Kielbasa with Fall Veggies

Preparation Time: 20-minutes
Total Time: 1-hour

Ingredients:

• 1 small Spaghetti Squash, halved and seeds removed
• 1 lb Brussels sprouts, halved
• 1 lb Crimini mushrooms, halved and quartered
• 1 Large Yellow Onion 
• 2 lb smoked Kielbasa, cut at angle into pieces
• 4 tbsp Olive Oil
• Chopped Parsley

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to roast at 450^oF
2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper
3. Coat spaghetti squash with 2 tbsp olive oil, place cut-side down on baking sheet and roast 20-minutes
4. Meanwhile, toss brussels, onion, and mushrooms with remaining oil
5. Carefully add the vegetables and kielbasa to hot baking sheet; roast until vegetables are tender and sausage reaches a safe internal temperature of 145^oF, about 20-minutes.
6. When cool enough to handle, pull the strands from the squash and arrange on serving platter. Top with roasted vegetables and kielbasa; sprinkle with parsley.

Beef with Broccoli and Oyster Sauce

From: Adam Liaw's Asian Cookery School | Vietnamese Dish
cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• ~1 lb rump steak, sirloin or flank, very thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp peanut oil
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 3 thin slices ginger, bruised
• 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp stock or water
• ½ tsp sugar
• 1 tsp cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp cold stock or water
• Chillies in Soy Sauce

Meat Marinade:

• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• ½ tsp cornflour
• pinch white pepper

Instructions:

1. Combine the beef with the marinade ingredients and set aside for at least 10 minutes
2. Heat a cup or to of water in the wok until boiling, add about a teaspoon of the oil and blanch the broccoli for about 1 minute or until it is bright green and slightly softened. Remove and set aside until ready to fry
3. Drain the water from the wok and dry the wok over the flame. Add the remaining oil and the ginger first then the garlic to the oil, then the onion and fry until the onion is softened. Scoop the onion, garlic and ginger out of the oil and add to the broccoli
4. Using the flavored oil left in the wok, fry the beef in batches until well browned. Return all ingredients back to the wok and toss together. Add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, stock and sugar and toss to coat. Slowly drizzle the cornflour mixture into the wok while tossing, until the liquids thicken and cling to the ingredients. Remove to a plate, rest for a minute and serve with rice and some Chillies in Soy Sauce.

Lemongrass Beef - Serves 4

From: Adam Liaw's Asian Cookery School | Vietnamese Dish
cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup peanut oil
• ~1 lb rump steak, sirloin or flank, very thinly sliced
• 1 yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 stalks lemongrass, tender white part only, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 red chili, sliced diagonally
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 ½ tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Heat a wok over very high heat until smoking, add ½ the oil and fry the beef in batches until "lightly" browned all over from the wok.
2. Add the remaining ½ oil to the wok
3. Fry the onion, lemongrass, garlic and chili until the onions are softened and the ingredients are fragrant and starting to brown.
4. Return the beef to the wok and toss with the fish sauce, sugar, and black pepper for about 2-minutes.
5. Remove from the wok and allow to rest for a minute before serving.

Vegetarian Breakfast Casserole - 6-9 servings

Vegetarian Breakfast Casserole - Makes 9 serving squares

Adapted from UmamiGirl

This requires a couple hours of refrigeration; I like to get it ready the night before, and then pop it in the oven the next morning.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp Butter
• 1/2 Medium Yellow Onion, diced
• 1/2 Green Bell Pepper, diced
• 1/2 Red Bell Pepper, diced
• 5 oz Sliced Shiitake
• 1/2 tsp Salt, divided
• 5 oz Frozen Chopped Broccoli, defrosted
• 5 Large Eggs
• 1 1/2 cups Milk (alternative milks, like almond and oat, work just fine)
• 1/8 tsp Nutmeg 
• Pinch Ground Cayenne
• Freshly Ground black pepper
• 4 cups Unseasoned dry leftover bread, or use Stuffing Cubes
• 3 oz shredded Gruyere cheese, divided
• 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese, divided

Equipment:

Large Skillet

Oven

Square baking dish (~8") or braiser

Instructions:

1. Melt the butter in a large skillet or braiser over medium-high heat. 
2. Add the onion, peppers, and shiitakes all at once, along with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cook, stirring from time to time, for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables have softened, browned a bit, and decreased in volume by at least half. Remove from heat.
3. While the other vegetables cook, place the defrosted broccoli on a thick layer of paper towels or dish rag, and cover with another thick layer. When the veggies in the skillet have cooked as noted above, press down gently on the paper towels to remove moisture from the broccoli. Then add broccoli to the skillet and stir to incorporate.
4. Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and beat well with a fork. 
5. Stir in milk, nutmeg, cayenne, and a few good grinds black pepper. 
6. Add bread cubes and stir to moisten. 
7. Stir in all the vegetables, half the gruyere and half the parmesan or pecorino. Pour the whole mixture into the baking dish (or back into a braiser if using) and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. 
8. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least a few hours before proceeding. Remove from fridge about an hour before baking if possible.
9. An hour before serving time, preheat oven to 375°F (350°F if using convection mode) with a rack in the center. Bake uncovered for about 40 minutes, until puffed and golden. Serve hot or even at room temperature.

Easy French Toast - 4 slices

Adapted from McCormick's

I double the ingredients below for the two of us. However, I keep them in separate shallow dishes so that I end up with 4 vanilla-cinnamon flavored slices, and 4 orange-water slices (also recently discovered using almond extract is delicious)

Ingredients:

• 1 Egg
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract (also can use 1/2 tsp Almond Extract, or 1/2 tsp of Orange Water or Rose Water)
• 1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 cup milk (alternative milks are fine)
• 4 slices of bread*
• *Slices from medium loaf of French or Italian sourdough are DELICIOUS; seeded is fine
• *If bread is too moist or floppy, lightly toast in oven or toaster oven before dipping in egg mixture

Instructions:

1. Beat egg, vanilla, and cinnamon in a shallow dish. Stir in milk.
2. Dip bread in egg mixture, turning to coat both sides evently
3. Cook bread slices on a lightly greased nonstick griddle or skillet on Medium Heat until browned on both sides.
4. Serve with syrup, powdered sugar, and additional butter if desired

Vietnamese Do Chua (Pickled Carrots & Daikon)

From https://whiteonricecouple.com/recipes/vietnamese-pickled-carrots-daikon/

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb carrots, julienned
• 1/2 lb daikon radish, julienned
• 4 cups water, slightly warm to dissolve salt & sugar
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp salt 
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup distilled white vinegar (or rice vinegar) - start with 1/2 cup and taste the mixture, then add more as desired 

Instructions:

1. In a large pitcher or bowl, mix water, vinegar, sugar, and salt until everything is dissolved and combined well.
2. Place carrots and daikon in a clean, sterile jar. Fill with vinegar mixture until carrots and daikon are completely covered in liquid.
3. Cover jars and set in the refrigerators to pickle at least overnight. Ideal is to sit for 3 days before eating. They will last 3 weeks in the fridge.

Cocktail - Ramos Gin Fizz

Ramos Gin Fizz

Brooklyn's on Boulder (Lee's)
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz Dry gin
• 1/2 oz Lemon juice
• 1/4 oz Lime juice
• 1/2 oz Cream
• 1/2 oz simple syrup
• 3/4 oz egg whites
• 3-4 drops orange flower water
• 1 oz soda

Instructions:

1. Shake extremely well all ingredients with ice
2. Strain into a Collins glass (egg white will be foamy)

Cocktail - Violette Fizz (Gin)

Violette Fizz

Brooklyn's on Boulder (Lee's)
Ingredients:

• 1 oz Creme de Violette
• 1/2 oz gin
• 3/4 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 oz simple syrup
• 3/4 oz egg white

Instructions:

1. Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a tall, thin glass (egg white will be foamy)

Cocktail - Violette Cosmo (Gin)

Violette Cosmo

Brooklyn's on Boulder (Lee's)
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz Creme de Violette
• 1/4 oz Lime Juice
• 1 oz Cranberry juice

Instructions:

1. Stir all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
2. Garnish with lime slice/squeeze

Cocktail - Aviation (Gin)

AVIATION - Two versions

Platings & Pairings
Ingredients:

• 2 oz gin
• 1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 tsp maraschino liqueur (preferably Luxardo or Keenan's)
• 1/4 oz Creme de Violette
• Lemon twist for garnish
• OPTIONAL: Maraschino cherries for garnish

Instructions:

1. Combine the first three ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake to chill well, then strain into a cocktail glass. Drizzle in the Creme de Violette
2. Garnish with a lemon twist or cherries

Brooklyn's on Boulder (Lee's)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 oz dry gin
• 3/4 oz lemon juice
• 1/4 oz simple syrup
• 1/4 oz maraschino
• 1/2 oz Creme De Violette
• Lemon twist for garnish

Instructions:

1. Shake all with ice
2. Straine into a coupe
3. Garnish with lemon peel