Cooking

April 6, 2021 by Eric Keibler

Chef Recommended – Easy Vegetables

Dive Mom has been asking for more vegetables and fewer desserts in our Chef Recommended posts so being the cooperative person that I am I am posting two very easy vegetable treats.

Steamed Green Beans

This can’t be any easier. Bring home a bag of fresh green beans and trim the ends off (I prefer to do it on a bias with a pair of kitchen scissors). Set up your steamer and boil the water. When you are ready to put them on, add about half a cup of white wine or brandy to the water and then steam your beans. Don’t overcook them, you want them to be crispy. Now put them in a dish and add a little olive oil and salt to taste. This is a great time to try that herbed salt you have up in the cabinet. Cover and let the salt finish its work for about fifteen minutes and then serve.

Spaghetti Squash

Split the lengthwise and remove the seeds (save those for Dive Mom). Lightly apply some Olive oil and salt to the inside of the squash and lay face down on a roasting pan or cookie sheet. Cook for about thirty minutes until the fibers are easy to separate and look like angel hair pasta. Scrape out these fibers into a large serving dish and add butter and freshly grated parmesan cheese to taste. In our house, we like lots of butter and cheese so we tend to layer the butter and cheese to make sure everything gets a good coating. As a hint, use your microplane for the cheese and it will coat better with less cheese (or it will allow you to add more.) Cover for about fifteen minutes and then serve.

March 29, 2021 by Eric Keibler

Chef Recommended Charcuterie

https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/charcuterie-board/

As we all begin to come out of hibernation and venture out into our backyards to rejoin small groups of friends, it is the ideal time to put together a Charcuterie board or a sampling of your favorite cheeses, meats and crackers. But, how do you put together the perfect spread?

What is a Charcuterie Board?

To get started, perhaps we should look at what a Chacuterie Board is. Food and Wine magazine said, “…more than a bunch of meat on a plate, charcuterie is a culinary choose-your-own-adventure story. Imagine the savory goodness that is a charcuterie board: an array of cured meats, tangy pickles, sweet jams, cheese, fresh fruit, and your own personal culinary wild cards, paired with beer or wine to complement the flavors and textures.” To put it simply, it is a collection of cheese, cured meats, crackers, bread and a few fruits. For my part, I like to add some nice dark chocolates to the mix.

How do I put it together?

Let’s look at this a little closer…

Select your favorite “board” to build on. This can be a large cutting board, a large tray (remember those trays you have tucked in a closet?), a plate or even a bit of butcher paper on your table.
Add your bowls and large cheese wedges. This is where you put bowls to contain your pickles, spreads, olives and cheeses you want people to cut for themselves. If you are using a tray or your table, you may want to put a small cutting board under the cheese to protect the surface.These items take up space so you want to place them first rather thna trying to “squeeze them in.”
Now add in the bread or crackers. These take up a lot of room so putting them down now lets you build around them.
Lay in your cured meats and pre-sliced cheeses. By outting in pre-sliced cheeses your add some different colors and keep people from taking large slices of your block cheeses. It also keeps things moving faster. For the cured meats, put in several types at different locations of the board to give it a more colorful appearance.
Time for fruits and chocolate. Fill in the gaps with the fruit and chocolate. Everyone loves fruit and chocolate so tuck them around to fill in the gaps. I especially love bright red and green grapes.

Some other ideas…

Make some special bread to add to your presentation. But remember, to keep it simple. You want to enjoy the gathering not work as the caterer for people gathering in your backyard. You don’t have to use exotic or expensive cheeses, you can use simple good quality cheese and meats.

If you are feeling adventurous, try making a Fougasse and building around it. And while I would love to make this in my own brick, wood fired oven, I have yet to convince Dive Mom to let me have one at home or at the office. So, you can make it in your oven on a pizza stone.

October 19, 2020 by Eric Keibler

Chef Recommended – Baked Apple French Toast

I am getting tired of Eggs in the morning (although Ann never tires of them) do I have been looking for some fun alternatives. I found a wonderfully simple recipe in Jennifer Segal’s Once Upon a Chef. It will make a nice treat!

Baked Apple French Toast

A lovely mash-up of French toast and apple pie, this prep-ahead baked apple French toast has all the makings of a special holiday brunch dish.

Servings: 8
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 55 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 10 Minutes

INGREDIENTS

For the French Toast

One 1-lb challah or raisin challah
5 large eggs
1-1/2 cups half & half
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons bourbon (optional; replace with apple cider or half-&-half if desired)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the Apple Topping

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
6 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For Serving

Confectioners’ sugar and/or maple syrup

Instructions

Butter a 9 x 13-inch or 3-QT baking dish. Slice the bread into 3/4-inch-thick slices.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half & half, maple syrup, bourbon, vanilla, and salt.
Dip each slice of challah into the custard mixture for about 5 seconds, then arrange in an overlapping pattern in the prepared baking dish. Be sure the entire bottom of the dish is covered with the bread. Pour any remaining custard over the bread. Set aside.
In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the apples, brown sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon. Cook, stirring frequently, until the apples are softened and the sugar-syrup is thickened, about 8 minutes. Spoon the apples and sugar syrup evenly over the bread, making sure not to leave any of the syrup behind. If not baking immediately, cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Otherwise, proceed with the recipe.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until puffed and golden, about 20 minutes more. Remove from the oven and, using a fine sieve, dust with the confectioners’ sugar. Serve with maple syrup.

Let me know how it turns out for you….

May 11, 2020 by Eric Keibler

Dreaming of Cozumel

Ok, we have all been at home too long! Spring and summer are finally arriving and it is time to start thinking about getting back in the water. I know that the Twilight Zone episode is continuing and its effects can still be seen and most of the islands are not open to tourists right now. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t start dreaming of being underwater!

One of my favorite spots to dream about is Cozumel. Because of its relative location to Houston, it seems more like a local dive spot than a foreign destination. In two hours, I can be there and in four hours I can be checked it, changed into dive equipment, and jump in the crystal blue water just off the beach at the El Presidenté Intercontinental. Or better yet, I can be racing off in a boat with our friends at Scuba Du to do a dive further down the reefs.

Diving in Cozumel is a real treat. No matter what you are looking for, they have it. The reefs offer a wide variety of marine life and formations. There are vertical walls at Palacar and coral bommies in twenty feet of water nearby at Columbia. There are gently sloping walls at Chankanauub and fast-moving fun at Passo Cedral. For snorkelers, there are sites up and down the coast with beautiful fish and healthy corals just out of reach but easy enough to swim over. For the hard-core diver, you can do four dives a day plus a night dive right off the beach or off a boat with your own guide.

I have been going to Cozumel for over thirty years and I never tire of the diving or the island. My home away from home is now the El Presidenté. The staff at the hotel make me feel so welcome when I arrive and they are truly happy I am there. But it is not just me; they go out of their way to make everyone who visits feel welcome. Last December, Ann and I spent our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary with a group of divers at the hotel and it was a very memorable experience.

Another of the things I love about the island is the food. I know, I am supposed to be there for the diving but you have to eat. Cozumel is fast becoming a foodie destination with a number of well-known restaurants serving creative dishes that draw on all of the senses. But there are also some hidden gems serving very traditional Mexican and Yucatecan dishes.

Because things are still a little in flux, I can’t hop on a plane right now but we can sit back and dream. I can also try and recreate a little magic myself by making a special dish or two from my favorite hotel. Chef Sergio Turriza, the Executive Chef for El Presidenté sent me a couple of suggestions that I could make to bring Cozumel to Houston.

Sergio Turriza is the Executive Chef. — Chef Sergio Turriza, and the team at El Presidente Cozumel

So my suggestion is to make one or both of these recipes and sit back and imagine yourself having just completed a beautiful dive and relaxing at the Palapa bar and watching the sun slip slowly under the horizon with its vivid reds and yellows dancing across the blue sky. Think of the day dives and the joy of anticipating more diving soon…

April 8, 2020 by Eric Keibler

Need Some New Baking Inspiration? Ana can help!

One of our Scuba Rangers, nine year old baker Ana Coussirat, decided that with everyone in her household working she needed to do something for herself. Her answer was to shoot her own cooking video series.

According to her Mother, Ana decided she wanted to show people how to make some of her favorite bakes. “She was very serious about this video. She told us she need quiet on the set so we set-up the camera and went out on the front porch and had a glass of wine while she shot her video.”

Ana’s first video is pure Julia Childs. When things go a little wrong, she works through it and keeps on going until the end — which sadly was before the bread was finished and out of the oven. I really wanted to see how they turned out. So, if you need a little inspiration, why not try making a loaf of chocolate chip banana bread?

January 27, 2020 by Eric Keibler

Chef Eric Recommends a Peanut Butter Cup Tart

Ann was bored the other evening and while this is hard to believe, she started watching a cooking show! One receipe that caught my attention was a Peanut Butter Cup tart. It looked just like a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup with a crust. And for those of you who know me — I love chocolate! Send me a note about how yours turns out or better yet, bring over a slice! So here is Martha’s recipe (Recipe courtesy of Martha Bakes)…

Make Martha Stewart’s Peanut Butter Cup Tart from the Impressive Chocolate Desserts episode of Martha Bakes.

Yield: Makes one 10-in tart

Course: Dessert
Theme: Family Friendly

Yield: Makes one 10-in tartCourse: Dessert
Theme: Family Friendly

Crust:
- 35 chocolate wafers (8 ounces), broken into pieces
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- Pinch of kosher salt
Filling:
- 1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream
- 3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of kosher salt
Topping:
- 10 ounces semisweet (55 to 61 percent cacao) chocolate, chopped
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
- Lightly sweetened whipped cream, for serving (optional)
- Peanut brittle, chopped, for serving (optional)

Crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pulse wafers in a food processor until fine crumbs form. Add butter, granulated sugar, and salt; process until well combined. Press mixture firmly into bottom and up sides of a 10-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom. Bake until crust is fragrant, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.
Filling: Sift confectioners’ sugar into a large bowl; set aside. Combine butter, cream, peanut butter, vanilla, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until butter and peanut butter are just melted. Pour over confectioners’ sugar in bowl and whisk until smooth. Pour into cooled crust and spread to edges with a small offset spatula. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto surface, and let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Topping: Place chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl. Bring cream just to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat; pour over chocolate mixture. Let stand 5 minutes until chocolate has softened, then stir together with a rubber spatula until emulsified. Let cool at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until ganache is thick, glossy, and just holds a line but is still pourable, 30 to 40 minutes.
Place tart on a revolving cake stand. Pour ganache into center of tart and carefully spread just shy of the edges. Using a small offset spatula held at an angle, create a spiral pattern in the top of the tart by spinning cake stand while slowly sliding spatula out from the center of the tart to the edge. Let stand at room temperature until ganache has set, about 1 hour. Serve at room temperature with whipped cream and peanut brittle, if desired. Tart is best served the same day but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.