May 02
Though I haven’t seen this episode of “Good Eats”, I thought it would be fun to make some home made granola bars to eat as a fairly healthy snack. My calculations based on the ingredients I used is that if you cut your finished product into 16 bars, each bar will be about 200 calories.
The Program
8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, approximately 2 cups
1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, approximately 1/2 cup
3 ounces sliced almonds, approximately 1 cup
1 1/2 ounces wheat germ, approximately 1/2 cup
6 ounces honey, approximately 1/2 cup
1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/4 cup packed
1-ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries
The Prep
Though most of the ingredients I already had, a few needed to be added to the weekly list. This is the first time I’ve ever used wheat germ for anything. I was surprised to learn that, because of the unsaturated fats, wheat germ must be refrigerated once it has been opened. Luckily I had a nearly year old bottle of salad dressing that found its way to the trash to make room for it.
The Process
It is pretty straight forward. Put all the dry ingredients on a 1/2 sheet pan and give them a good toasting – about 15 minutes at 350 or so. While that is going on mix the brown sugar, honey, vanilla, butter and salt together and get it over medium heat to melt the butter and brown sugar. Once everything is toasted and melted, mix it all together in the saucepan, add the dried fruit then turn it out into a greased baking dish. I used and 8 x 8 so I’d have nice thick bars. Bake it at 300 for about 25 minutes and let it cool completely then cut into bars and eat!
The Payoff
They are pretty darn good. They are pretty sticky given all the honey and sugar, but overall they’re pretty good. I don’t know if I should have let them cool longer or what, but they didn’t make very pretty bars. They’re pretty crumbly. Perhaps if I had seen the episode to see what Alton did, I would have had better luck. Oh well – they still taste good.
Apr 24
The Program
Nonstick spray
8 ounces all-purpose flour
4 ounces whole-wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
4 1/2 ounces sharp Cheddar, grated
12 ounces cold beer, ale or stout
The Prep
Technically, the prep for this beer bread was a very long and challenging process. Why? Well, I used my own home brewed beer for this recipe. I suppose you could use some sort of store-purchased beer, but it wouldn’t be nearly as good as my home brewed stout. I’m just sayin’.
I can hear you asking if I really used whole wheat flour. Yes I did. We always have some in the house somewhere. Did I use fresh chopped dill? No, I used dried. Did I freshly grate my cheese? Yes, but only because I didn’t have any cheese-in-a-bag. O.K. now that the inquisition is out of the way, on to the process.
The Process
Mix it up and bake it.
It really is that easy. Well, start with the dry ingredients first then add the beer and the cheese last. I did mine in the bowl of the stand mixer, it was a piece of cake – or bread, I guess. 375 for about 53 minutes (in a well greased loaf pan) and you should reach the Alton Brown recommended internal temperature of 210F.
The Payoff
It is fantastic and very, very easy. The dill (yes, even the dried dill) gives it a great flavor, and of course good beer helps out a bunch too. This one is so easy you should do it right now. Seriously, go in the kitchen and bake.
Apr 06
Alton Brown’s marinated pork tenderloin. Holy cow! This is fantastic. I admit I’ve never met a pork tenderloin that I didn’t like, but this one is way up there on the list.
The Program
1 whole pork tenderloin, approximately 1 pound
1 lime, zest finely grated
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
The Prep
Let’s talk pork tenderloin. If you’ve never worked with a vacuum packed whole tenderloin, be prepared for a little bit of prep. First be ready for the pack to contain 2 – 1 pound tenderloins. This recipe is for one tenderloin. You can easily double it, or you can freeze the other one.
Anyway, prepping the tenderloin requires a little bit of knife work. I probably should have taken pictures… perhaps I will when I serve up Pork Wellington 
The tenderloin has a little bit of extra fat that needs trimmed away, but more importantly hiding under some of that fat is a strip of silver skin. If you leave it on, you get two things, a strip of worthless undigestible junk and a curled up pork tenderloin. The silver skin will shrink, but stay attached to the tenderloin so the meat will curl up, which means it will cook unevenly and is generally not good. Therefore, it has to go. Peel it off and trim any extra fat off and you’re good to go.
The Process
Mix up your marinade and let your pork rest in it for at least 4 hours. I let mine go about 20 hours with no problems. When you’re ready, grill it up. It’s just that easy. I cooked it for about 15 minutes turning it every 2 to 3 minutes. It was just right. I pulled it at about 145F.
The Payoff
It’s official – the first of – what I assume will be – many Perfect Scores.
Tagged with: citrus • marinade • pork
Mar 28
Pork Chops!! Lori and I have recently taken to cooking pork chops. I have come up with a pretty good recipe / glaze so I thought it would be fun to compare it to Alton Brown’s Molasses and Coffee marinade. Here’s what I found out:
The Program
1 cup cool strong coffee
6 ounces molasses, by weight
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
6 to 8 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 (6 to 8-ounce) bone-in, 1-inch thick pork chops
The Prep
This one is a piece of cake. All you have to do is brew yourself an extra cup of coffee with your breakfast. After breakfast you can assemble your marinade and toss the chops in the fridge for the rest of the day. Just bring them out a bit before you’re ready to cook to let them come to room temperature.
The Process
There really isn’t much of a process. The original recipe that Alton provides recommends grilling the pork chops and reducing the brining liquid to a glaze on the stove, but since it was raining, I decided to pan sear mine. After searing, I returned the brining liquid (which had been boiling for 10 minutes) to the pan to deglaze and finish the cooking process by braising the chops. Once the chops were finished I removed them to a plate and let them rest. I continued boiling the liquid to work it down to a glaze.
The Payoff
I have to admit, these were pretty darn good pork chops. I think they would have been better on the grill, but they were good in the pan as well. So which is better, my marsala based chops or Alton’s Molasses Coffee Chops? Well, I’m sorry Alton, but both Lori and I think the marsala chops that I make are just a bit better. That certainly shouldn’t keep you from trying this recipe because it is very good. My score:
Tagged with: coffee • molasses • pork
Mar 27
Welcome to the new home of AB and Me. I kept all the posts but have updated the categories and tags and tweaked the advertising. Hopefully I haven’t missed anything. If you notice anything, please drop me a note and I’ll get on it ASAP. Please update you RSS reader to the new feed:
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Stay tuned for more good eats.
Cheers!!
Tagged with: Alton Brown
