Ah yes! Life in the kitchen in one of the hottest July’s on record at The Captain’s Shack (The Shack). But so much fun to make and serve. Some of these dishes are “eye candy”, too. Some have recipes; Some don’t. (If you want a recipe, just let me know. I’ll see what I can do.) As with most photos on this blog, Left Click them and see them enlarged. Enjoy these photos and if you make any of the recipes, let us know how you liked them. Thanks and Cheers!
Fruity and sweet with a moderately spicy component. Great with seafood.
Here is the recipe: Idaho Trout Nage
with
Tomato and Bacon Sourdough Toast
Recipe: Crab Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms
Recipe: Chicken Yakitori
We modified the Yakitori sauce somewhat and have our own Teriyaki sauce that we use. Here are the recipes: Sauce Recipes.
And if you are interested, here are some of the main sauces we use. Enjoy.
Peas and Beet Greens
Jasmine Rice
Lemon Rice
Green Salad
with
Shaved Baby Golden Beets
White Carrot Threads
Heirloom Tomato
Martin’s Swiss Dressing
Avocado Slices
Heirloom Tomato Slices
Acme Toasted Sourdough
Vanilla Ice Cream and Peach Jam Drizzle
Wonderful June Plates
02 Sunday Jul 2017
Ah yes, so much fun to make these dishes. Some of the recipes are available and printed here. Enjoy! And yes, Idaho does raise shrimp and Australian Sea Bass. Look for Garden Creek Farms, Challis – “…Natural, Fresh, Sustainable Fish and Produce Production – Aquaculture and Aquaponics …”, ID (208) 339-4326 or email at jdoraz1963@gmail.com. Left-Click any of these photos to see them enlarged.
Fresh Strawberry
Fresh Baby Spinach
Blackberry Balsamic (Celia’s Gourmet Food, Celia’s Gourmet Foods and Olive Oil Dressing
Fresh Rosemary
Fresh Lavender Blossoms
Fresh Thyme and Thyme Flowers
Fresh Oregano and Oregano Flowers
Fresh Chives
1/2 lbs Unsalted Room temperature Butter
Mix all together
Place the butter/herb mixture on Saran (plastic) wrap.
Roll into a 2″ dia log and freeze.
Garden Creek Farms Idaho Shrimp
(braised until just pink in the Herb de Provence Butter)
Braised Pasta
(break pasta – thin spaghetti – into 3″ pieces. Add butter to pot and “fry” the pasta. Add water and cook as usual)
Diced Fennel Frons
Fresh Raw Cold Salad – Fresh Beet Threads
Fresh Raw Carrot Threads
Martin’s Swiss Dressing
Garden Creek Farms Australian Sea Bass
(egg dip, flour, egg dip and Panco. Fry over low heat until golden brown.)
Jasmine Rice
(brown Jasmine rice in butter; add water, 1T butter and Jasmine tea leaves. Cook over low heat covered until tender)
Steamed Sugar Snap Peas
Braised Pacific Salmon in Celia’s Gourmet Foods Mango Balsamic and Butter
Steamed Sugar Snap Peas and Beet Greens
Jasmine Rice
Idaho Goat and Vandalia Onion Kabob
Grilled Peach
Green Salad
with
Tomato
Carrot Threads
Martin’s Swiss Dressing
2015 Parma Ridge Carmenere
Scrapple
Scrambled Eggs
Fresh Fruit Mix
Acme Bakeshop Sourdough Toast
Egg-In-Hole
(Acme Bakeshop Sourdough Toast)
with
Fresh Vegetables
Rosemary/Garlic Sausage
Fresh Idaho Blueberries
Fresh Idaho Plums
Soft Idaho Egg
Idaho Honey
Butter
Christmas Eve Brunch
24 Saturday Dec 2016
Posted in 5-Stars, Acme Bake Shop Baguette, Baguette, Beef, Brunch, Brunch with Robin, Captain's Shack, Desert Mountai Grass Fed Beef, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Eggs, Eggs Sunnyside Up, Grilled Beef, Herbs and Spices, Housemade Rubs, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Beef, Idaho Eggs, Idaho Wine, Local Markets, Meadowlark Farms, Mushrooms, Mushrooms - Porcini, Parma Ridge Winery, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Snake River AVA, What's For Dinner?, Wines - Idaho
Tags
Toasted Acme Bakeshop Bruchetta with Rubbed Garlic
Sunnyside Up Meadowlark Farms Eggs
2016 Parma Ridge Tre Bianchi
Now how good is this? Looks difficult to do, but surprisingly easy. Guess you want the recfipe. Here it is; Long but easy.
Porcini Rubbed Ribeye and Eggs
Adapted from: Chef Mario Batali
Ingredients – Porcini Rubbed Ribeye:
2 T Sugar
1 T Celtic Sea Salt
1 t freshly ground Tellicherry Black Pepper
1 t Red Pepper Flakes
¼ c Porcini Mushroom Powder
5 cloves Garlic, peeled and minced
¼ c Olive Oil
2 Ribeye Steaks, bone-in, 2-inches thickIngredients – Bruschetta and Eggs:
2-3 T Olive Oil
4 lg Eggs
1 loaf crusty Italian bread, sliced ½-inch thick
3 cloves Garlic, peeled
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, to drizzle
large crystal Celtic Sea Salt, to garnishDirections – For the Porcini-Rubbed Ribeyes:
In a small bowl add the sugar, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, mushroom powder, garlic and 1/4 cup olive oil and stir well to form a thick paste that is the consistency of wet sand.
Rub the paste all over the steaks, coating them evenly. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 12 hours or overnight.
About 1 hour before grilling, remove the steak from the refrigerator and brush off the excess marinade with a paper towel. Remove to a plate and allow to come to room temperature.
Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Place the steaks on the grill, cover and cook, turning every 6 to 8 minutes for 10-15 minutes for medium-rare, the internal temperature with a meat thermometer should be 125ºF. Transfer to a carving board and let rest for 15 minutes. After the meat has rested, thinly slice against the grain.Directions – For the Eggs and Bruschetta:
In a large nonstick pan, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil and place over medium heat. Add the eggs and cook until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with the steak.
Reduce the grill to medium heat and place the bread on top. Allow to cook until toasted and lightly grilled on both sides, about 1 minute per side. Remove and rub with a clove of garlic, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Serve with the steak and eggs.Tip: Use your favorite herb rub if you can’t find dried porcini or porcini powder or grind your own dried porcinis.
Wonderful 5-Hour Roasted Duck
13 Tuesday Dec 2016
Posted in 5 Hour Duck, Apple, Beets, Captain's Shack, Dessert, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Dinner For Robin, Dinner With Family, Duck, Food Photos, Heirloom Beets, Heirloom Carrots, Heirloom Onions, heirloom vegetables, Idaho Vegetables, Idaho Wine, Local Farmers Markets, Local Harvests, Onion, Petit Verdot, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Prep Work, Raspberries, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Captain's Shack, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes - Dinner, Recipes - Sauces, Roasted Vegetables, Snake River AVA, Special Dinners, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food, Wine Dinners, Wines - Idaho
Love to make this and it really is so easy. 5 Hour Roasted Duck and add to that some Roasted Root Vegetables and 5 Hour Roasted Duck Sauce, also really good with ham, and you will have a superb and wonderful dinner. A good 2013 Indian Creek Petit Verdot goes extremely well with it.
Several people have asked how to make the duck. Basically – season with Celtic sea salt and fresh ground Tellicherry Black Pepper, stuff with sweet apple and pear, prick the skin all over and cook in a 300°F oven and turn every hour for 5 hours. Last hour raise temperature to 350°F. Do not cover throughout the cooking process.
First of all, the moon must be full. If not, the recipe may not work.
Duck has been salt and peppered and stuffed with Braeburn Apple and Bosch Pear. Oven is preheated to 300°F
After each hour, turn the duck and prick the skin. This is after 1 hour. Pricking the skin at each turn, keeps the duck fat basting the duck.
At 3 hours, things happen. Starting to brown nicely.
Root vegetables are large cut and put into the bottom of the baking pan. This roasts the vegetables and keeps the duck off of the pan surface. The vegetables here are heirloom carrot, heirloom beet, local onion, parsnips and turnips.
Make stock from the vegetable pieces and the duck neck and parts. Simmer low and slow!
Lay the duck directly onto the vegetables and return to the 300°F oven. Cook for another hour.
At 4 hours last turn. It is smelling yummy now.
At 5 hours, remove from the oven and let cool, somewhat.
Yummy slices.
Here is the Cranberry/Cherry sauce for the duck.
Oh yes. Dessert – Pound Cake with Fresh Raspberries and Fresh Whipped Cream.
Sunday Breakfast and Dinner
15 Monday Aug 2016
Posted in 5-Stars, Bacon, Baking, Breakfast, Breakfast At The Captains Shack, Breakfast With Robin, Buy Idaho, Captain's Shack, Carrots, Cast Iron, Cheese, Comfort Food, Corn, Desert Mountai Grass Fed Beef, Dinner For Robin, Eggs, Food Photos, Fruits, Heirloom Carrots, Herbs, Housemade Sauces, Idaho Eggs, Idaho Pork, Idaho Potatoes, Idaho Vegetables, Local Farmers Markets, Meadowlark Farms, Photos By: Bob Young, Pork, Pork Tenderloin, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, True Roots Produce, What's For Dinner?
These two items are so much fun to make. Somewhat quick. Somewhat involved. Always good. Give them a try. Enjoy!
Line a muffin tin with thinly sliced potato slices. Bake off for 20 minutes at 425 degrees F until potatoes are slightly crisp. Fill with a mixture of beaten egg, cheese, green onion, rendered bacon pieces, some salt and pepper. Bake at 425 degrees F until eggs are set. Remove and let cool 5 minutes. I used the convection for baking these. Top with Slasa or Pico de Gallo.
Breakfast Potato Cups Plated. They should come right out of the muffin tins as a unit. Serve with fresh fruit.
Fresh Corn
Pork Medalions
with
Port Wine and Herb Reduction
Port reduction – Using the cast iron skillet that the pork was done in, add 1 T Olive Oil, 2 c Port Wine, 1 T fresh Sage chopped, 2 t fresh Thyme and 2 T Heavy Cream. Stir to release the bits of pork that remain in the pan and the wine is reduced to 1 cup and starts to thicken slightly. Place 1 T of the reduction under the pork and 1 T on top of the pork.
How To Make a Caesar Salad Dressing
03 Wednesday Aug 2016
Actually, it’s not hard. Just takes some patience. And ANCHOVIES! I really don’t think a Caesar Salad is just that without the anchovies in the dressing. A Caesar Salad must have the anchovies! Here is a recipe we use. Enjoy.
Caesar Salad Dressing
Source: adapted from and photo from – http://www.thekitchn.com/
Makes: 1 cup
Ingredients:
1 (2-ounce) can oil-packed Anchovy Fillets, drained
2 cloves Garlic, coarsely chopped
3 lg Egg Yolks
1 t Dijon Mustard
2 T Lemon Juice
2 T Olive Oil
½ c Vegetable Oil
2 T finely grated Parmesan cheese
Freshly ground Tellicherry Black Pepper
Directions:
Make an anchovy-garlic paste: Mince the anchovies and garlic together until the mixture is mostly smooth and the garlic is minced, about 3 minutes; set aside.
Whisk the egg yolks: Whisk the egg yolks together in a medium bowl until smooth.
Add the mustard: Whisk in the mustard until just combined.
Add the anchovy-garlic paste: Whisk in the anchovy-garlic mixture.
Whisk in the lemon juice: While whisking, pour in the lemon juice, then whisk until smooth.
Whisk in the olive oil: While whisking, stream in the olive oil to create a thick emulsion. Once all of the olive oil is added, whisk for another minute to thicken.
Finish with vegetable oil: Continue whisking and slowly stream in the vegetable oil. Again, once all of the vegetable oil is added, whisk for another minute to thicken.
Season and serve: Whisk in the Parmesan cheese. Taste and season with fresh ground Tellicherry Black Pepper as needed. Serve immediately on Chopped Romaine Lettuce or grilled Romaine Lettuce.
Yum Meals this Week!
28 Thursday Apr 2016
Posted in 5-Stars, Asian Food, Asparagus, Blueberries, Boise Farmers Market, Breakfast At The Captains Shack, Breakfast With Robin, Brussels Sprouts, Buy Idaho, Cakes, Captain's Shack, Classic Sauces, Dessert, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Dinner For Robin, Eggs, Eggs Omelets, Idaho Eggs, Idaho Greens, Idaho Lamb, Idaho Potatoes, Idaho Vegetables, Lamb, Local Harvests, Local Markets, Meadowlark Farms, Mushrooms, Mustard, Omelet, Peaceful Belly Farms, Photos By: Bob Young, Purple Sage Farms, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, True Roots Produce, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?, Whats For Breakfast?
Tags
Yum meals an fun to do! Breakfast and twoi dinners. As folks say, “You do eat well!” and yes we do. Meals from scratch make it so much fun, interesting and nutricious. You can pick and choose what ingredients are included in the dishes. We try very hard to eat local. And now that Spring has arrived, the Boise Farm,ers Market is open every Saturday and we get fresh and locally produced items.
Let’s start with Tuesday dinner. A wonderful Asian Grilled Salmon, although I did not grill the salmon thgis time but rather braised it in the Asian marinade. And as a note, most – not all – but most of the ingredients to these dishes are local products – Idaho grown!
Tuesday’s dinner –
Braised Mushrooms
Steameed Asparagus
Wednesday –
Fresh Fruit
with
chardonnay mustard cream sauce
Mashed Parsnips, Turnip and Blue Potato
Steamed Brusssels Sprouts
in
balsamic vinegar and sherry reduction with butter
with
strawberry fan on whipped cream
St Patrick’s Day Party
20 Sunday Mar 2016
Posted in Appetizers, Boise Food Adventures, Bread, Buy Idaho, Cabbage, Comfort Food, Corned Beef, Dinner With Friends, Ethnic Foods, Food Photos, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Raisins, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, Recipes - Dinner, Roasted Vegetables, St Patrick's Day, Turnips, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?
Although it was not actually St Patrick’s Day on Saturday, we still had a wonderful party and meal. Thanks to Tom and Leanne Felzien for inviting us and for opening your home to all of us. It was delightful. Our task this year was to make the Irish Soda Bread, and that we did, after a little research and combining of recipes from Chef Michael Symon and The Chew, Ina Garten and the Tasting Table Test Kitchen. Here is the recipe I used for our Irish Soda Bread. And even if I do say so myself, it is by far some of the best soda bread I/we have EVER eaten! Bar none! Try it and let us know what you think. We also had a wonderful dip that Heather brought. I think this is the recipe: Guinness and Mustard Cheese Dip! Here are some photos from the party. And, by the way, this is the farm where we get our lamb. Never had a bad piece of lamb in almost 10 years from them. We are on the list again this year for 1/2 a spring lamb! Yum.
The day and the event calls for some good Scotch and maybe a brew, too.
The finished product of our soda bread.
(Beets, Potato, Parsnip, Turnip}
Cabbage
Irish Soda Bread
Corned Beef
Irish Days Are Upon Us
14 Monday Mar 2016
Posted in Ahi Tuna, Asian Food, Asparagus, Avocado, Beer and Ale, Beer and Food, Buy Idaho, Captain's Shack, Carrots, Classic Sauces, Dinner For Robin, Ethnic Foods, Heirloom Carrots, Herbs and Spices, Hollandaise Sauce, Housemade Hollandaise Sauce, Idaho Greens, Idaho Lamb, Idaho Potatoes, Idaho Vegetables, Lamb, Local Farmers Markets, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, What's For Dinner?
Tags
And that mean “Party-Hearty”! Time for lamb. Or Laphroaig. Or Glendronach. Or maybe some Corned Beef with some Cabbage. I am going to make some Irish Soda Bread, or maybe an Irish Brown Soda Bread, for a St Patrick’s Day party on Saturday. Gonna wear my kilt, too! And the socks that my niece Beth made me. We just made some Irish Stew, that turned out pretty darn good. Just need to tighten the sauce a little. Doesn’t this just look scrumptious? And yes, the Boise Farmers Market at 10th and Grove in Boise opens up on April 2, 2016! Yea!!!
Prep for the Irish Stew. Carrots, celery, lamb cubes (Local Felzien lamb!), Red onion, green onion and spices.
And the other night we had this delicious beef dinner. The beef was just OK. Nothing to brag about. But the dinner was good.
with
Mushrooms and Tarragon Sherry Cream Sauce
Steamed Asparagus
with
Hollandaise Sauce
Twice Baked Potato
Green Salad with Tomatoes
And then we also had,
Steamed Asparagus with Almonds
Green Salad with Radish Slivers
Meal Variations and Other Things
01 Tuesday Mar 2016
Posted in Apricots, Baking, Biscuits and Gravy, Breakfast, Breakfast At The Captains Shack, Breakfast With Robin, Captain's Shack, Chicken, Chutney, Comfort Food, Cooking Styles, Copper River Salmon, Crème fraîche, Cultural Differences, Curry, Dinner At The Captains Shack, Dinner For Robin, Eggs, Eggs Benedict, Eggs Poached, Ethnic Foods, Food of India, Ham, Hard To Find Recipes, Housemade Hollandaise Sauce, Housemade Sauces, Housemade Soup, Idaho Eggs, Idaho Pork, Idaho's Bounty, Indian Food, Mirepoix, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes - Sauces, Salmon, Sausage, Seafood, Sofritto, Soup, Special Information, What's For Dinner?
Such a great weekend again working in the kitchen. Warm enough outside to keep the kitchen door open. We can still find fresh, as such, asparagus but watch the prices. I saw prices vary here in Boise from $2.99 a pound for medium sized spears – which I bought – to $8.99 a pound for the skinny little spears, which I did not buy. It’s either $8.99 a pound for skinny little asparagus spears or my meds for this month. I chose my meds. (This is week #6 past open heart surgery for me. Go Team!) So with that introduction, here are some photos, and recipes, for our culinary endeavors for this past weekend. Enjoy!
Such a good and rather easy soup to make. Here is the Recipe. Enjoy! It is really a good soup.
Homemade, absolutely superb biscuits! And bake them in a waffle iron for different effects. Just don’t cut them much thicker than about 1/2″. They will rise!
Here is the recipe for these Angel Biscuits. The original recipe came from Trisha Yearwood.
Cut those biscuits out. These are thicker – about 3/4″ – than the waffle biscuits.
Scrambled Eggs with Hollandaise Sauce
Oh yes! The easiest Hollandaise ever. 5 minutes to make and no double boiler. Here is the Recipe – It is also in the recipe file above. And do you need a basic white gravy recipe? Here is my variation – White Gravy. Just add crumbled sausage for Sausage Gravy or sauteed dried beef for Creamed Dried Beef. Or try it over steamed asparagus. There’s a hundred thousand uses for this gravy. Be inventive. And daring.
I don’t have any photos for these recipes, but the plates were delicious. We made a chicken and then prepared a Chicken Curry Salad with some of the left-overs. (The rest are used in chicken stock!) But for the dressing we used this recipe, and it is superb! Chicken Curry Salad Dressing The curry dressing calls for a chutney. We don’t have any in the house. Don’t fret! Here is our own recipe for the Apricot and Cranberry Chutney.
Chutneys, by nature are, “Chutney (Hindi/ Nepali – “चटनी” also transliterated chatney or chatni, Sindhi: چٽڻي) is a side dish in the cuisines of the Indian subcontinent that can vary from a tomato relish to a ground peanut garnish or a yoghurt, cucumber and mint dip…Major Grey’s Chutney is a type of sweet and spicy chutney popular in the United Kingdom and the United States. The recipe was reportedly created by a 19th-century British Army officer of the same name (likely apocryphal) who presumably lived in Colonial India. Its characteristic ingredients are mango, raisins, vinegar, lime juice, onion, tamarind extract, sweetening and spices. Several companies produce a Major Grey’s Chutney, in India, the UK and the US…The word “chutney” is derived from the Hindi word chatṭnī, meaning to lick. It is written differently in North and South Indian languages (Nepali: चटनी, Gujarati: ચટણી, Bengali: চাটনি, Marathi: चटणी, Punjabi: ਚਟਣੀ, Tamil: சட்டினி chaṭṭiṉi, காரத் துவையல் karathuvaiyal, Kannada: ಚಟ್ನಿ, Hindi: चटनी, Urdu: چٹنی, Sindhi: چٽڻي, Malayalam: ചട്ടിണി, chattin̩i, ചമ്മന്തി, Telugu: పచ్చడి). Pacchadi, as written in Telugu script, refers specifically to pickled fruits, whilst chutney refers to minced foods, usually made out of coconuts.
In India, “chutney” refers to fresh and pickled preparations indiscriminately. Several Indian languages use the word for fresh preparations only. A different word achār (Hindi: अचार) applies to pickles that often contain oil and are rarely sweet.” [Wikipedia]
Our chutney, is but one of many variations of chutney. Ours is not cooked. Think of chutney as jerk sauce or sofrito, “…Italian soffritto, the Spanish sofrito, from Portuguese-speaking nations refogado (braised onions, garlic and tomato), the German Suppengrün (leeks, carrots and celeriac), the Polish włoszczyzna (leeks, carrots, celery root and parsley root), the U.S. Cajun and Creole holy trinity (onions, celery and bell peppers), and the French duxelles (onions, shallots, and mushrooms, sauteed in butter). Or Cajun Trinity – they can all vary from kitchen to kitchen. Fun stuff!
Boise Foodie Guild 