Lulas Recheadas - Portuguese Stuffed squid

This is a favorite of mine. I believe I could eat squid easily at least once a week. Both my daughter love it and when my tween's friends are here I make sure to cut the squid all small on their plate this way they will not be grossed out by the full squid.

INGREDIENTS

20 cleaned squids
1/4 # ground beef
1/4 # ground chouriço
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1/4 cup of chopped parsley

For the sauce
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 chopped onion
2 garlic cloves minced
2 dry bay leaves
5 roma tomatoes chopped into cubes
1/2 cup of white wine
1 cup of heavy cream or plain yogurt
salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut the heads off the squids and set bodies aside
2. chop the heads as small as you can
3. Sautee the onions, garlic, ground meats and chopped heads
4. Add the parsley
5. Fill each squid with this mixture and close it with a toothpick
6. In a medium size pot sautee the onions and garlic in the olive oil
7. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves and white wine
8. If there is any leftover of the mixture add it to the pot
9. Let it simmer for about 20 minutes
10. Add the squid
11. Meanwhile make some plain white rice
12. Prior to serving add the cream and serve over rice

SUGGESTIONS

You can also use a bed of steamed spinach instead of the rice

So this may not have much to do with food, but....

Not that long ago a co-worker and I started a blog for the company I work for called GemEx Systems. And what exactly are we about? Well for those of you who like diamonds, we are very much of an asset. We create certificates showing the beauty of the diamond. Through our certificates you can actually see how the light performance affects your diamond.

The reason for this posting is because I am calling ALL foodies out there who would like to contribute a "romantic recipe" for our Wednesday night blog post, which of course we will link to your page.

Another reason is that just today we opened up an awesome contest: How would you like a chance to win a pair of 1 Carat Diamond Earrings? For more info click here for all contest info or just fan us on facebook! Good Luck to all!

Pipis - Spicy garlicky gizzards

DId I say gizzards? Yes I did and all I can say is that if you actually try them, you may be surprised that you will actually like them. This is a traditional Portuguese recipe that I grew up with and totally different from any gizzards I have had here in the States. The trick is to let them boil in low temperature forever, this way they will be nice and tender. The first time I introduced this here in the States, we were living in Iowa. People's first reaction was: what is this? Of course typical me I would say just try it. Some shun away from them, but most did try it. Surprisingly enough even though spicy the children were the ones that liked the most (perhaps because they had no pre-conception of what gizzards actually were) and would end up fighting for the hearts!

INGREDIENTS
1 package of gizzards (chicken or turkey)
1 knorr cube
water
1tbsp olive oil
5 cloves of garlic finely minced
crushed chili peppers

DIRECTIONS

1. Wash the gizzards in cold water and cut them into small pieces
2. Place them in a pot filled with water and the knorr cube
3. Let them cook in low for about 2 hours or until very soft to the fork
4. Warm the olive oil in a skillet and sautee the garlic and chili peppers
5. Strain the gizzards (but keep the broth)
6. Sautee the gizzards in the skillet at medium to high
7. Once they start browning add a little of the broth and serve with toothpicks

Baked Apple

This is a great desert or snack for winter or cold days. Easy to make and kids love it.

INGREDIENTS

1 apple

1 soup spoon sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Wash the apple
2. Cut out the core of the apple but leave the bottom
3. Place apple on a oven safe dish
4. Add the sugar inside the core of the apple
5. Place it in the oven at 375 for about 20 minutes or until the apples are softened

SUGGESTIONS

You can also add a tbsp of Port wine over the sugar.

Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food | Video on TED.com

As most of you already know, I am a great believer in REAL food and try all my best to make sure my girls eat healthy meals from breakfast to dinner.
A dear new friend just forward me this link through facebook and I much appreciate it.  Please do check it out and forward to all you know:




Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food | Video on TED.com

What's your Beef?

I have been meaning to write about this as it is a dear topic of mine, but I just could not seem focused enough to start this topic. For the past 7 years I have been making as much as I can an effort to just eat meat from organically grown or at least non-hormonal farms. I have been able to make very drastic changes to certain animals. For example I cannot recall last time I bought a chicken, from places such as Tyson. More on these slaughter houses later! I buy all my chicken and turkey from Amish communities, local farmers, places I know they take good care of them.

In terms of beef though, I must admit I have not been as good about it. Not sure if it is due to the fact that our home consumption of beef has lowered tremendously. When living in IA we are lucky enough to live by a local small farm where I would get all of my meat and eggs. Since arriving in WI, I yet have to find good beef. I decided to start doing some online research and decided to create a list of places I have found that may be of interested to you  no matter where you live as they ship it all over the U.S.A.

Some of the US Farms that sell online;

• Niman Ranch - this youtube link shows good info on Natural Meat from this farm - California
• Organic Prairie - Wisconsin
• West Wind Farms - Tennessee
• Greensbury Market - Maryland
• Wallace Homestead Farm - Pennsylvania
• Meyer Natural Angus - Colorado
• Off the Vine Market - Virginia
• Rocky Mountain Organic Meats - Wyoming

Now are you ready to see why I do not buy chickens from the big producers?
Here are a few links. This may and better totally shock you so that you can for once and for all say no to those producers and start helping the local farms that are making a difference:

• Tyson Chicken and KCF Cruelty
• Tortured by Tyson
• Tyson Injects antibiotics prior to hatching
• Former Tyson Foods employee speaks out

Ever checked all of the meat recalls? Well how about checking out USDA Recall and even sign-up for their E-newsletter. This may also make you think twice as where to buy your meat.

Frozen Sardines from Portugal

So, this past Friday, during my lunch break I went to a local supermarket called Sendik's. I do love this place as they do have high quality products are very reasonable prices. As I went through the seafood section, I was in absolute disbelief when I noticed a bag of frozen fresh sardines. Back home we LOVE to grill sardines. It is a good sign and smell of  Summer months. Of course here in WI, it is still far from Summer, but with the weather actually reaching the 40s this past weekend, I HAD to buy and grilled them on Saturday night. Couldn't wait!

So what else was on the plate? Grilled sardines, a red and green bell pepper salad and "punch" potatoes (batatas ao murro).

Prior to getting into the actual recipes though. Here is a little trick my Sister, Mother and Aunt told me when I called them on Friday all excited about my discovery.

When buying fresh frozen sardines, put them in an open container with water and thick sea salt and let them thaw out this way. Sure enough this is what I did and I must say they tasted just as good as fresh sardines.

Here is another hint. If you are going to grill sardines, live in a community where the houses are pretty close to each other and your neighbors are not of Portuguese descent, it may be smart just to let them all know how excited you are to grilling such delicacies and not to be surprised that the smell may fill the air. You see, I LOVE the smell of grilled sardines, but not everyone may agree with me on this. Actually I could almost guarantee most people would run away from such strong yet tasty smell!

Another thing. This can seem to be such an easy task, but I can already tell you it can go incredibly wrong. Even if the quality of the sardines are incredible, yet the person who grills messes up, you just trashed an amazing meal.

Batatas ao Murro - Punched Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

5 medium sized potatoes
thick sea salt
5 squares of foil paper

DIRECTIONS

1. Place a little salt over each foil then add the potato
2. Add a bit more slat over the potato then warp it tightly with the foil
3. Place all foil wrapped potatoes onto an oven safe tray
4. Place them in the oven at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes or until the fork easily pinches the potato

Salada de Pimentos Assados - Grilled Peppers Salad

INGREDIENTS

3 organic green bell peppers
3 organic red bell peppers
1 organic onion sliced very finely
olive oil
red wine vinegar
salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Get the grill going at medium heat
2. Add all of the peppers over the grill and keep on turning them until all sides are nicely grilled (black skin)
3. In a bowl add the sliced onions
4. Once peppers are done, remove their skin
5. Open them up, remove the seeds and cut them into fine slices and add them to the bowl
6. Add a little Olive oil and vinegar, as well as salt & pepper to taste. 
7. Put the bowl in the fridge while preparing to grill the sardines

Sardinhas Grelhadas - Grilled Sardines

INGREDIENTS

12 sardines
salt
water

DIRECTIONS

1. As the sardines have been overnight in salt water, you do not need to add any more salt to them, just make sure to pat dry them nicely
2. Keep the heat of the grill in medium to low
3. Grill them for about 2 to 3 minutes per side and carefully turning them every 1 minute. DO NOT OVERCOOK them
4. As soon as you take them out of the grill generously add good Portuguese olive oil over them

Lasagna with beef and veggies

This is a dish I love doing yet forget to do it more often.

INGREDIENTS

1.5 pounds of lean ground beef
1 medium onion finely chopped
3 garlic cloves finely minced
1 cup of cilantro finely chopped
1 pound of frozen spinach
2 fresh diced tomatoes
1/2 fresh sliced mushrooms
1 pound of ricotta
1 cup of sun dried tomatoes
Lasagna pasta
shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Start by adding the ground beef, onions and garlic on a skillet and sautée until well cooked
2. Add the cilantro then the tomatoes
3. Meanwhile in a bowl mix the ricotta with the sun dried tomatoes
4. Thaw the spinach
5. In a oven safe baking dish create a layer of the pasta, then the meat, spinach and finely the ricotta cheese mix
6. Repeat this step until the dish is filled to the top adding the pasta as last layer
7. Spread a little shredded cheese on top and it is ready to go to the oven at 325 for 20 minutes then  on low broil for the last 5 minutes