy Soup

As usual, when we travel by air, one of us gets a cold. This time Craig was the lucky one. I decided to make a big pot of soup to try and help his throat. Craig isn't the biggest fan of soup, so I made one which was mostly broth with just a few ingredients and lots of black pepper.



CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE RECIPE

Sipala's No Fuss Beefy Soup
From the Kitchen of Craig & Jennifer Sipala

Ingredients

1lb beef, diced
2 carrots, cut into half moons
2 ribs celery, diced
1 large onion, diced
1 russet potato, diced
1 28oz can whole tomatoes
4 cups beef stock
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
Salt & lots of black pepper
Optional: barley, pasta, cannellini beans, chickpeas

Directions

- Dice beef, potato, carrots, celery, and onion.

- Over medium heat, sauté carrots, celery, and onion in olive oil until softened. Remove and set aside.

- Brown beef cubes and then re-add carrots, celery, and onion. Add beef stock and water and bring to a boil.

- Add potato cubes, bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper.

- Reduce heat to low - cover - simmer 1 hour

- Add additional ingredients and heat through before serving.

Open Faced Taco

Mmmm, tacos.

Yellow Tomato

On my last trip to the supermarket I found beautiful yellow tomatoes. I bought one not really sure what I was going to do with it. When I started making some pizzas for dinner that night, Craig suggested just slicing it and making a tomato and fresh basil pie. I'm not sure the photos do it justice... it made for a beautiful pie and tasted just as good!!

Are you ready for some football!

What else would we be having on this first Sunday of football but buffalo wings! Not much of a recipe. Seperate wings into two sections and then sprinkle with a little flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Brush with Texas Pete buffalo sauce and continue to baste while grilling.

Prepping four dozen wings...


Craig grills them to perfection!

Baby Back Ribs

For Labor Day we made baby back ribs. This was our first attempt at making whole racks of ribs. It was actually much easier than I thought it would be and they turned out very tender. I handled the first half of the recipe in the kitchen, then Craig took over outside on the grill. (He had the tough part since it started pouring rain as soon as we were ready to grill).

Click Here for Printable Recipe

Sipala's Beginner BBQ Ribs

2 Racks Baby Back Pork Ribs
24oz Beer (2 Bottles)
1 Small Onion, Sliced
18oz Prepared BBQ Sauce

- Cut each rack of ribs in half.
- Place ribs in pot, then add beer, onion, and cold water to cover.
- Over high heat, heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low - cover - simmer 1 hour or until almost tender. Drain, cover and chill until ready to grill.
- While the grill heats, coat ribs with BBQ sauce.
- Place ribs on grill over medium coals. Grill 20 minutes or until tender, brushing with sauce often and turning occasionally.

Marco Island Eats

Because of the threat of Hurricane Ernesto, many of the restaurants on Marco Island were closed, but we made due.

Pit stop at Steak 'n Shake on the drive down


Across the street from the hotel we found a small sports bar.


Rookies Dijon Horseradish Beef Sandwich


Craig checks out the wine list at Campiello's Restaurant.


We ate at Kurrents Restaurant at the Marriott two nights. On top of the great food, they offered valet parking (which saved us from running thru Ernesto's rain).

Dumpling Appetizer (the Wasabi Cream sauce was amazing... or as our waitress kept saying, it was "to die for")

The restaurant was pretty dark, so unfortunately most of my photos didn't come out very well. This was one of my entrees - it was their take on a Bento Box... each compartment had something different to taste - included tuna, shrimp, scallops, and the top right corner is Lobster Mac & Cheese!!

A few days away...

Gone Fishin' (well, not really) ... but see ya'll in a week!

Burgers & Zin

A great combination - burgers and zinfandel. Tonight I added minced and sauted onion, garlic, and red pepper to the meat.



Served at the best table in town...


Yum.

Maple-Nut Scones

I had made these scones once before, a few years ago. I came upon the recipe again and decided to give them another try. Pretty tasty.

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE RECIPE



Maple Nut Scones

Ingredients
2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons walnuts, chopped

2 cups flour
½ cup butter or margarine, firm
2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup walnuts, chopped and toasted
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk

Directions

- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Mix 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons finely chopped nuts; reserve.
- Cut the margarine into flour, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, baking powder, and salt with a pastry blender or two large knives in a large bowl until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
- Stir in a ½ cup of toasted nuts.
- Stir in maple syrup, egg, and just enough milk so that the dough leaves the side of the bowl and forms a ball.
- Turn the dough on to a lightly floured surface; gently roll in flour to coat.
- Knead lightly 10 times to coat.
- Pat or roll into an 8-inch circle on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
- Brush with milk and sprinkle with brown sugar nut mixture.
- Cut into eight wedges but do not separate.
- Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Immediately remove from cookie sheet; carefully separate the wedges. Serve warm and enjoy!

English Muffin Pizza

One of the perks of working from home - homemade lunch. Today's delight, toasted english muffin pizza...

Eggplant Rollatini

For some reason making Eggplant Rollatini has always given me a bit of trouble. Not sure if it was the full moon or meteor shower, but it turned out fantastic tonight. Thin sliced eggplant lightly fried and then rolled around a mixture of ricotta & romano cheeses and fresh herbs.

Here are the rolls almost ready to be baked...


Add some chianti - Yum.


A few day old roll made for a great piece of garlic bread (no chance of vampires here tonight!)

Pucker-licious

After seeing multiple recipes for Key Lime Pie on Food Network this past weekend and then finding a bag of Key Limes on sale at the market, Craig and I decided it was fate and we needed to make one.

We picked a recipe from Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa) - her recipes have never steered me wrong in the past. This recipe was fairly easy. First you pre-bake a graham cracker crust and then fill it with a key lime custard and freeze. She garnished it with whipped cream, but we decided to skip that this time.

Here is our crust ready to be baked.


The recipe calls for 3/4 Cup lime juice. Using tiny key limes it took about 20 of them to get the required amount of juice and zest. Here are some of the remnants


Finished Pie...


Click Here for Printable Recipe

No Bake Key Lime Pie
Copyright, 2002 Barefoot Contessa Family Style

Ingredients

For the crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (10 crackers)
1/4 cup sugar
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:
6 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons grated lime zest
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (4 to 5 limes or 20 key limes)


Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- For the crust, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter in a bowl. Press into a 9-inch pyrex pie pan, making sure the sides and the bottom are an even thickness. Bake for 10 minutes until firm and golden. Allow to cool completely.
- For the filling, beat the egg yolks and sugar on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for 5 minutes, until thick. With the mixer on medium speed, add the condensed milk, lime zest, and lime juice. Pour into the baked pie shell and freeze.

When life gives you too many ripe bananas...

Banana Bread



CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE RECIPE

Ingredients
5 Tablespoons butter
½ Cup sugar
½ Cup light brown sugar
1 egg + 2 egg whites
1½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon almond extract
3 very ripe bananas, mashed
1¾ Cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ Cup half & half or cream
¼ - ½ Cup chopped nuts (walnuts, macadamias, etc) -> Next time I'm going to leave these out.

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Spray bottom only of a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Beat butter in large bowl on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar and brown sugar – beat well. Add egg, egg white, vanilla, almond extract and beat until well blended. Add mashed banana and beat on high for 30 seconds.
- Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in medium bowl. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with cream – ending with flour mixture. Add nuts to batter and mix well.
- Pour batter into loaf pan. Bake until browned and toothpick comes out clean from center – about 1 hour 15 minutes.
- Cool bread in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove bread and cool completely on wire rack.

Pecorino & Sage Biscuits

My neighbor gave me a beautiful sage plant yesterday. She assured me she wasn't going to use it and she knows "I-talians" do. I took it in exchange for some of our tomatos.



I decided to use some of the sage today and came up with Pecorino & Sage Biscuits. I started with my Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe and added about 1/2 Cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese and a couple Tablespoons fresh sage.



In case you were curious, tonights tomato dish was angel hair with tomato, basil & garlic.

Fried Green, I mean Red, Tomatoes

We still have tomatoes coming out of ours ears, so I've been trying to be creative in using as many as I can. Here's a take on fried green tomatoes.

Home grown tomatoes thick sliced, dipped in egg, and then coated in a mixture of seasoned breadcrumbs, panko breadcrumbs, and grated cheese. I sprinkled with garlic powder and salt before lightly frying in olive oil.





Craig made the addition of ranch dressing (which by the way he made from scratch!)

Cupcakes

Boxed Golden Butter Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Icing

Stuffed Bread

Stuffed with whatever was in the fridge...



Pepperoni
Mozzerella
Peppers & Onions & Garlic (all softened in some olive oil)
Garden Tomato Slices





Just like our recent pizzas, baked outside on the grill.


Mmmm, gooey. Guess there's no skipping the gym tomorrow.