Wayne and Rebecca Madsen

We never watch tv. However, while house sitting this past weekend, we caught a 30 minute show on bread making which astounded us. This recipe is Alton Brown's of the show Good Eats on the Food Network. It teaches how to make a good loaf of bread.

Balsamic Salmon with Walnut Rice Pilaf
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For the fish:
1 lb. salmon fillets (1/2 lb. each)
1 TBS olive oil
Cajun Seasoning

For the sauce:
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup bacon, thinly chopped
1 TBS. chopped green onions or shallots

For the rice:
1/2 cup Rice
2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1 tsp. chili powder
Salt
Walnuts

Begin the meal by starting the rice, cooking per instructions from the rice manufacturer. Add Cajun seasoning and chili powder to the rice before cooking. Turn on the rice. Then prepare the salmon fillets by coating both sides liberally with Cajun seasoning. Let the fillets sit until the rice is 10-15 minutes from being done.

Turn the pan you plan on cooking the salmon in onto medium heat. Put in the bacon pieces. In a smaller saucepan, put the balsamic vinegar on medium heat until it begins to boil. Then turn down to medium-low and stir slowly and consistently, to prevent burning on the bottom. Balsamic vinegar boils at a low temperature and you are trying to coagulate the vinegar. Watch it closely. Shortly before the bacon finishes cooking, toss in the green onions. When the bacon finishes, remove from the heat and set aside.

Put the olive oil into the pan you used for the bacon and then fry the salmon fillets on medium to medium-low heat; covering the pan to make sure the salmon cooks all the way through. This should take about 10-15 minutes to cook: blacken both sides.

When the vinegar is thick, add the bacon and onions and turn off the heat. Set the sauce aside to cool.

When the rice is finished, top with salt and crushed walnuts. Serve with the salmon on the side, add additional Cajun seasoning as desired to the fillets and drizzle the balsamic sauce on top.

Serves 2.

Hot Sour Soup
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3/4 pound shoulder pork, thinly sliced

For Pork:
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce (I recommend Kikkoman)
2 teaspoons dried ginger powder
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
1 teaspoon cilantro, chopped finely
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons peanut oil

For Soup:
7 cups water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 can bamboo shoots
1 can watercrests
2 tablespoon fresh cilantro, cut into 1-inch lengths
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Marinate pork in the vinegar, soy sauce, green onions, sesame oil, pepper, ginger, cilantro, and chili sauce. If you don't own chili sauce, it will probably make this meal too hot for you, so avoid it. Stir well and let this mixture sit for 20 minutes at least.

On medium heat, bring the 3 TBS oil in a large wok or saucepan with a lid to temperature. Add the pork (try to avoid ladening the saucepan with the marinade), cover with a lid, and stir-fry over medium heat until the pork changes color. Remove the pork to a plate.

Without removing the oil, add the water, sugar and salt to the stockpot. Bring to a boil. Add the bamboo shoots, soy sauce, and watercrests Simmer for only 5 minutes. Add the bunched cilantro for the final minute. Turn off heat and put in the cooked pork. Beat the eggs and lightly dribble the eggs until the eggs float in soft tendrils.

Serves 6.

Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
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2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 14-inch, spring form pan with parchment paper and grease the parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the eggs, beating well after the addition of each.

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix with a whisk. Add to the butter mixture, mixing to incorporate, and add the vanilla extract. Fold in the chocolate chips. Spread across the bottom of the prepared pan and bake until the edges are golden and the cookie is set but the center is still slightly soft, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pork Tenderloin Cubano
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[This recipe has been adjusted to make it more fruity]

Marinade:
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro
3 cloves garlic minced
Juice of 1 orange
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons black pepper
1 teaspoon ground curry
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Pork Tenderloin:
1 pound 3/4 inch-thick pork tenderloin, trimmed & sliced into four pieces
1 tablespoon butter
4 ounces smoked Gouda cheese, sliced
baguette, sliced in 6 inch segments, sliced again in half
1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced

Pineapple Salsa:
2/3 cup chipotle based salsa (we tried a raspberry chipotle and it worked great)
1/3 cup finely diced pineapple

Cut pork tenderloin into eight pieces. Pound pork pieces with meat mallet between two sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap until thin, approximately 1/2" inch thick. You want your fillets to be thin enough that when they cook, they will still sit on the sandwich rolls.

For marinade, combine green onion, cilantro, garlic, orange and lime juice, honey, pepper, curry, salt and oregano in a bowl and mix well. Put marinade and pork slices into plastic storage bags and seal tightly, allowing to sit for 2 to 24 hours. This lets the marinade really soak in.

For salsa, combine salsa and pineapple. Let stand at least 1 hour to allow flavors to blend.

When ready to eat, heat butter in large skillet over medium heat. Remove pork from marinade; discard marinade. Cook pork 5 to 6 minutes per side on high heat or until temperature reaches 155 to 160ºF and pork is juicy and barely pink inside. (Pork should be cooked in single layer in skillet; cook in two batches if necessary.) Top pork with cheese immediately after flipping the first time, to allow maximum time for melting. Gouda is NOT a good melting cheese (it mostly sweats), so you will need to cover the skillet to help the melting process. Place pork on baguette rolls; top with onion slices and salsa. Serve open-faced.

Serves 4 people.