I stumbled upon this recipe, and just had to share it.  I am an Eggs Benedict lover, and I love crab cakes! With the holidays here, and guests/friends in town, this makes me want to host a brunch, just to serve this, along with mimosas-maybe a New Year's Day brunch idea? Hmmm...

This comes from the Chesapeake Bay Company.

Crab Cake Benedict

Crab cakes for breakfast or brunch? Yes! We invented this delicious pairing of eggs Benedict with crab cakes and it's an elegant dish that's perfect for entertaining or just for a lazy weekend morning. You'll find the tropical fruit salsa is a delightful accent to the crab cakes.

Ingredients

• 3 egg yolks
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 4-ounce crab cakes
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 2 eggs
• 2 English muffins
• 1 tablespoon capers

Place a small, heatproof bowl over a pot of steaming water. Add the egg yolks, lemon juice and salt. Using a wire whisk, beat the butter, a tablespoon at a time, into the yolk mixture. You might need to remove the bowl from the steam from time to time. When all the butter is incorporated, remove from the heat and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place the crab cakes on a baking sheet and cook for 15 minutes.

Bring a small, nonstick pot of water to a simmer. Add the white vinegar and gently drop the eggs in the water. Do not allow the water to boil or the eggs will fall apart. Cook until the whites are opaque but the yolks are not.

While the eggs are poaching, toast the English muffins and then place them on the serving plates. Lift the cooked eggs out of the water with a slotted spoon. Allow all of the water to drain off before placing on the English muffins. Spoon some of the hollandaise sauce over the eggs and garnish with the capers.

Serve 1 egg Benedict along with 1 crab cake placed on the other half of the English muffin.

I don't know about you, but I am a lover of Tabasco being splashed on top of the Hollandaise sauce, it ads a tinge of heat, but I love the almost vinegary tinge, it rounds out the flavors and brings a little heated depth to the dish!

Bon appetit!

Recipes to come!

I have taken a breather on uploading recipes, but be rest assured, recipes and ideas are coming, just in time for the holidays!

Be on the look out for some dessert recipes, fun party appetizers that are easy to put together, as well as some elegant Christmas Eve menu ideas.

Happy Holidays!

Quinoa...what the what?

Quinoa is the best discovery I have made in months!  Do you even know what it is? 

First of all, it is pronounced "keen wa".

Secondly, it is considered a "super food".  What is a super food, one that touts such high components in its beneficial attributes to us humans.  It is high in protein, high in fiber, low in carbs, low in sugars!  How can you go wrong?

Thinking of having rice with your entree?  Substitue quinoa, you'll benefit by its capacity in absorbing the flavors you put into it, and then some.  I've had this as a side, as well as an added to make a meal stretch, as I might have done with rice to make a meal grow to expand, enabling me to have more leftovers.

The best thing to do is to cook it in a broth, rather than water.  This way, just as I would do with rice, it absorbs every ounce of flavor and seasonings.  Just like with whole wheat pasta, you have to flavor it!  Then, add it to what your main proteins are, whether a side or a mix-in, and it stands out!  It adds texture, flavor, feeling, and I'm glad I gave it a try. 

I am always searching for an alternative to mashed potatoes and rice to soak up the yummy juices of the meals I make and serve, and Quinoa never lets me down, leaves me satisfied, and pleased I cut carbs/sugars/calories, etc. 

Take my advise, remember to flavor the water, and I hope you enjoy this wierd sounding grain, that really is a protein.

Braised Lamb Shanks & Asparagus Risotto

This is my husband's recipe, and I wanted to share this amazing dish! So delicious! My risotto was served on the side, a great addition to the lamb.

Ingredients:
2 lamb shanks, 1 lb. a piece, trimmed of fat
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1/2 Bordeaux red wine
1/2 Quart chicken stock
1/2 Quart beef stock
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
4 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. chopped garlic
1 fresh rosemary sprig
2 bay leaves


Appliances:
Le Creuset Dutch Oven-Large

Directions:
1. Put dutch oven on med-high heat burner. Add in 2 Tbsp. olive oil, let dutch oven come to temperature. Once at desired heat, heat 1 shank at a time, 3-5 minutes on each side, browning to a golen brown, then remove off heat onto heat safe plate.
2. Add remaining 2 Tbsp. to dutch oven, add in chopped onions, salt and pepper, letting them carmelize, 5-7 minutes, till translucent, but a bit browned from lamb remnants.
3. Next add in garlic, allowing garlic to carmelize with onions, 2-3 minutes.
4. Deglaze dutch oven with wine, stir everything with wooden spoon, scraping up lamb bits on the bottom of the pan to incorporate into liquid.
5. Add beef and chicken stocks, tomatoe paste, stirring all to incorporate paste and broth with wine, onion and garlic bath.
6. Add in rosemary, bay leaves, salt and pepper.
7. Bring pot to a boil, add in the lamb, if liquid does not cover the lamb, add more broth/wine/water to bring above lamb shank level, not expsoing the meat.
8. Cover, let simmer on low heat for 1 1/2 hours.
9. Remove cover, cook uncovered for additional 1/2 hour at same temperature to reduce liquid to fall below the shanks. Be sure to taste for proper seasoning level, et voila! You have your braised lamb shanks!

Plate the lamb shanks onto a plate, use broth bath in dutch oven to pour over the lamb as a gravy. If you wish for a thicker gravy, you might need to raise temp of broth to boil, then reduce again, this should help thicken naturally, without adding flour or thickeners, but if desired, I don't see that hurting anything.

Click on the link to see  my risotto recipe.

Bon appetit!