Cuisine Eric

These are not your store-bought lemon-pepper flavor, but a rich melange of fresh lemon, butter, garlic and honey, kicked up by slightly piquant melange of red Fresno pepper, crushed red pepper flakes and black pepper.  Mixing small amounts of different peppers really brings out the aromatic side of pepper, while managing the bite. A garnish of cilantro brings a fresh finishing note. And, by the way, yes, these are soft! But I'm over a week after surgery so I think I'm gonna have a nice juicy steak tonight! Juice of 1/2 lemon 1/4 cup white wine 1 tsp honey 1 Tbsp butter plus 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 lb bay scallops 2 cloves garlic, finely minced Zest of 1 lemon 1/2 red Fresno pepper, minced Dried red chili flakes, to taste Dash freshly ground black pepper 1 Tbsp butter Cilantro, minced, for garnish Dissolve the honey in the lemon juice and wine. Melt the butter in the oil in a skillet. Add the scallops and the next five ingredients to the skillet over high heat and cook, stirring, for...

Our daughter-in-law's mother is a fantastic cook and taught me how to make dumplings.  Here is what we did, though I have now made them with many fillings and many cooking techniques. Dumplings are comfort food; enjoy. And by the way, these are the next in my series of soft foods if you steam or boil. 1 lb ground pork 3 green onions, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, minced ½ inch fresh ginger, minced 1-1/2 cups savoy cabbage, diced 1/2-inch 1 egg 1 Tbsp soy sauce 2 tsp sesame oil dash crushed red pepper flakes to taste   14-oz package circular dumpling or wonton wrappers   Dipping Sauce: 2 Tbsp soy sauce 1 Tbsp rice vinegar 2 tsp sesame oil 1 tsp sugar ¼ tsp red pepper flakes or chili oil   Mix together the pork and the next 8 ingredients.    Fill a small cup with some water. With your finger, moisten the edges of a dumpling wrapper.   Add about 2 tsp of the pork filling onto the middle of each wrapper. Gather and pinch edges of wrappers together. Steam ...

There's nothing so comforting - and soft - as a warm banana blueberry muffin in the morning! I offer this for my third in the 'soft food' series. Beside scrambled eggs which are a soft staple around here, these can kick your morning up a notch. Dry ingredients: 2-1/4 cups all purpose flour 1-1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda Wet ingredients: 2 eggs 1/2 cup plain Greek Yogurt (I used whole fat) 1/4 cup whole milk 4 Tbsp butter, melted 3/4 cup sugar 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 banana, finely diced, 1/4 inch 3/4 cup small wild blueberries (I thawed Trader Joe’s frozen) Coarse Turbinado sugar for topping Preheat oven to 375F. Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Beat together the wet ingredients in a mixer’s bowl.  Mix in the dry ingredients. The batter will be very stiff and sticky.  Fold in the banana with a spatula.    Then gently fold in the blueberries. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups - I used lightly oil-sprayed silicone.   Top each...

Here's a fun riff on burgers for your Memorial Day cookout! Burger ingredients: 1 lb ground pork (or beef) 1 tsp garlic powder   1 tsp onion powder   1 tsp favorite no-salt Southwestern Chipotle seasoning (I used Good and Gather - Target) 1/2 tsp Kosher salt 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste   Freely ground black pepper to taste   1/2 tsp dried ground sage, or to taste (could also use thyme) 12 4-inch ‘Street’ tortillas 1/3-1/2 lb Monterey Pepper Jack cheese, grated (or favorite cheese) Garnish: 1/2 can corn kernels, drained   About 3-4 oz (4 palmfuls) arugula   4-6 Tbsp favorite salsa 4-6 Tbsp sour cream pickled jalapeño slices, if desired Mix together the burger ingredients in a bowl. Distribute meat evenly on six tortillas.   Use a sturdy, oiled spatula to flatten each clump of meat into an even, thin patty on each tortilla. Heat grill to medium high. Grill burgers, meat side down for about 3-5 minutes.  Spray tortilla side with oi...

My favorite clam chowder is served at the National Hotel on Block Island, Rhode Island. Bar none, this is the best chowder I have ever been served, in my opinion. And it's not just my opinion. It has won best chowder of the Island for years. My second in a series of 'soft food', this is a corn, cod and clam chowder inspired by the taste, consistency and mouth feel of National's piece of art. I've riffed off their work and you can riff off this with whatever seafood or other favorite ingredients you might love. Fool around and find out! 2 strips bacon, finely diced 4 Tbsp butter 1 large carrot, finely diced (1/8”) 3 stalks celery, finely diced (1/8“) 1 medium onion, finely diced 2-3 cloves garlic, minced 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves, minced 1/2 tsp dried dill 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste 1/4 cup flour 1 bottle clam juice juice from 1 10-oz can clams 1 cup heavy cream 1/2 cup sherry 2 medium potatoes (tennis ball size), diced 1/4-inch, about 1-1/2 to 2 ...