Nibbles of Tidbits, a Food Blog

The largest Sweet Onions in town can be found at Tanaka Farms.  Continuing our report about our recent visit to Tanaka Farms — In addition to the Strawberries, we took home a giant Sweet Onion to make one of our favorite side dishes, Baked (or BBQ’d) Onions.

Tanaka Farms grows their Onions amongst the Strawberries.  They say it helps to keep certain pests away from the Strawberries and it sweetens the Onions.

Baked Onions aka Onion Candy is a much loved side we often enjoy with Filet Mignon and loaded Baked Potatoes.  We’ve previously posted the recipe here.

Without visiting the above recipe link, know here that it’s an Onion that’s tented in foil with Bacon Grease, Salt and Pepper — And then it’s baked in the oven or on a BBQ for about an hour.  This extra large Onion took longer (a little under 2 hours) and indeed it was incredibly sweet to eat.  It served two very well.

Baked Onions are so easy to make.  The rule is generally (1) Onion per guest — If getting them from Tanaka Farms, they can be shared.

If this doesn’t sound good to you, it’s understandable — We once appalled at the idea too, but they’re sooooo good.  You might be missing out.

I discovered the best Strawberry Buttercream Frosting in Southern Living’s Classic Southern Desserts Cookbook.  And the interesting thing about it is… I don’t even like Buttercream Frosting.  All my life I’ve dumped Cake slices upside-down on the plate to have the Frosting stick to it — That way I’d eat the Cake and the Frosting would be left behind.  After making the pictured Strawberry Cake, I’m converted, at least with respect to Southern Living’s recipe.  It yields a perfect balance of fresh pureed Strawberries, Powdered Sugar and Butter.  I brought this Cake to the office and everyone raved about the Frosting.  The Cake is a different story, since I used my own recipe that wasn’t that terrific.  Fortunately the Strawberry Buttercream Frosting made up for it.  Did I just write that? 

The amazing Strawberries came from the Strawberry Tour at Tanaka Farms.  To see other recipes we’ve made from Southern Living’s Classic Southern Desserts Cookbook click here.

Here’s a simple way to enjoy Lettuce Wrap Tacos — We marinated Chicken Thighs in our favorite bottled Sesame Dressing by Feast from the East for a day, then grilled them on the BBQ.  The flavor turns out delicious and sweet.  Shredded Chicken goes well on an Iceberg Lettuce Leaf, with the addition of a little Soy Sauce, Sriracha and Sticky Rice.  Any Chicken part will do for this recipe, but Thighs (and Drumsticks) are cheaper and marinate quicker than Breasts.  Our Sticky Rice wasn’t that great, thus we have no instructions for it.

Note: This post was one of many drafts with previously uploading photos.  We’re reviving a few while working on technical issues with respect to the upload of new photos.

Zucchini Potato Soup is the first recipe we made from Southern Living’s Farmer’s Market Cookbook.  We got all ingredients (except Bacon) from the Corona Del Mar Farmer’s Market, since that’s what it’s all about.

We made Chicken Stock from a leftover Rotisserie Chicken, a leftover piece of El Pollo Loco Chicken and a leftover piece of Boston Market Chicken — We just so happened to have all on hand, ha.  It turned out great and made the Zucchini Potato Soup more flavorful.

Overall, the Soup was good and easy to make.  The recipe is pictured below, if you can see it.  We added a little Lemon Juice to the Soup, and Sour Cream as a garnish to go with the yummy Bacon on top.  Since the recipe was inspired by Vichyssoise, it’s to be served cold.  My friend loves it that way, but I prefer it warm.  This Soup is flexible that way.

The recipe is well written, like many we’ve read in this Cookbook — In other words, the order of instructions make sense for optimum freshness and flavor.  However, whenever sauteing Onions with Garlic, we always caramelize the Onions and add the Garlic at the very end, no matter what the recipe states, because we think it ultimately creates the best flavor.

We’re already liking this Cookbook and haven’t made a recipe yet.  We’ll be heading to one of our local Framers’ Markets soon — It’s in Corona Del Mar at PCH/Marguerite and will be reported about on Examiner.com. 

We look forward to sampling several recipes from this Southern Living Cookbook and will report about all here.  We’ve got to see what looks best at the local Farmers’ Market and take it from there.  Until then, we think these Lime Ice Cubes (above) are worth mentioning.  They’re so simple to make and memorable at a party, brunch, BBQ or just for fun.  Kids like ’em too.

* Nibbles of Tidbits is happy to be trying this Cookbook — Check back for future reports.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! We already had our Corned Beef and Cabbage and post about it here.

If you can’t BBQ, grill or poach Salmon, this cooking method works well too – The above Salmon was marinated in a Chimichurri Sauce, then cooked at 350° for 15 – 20 minutes on a rack that’s placed on a foil lined cookie sheet.  Any rack will do.  There’s very little clean up and the gross white stuff (fat) that tends to collect around cooking fish is minimized.

TIP:  Save the rack from an old toaster oven before discarding it — It’ll come in handy for various cooking purposes, like this.

Bacon Wrapped Dates – They’re amazing tasting and one of the easiest appetizers to make.  The sweetness of the Date goes so well with Bacon, the only two ingredients in the recipe.  Just wrap short slices of Bacon around each Date.  I cut the Bacon with kitchen shears, after wrapping it once around the outside of the Date.  And I’ve since learned it’s not necessary to secure the Bacon on each Date with a toothpick, if you press it together well when assembling.  Then bake all in a 350° oven for 25 minutes (or until nicely browned) turning once about halfway through.  Cool slightly before diggin’ in, so not to burn your mouth on a hot Date.  With that in mind enjoy!

Many Bacon Wrapped Date recipes include Cheese, such as Cheddar or Parmesan that’s stuffed in the center of the Date, but we prefer them without Cheese — It’s a good thing too, since they’re faster and easier to make.

* If you like this recipe, you might also like Bacon Wrapped Asparagus.

Indeed, this Baked Onion tastes like Candy.  Growing up I would have gaged over the thought of it, but an Onion baked with Bacon Grease in the oven or on a BBQ is so sweet and delicious.  It just melts in your mouth.  And it’s super easy to make and impressive to serve as an appetizer or side dish.  It’s optimum for a fall or winter dinner party or all year long with meals.  My family has prepared countless bushels of Baked Onions over the years.  They’ve mostly cooked them on the BBQ, but when it’s cold it’s convenient to cook ’em inside.

They take about an hour to cook without much effort — As pictured above (l-r), trim the ends and skin of an Onion then make a few shallow cuts.  Place it on two layers of foil, then top the Onion with reserved Bacon Grease, Salt and Pepper.  Tent and seal the Onion in the foil and bake at 450° for 1 Hour.  It should then just fall apart in sweetness.  Many times we’ll unwrap and broil the Onion over top for an additional 5+ minutes before serving.  It’s so darn good!

You can probably skip this Cookbook — It’s Williams-Sonoma New Healthy Kitchen: Starters (2006).  I’ve finally gotten around to utilizing it.  The colorful recipe photos are beautiful and offer so much promise, but when gettin’ down to wanting to make any of them, the pickings are slim.  Some recipes are impractical, others don’t even sound good, and ingredients should be altered in the pictured recipe I made.  It’s the Purple Bell Pepper & Goat Cheese Terrine (p. 33) substituting Red Bell Pepper, since Purple Bell Peppers are hard to come by.  Other than that, I followed the exact recipe and thought my unveiled terrine to be too runny and salty.  If you still want to make this recipe after this report, it’s recommended that you use half the Salt and Milk that’s listed, and possibly replace the Shallot with chopped Green Onion or Chives.

* I also have Williams-Sonoma New Healthy Kitchen: Desserts and will post what we ultimately make from it.  I hope it’s better than this Starter.  If you cannot view the enlarged recipe well enough to prepare a better version of it, tell us in a comment.

Since I LOVE Chipotle Mexican Grill’s Barbacoa Beef so much, I had to make it.  I searched all over the internet for a recipe and discernibly chose to make this recipe, with additional ingredients that were common in other Chipotle Barbacoa Beef recipe wannabes (copycats).

I wanted to make my own Barbacoa Beef (partly) to avoid the unwanted fat pieces I’ve encountered in my Chipotle Tacos on more than one occasion.  They make ’em so fast.  You have to slow them down to truly get what you want, plus a side of Guacamole costs too much.

Photos parallel the step-by-step Barbacoa Beef recipe instructions above and below.  Links include recipes for Pico de Gallo and other Chipotle Mexican Grill menu items.  To accompany the Barbacoa Beef I made Refried Beans from dried Pinto Beans.  I cooked, then mashed and fried them with a little Bacon Grease, Lime Juice, Roasted Jalapeno and Salt.  They were good, but not mashed well enough — I learned it takes a fair effort and great masher.

Please note that I’m not reporting this is Chipotle Mexican Grill’s Barbacoa recipe — It’s an excellent variation of a copycat I found.  To me, it pretty much tastes just like it.  While researching this, I stumbled across another Food Blogger being reprimanded by a commenter that… “her recipe wasn’t like Chipotle’s at all.”  I don’t think that should happen here, but you never know.  Can’t win ’em all.  (03/02/12 Update: We enjoy this recipe often).

For quick reference I’ve post the original recipe, with the changes I made to make this fabulous shredded Barbacoa Beef.  This recipe is definitely a keeper.  Enjoy it — We did.

Barbacoa Beef Recipe (Chipotle Copycat)

•1/3 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar

•3 Tbsps. Lime Juice

•4 Chipotle Peppers – Canned in Adobo Sauce

•1/2 Sweet Onion*

•5 Cloves Garlic

•4 Tsps. Cumin

•2 Tsps. Oregano – Dried Mexican variety is best

•1 ½ Tsps. Ground Black Pepper

•1 ½ Tsps. Salt

•1/8 Tsp. Ground Clove

•2 Tbsps. Vegetable or Canola Oil

•4 lb. Beef Roast – Favorite cut (Top Round, Bottom Round, Chuck, etc.)

•1 Cup of Beef or Chicken Broth

•3 Bay Leaves

•1 Juniper Berry*

1.  Combine the Lime Juice, Vinegar, Onions, Chipotle Peppers, Garlic, Cumin, Oregano, Black Pepper, Salt and Clove in a blender and blend until smooth.

2.  Cut Beef into smaller pieces (or not) and remove any excess fat.

3.  In a large Dutch oven, heat Oil and sear Beef on all sides until lightly browned.

4.  Pour the blended Sauce over the Beef and add the Beef or Chicken Broth, Bay Leaves and Juniper Berry.

5.  Cover and simmer for 6+ hours, turning every hour until the Beef can be easily pulled apart.

* I changed a few measurements and added a Juniper Berry and 1/2 of a Sweet Onion, since I repetitively saw both ingredients in other Copycat Chipotle Barbacoa recipes.  Pictured below is the first Taco enjoyed from the batch.  We also made Tostadas, Burritos and Taco Salads.

04/29/13 Update:  Barbacoa ingredients (minus the Beef) are pictured above.

Have you ever made a Dutch Baby?  It’s a German Pancake that’s easy to make and impressive to serve.  It’ll definitely be on the menu at my next brunch party.  I located several recipes for Dutch Baby Pancakes, but ultimately prepared the one in this video — Then served it with Powdered Sugar, Blackberries, Blueberries and Strawberries.

Above photos follow along with the video / recipe used to prepare this Dutch Baby.  Next time I might squeeze in a little Lemon or a teaspoon of Cinnamon and Sugar to add more flavor to the batter (Eggs, Flour, Milk, Salt).  Without much effort, Dutch Babies make special desserts and mid-morning treats that consistently wow guests.

We briefly reported about this before, but it’s definitely worth mentioning again — It’s Baked Trout with Good Seasons Italian Dressing.  It’s super easy to make and one of our favorite home meals.

We’ve probably made it a hundred times over the years, but recently came across an official recipe on Cooks.com.  It’s a terrific combination that takes minutes to prepare.  If we don’t have Trout on hand, we’ll occasionally use butterflied Coho Salmon.

Although it’s the last day of National Pomegranate Month (November), Pomegranates are still in season and should be continuously enjoyed in recipes, drinks or alone.  They’re good for you too.  We celebrated by adding PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur to Champagne.  If searching for other uses, PAMA’s website has several excellent drink and food recipes.  Previously reported on Nibbles of Tidbits, our favorite drink recipes on the site include the Margarita and Martini.  And we haven’t yet tried it, but the PAMA Barbecued Salmon recipe sure sounds terrific.  Today it’s bottoms up.

Doesn’t this look nicer than dealing with the holiday shopping crowd the day after Thanksgiving?  We took a family RV down to the South Carlsbad Cliffs and had fun BBQ’ing, walking along the beach, playing Wii games, painting rocks, laughing, chillin’, eating and drinking — All are much better than following the lines.  No thanks Black Friday, we Christmas shop on our own time.

It’s a Nibbles of Tidbits moment of branding painted by one of our Kids in the Kitchen contributors, Artist Bailee — Great job on the Egg and Bacon, always a favorite.

I pre-steamed the Artichokes at home, then grilled them on the BBQ at our camp spot while watching the sunset over the ocean.

And made 3 different Dipping Sauces for the Artichokes — Garlic Aioli, Lemon & Dill and Walt’s Wharf’s Lea & Perrin’s Sauce.  Most dipped into was the Garlic Aioli (Mayo, Lemon, Garlic & Seasoning Salt). 🙂

We also tested the Cook or Be Cooked Wii Game in the RV and will post about that soon.  And the Chocolate Cake previously reported about was good, but certainly not the best ever.

My sister recently reported that she had the best Chocolate Cake in her life.  She obtained the surprising recipe and it’s what I made here.  It’s a Devil’s Food Cake Mix prepared with the addition of Mayonnaise (approximately a tablespoon).  It may sound scary to some, but it’s basically just more egg and oil if you think about it.  The Cake my sister ate was made with a canned Chocolate Frosting, but I made a Glaze of Powdered Sugar, Orange Zest and Orange Juice.  I haven’t tried it yet — We’re taking it luxury camping over the weekend and will report our results here soon.

Update (11/29/09):  The Cake was good, but certainly not the best ever.  It was a little overcooked too.  We’ll try another variation some time.

Have you tried Mr. Yoshida’s Original Gourmet marinade?  I’m not generally a big Teriyaki fan, but the variation made my Mr. Yoshida won me over.  Haven’t tried it on Beef yet, but it’s made Chicken breasts, thighs, wings and legs juicy and flavorful.  I  usually marinate the Chicken pieces overnight, then place ’em in the Ronco Rotisserie and forget about it, before the timer reminds.  Not much effort is required and the combination always turns out tender and tasty.  We appreciate having both products.  For additional recipes using Mr. Yoshida’s marinades, click here.  Enjoy!

Inspired by the coverage of the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival, I made Roasted Brussels Sprouts.  At the Outstanding in the Field style dinner held at the Greenleaf Warehouse in San Francisco, it seems like everyone loved the Brussels Sprouts.  They looked terrific on the various event recap posts, which made me want to make ’em. 

The recipe of the actual dish served at the festival is here, but I made something else.  These Brussels Sprouts have a nice roasted char, but different ingredients.  I tossed this bunch of hot water washed, halved Brussels Sprouts with Olive Oil, White Balsamic Vinegar and Salt & Pepper — That’s it.  Just roast all in a 425° oven for about 25 minutes.  Stir occasionally and add more Olive Oil and Vinegar as necessary or to taste.  They turn out sweet and caramelized.

I can’t say these Brussels Sprouts are as good as those served at the Foodbuzz dinner, since I sadly wasn’t there, but they’re darn good and easy to make with what’s on hand.  I’ll surely make them again — Super easy and tasty is my favorite combination.

I love my Quick From Scratch Food & Wine Cookbooks — They seem to have the best recipes.  Today I made the Corn and Cod Chowder with Orange Roughy instead of Cod, since it was the freshest Fish at the market.  I like Cod in this recipe too, but Orange Roughy is a tasty substitution.  All other ingredients are the same, except I used Chicken Stock in place of the Clam Juice.  It’s usually a seamless replacement I prefer in recipes.  I like Clams, but have a mental problem adding Clam Juice to a recipe.  When called for, I’ll generally substitute Chicken, Vegetable, Shrimp or Lobster Stock.

As you can see from the cookbook stains, I’ve had Food & Wine’s Quick From Scratch Fish & Shellfish for quite sometime and everything I’ve made from it has turned out great.  That can’t be said about all cookbooks, thus I highly recommend this one and Food & Wine’s Quick From Scratch Pasta.  I’ve made many fabulous meals from both.

It’s Soup season and time to make comfort dishes that fragrant the house.  They’re cozy, convenient and ready to be warmed up for lunch or dinner throughout the week.  All I need tonight is a piece of Sourdough with (real) Butter, a bowl of this New England style Chowder and a blankie.  The work is done and now it’s pure enjoyment time.

Don’t these Chicken Thighs look good?  They do (above), but did have an unattractive transition shortly before serving (below).  They were cooked in a Crock Pot skin on, thus don’t come out with the preferred tan.  And since they were in a Crock Pot all day long, they needed to be removed carefully to keep ’em from falling apart.

Before leaving for work, the Chicken Thighs were placed in a Crock Pot with Chicken Broth, Rice Wine Vinegar, Water and S & P.  After arriving home several hours later, all was gently transferred to a baking dish and broiled in the oven.  Once pretty and crisp, the Chicken Thighs were served with Lettuce Leaves and an attempt at Sticky Rice.

The meat just fell off the bone, the state always strived for when preparing boned Chicken.  And it tasted great in the refreshing Lettuce Leaves.  No Sauce was needed, but a little Sweet Chili Sauce was added to our third Taco.  These delicious Lettuce Wraps didn’t require much effort.  As for the Sticky Rice, it’s back to the drawing board. 🙂

Still hoping to earn a Foodbuzz Blogger Festival Scholarship, I prepared this Bread Pudding recipe.  It’s adapted from a recipe created about 10 years ago.  This version is dubbed Rustic Bread Pudding— Recipe entries for a Nature’s Pride sponsorship to attend the festival are due today.  Nature’s Pride’s Multi-Grain Bread was used in this recipe, since the 100% Whole Wheat and 12 Grain Bread I received as a Foodbuzz Tastemaker was gone.  Click here to learn more about that.  I subsequently purchased the Multi-Grain for this recipe, since the 12 Grain wasn’t available.  The Bread was first toasted, which brings out its flavor and ultimately adds a marbled look to the finished Pudding.

Ingredients:

8 Bread slices (Nature’s Pride Multi-Grain or 12 Grain)

4 Eggs, beaten

2 Cups of Milk

1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar

2 Tsps. of Butter (melted at room temperature)

1 Tsp. of Vanilla Extract

2 Tsps. of Cinnamon

1/8 Tsp. of Nutmeg

1 Tsp. of Orange Zest (or zest of one Orange)

Directions:

Place Bread slices on a cookie sheet and toast in a 325° oven until golden brown, turning slices once (about 10 minutes).  Remove Bread from oven and let cool — Tear slices into rustic pieces, add to a baking dish and set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine the Eggs, Milk, Butter, Sugar, Vanilla Extract, Orange Zest, Cinnamon and Nutmeg.  Mix well, then slowly pour over the toasted Bread until all are well moistened.  Set aside to allow the liquid mixture to penetrate evenly before baking — Press down gently with the back of a large spoon.  Once moistened throughout, bake in the 325° preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until set in the center.  Remove from the oven, let cool a little and serve warm.  It’s best that way.

NOTE:  The pictured Bread Pudding was a little dry and definitely needed Powdered Sugar and/or an Orange Juice Glaze (OJ & Powdered Sugar).  The above recipe was written to improve the taste and texture of this initial test.  We regret to report this information, but believe it’s important to consider.  No time is left for re-testing, but still want to join the festival. 🙂

UPDATE 10/22/09:  Unfortunately I didn’t win this one, but you can check out the winning recipes here.  Thanks for the opportunity Foodbuzz and Nature’s Pride.

After having the most fabulous Chicken Tikka Masala at Chakra Cuisine at the Taste of Newport, I was compelled to recreate its flavor and tender texture of the Chicken.  I searched the Internet and found an informative video about its preparation.  Although I didn’t copy its technique, I learned a bit.  Instead, I opted for a slow cooked version (Murgh Tikka Masala) with most of the same spices.  It turned out good and the Chicken was tender, but it didn’t quite hit the mark.  Not bad for a first attempt, but not the fabulous I was hoping for.  Could it be the lack of Fenugreek (Kasuri Methi)?

I made this Poblano, Pasilla, Anaheim, Tomatillo, Red & Green Jalapeno Chili Chili by roasting the Peppers and Tomatillos in the oven, then peeling and chopping all to be combined with seared Beef Cubes.

This Chili was improvised, but happily turned out great with the addition of Crushed Tomatoes, Tomato Paste, Water, pressed Garlic, Chili Powder, Cumin, Garbanzo Beans, Kidney Beans and Black Beans, fresh chopped Cilantro, Salt and Pepper (Black & Cheyenne).  All was simmered covered on the stove for about 2 1/2 Hours, until the Beef would fall apart.

As usual with Chili, this Chili Chili got better as the days went on.  It became more tasty and spicy.  Measurements aren’t needed when you prepare it based on desired taste and consistency.