Recipes

We publish a quarterly newsletter that features recipes of things members of our team actually make. Not that we are great cooks, but we all have some favorite foods or family recipes that we’d like to share. Here are the recipes we have published so far.

And, as a show of appreciation, we’d like to offer anyone who refers us to their family and friends a fresh bottle of my barbeque sauce as our way of saying thank you.

All the best,
Dave

Pesto - Brie Burger Don’t put those grills away just yet! I know it’s October, but I grill right through the winter. If it’s too cold for you out there now, just put this recipe aside until next Spring. I found this burger early this year, and made it for the family about once every 10 days. Don’t let the kids put ketchup or mustard on it until they try it first! The Savory Grape recommended I try Peirano Estate’s The Other Red with it…great match.                                               Enjoy, Dave Ingredients 4 cloves garlic ½ cup fresh basil leaves 2 tbsp pine nuts ½ cup olive oil 1 onion sliced 4 strips of bacon 1 lb ground beef ¾ tsp crushed red pepper flakes Salt & pepper ½ lb brie cheese 4 kaiser rolls, split     Directions In a food processor, combine the basil, pine nuts, and garlic. Pour the ½ cup of olive oil over the top and blend until almost smooth, put aside. In a little olive oil, sauté the onions. Cook the bacon strips. Mix a little salt, pepper, and the red pepper flakes in with the ground beef. Form 4 patties and grill to your liking, and top with two slices of brie with about 2 minutes to go. Lightly grill the buns, spread the pesto mixture on the bottom buns. Top each with a burger, a strip of bacon, and the onions.

Greenwich Bay Stuffies When I was a kid, my grandmother’s beach house on Greenwich Bay was where the family gathered each Summer. We used to dig our own quahogs right in front of the house, usually with our feet, and that always lead to the making of stuffies & chowder. I remember a hand crank meat grinder being used, and  a lot of clam juice leaking everywhere. Somehow, the stuffies always came out great. Here is my version of this old summer favorite. Enjoy, Dave Ingredients 18 chowder quahogs rinsed 4 cloves minced garlic 12 oz chorizo 1 medium onion 4 stalks celery 1 medium green pepper 1 tbsp Old Bay 1 cup Italian bread crumbs ¾ cup Parmesan cheese 1/3 cup reserved steaming liquid Smoked paprika     Directions In an 8 quart pot, steam open the clams using about an inch of water. Remove clams from shell, keep 12 half shells, and 1/3 cup of clam juice. While clams are cooking, finely chop chorizo, celery, onion, and pepper. In a large skillet, cook chorizo about 5 minutes on medium to render its fat. Add garlic, celery, onion, and pepper, cook until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Chop clams, add to skillet for a 2 minutes. Empty contents of skillet into large mixing bowl. Add bread crumbs, cheese, reserve clam juice, and Old Bay, then mix. Generously stuff clam shells and sprinkle with the smoked paprika. Preheat oven to 350, bake 15-18 minutes.

Cucumber, Tomato & Cheddar Macaroni Salad Unlike David I am not a big cook.  I like to keep it simple and tasty.  With Summer almost upon us, I think that this cold and delicious macaroni salad is a little different and a crowd pleaser for all those summer barbeques.                                                    Enjoy, Kim Ingredients 1 lb cooked pasta (elbow or tri-color) 2-3 diced cucumbers 2-3 diced tomatoes 16oz bag  shredded cheddar cheese 1 cup mayonnaise (or 1/2 btl. Italian dressing) 16 oz can black olives (optional)     Directions Cook the pasta, drain, and set aside to cool.  Once pasta is cooled, add diced cucumbers, diced tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, mayonnaise or Italian dressing and black olives.  Mix, chill serve.

Mediterranean Chicken Pasta One of my favorite local restaurants is Pinelli’s at Night where I first had this dish. After a little trial & error, I was able to make it at home. It’s great because you can make a big batch and have some left over for a quick reheat later in the week. It’s simple to make, only a few ingredients, and ready in about 20 minutes.  Enjoy - Dave Ingredients 1 cup flour 1 tsp ground pepper 2 lbs boneless chicken (white or dark) 1 cup of olive oil 2 minced garlic cloves 20 oz roasted red peppers 6-9 oz black pitted olives 12 oz artichoke hearts       Directions Mix flour & pepper in large bowl. Cut chicken into bite size cubes and coat with the flour & pepper mixture.  In a large covered skillet, heat olive oil on medium low. Put the garlic in oil for about two minutes, add chicken and cook for about 6 minutes turning as necessary. While chicken is cooking, cut peppers into strips, and add it to the chicken when it is nearly done. Drain olives and mix them into chicken & peppers and cook another 3 minutes. Drain artichokes and cut into halves or quarters and add to skillet. Don’t be afraid to add a little more oil if the flour soaked it all up. Cover for about 3 minutes and serve over short pasta. Serves 6

Grandmama's Quahog Pie Well, if you received my quarterly newsletter last Fall, you know a little about my 97 year old grandmother. Like all good cooks, most of her recipes are in her head, and she doesn't measure anything. So when I asked her for this recipe which is one of my family's favorite summer dishes, she & I had to make it together so I could write it down. Actually, I made it, Grandmama coached. It came out great! Enjoy - Dave Ingredients 25 chowder quahogs 2 cups whole milk 5 medium potatoes 1 Bay leaf Salt pork 1/3 cup flour 1 large onion 12 Biscuits Directions     Scrub the quahogs, place them in the largest pot you have, 8 quarts should do it. Put about an inch of cold water in the pot and steam them open. (You may have to move them around so they can open.) Remove the meat and discard the shells. Keep the clam juice in the pot on medium heat, add the bay leaf. Coarsely chop the quahog meat and return it to the pot.     In a large skillet, take about 3-4 ¼ inch slices of salt pork and render about 2-3 tablespoons of fat, remove the pork from the skillet. Dice and sauté the onions in the pork fat until clear. Add the onions and the remaining fat to the clam juice.     Cut the potatoes into small cubes, boil in a separate pot until tender, but not mushy. Drain potatoes & add to the clam juice. Add 1.5 cups of whole milk.     In a separate bowl, add the flour to ½ cup milk & whisk until smooth. Add to clam juice slowly to thicken. Repeat with half as much flour & milk if necessary. Leave on medium low heat stirring often for about 10 minutes. The mixture should be thick like turkey gravy.     Transfer mixture to a lasagna pan. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place 10-12 biscuits on top (Bisquick makes it easy) and bake for 15-20 minutes until biscuits are golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes, serve in a bowl.

Deb's Key Lime Pie My wife Deb & I have a good arrangement, where I do most of the cooking and she does most of the clean up. If I left the cooking to her, we would eat mostly take out or Cheez-Its every night. This is not a complaint because I really enjoy cooking. However, she does have a few things she likes to make and when she puts her mind to it, her dishes come out great. The one and only dessert she makes is her Uncle Bill’s (of Naples, FL) Key Lime Pie. Simple, but great for the upcoming Summer parties. Enjoy - Dave Ingredients 4 oz lime juice (about 12 Key Limes or about 6 regular ones) 14 oz sweetened condensed milk 4 oz Cool Whip Oreo cookie crust (store bought is fine)     Directions Let the Cool Whip thaw. Squeeze the limes for the 4oz of lime juice. Fold the lime juice into the condensed milk. Add the Cool Whip and mix thoroughly until smooth. Pour into the pie crust and gently shake it to level the mixture. Refrigerate 4 hours and serve.

Chourico & Chicken Chili My 13 year old son Teddy is an aspiring chef, and fully intends to study at Johnson & Wales. He often has the Food Network on and has a huge crush on Rachel Ray. Recently, he and I watched Rachel make a very different and tasty chili. We made it recently, and it was absolutely “delish.” It takes less than 30 minutes to make and is great over Polenta. Enjoy - Dave Ingredients Chili 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 3/4 lb chourico, chopped 2 lbs ground chicken 3 tbsp chili powder 1 tbsp ground cumin 1 onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 red bell pepper, chopped 1 (15 oz) can red beans, drained 1 bottle beer 1 (28 oz) can diced fire roasted tomatoes Salt Polenta 6 cups chicken stock 2 cups quick cooking polenta 2 tbsp butter 2 scallions, finely chopped 2 tbsp freshly chopped thyme leave     Directions Heat a big, deep skillet over medium high heat with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. Add chourico and render its fat, 2 minutes. Push the chourico off to the sides of the pot and add chicken meat. Brown and crumble the chicken, 5 to 6 minutes. Season the chicken with chili powder and cumin while it cooks. Combine the onions, garlic, peppers, and beans to the meat and cook another 5 to 6 minutes. Stir the beer into the chili and reduce the liquid for a minute, then add the tomatoes and heat through. Season the chili with salt, to taste, and reduce heat to low.   Bring 6 cups stock to a boil in a medium pot, stir in polenta and keep stirring until the polenta masses and thickens to a porridge, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in butter, scallions and thyme and season with salt, to taste. Fill bowls half way with polenta and make a well in the center. Fill up bowl with chili and serve.

Grandmama's Beef Stew My maternal grandmother is known as Grandmama, she is 97 years old, still drives herself and always has a great story to tell. She's a terrific cook, but her best talent has always been when we show up, and she asks us if we'll stay for dinner; she just goes into the freezer, pulls out some leftovers, and makes it taste like she worked on it all day. Well, when she decides to make her beef stew, and she calls to see if you want to come over to have some, you just go...it's that good. When I asked her recently for the recipe, she told me she'd have to make it in order to write it down. Simple to make, and great comfort food. Enjoy - Dave Ingredients 2 lbs of stew meat 1-1/4 cups of flour 1 teaspoon of salt & pepper One large yellow onion 1 Bay leaf 1/2 teaspoon Marjoram leaves 6 Carrots, 4 Potatoes 1/2 Turnip (optional) 1 cube of beef bullion     Directions Coat 2 lbs of stew meat in the flour, salt, & pepper. Brown it in 2-3 table spoons of bacon fat in a large pan. Add one coarsely chopped large onion. Once the meat is brown, transfer to a 4 quart pot, and add 2-3 cups of water to cover the meat. Add Bay leaf, bullion, and Majoram leaves. Cover & simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours until meat is tender. Add six cut carrots, and 4 medium cubed potatoes. (1/2 of a medium turnip cubed is optional) Add more water to just cover all meat & vegetables if necessary. Mix 1 large tablespoon of flour into 1/2 cup of cold water and whisk until smooth before adding to stew to thicken the broth. Simmer another 1-2 hours until vegetables are tender. Serves 6-8 people, or 4 Irishmen.

Grilled Splaine Potatoes I can't say this is a top secret recipe because it's pretty basic. But it's one of the few things my father makes, and something he taught me to make when I was a kid. He wasn't much of a cook, but he could make these potatoes. And since the only cooking he did was on the grill, there was always a little tension between the outside cook and the inside cook (my mother) who was coordinating everything else. We affectionately called this situation "Panic at the Grill." Enjoy - Dave Ingredients Idaho or a good baking potato Yellow onions Butter or margarine Salt Pepper Garlic Powder Paprika Directions Scrub the potatoes and leave the skin on. Slice them vertically in probably 4 places so the slices are about 3/4 of an inch. Slice the onion in half, then slice it rather thin. Put a sheet of foil on the counter, then put the potato on the foil. Put a pat of butter in between each slice of potato. Put a slice of onion on each pat of butter. Put the potato back together as best you can. Season with the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Feel free to add any other spices you like (i.e., Mrs. Dash). Put the potato back together, roll and fold the foil around it. Wrap it again with a second piece of foil. If you can, cook with indirect heat for about an hour at 350 turning them once. If you only have one burner, put it on medium to low and try not to put the potatoes on any hotspots. Cooking them with direct heat, you might want to turn them more often.

Dave's Barbecue Sauce Ingredients 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 onion, finely chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 1/2 cups ketchup 1/2 cup cider vineger 1/4 cup Worcester sauce 1/3 cup sugar 1 tablespoon chili powder 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper     Directions Heat the oil in a saucepan over moderate heat and add the onion and garlic. Cook gently, stirring for about 5 minutes. Add the ketchup, vinegar, Worcester sauce, sugar, chili powder and cayenne (the more cayenne you use, the hotter it will be). A little Tabasco too if you are so inclined. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 20 minutes. Great on chicken, ribs or whatever else you want to put it on. Makes about 2 1/2 cups (20 fl oz)