Oven Baked Bacon

If you have never made bacon this way, you will after reading this. Bacon made in the oven does not have to be watched during cooking process, does not make a mess out of your stove, does not
spatter all over you, is easy to clean up and allows you to make an entire pound or more at once. Interested?? Read on!

1 pound of bacon
1 rimmed cookie sheet
1 cookie rack
aluminum foil
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400. Line a rimmed cookie sheet with foil. Spray the both sides of the cookie cooling rack with cooking spray and lay it on top of the cookie sheet. Lay the desired amount of bacon slices out in a single layer on top of the rack. Place in the oven and walk away for 17-20 minutes.

The bacon drippings will fall away from the bacon, keeping it out of the grease. Once the cookie tray has cooled and the bacon drippings have solidified, wrap the entire mess up inside the foil and toss. Your pan will only need a quick rinse in warm sudsy water.

I have done this at several different oven temps 350 and 375. I usually start the bacon first for at least 15 minutes than I add the other item to be baked. I will keep checking on the bacon until its done to my liking. This allows me to bake more than one thing at a time and both will be done within 5-10 minutes of each

other.

Lamb Burgers with Feta Sauce

Greek food, for me, rates right up there next to Italian in my book. Now that the days are longer and the weather is nice, my family has been requesting burgers. Tonight it's lamb burgers with a Greek influence. I serve this with my version of a Greek salad and sliced watermelon.

Serves 6

2 pounds ground lamb
1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves
2 teaspoons fresh parsley leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 green onions minced
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon Greek seasoning(optional)if your brand has salt,cut back on the added salt above
Country Bread cut into thick slices and grilled on both sides if desired
Feta Sauce

Mix the ingredients together and form into 6 patties. Heat the grill and oil the grates. Grill burgers 4-6 minutes per side. To serve, slather one side of a piece of bread with the feta sauce,add a burger. Lay thinly sliced red onion and cucumber over the burger, top with the other slice of bread.

Feta Sauce
In a food processor place
1/2 cup fat free greek yogurt
1 small clove of garlic
juice of 1 lemon
10 thin slices of cucumber
1/2 teaspoon greek seasoning
salt and pepper
1/3 cup feta cheese
1 green onion diced
Process until smooth. Spread on 1 slice of bread before assembling each burger

Christopher's Pasta

My mother's day gift was dinner. Christopher made pasta and an atipasta salad. This has to be one of the easiest pasta dishes ever. My 23 year old did a beautiful job! I was very impressed with his skills in the kitchen. I don't have any pictures because I devoured mine before I could snap a photo. It was that good!!

Serves 4
1 pound linguine pasta
1 8 oz jar of sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained
1/2 cup of pitted green olives, drained
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 small clove of garlic
8 large basil leaves
zest and juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese
Cook pasta to al dente, following package directions. Drain reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid. Place the tomatoes,olive oil, garlic, basil, green olives, lemon zest and juice into a food processor and process until you have a smooth paste. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove the pasta from its cooking water and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese over the hot pasta and toss. Pour the sauce over the top and toss again. Drizzle some of the reserved water over the pasta and toss again. Continue until the sauce thins out and coats the pasta. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve.

Traveling the Road to Recovery

If you've noticed,the blog has been silent for a few days. I finally bit the bullet and had surgery last Thursday for partial knee replacement. This had been a long time coming and I finally had to get to the place where my everyday pain far outweighed the pain of recovery. For anyone who is considering doing this, I have to say that it hasn't been as bad as my imagination believed it to be. This is day four and I'm on my way to my first day of therapy. I'm off all pain medication and I'm walking without crutches. Other than being a bit stiff in the knee which is mostly due to incision, I feel about 80%. I'm off work for the rest of the school year. I'm looking forward to cooking, getting back into ceramics and painting and enjoying spending time with my family. I'm hoping to be well enough to make the car ride up to Oregon in June to get bring Noel home for the summer. My last goal for the summer is to be able to walk again for exercise and wear all of those lovely shoes that are taking up space in my closet. I'm hoping to have a few recipes to post for you this week.

Buttermilk Custards with Fresh Berries

I resurrected this recipe from my file. I'd forgotten how quick, easy and delicious this is. The buttermilk adds just enough tang to keep this from becoming too rich.

Serves 6-8(depending on the size of your ramekins or custard cups)

1 packet of unflavored gelatin
6 tablespoons cold water
3/4 cup sugar
1 pound berries(strawberries hulled and quartered,blackberries or raspberries or a combination)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Place the gelatin in a small saucepan and add the cold water. Whisk and let it sit for 5 minutes until the gelatin has softened. Set the pan over a low flame and let the gelatin and water heat for about 30 seconds or until the gelatin has melted into syrup like consistency. Pour the buttermilk and 1/4 of sugar into a large bowl and whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Add the gelatin and whisk again until combined. Pour the heavy cream and vanilla into a second bowl,slowly add 1/4 cup of sugar while whipping with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Slowly whisk half of the whipped cream into the buttermilk. Fold in the remaining whipped cream. Spray your ramekins or custard cups lightly with cooking spray. Divide the custard mixture evenly among the ramekins. Place in the frig until firm, about 6 hours. If refrigerating longer than 6 hours, cover each custard with plastic wrap. Prepare the berries and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Let the berries and sugar sit for about 5 minutes to allow them to release their juices.. Remove the custards from the frig. Run a paring knife around the edge and dip the outside of the ramekins briefly into steaming hot water. Invert the custard onto a plate and garnish with the berries.

Beef and Pepper Stir Fry

When I saw the bell peppers on sale, even the expensive yellow and orange ones, I knew I had to make a meal around them. Bell peppers have more vitamin C than oranges, so eat your peppers!

Serves 4

2 pounds skirt steak, thinly sliced
1 red, yellow and orange bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 large cloves of garlic,minced
1 inch of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 cup fresh bean sprouts
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup apple juice
1 tablespoon of rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 tablespoons olive oil

In a large bowl, place the beef,garlic, ginger, soy sauce, apple juice, sesame oil and vinegar. Stir together and let the meat marinate for 15 minutes. Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat.
When the pan is hot, remove the meat from the marinade, reserving liquid. Cook the meat until it is no longer pink. Add the peppers and onions. Stir the while they cook for about 3 minutes. Mix the cornstarch into the marinade and pour it over the meat and peppers. Cook until the liquid boils and thickens. Add the bean sprouts and let them cook for 1 minute. Serve over steamed brown or white rice.

Shrimp Salad

Now that spring is here. I like to serve salads for dinner. This happens to be one of my favorites. I can get this bad boy on the table in about 20 minutes. I make up individual plates. Bjorn will pour a crisp white wine and if the weather's nice we'll take dinner out to the patio. Delightful!!

Serves 4

2 pounds of medium sized shrimp, peeled with tails removed
1/2 cup of diced red onion
8 slices of prosciutto ham
2 15 oz cans of white beans drained and rinsed
8 cups of spring mix
1/2 cup champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil plus 2 tablespoons
salt and pepper
2 teaspoons honey
1 clove of garlic minced
2 tablespoons minced tarragon leaves

Preheat the oven to 375. Lay the prosciutto onto a baking sheet that has been lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Bake in the oven until crisp, about 15 minutes. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the garlic and shrimp when pan is hot. Saute until the shrimp just begins to turn pink, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Remove the prosciutto from the oven to cool. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, honey, vinegar and tarragon. Add the oil slowly and continue to whisk until the dressing has thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste. To assemble, lay 2 cups of spring mix on each plate. Sprinkle some onion over the greens. Divide the beans among the plates and top with shrimp. Drizzle dressing over each salad. Finish by crumbling 2 slices of prosciutto over each salad and serve.