Curry Raisin Tuna Salad with Easy Chapati Bread

June 24, 2012Carroll 1 Comment

Summer nights are here and quick dinners are the on the menu! I made a tuna salad last weekend and we had it over the week with a quick bread.

Perfect Summer Dinner

I love tuna salad, but like many dishes I tire of the same traditional recipe. My Mom, Queenie, convinced me on this recipe years ago. The curry is a surprising twist and completely unique from its more traditional counterpart.

Curry and Raisin Tuna Salad

2 4.5 oz cans of light tuna, drained
2 tablespoons chopped onion
3 tablespoons chopped celery
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise (fat-free works great, as the curry enhances the flavor)
2 tablespoons ranch dressing (again, fat-free works great)
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 tablespoons raisins
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper

Mix drained tuna, onion, celery together with mayonnaise and ranch dressing. Sprinkle the curry evenly over the salad and mix well. Add raisins and the season with salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Serves 4

Curry Raisin Tuna Salad

Add a fresh-baked Chapati, and I am now in heaven. Chapati is a simple flatbread, no yeast, no proofing, and hardly any prep-simple, simple, simple. It originates from in South Asia, and is basically the same thing as Roti, also an unleavened flatbread, which is made with all purpose flour rather than whole wheat, as Chapati is. The best part, is how user-friendly and quickly it can be thrown together, I am sure you can agree, fresh-baked bread is quite impressive, and so tasty.

Chapati

1 cup whole wheat flour (substituting all-purpose flour is no problem)
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ cup warm water
1 & ½ tablespoon vegetable oil

Place flour and salt in large bowl and mix well. Slowly add ½ teaspoon of vegetable oil and warm water to make smooth dough, elastic, but not sticky. Knead dough on floured surface until well-rounded and smooth. Divide the ball into 6-8 smaller balls. Let the balls sit a few minutes before rolling them into a circle with the thickness of a thin tortilla. Heat a skillet over medium heat, greasing with the remaining vegetable oil. Place rolled Chapati in hot pan and allow it to cook for a minute or two, and then flip. Cook for another minute, there will be brown spots and air pockets in the bread.

Serve immediately.

Fresh Cooked Chapati Bread

I love this bread because it is so quick, but provides a fresh made bread- and that is always a good thing!

Love it!

Cheers to quick summer dinners!

My Father’s Specialty- Doughboys!

June 17, 2012Carroll 4 Comments

Growing up my Mom was the one in the kitchen most days making dinner for the family, but my Father did have a few specialties. Some good, and some just fun to remember! He made great burritos, I still make them the same exact way at home for my family. He also made great pancakes and held his own as the grillmaster. He did make spaghetti one time, and I’ll just say it was only once, and Sir Ryan and I are still talking about it. There are a few other traditional things my Dad makes during the holiday season, Nut Bread and Mincemeat Pie. Now- the nut bread always disappeared within the same afternoon, but the mincemeat pie lasted a bit longer, it wasn’t our favorite.

But with the mincemeat pie came something we loved…Doughboys, made out of the pie shell scraps. A little cinnamon and sugar sprinkled and then baked, brought us to the kitchen like little dogs, begging for scraps. Gone in minutes.

My Dad was the only one that made them right!

With all the pies being baked in the kitchen over holidays, I think the Doughboys were the saving grace, from having one of us sneak a slice before dessert was served.

Dough Boys

1 pie dough
1/8 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
flour
1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped fine ( These are optional, and any nut could be used)

Roll the pie dough on floured surface a little bit thinner then you would a regular pie shell. Combine the sugar and the cinnamon, mixing well. Sprinkle the mixture over the pie dough and spread the nuts evenly. Cut the dough into thin triangles and roll into small croissants. I took half of the dough and rolled in a tube, threw it in the freezer for 10 minutes and then sliced it to make wheels. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake in an oven, set at 425 for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool and hide one for yourself before they are all gone.

Scooby Snacks

Of all the meals and treats my Dad ever made, this was my favorite, this was something that only came around once or twice a year but they were heavenly.

My Dad’s Famous Doughboys!

He has many talents, a couple of them in the kitchen, a few on the golf course, a lot in the business world but what he is best at, is being a Dad!

Filled with Good Memories!

Thanks Dad for being a loving Father and a trusted compass!

All From Florida Dinner Event Menu

June 15, 2012June 15, 2012Carroll 1 Comment

This is a great time of year to live in Florida, with the summer heat and steady rains comes wonderful produce. Our farmers are plentiful and talented, bringing us the chance to create phenomenal dishes, all from within the state. As Chefs, we strive to use local sourcing and organic when we can, we want to educate our guests as well as feeding them.

We had a young, hip group in a few weeks ago, and were asked to produce a menu to WOW this well-traveled group. When it comes down to it, the beautiful produce and meats we can get, really stand on their own, simple speaks loudly here. That was the focus we drove toward, keep an organic, local and sustainable menu, featuring creative presentation and simplified, screamingly good flavors.

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It is a pleasure to feed people interested in food, in what we do- like any profession, when you come across someone interested in what you do, it is very reaffirming.

The group loved it all, the food, the lighting, the lounge feel, and the entertainment was amazing. If you ever get a chance to see, meet or hear Anita Goodstory- you will not regret, I had belly cramps from holding in my giggles. What a personality!

Cheers to eating local, supporting small farmers and having the tastiest, freshest ingrediants available!

Black Velvet Apricots meets Ginger Simple Syrup

June 10, 2012Carroll 6 Comments

Summer fever has officially taken over in this house, school is out, humidity is high, plants are blooming, and pool days are here. My favorite weekend outing is going to the water parks and taking a spin on the Lazy River. We can spend hours just floating in an inner tube getting lost in day dreams. Nothing like it. And as afternoons slip away it leads us to evening meals on the fly.

Gingered Black Velvet Apricots over Angel Food Cake

This weekend after a quick, big salad for dinner, it left us wanting dessert. I picked up some stone fruit at the market earlier, including a few plump, juicy Black Velvet Apricots, which would go perfectly with the Angel Food Cake we had earlier this week. And to spice it up I used the ginger that Sir Wes had pulled up last week from our ginger plant to make a simple syrup. When we hijacked the plant from his mom’s yard last summer, I knew that we would make good use out of it.

This à la minute dessert was so easy, and would work well with any fresh fruit you have in the fridge. Just toss about 3 tablespoons per cup of fruit and pour over you favorite cake, sponge, angel food cake, or even by itself.

Ginger Simple Syrup

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
2 inches of ginger root, rough chopped

In a small saute pan add sugar, water and ginger. Bring to a slow simmer over a moderate heat, allowing the ginger to cook into the syrup. Allow to simmer for 2 minutes and then remove from heat. Allow to steep for 15 minutes before straining the ginger out. Refrigerate until cool.

Makes about 1 /4 up and can be kept in refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.

Sweet Apricots with a Kick of Ginger

And as a bonus…this simple syrup works great in summer cocktails.

Cheers!

Howard’s Vanilla Lemonade

June 3, 2012Carroll 7 Comments

I received an email last week for the yearly renewal of my domain name, WOW; Vanilla Lemonade is a year old. And what a year its been!

Happy Birthday Vanilla Lemonade

Over the last 12 months the question I’ve been asked most is, why did I pick the name Vanilla Lemonade? Well, isn’t it being super cute name enough of a reason?? Ahh- but there is actually a story…

I started at Walt Disney World in February 1998, on the opening team of DAK, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which was an amazing experience. By the beginning of 1999 I joined DAK CAT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Catering. I spent about 3 years on this talented team, which not only taught me how to cook pasta for 1000 people, or how to pack and load a truck, but they built the foundation and gave me the passion of the career I still love today.

DAK

We were a small team, a total of 5-7 cooks, a couple of chefs, 5 or 6 servers and a few front of house managers. A perfect number of people for a family to generate. Because we were such a small team that sometimes had huge events, surpassing even 10,000 guests, we did rely on a lot of extra help. Extra culinary, servers from other locations, stewards, chefs would work with us frequently to execute our large events in the park.

We did have a few “outside” people come to work on a regular basis, which became extended family. Howard was a Steward that was with us for over a year, 5-6 days a week. He was a big guy, a really big guy, perfect for loading grills on trucks, throwing 80 quart mixing bowls in the dish sink and lucky for us, he had spent a lot of time in kitchens, so was also able to assist us out with prep!

Howard was a daily temp worker that had a hard life, battled with temptations, health issues, and the other challenges that a day-to-day life style can offer. Like I said he was a big guy, rough and tough too, but after a while, we broke him down to a plush; Howard became somewhat of a fan favorite.

It’s down right sweaty hot here in Florida and don’t forget we are outside doing events, setting up tables, pushing trams thru the parks, standing in front of a hot grill for a few hours- you’re certain to be “glowing”. On any hot day you would find Howard over by the truck handing out glasses of his lemonade to anyone that needed something to cool them down. Howard’s lemonade was a crowd favorite, all the extra help knew to look for the giant orange thermos. The lemonade was on our checklist before our truck ever pulled off the dock, and if Howard happened to have the day off, and us without the lemonade someone always had something to say about it.

And then one day Howard didn’t make it for an event. “No” he didn’t forget, or run out of time, he told us angrily. Howard explained, that the Chef told him “no more!” And then we got a lashing from the chef…

Howard’s Recipe
1 Half Gallon Lemonade concentrate
6 Half Gallon Water
15 Vanilla Beans

…..The chef was not happy with his food cost floating Howard’s Lemonade Stand.

Ooh- but that Vanilla Lemonade was delicious …. DEE-licious.

Vanilla Lemonade, is not only a refreshing twist on lemonade, but to me it represents a time when I figured out what my future looked like. I graduated from college with 2 B.A. Degrees in Art, took the first job I was offered, and spent 10 months filling drinks, scooping mashed potatoes and wondering what I was going to do with myself. I was then welcomed into a family that would nurture, teach and allow me to grow. My love of cooking, food and catering came from that team, and equally important came the lesson of being able to learn from anybody, no matter who they are or where they came from. Thank you Howard, the Rough and Tumble Temp Working Teddy Bear for showing me that everyone has a lesson to teach if you are willing to learn.

Since then I’ve worked on a few different vanilla lemonade recipes.

Howard’s Vanilla Lemonade

Frozen Lemonade Concentrate, or Favorite Powder Mix
Vanilla Bean/Vanilla Extract

The quick and easy method- and sometimes that is just what we need! Make the lemonade as the container directs, add a vanilla bean split open down the middle for every 2 quarts made, or add a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Refridergate and serve over ice. Perfect for a day at the beach!

Howard’s Vanilla Lemonade

Fresh Vanilla Lemonade

4 cups water, divided
2 cups granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean, split or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups fresh lemon juice (about 15 lemons)

In a heavy saucepan, make your simple syrup by combining 2 cups water, sugar, and the split vanilla bean and bring to a boil over medium-high heat for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and cool. Stir in lemon juice and remaining 2 cups water; refrigerate until serving.

Garnish with citrus, fresh herbs or cherries.

Makes about 2 quarts