Ok so tonight we had Mozzerella Blams for dinner. When I was in college in South Alabama there was this little roadhouse on the road out of town, sometimes we would go there for dinner and a beer. The roadhouse isn't there anymore and I can't remember the old fella's name that ran it. Ok so I guess this sub is the Bama version of loose meat.
For some reason I was craving this sub - it has been ages. I guess this goes back to the need for comfort food. Hubby and I were out yesterday in New Hampshire and it was -6 degrees. When you are that cold all you want is something warm to drink and comfort food. So find you a glass of red wine or a good beer and make yourself a Mozzarella Bama Loose (Ass) Meat Sub.
Mozzarella Bama Loose (Ass) Meat Sub (BLAMS)
1 pound lean ground beef
½ pound lean ground pork
Pepper
Salt
Sub rolls (6 rolls)
Sliced mozzarella cheese (6 slices)
Mayonnaise
Marinara sauce
Banana peppers
Sweet pepper relish
Aluminum foil
Directions
1. Cook ground beef and ground pork in frying pan until well done. Season with salt & pepper.
2. Open sub roll and layer on the mayonaise and place on a piece of aluminum foil. We flatten ours.
3. Form foil around the sub roll. Add meat, layer on mozzarella cheese slices, top with marinara.
4. Place under broiler until cheese bubbles.
5. Add banana peppers, roasted red peppers or bell pepper relish. We use the sweet peper relish and banana peppers for the contrast in sweet and sour.
6. Enjoy!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Heaven on Earth - Cheese on Toast!!!
Ok as a child raised in the South I experienced the wonderful world of cheese toast. Our Mom often made it when we had tomato soup on cold winter days, well cold for central Alabama. The cheese on toast that we experienced was yellow processed Kraft American on Sunbeam bread, and we loved it. It was all we knew so that wonderful crispy brown cheese was perfection. Well like a lot of culinary discoveries this awakening came when I married my dear husband. He is from Scotland and lived most of his years in the UK. So when he introduced us to real cheese toast, Oh My Goodness!!
Traditional British cheese on toast is a national institution. What can be simpler and tastier, hunks of crusty square bread topped with mature sharp Cheddar cheese, and Worcestershire sauce! This is such an obsession that there is even a Cheese on Toast Day celebrated in the UK – the last Thursday in April has been set aside for this comforting treat. When creating your cheese on toast you can use a British cheddar, but if you can’t find a mature farmhouse white cheddar you can use a sharp cheddar from the US, such as Cabot Vermont Sharp. For bread our family likes a loaf that we get at our local Russian bakery it is very similar to square slice bread from Scotland. There is nothing like this Cheese on Toast, yummy!! This is a very different experience when compared to the Kraft processed American slice on Sunbeam that I was served as a kid…thanks goodness for culinary discoveries.
Ingredients
• 4 slices crusty bread (thick or thin slices that is your choice)
• 4 ounces mature British Cheddar or an American Sharp Cheddar, sliced
• 2-3 dashes Worcestershire (Lea & Perrins) sauce per slice
Directions
Preheat the oven on Broil.
Toast the slices in the toaster.
Place the toast slices on a cookie sheet.
Top each slice with the cheese, laying the slices of cheese as close as possible to the edges of the toast.
Sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce to taste.
Then pop the cheese on toast under the broiler.
Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and bubbling.
Serve immediately with Branston pickle, chutney, relish, pickled beets and/or pickled onions.
Additional notes: You can also top with a thin slice of tomato.
Serves 2 to 4
Traditional British cheese on toast is a national institution. What can be simpler and tastier, hunks of crusty square bread topped with mature sharp Cheddar cheese, and Worcestershire sauce! This is such an obsession that there is even a Cheese on Toast Day celebrated in the UK – the last Thursday in April has been set aside for this comforting treat. When creating your cheese on toast you can use a British cheddar, but if you can’t find a mature farmhouse white cheddar you can use a sharp cheddar from the US, such as Cabot Vermont Sharp. For bread our family likes a loaf that we get at our local Russian bakery it is very similar to square slice bread from Scotland. There is nothing like this Cheese on Toast, yummy!! This is a very different experience when compared to the Kraft processed American slice on Sunbeam that I was served as a kid…thanks goodness for culinary discoveries.
Ingredients
• 4 slices crusty bread (thick or thin slices that is your choice)
• 4 ounces mature British Cheddar or an American Sharp Cheddar, sliced
• 2-3 dashes Worcestershire (Lea & Perrins) sauce per slice
Directions
Preheat the oven on Broil.
Toast the slices in the toaster.
Place the toast slices on a cookie sheet.
Top each slice with the cheese, laying the slices of cheese as close as possible to the edges of the toast.
Sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce to taste.
Then pop the cheese on toast under the broiler.
Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and bubbling.
Serve immediately with Branston pickle, chutney, relish, pickled beets and/or pickled onions.
Additional notes: You can also top with a thin slice of tomato.
Serves 2 to 4
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Where to begin...comfort food!!
I love to cook as I stated in the blog introduction. We (our family) loves comfort food. The definition for Comfort Food is "Food that is simply prepared and associated with a sense of home or contentment". My husband is from the UK so comfort food to our family is a bit different than the normal American family. One of our family's favorite things is puff pastry. What could possibly be better on a cold winter's night in New England than a wonderful Beef and Onion pie with Potatoes and Parsley Sauce.
Beef and Onion Pie
Ingredients
1lb 8oz ground beef (mince)
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp plain flour, plus extra for dusting
9fl oz brown ale (I use Bellhaven) or beef stock
dash Worcestershire sauce (3 or 4 shakes)
1 frozen shortcrust deep dish pie shell
1 sheet puff pastry
1 tablespoon of milk (full fat if possible)
Directions
1. Fry the ground beef (mince) for 4-5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it browns. If mince is very lean start with a tablespoon of vegetable oil.
2. Add the chopped onion and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Stir in the flour and cook for a further minute.
5. Add the stout or beef stock and a couple of dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Set aside and leave to cool for 10 minutes.
7. Place the cooled ground beef mixture into the shortcrust pie shell.
8. Gently drape the puff pastry over the mince pie. Trim the puff pastry then press firmly onto the shortcrust edges.
9. Cut some leaf shapes out of the puff pastry trimmings and decorate the top of the pie, sticking them to the pastry with the milk.
10. Brush the top of the pie with the milk.
11. Make three or four slits in the pastry to allow the steam to escape, and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden-brown.
12. To serve, slice into wedges.
Potatoes with Parsley Sauce
Potatoes - well no real mystery here. When making plain potatoes I prefer to use Russet. I peel my potatoes and boil for 20 minutes with salt.
Parsley Sauce
Ingredients
1 oz Butter (REAL)
2 Tablespoons of All Purpose (Plain) flour
1 1/4 cup of chicken stock
4 Tablespoons Chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Malt vinegar
Directions
1. Melt the butter in a saucepan.
2. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute.
3. Gradually add the stock. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously.
4. Add the parsley and seasoning and vinegar.
5. Serve over mash or boiled potatoes.
Enjoy <3
Beef and Onion Pie
Ingredients
1lb 8oz ground beef (mince)
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp plain flour, plus extra for dusting
9fl oz brown ale (I use Bellhaven) or beef stock
dash Worcestershire sauce (3 or 4 shakes)
1 frozen shortcrust deep dish pie shell
1 sheet puff pastry
1 tablespoon of milk (full fat if possible)
Directions
1. Fry the ground beef (mince) for 4-5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it browns. If mince is very lean start with a tablespoon of vegetable oil.
2. Add the chopped onion and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Stir in the flour and cook for a further minute.
5. Add the stout or beef stock and a couple of dashes of Worcestershire sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Set aside and leave to cool for 10 minutes.
7. Place the cooled ground beef mixture into the shortcrust pie shell.
8. Gently drape the puff pastry over the mince pie. Trim the puff pastry then press firmly onto the shortcrust edges.
9. Cut some leaf shapes out of the puff pastry trimmings and decorate the top of the pie, sticking them to the pastry with the milk.
10. Brush the top of the pie with the milk.
11. Make three or four slits in the pastry to allow the steam to escape, and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden-brown.
12. To serve, slice into wedges.
Potatoes with Parsley Sauce
Potatoes - well no real mystery here. When making plain potatoes I prefer to use Russet. I peel my potatoes and boil for 20 minutes with salt.
Parsley Sauce
Ingredients
1 oz Butter (REAL)
2 Tablespoons of All Purpose (Plain) flour
1 1/4 cup of chicken stock
4 Tablespoons Chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Malt vinegar
Directions
1. Melt the butter in a saucepan.
2. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute.
3. Gradually add the stock. Bring to the boil, stirring continuously.
4. Add the parsley and seasoning and vinegar.
5. Serve over mash or boiled potatoes.
Enjoy <3
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