Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Cheeseburger Salad from AZ Midday


I was so blessed to be part of Arizona Midday on Channel 12.   Hopefully this gives you a great idea for summer salad. I know it is one of my family's favorites!


Cheeseburger Salad

Ingredients:

6 sesame seed hamburger bun tops
1 pound 95% lean ground beef
Grilling seasoning (heavy on the garlic)
1 small red onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup sliced dill or sweet pickles
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
6 cups thinly sliced romaine lettuce or shredded iceberg lettuce
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 plum tomatoes

Additional toppings: thousand island dressing, bacon bits or blue cheese crumbles if desired.

Directions:
Slice bun tops into 1/4-inch strips. If bun tops are very thick, slice bottoms off horizontally before slicing into strips). Arrange in a single layer on large bake pan; bake 8-10 minutes at 425 degrees or until lightly toasted. Place on a cooling rack; cool completely. Cook ground beef over medium-high heat 5-7 minutes or until no longer pink, breaking beef into crumbles. Season well with grilling seasoning of your choice. Add sliced onion and cook a minute or two more. Finely dice pickles and add along with ketchup and mustard to the cooked beef. Remove from the heat.

To serve:  Arrange lettuce on large serving platter. Spoon beef mixture over lettuce. Top with cheese, tomatoes and sliced onion. Arrange hamburger bun croutons around edge of platter. Drizzle with Thousand Island dressing and sprinkle with bacon bits and blue cheese if desired Serve immediately. Yield: 6 servings


Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess



Sunday, July 13, 2014

Bread of Life Section: True Identity


Sunday is the day I share a little of my soul. Enjoy.
I don't have a lot to say this week. I just wanted to share a little insight from my life. I hope it helps your life.  

I did a lot with TV and classes this week. I visited 3 different television shows. I taught over a hundred people how to cook at cooking classes. I baked a lot of bakery orders.   In between that I was mom and wife and daughter-in-law. I'm not going to lie... I felt frazzled. I felt tired. I felt incredibly stressed.  Somewhere in there I also felt overwhelming peace as I walked my path. 

When did it start?  I have a Christian friend named Jane who reached out to me and prayed with me. Literally. Jane stopped in the middle of our conversation and had a prayer with me...right in the middle aisle of her store. It was awesome. She reminded me by her example of being a believer that I am first a disciple of Christ. Always.   




A few days later I had opportunities presented to me that would help support my family until I can find full-time employment.  An old friend reached out to me, one I had lost contact with, but  who was baptized just a few years after we first met. I got to see his family and the joy they have found following Christ. I have to admit I cried a lot after our reunion. Not because of the work he gave me (even though that is awesome and appreciated) but because of the path his choices have taken his family. 

 I found joy. I found gratitude.

The most amazing moments of the week were those when I remembered that no matter what I face, I am not really a chef, wife, mom, or teacher.  I am...His daughter. My friends who are followers are with me. My friends who don't care what I believe are still my friends.  I am loved, not because of what I do or what I accomplish, but because I am a His daughter. 

  Focusing on that has been an amazing gift this week. It has carried me forward.  

So that is my thought for today.  Breathe. Rest when you need to...and keep moving onward and upward.

There it is.

Always My Very Best,
Your Sister Tess

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Profiling of a Killer...Salad. Herb Alchemy 101 (4 Salads from One basic Recipe)





I was blessed to be a guest on the The Morning Scramble AZTV7 with the legendary PAT McMAHON and LISA SCHNEIDER-CIPRIANO.  It was one of the most pleasant experiences ever!  They were just simply adorable down there at the studio and warmly welcoming.  I always appreciate that!  It was such a treat! Oh mercy. I just said, "treat"...like my granny. It was such an awesome dude-fest rockin'-down party event. There. Phew. I can't use granny words yet. Oopsie Daisy.  {Crap. Just did it again. Granny word.} Ya know what? Who cares if I use a granny word? I don't.  

Okay. Photo opp:
Aaaaaa-freakin'-dorable. See?!



 On the show we talked about a few recipes and flavor profiles and I wanted to share them here on the blog.  Oh I also wanted to just kiss Pat...but I think he would have taken it wrong. Such a cool guy!  Lisa shared some really great stories about her culinary genius kiddos. She. Has. Triplets. I have no excuse for having a fat butt.  

Okay. Now...as for the recipes.  These are the ones I share in my herb and spice class, but in the class you will get a freakish ton more of information...and you'll get to taste the salads I make. So you should still come to classes darlings.  I do however realize that there are some of you who live waaaaay out of town and I have not forgotten any of you. 


Herb Alchemy 101 Cooking Without a Recipe

How many just read the words "herbs and spices without a recipe" and panic set in? I can hear you saying, "I don't cook like that! I need a recipe.” If that is you, then this post is for you. I want you to try to let go of your cooking inhibitions and think with your heart. If my 11 year old can do this, you most definitely can do it! I believe in you!

So to begin with a basic explanation, herbs are the aromatic leaves, flowers, and stems of plants and spices are seeds and the bark of aromatic edible plants. Fresh or dry herbs and spices will work in cooking applications, but make sure you smell inside the jar. If it smells like the spice or herb, then the stuff inside is still full of flavor. Most spices will need to be in ground or grated form for cooking or baking. If you don't have a spice mill (not many people do), then just buy them pre-ground. 

Below is the basic outline of some flavors that work together well. Follow the steps and you will find success.   

Step 1: Begin with the pasta salad base.

Chef Tess’ Pasta Salad 101
Basic Pasta Salad
Ingredients:
1 lb. pasta of your choice, cooked al dente and seasoned well with salt and pepper
1 cup chopped bell pepper
1 cup carrots, shredded or chopped
1 stalk celery, sliced thin
½ medium red onion, sliced thin or chopped fine

Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl. 

Step 2: Make one batch of basic vinaigrette.

Basic Vinaigrette for Pennies a Jar! (FAT free available)
Ingredients:
¾ cup olive or vegetable oil (flavored oils are great)
¼ cup red wine vinegar or cider vinegar
1 tsp. fresh pressed garlic
Herbs and spices (see below for variations)
Salt and pepper

Directions: Whisk oil and vinegar with other ingredients in a bowl. Start with a half teaspoon at a time of the herb or spice you want to add and then sample. Adjust flavors according to your taste. For one batch of salad, you will need one batch of salad dressing. Want a fat free salad dressing? You can make this dressing almost completely free of fat if you have ultra gel and juice or broth! Use ¾ cup vegetable broth or juice in place of the oil. In a cold sauce pan, combine the broth or juice with 2 tablespoons of ultra gel. Add the liquid slowly and whisk well. Next add the vinegar and remaining herbs and spices, adjusting the same as above when tasting. Use the dressing immediately and keep refrigerated. If the dressing gets too thick, simply add a little more liquid to thin it out.

Step 3: Add flavor profile to dressing & mix salad. 

Dressing Variations These herb and spice suggestions are to be used in the basic vinaigrette recipe to customize the recipe to fit your need. Add the flavor combinations directly to the basic pasta salad recipe. Come up with your own and try mixing and matching fresh veggies as they are in season. You can even add seasonal fruit you like. For hearty dinners, add some roasted chicken or beef. Try marinating your meat in the vinaigrette to save a lot of money instead of buying those fancy bottles of pre-made stuff. You can do this! It can be very liberating, but for you folks who just want a grab and go dressing fix, just use the pre-made spice blends.


These are lists of flavors that work together for the cuisine you want to create they are not a complete list. They are intended to get you started


Italian
Herbs: Basil, rosemary, thyme, flat leaf parsley, marjoram
Spices: Fennel, caraway, crushed red pepper, celery seed
Flavoring: Hard cheeses like parmesan, asiago, olives, roasted peppers, citrus zest, capers

Greek
Herbs: Dill, oregano, rosemary, mint, parsley,
Spices: Fennel, anise, black pepper, dill seed
Flavoring: Feta cheese, olives, pickled peppers

Mexican
Herbs: Cilantro, oregano, thyme
Spice: Cumin, coriander, chile pods, black pepper, allspice
Flavoring: Lime zest, roasted corn, green onions, radish, black olives




Asian
Herbs: Cilantro, mint, lemon grass, sesame oil (use 2 tsp. in place of some of the oil)
Spices: Cumin, chile paste, curry paste, fennel, ginger
Flavoring: Lime zest, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, citrus zest, peanuts or cashews


©Chef Stephanie Petersen. 2011. All rights reserved. Copies NOT permitted without written consent from the author even for personal or church use! Chef Stephanie Petersen can be contacted at Stephanie@cheftessbakeresse.com and is Chef Tess on Facebook and Twitter. www.cheftessbakeresse.com 

There you go darlings. Begin learning some flavor profiles. I'll be posting more in the future! I promise.

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess


























Here are the blends that started it all!

Here are the blends that started it all! 
The highest quality. The best flavors. A blessing to our family when you buy them here. Thank you so much.

Friday, July 4, 2014

Easy No Baking Necessary Desserts for 4th of July



  Good Morning Arizona was sweet enough to have me come down again for stinkin' fun segment! We laughed and played for the 4th of July with some very simple ideas for summer desserts.

We made these awesome dishes.

 We grilled my favorite pound cake: 

Grilled it 30 seconds or so on a hot grill pan and topped it with fresh fruit, whip cream and some candied pecans. 


Next we made the mini fruit pizzas using my all-time favorite, favorite, favorite sugar cookie recipe: 


Topped them with a smear of  Chocolate Chip Cheeseball and some fresh fruit...and here it is! 



There you go darlings! Happy 4th of July!

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess


Thursday, July 3, 2014

Gluten-free Grain-Free Almond Flour Blueberry Muffin Crisps



I tried a blueberry muffin crisp...and then I ate them by the case for a few months. Now when I see them I want them, but I know that they are higher in sugar than what I want and that I really need to be better. So, when given the chance to make them healthier, I went for it. Here is a great alternative to the multi-grain breakfast muffin-crackers that taste amazing and will give you all the protein and fiber you need to keep you going throughout the day. I love them!  The secret is making them grain-free using almond flour. The fine grind variety is what I prefer, and I'm pretty partial to the almond flour from Honeyville. Even now that I am not their corporate chef, it is my pet favorite for perfect texture. I've tried others and I'll always come back to theirs. 

Have you ever tried Coconut Sugar to the recipe have solved that! Plus, there is naturally occurring caramel flavor that comes with coconut sugar that I adore!
 Palm Coconut Sugar  is supposed to be great for helping regulate blood sugar.  It is low on the glycemic index and this really affects how quickly you extract the energy from the food. It is measured and used the same as sugar in baking, but I seriously use about half. Honestly, in most baking, you can almost count on the fact that you can reduce the sugar by almost half and it will still bake pretty similarly. 

Palm Coconut Sugar was explained by Dr. Oz. He showed the benefits of using it in This Video. There are still a few people who say it isn't as healthy a choice but I'm in the group that says hey, " It still has more vitamins and minerals than regular sugar and yes, it contains natural fructose. It isn't calorie free, but it is all natural." That being said, it is also very easy to harvest and is sustainable. 


Gluten-Free Grain Free 


Almond Flour Blueberry Muffin Crisps

1 3/4 cup Almond flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp LorAnn Princess Emulsion
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup freeze-dried blueberries, crushed to 2T
12-15 drops stevia
2T olive oil


Directions:  Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients until a thick dough is made. Place dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a baker's mat. 
Cover the dough with non-stick parchment paper.
Roll thin between the sheets using a small rolling pin or pressing with your hands. I have a rolling pin that I love and it works great for crackers. 
Remove the parchment. Lightly cut crackers into 1 inch squares. If you use a baker's mat you can use a simple pastry roller that won't cut the mat.  Roll to 1/16th of an inch thin. 
Bake 350 degrees 12-15 minutes (depending on the thickness of the crackers).
Store in an airtight container...if they survive that long. I'm not using them as ninja-stars. They're making snack-fest status for sure!


Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess














Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Nancy's Almond Flour Lemon Cake


My darling friend Nancy B shared this almond cake recipe with me in December and I've been making it about once a month since. Daggumit. We all need influences like this right? Actually. I think my bum needs less friends like this.  As far as cakes go, this one has been the best nut cake I have ever had for being super consistent in the finished product and perfectly rich and moist. I'm not a big fan of dry cake and this one has never failed me. Tomorrow I'll be visiting my darlings down at channel 3 for a summer dessert segment and this is one of the goodies I'll be making on air. Actually, I'll be grilling wedges of it on a grill pan and serving it up with fresh fruit and whip cream. It is the perfect consistency for grilled pound cake!  For the segment I'll be omitting the crumb topping since it burns on the grill, but for this blog post, it is a must. Try this recipe darlings. You'll never want for another recipe for perfect nut cake again. 




By the way, the nut flour matters. I'm using a fine ground version available here. It really makes a big difference in the consistency of the nut cake.  I also use all purpose flour but if you are gluten-free you can use my favorite gluten-free flour blend. It is a cup-to-cup ratio in baking so it is an easy replacement. 

Nancy's Almond Lemon Cake

1 1/2 cups Almond flour
3/4 cup all purpose flour (or gluten-free flour blend)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and sift well.

In a blender combine:
4 eggs
1 1/4 cup sugar
1T fresh lemon zest
1 tsp almond emulsion

Blend about 2 minutes until emulsified and sugar is dissolved. 

Add to blender:
5T melted butter
1/3 cup melted coconut oil

Blend on high for 1 minute more, until fully emulsified. While this is blending make the topping.
Topping: 
2T sugar
1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon zest
Combine the sugar and lemon zest. Mix together until lemon oil is released.

1/2 cup almond slices (optional)

Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir well. Pour into a greased 9 inch cake pan lined with parchment paper.  Sprinkle the almonds over the top of the cake evenly. Sprinkle with sugar mixture. Bake 55-60 minutes. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack about 15 minutes. Run a knife around the sides of the cake. Invert on a plate. Remove parchment paper. Let cake cool 2 hours and serve in wedges. Wrap. Will remain moist and delicious for several days. 

There you go my darlings! Bake some amazing almond cake!

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

Ancient Grain Apple Cake

Ancient Kamut and Quionoa Apple Cake 

Cream together:
1 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
2 eggs
1 tsp double strength vanilla

Mix together:
1 cup Kamut flour
1/3 cup quinoa flour
1/3 cup amaranth flour
3 T Flax Seed 
3T Sesame seed
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp soda

3 Granny Smith or Pink Lady Apples, peeled and small diced

Add flour mixture to creamed mixture, alternating with 1/2 cup milk or buttermilk.
Allow to absorb moisture about 5 minutes.
Add: 3 granny smith apples (peeled, and pared and and diced) Bake at 350 degrees in a greased 9 by 13 inch cake pan (about 40 minutes) or 2 8 inch rounds (20-25 minutes). Frost generously with cream cheese frosting. I also add a tsp of crushed lavender petals to the sifted ingredients.

This I did in 2 8 inch cake pans. I grease and flour the pans to keep them from sticking, but you could just line them with parchment paper. Do what you want.

Have you ever seen an apple cake with big chunks of apple like this?


They just poke out of the batter...

and the cake.
Pretty special. Even better with the evil cream cheese frosting...

Cream cheese frosting...

1 stick (1/4 pound) regular butter, softened
1 package (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1 pound powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

In large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese. Add sugar and vanilla and blend until smooth. Don't over mix as cream cheese will separate and become runny.

KAMUT® Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Pecan Muffins with Orange Streusel topping

KAMUT® Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Pecan Muffins


Ingredients:

3 Cups KAMUT® Khorasan Wheat Flour
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Sea Salt
1 1/2 tsp wise woman of the east spice
3/4 cup organic coconut sugar
3 eggs
2 cups fresh sweet potato puree
1/2 cup Chocolate infused olive oil
1/2 Cup Pecans
2/3 Cup chocolate chips
Struesel:
1/2 cup chocolate infused olive oil
1/2 cup coconus sugar
1 Cup KAMUT® Khorasan Wheat Flour
2 T Fresh orange zest

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Add seeds and fruit. Spoon into muffin cups or greased muffin tin. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes. Makes 24 generous muffins.