Recipes for the Fourth of July

Recipes for the Fourth of July

Healthy version of Noah’s Ark Clam Chowder

For a long time motorist driving Interstate 70 through Missouri would know when they got to Saint Charles. On the bluff of the Missouri River stood a full scale replica of Noah's Ark! It was an excellent steak house and known for serving a steaming caldron of clam chowder on every table.

This was their basic recipe. Make it in the crock pot a day or two before, then add the final two ingredients and heat in microwave of stove top for serving.

Makes 8 - 12 servings

Cans of soup (use low sodium/ low fat types)

1 Can Cream of Potato

1 Can Cream of Mushroom

1 Can Cream of Celery

3 cans @ 6 ½ oz. caned minced clams (drain and save the juice)

2 slices bacon, fried crisp and broken-up

1 soup can of reserved clam juice

1 small onion minced (heat in skillet until starting to turn transparent but not brown)

1 Cup cut mushrooms (I prefer Shiitake to add a smoky flavor)

1 tsp chopped parsley

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (careful with this because it will add a salty taste)

Pepper to taste (I’m sure you will)

About 4:30PM Add:

1 ½ Cups fat-free milk

1 cup fat-free half-and-half

Directions:

(pre-heat the pot by turning on 30 mins before time to cook.)

1 Combine all ingredients except milk and half-and-half in a crock pot. You want this to start by 9 AM

2. Cover. Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours

3. twenty minutes before end of cooking time, stir in milk and half-and-half.

Continue cooking until heated through. 

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St. Louis German Bratwursts

Ingredients
3 medium Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled and sliced
1 yellow onion, sliced
3 cans beer, Budweiser (2 for the pot – 1 for Master)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 fresh bratwursts
8 fresh hot dog buns, toasted
Beer Cheese Sauce, recipe follows 2 cups sauerkraut, drained (optional)
Dijon mustard, for topping 1 to 2 tablespoons pickled jalapenos, chopped (optional)
Directions
Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium-high heat.

Add the apples, onions, beer, salt, and pepper in a medium pot or Dutch oven. Simmer until the apples and onions soften, just a few minutes. Add in the brats and simmer until cooked through, about 10 minutes, turning once. The brats will get fat from soaking up the beer, that's your sign that they are ready. Remove the brats from the liquid. Skim the apples and onions out to drain. Reserve the beer braising liquid in the pot.

Brown the brats on the grill, covering with a dome metal lid if using a grill pan, until you get nice Dark Brown grill marks on all sides, 5 to 6 minutes. Without this step, the brats will be all gray and not appetizing at all!

NOTE: Until you are ready to serve; you can hold your brats in that pot of liquid at 170 deg. for up to 5 hr. and they will stay moist.

Cover the dutch oven and set it in the 200 degree oven that you have been cooking the pork steaks in.

Place the brats on the buns and drizzle with tablespoons of the Beer Cheese Sauce. Top with the Apple-Onion mixture and/or sauerkraut, some mustard and the jalapenos.

Beer Cheese Sauce:
1 cup of a white sauce
1½ cups of Sharp Cheddar cheese cubed

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 cup reserved beer braising liquid, plus more as needed

Make your white sauce, then stir in cheese a few cubes at a time.

If you dump them in at once, you will get droplets of oil forming in your sauce. Stir the mustard. Then slowly add the beer braising liquid while stirring. The sauce should be pourable, if it is too thick, add more braising liquid. Remember you can always add but you can't take it out, so pay attention. Yield: 2-3 cups.

NOTE: If you have any left over sauce, use as a dip! Are you thinking salsa?

You can also use fresh (not smoked) kielbasa instead of brats
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Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob

Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

Ingredients

4 ears fresh corn still in their husks
Directions

Note in directions for cooking the pork steaks, when you increase the oven temperature to 350 for the last hour and a half. For that last half hour, place corn husks directly on the oven rack and roast for 30 minutes or until the corn feels soft. Be sure that a lower rack has foil on it to catch corn syrup drips!

Peel down the husks and use as a handle when eating, the silk comes right off. Might need gloves or just stick a fork in each end. A few squirts of butter spray and some salt and pepper gives you corn the way it was intended to be eaten.

Back in 1964 one of my favorite authors: Rex Stout wrote a short story “Murder is Corny”. His detective, Nero Wolfe, divulges this method of cooking and stated that people who boil corn on the cob ought to be killed, because oven roasting corn creates ambrosia!
Directions:

1 Preheat oven to 350°F
2 Rinse ears.
3 Place corn cobs in middle rack in oven.
4 Bake for 30 minutes.
5 Remove corn cobs. Pull back husks and enjoy!

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Crepes Suzette Flambe

This is probably the queen of old French desserts. For this holiday meal slave has simplified it by using store bought crepes. It does not feel like a cop out in the least because they can be very tasty. They are done professionally on the right special equipment. You are welcome to buy it latter if you chose but first find a place to store it. Most of all by the time you bring this to the table, soaked in booze, and lit on fire, who cares where you got it?

Ingredients:
2 oranges, juiced
1 orange, zested
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter substitute (Smart Balance Baking sticks)
1/3 cup sugar
10 store-bought crepes
1/3 cup orange liqueur (recommended: Grand Marnier, Cointreau or Triple Sec )

Directions
Pour the orange juice into a saucepan, and add the zest, butter and sugar. Bring to the boil, and then turn the heat down to a simmer, cooking for a further 10 to 15 minutes until the sauce becomes syrupy.

Fold the crepes into quarters and then arrange them in a large pan, or any oven-proof dish, slightly overlapping in a circular pattern.

Pour the warm syrup over the folded crepes and then gently heat for about 1:30 in the microwave.

Warm the orange liqueur of your choice in the emptied but still syrupy saucepan. When the crepes are hot in the orange sauce, pour the liqueur over them and set a match to the pan to flambe them. Preferably do this close to the table so that the guests can see the flame. It will not be very bright at all. Serve immediately spooning crepes and sauce onto each plate. 

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Cut and paste to your hearts content!

socialslave

 

 

St. Louis Bondage Baked Beans

Beans that were slow-baked in molasses have been a favorite dish since colonial days, when Boston was the city “of molasses" due to its rum-producing role in the "triangular trade." Google it!

In 1919 21 people were killed and 150 more were injured when a 50 foot tank that held an estimated 2.5 million gallons of molasses exploded.

However the love of baked beans traveled westward on wagon trains. Along its southern adventures it picked up what we now refer to as Bar-B-Que flavorings.

Since this is a celebration of Saint Louis' heritages, slave knew that baked beans had to appear.

Ingredients:

4 strips of bacon fried crisp – save drippings and add to beans.

2 (15-ounce) Cans Bush’s vegetarian baked beans

1 cup diced Granny Smith apple peeled and cored

1 cup diced yellow onion

¼ cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon dry mustard

2 tablespoons Maple Syrup.

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Directions:

Spray baking dish.

In a large bowl mix all ingredients (except bacon) well.

Pour into the dish and lay the strips of bacon on top.

When your oven gets cranked back up to 350 degrees put this in to cook for 1 ½ hours.

NOTE: when you open the cans of beans, don't take the lid all of the way off. That way you can use it to help drain then beans. You do need to do this step or your beans would remain soupy even after a 4 hours baking!

Well slave's refrigerator is getting full of stuff already! Unfortunately the pea salad disappeared so tonight another was made. Tomorrow the pork steaks will go in marinade! Things are coming together! How are You doing?

Remember even with all of this to do you can still have fun and enjoy the holiday!

Serving Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore. To nourish, support and maintain. To gratify, spoil, comfort and please, to nurture, assist, and sustain …..I cook!

 

Toasted Ribald Ravioli

Toasted Ribald Ravioli 

From Saint Louis' great Italian heritage, this was invented here in a neighborhood known as “The Hill”. This is where all of our great Italian restaurants call home.

For our celebration, slave preferred to make a Spinach – Ricotta Cheese mixture for the filling that is very low in fat!

Ingredients:

• Package Egg Roll Wraps (found in produce section)about 15 sheets

Pasta sealer 2 eggs stirred in 2 Tbs water

Stuffing:

• 1 (10 1/2 ounce) packages firm tofu, well-drained
• 8 ounces Non Fat, cream cheese Neufchatel
• 1 (10 ounce) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well-drained
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons basil (dried or fresh)
• 2 teaspoons parsley (dried or fresh)

1 cup mushrooms, chopped

• ground pepper
• salt

Breading:

• 2 eggs
• ½ cup skim milk
• 1 pgk Italian bread crumbs

Dipping Sauce:

(In a hurry? Mix one part bottled Chilli sauce with two parts pizza sauce)

• 1 cup pizza / tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup of ketchup
  2 tablespoons horseradish
  1 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
  squirt of lemon juice
  Tabasco sauce, to taste

Directions:

Make the stuffing first.

• First press your tofu!
  
  
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• 
  
  
  To Press tofu, drain any liquid from the block of tofu. Fold paper towels around the tofu and set a big wrought iron skillet on top of it to press out the excess moisture. Allow to sit for about an hour to press.
•  
  • When you chop the garlic: first smash it with the side of your knife. This will loosen the paper like skin. Then cut each clove lengthwise. If you find a tiny green line, take the tip of your knife and pop this out. If not, it will add a very unwanted bitter taste.
  
  
  
  In olive oil, saute chopped onions and garlic, Stir in mushrooms, basil and parsley and saute for a few more minutes.
• In a bowl, combine saute pan contents with well-squeezed / drained tofu and the cream Neufchatel cheese.
• Add well-drained spinach to saute pan and heat briefly to remove any remaining moisture in spinach. Incorporate into "cheese" mixture, salt and pepper liberally.
• Cover bowl and let sit in fridge for at least 30 minutes, preferably over night-The longer it sits together, the better the flavors meld.

Assembly:

On 1 Egg roll wrap, distribute tablespoon-sized portions of the filling, in the middle of one side.

Brush around the filling with the egg wash and fold over the other end. Press down around the mound to push out any air bubbles and seal. Pinch the edges shut to ensure no air is trapped inside. Using the tines of a fork press along each edge to finish.

Freeze until hard.  The ravioli not you! :-)

 Cut the Egg Roll Wraps in half with a table knife.

Place a tablespoon of filling on one side and brush the rest with egg wash.

 

Then fold over and seal edges with the tines of a fork that has been dipped in flour.

Here are 30 nice large ravioli ready for the freezer.

 

 

 To bread the ravioli:

Whisk the 3 eggs and milk in a shallow bowl. Place the breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan into another shallow bowl and stir to combine. Dredge the ravioli in the egg mixture, followed by the breadcrumb mixture. Let drain on a cooling rack over some paper towels.

Refreeze until ready to fry. 
 

Preheat a deep fryer to 350 degrees F. Working in batches, carefully drop the frozen ravioli into the oil and fry until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, making sure that the oil comes back up to temperature in between batches. Place directly onto a cooling rack lined with aluminum foil to drain any excess oil. Serve hot on a plate sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan on top and warm tomato sauce on the side. 
 

(The fried ravioli can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool them completely, then cover and refrigerate. Before serving, place them on a baking sheet and rewarm in a preheated 375 degrees F oven just until they are heated through, about 7 minutes.)

  Happy crunching!  Num-Num!

socialslave

 

An English Perversion Pea Salad

 

 A great tasting lower fat version of a classic cold appetizer. From a Recipe of The Deen Brothers

Ingredients
4 slices bacon
1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas, thawed and well drained
1 cup diced mild Cheddar cheese (about 4 oz.) low fat
2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped (but use only one yoke)
6 oz container of No Fat Unflavored Greek Style Yogurt
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 small onion finely diced

1 stalk celery finely diced

Directions
In a skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Let cool. Chop into small pieces.

In a medium bowl, combine the bacon pieces, peas, onion, celery, cheese, and eggs. Stir in the yogurt, lemon juice, and salt and pepper, to taste. Refrigerate overnight or until ready to serve.

You can take this to a new level by sprinkling with cashew pieces.

Seal the bowl and set back into refrigerator until ready to serve.

Serving Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore. To nourish, support and maintain. To gratify, spoil, comfort and please, to nurture, assist, and sustain …..I cook!

Beats Autofellatio Apple Pie

Beats Autofellatio Apple Pie

Ingredients:

Pastry:

3¼ Cups All-purpose flour

1¼ Cups Very Cold lard* or solid vegetable shortening

1 Tbs vinegar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

¾ cup mix of vodka and water

Filling:

4 Granny Smith Apples

4 Jon-a-gold Apples (or any equal mix of tart and sweet apples)

¾ cup all-purpose flour

¾ cup white sugar

1 cup Dark Brown sugar

1½ tsp cinnamon

lemon juice

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 *Lard gives the best - flakiest crust. It is NOT as bad for you as you have been taught. It does NOT have the bad cholesterol, the manufactured kind.

Directions:

Place large bowl in freezer along with the 1¼ Cups lard and mixture of vodka and water.

The key to good pastry crust is to keep it cold and don't overwork it. 

 

  

Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Add Tbs vinegar. Cut the lard into chunks and add them to flour with a table knife. Slave does have a pastry cutter but finds that a knife or two will work better. Cut the chunks into the flour until it starts to look like a gravel.

 

                 From this..

                                            

                   work it into this           

 

Add the water / Vodka mixture by tablespoon fulls just until the dough will hold together in a ball.

At this point, split the dough in two with one piece just larger than the other. Wrap both in plastic wrap and stick back into refrigerator to rest and re-chill.

Cover your pizza stone with aluminum foil and preheat oven to 400.

 

As your oven heats, wash off the apples and have a large bowl ready for them. Slave always squirts some lemon juice in the bowl and lays a couple of paper towels over. The lemon juice keeps the flesh of the apple from turning brown.

Peel, core and cut apples into wedges. There is a handy kitchen tool that will help with this.

 Dump the wedges into the bowl and give them a stir with your hand and if needed add a bit more of the lemon juice.

Now add ¾ cup of white sugar and 1 cup of brown sugar, the cinnamon and the flour. Stir this gently with a big wooden spoon until the mixture covers all of the apple wedges. 

 

 

By now the oven should be pre-heated. Set the apples aside and roll out a large piece of wax paper or parchment, one that is as wide as your pie pan. Slave used an oven proof glass dish, which was buttered on the inside.

Sprinkle flour on the paper and take out the large ball of dough. Place it on one side and fold the paper over so that the dough is in the middle of the folded piece. You might have to sprinkle more flour between the dough and paper but keep it to a minimum. Roll out the dough using short strokes and turning between each. You want the dough to end up about 1/8 inch thick disk slightly larger than the pie dish.

Don't over work, if it starts to shrink back, put it in the refrigerator again to rest for 10 minutes. When ready, roll the dough up against the rolling pin until it is covered. Then place the edge  of the dough on the edge of dish and unroll. It does not have to be perfect! Dough can always be patched by wetting the edges and sticking another piece onto it.

Spread the apple mixture into the shell and be sure to scrape out all of the liquid that has now formed with the sugars and flour into almost a caramel. Pat everything down with wooden spoon.

Do the top crust in the same manner. Once that is on the pie, cut lines or designs through the crusts so that steam will escape. Brush top with a tiny bit of water and sprinkle with bakers colored sugar if you like. Place on top of covered pizza stone. Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove pie, set stone out on a towel, slip a big piece of aluminum foil onto the rack to catch the drips. Before returning pie, whip an egg in a small bowl and with a brush “paint” the crusts with the egg wash. Bake for an additional 40 minutes, or until the crust is a beautiful shade and not burned. Take out to cool on a cooling rack.

 

Allow pie to completely cool before cutting.

 

Keep pie refrigerated until needed, serve with softened ice cream and a side of hot coffee and sparklers!

Serving Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore. To nourish, support and maintain. To gratify, spoil, comfort and please, to nurture, assist, and sustain …..I cook!

  

Grocery list for the Fourth!

Slave understands! It is the end of the month. Here is a big list of things to buy. Well, at least here is the list so that you can check to see what you already have. Most of the second half is in your pantry by now, maybe?

Copy, paste and print this list and check each item off. That way when Monday and the checks rolls around, you can hit the grocery with confidence. If you can pick up enough this weekend so that you can bake the pie, or maybe start the ravioli, the food will keep and it will make the day go much easier.

Slave has suggested a time line for you to follow. This will help you coordinate a big celebration dinner for guests.

Grocery LIST:

1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas, thawed and drained
1 (10 ounce) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well-drained

2 oranges, juiced
1 orange, zested

1 (10 1/2 ounce) packages firm tofu, well-drained

2 @6 oz container of No Fat Unflavored Greek Style Yogurt

1 @8oz container of non fat cream cheese
8 Granny Smith Apples

4 Jon-a-gold Apples

¼ cup Orange Juice

1 cup apple juice

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/3 cup orange liqueur

1 cup diced mild Cheddar cheese (about 4 oz.) low fat

1½ cups of Sharp Cheddar cheese cubed
2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped (but use only one yoke)

4 ears fresh corn still in their husks
¾ cup mix of vodka and water

1 ½ Cups fat-free milk

1 cup fat-free half-and-half

8 to 12 store-bought crepes

pastry sheets or 16 wonton wrappers

5 med onions

5 garlic cloves,

2 stalk celery finely diced

2 cup mushrooms, chopped

bottled Chilli sauce , 1 1/2 cups bottled barbecue sauce, pizza sauce)

10 slices bacon

8 fresh bratwursts
About 4 lbs Pork Steaks One per person

1 Can Cream of Potato

1 Can Cream of Mushroom

1 Can Cream of Celery

2 (15-ounce) Cans Bush’s vegetarian baked beans

3 cans @ 6 ½ oz. caned minced clams

1pgk Italian bread crumbs

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

½ cup Worcestershire sauce low sodium

3 cups of brown sugar

1 ¼ cup white sugar

4¼ Cups All-purpose flour

1¼ Cups lard or solid vegetable shortening

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter substitute

3-4 dashes of Balsamic Vinegar

1 Tbs vinegar

1 teaspoon dry mustard

2 teaspoons basil (dried or fresh)

3 teaspoons parsley (dried or fresh)

1½ tsp cinnamon

3 tsp garlic powder

2 tbsp onion powder

½ cup peanut oil

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

Handful of cashew pieces

Ice Cream

8 fresh hot dog buns, toasted

at lest 3 cans beer, Budweiser

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Ice tea, lemonade, water. Chips, dips, pretzels.

Yeah, big list, but lots of food and a great time planed for Master and His guests.

Have you given any thought to what special ceremony for you and your Master to mark “Independence Day”?

Serving Master Indy

socialslave

To satisfy and restore. To nourish, support and maintain. To gratify, spoil, comfort and please, to nurture, assist, and sustain …..I cook!