It’s that time of the year again. You know where family gather and people eat like there’s no tomorrow. It’s also the time of year when everyone wants to show off their culinary skills (or the lack there of) with tables full of traditional and not so traditional meals. Well with the weeks leading up to the big turkey day and Christmas fast approaching after that The Chef In pearls will be sharing video tips to get you through the holidays with ease. You’ll be able to participate in the videos by catching them live on Periscope. You can download the app for free in your app store, Apple and Android users alike. Once downloaded look for me as, you guessed it, The Chef In Pearls. Then listen out for that sexy whistle because I will be coming to you live . You can always let me know some of the things that are your biggest challenges and I will try to address them in the scopes. Looking forward to helping you make new memories this holiday season
I love when I can find something new to do with eggs. Not just something new but something that taste great too. I mentioned in my previous post that I have come into being addicted to Pinterest. Well, while on one of my many visits to Pinterest I came across an Israeli dish named Shashuka. Now I know the name doesn’t do much on giving you a hint of what it’s made from ( well at least not in English) but I promise you it is full of flavor. Even better than the taste is the ease of making this dish. In less than 30 minutes you’ll have something that tastes wonderful and looks just as appealing. It’s something you can do and invite a couple of friends over for brunch. It won’t damage your pocket and everyone will be happy. Canned tomatoes, eggs, some herbs & spices ( I added onions, mushrooms and spinach to my base), feta cheese and some crusty bread. Who wouldn’t be happy with an invite to a meal like that? My version of Shashuka was adapted from Food 52.
Shashuka
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions caramelized
1 container of baby portabella mushrooms, sliced
2 cups rough chopped fresh spinach
28 ounces canned diced tomatoes
9-10 garlic cloves, chopped small
1 1/2 tablespoons Pilpelchuma, store bought or recipe below
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped (I used flat leaf parsley because I don’t like cilantro)
4-6 eggs
1/4 cup feta cheese
4-6 warm pitas or grilled crusty bread
Pilpelchuma
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1/2 tablespoon hot paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 pinch cumin
1 pinch salt
Pilpelchuma: Mix ingredients together to form a paste. This will keep for 3 weeks in the fridge.
Heat the oil in a large skillet or pan with lid over low heat.
Add the caramelized onions, mushroom slices, chopped spinach, chopped garlic, paprika, cumin, & pilpelchuma to the pan and saute for 3-4 minutes until fragrant.
Mix in the canned tomatoes & salt. Cover the pan with lid and simmer for 15 minutes. At this point, you can cool the sauce and store to use another day. Just heat it back up in the same pan and continue from here.
Add and mix in the cilantro leaving a bit out of the pan to garnish with later.
Make pockets in the sauce with a wooden spoon or spatula and very carefully crack the eggs into them. Make sure to space the eggs out. There should be sauce in between each egg for them to cook properly (and prettily).
Immediately cover the pan, turn the heat up a bit to medium and cook without lifting the lid for 4-7 minutes depending on how you like your egg yolks. 4 for runny yolk and 7 for hard cooked yolk..
Eat right away while its piping hot. Sopping up all the sauce with the pita. Enjoy!
Shashuka with toasted naan
The finished dish
So get out your contact list, invite a few friends over and go forward & make new memories.
Okay, what do you do when you want dessert for dinner and you don’t want to bake a whole cake? You pull out your grill pan of course. (You guys must be tired of my grill pan but know that I love my grill pan) I had a nicely ripened peach, some vanilla yogurt, granola and honey. It was the making of a really good dinner. I hope you try this one.
Now go forward and make new memories
P.S . This is a good one for those watching their figure…I still don’t know what the calorie count is on this. *Shrugs shoulders*
I have spent the last few days super excited about where The Chef In Pearls is heading. I have actually been walking around here or dare I say floating on cloud 9. I am always happiest when I can see that my passions are accepted and needed by others. The birth of Exclusive Party Of One was not easy ( financially, physically and even emotionally) but it’s here and being well received. In moving forward with this series I bring you a dish made for one, Penne Pasta in a Herb Goat Cheese sauce. I was able to do a live broadcast of me cooking this dish on Periscope. If you weren’t able to catch it I am sharing it here today with the recipe. Please keep in mind that recipes are really suggestions, not just mine but all. If there is something you don’t care for (I HATE cilantro) leave it out or substitute something else in its place (I usually use flat leaf parsley in cilantro’s place) . Get creative with it. This was a meatless dish but you could add chicken or even shrimp or whatever you like. It’s up to you. Okay enough of the yabbering. Here’s the ingredients to go along with the video above.
1 cup dry penne pasta (cooked according to package)
1 TBSP of olive oil
I cup packed spinach leaves
2-3 baby portabella mushrooms sliced
2-3 slices of red onions cut in half
1-2 oz of herb goat cheese ( depends on how rich you want the sauce)
1/3 cup half & half
zest of half of a lemon
1/2 TBSP chopped parsley
fresh parmesean cheese
kosher salt
black pepper
P.S. If you can make this dish for one you can sure make it for two . So go invite the cute guy from down the hall over for dinner. Just a thought : )
Now go forward and make new memories.
P.S.S. If you re-create the dish please share a pic on our Facebook page @TheChefInPearls I’d love to see what you did ; )
I made this dish over a month ago . When I put the pic on social media ( i.e. Instagram, my Facebook page, food groups I participate in) I got so many hits for it. Everyone wanted to know how to prepare it. Just to make sure it wasn’t a fluke I prepared it again and posted a new pic. Same response. So in an effort to be a woman/chef of my word I created a video showing everyone how to re-create the simple yet yummy dish.
Things you’ll need to re-create dish:
Salmon Steaks
Old Bay Seasoning
Cast Iron Grill Pan
Sweet Thai Chili Sauce
Pastry Brush
Please if you re-create this salmon dish share a picture on social media with me and leave me a comment on the post. Now go forward and make new memories.
So last week I did my very first live broadcast on a new social platform named Periscope. I used the broadcast to introduce myself and The Chef In Pearls to those who tuned in. I used the same platform again when I snagged an interview with Chef Tregaye from Food Network notoriety. The interview went well but I need some additional equipment to make interviews even better. So, so far I got the whole stationary thing down packed time to take it on the road. That’s what I thought I was doing today when I decided to visit The Grant Park Farmers Market. I wanted to give everyone a peek into some of the things I like. Well here’s that video…..
Not too bad for my first on the go broadcast. So here’s the complete list of 6 things you need to know:
1. You have got to have comfortable shoes. You’ll be doing a lot of walking and standing ( especially if your learning from the vendors)
2. Try to walk the entire market quickly first. This give you an idea of who is there and what you may be interested in before you start shopping.
3. Bring your own tote bag. It is key. Most vendors do not provide shopping bags ( it’s also a way for you to do your part in saving mother earth)
4. An insulated bag or a cooler is great to keep things cool. Throw in a little ice or ice packs and your good to go.( Nothing worse than buying some butter and it’s all melted before you even get it home)
5. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. The vendors/farmers/artisans want to share their knowledge with you. They want you to enjoy their produce/products in the best way possible so ask questions. From how to best use it or how it was grown/made.
6.Taste. Yup if they are offering samples try it. (I always check to see if there are too many bugs hanging around before trying) Generally speaking if they are offering samples then go for it. You’ll be surprised at the new things you’ll bring into your kitchen be a use you gave something new a try.
There was supposed to be more video but as always life happens and I had to cut my trip to the market short. I was still able to snag somethings before leaving like the last peaches of the season from Pearson farms ( their peaches are unbelievably yummy), some zucchini blossoms (I haven’t decided how I’ll cook them yet) and Greek style yogurt made in Norcross, Ga (vanilla because I like to add my own fruit and granola when eating).
Patchwork City Farms
Zucchini Blossoms
Zucchini Blossoms
Shaved watermelon
If you’ve got a local farmers market in your neck of the woods by all means head to. Find something new to try out in the kitchen. It’s a great way to make new memories. Now go forward and make some.
P.S. Hey like I said I’m still learning so I hope you’ll follow me on my Periscope journey @TheChefInPearls.
P.S.S. Don’t forget to check out my store^^^(just click the tab that says store) if you need a good tote or insulated bag. Feel free to check out the other items I have there too.
So what do you do when you have over 10 pounds of leftover Italian sausage? You put them to good use (Don’t ask where they came from). My son was determined to eat sausages for a week straight but his sister wanted no parts of that. I was able to create 4 meals before having to call it quits. The following are pics of the dishes (requested by the kids).
Sausage and Potato Hash
Thin Spaghetti with Toamto sauce and Italian Sausage
Close of the meal
Italian Sausage Pizza on freshly made flat bread wih a seasoned ricotta base
Scrambled Cheese Eggs with pan-fried Italian Sausage and a warm tortilla
What are some dishes you might have created using Italian Sausages?
Go buy a pound of Italian Sausages and see what you can create. Now go forward and make memories
My kids are like most kids they love pizza. What makes them slightly different from most people’s children is that, although they love a good pepperoni pizza they much rather have something a little more upscale. I decided I wanted to make pizza out of freshly made flat bread. The above picture was the ending result. Grilled Chimichurri Salmon and Shrimp Flatbread pizza.
I am going to include the links to the recipes I used to get this wonderful meal made. The first thing I did was to prepare the seafood which meant I needed to make my Chimichurri sauce. Chimichurri is an Argentine sauce used mainly with grilled meats. I used it on seafood and had pretty tasty results. I chose this particular Chimichurri Sauce because it did not use cilantro ( I am not a fan of cilantro. It’s one of those things you either love or hate . I hate it). I reserve at least a 1/2 cup of the sauce to be used later. I then seasoned the shrimp and salmon steaks with Old Bay seasoning in separate containers. I then covered them the seafood in the Chimichurri sauce and refrigerated them.
We are fans of onions so I set out to caramelize onions for an additional topping on out pizza. Making caramelized onions is pretty easy but if you need a recipe to follow here’s an easy one, The onions take on average from 30-45 minutes to cook so plan accordingly. In keeping with the time issue I proceeded to make the dough for the flat bread, it needs an hour to rise. I found this recipe on the New York Times website. I only made 2 changes:
1. I used 1/2 the amount of salt called for in the recipe.
2. I used a grill pan instead of firing up the outdoor grill.
Instead of using a tomato base for the pizzas I decided to do a ricotta cheese base. I used 1 cup of ricotta cheese and stirred in a Tablespoon of McCormick’s Montreal seasoning, 1 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning and 3 cloves of chopped garlic (you can use more or less garlic depending on your preference). Once my flat breads were made and cooled I spread them with the ricotta cheese mixture to start my pizzas off. I took the seafood out of the fridge and grilled them in my grill pan making sure not to over cook. When the salmon was cool I used my hands to break up the fish into nice flakes, I didn’t want hunks of fish but rather sexier pieces of fish. I placed the ricotta covered flat bread on a baking sheet(I was able to do 2 at a time) and continued laying the yummy goodness on top. I added shredded cheese next ( Monterey Jack and Mozzarella), then the caramelized onions followed by the seafood. I placed it in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until the cheese melted. Once It came out I drizzled some of the reserved Chimchurri Sauce on top. Viola Pizza is done.
Heating grill pan
Flatbread on hot grill pan
Rolled out flatbread dough
Nicely grilled flatbread
Ready to eat
I’m ready for my close up Mr. DeVille
All gone!
Let me know if you make this dish. I would even like to see pictures. Email me at info@TheChefInPearls.com. Now go forward and make memories.
Yup I said it. I finally found a Mexican restaurant that I truly enjoy. Now don’t get me wrong I eat Mexican food at other places but they never truly satisfy me the way I have longed for. Tacos and Tequila is the first Mexican restaurant I have gone to that makes me want to stop writing and head over there for dinner, right now. I won’t do it even though I really want to (no really I want to).
I visited their Ponce de Leon Location and was greeted very warmly. As we were escorted to our table I was taking in the over all look of the restaurant which was inviting and very clean (they even received a score of 100 on their inspection score). Our waiter Mateo took the time out to talk to us about the choices of margaritas we could have. We even learned about the restaurant’s specially created tequilla. I’ll have to try it the next time I go which I hope is soon. We ended up having the 20 oz. Skinny Girl Margarita (don’t judge me). We were offered the gratuitous chips and salsa that was actually good. The salsa was not chunky but instead a smooth blend of what tasted like roasted peppers. It wasn’t too hot but carried the right amount of heat for me. Mateo took our orders I had the Beef Brisket Chimi Rica and Jada (my partner in crime for the day) had Chicken Enchiladas. I cannot describe Jada’s meal but my meal was the bomb.com. A Chimi Rica is a flour tortilla filled with meat, in my case beef brisket, deep fried and covered in queso. My dish was served with refried beans, seasoned rice and guacamole. I have never had Mexican food that was this well seasoned and flavorful. The service was fast and the food delicious. I would definitely visit them again. We left feeling completely satisfied and full. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone who happens to be in the metro Atlanta area. Check out their website here
If you get a chance, check them out and go forward make memories.
Our waiter Mateo
Chips and Salsa
The bowl is actually a fried tortilla that’s holding my lemon wedges
So its that time of year again. Mark your calendars. The Chef In Pearls will be hosting her Summer Edition of the Ladies Lunch. Sunday June 7, 2015 from 3-6 pm. We will be taking a trip to the Greek Isles for this luncheon. You don’t need a passport just a fork. Visit www.TheChefInPearls.eventbrite.com to purchase your tickets. In addition to a wonderful lunch you’ll also receive a gift bag. As an extra bonus Atlanta Touch Therapy will be in attendance offering a special rate for 1/2 hour massage for attendees. So come along for an afternoon of good eats, good company and a good time. Let’s make new memories together.
