Aaron Hollman's Blog

Pizza

I don’t think I’ll be able to get away with this for a long time but since I am still recovering, here it is. I’ll have a real recipe next week, promise.

Ingredients:

1 – Phone (and phonebook if needed)
1 – Address
Money (to taste)

Instructions:

Find the phone number of the pizza joint of choice. Once found call the number.

After being placed on hold for five to ten minutes, tell the grumpy operator whom you can hardly understand, what you would like to order. When they tell you they are out of that, order the second choice.

They will tell you the total, don’t try to figure it out, you will give yourself a headache. About an hour later, there will be a knock at your door. It will be the pizza. Give the delivery driver the cash and a few bucks extra for a tip, if they are polite and kind and brought you the right thing. A good tip helps with good service next time you order.

Food Safety:

No matter what they say on the phone, be polite. Strange things have ended up in delivered pizza due to rudeness on customers parts.

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Spicy Garlic Shrimp and Pasta

A rather simple dish that has unlimited possible variations. Go ahead and experiment, you almost can’t go wrong.

Ingredients

3 TBSP – olive oil
2 cloves – garlic (minced)
2 dried – chili peppers
salt
1 lbs – dried pasta
8oz – cooked shrimp
Parsley leaves
Pesto sauce

Instructions

In one pan, bring water and pinch of salt to boil. Do not add oil. Once boiling, add pasta and reduce heat. Cook until done.

While cooking pasta, heat olive oil over medium low heat in a deep frying pan. When hot, add garlic, peppers and pinch of salt.

When garlic changes color, add the shrimp and warm until hot, about 3 minutes. Place pasta on plate and add pesto sauce to taste. Top with shrimp.

Serve with breadsticks or garlic bread.

Variation

Substitute scallops for shrimp.

Substitute Italian seasoning for parsley flakes.

Try using Italian salad dressing instead of olive oil.

Adjust spices to suit your taste.

Food Safety

If using raw shrimp, be sure to de-vein and cook until done.

Always wash surfaces that have come into contact with raw meat.

Too much pepper can cause heart burn, indigestion, and ulcers. Use with caution.

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Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients:

2 – chicken breasts
Flour
1/2 – tsp. salt
1/4 – tsp. pepper
2 – eggs
1/2 – cup bread crumbs (or cracker crumbs)
onion salt (to taste)
2 – Tbsp parsley
4 – Tbsp parmesan cheese
2 – tsp olive oil
1 – 8oz cans spaghetti sauce
6 oz – sliced mozzarella cheese

Wash chicken breasts. Pat dry with paper towels.

Mix flour, salt and pepper and set aside.

Mix crumbs, parsley, onion salt and parmesan cheese and set aside.

Dip the breasts in flour mixture then dip in egg. Next, dip the breasts in the crumbs mixture.

Brown breasts in oil over medium high heat. Reduce heat and pour spaghetti sauce over each breast until almost covered. Top with half the mozzarella cheese. Cover and let set for thirty minutes over medium to low heat. Add additional parmesan and mozzarella cheese if desired. Cover until cheese is melted then remove and let drain.

Serve on a bed of Italian pasta such as fettuccine, spaghetti, or linguine with parsley sprigs and extra sauce on the side.

Variations:

Try substituting parsley with italian seasoning (mixture of 1/3 oregano, 1/3 basil, 1/3 parsley)

Try adding garlic powder to the crumbs mixture to taste.

Try browning minced garlic (about 2 cloves) before browning the chicken breast.

Instead of spaghetti sauce, try a mixture of spaghetti sauce and sun dried tomatoes.

Any combination of the above.

Food Safety:

Be sure to wash hands, utensils and countertops after handling or touching raw meat.

Be sure the chicken is at least 180ºF internal temperature.

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Mmmmmm, Awesome Goodness!

This recipe is an old secret recipe of mine and it is awesome! Don’t share it with anyone, kay?

Ingredients:

1 Medium onion (chopped)
3 Tablespoons vegtable oil (for sauteing)
7 Cans tomato sauce (56 oz. total)
2 1/2 Cups white vinegar
4 Tablespoons packed, brown sugar
4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons salt
2 Tablespoons black pepper (freshly cracked if available)
2 Tablespoons paprika
2 Tablespoons chili powder
4 Tablespoons molasses
1 Cup orange juice
2 Tablespoons Liquid Smoke
8 Tablespoons brown mustard

Optional Ingredients:

1 cup whiskey
Cayenne pepper (to taste)
Garlic powder (to taste)

Preparation:

In a large, heavy bottomed saucepan, saute the onion in the oil over medium-high heat until golden brown, about 7 – 10 minutes.

Add all the remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered at the lowest possible heat for at least 4 hours. (This removes much of the acidity from the tomatoes.)

Puree sauce in 2, 3, or more batches to prevent it from spilling out of the food processor or blender.

This will keep for 2 weeks covered in the fridge.

Notes:

I usually vary from this recipe depending on how I want it to taste. The original recipe called for four large onions, but I felt this to be too much so I reduced it down to one medium onion.  I like to keep mine on the stove for a little longer to make the sauce thicker, but this is totally up to you. Also, you don’t need a blender or a food processor if you have a strainer. Just pour the sauce through the strainer and throw out the onion chunks.

Tips:

When adding the molasses and mustard, spray the spoon with PAM first. This will allow them to more easily slide off the spoon, especially the molasses.

How to Avoid Onion Tears | eHow.com

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