Sangria!!!

Hola Hola, Here are a few of my favorite recipes for sangria, try them all and let me know what you think.

RED WINE SANGRIA

1 Bottle Rioja

1/8 cup sugar

2 cups orange juice

4 cinnamon sticks

1/4 cup brandy

1/4 cup vodka

sprite

cubed apples 1/4 inch

Mix the top six ingredients, and refrigerate for three hours. Fill glasses with ice and fruit, pour in sangria and top off with a splash of sprite.

Grand Marnier Sangria

1 bottle Rioja

4 shots Grand Marnier

6 cherries, sliced

2 oranges, segmented

1 lemon, quartered

1 lime, quartered

Mix all ingredients together and let sit for a few hours. Strain and serve over ice.

CAVA SANGRIA

1 Bottle of Cava or sparkling wine, but please try to use cava (more authentic)

2 cups White grape juice

1/4 cup Cointreau

1/4 cup Brandy

cubed peaches (1/4 inch cubes)

Mix all ingredients together and serve!

Tomato recipes

TOMATOES AND FETA CHEESE WITH HERB-AND-GARLIC DRESSING

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.
Tomatoes from the garden are put to good use in this salad.






6 tablespoons tarragon vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried
1 tablespoon coarse-grained Dijon mustard
1 shallot, minced
1 large garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 cup olive oil
4 large tomatoes, thinly sliced
1/3 cup Kalamata olives or other brine-cured black olives, pitted, chopped
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Combine first 6 ingredients in medium bowl; gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
Arrange tomatoes on platter. Sprinkle with olives and cheese. Drizzle with enough dressing to coat. Serve, passing remaining dressing separately.



FRIED GREEN TOMATOES WITH PARMA CHEESE

This is a my version of a favorite Southern classic. This recipe will work with firm red or yellow tomatoes, as well. Tomatoes are the third most popular vegetable eaten by Americans, behind potatoes and processed tomato foods like juice, puree, and—you guessed it—ketchup.

2 green tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
1/2 plus 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 eggs
three tablespoons olive oil
Season the tomato slices with the salt.


Combine the 1/4 cup flour, cornmeal, salt, pepper, and parma cheese. Set up a breading station: In three separate bowls, place the remaining 1/2 cup flour, eggs, and cornmeal mixture. Coat each tomato slice in the flour, tap off the excess, submerge in the eggs, and then coat well in the cornmeal mixture. Bread all of the tomato slices; refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (You may prepare the tomatoes several hours ahead of cooking.) When the tomatoes are ready, heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat, until a single drop of water makes the oil sizzle. Cook the tomato slices until they are golden brown on each side, turning them once. Remove the tomatoes to a plate lined with paper towels for a few moments. Serve them immediately.

My favorite thing also is to make a BLT useing these yummy tomatoes with an avocado spread.

Damn Good!


GAZPACHO

2 cups 1/2-inch cubes crustless day-old country-style white bread
1/2 cup water
5 large plum tomatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), chopped
1 cucumber, peeled, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oi
l2 tablespoons dry Sherry
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 garlic cloves

Combine bread and 1/2 cup water in medium bowl. Let stand until most of water is absorbed, about 10 minutes.
Combine 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes, 1/4 cup chopped cucumber and chopped parsley in small bowl; stir to blend. Set aside for garnish.
Combine bread mixture, remaining tomatoes, remaining cucumber, red bell pepper and next 5 ingredients in large bowl; stir to blend. Working in 2 batches, add bread-vegetable mixture to blender and then purée until smooth. Strain gazpacho into large bowl. Cover and refrigerate until very cold, about 2 hours. (Can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Keep refrigerated.)
Ladle gazpacho into bowls. Garnish with reserved tomato-cucumber mixture. Serve well chilled.


Bork, Bork, Bork.

Cleaning Softy's

When buying soft-shell crabs, live ones are the best but they’re not always easy to find. To select the tastiest, use your nose. When fresh, they smell clean and astringent, like sea mist—a fitting aroma for a delicacy that both captures the romance of the sea and the allure of a full moon in spring.






1. To clean soft-shell crabs, hold the crab in one hand, and using a pair of kitchen shears, cut off the front of the crab, about 1/2 inch behind the eyes and mouth. Squeeze out the contents of the sack located directly behind the cut you just made.

2. Lift one pointed end of the crab’s outer shell; remove and discard the gills. Repeat on the other side.

3. Turn the crab over and snip off the small flap known as the apron. Rinse the entire crab well and pat dry.

Once cleaned, crabs should be cooked or stored immediately.
Storing Soft-Shell CrabsSoft-shell crabs are often stored at very cold temperatures to keep the shell from hardening and to prevent decomposition if they die. Store cleaned crabs wrapped in plastic wrap in the coldest part of the refrigerator for up to two days.

Soft-Shell Crab SizesSoft-shell crabs come in five sizes.

1. The smallest, called mediums weigh about 2 ounces and measure 3 1/2 to 4 inches across the top.
2. Hotels (2.5 ounces; 4 to 4 1/2 inches), primes (about 3 ounces; 4 1/2 to 5 inches),
3. Jumbos (4 ½ ounces; 5 to 5 1/2 inches) are the more commonly found sizes.
4. Whalers (about 6 ounces; 5 1/2 to 6 inches), the largest soft-shell crabs available, are reputed to be a bit on the tough side.

Now all you have to do is cook them up.

Enjoy,

Bork, Bork, Bork

Oyster Recipe's

OYSTERS WITH APPLE MIGNONNETTE

6 medium oysters such as Blue Point or Wellfleet

1/2 cup apple cider or juice

3 tablespoons finely chopped tart apple

2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper

1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

Scrub oysters well. Combine oysters and apple cider in a 2-qt. saucepan and bring to a boil. Steam oysters, covered, over moderately high heat until they just open, checking occasionally after 3 minutes and transferring to a plate as they open. (Reserve steaming liquid and discard any unopened oysters.) Chill oysters, loosely covered, until cool, about 30 minutes.
While oysters are chilling, pour oyster steaming liquid through a paper towel–lined sieve into a bowl to remove any grit. Stir 2 tablespoons strained liquid together with remaining ingredients and salt to taste. Discard remaining strained liquid.
Remove flat half of oyster shell and loosen oyster with a sharp knife. Put oysters in rounded half of shell. Arrange on plates and spoon sauce over oysters.

Here are two very simple ways to serve oysters, take a peek.

Oysters Rockefeller

About 10 cups kosher salt for baking and serving (3 lb)
20 small oysters on the half shell, oysters picked over for shell fragments and shells scrubbed 3/4 cup firmly packed watercress sprigs (2 oz before discarding coarse stems), finely chopped
1 1/3 cups firmly packed baby spinach (1 1/3 oz), finely chopped
3 tablespoons finely chopped scallion greens
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 teaspoons minced celery
3 tablespoons coarse fresh bread crumbs (preferably from a day-old baguette)
3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon Pernod or other anise-flavored liquor
Pinch of cayenne
3 bacon slices

Toss together watercress, spinach, scallion greens, parsley, celery, and 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon bread crumbs in a bowl. Melt butter in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, then add watercress mixture and cook, stirring, until spinach is wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in Pernod, cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste, then transfer mixture to a bowl and chill, covered, until cold, about 1 hour.
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F.
While watercress mixture chills, cook bacon in cleaned skillet over moderate heat, turning, until crisp, then drain on paper towels and finely crumble.
Spread 5 cups kosher salt in a large shallow baking pan (1 inch deep) and nestle oysters (in shells) in it. Spoon watercress mixture evenly over oysters, then top with bacon and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons bread crumbs. Bake oysters until edges of oysters begin to curl and bread crumbs are golden, about 10 minutes.
Serve warm oysters in shells, nestled in kosher salt (about 5 cups), on a platter.

See ya next week: Bork, Bork, Bork