Tuna Nachos, Need I Say More

Sometimes I get strange ideas.

Normally, my wife just shakes her head but I've had enough lucky hits that she's started to just say,"Go ahead, you never know."

So I had this idea for Tuna Nachos and also Tuna Pizza. I mean, what's the worst thing that can happen. (see previous 46 posts)

First I made some normal nachos for my eldest daughter who doesn't like seafood, and also in case the tuna ones are gross.

Pile o chips.

Melt some cheese under the broiler with the plate on the middle rack. Careful, it's hot.

Add left over sloopy joe meat or any kind of meat or chili. Put back under broiler for about a minute to heat up the meat.

Remove and add vegetables and salsa. Yum.

I recently found these Frontera chips that I really like. They are great for nachos, just a little thicker than normal chips.

Now do the same thing with Tuna.

Pile 'o Nachos

Add just a little cheese, include some fresh mozzarella, melt under broiler for a minute or so.

Now add sliced tuna (salt and pepper) and Tzatziki sauce. (Greek sauce from Costco)

Place back under broiler until tuna just starts to brown (about 30 seconds).

You want the under sides still raw if possible.

Add some pomegranate seeds serve. Yum.

We also did a tuna pizza that wasn't as successful.

Pizza dough with olive oil, green onions, fresh mozarella cheese, cook for 6 minutes or until just browned. Add tuna and Tzatziki sauce and place under the broiler until the tuna just turns, about 30 sec. Add some Pomegranate seeds.

Serve hot. It was fine, I experimented with the dough a little and that wasn't the best, but the tuna part and the sauce were good.

Definitely try the nachos if you're game.

Cook well.

Rob Barrett

www.cookingfordads.net

3 Chili Recipes In 5 minutes. Magical Chilis with an unexpected ingredient.

When I was asked to do a segment on a local TV station where I start off with a vegetarian chili base and then add ingredients to make 3 different chilis I was a little worried. Most of the chilis that I have had taste similar so I wondered if I could differentiate them enough.

Here’s what I came up with and I have to admit they are some of my favorite recipes to date. They all start with the base, a bean choice, add meat and then one special ingredient. (On the video we kept that from the hosts to see if they could guess it. They couldn’t)

Here’s the link to the life video.
http://twincitieslive.com/article/stories/S1389358.shtml?cat=10743

Seafood Chili, Steak Chili and Meat Lovers Chili.

Base:
1 29oz. can tomato sauce
1 29 oz can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 spoonful italian seasoning
1 spoonful chili powder
1/2 spoonful salt
1/2 spoonful pepper
olive oil

Place a little olive oil in the bottom of a big pan. On medium heat fry onions and garlic for 3 minutes or until just cooked.
add rest of ingredients and stir. Let simmer on low.

Bean options:
add just one of either:
1 16 oz cab Bush’s Chili beans medium
1 16 oz can Bush’s homestyle Baked Beans
or 1 16 oz Bush’s Red Beans (drained)

For Steak Lovers Chili
cut 1 1/2 lb of top sirloin steak in to small cubes. Fry on high heat until just browned, about 2 minutes, add to chili.
unexpected ingredient – 1/4 red wine

Let cook for a couple minutes then serve.

For Seafood Chili,
fry 1 1/2 lbs sea food, (1/2 lb deveined shrimp, 1/2 lb langostinos, 1/2 lb bay scallops) in a pan with a little butter. add to chili
unexpected ingredient - 1/2 log Philadelphia Cream Cheese, stir until melted.

Let cook for a couple minutes then serve.

For Meat Lovers Chili
Fry a red pepper (cut into small squares), 1/2 lb bacon cut in to small pieces, 1/2 lb italian sausage, 1/2 lb ground beef until meat is cooked. Drain and add to chili.
add 1/2 cup of your favorite Barbeque Sauce
unexpected ingredient - 2 spoonfuls Semi sweet chocolate chips

Let cook for a couple minutes then serve.

© 2010 Cooking for Dads

KickaCajun Burger with Southern Comfort Onions - Go Vikes, Kick a Cajun.

KickaCajun Burger

For each burger

1 handful lanogstinos (crawfish tails) or Uncooked Shrimp

1 handful Cheetos

Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning

1 or 2 eggs.

For topping

1 onion cut in thin strips/rings

1" butter

1/4 cup Southern Comfort

Directions:

Take langostinos or shrimp and cut in to medium size chunks about 1/2 squares.

Smash Cheetohs in to small bits using a plastic bag and your hand. (Use one handful of each for each burger.)

Combine them together and add just enough beaten egg to coat. About 1/3 egg per burger.

Add a Sprinkle of Tony Chachere's seasoning and stir until wet.

Mold in to burgers and fry at medium high heat (with a little butter) until cooked through, about 3 minutes a side. Make sure shrimp is cooked all the way.

To make onions,

melt 1" butter in pan,

add onions and fry for 2 minutes, turning often.

Add 1/4 cup Southern Comfort, tilt pan to ignite and stand back.

Let cook for 3 minutes more or until starting to crisp up.

Serve burger with onions on top, Mayo, a little sprinkle of Tony's spice.

www.cookingfordads.net

©2010 Cooking for Dads

Healthy Wings, Better Than Deep Fried, Guaranteed!

Rob's Better than Deep Fried Healthy Wings, Teriyaki style

1. Preheat oven to 450

2. Start with fresh wings, don't used frozen.

3. Cut in to separate parts if necessary.

4. In a large plastic bag, add 1 cup of flour, 1/2 spoonful of baking powder, 1 spoonful salt and a little pepper. Shake bag to combine.

5. Add wings and shake to coat.

6. Cover cookie sheet with parchment paper and lay out wings making sure they don't touch.

7. Lightly brush wings with olive, vegetable, or peanut oil just on top side.

8. Place in oven for 20 minutes then remove and flip over the wings.

10. Cook for another 20 minutes or until wings are firm to the touch.

11. Place in one layer on paper towels for 2-3 minutes to absorb excess oil.

12. Place in large bowl and add teriyaki sauce or favorite sauce. stir to coat.

To make Teriyaki sauce add 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 sugar (or equal parts of a larger or smaller amount) and 1 spoonful fresh ginger chopped. Place in small pan and bring to boil for 30 secs. stirring to dissolve sugar. reduce heat to low and let simmer for 4 minutes. turn off heat. Sauce will thicken naturally.

© 2010 Cooking for Dads

Death By Slow Cooker

Anybody want some pork?

I've been asked to compete in a Slow Cooker Contest on a local TV show I often appear on. For 5 days, 5 chefs will show how to make a slow cooker recipe, and the station's weather guy will taste each one, one each day, and judge which is the best. I agreed to make a pork roast. I hope he's not Jewish.

So I've been doing some experimenting, as is my wont. I've made 7 different pork recipes, borrowing crock pots from all the neighbors. One night I had 5 going at once, each making a different idea.

So to say the least, we've had our fill of pork.

Throughout this Crock pot/pork odyssey I've learned two main things.

1. Not all Crock pots are made the same. We couldn't believe the differences in cooking quality.

Our old stand by, the Rival, stinks as does our neighbors mini Rival.

This Fagor Multi-cooker does a lot of things, one of them slow cooking, and it does it pretty well.

This Hamilton Beach Slow Cooker does a fair job but...

The All Clad Slow Cooker is AMAZING. The meat was so much more tender and evenly cooked. While they don't give it away ($199) if you're going to do any amount of Crock pottery, this is the one for you.

2. Slow cooking is quite different from the normal fast cooking that I love and practice.

I made 6 recipes (7 actually) and 2 were total bombs. Complete failures. Of all my experiments, of which there are many, I haven't had such losers like these 2.

I'll list the recipes. Which ones do you think FAILED and which was the best? Cast your vote in the comments.

I'm on tomorrow, wish me luck.

Rob

www.cookingfordads.net

Slow Cooker Thai Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

2 large red bell peppers, cut in to slices

1/4 c soy.

1/4 c sugar,

1 sp fresh ginger

2 sp rice vinegar

1 sp red pepper flakes

2 garlic minced

1/4 creamy peanut butter

green onions

chopped peanuts

spray slow cooker with non-stick spray.

place soy, sugar, ginger, rice vinegar, and garlic into cooker,

stir

add pork and red peppers,

cover and cook on low setting until pork is tender (8 or 9 hours)

remove pork, and cut into small pieces.

add peanut butter to slow cooker and stir to combine with liquid

Place pork back in cooker to coat.

Serve over rice, squeeze a little lime juice on top and add chopped peanuts and green onions.

and here are the other two I'll throw together just to show how easy it can be.

Root Beer Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

1 can Mug rootbeer

1 small onion cutt in medium pieces.

1 inch butter

Rob's Coconut Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

1 can coconut milk (shake before opening)

1 spoonful red curry paste

4 spoonfuls sugar

2 spoonfuls fish sauce

Dump everything in to the crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove pork and cut in to small pieces or fork apart. Return to pot. Combine with sauce.

Serve on rice with sprinkled shredded coconut over the top

Rob's No Brainer Crock Pot Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

1 can Cream of Celery (Mushroom) Soup

1 small can crushed pineapple

2 spoonfuls tabasco sauce

1 spoonful Montreal Seasoning

Dump everything in to the crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove pork and cut in to small pieces or fork apart. Return to pot. Combine with sauce.

Serve over rice.

Citrus Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

1 lime cut in half

1 lemon cut in half

1 orange cut in half

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup chicken stock

Dump everything in to the crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove pork and cut in to small pieces or fork apart. Return to pot. Combine with sauce.

Serve over rice.

Saucy Pork

2 lbs pork tenderloin cut in 4 pieces and sprinkled with salt and pepper

1 can Campbell's Tomato Soup

1 small can crushed pineapple

1 spoonful Italian seasoning

Dump everything in to the crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove pork and cut in to small pieces or fork apart. Return to pot. Combine with sauce.

Serve over rice.

Prime Rib on a Hamburger Budget

Prime Rib in a 2010 World.

Recently I've done some experimenting with the salt crust cooking method. I've wanted to find some alternatives to the Prime Rib roast that taste great but aren't as expensive. I've had good and bad times and I know what it's like to not be able to afford Prime Rib roast even for Christmas. (I remember not being able to afford meat for long periods of time.)

So here are two options.

Watch this video to learn about cooking with a salt crust (great taste and not salty) and then try it with these options.

Advanced Prime Rib Video

Chuck Roast: $3.26 a pound or less.

As you can see it came out great. The taste and texture was wonderful although you have to cut around some of the fattier, tougher parts. Easy to do and you can save a lot.

Bottom Round Roast $2.86 a pound:

This worked well when it was cut thin and was hot, but once it cooled it got tough.

So those are some options for a nice tender roast for that big meal that won't break the bank.

Cook well and have a Happy New Year.

Rob Barrett

www.cookingfordads.net

Fast and Easy Christmas Appetizer recipes

I was recently asked to come up with some fast and easy Christmas appetizers for a TV appearance. These are really delicious and couldn’t be easier. Best of all they can be made ahead and don’t need to be served hot. Give them a try and let me know what you think.

Cucumber, Pomegranate and Bacon Canape

Thinly sliced Cucumber

thin spread of low fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese

cover with Pomegranate seeds

Sprinkle with bacon bits.

serve chilled.

Raspberry Pecan Canape

Rice Cracker

thin spread of low fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese

a dab of Raspberry Jelly

one pecan.

Serve and enjoy

Kiwi and Raspberry Canape

Thinly sliced Kiwi

a dab of sour cream

one raspberry

serve and enjoy.

Whatever you make, have a great Christmas and a wonderful New Years.

Rob Barrett

www.cookingfordads.net