Recipes that are simple and delicious.
If you have been following my posts for some time now, you probably know that fried chicken is my all-time favorite childhood food. Well, it might be one of my favorite comfort foods as well. I have my go to fried chicken recipe but I […]
For the last couple of weeks I have had a real craving for my homemade gyros on the grill. It is probably due to the reality that winter is on its way and my grill will soon be covered with snow, and that my friends […]
I recently purchased some black truffle oil at the store. I made the purchase as one of my colleagues keeps talking about a truffle oil mashed potatoes that he makes, and you can see the excitement on his face when he talks about it. I did a little research, not thinking that my local grocery store would carry such a thing, but low and behold, an Italian made truffle oil. Not only was I excited about the fact that they had the truffle oil in stock, but now I had something new to use, however I darn well pleased.
I immediately thought of making my version of the truffle oiled mashed potatoes, but I wanted something earthy this week, and since I made roast beef slathered in a rosemary and garlic marinade, I wanted to have the mushroom mashed potatoes as a side, and boy, was it ever good.
Ingredients:
Begin by making your roasted garlic as this will take a bit of time to cook. During this time, add one tablespoon of the butter and olive oil to a saute pan. On medium low heat, add in the finely chopped mushrooms, and let them sit there and do their thing, for about 15 minutes. Stir often. The goal here is to remove the moisture from the mushrooms, coming up with a nice and earthy mushroom base.
Add the cubed potatoes to a large pot of water. Cover, and cook on medium high heat until the potatoes are fork tender. Drain and return the potatoes back to the pot, and back on medium heat until all of the water is evaporated from the potatoes. Remove, and get ready to make the mashed potatoes.
To the pot, add the four tablespoons of butter, a teaspoon of salt and pepper, the milk, and squeeze out the roasted garlic. Get your potato masher out and do just that, mash. Mash to your desired consistency.
Toss in the cooked mushrooms, and truffle oil, and mix well. You are now ready to plate and serve.
The outcome is a perfect combination of mushroom and garlic flavor and a nice texture from the chopped mushrooms in the potatoes. If you are looking for something earthy, and super delicious, try this new take on mashed potatoes. You will be glad you did.
Enjoy.
While growing up in Kokomo, Indiana, there was not a whole lot in terms of restaurants, at least not that I remember. There was a great diner I recall where my mom just thought their egg cream, or cherry soda, or something on those lines, […]
I don’t know what has come over me lately, but corn dogs have been on my mind for some time now. I think it has been all the chatter on my social networks where people have talking about their state fair, and as we all […]
It is the season I most enjoy in Wisconsin. The cool weather, the smell of the air, and the beautiful fall colors. It is probably one of the reasons I want to stay in Wisconsin, and with that said, it is also one of my favorite cooking seasons. Fall brings out comfort and warmth in most of my cooking, whether it be soups or stews, but it also brings out the wonderful ingredient of pumpkin.
I have stated this before, but my wife has been craving pumpkin pies, and I know this is a seasonal craving. But my kids have also been craving pumpkin, and I am just fine with that, because after all, this is really their first season of actually really liking pumpkin. Because they all loved the pies so much, I decided that I would make some pumpkin bread, cut into bars of various sizes, and smother it with a ever so delicious cream cheese frosting. Let me just pause for a second, and tell you not too try the frosting before putting it on the pumpkin bread, because it is so good, you might not ever get it onto the bread.
Lets get started on these delicious bars that are great for the entire family.
Ingredients:
Fort the frosting:
Begin by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. Get a large bowl out, and to it, combine the eggs, oil, sugar, and pumpkin. Using a fork, mix very well until everything is incorporated. To a sifter, add the remaining ingredients to a sifter, and do just that, sift it into the mixed pumpkin mixture. Mix well.
To a lightly buttered and floured jelly roll pan, pour in the mixture. Place in the preheated oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until the break is fully cooked. I like to insert a knife down the middle and make sure it comes out clean. Once you have achieved that, and I say that because all ovens are not the same so cook times may vary, then remove the cake and let it cool.
This is the time to make the frosting. To a mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, and the powdered sugar. Mix really well until all of the ingredients are combined. Ok, you must give it a taste. Now hurry and spread it over the top of the bread. Mix the spices, and sprinkle on to the top of the frosting.
Cut into bars and enjoy. I’m telling you the entire family loved these bars, and my kids would ask for a piece after every meal. The cream cheese frosting and the pumpkin was a really great combination, that reminded me once again how much I love fall.
