It’s Pizza Time!

23 Friday Jan 2026

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Brunch with Robin, Celebrations, Chef Joe Levitch, Dinner At Marnies, Dinner With Friends, Dinner with Marnie, Dinner With Robin, Flying Pie Pizza, Food Italian, Food Prep, Funn in Marsing, Homemade Sauce, Mushrooms, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Pizza, What's For Dinner?

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food, homemade pizza, making pizza, Pizza, Pizza King

Robin and I are so proud of our friendship with Joe Levich, former owner of Flying Pie Pizza in Boise, owner of Levco Remodeling and retired Ada County (Idaho) Paramedic. Robin (RN Ret) first met Joe in San Francisco at Alta Bates Hospital, as he was a paramedic there also. Then he moved to Boise where he was continued as a paramedic. Levco remodeled our kitchen and bathroom. A fantastic job!

Robin has been very sick young lady (she’ll always be young) since September of last year and Joes’ duties have kept him from visiting her. He made arrangements to come visit her and said he would bring dinner and asked “What should he bring, Grilled Cheese or pizza?” He being the Pizza King, the answer was easy – Pizza!

**Joe the Pizza King, flipping the dough**

**Pizza and ingredients ready to go in the oven**

**Robin at RN Graduation several years ago – 45 years ago**

It was a great time and we thank Joe for bringing AA of the ingredients and prepping and cooking supplies. All of the photos are natural and some are AI altered. Hope you enjoy this Fun Post. The pizza was great and Joe Levitch your friendship IS great!

An Awesome Chicken Dish

12 Wednesday Nov 2025

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Braising, Chicken, Classic Sauces, Food Photos, Food Prep, Fusion Foods, Garlic, Homemade Sauce, Honey, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Chicken, Jasmin rice, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, Recipes - Fusion, Sake, Side Dishes, What's For Dinner?

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asian food, chicken, fusion, fusion Asian, Jasmin rice, seared rice

I know, another chicken dinner. But this one is absolutely wonderful! I found it on FB, but altered it slightly.The recipe is easy and fairly quick to make. 30 minutes and you are eating. It did not have a name, so I named it Creamy Chicken, even though it has no cream in it.https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Creamy-Chicken.pdf A good Niguri Creamy Sake would be great with this!

**Seasoning the chicken. After the garlic, vinegar, soy sauce and honey have been added**

The only changes I made were different types of salt, I used Celtic Sea Salt, fresh ground Tellicherry Black Pepper, unsalted butter and chopped green onion for the rice, I added braised Jasmin rice with the green onion.

I really think this is a fantastic way to make the chicken. Almost a fusion version of an Asian dish. You might want to add grated fresh ginger, too. The Jasmin rice gave the dish and extra boost of flavor, but searing it in butter is essential, in my point of view. If you make it let us know how you liked it.

Recipes From My Mom

11 Wednesday Dec 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in Appetizers, Classis Sauces, Cream Sauces, Cultural Differences, Food, German Recipes, Homemade Sauce, Homemade soup, Recipe - Dessert, Recipe - Homemade, Recipe - Seafood, Recipe - Soup, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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chicken, desserts, family recipes, Mother Sauces, old recipes, recipes, red meat, Salads, seafood

My Mom passed away this date in 1995. She was a 30 year cancer surviver. I miss her and her kitchen talents. Therefore, I am posting 3 of her recipes in her memory. I do hope you try them and look/read/try her recipe file, https://www.rockinrs.com/recipes.htm. There are Many recipes in this file. And many family ones and favorites.

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Recipe Name: Crab Stuffed Mushrooms
Serves: 8 Prep Time: 30 min Oven Temp: 400ºF Oven Time: 12 min
Ingredients:
1# Crab meat
24 Mushrooms, fresh
½ c Mushroom stems, chopped
2 T Butter, softened
1 egg, beaten
2 T Parsley, chopped
½ t Salt
¼ t Garlic, minced
2 T Parmesan cheese, grated
De-stem the mushrooms. Set aside. Chop the stems into small pieces. Mix all ingredients, except the mushroom caps, until the mixture balls together. Place the mushroom caps on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Fill each mushroom cap with the mixture. Place in a pre-heated oven at 400ºF. Cook for 12 – 15 minutes until just browned. Serve hot.

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Recipe Name: Green Tomato Relish 2
Yield: 5 quarts Prep Time:
Ingredients:
5½# Tomatoes, end of the season pink with some green tint, chopped
6 Onions, chopped
½ c Salt
3 c Vinegar
6 Green peppers, diced
3 Sweet red peppers, diced
6 Garlic cloves, minced
1 c Brown sugar
3 c Corn syrup, dark
1 T English mustard
1 T Cloves, whole
1 Cinnamon stick
1 T Ginger
1½ t Salt
Combine tomatoes and onion. Sprinkle with salt and let stand for 3 hours. Rinse and drain. Heat vinegar, peppers, garlic, sugar, salt and syrup to a boil. Add the vegetables and spices (tied in a cheese cloth bag) and boil gently for 10 minutes. Hot pack in jars.

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Recipe Name: Wilted Lettuce Dressing
Serves: 8 Prep Time: 1 hour
Comments: A favorite family salad dressing. This is the original and old version.
Ingredients:
6 Slices of bacon, crisp and crumbled
4 T Bacon drippings
¼ c Vinegar
2 T Water
½ t Sugar
1 Egg beaten

Add the bacon drippings to a pan over medium heat. Add slowly the vinegar, water and sugar. Bring to a slow boil stirring constantly. Add the diced bacon. Add the beaten egg to the pan stirring constantly until blended and thickened. Quickly pour over 1 head of chopped iceberg lettuce.

Be sure to look at the complete recipe file and info at the above link. Enjoy!

How About some Instant Pot Ribs?

08 Thursday Aug 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, BBQ Pork, bbq ribs, Beans, Captain's Shack, Corn, Food Photos, Gameday, Grillin' and Chillin', Homemade Sauce, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Pork, Instant Pot, Instant Pot Recipes, Made From Scratch, Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Ravenswood Cabernet Sauvignon, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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bbq ribs, Instant Pot Recipes, recipes

An Instant Pot is diverse and fun to use. It cooks many styles and methods. I love ribs done on a grill, but this method is quick and somewhat easy. The recipe is a little involved, but if you follow it, your ribs will come out great. Especially at the end where you caramelize them under a broiler. Here is the recipe we use. I like Baby Back Rib, but you can use any ribs. A good gameday treat. https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-IP-Ribs.pdf . In the photo below, we served them with fresh off the cob corn, or you can leave it on the cob, and doctored Bush’s Beans.

Just watch your time in the Instant Pot. 23 minutes should be enough. I went 25 minutes and that was a little long. The ribs fell off the bone when I got them out to go under the broiler. Let us know what you think and if you liked them.

Different Types of Eggs Benedict

20 Monday May 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Breakfast, Brunch, Buy Local, Captain's Shack, Classic Cuisines, Classic Sauces, Cooking Styles, Eggs Benedict, Ham, Hollandaise Sauce, Homemade Sauce, What's For Dinner?

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Canadian bacon, Eggs Benedict, Hollandaise Sauce, pancetta, recipe

Salmon Benedict on a Spinach Bed and Fresh Idaho BFM Fruit – Israli Melon

There are several differednt types of Eggs Benedict that one can make. In fact, You can really make them any way you want. The key is in the Hollandaise Sauce, not the eggs combinations. Here are the 3 basic types.

BasIC Eggs Benedict is with ham’ Canadian Bacon or pancetta. Eggs Florentine is with sauteed spinach. Eggs Royale is with smoked salmon. All three breakfasts are created the same, starting with a toasted English muffin, poached eggs and topped with hollandaise sauce. Here is the recipe for Hollandaiuse Sauce that I make from scratch and we love. https://www.rockinrs.com/CIA-Basic-Hollandaise.pdf It may take some practice, but it’s worth it. Just don’t let the temperature get above 130 degrees F.

Interesting Pork Tenderloin Dish

04 Thursday Apr 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Aleppo pepper, Android Photos, Braising, Buy Idaho, Buy Local, Cabbage, Captain's Shack, Carrots, Classic Sauces, Comfort Food, Cooking Styles, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Food Photos, Food Prep, Heirloom Carrots, Herbs and Spices, Homemade Sauce, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Greens, Idaho Pork, Idaho Vegetables, Local Markets, Malheur River Meats, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Pork, Pork Tenderloin, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipes - Dinner, tarragon, What's For Dinner?

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Aleppo pepper, food, parsnips, pork, pork tenderloin, recipes, red cabbage

I do like pork! But I really need to change my preparation of the meat. If not the preparation, then the plating of it. What to serve with it? Sauerkraut is a pretty standard plating. But I wanted to change that, And o I came up with this. I used red cabbage, snow peas and carrot rounds, to sweeten it a little, and a little balsamic glaze to soften the cabbage flavor. I brazed it with just a little Aleppo pepper. The combination worked well and folks enjoyed it. Then I took parsnips and chunk diced them and braised them also.

The pork. Braised it over medium heat so not to burn it. Initially and before cooking I used our Pork Rub, (https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Pork-Rub.pdf) all over the tenderloin and did not “skimp” on the amount. Then pat it into the meat and let it sit for about 30 minutes. The 2020 Parma Ridge Winery Boys Blend was superb with this dinner!

After braising the pork, I removed them from the heat and deglazed the pan (cast-iron skillet) with about 2 ounces of Tarragon Vinegar that we made a while back.Then a little butter in the drippings and some flour. Brought the roux together and added whole milk and about 2 T of Plochman’s mustard and stirred to combine and thicken. I then returned the tenderloin to the pan and spooned some of the sauce over it. After plating, I added a little more if it was needed. Everyone seemed to enjoy it – there is none left!

Penne Pasta in Vodka Sauce

26 Friday Jan 2024

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Classic Herb Blends, Classic Sauces, Cooking Styles, Cream Sauces, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Food - Make Your Own Meals, Food Photos, History of Food, Homemade Sauce, Housemade Sauces, Italian Food, Passata, Pasta, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipes - Italian, Sauces, Scallops, Seafood, Shrimp, What's For Dinner?, Zucchini

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penne pasta, vodka

I have been wanting to try this pasta for quite a while now and finally got up the nerve to try and make some. I think it came out very well. Originally, the sauce does not include any vegetables or protein. I changed that and used some large dice zucchini, shrimp, scallops and quartered crimini mushrooms. I like those additional items as it gives the pasta a good texture and mouth feel. Vodka Sauce is a popular Italian-American pasta sauce known for its rich and creamy texture. The exact origins of vodka sauce are unclear. One popular belief is that vodka sauce originated in Italian-American restaurants in the United States during the mid-20th century, more than likely in the 1970’s. Vodka was added to tomato sauce as a way to enhance the flavors of the ingredients. Vodka is thought to interact with the fat in the cream and the acid in the tomatoes, creating a smooth and balanced sauce. Here is a link to the recipe. Enjoy. https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Penne-Pasta.pdf

Meals From the Heart and New Recipes

10 Thursday Aug 2023

Posted by Bob and Robin in BBQ Pork, Black Beans, Boise Food Adventures, Breakfast, Buy Local, Captain's Shack, Chef Jake Sandberg, Chef Storm Hodge, Classic Cuisines, Classic Sauces, Classis Sauces, Cooking Styles, Eggs, Food Photos, Food Prep, Galaxy 9 Photos, Herbs and Spices, Homemade Sauce, Housemade Rubs, Housemade Sauces, Idaho's Bounty, Kitchen Adventures, Local Farmers Markets, Local Harvests, Local Markets, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, Recipes - BBQ, Recipes - German, Recipes - Sauces, Sourdough, Spice Blends, Spices, Tellicherry Pepper, What's For Dinner?

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BBQ Rub, BBQ Sauce, corn fritters, Doctored baked beans, oven bbq, recipes, Sourdough

I have been working on some new recipes for the past several weeks. I have 3 that I will post here. Hope you like them. Let me know. The3re will be at least three new recipes. My favorite oven bbq pork ribs, a really good bbq sauce in the Memphis style – slightly tart, but also with a sweetness. A Memphis style bbq rub that is great on ribs, beef, pork and chicken. Then a side dish – corn fritters, since corn is now in season. I grew up on these and love them. Almost as good as a corn pie! Most, but not all of the ingredients in the posted recipes, come from the Boise Farmer’s Market (BFM) and I am grateful for their products and information. Use your local farmer’s markets. Enjoy!

Starting with the Oven BBQ Pork Ribs, I have created our version of a Memphis style bbq rub. Sweet, but tangy. Best to be very generous with this rub and the longer it “cures”, stays refrigerated for awhile – I let the ribs I was doing to rest (cure) in the refrigerator for 24 hours. But that length of time is not essential. 8 hours will also work. Don’t forget to let the meat come to room temperature before you cook it. This rub is full of sugar, sea salt, onion powder and garlic granules, Aleppo pepper, cumin and smoky paprika. Great on the pork In did and super on chicken.

The BBQ Sauce I came up with, https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-BBQ-Sauce.pdf, CS BBQ Sauce, is thick and rich. Slightly smoky. Slightly tangy. It includes red onion, minced garlic, ketchup, dark brown sugar, apple cider vinegar and pomegranate molasses among some other ingredients. Check the recipe by clicking the link.

https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-My-Pork-Ribs.pdf

Now, IMNSHO, In My Opinion Not So Humble Opinion, are super good! And they are done in the oven. (Can these be considered truly BBQ Ribs?) As plated here, we added some of our Doctored Baked Beans and a Corn Fritter. Drizzle some CS BBQ Sauce over the ribs (even go well with the beans) and Yum-O! They fall of the bone and have great flavors from the rub and the sauce.

https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Corn-Fritters.pdf

And since I mentioned Corn Fritters, they go really great for breakfast with eggs. The eggs above are basted. A very Pennsylvania Dutch (German) treat. I was raised on these and they were aq hit when I made them for folks. Not hard to do. Fresh corn works best, but frozen corn can also be used. Here they are served with fresh fruit and homemade sourdough bread toast.

https://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Sourdough-Pan-Bread.pdf

The last item I want to share is a sourdough bread we have been working on since January of this year. Created our own starter and it takes a while to develop and experiment making bread and other treats. Sourdough Blueberry Muffins, for one. (https://www.rockinrs.com/Sourdough-Blueberry-Muffins.pdf) This bread I have baking in a Romertopf Clay Pot and it comes out just great.It is a full flavored sourdough. Robust. Makes great toast and sandwiches. Great grilled cheese.

So there you are. Try these and let us know if you liked them or not. If not, let us know why. Cheers and Good Eating!

Coq au Vin for Valentines

17 Thursday Feb 2022

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Buy Idaho, Buy Local, Captain's Shack, Carrots, Chicken, Classic Cuisines, Cooking Styles, Food - French, Heirloom Carrots, Herbs, Homemade Sauce, Main Dish, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Pork Belly, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes - Dinner, Recipes - French, What's For Dinner?

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coq au vin, morel mushrooms, pork belly

Coq au Vin, Rooster in Wine, was my choice this year to make for Robin, my wife of almost 40 years, and Marnie, my daughter. It’s not for the faint of heart. It takes some ambition and time. But it is well worth it. Delicious!

Just a few suggestions. Prep your ingredients first. I suggest paper bowls for your prep work. Take your time and don’t rush through this. If you are thinking of using an Instant Pot, try, instead, a large cast-iron skillet, at least 2″ deep and a glass lid, you can’t watch the cooking through a solid lid. The dish takes almost a constant vigil.

I used a package of frozen Pearl Onions instead of fresh ones that I would have to peel; heirloom carrots instead of the orange ones; Courvoisier Cognac instead of brandy; dried morel mushrooms reconstituted in the wine used for the dish instead of button mushrooms; pork belly cut into strips instead of bacon and for the beurre manie, I just added to the oil in the pan some flour for thickening. For the chicken, I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs. The original recipe, Julia Child’s, calls for you to cut up a chicken. (Still had to skin and de-bone the thighs.)

And this really needs to be emphasized: Watch your temperatures and don’t burn the sauce. Keep the liquid level just covering the chicken – use chicken stock, not broth, if necessary – and use a medium to low simmer temperature.

Recipe – http://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Coq-Au-Vin.pdf

In my opinion, the dish has enough vegetables in it. So I did not use asparagus or rice to serve with it. I also served it with a dish of fresh cut fruit. Marnie had a Red Velvet Cake for dessert Try this and let us know what you think. We loved it.

Two Meals to Try

11 Friday Feb 2022

Posted by Bob and Robin in 5-Stars, Buy Idaho, Buy Local, Captain's Shack, Cheese, Chicken, Classic Cuisines, Classic Herb Blends, Classis Sauces, Cooking Styles, Dinner With Family, Food - French, Food Photos, French Wines, Homemade Sauce, Idaho Vegetables, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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Alfredo, coq au vin, shrimp

Here are two meals we made. The first is probably one of the best alfredo sauces I have ever eaten. Not “gummy” with cheese, but rather clean and smooth. Shrimp went very well with the sauce. The second is an “Old Persons Meal”, of sorts. Fried chicken with garlic mashed potatoes with pan dripping gravy and garden green beans. Enjoy these.

Recipe – http://www.rockinrs.com/CS-Alfredo-Sauce.pdf

The recipe calls for penne pasta, but we didn’t have any. So we used linguini which worked very well. The shrimp really added to the dish – you could probably use any seafood, scallops, lobster or Dungeness crab might be good, or other protein. Use your imagination.

The Alfredo was smooth and creamy and not grainy. It added to the shrimp we used and did not conflict with it. Several flavor levels came through that were delicious.

I have had problems when frying chicken, but this one seems to have over come that flaw. I added some baking powder to the flour that I used to coat the chicken and beaten egg to dredge the chicken in before the flour. We also made sure the chicken was dry before dredging. Cook slowly over medium high heat for about 5 minutes per side, taking care not to burn the chicken. Start cooking skin side down. We always use thighs, or second joints if you are on the East coast, bone-in and skin on.

The gravy was made from the pan drippings to which we added some flour and some wine. Made sure that was all mixed then added some half and half and completely combined to make the smooth gravy. It was delicious.

So there are two more meals from this past week. Next thing I am trying is Coq au Vin, Rooster in Wine. Probably not as good as Julia Child would do, but good nonetheless. Stay tuned and Good Eating!