Tilapia with Garlic Butter

Ingredients   

2 tablespoons butter

2 cloves garlic, finely minced
dash pepper
dash salt
pinch dried dillweed or parsley
dash paprika
4 tilapia fillets

Directions

In saucepan, combine butter, garlic, pepper, salt, dillweed, and paprika. 

Heat over low heat until butter is melted and starts simmering.

Remove from heat. Brush a little of the butter mixture in the bottom of a shallow baking dish (line baking dish with foil, if desired) then place tilapia fillets on the buttered area. 

Brush top of each tilapia fillet with the seasoned butter mixture. 

Bake at 350° for 12 to 15 minutes, until tilapia flakes easily with a fork.

Serve with a side of vegetables your choice.

Yum Yum Baked Buffalo Wings

Ingredients

1 lb chicken wings, thighs or chicken breasts
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup louisiana hot sauce
1 tablespoon margarine

Directions

Fill a large pot half way with water and then add the first 4 ingredients.

Bring water mixture and wings to a boil and then boil for 15 minutes.

Transfer wings to an oven safe container coated with cooking spray. Bake wings on "Broil" (high) for 15 minutes on each side.(For crispier wings, cook longer on each side, maybe 20 minutes per side).

While waiting for wings, combine the Hot Sauce and Margarine in a microwave safe container and cook in microwave for 2 minutes or until melted. (You can cook the sauce longer for a thicker sauce).

When wings are done, shake 'em up with the sauce and enjoy!

You can serve them with celery, rice and ranch on the side for those  who can't take the heat.

Sushi Bake

This recipe was given to me by my dear friend, GayAnn. I had it at one of her Christmas gatherings and fell in love with it. I substituted some of the ingredients.

Ingredients
1 cup raw brown rice
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 lb.  real crab meat
1/2 lb. frozen, raw baby shrimp (chopped)
1 container of Furikake seasoning
1 – 2 pkgs of Japanese Nori seaweed
one 9X13″ pan or glass baking dish

Directions
Cook rice.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Boil raw baby shrimp for a few minutes, until the shrimp color turns pink.

Turn off the heat and remove cooked shrimp from water with a slotted spoon, leaving the hot water in the pot.

Chop baby shrimp into small pieces.

Combine crab meat, baby shrimp, mayonnaise, and sour cream together in a bowl and mix well.

Spread cooked rice onto 9X13″ pan.

Spread crab meat, baby shrimp, mayonnaise, and sour cream mixture over the cooked rice.

Then sprinkle Furikake over the dish.

Bake at 375 degrees (about 15 to 20 minutes).

Spicy Jambalya

Ingredients

12 medium shrimp, peeled, deveined and chopped
4 ounces chicken, diced
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning, recipe follows
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
a lot of hot sauce
3/4 cup rice
3 cups chicken stock
5 ounces Andouille sausage, sliced
Salt and pepper

Directions

In a bowl combine shrimp, chicken and Creole seasoning, and work in seasoning well.

In a large saucepan heat oil over high heat with onion, pepper and celery, 3 minutes. Add garlic, tomatoes, bay leaves, Worcestershire and hot sauces.

Stir in rice and slowly add broth. Reduce heat to medium and cook until rice absorbs liquid and becomes tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

When rice is just tender add shrimp and chicken mixture and sausage.

Cook until meat is done, about 10 minutes more. Season to taste with salt, pepper and Creole seasoning.

My Own Creole Seasoning:

• 6 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons fresh minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh diced onion
• 3 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly. Add more if you prefer different tastes.

If the Pâte à Choux Fits: Cream Puff

Legend has it that Catherine de Medici brought the recipe for cream puffs from Italy when she moved to France in 1533. As the years progressed, the recipe for puff pastry went through several incarnations until Antoine Carême finally perfected it. Puff pastry dough is called Pâte à Choux, which means cabbage pastry, because it was believed to look like very small head of cabbage. I don’t think it does, but I’m not a French pastry chef.

Pâte à Choux is a versatile dough, which can be used to make churros if you are looking for a Spanish dessert or gougeres, which go well with wine and make a great appetizer for a wine and cheese party.

The trick behind all cream puff recipes is the dough. The dough is actually cooked in the pan before it is baked in the oven. The result is a hollow, puffy pastry that can be filled with cream, ice cream, savory mousse, or whatever you like.

Ingredients
1 cup plus 6 teaspoons of water (9 ounces)
4 ounces of butter, cut into pieces
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour (5 ounces)
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
4-5 eggs
egg beaten with a bit of water (for egg wash)

Directions
Put the water, butter, salt, and sugar in a saucepan and bring it to a boil.

Once the butter has melted, remove the pan from the heat and add all of the flour at once.

Place the pan back onto a medium heat and, using a wooden spoon, stir the mixture vigorously until it forms a thick batter that pulls away from the side of the pan. This should take about 30 seconds.

Continue to cook the batter for 1-2 minutes more.

Remove the batter from the pan and put it into the bowl of your stand mixer.

Break the eggs into a bowl.

Using the paddle attachment, mix the batter on low speed and add the eggs one at a time. #Let each egg become fully incorporated before adding the next one. The batter should be smooth and firm.

You know you have added enough eggs when a dollop of batter lifted on a spatula curls over itself and forms a hook.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Place a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Fit a pastry bag with a number 5 piping tip and fill the bag with the dough.

Pipe 1 ½-inch mounds of dough onto the cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake for 10 minutes more.

Turn the oven off and let the puffs rest for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Cut the puffs in half across the middle.

Fill with whipped cream.

Dust with powdered sugar.

Homemade Lasagna

Ingredients
1 (16 ounce) package lasagna noodles
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup minced onion
1/8 teaspoon white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 pound small curd cottage cheese
3 eggs
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add noodles and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain and set aside.

Place pork and beef in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Stir in tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, parsley, garlic, oregano, onion, sugar, basil and salt. Simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a large bowl, combine cottage cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt and pepper.

In a 9x13 inch baking dish, place 2 layers of noodles on the bottom of dish; layer 1/2 of the cheese mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese and 1/2 of the sauce; repeat layers.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

Remove foil and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes; let stand for 10 minutes before cutting; serve.

Moist Banana Bread

Ingredients
3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup sugar (can easily reduce to 3/4 cup)
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

Directions
No need for a mixer for this banana bread recipe.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl.

Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla.

Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in.

Add the flour last, mix.

Pour mixture into a buttered 4x8 inch loaf pan.

Bake for 1 hour.

Cool on a rack.

Remove from pan and slice to serve.