Mangia, mangia!

For those of you who do not know, Taralli, is an Italian biscuit.

I have searched for a great Taralli recipe and so far this is the best one I have found. I like to eat it with fennel seed but it is also really good with red pepper. I have not ventured into the sweet versions of Taralli as of yet.

I love the unique taste of munching on these little treats. While the ingredients are quite simple, the trick to make them taste really good is to get the dough cooked thoroughly so that they are crunchy.

Here is my recipe:

1/2 cup olive oil,
1 cup white dry wine
flour
1/3 tsp salt
and add a tablespoon of whatever spice you like...
Fennel is by far my favorite but get creative!
Rosemary, garlic, black pepper, sea salt..

Knead until the dough is dry.

I have noticed that sticky dough makes it harder to roll out.

Roll out the dough. You want it to be pretty thin. You can have fun and make them any design you want.

Put them in boiling water (10 at a time). When they are cooked they rise to the top. Drain
the excess water off and let them try on a towel.

Bake them in the oven at 400 degrees until they are golden brown. Enjoy them in the morning
with a cup of coffee or at night with a glass of wine and cheese.

Eat Meat

Hunting season has come and gone. My fluorescent orange hat has been tucked away under the bed until next fall when I will once again bring it out of hibernation.

Every year, our family waves goodbye to my father hoping that he comes back with a beautiful elk. Aside from his bow hunting days, we have had a freezer full of Colorado elk every year.

Now, I could insert pictures of people holding their prized elk heads, showing off the points on the antlers but for me hunting is not about the sport but about the meat. My dad carefully butchers his own elk and the end result is nothing less than spectacular. Here are some recipes I would like to share with you.

One tip with elk is to first soak it in milk for a few hours. This tenderizes it. Then, I like to pound my meat out with a meat pounder and get it nice and thin before cooking it.

Grilled Elk:

The easiest elk recipe is to get fillets of elk, add some salt and pepper, wrap in bacon and throw on the grill.

Elk Piccata:

1 lb elk
salt, pepper, flour ( all mixed together for batter)
3 tbs Butter
1 tbs Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic
1/2 sliced mushrooms
2 tbs lemon juice
1/2 dry white wine
2 tsp caper plus 1 Tsp caper juice
3 tbs minced parsley


Sprinkle elk with the flour mixture. Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet. Add elk and brown on both sides. Remove elk from skillet. Add garlic and mushrooms to pan and cook for one minutes. Return elk to pan. Add lemon juice, white wine, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. Add capers and garnish with parsley.

Elk Marsala

salt, pepper, flour ( all mixed together for batter
2 tbs olive oil
3 tbs butter
1 lb elk
1/2 c dry Marsala
1/2 heavy cream

Heat oil and butter in skillet. Dredge elk in flour and brown elk quickly on each side and remove from skillet.

Add Marsala to skillet, make sure to stir and scrape the skillet to loosen the residue from the pan. When Marsala has begun to boil add cream and stir constantly over high heat until cream is mixed in with juices and creates a thick dark sauce. Add elk and simmer for a few minutes.

Elk Green Chile

1/2 c. oil
1 lb elk ( roast)
6 garlic cloves
1/2 c. flour
1 14.5 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 30oz de-thawed green chiles (look for them in the International section at the grocery store in the frozen food aisle)
3 cups of Chicken broth

Instructions:

Heat oil in pot, add elk and cook, lower heat and add minced garlic, cook 5 minutes, add flour and slightly brown, add tomatoes, green chiles and simmer for about 15 minutes, add chicken broth ( just to make it less thick so not too much or it will turn out soupy).

Fresh Farm Eggs are the BEST!!!!

There really is something to be said for homegrown! Whether it be produce or meat that is more than "organic" but raised in our beautiful Colorado fields, it just tastes SOO GOOD.

There are 2 store bought things that I will never be able to eat again, those are tomatoes and eggs.

The eggs that I buy from Judy Vader ( now Stickler) just amaze me. If you were to compare her eggs with the "organic free range eggs" at the grocery store just by looks alone it is obvious hers are a million times better.

I love cracking them open. The yolk is bright yellow and you can tell these hens are happy. And for good reason, they do live after all in one of the most beautiful places in the world and each egg is a gift of pure oral joy.

Poca Locas!!!

There is a fantastic cocktail cabin here in CB. The drinks are delicious and expensive. My favorite cocktail there is a Poco Loco which is habanero infused vodka and pineapple juice. Simple. SO simple that I am wondering why it took me so long to make this concoction myself.

Last week, I went to the store and bought some decent vodka.

Then, I added 4 habanero peppers. I used all the self control I could muster ( which was about 4 days worth) to let it infuse and tested it out.

WOW!!!! Amazing, I am hooked. Next time you want to impress your guests or just have a delicious spicy drink try this.

Add the vodka and pineapple juice in a glass with ice and shake it. Pour and garnish. It helps to shake the bottle to get all the spiciness of the peppers.

Ginger Hot and Sour Soup

This soup took me about 15 minutes to make. It was easy and delicious. The quantities listed below are more an approximation. As long as you keep the ratios the same it should come out great. I can't wait to make it again.

Ingredients:

Shiitake mushrooms

sesame oil

fresh ginger

garlic

chicken broth

Cabbage

Angle hair pasta

soy sauce

sugar

crushed red pepper

chicken breast ( cooked)

bamboo shoots

Rice vinegar

cornstarch

Instructions:

Heal oil and brown 3 tbs of ginger with a few cloves of garlic.

Add chicken broth ( about 4-5 cups)

Add chopped cabbage, cooked diced chicken, and mushrooms

Add red pepper, soy and a dash of sugar

In a bowl combine about 5 tbs of rice vinegar with 1-2 tbs of corn starch

Add this to the soup

Stir well and simmer until heated throughly.

Taste and adjust seasoning with more red pepper, broth or vinegar.

Hummus

2 cans of chickpeas
half of a lemon
about 3 tablespoons of olive oil
generous amount of garlic salt
red pepper ( to your tasting)
Rosemary
1/2 tsp. of Tahini

Mix in a blender until smooth.

Let cool for a good hour or more.

Serve with pita, Triscuts or carrots.

Spring?

I hope is around the corner. The birds have come back and hopefully with them will come nice weather. There is still a bit of winter in the air as you can see by the snow flakes and the bluebird wondering if he made it to his desired destination or went waywardly in the wrong direction.