Deviled Eggs, Potato Salad, and Triffle

Megapost! Mother's Day Brunch was a heck of a lot of fun and the eating was good. Most everything we served was ready to go hours before anyone showed up, which made having both my mother and mother-in-law over (love you guys, but no one makes a girl nervous quite like her mother and mother-in-law) easy-peasy.

Deviled Eggs

Ingredients
1 dozen hard-boiled eggs
3 tablespoons mayonaise
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
fresh ground black pepper

How To
Peel the eggs, cut them in half, and separate the yolks and whites:

Look how pretty the whites are on this bed of greens:

Mash the yolks, mayo, mustard and pepper with the back of a fork until nice and smooth:

Pipe the filling into the eggs using either a pastry bag or a freezer bag with the tip cut off:

Potato Salad

I love roasted potatoes in a potato salad. They're easier to make than boiled potatoes and have better flavor. In retrospect, I should have added capers. Good thing I can make it right with the leftovers!

Ingredients
2 pounds little yellow potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt, pepper, and garlic powder
2 celery ribs, chopped
5 radishes, chopped
1/4 cup mayonaise
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
1 tablespoon dill
1 teaspoon capers

How To
Wash the potatoes and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and season generously with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Roast at 450 for 25-35 minutes or until the potatoes have good color and a fork easily breaks a test potato in half.

Let cool completely (I baked the potatoes the night before and assembled the salad in the morning) then cut the potatoes into 8ths. Combine with the celery and radishes:

Mix the remaining ingredients together to make a dressing and toss with the potatoes. Serve chilled:

Triffle

I'd planned to make these complicated little lemon tarts for dessert but everything seemed fated against that plan. So I said why fight city hall? and made a very easy triffle instead.

Ingredients
1 pound cake, cut into cubes
1 pound strawberries, cut up and dusted with a teaspoon of sugar
whipped cream
1 jar lemon curd

How To
Layer cake, berries, whipped cream and lemon curd, ideally in a container that shows the layers. How cute is this dessert in this jar? Adorable! Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Aztec Brownies

I love sweet and spicy together and I love the combo of chocolate and cinnamon. These brownies fulfill all of those cravings.

If you don't like spicy foods, feel free to omit the cayenne. If you love, love, love spicy sweets, add an extra teaspoon. One teaspoon is enough to create a little bit of heat that builds as you eat but it's not so spicy that it becomes the focal point (or keeps you from eating more than is good for you, darn it.)

Ingredients

8 ounces of good-quality chocolate, chopped (try it with milk chocolate, try it with dark. Both are different and both are good.)
2 sticks of butter
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup of sugar (I use evaporated cane juice)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup flour (I use whole wheat)
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

How To

Grease a brownie pan and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Begin by beating together the eggs, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, cayenne and salt for about 5 minutes.

Melt the butter slowly over low heat. Once the butter is completely liquidated, pour over the chopped chocolate to melt.

Stir the chocolate and butter together. This is an easy way to both melt the chocolate and cool the butter.

Add the chocolate mixture to the egg mixture slowly, mixing very well. Lastly, add the flour and baking powder, mixing until just combined. Spread in your brownie pan:

Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Look at the nice crackly top crust on this bad-boy:

You can either leave well enough alone, or you can sprinkle the top with additional chocolate while the brownies are hot.

Let the heat of the brownies melt the chocolate, then spread across the top with the back of a spoon. Num.

One last brownie beauty shot:

Patrick needs to take these to work tomorrow. I'm not to be trusted alone with them in the house!

Jalapeño Cheese Bread

We're getting close to "oven off" season in this household. In our apartment, the mere thought of turning the oven on increases the temperature within it by ten degrees. In the winter, this is great-- make a pot roast and heat the house! Yes! But the rest of the year, forget about it. The summer months are spent in the yard, using the grill and the smoker.

It's only April but it's supposed to be in the triple digits tomorrow. What better way to deny the coming of summer than to fire up the oven and bake some bread?

Ingredients
1 package dry, active yeast
3/4 cup warm water
pinch of sugar
3 tablespoons of butter, melted and cooled
2 eggs
4 cups of flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
3 jalapeño peppers-- one cut into slices and the other two seeded and chopped
3 big garlic cloves, minced

How To
People get all freaked out about making bread with yeast, which I've never really understood. What's so scary about it? Yeast is fun-- it's like filling a paper-mache cone with vinegar and baking soda to imitate a volcano.

First, you proof your yeast by combining your yeast, pinch of sugar and warm water. The water should be just warmer than room temperature. Here's the yeast just after being mixed:

And here it is five minutes later. Bubbly fun!

If it doesn't bubble, then it's time for a trip to the grocery store because your yeast is no good.

Pour the flour into a mixing bowl and make a little well. Fill the well with the eggs, butter and yeast mixture. If you have a mixer, use the dough hook to mix and kneed the dough for several minutes.

Now, I made lots and lots of bread by hand before I owned a mixer. It's time-consuming (but is that a bad thing?) and takes elbow-grease (again, why is that a bad thing?) but doable. I feel a little spoiled by my mixer (I've only had it for a year but use it weekly.) Here's a good tutorial on how to mix and knead dough by hand if you're working without a mixer.

But I've got my mixer so I used my mixer (the KitchenAid Professional 6-Quart Mixer, if you're interested) to work everything together. Here's the dough just starting:

And here it is after about 5 minutes. Magic! If your dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl, add flour little by little until the dough begins to take shape but is still sticky:

Move the dough to an oiled bowl and cover to let rise. Here it is before mixing:

And here it is after letting it rise for about 30 minutes:

Neat, huh? Punch it down and let it go another round of rising.

One the dough has gone through two risings, it's time to heat your oven to 350 degrees. You want your oven nice and toasty once it's time to put in the bread.

Spread the dough out in a big rectangle. I use a combination of a rolling pin and my hands to massage it into shape. The nice thing about yeast doughs made with eggs and butter is they tend to be more glossy and elastic and a little less sticky than others doughs. I don't even use flour on my board while I roll it out:

Sprinkle the dough with the chopped jalapeños, minced garlic and handfuls of cheese. I'll confess that I don't measure the cheese when I do this, I just eyeball it. Don't go too crazy with the cheese though-- too much cheese and it will bubble out of the loaf and just make a big mess.

Now comes the tricky part. Roll the dough up like you would if you were making cinnamon rolls. One:

Two... (I am totally the one-armed dragon lady here, no?)

Three!

Pinch the final layer of dough to the top of the loaf and roll it around a bit to smooth out the seam. You want the dough to be fairly well sealed in on itself. The less sealed the dough, the more likely you'll have cheese on the pan and not in the bread like you want.

Center the loaf on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let it rise again for about 30 minutes. Press slices of jalapeño into the top and sprinkle with more cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes to an hour. Tap the loaf in the center. If it makes a hollow sound, it's done. Be sure to let it cool completely before slicing.

And then here it is... notice how rolling everything up makes yummy pockets of cheese:

Stuffed Potatoes

I'm cheating. I wrote this up a while ago but had no pictures. What fun is a recipe without pictures? These can be prepared well in advance of when you plan to serve them and can even be frozen and baked as needed.

Ingredients (per serving, multiply as needed)
1 medium-large russet potato
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 heaping tablespoon sharp cheddar cheese, shredded or cubed (Patrick is a big fan of the cubed!)
1/2 teaspoon chopped green onion
fresh ground pepper
shredded cheddar cheese and crumbled bacon (optional) to top

How To
Prepare potatoes according to the Steakhouse Potato recipe. Let potatoes cool until you can handle them comfortably.

Cut each potato length-wise. Using a soup spoon, scoop out the center of each potato, making sure to not scoop all the way out to the skin-- you want to leave some potato in the skin to give your skin some stability.

Arrange the skins in a shallow baking dish.

Put the scooped out skin in a heavy-duty freezer bag (1 pint-1 quart depending on how many you're making.) A freezer bag? Yes, a freezer bag. You'll thank me, I swear. Add the butter, sour cream, cheese, onions and pepper. Close the bag and squish the ingredients together until very well combined (my husband likes to do this step for me.)

Cut the corner off of your bag and squirt the filling into your potatoes.

Wasn't that easy? Now you don't have to clean a bowl or mashing instrument or nothing. Top the potatoes with the additional cheese and bacon (man, I love bacon. No bacon this time though.)

At this point, you can either bake the potatoes at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or you can refrigerate/freeze them for later use. We had these last night with tri-tip, chicken and grilled asparagus. Our friend Nora brought this gorgeous cake that I caught her boyfriend taking a picture of:

Mom's Easter Potatoes

I love Easter. It's such a happy holiday and it's all about family and food. No one is out looking for the perfect gift or hoping to fall in love so that they have someone to celebrate the season with. Here's my mother's table, set for Easter brunch:

And here's the dish that was my absolute favorite (and my brothers' favorite and my sister's favorite...) growing up:

One bite of this and I feel like a kid again, in a scratchy fancy dress and white Mary Janes, listening to the grown ups chatter and dreaming of what treasures I'll find during the egg hunt. It's funny, this recipe isn't like anything we cook these days-- the only canned foods we use are beans, tomatoes and tuna-- but come Easter and I need a spoonful of this cheesy casserole. Sometimes, you just have to admit that cream of mushroom soup can be magical.

UPDATE: My mom was cruising my blog and called to make some modifications. A little less soup, a lot more butter and sour cream!

Ingredients
12 big russet potatoes, baked, pealed and sliced
4 cups shredded sharp cheddar
2 cups shredded jack cheese
1 brown onion, diced
1 regular can cream of mushroom soup*
1 regular can cream of chicken soup*
2 cups of sour cream
1 stick of butter
/21 box of corn flakes

How To
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine the onion, potatoe and cheese in a big bowl. Heat the soup, sour cream and 1/2 of the butter in a sauce pan until the butter melts. Pour over the potatoes, mix well with your hands and pour into a large rectangular baking dish and place in the oven.

While the potatoes warm, melt the butter in a deep stock pot. Once the butter in melted, add the corn flakes and stir until the cornflakes are well coated in the butter. Take the potatoes out of the oven and top with the cornflakes. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cornflakes are toasted.

*I know! Seriously, I know.

Sweet Cuppin' Cakes

There's nothing quite like following up a post about having to cut sugar out of my diet with a post about delicious cupcakes. I made these for an agra hadig being thrown in honor of my niece this afternoon.

Wanna hear a terrible secret? When I'm baking lots of cupcakes, I use recipes from the Cake Mix Doctor. That's right, I use cake mix. Does that make me a bad person? More practical than purist, I suppose.

First, I made Peanut Butter Chocolate Cupcakes. I use the Cake Mix Doctor's chocolate cupcake recipe and Ina Garten's peanut butter frosting recipe. I then topped each cupcake with a miniature peanut butter cup from Trader Joe's.

Then, I made Lemon White Chocolate Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling and Lemon Buttercream Frosting. I used the Cake Mix Doctor's lemon lovers' white chocolate cake recipe, then used a special tool to fill each cupcake with a bit of raspberry jam. I then topped it with a lemon version of my mom's buttercream frosting recipe and a fresh raspberry.

Avocado time...

This post is for my friend, Jennifer, who confessed she doesn't know how to cut open an avocado. This reminded me of a story one of my professors in college told. She'd grown up on the east coast and came west to attend UCLA. At a party, she had her first taste of guacamole. She asked the host for the recipe and went to try making her own batch.

Because she didn't know, she bought hard unripe green avocados. Remembering the softness of the guacamole, she decided to boil the avocados in their skins. After 20 minutes of boiling away, one exploded, plastering her apartment's kitchen with green mush.

So, start with a ripe avocado. A ripe avocado has a black skin that gives easily when you hold it in your hand and press your thumb in. Get a nice sharp knife and cut the avocado in half by slicing it down the center and rolling the avocado around the pit until you've come full circle.

Put down your knife and take the avocado in both hands with one half in each palm. Give it a good twist.

Voila!

Now, how do you get that blasted pit out? You can dig it out with a spoon, but the most elegant and economical way to remove the pit is to use a knife.

This part takes a little faith and a little practice-- thunk your knife blade deep into the pit of the avocado. Don't worry if you have to strike it a time or two.

Pick up the avocado in one hand and the knife in the other and twist them in opposite directions. The pit will stick in the knife and lift neatly out. Whee!

Cut each half into quarters for easy pealing. If you're looking to have fancy-schmancy avocado cups for crab salad or what have you, take the more difficult path and don't cut.

Peel the skins back carefully. It should come off in one big piece and leave you with a lovely chunk of avocado meat. If your avocado is very ripe, the skin might come off in crumbly bits that you have to pick at.

Slice your avocado up and squirt with lemon if you're not planning to serve it right away-- lemon will keep it from turning brown. If you're planning to eat it right away, all you need is a little salt and pepper.

Carbonara

Part of my New Year's Eve celebration was arguing over the proper way to make pasta with a carbonara sauce. Cream, peas, onions, bacon? All wrong.

Made properly, carbonara is rustic, rich and mysterious. Yes, it lends itself to additions like sauted mushrooms or grilled shrimp, but don't insult the power of this very simple sauce by adding cream.

Ingredients

1 pound of pasta (I like a thick spaghetti or penne)
6 ounces of pancetta, chopped into small cubes
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon of olive oil
4 raw egg yolks
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
lots (three or four tablespoons) of fresh ground black pepper

How To

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While waiting for it to come to a boil, heat the olive oil in a large saute pan and saute the garlic and pancetta. Add the pasta to the boiling water.

In a large bowl, combine the pepper, egg yolks and Parmesan cheese. Once the pasta is cooked, take the saute pan off the heat, then drain and add pasta to the bowl of egg yolk mixture. Toss the pasta until it is all well coated. Then, pour the pasta into the saute pan and mix well. Serve hot.

Candy Cane Pretzels

I love the gifts of food and drink. The nature of them is temporary and celebratory, just like the season. I'll be posting several recipes for cookies, candies, and other gifts in the coming days. The one below is very easy and always a big hit. White chocolate is very easy to work with and a great choice for first-time candy makers!

Ingredients
1 pound bag of mini pretzels
2 pound2 white chocolate (I get mine from Trader Joe's-- they get theirs from Ghiradelli)
1 dozen peppermint candy canes ( I like Bob's)

How To
Chop the white chocolate up into big chunks. You can melt it in the microwave by heating it in 30 second intervals, stirring well in between. I actually melt mine by putting it in the crock pot on low for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. When it reaches the right consistency, I turn the crock pot to warm and begin using it right away. White chocolate is very forgiving but don't abuse it by overheating it.

While the chocolate is melting, unwrap the candy canes and put them in a plastic freezer bag. It's important to try and avoid touching the candy canes as much as possible because the sweat from your hands will make them sticky. Crush them with a rolling pin.

Dip the pretzels in the white chocolate until they are totally covered. I use a fork and tap the pretzel against the side of bowl a little so the shape of the pretzel is clear. Place on a piece of waxed paper. Sprinkle with candy cane. Let cool. Yum!

Spinach Gratin with Ham

I started with this recipe from the Barefoot Contessa years ago and have been slowly “modding” it to the great delight of family and friends. The version below is frequently requested and I get hungry just thinking about it.

Ingredients

2 bags of frozen spinach (16 ounces each)
1/2 stick of butter
4 cups chopped yellow onions
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
1/4 cup flour
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup chopped ham

How To

Thaw the spinach and squeeze as much liquid as possible from it. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Melt the butter in a large saute pan. Add the onions and saute until translucent. Add the flour and nutmeg and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Heat the cream and milk and add to the onion mixture. Cook until thickened. Add the spinach, ham, Parmesan cheese, and half of the Gruyere to the sauce.

Transfer the spinach to a baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining Gruyere on top. Bake for 20 minutes until the cheese on top has good color. Serve hot.

Onion Pie

My sister taught me this recipe. This is a real love-it-or-hate-it dish but if you love it, you really, really love it. It's great as a side dish or as a light meal when you pair a slice with a green salad.

Ingredients
1 uncooked pie crust
1 6 ounce jar Dijon mustard
2 large, white onions, sliced thinly
1 tablespoon butter
1 can crushed tomatoes, very well drained
1 1/2 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
fresh ground black pepper

How To
Melt the butter in a pan and add onions. Saute until the onions are very soft. As the onions cook, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spread the Dijon mustard thickly across the bottom of the pie crust and set aside. Once the onions are cooked, combine with the tomatoes and a good dose of pepper. Spoon the onion and tomatoes into the pie crust evenly. Sprinkle the gruyere over the top. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese is very brown.

Your kitchen will smell amazing. Let cool slightly before slicing. Delicious warm or cool.

Peanut Sauce

This sauce is great over chicken or shrimp and rice or noodles. Be aware that noodles will "suck up" more of the sauce than rice. This is also a high-fat sauce, which is why I prefer to use chicken breast with this as opposed to the thighs. This recipe makes enough sauce for 4 servings.

Ingredients
1 cup chunky peanut butter
2 cups soy ginger broth or chicken broth
1 tablespoon grated ginger (can be omitted if you are using soy ginger broth)
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce
1-2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
chopped green onion
1 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice
3 tablespoons soy sauce

How To
Combine all the ingredients save the green onion in a wide sauce pan. Stir until well combined over low heat. If you want the sauce a little thinner (especially if you plan to use it over noodles) a 1/4 cup water. Add the chicken or shrimp to the sauce and combine. Pour over rice or toss with noodles. Top with green onions and serve.

Mom's Pancakes

Waking up to the smell of pancakes and bacon was just about the best way to come to consciousness when I was a kid. My mom's recipe is easy to remember if you remember it's "one of everything". Double, triple, or quadruple according to your needs. One recipe makes enough for two servings.

Ingredients
1 cup flour
1 cup milk (spoiled milk works well for this)
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 dash of salt
butter for frying

How To
Mix your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients. Don't overmix, or you'll have rubbery pancakes. It's okay to leave a couple of lumps. Heat your frying pan over a medium-low flame. Add lots of butter to the pan. If you plan on making a lot of pancakes, add some vegetable oil to the butter-- it will keep your butter from burning. Spoon batter into the pan (I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup) and let cook until many bubbles rise, pop, and the top of the uncooked pancake begins to look somewhat "dry"*. Flip them and let the other side become nice and crispy brown. Serve with butter, maple syrup, lots of bacon, and hot, black coffee. If you're out of maple syrup, powdered sugar is pretty damn good too.

*If you're looking to mix it up a bit, try putting blueberries, chocolate chips, or crumbled bacon into the batter once you've spooned it into the pan. I never add these things to the batter during the mixing phase because you'll end up overmixing your batter and not distributing the goodies evenly.

Orange-Cinnamon Sticky Buns

I make sticky buns any time there is a reasonable excuse to do so. This dough is hearty and easy to work with. I use my mixer to kneed the dough, but you can use your hands.

Ingredients

for the dough
1 package active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk, warmed (I microwave it about 30 second in a coffee mug. Be sure it's just warm, not hot, or you'll kill your yeast.)
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 eggs, beaten (I take my eggs out early and let the cold wear off a little.)
3 cups flour, plus extra
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
zest of one large orange (I get an organic orange for this.)
1/4 cup butter, softened

for the filling and the "sticky"
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup butter
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

How To

1. Mix the warm milk, sugar, and yeast together. Let sit and get foamy. This way, you'll know your yeast is good.
2. Put all the remaining ingredients. I like to put all my dry ingredients into the bowl first, then create a "well" in the dry ingredients and add the liquids. Attach the dough hook a set on a low speed. Let mix for several minutes, then add flour if you must. Once the dough is no longer sticking to the sides or bottom of the bowl, you'll know it's stable.
3. Let the machine kneed the dough for a few minutes, then turn the dough out into a buttered bowl. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and place it somewhere warm.
4. Let the dough rise until it doubles, usually about 45 minutes. Punch the dough down and let it rise again. The second rise will take less time.
5. While the dough is rising, prepare the filling. Mix the sugars and cinnamon together in a small bowl and melt the butter.
6. After the second rise, punch the dough down and turn it out onto a floured surface. Honestly, I try and avoid adding more flour at this point and I've had good luck using a Silpat under my dough instead of flour.
7. Roll, push, and pull the dough into a rectangle of dough, as if you were making pizza. Brush the dough with the egg and a little more than half of the butter. Sprinkle evenly with a little more than half of the sugar.
8. Roll the dough up from the long side into a log, like you might roll up a sleeping bag. Cut the roll into 8 equal slices.
9. Pour the remaining butter into the bottom of a 10-by-16 inch pan, non-stick preferably. Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the butter. If you want pecans, sprinkle them over the sugar.
10. Arrange the rolls in the pan, taking care to leave plenty of space between them. Alternately, you can use a muffin tin.
11. Preheat the over to 375 degrees. Cover the rolls with a tea towel and let rise 30-40 minutes.
12. Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
13. Let the buns cool for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a cookie sheet or a serving pan. Again, the Silpat comes in handy for this! Don't leave them in the pan, or they'll become sticky little buggers that will take a lot of work to remove. Once the buns are turned out, be sure to pull them apart to prevent them from becoming too "bonded".

Blue-Cheese T-Bone Steaks

This recipe is so easy, so tasty, and it's the type of meal that sticks in your head and sneaks up on your thinking. Serve with very simple sides, like sweet corn and little roasted potatoes (I overcooked my little potatoes in the picture.) The steak is the star here.

Ingredients

2 T-bone steaks
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

salt and pepper

How To

Turn your oven broiler on high. Generously salt and pepper both sides of the steak. Broil for eight minutes, then turn the steak over. Broil six minutes, then top with the cheese. Broil for another 2 or 3 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and melty. Let rest 5 minutes and serve.

My smoke detector always goes off when I make this, but it's worth it!

Turkey Meatloaf

I made this recently to take to a dinner where one of the guests does not eat red meat. This meatloaf is a monster but a really tasty monster. This recipe made about 10 big servings, but we split the leftovers between couples and I'm already thinking about making it again, only cutting the recipe in half.

With all things poultry, moisture is my obsession. A friend gave me the idea to cook the onions with beer to increase the juiciness. I also highly recommend baking this with a baking thermometer in the center to prevent overcooking. It's also very important to mix meatloaf (and meatballs) with your hands. Get in there and squish that bad boy all around-- it's the only way!

Ingredients

1 onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 pound ground turkey (not too lean)
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup bread crumbs (I like the ones from Trader Joes or homemade. Watch out for the ones you get at the supermarket-- they're often salted or full of preservatives)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provance
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 cup ketchup
1 bottle of dark beer

How To
1. Heat the olive oil in a saute pan and cook the onions and garlic until soft. Add half of the beer and simmer gently until the beer reduces down and creates a kind of syrup (about 10 minutes.) Remove the pan from heat and let cool.
2. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
3. In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients, except for 3/4 cup of ketchup and the rest of the beer. Mix and squish everything together with your hands until everything is well Incorporated.
4. Pour the meat into a pan. I like to use a non-stick roasting pan. This loaf is not as "firm" as a beef meatloaf, so you'll have to coax it into shape. I always create a "valley" in the center with the edge of my hand to give the glaze a place to pool.
5. In another container, mix the remaining beer and ketchup to make the glaze. Coat the meatloaf with half of the glaze and put it into the oven.
6. Bake for 45 minutes, then baste the meatloaf with the second half of the glaze.
7. Bake an additional 45 minutes or until the internal temperature comes to 170 degrees. Let the roast "rest" for twenty minutes, then serve with mashed potatoes.

Mock Rumaki

I grew up helping my mother make these for every party she threw from 1986-1991. These little snacks are calorie bombs but they are absolutely worth it. I usually double or triple the recipe below if I'm having more than 4 guests. Be sure to serve them warm and be sure your kitchen is well ventilated if you're having guests in the kitchen (they can get a little smoky.)

Ingredients
8 thin bacon slices, cut in half
16 plum dates, pitted
16 unsalted almonds or 32 macadamian nuts
plain toothpicks

How To
Stuff each date with either one almond or two macadamian nuts. Wrap each date with a piece of bacon, then pierce through with a toothpick. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes.