Crock Pot X Winning Potato Salad

There was no rush to jump onto the Insta-Pot bandwagon, but Scott's folks gave him the equivalent, the Crock-Pot Express.  We're amazed at how often we use it.  It comes with a mini booklet of recipes, and what a surprise to come upon one of the best potato salads we've had yet; second only to the potato salad at the very top of the potato salad mountain, at Tyler's Burgers in Palm Springs. 

The potatoes and eggs can just as easily be cooked on the stovetop.  What's awesome about cooking this recipe with a pressure cooker, is that the eggs are placed on top of the chopped potatoes and then cooked for only 4 minutes.  Perfection!

Ingredients:

1 cup        water

2 tsp         salt

3 lbs         red potatoes, cut into 3/4" cubes

3 eggs

1/3 cup    finely diced dill pickle

1/4 cup    finely chopped red onion

1 stalk     finely diced celery

1/4 cup    chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup    mayonnaise

2 tbsp      yellow mustard

1 tbsp      apple cider vinegar

2 tsp        sugar or honey

Directions:

Combine water and 1 tsp salt in Cooking Pot.  Place potatoes on a wire rack, then place whole eggs on potatoes.  Cook on STEAM / SEALED 4 minutes, then quick release pressure when complete.

Place eggs in bowl of cold water with ice cubes.  Drain potatoes in colander; let stand 10 minutes or until potatoes have cooled slightly.  Peel eggs and coarsely chop.  Place in large bowl; add pickle, onion, celery and parsley.  Add potatoes; gently mix. 

For dressing, whisk mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, sugar and remaining salt in medium bowl.  Pour over potato mixture; mix gently.  Refrigerate until cold.

Options:

For a nice presentation, sprinkle paprika lightly around the center of the mixture.

For a creamy potato texture, chill the potatoes in the refrigerator for several hours before adding them to the mixture.

Confession:  The original recipe called for 6 eggs and a whole cup of mayonnaise.  I just could not do it.

Eduardo's Crunchy Pie Crust

I always make two pie crusts, you can freeze the second one for later

2 sticks of unsalted butter

2 cups flour
1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Sugar

2-3 cups of ice water
2-3 cups of ice cubes

Chop butter into 1/4" cubes and place in freezer for a couple of hours, at least.  Should be firm, but not rock solid.  Too much trouble to blend if it's too hard.

Mix dry ingredients and place them in the freezer as well.  It helps to keep everything nice and cold.

Place chopped butter in to bowl of dry ingredients and begin mixing the butter into the flour and break-up any clusters of butter pieces that have become stuck together.  Using a hand-held pastry cutter,  cut and blend flour mixture and butter, consistently, keeping in mind that everything must remain cold.  The blending is complete when the mixture begins to resemble Grated Parmesan Cheese with a few 1/8" - 1/4" balls of butter.

Fill a small bowl with the ice cubes and enough cold water so that the ice cubes float.

Use a tablespoon to sprinkle water drops over the flour mixture.  Mix with a giant two prong fork which breaks-up the clumps of dough that tend to form.  Continue to add iced water, one tablespoon at a time, mixing with the fork in between.  Do this until the dough just begins to stick together, but not quite.  The few particles of dry flour will become moistened later.  Form half the mixture into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap.  With the palm of your hand, press down the ball only once, to form a disk.  Place in refrigerator for no less that 1 1/2 hours.  It is important to allow the dough to chill and rest, thus allowing the flour to absorb the moisture and fat, without activating the glutens in the flour.  Activating the glutens with any kind of kneading will cause the crust to become hard, rather than light and crispy.-

Roll-out the dough for the appropriate size pan.  Pre-bake if necessary.

Frosted Cauliflower

This is an interesting way to prepare cauliflower that makes a nice presentation.

1 whole cauliflower
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons prepared mustard (or 1 teaspoon Coleman's mustard powder)
3/4 cup sharp shredded cheese
Salt to taste

Remove leaves and core of cauliflower. Cook whole, in a pot with a small amount of water, covered, for 12-15 minutes. Drain. Place cauliflower in shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with salt. Combine mayonnaise and mustard and spread over the cauliflower. Top with shredded cheese, pressing cheese to stick to sides. Bake at 375 degrees about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Stephenson's Apple Farm Green Rice

Stephenson's Apple Farm was a well known restaurant and farm located outside of Kansas City, Missouri.  It is no longer there but anyone who lived in the Kansas City area between in the 1960's through the 1980's will remember it.  At the time, this place was out in the "country", you had to go out of the way to get there, so it was a special occasion whenever we went.  The restaurant was large, looked like a barn (probably had been a barn), and they could handle large groups easily.

This was one of their signature dishes.  This recipe came from a cookbook they published; my parents still have a copy of it.

3 cups cooked rice
1 cup chopped parsley
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 12 oz can evaporated milk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Juice and rind of 1 lemon
dash paprika

Preheat oven to 350°.  Mix rice, parsley, cheese, onion, green pepper, and garlic in a large bowl.  Blend rest of the ingredients.  Pour into a greased 2-quart baking dish.  Bake for about 45 minutes, or until it has the consistency of a soft custard.

French Bistro Brisket

This is Steve Raichlen's recipe.  I heard this on the radio during a review of his book "Man Made Meals: The Essential Cookbook for Guys".  They way he described the "French Bistro" and this brisket, my mouth was watering!  I made it for Thanksgiving instead of Turkey.  It was awesome.

1 slab (about 3 pounds) center-cut beef brisket
4 slices thick bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slivers
24 pearl onions, peeled, or 6 small onions, peeled and quartered
8 medium-size carrots, peeled, trimmed, and cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces, plus 2 carrots, peeled, trimmed, and finely chopped
1 pound small red or new potatoes, cut in half
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup Cognac
1 bottle (750 milliliters) fruity red wine, like Beaujolais
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon chopped chives (optional)

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Trim any excess fat (more than 1/4 inch) off the brisket.Place the bacon in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and cook until browned, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a platter.

Add the pearl onions, carrot pieces and potatoes to the pot, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook until browned (about three minutes), stirring often. Using the slotted spoon, transfer the browned onions, carrots and potatoes to the platter with the bacon. Lightly cover the bacon and vegetables with aluminum foil — they won't be added back to the pot until the brisket has cooked for three hours. Pour off and discard all but about two tablespoons of the bacon fat from the pot.

Very generously season the brisket on all sides with salt and pepper. Place the brisket in the pot and sear it in the hot bacon fat over medium-high heat until darkly browned, about five minutes per side. Transfer the brisket to a plate. Pour off and discard all but two tablespoons of fat.

Add extra two chopped carrots, second chopped onion, celery, garlic and bay leaves to the pot and cook until browned, about four minutes, stirring often.

Add the Cognac and let come to a boil, stirring up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot with the wooden spoon. Return the brisket to the pot. Add the wine and tomato paste and bring to a boil. 

Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven. Cook the brisket until semi-tender, about three hours, checking once or twice to make sure the meat doesn't stick to the pot or scorch on the bottom.

Remove the pot from the oven. Uncover the pot, and using a large spoon, remove and discard any fat floating on the surface. Stir in the bacon, browned pearl onions, carrot pieces, and potatoes. Cover the pot, return it to the oven, and continue cooking the brisket for 1 hour longer.

Remove the pot from the oven. Uncover the pot, spoon off the fat again, and return the uncovered pot to the oven. Cook the brisket until it is very tender, some of the pan juices have evaporated, and the sauce starts to thicken, 30 minutes to one hour more. Remove the pot from the oven and let the brisket rest for about 10 minutes.

Again, spoon off any fat that has risen to the surface. Remove and discard the bay leaves. Transfer the brisket to a cutting board and thinly slice it crosswise across the grain.

Place the pot with the sauce and vegetables on the stove over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Boil the sauce until concentrated and flavorful, about three minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste; the sauce should be highly seasoned.

Return the sliced brisket to the sauce and vegetables. Sprinkle the chopped chives, if using, on top. Serve the brisket French bistro style directly from the pot.

Three Onion Quiche

This recipe came with a shipment from the "Sunset Wine Club".  For what it's worth, they suggest pairing with "Cachette NV Blanc de Blancs Brut" from Burgundy, France.  We had it for breakfast with a glass of milk and it was great.

1 sheet refrigerated pie dough
1 tablespoon butter
3 medium leeks, thinly slice the white and light green parts, rinse well
2 bunches green onions, thickly sliced
1/2 red onion, cut into thin half-moons
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup half-and-half
3 eggs
2 cups grated white cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 425°.  Unroll pie dough into a 9-inch deep dish pie pan, crimp the edge.  Line with parchment paper and fill with pie weights (or dried beans, popcorn, or something to add weight on the crust).  Bake until light golden, about 15 minutes.  Remove paper and weights.

Melt butter in a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add leeks, green onions, red onion, and 1/2 of the salt.  Saute until onions are very tender, about 20 minutes.

Whisk together the half-and-half, flour, eggs, and remaining salt.  Stir in the cheese and 3/4 of the onion mixture.  Pour into the pie shell.  Sprinkle the remaining onion mixture on top.

Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes clean, 30-45 minutes.  Cover edges with foil if they get dark.  Let cool about 10 minutes before serving.

Orange Fennel Olives

This makes a great warm appetizer.  This recipe came with a can of "Lindsay" green olives.  There are other brands, like "Early California" -- the recipe is best with the fresh-packed kind of olives, packed in water, not in oil or with pimentos or other flavorings.

1 6oz can green ripe olives in water, drained
1-1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 2-inch strips orange peel, removed with a vegetable peeler
1-1/2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
1 teaspoon fennel seed, coarsely crushed with a mortar & pestle

Preheat oven to 375°.  Toss ingredients in a small table-ready baking dish (or you can transfer the olives into another dish to serve).  Place on the middle rack of the oven, bake until hot, about 5 minutes.  Serve immediately with toothpicks.