My New Cooking Blog

I’ve started a new blog, A Pinch of This & A Dash of That. Friends often ask me for recipes but I don’t really cook by a set recipe. It’s hard to share dishes and I love to share food. What I often do is invite them over and I teach them. That way they can see how much I put in or how long it takes for the food to be done. Once they have made it twice it becomes their dish. They can claim all the praise.

Friends encouraged me to do cooking videos. I didn’t really want to. I know that’s hard to believe especially since I pretend to have a cooking show when I’m by myself. Believe it or not, I was a little nervous.

Cooking for me is creative. I love to watch cooking shows and then attempt what I see by trial and error. Everyone has different taste buds. Some people like salt and others don’t. Some people like cheddar cheese and others mozzarella.

It doesn’t matter what you like, you can always substitute an ingredient you don’t like for one you do. I usually like to make a recipe first the way it was intended, then I can have fun and change things up a bit.

I love cooking outside the box. I enjoy seeing what’s in my cabinets, putting it together and seeing if my vision and the actual taste match up.

If you’re a food lover, I hope you enjoy my new blog. Comments are encouraged and questions welcomed.

© Nadine Zawacki 2011

Sushi Party

Saturday night we went to a friend's house. I'll call him the Sushi Master (pictured below). The Sushi Master and his lovely wife hosted a wonderful sushi dinner for nine. The best part was he let us participate by helping to make the sushi. We had so much fun.
I learned a lot about preparing sushi. I always thought it would be too difficult, but it wasn't. Having someone show you and then doing it yourself is the best way to learn.

The rice is the most important part of sushi. For a recipe for sushi rice click HERE. This website has great information about sushi.

Then you need to slice up all the veggies and fish. We got a chance to chop and slice celery, cucumber, carrots, crab meat, salmon, tuna, shrimp and avocado. We had lots of fun and it didn't feel like work. When we were all done, we had so much sushi to eat.

Here are some pictures from our night.

On the left cucumber and carrots. On the right Jessica slicing cucumbers.
Skilled hands slicing avocados and cucumbers.









Rice with salmon about to be placed on top. Watch out these had a dab of wasabi on top of rice. Scott's handiwork.








First you apply the rice. A nice thin layer. Then add crab, carrots, cucumbers, avocados.









Roll nice and tight. My first sushi roll on the left. It looks pretty on the plate.









Everyone's having fun. Mandy and her hubby Mike. Mike's spicy tuna roll looks like a fish doesn't it?









What a feast. We did put a big dent in this spread. I enjoyed every bite.









This is what happens when you put too much wasabi on your sushi.

Griot (Haitian Pork Shoulder)

**There are videos now available on YouTube to demonstrate how to make this meal. Check the links below.
Growing up my mom would make this pork dish, called Griot (meal pictured above). When we were dating Tom loved it, so I asked my mom to give me the recipe. I guess my mom cooks like me and doesn’t cook with exact measurements. So I’m posting this typical Haitian meal (the only one I know how to make) in picture form. I must say that if you don’t have all the components of this meal don’t make it. It’s the combination of flavors that makes a party in your mouth.

This meal consist of Griot (pork shoulder), fresh green beans, rice and beans, avocado salad, fried plantains (large green banana).

Rice and Beans: You start off with a bag of fresh kidney beans, parboiled rice (Uncle Ben’s – white rice doesn’t work), salt, pepper, thinly sliced and chopped (5 slices) of onion, parsley, garlic powder, oil and margarine. How much you make depends on the size of your family. If you are making 2 cups of rice then you will need 2 cups of beans and 4 cups of bean juice (the left over water after you cook your beans). In a large pot place kidney beans, add some salt and pepper and water. Remember to add more water as it cooks because the water will evaporate. Cook until beans are tender. Drain water into a measuring cup. In the bottom of the pot add oil, onions, salt, pepper and garlic. Cook until onions are clear. Add beans and cook the beans slightly. Add juice from beans, parsley, and rice. Taste water to see if more seasoning is needed. Cook on medium heat until water starts to evaporate, add margarine and stir. When the water covers the rice and beans barely cover and simmer until all the water is evaporate.My video on how to make rice & beans on YouTube: Click HERE

Griot (pork shoulder): You start off with a nice piece of pork shoulder. Slice and cut into medium size pieces. Trim meat around bone but leave some meat on the bone. It’s okay to leave fat on the pieces. The fat helps to keep the meat tender. Squeeze 1-2 fresh oranges and 1-2 fresh lemons. Cover orange/lemon juice mixture over meat. Place meat (and bone) in large pot and pour orange/lemon juice in pan. Add water but do not cover meat. Cover and par-boil. You may want to rotate the meat in the pot until all is par-cooked. Place the meat on a cookie sheet lined with tin foil. Pour some the juice that the meat cooked in over the meat. Place in 350 degree oven. Cook meat and turn. You may add more juice to keep meat moist. Cook until nicely browned.
My video on how to make Griot on YouTube: Click HERE

Plantains: Slice ends off and cut in 2 inch diagonal slices. In pan fry the plantains on all sides. Place on paper towels. Let the plantains cool slightly. Place one piece at a time between two plates and smash slightly. Refry until it’s golden in color. Salt plantains when you first take them out of the pan.My video on how to make plantains on YouTube: Click Here

Make fresh green beans and avocado salad (cut in cubes, a small amount of lemon juice and salt).

My video on how to make avocado salad on YouTube: Click Here

© Nadine Z. 2008

Cream Cheese Chicken

I’ve posted recipes before and as you all know, I usually use pictures. I don’t cook with exact measurements so it’s difficult to give out recipes. Cream Cheese Chicken is an idea that developed out of a snack Tom had at a party once. The hostess took chicken and placed a bit of cream cheese in the middle, wrapped a piece of bacon around it and then baked. I decided to try it as a meal and added an easy sauce. This is one of my family’s favorite dishes. If you try it, let me know.

First you fillet a piece of chicken breast, add a bit of salt, pepper and parsley. Cut a slice of cream cheese to fit down the middle.

Cover the cream cheese with the sides of the chicken.
Take a slice of bacon and wrap it around the chicken. If it’s a big piece it might require two pieces of bacon. Don’t be stingy.
Stick toothpicks on the ends to make sure they don’t open up.
Place the chicken in a pan with some water. Bake at 350 for about 30 – 45 minutes until chicken is cooked.

Remove chicken from pan and place under the broiler. Be very careful and watch the chicken. You want your bacon to brown, but not to burn. Turn the chicken and brown the other side.
Finely chop half a small onion and place it in a sauce pan with butter, salt and pepper. Cook it until the onion starts to become a bit translucent.
Add a can or two of Cream of Chicken soup.
Slowly add a little bit of water to the pan until it turns into a sauce consistency.
Remove the toothpicks and place chicken in a pan and cover with sauce. Bake chicken at 350 for about 20 minutes or so.
© Nadine Z. 2007

Cooking with Hannah

This past week I had the distinct pleasure of teaching my son’s girlfriend how to cook an Italian meal. I’m not Italian, but I’ve been married to one for over 26 years. I have cooked enough sauce that I’ve become a member of the club.

My mom-in-law passed away at the age of 49. She was a great lady who had lots of love to extend to me and others. My hubby was her first born. When we got married I only knew how to scramble eggs, cook a burger and make toast. My idea of sauce was Ragu (no offense to those who use it). In an Italian household it’s sacrilegious to even say “that” word. My mom-in-law came over to teach me how to make a sauce because I asked. Afterwards, I thought she would stay for dinner, but she left. She wanted me to surprise my hubby with my first attempt at sauce. How cool is she?

It’s fun for me to teach young girls to cook. This is the second time I’ve done so. My kids already know how to cook so I’m always looking to teach someone else. The following pictures are about making sauce and chicken parmesan.

In a pot place a little olive oil, salt, fresh ground pepper, thinly sliced onion (about five or six slices), and fresh garlic (about three to four cloves). Let it simmer until it starts to cook a bit. Then add tomato paste (fill the can with water and place in pot).

Open your cans of sauce and place in pan. I usually add some water at this point again. Let it cook on low to medium heat for about 45 minutes.

Then add the meat, grated cheese, oregano, basil and parsley. I used sausage for this sauce. I find my best sauces have both sausage and meat, but this was for chicken parmesan so it wasn’t necessary. Let your sauce cook for half an hour and taste (with some Italian bread of course). See if you need to adjust seasonings. This phase is a trial and error phase. When I first started making sauce I would have Tom taste and ask what was missing. I still do that just because he likes it. The secret to sauce is the longer it cooks the better it tastes.

We started off with a package of chicken breast.

Hannah learned quickly how to trim and cut the chicken.

In a bowl add some eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Place chicken in mixture.

Dip chicken in seasoned bread crumbs and fry in pan with olive oil (you can use vegetable oil). Place chicken on paper towels to remove excess oil. This piece looks like a fish.Place some sauce in a pan. Place chicken in pan and add some sauce to cover chicken but not completely. Sprinkle some grated cheese and cover in mozzarella.

Bake in oven 350 for about 20 minutes until cheese melts. Viola! This is Hannah holding up her finished product.
Thank you Hannah for sharing your evening with me. You did a great job.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Chicken Francese

A couple of weeks ago I decided to make my family one of their favorite meals, Chicken Francese. What is that you ask? Well basically, it’s lemon chicken with butter. It’s my version of an Italian classic. Since I don’t do recipes (click here) I decided while I was making it to take pictures along the way. Unfortunately I got this idea when I was already into the process, but here it goes.

First you start off with a package of chicken breast. (See below) You have to slice the breast thinly (but not too thin) in preparation for cooking. In a bowl crack an egg and add milk, salt and pepper. On a plate place flour (season flour with salt and pepper). Place chicken breast in bowl and let soak in refrigerator for half hour. Heat oil in frying pan on low setting.

Dip individual chicken breast into flour and place in pan. (See below)When chicken is cooked to light golden brown (See below)
Remove and place on paper towels to drain off some of the grease (See below)In rectangular pan place pats of butter (See below)
Place chicken in the pan and place pats of butter on top of chicken (See below)
Place slices of lemon on top of the individual breasts. (See below) Squeeze lemon juice – from real lemons of course - on chicken and around the chicken until the bottom of the pan is covered about a quarter inch (give or take a quarter inch).
Place chicken in oven 350 degree oven (see below) for about 20 minutes. You want to make sure the juices don’t dry up. I made angel hair pasta with broccoli as a side (See below) Set table (wow, one package of chicken makes a big pan) (See below)

See how nice it looks on a plate (See below)

Enjoy!

© Nadine Z. 2007