January 22nd, 2010 · 8 Comments
The Old El Paso “Tackle the Taste” gift kit contest winner is…
David, from Your Finances 101! Based on the online Random Integer Generator the total number of comments were 27, thus the range of 1 through 27 was entered into the online generator and the number 20 was randomly selected, and David had the 20th comment on the Salsa and a Contest blog post from Wednesday, January 20, 2010.
David will receive the Old El Paso “Tackle the Taste” gift pack provided by Old El Paso through MyBlogSpark, which includes two free 4.5 ounce cans of Green Chiles, as well as a football-shaped ceramic serving platter, two sets of football-themed plates and cocktail napkins, and a themed table runner.
Congratulations David!
Tags: Contests
Once in the oven this roasting pan of Cornish hens will be delivering wafts of oh so good and “follow your nose” aroma you will be waiting with knife and fork in hand to get at these tasty morsels. Another recipe adapted from one of our favorite Weight Watcher cookbooks, this one comes in at only 185 calories per serving for a half Cornish hen. We actually set up the hens with the white wine mixture the night before, so this also gave them some marinating time as well. The next day after returning home, all I had to do was turn on the oven and slip in roasting pan in the oven, an hour later we were delving into the tasty hens. Step 3 of the procedures involves removing the skin and then cutting the hens in half lengthwise, the following is a photo journal of this process. These are photos of Monique working on the Cornish hens, and she is improving on her knife handling skills!
 |
 |
| Pulling skin off the Cornish hen |
Pulling more skin off the Cornish hen |
 |
 |
| Splitting the Cornish hen breast plate bones |
Splitting the Cornish hen back bones |
In addition, here are a few photos of the Cornish hen split halves in the roasting pan and then with the marinade/sauce covering them before roasting.
 |
 |
| Cornish hens split in roasting pan |
Cornish hens covered with marinade sauce |
Yield: 8 servings
| Ingredients |
| 4 |
1-pound |
Cornish hens |
| 2 |
Cups |
Dry white wine |
| 2/3 |
Cup |
White wine vinegar |
| ¼ |
Cup |
Soy sauce |
| 2 |
Tbsp |
Fresh rosemary, chopped |
| 1 |
Tbsp |
Fresh thyme, chopped |
| 8 |
Each |
Garlic cloves, minced |
| Procedure Steps Preheat oven to 350° F. |
| 1. |
Remove giblets and necks from hens and reserve for another use, such as a stock, or discard. |
| 2. |
Rinse hens under cool water, and then pat dry with paper towels. |
| 3. |
Remove the skin from all but the wings of each hen, and then cut them in half lengthwise. |
| 4. |
Place hens with the meat side up in a large roasting pan. |
| 5. |
In a bowl, combine the dry white wine, white wine vinegar, soy sauce, the fresh herbs, and the minced garlic. Then pour this mixture evenly over the hens and roast, uncovered in the 350° F oven for 1 hour, or until juices run clear. Baste the hens occasionally with the wine mixture. |
Calories 185, (33% from fat), Protein 26.2g, Fat 6.8g, (Sat 1.8g), Carbs 2g, Fiber 0.1g, Cholesterol 80mg, Iron 1.6mg, Sodium 279mg, Calcium 29mg. The original recipe can be found in the Weight Watchers Magazine Six O’clock Solutions, page 57, 2001. Moreover, the plated final dish served with a Greek salad for a side dish. Cornish Hens with Rosemay Wine Sauce and Greek Salad 
Tags: Entrees · Recipes · Weight Watchers
In addition, football party time
This past weekend my New Orleans Saints blew past the Arizona Cardinals in an NFC Divisional Playoff game in the Superdome and we enjoyed a fresh batch of salsa with some guacamole and chips. Looking forward to the next game on Sunday, the NFC Championship Game, again, in the Louisiana Superdome when the New Orleans Saints square up against the Minnesota Vikings, we will try our best to save a little of the salsa by kick off at 6:40 EST.
I have been making this salsa recipe since 1988, when I learned from a pro who had worked in Mexican restaurants, and have been tweaking it ever since. A new wrinkle in this addition of the recipe includes a 4.5-ounce can of Old El Paso green chiles, which were given to me by MyBlogSpark. And included in the “Tackle the Taste” gift pack that includes two free 4.5 ounce cans of Green Chiles, as well as a football-shaped ceramic serving platter, two sets of football-themed plates and cocktail napkins, and a themed table runner which arrived in the mail several days ago. In addition, you can win a “Tackle the Taste” gift pack too!
The Old El Paso Green Chiles gift pack, product information, online coupon link, and prize packs are provided by Old El Paso through MyBlogSpark, and do not in any way change my opinion of the Old El Paso product. I have been using their green chiles for years and find them useful in any preparation that requires this ingredient.
In addition, for a $0.55 coupon on one can of Old El Paso Green Chiles, you can click: Old El Paso Green Chiles Coupon
Contest
If you would like to win one of these “Tackle the Taste” gift packs please post a comment on this blog post about your favorite recipe that includes green chiles. The contest will run until 2400 EDT on Thursday, January 21, 2010. In addition, the winner will be announced on Friday, January 22, 2010, and contacted for the mailing information. The winner’s physical mailing address will then be sent to the MyBlogSpark.com offices where they will ship out your “Tackle the Taste” gift pack. The winner will be selected by a random number selection system, each comment will be assigned the number in order as they appear in this blog post.
Salsa
This salsa recipe is actually more like a cross between pico de gallo and salsa in that it is quite thicker than your normal salsa, but wetter than your typical pico. I love chunky salsa and the addition of the green chilies adds a small touch of mild heat that otherwise was not there before. Still, my favorite part of the recipe is the cilantro; I can never seem to get enough cilantro.
| Ingredients |
| 1 |
Bunch |
Cilantro leaves |
| 8 |
Cloves |
Garlic |
| 1 |
Tsp |
Garlic salt |
| ½ |
Medium |
Red onion, large chunks |
| 4 |
Medium |
Roma tomatoes, large chunks |
| 2 |
Tbsp |
Jalapeno peppers, sliced |
| 1 |
Can |
Green Chiles, 4.5 ounces |
| ½ |
Cup |
Green onions, chopped |
| 1 |
Medium |
Lime, juiced |
| 1 |
Tsp |
Cumin |
| ½ |
Tbsp |
Worcestershire sauce |
| 1 |
Tbsp |
Olive oil |
| 1 |
Can |
Crushed tomatoes, 28 ounces |
| Procedure Steps |
| 1. |
In the bowl of a food processor, add the cilantro, garlic, and garlic salt. Process until chopped fine. |
| 2. |
Add the remaining ingredients with the exception of the crushed tomatoes. Pulse several times until the tomatoes and onions are chopped and all the ingredients mixed well. |
| 3. |
Pour out the mixture into a large bowl then add the crushed tomatoes and stir well to incorporate. |
Tags: Contests · Mexican · Recipes
In addition, the Eiffel Tower Restaurant in New Orleans and Mardi Gras 2010
Join Drick Perry from Drick’s Rambling Cafe as we celebrate Mardi Gras, he is covering Mobile, AL while I cover New Orleans
Before we get to the omelet recipe, let me indulge you with a little New Orleans restaurant and Mardi Gras history. In 1981, engineers determined that the restaurant perched 562 feet on the third level above the Champ-de Mars in Paris weighted too much and was causing the tower to sag, so the eatery was brought down to earth. For 44 years the bird’s-eye- bistro better known for its veau, the Restaurant de la Tour Eiffel would end.
The 11,000 pieces of the dismantled restaurant sat in crates, looking like an Erector set, and nothing less than a chunk of the Eiffel Tower – not actually the tower, but the restaurant that perched above Paris for 44 years. Five years later, and more than $3 million invested John Onorio, a hotel executive and Daniel Bonnot, a famous chef would open the lavish not-so-venerable Paris landmark on St. Charles Avenue, with every inch of the steel in place. The resurrected tower restaurant would open its New Orleans doors on Friday, December 12, 1986 with a sell out crowd and would continue to draw in diners or “bon vivant’s” to enjoy the romantic setting and fine French cuisine under the tutelage of Daniel Bonnot, the French born chef. The Uptown location a short walk from the Vieux Carrie (French Quarter) would add a touch of style and sophistication missing from the New Orleans restaurant scene.
One of the benefits of the 2040 St. Charles Avenue location is that during Mardi Gras it is the main parade route for all Uptown Krewe’s, rolling just a few steps from the front doors of the restaurant. This gave them the benefit of offering special Mardi Gras early parade dinner specials and also lunch and brunch menus on Saturday and Sunday daytime parades. “Jazz Brunch, From Paris to New Orleans”, on Sundays from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and featured a jazz trio performing the typical New Orleans style music. The menu consisted of several soups (Les Soupes), appetizers (Hors D’Oeuvres), Salads (Les Salades), several egg dishes (Les Oeufs), entrees (Les Entrée’s), and desserts (Les Desserts et Café). Click on the thumbnail image of the menu cover at the right to view inside the”Jazz Brunch” menu, circa 1987.
Continuing with our focus features on Mardi Gras, join me with Drick Perry from Drick’s Rambling Cafe as he is showcasing the wonderful recipe Eggs Creole dish, another great brunch item for your parade going parties. You can find Drick specializing in coastal favorites with a Mobile, Alabama flair that only he can deliver.
Several of the famous Uptown Krewe’s that roll down St. Charles are several listed from the first busy parade week along with their dates and times. A complete list of Mardi Gras parades and their schedules can be found at Mardi Gras Parade Krewe’s, 2010 Mardi Gras Parade Schedule.
Mardi Gras Uptown Parade Schedule, Feb. 5 – 11, 2010 (The second week schedule will follow in a forthcoming article).
Friday, Feb. 5, 2010
Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010
- Pontchartrain, 2:00 pm
- Sparta, 6:00 pm
Sunday, Feb. 7, 2010
- Carrollton, 12:00 pm
- King Arthur, 1:15 pm
Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2010
Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010
- Babylon, 5:45 pm
- Muses, 6:15 pm
- Chaos, 6:30 pm
Working as the daytime Sauté Cook on the front line it was my duty to prepare all egg dishes including omelets. As you can see from the brunch menu the main egg (Les Oeufs) dishes consisted of Eggs Benedict, Eggs Sardou, Eggs Creole, and Eggs Pontalba. The menu also allowed diners the option of specials such as omelets, and other menu items, the Sauté Cook position prepared all omelets. NOTE: Click on image for a larger view.
The new restaurant, which had become a landmark in the new setting, would only last a few years. The Restaurant de la Tour Eiffel would shut it doors as the original restaurant owners Onorio and Bonnot would file for bankruptcy, the operating costs far outweighing the income from sales receipts. The price of the entrees did not reflect in the plate, I have to say that the romance had left and paying a steep price for the surroundings did not match with diners expectations.
Through several incarnations and periods of being shut, the Erector Set-like building sat vacant for over three years like a 200-ton white elephant. In its 20-year history, various entrepreneurs have attempted to operate restaurants and nightclubs out of the structure and failed, with a new layer of rust accumulated with each flop. In 2004, the Eiffel Tower building got another shot when Bob Koehl, then director of the New Orleans Culinary Institute reopened the facility as a training school for professional chefs in the building, having signed a 20-year lease, with plans of using it as a banquet facility. In addition, in 2005 after hurricanes Katrina and Rita the location was commandeered as an Army National Guard base in the chaotic aftermath of the disaster. Now it is known as the Cricket Club, for the New Orleans Culinary Institute operations.
Florentine Omelet
| Ingredients |
| 2 |
Each |
Eggs, large |
| 1 |
Tbsp |
Water, cool |
| ¼ |
Tsp |
Salt |
| ¼ |
Tsp |
Black pepper, cracked |
| 1 |
Tsp |
Parsley flakes |
| ½ |
Tbsp |
Butter |
| Procedure Steps |
| 1. |
Crack the eggs into a small bowl and add the water, salt, pepper and parsley |
| 2. |
With a fork or wire whisk gently fold the ingredients together but do not over mix |
| 3. |
Heat a 6” sauté or omelet pan until very hot then add the butter to melt |
| 4. |
Pour in the omelet egg mixture and using a rubber spatula gently fold the cooked edges of the egg over and under without scrambling |
| 5. |
When the omelet is about 80% set up flip it over and then add your filling of choice |
| 6. |
If you want to have a filling ingredient such as cheese this is when you add it to the omelet |
| 7. |
Once the omelet is set and cooked turn it onto the serving plate with what is known as the tri-fold procedure. A tri-fold is where the top edge of the omelet will turn onto itself and inside and curl under. |
| 8. |
Top with the creamed spinach (see recipe below) |
| 9. |
Serve with your favorite side of vegetables and/or potatoes. |
Creamed Spinach
| Ingredients |
| 2 |
Lb. |
Fresh spinach, ( 1 lb cooked) |
| ½ |
Tbsp |
Olive oil |
| ½ |
Cup |
Onions, minced |
| 8 |
Ounces |
Cream cheese, softened |
| ¼ |
Cup |
Parmesan cheese, shredded |
| To taste |
Salt and white pepper |
| Procedure Steps |
| 1. |
Steam or boil spinach then drain with approximately a 1 lb. cooked yield, and then chop. |
| 2. |
Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan and sauté the onions until translucent. Add the drained and chopped spinach and the softened cream cheese. Mix well and stir over low heat. Add the parmesan cheese and season to taste with the salt and white pepper. |
Tags: Breakfast · Eiffel Tower Restaurant · French Cuisine · Mardi Gras · Recipes
