A little planning ahead can make all the difference when watching your weekly budget. Dave discusses the pit-falls of coming home from work and having take-out because there is nothing to eat or cook with. He solves this dilemma by cooking several dishes on the weekend and saving them in the fridge and freezer for the mid-week crunch. He'll show you three one-pot main courses and a salad that can be prepped ahead leaving only one or two additional purchases to round out each meal. Recipes include: Boston Lettuce Salad with Avocado Lime Dressing, Moroccan Chickpea Stew, Braised Shoulder Lamb Chops with Kale and Beans and Red Wine Pot Roast.
In Miami, Fla., the Gypsy Kitchen truck is our first stop for some East Indian and Asian inspired treats, Maharani Paneer, Jammin Jerk Slider and a Krazy Kim's Khim-chee Lo Mein are just some of the delights. Next we get stuck in to gourmet food on a stick in Houston, Texas, at the appropriately named Stick It truck. Then we hit up Louisville, Ky., and visit the Lil Cheezers truck for all your grilled cheese pleasures, The Plain Jane, Caprese and the Fancy Pants which is Brie, caramelized onions, granny smith apples and walnuts on thick cut wheatberry bread. Finally, we speed over to Indianapolis for some of this and some of that at the SOT SOT truck. Specializing in Creole Comfort food we'll check out their Crawfish Po'Boy, Jambalaya and a Jerk Chicken with red beans and rice.
It's high class without high cash as Michael hosts another low cost, high impact meal that will save you time and money entertaining. With recipes for Bean Cassoulet with; Fennel Spiced Chicken and Roasted Vegetables; Roasted Peppers and Pecorino Cheese; Toasted Coconut Flan
Gameplan
Day Before Party:
Roast Peppers on burner or hot plate. Steam roasted peppers in a paper bag for a few minutes.
Combine fennel seeds, white pepper corn, and coriander. Roast the seeds dry in a sauté pan, and grind the mixture with some gray salt. Put in a container and save for the party.
Peal, remove seeds, and tear apart roasted peppers. Season with salt, pepper, and extra virgin olive oil. Plate, cover, and refrigerate peppers for the party.
Day of the Party:
Toast shredded coconut for flan dessert.
Cut and blanche brussel sprouts for cassoulet.
Combine and simmer coconut milk, milk, and cream in a sauce pan for flan dessert. Add toasted coconut.
Slice and caramelize onions, Parsnips, peeled celery and carrots for cassoulet. Add blanched brussel sprouts and season with salt, pepper, and fennel spice rub.
Separate chicken for cassoulet, heavily season with fennel spice rub, and caramelize in pan.
1 Hour Before Party:
Slice pancetta, add a couple cloves of garlic, and cook in your cast iron pan. Once caramelized add white beans, chicken, and vegetables. Bake cassoulet.
Whisk eggs and egg yolks together. Strain in coconut milk mixture. Make caramel for flan dessert. Ladle caramel and custard into mason jars and bake in the oven in a water bath. Remove from mason jars after dinner and serve.
Slice pecorino cheese and add to roasted peppers with Italian parsley.
Eat and Enjoy!
George heads to the Far East, and returns with some low-carb inspiration. Teriyaki sesame chicken skewers, Szechuan vegetable stir fry with kim chi, bok choy and sliced bamboo shoots, a simple ginger salad with iceberg lettuce, and a Shrimp Egg Foo Young dish top his menu. Forget ordering in, start cooking!
Top 5 Tips
1. Sesame oil is a heart-healthy alternative when you want to add a nutty flavor to your dishes.
2. Since milk should be avoided on a low carb diet, eat veggies like bok choy and spinach. They’re high in calcium, so your daily intake won't suffer.
3. Sesame seeds have zero carbs and are full of fiber. Use them to coat fish as an alternative to bread crumbs.
4. Vegetable choices don't need to be limited to your everyday staples. When cooking low carb Asian cuisine, bamboo shoots, kimchee, straw mushrooms and bean sprouts are great alternatives.
5. Cook with canola oil when you want the flavor of the food to shine. Canola oil is healthy, like olive and sesame oils, without the strong flavor.
Are you ready for some chips, dips and a hearty meal that will score with your friends? It's easy. Bring your team spirit and your appetites; we're watching the big game from the back of the pickup!
Gameplan
Day Before Game:
Mix and refrigerate Spiedini sausage
Coat and caramelize meat for the Chiarello Chocolate Chili con Carne
Mix and stew broth for chili, recombine it with the meat, simmer for 1 and 1/2 hours
Strain and add black beans and chocolate to chili, simmer, cool and refrigerate
Day of Game:
Pop popcorn for both flavored popcorn
Coat and mix Basil-Parmesan Flavored Popcorn
Coat and mix Chocolate-Orange Flavored Popcorn
Mold Spiedini sausage onto soaked skewers, wrap in foil to ready for grill
Grill Avocados, mash and mix Rockamole
Heat up chili on stove, transfer to pot, that is portable, to get to party
Pack up foods and popcorns to go to party
At Game:
Grill Skewers on BBQ
Heat up chili in pot on grill
Wine Recommendation
Garguilo Vineyard Pinot Grigio; beer
It's another faceoff between the Italian Stallion, Michael Chiarello and the Ragin' Cajun, Jan Birnbaum. The challenge this time? We're going all American with a contest to make the best burgers ever. Gentlemen, start your grills!
GameplanDay Before Party:
Put 2 ½ cups of water in bowl, with salt, and lemon juice for Poached Peaches Della Nonna.
Cut vanilla beans in half for the boiling water.
Peel peaches and poach for 4 or 5 minutes.
Cut potatoes into 6 wedges for steak fries.
Put potatoes in cool water, with salt and bring to boil.
Remove peaches and let cool.
Put pint of raspberries and poaching liquid into a blender and puree. Strain.
Mix hamburger meat with olive oil, and pre-peeled roasted garlic pieces. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge.
Toss potatoes into mix of olive oil and barbeque spice.
2 Hours Before Party:
On a pre-heated pan place potato wedges into a 450 degree oven for 20 minutes.
Cut up portabella mushrooms and put in pan with 6 tablespoons of olive oil.
Mix Dijon mustard, garlic paste, thyme, salt, pickle juice, pickles, and peppers for a condiment.
Add a ¼ cup of shallots, 2 tablespoons of sliced garlic, and two teaspoons of thyme, salt, and pepper. Add a cup of red wine.
Toss in a ½ cup of parsley.
Cut onions. Marinate with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and red wine.
Mix hamburger meat with tobassco sauce. Mold into patties.
At Party:
Put hamburgers and onions on grill. Baste hamburger with garlic oil.
Top burger with blue cheese.
Mix Wet n’ Slippery.
Top burger with condiment and sautéed mushrooms.
Top burger with onions.
Eat and Enjoy!