Poutine Sandwich

So I haven't blogged in awhile and all five of my readers asked me to pick it up again. I wasn't motivated to...until tonight. Until I made the most delicious creation ever known to man kind: the poutine sandwich.

I'm sure I'm offending any and all Canadians by my loose interpretation of their famous creation, which is traditionally made with French fries, cheese curds, and gravy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poutine. But so what. I can't help it. It's so delicious.

After cooking up a Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, we had some key leftovers: bread, mashed pots, and gravy. After realizing I had some cheese curds, I was inspired. So I toasted up some good Italian style white bread, spread it with butter and sprinkled it with garlic powder. I'm realizing now that the additional butter on the toast was soooooo unnecessary. I'm going to justify it by saying that it helped protect the crispy bread from becoming soggy from the mashed potatoes. Total BS, but I'm rolling with it. Roll with me.

I then topped each slice of bread with a healthy layer of mashed potatoes (I had to squeeze in the word healthy somewhere in this recipe). I drizzled this with turkey gravy, sprinkled it with spicy Wisconsin cheese curds, and popped it under the broiler until the curds softened up a little but keep their shape. I finished the open faced sandwich (totally meant to be eaten with a knife and fork) with chopped green onions and some super fancy expensive aged cheddar that I'm pretty sure you're supposed to serve next to caviar and pate. Nope. Not in this house. It goes on mashed taters n' gravy. Don't mind if I do.

Recipe

2 Slices of Good Italian White Bread

Butter

Garlic Powder

1 Cup of Mashed Potatoes

1/2 Cup of Gravy
1 Handful of Wisconsin Cheese Curds (gotta be the squeaky kind)

1 Chopped Small Green Onion

1/4 Cup of Freshly Shredded Sharp Aged Cheddar

Make it, eat it, and thank me later.

Pepperoni Roll Ups

My mom makes an unreal pepperoni bread, but with less time (and talent) I opted to simplify her recipe. When having people over, I always try to make something that picky eaters will like and with simple ingredients of just pepperoni and mozzarella, these are one of the first to go.

1 Cup of Pepperoni Slices

8 oz Low Moisture Mozzarella Cheese

2 Packages of Premade Crescent Rolls

1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning

1/4 tsp Garlic Powder

4 Tbs of Melted Butter

Chop pepperoni slices in quarters. Slice mozzarella in thin 1 inch slices or use shredded cheese. Make sure the crescent rolls are left out on the counter for 15 minutes before opening or else they will tear when opened. Separate the crescent rolls out and cut each in half length wise. Add a little pepperoni, mozzarella, and a sprinkle of Italian seasoning at the base of the triangle and roll forward. Brush the top with melted butter that has been seasoned with garlic powder. Bake at 375 degrees per package instructions or until rolls are golden brown. I forgot to do this the last time, but serve with marinara sauce for dipping. Yum!

Roast Beef Crostini

I can't remember when or why I started making this, but this one is a keeper. It's perfect when you want a hearty appetizer but you're short on time. Depending on who I am cooking for, sometimes I will use turkey, ham, or roasted veggies to replace the roast beef. The only thing that's really remained the same is the bread and the cheese spread - you can switch this up any way you want.

1 Loaf of French Bread

1 Package of Garlic Herb Cheese Spread (Allouette)

3/4 lb of Roast Beef Slice Thin

Green Onions for Garnish

Slice french bread in 1/2 inch rounds. Toast in oven on 350 degrees until bread gets slightly crispy. You don't want the bread rock hard for multi bite appetizers, or the whole thing will fall apart. Let rounds cool. Spread generously with Allouette Garlic Herb Cheese Spread. Place thin piece of roast beef on top and repeat until you run out of rounds. Garnish with chopped green onions and serve!

Corned Beef, Cabbage and Potatoes

This has quickly become one of my favorites. I first had this in Madison while visiting a couple of friends (Cory & John) a few months ago. That's right - I had never tasted a true Irish Corned Beef dinner until just recently. They also made a mean lasagna that I need to post too. Anyway, this is so simple to make, but delicious. Plus, with the left over corned beef and potatoes you can easily whip together some homemade corned beef hash (SO much better than the canned stuff). Cory boiled his corned beef but I decided to roast it in the oven instead. Essentially you sacrifice a little more tenderness in the meat for a crispy layer of fat. I go with the crispy fat :)

1 Package of Corned Beef in Pickling Spices

5-6 Yukon Gold Potatoes

1 Head of Cabbage

3 Tbs of Melted Butter

1 Tbs of Chopped Green Onions

Place beef in a baking dish fat side up and fill with 3 inches of water. Add package of pickling spices to the water. Cover with two layers of foil. Make sure the foil isn't touching the fat or else you'll lose the crispy layer when you take the foil off. I baked it according to package directions for 3 hours. Make sure to let the corned beef rest before cutting into it. When cutting into make sure you cut against the grain or you will wind up with VERY tough meat. During the last 60 minutes, boil potatoes and chopped cabbage in separate pots until both are tender. Toss cooked, chopped potatoes with a little butter and green onions. Serve the wilted cabbage, potatoes, and corned beef with melted butter and ground pepper. This one will be a staple in your house (if it isn't already)!

Smoked Gouda Mashed Potatoes

I made up this recipe after sampling something very similar at Zed451 in Chicago. After one bite I begged our waiter to tell me what was in their unbelievable mashed potatoes. Luckily he liked me and revealed the secret ingredient: GOUDA. After a couple of attempts, I think this recipe is pretty close. It's the perfect comfort food in the cold months of winter. I served this with broiled ribeyes because our grill is currently covered in snow!

6 Large Yukon Gold Potatos
3/4 Cup of Whole Milk
1/2 Stick of Butter
1 Cup of Shredded Gouda (1/4 cup reserved)
1/4 Cup of Panko Bread Crumbs
Salt & Pepper

Peel potatoes and chop into 1 inch pieces. Simmer potatoes in water until fork tender (about 15 to 20 minutes). Drain potatoes and return to hot pan. Add milk and butter and mash. Fold in 3/4 cup of shredded Gouda. Pour into a casserole dish. Toss remaining 1/4 cup of Gouda and panko bread crumbs and sprinkle this mixture on top of the potatoes. Either cook on 425 degrees until top is golden brown. If you are in a rush, you can just place the potatoes under the broiler for 1-2 minutes.

Lauren's Labor Day Dogs

Who would have thought that my dear friend Lauren, the one who is studying to be a nutritionist, would bring these sinfully delicious hot dogs? Bacon truly does make everything better - not sometimes, but ALWAYS. And what about cheese? Throw it in there too.

1 Package of Hot Dogs

Package of Low Sodium Bacon

8 Slices of Cheddar

Hot Dog Buns

Slice hot dogs down the middle to make a slit for the cheddar. Break up slices of cheddar so you can fill the inside of the hot dog, but cheese isn't sticking out too much. Wrap each hot dog with one slice of bacon. Secure with long skewer so bacon stays wrapped tightly while grilling. Grill until bacon is crispy and cheese is melted through. Serve with chips and your favorite pasta salad!! So good. Kids, including the 26 year old who lives with me, will love this.

Penne Pasta with Sausage Tomato Cream Sauce

Mmmm this was good. We had some penne just sitting in the cabinent as well as some unused Jimmy Dean sausage so I decided to throw them together to make a hearty meal. You think I would wait until Fall to make this soul warming dish, but since it's 60 degrees in August, I thought... what the hell. I used a little red wine in the sauce that added a delicious depth of flavor that I wouldn't have gotten other wise. I don't usually cook with wine but I'm going to start now. It totally changed the entire flavor of the sauce. So good (if I don't say so myself).

1 Package of Reduce Fat Jimmy Dean Sausage

2 Cloves of Garlic

2 Cans of Diced Tomatoes

1/2 Teaspoon of Dried Italian Seasoning

1/2 Cup of Cabernet Sauvignon

1 Heaping Tablespoon of Sour Cream

1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese

1 Package of Dried Penne

Heavily salt a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Cook penne to directions (about 8 minutes or until al dente). Drain and set aside. Saute sausage in pan until only a little pink remains. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and stir. Deglaze the pan with 1 can of diced tomatoes (do not drain, pour the liquid in the pan too). Stir to get any remaining bits of sausage from bottom of the pan. Add last can of tomatoes and Italian seasoning and simmer on medium for 2-3 minutes until sauce slightly reduces. Add wine and reduce again for another 3 minutes. Remove from heat and cool for a few minutes. Add sour cream and parmesan cheese. Stir until all ingredients are incorporated. Pour penne into saute pan and mix pasta with sauce. Top each serving with some additional parm and go to town!