Basil, Mozzarella, Tomato Sandwich

Our corner deli/grocery store has about 1,000 choices for sandwiches. They make one of the best hamburgers around. But another of our favorites is with fresh basil, fresh mozzarella, and fresh tomatoes. You get it: fresh! I decided that $5.75 was way too much to pay for this bad boy, so I did it here at home. It's simple. The only trick is this: fresh everything!!

What you need
fresh basil leaves
fresh mozzarella, sliced
fresh tomatoes, sliced
good bread, sliced about 3/4" to 1"
olive oil
oregano (dried is actually ok for this one, it's just as good dried as it is fresh)
salt and pepper

Set you pan on med-high heat. Brush bread slices with olive oil. Toast in pan. Take out of pan and put on cutting board toasted side up. Pile on ingredients, sprinkling on spices at end. Top with another slice of toasted bread, toasted side down now, facing inside of sandwich. Now, you have an option. Do you wan to toast the rest? Go ahead. If you'd rather have it a little bit chewy (so good!), leave it as it is and serve! Great with pita chips.

Frittata!

A fancy name for the hum drum Omelet. Here are two of my favorites. The first is an old standby, the second is a newer one, adapted from Emeril Lagasse. All the fresh veggies freak my 6-year old out a little, but the rest of us loved it.


Ham, Potato and Cheddar Frittata

What you need:
3 Tbs. butter
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed (or you can use ~2 cups frozen hash browns)
1 small onion, chopped
8 lg. eggs, whisked
1/4 cup milk
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped (kick it up a bit with more pepper)
4 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 lb cubed ham (I sometimes leave this out if I don't have it)
salt and pepper to taste

Heat skillet to medium heat and melt butter. Sauté onions and potatoes 8-10 minutes (raw potatoes take longer), stirring frequently. Add pepper for 2 more minutes. Whisk eggs and milk together, pour over potatoes. Salt and pepper well (eggs are not good unseasoned!). Add ham and cheese. Cover with lid and cook over low or medium-low till knife inserted comes out clean. Put uncovered skillet in oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes (wrap your plastic handle with foil) to brown.



Emeril's Vegetable Frittata

What you need:

8 large eggs
3 tablespoons heavy cream (or milk)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup grated Swiss or Gruyere cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small or 1/2 medium zucchini, about 5 ounces
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup thinly sliced yellow bell pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper
1/4 cup minced green onions (green tops only)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped green onions, for garnish

Whisk together eggs and milk with half the salt and pepper, set aside.

In a medium skillet, sauté the veggies in butter in this order: 1st the zucchini and mushrooms (till tender), 2nd the peppers and onion tops (till tender), 3rd the garlic and herbs for just a short time (under a minute) until the garlic is fragrant. Don't forget to use the rest of your salt and pepper on the veggies. Stir in over half your cheese.

Pour on the eggs, and cook, use a spatula occasionally to let the egg run under itself, about 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle on the rest of your cheese, take off the heat, and place in oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes, or in your broiler for about 2 minutes. If you do this, watch your pan! The eggs burn really quickly in the broiler.

Garnish with some fresh parsley and you've got yourself a complete meal!

Baked Tomatoes with Asparagus

I got this fresh dish from my friend here in NYC, Sarah. It is so easy and simple that you will feel guilty (well, maybe only a little bit) because it just looks so complicated and tastes amazing! This recipe is for 8 servings, but you could make it as large or small as you wish very easily. I, personally, could eat 2 servings with no problem! A great side to accompany a steak, chicken or pair it with a pasta dish.

What you need:

4 large tomatoes
24 spears asparagus, lightly steamed--snap spears off at their woody base
1 cup mayo
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 dashes Tabasco
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
3 Tbs grated onion (I used a few shakes of onion powder)

1. Cut tomatoes in half, core out. Place in buttered baking dish, cut side up. You may also want to slice off a small part of the bottom of the tomato to make it stable.

2. Top each tomato with 3 spears.

3. Combine mayo, cheese, Tabasco, mustard and onion in bowl. Spoon onto top of each tomato.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and tomato is heated through.

Blue Cheese Butter Pork Chops

A super easy recipe for thick cut pork chops. As a bonus, they look really fancy, too! Done on the grill, or very nicely in the broiler pan (that's how I did mine, given the fact that I don't have a grill). The blue cheese butter is a very smooth complement, not too rich, but tasty. Serve with grilled Parmesan asparagus, and potatoes or something simple like a baked potato and green salad.

What you need:

for the pork
4 bone-in chops, each about 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick
2 garlic cloves
salt
freshly ground pepper

for the butter
4 Tbs butter, room temp.
1 oz. blue cheese, crumbled, room temp.
1 Tbs. toasted walnuts, chopped
1 Tbs thinly slivered fresh basil (or, 1 tsp. dried basil, crushed in the palm of your hand)
salt
freshly ground pepper

1. Rub chops with garlic, sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2. Preheat grill to high OR preheat oven to broil
3. Brush grill or broiler pan with oil, cook chops about 6-8 minutes a side. Chops will be nicely browned on bottom when ready to turn. Internal temp. when done will be about 160 degrees.
4. Let chops rest about 2 minutes after cooked. Place a pat of butter on each and serve.
5. Butter: Mash butter and cheese together, stir in walnuts and basil and season with salt and pepper.