Lately, I’ve had a seriously strong craving for spicy food. I finished off the chipotle mayo that was used for the Jamaican sliders from the neighborhood Progressive, eating just a little each day for lunch, and now that it is gone… I want more! So I Googled (Oh, how I love Google) “What does it mean when you crave spicy food?” and found this;

“…people crave it in part because it releases endorphins in the body. When capsaicin, the element of chili peppers that cause the “spicy” sensation, comes into contact with the tongue, the body is tricked into believing that it is in pain and releases the pain-relieving endorphins. This explains why, like anything that releases endorphins, spicy food can become somewhat addictive. People may crave it and build tolerance levels.”

and then there was this;

“When people have trouble cooling down they may crave spicy foods to make them perspire. Some research also suggest that people can become addicted to the rush of spicy food that is associated with spiked blood pressure, accelerated heart rate and rapid breathing says Tammy Shames, R.D.  People that crave spicy food are perfectionists. They love order, hate wasting time, and pay attention to all the details.”

OK, now every little bit of that makes sense to me; I naturally have low blood pressure, I do like order and details, etc.  And just like Kathleen Turner’s character, Matty Walker, in the 1981 movie Body Heat, “My temperature runs a couple of degrees high.” Plus if I can get my endorphins from food instead of from the so called “runner’s high” and actually having to run… Bring It On!

If you want to tone down the spiciness, just leave out the chipotle pepper.

Poblano and Chipotle-Blue Cheese Salad

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup diced onion
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 poblano pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded, and cut into thin strips, divided
1 chipotle pepper
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese, divided
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 heart of romaine, separated into leaves

Heat a skillet over medium heat; add olive oil.  Add the onions and bell peppers, sauté until the vegetables are soft and beginning to caramelize, about 10 minutes.  Stir in the garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook another minute, then set aside.

Place 1/2 of the poblano slices in a blender or food processor; add the chipotle, oregano, lime juice , 1/2 of the onion-red pepper mixture, and 1/2 of the blue cheese and puree.  With the machine running, add the olive oil through the feed tube and process until smooth. Pour into a bowl and stir in remaining blue cheese.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Dip each romaine leaf in dressing to coat, shaking off excess, and arrange on two large salad plates.  Sprinkle with the remaining onion-red pepper mixture and the remaining roasted poblano pepper strips. Drizzle with additional dressing and serve.

Serves 2

There is very little time allotted in my schedule for posting today – the Arizona Cardinals are in the second round of the playoffs and it is almost impossible for me to concentrate on much else! After the heart-stopping victory against Green Bay last week, I’m not sure how much more I can take – so here’s hoping for an easier victory over the Saints today.

We’re having family over to watch the game, so of course a few munchies are in order. These mushrooms are one of my “fallback” appetizers. Quick, easy, and oh so satisfying. I talked about sririacha sauce and had a link to a wonderful article about it on my January 9, 2010 post, go there if you don’t know what it is.  I’ll get around to posting the other munchies I made, later in the week… but for now – I’m off to put on my Fitzgerald #11 jersey, take a few deep breaths, and watch the Cardinals continue on – to the road to the Super Bowl!!!

Blue Cheese Marinated Mushrooms

1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 teaspoons seasoned salt (such as Lawry’s)
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon sriracha sauce, to taste
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 pounds fresh medium mushrooms, quartered (white, cremini, or baby bellas)

In a large bowl, whisk oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt, sugar, mustard and sririacha sauce until well blended.  Stir in blue cheese.

Rub mushrooms clean with a slightly damp cloth and cut stems even with cap.  Stir caps into vinaigrette.  Refrigerate, covered for 4-6 hours before serving. (The dressing may be prepared up to one day ahead of time, covered and refrigerated. The mushrooms may be refrigerated overnight.)

Serve 10 -12 as an hor d’oeuvre

Isn’t it strange how sometimes you go out for dinner and you are drawn to order the same thing at one restaurant and then another.  Recently, that item for me has been candied pecans. I use candied pecans often at home as well, but there is always something a little different about the ones I get while eating out. I finally asked a chef friend, what the difference was. He informed me that restaurants often first candy the nuts and then fry them. That makes sense, since I often wondered how their pecans were so much more “toasted” than mine. If you would rather not fry the nuts, just go to this previous post for candied almonds, and substitute pecans for the almonds.

You may be able to find balsamic glaze at the grocery store, I know that Trader Joe’s carried it at one time, not sure if they still do, but it is easy to make at home and easy to store extra for use again later.  I served this salad to three men last night, and in their honor, since they are “manly men”, this is a now referred to as a “manly man” salad!

Steak Salad with Creamy Horseradish Dressing and Balsamic Glaze

Restaurant-Style Candied Pecans
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
1 cup pecans, roughly chopped
Balsamic Glaze
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
Horseradish Dressing
1 tablespoon white-wine vinegar
2 tablespoons bottled horseradish
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup sour cream
Salad
3 small filet mignon steaks, each about 2-inches thick (beef tenderloin)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups mixed salad greens
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
12 large cremini mushrooms, ends trimmed and then sliced
8 ounces Gorgonzola, crumbled

Pecans: Using a medium heavy pot, bring water and sugar to a boil over high-heat. Once the sugar has dissolved, add pecans and lower heat to a simmer, cook about 8 minutes. Drain over a bowl. Set aside the sugar liquid in the bowl.

Wipe out the pan until dry, add oil and heat until oil is very hot, to approximately 375 degrees. Fry the nuts for 1 minute, drain over another bowl.

Place strainer with nuts over the pan the oil was in and pour the reserved sugar liquid over the nuts. Discard both the hot oil and the sugar liquid when they are cool.

Turn nuts out onto either a sheet of parchment paper or a Silpat and cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes to allow nuts to harden and crisp.

Balsamic Glaze: Pour the balsamic vinegar and sugar into a saucepan. Heat, stirring with a heat-resistant rubber spatula constantly for about 10 to 12 minutes until the sauce reduces by about half and coats the spatula. Do not boil, as the sugar will burn. Cool and store any extra glaze in a covered container.

Dressing: In a glass bowl, whisk together the vinegar, horseradish, mustard, salt, and pepper. Slowing whisk in the olive oil. Whisk in the sour cream, set aside.

Salad: Preheat a grill to high-heat. Generously season the steaks with salt and pepper and grill until desired doneness, about 8 minutes per side for medium-rare. Remove from grill and place on cutting board, allow to rest for 5 minutes before cutting into thin slices.

Divide the salad greens between four dinner plates, top with the tomatoes and mushrooms, toss each salad with 1 to 2 tablespoons of dressing. Place the steak slices on the salad and top with crumbled Gorgonzola, sprinkle with pecans and drizzle with balsamic glaze.

Serves 4

I made these easy and pretty grapes for the first time about 15 years ago for a holiday open house. The funny thing is, I love serving them but more often than not, I forget about them when planning menus. The cheese and nut coated grapes make such a stunning presentation when placed on a pedestal with fresh grapes and leaves and are perfect to set on a bar at a party.

Since there are only 4 ingredients this recipe certainly qualifies for my “easy-breezy” category and if you have kids around, they will love helping make them. If you are putting them together alone, use one hand to roll or lightly coat the grapes with the cheese mixture and keep the other hand clean to roll the cheese coated grapes in the nuts and place on a plate, otherwise, you’ll end up with a gooey mess.

Blue Cheese Grapes

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 ounces creamy blue cheese, room temperature
2 large bunches seedless grapes, red or green
1 1/4 cups finely ground toasted pecans

Citrus leaves, for garnish

Place cream cheese and blue cheese in the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth.

Press a thin layer of the cheese mixture around each seedless grape, then roll in the ground pecans.  Arrange on a pedestal plate with a small bunch or two of fresh grapes and citrus leaves for garnish, serve at room temperature or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes about 50 grapes

This is our traditional Thanksgiving soup. Back in the day, I went all “Martha” and hollowed out miniature pumpkins and served the soup in those. Hey, it only took about 4 or 5 hours to cut and hollow out 8 of those little guys! I am thankful that I eventually recovered my mind and my sanity and purchased and now use darling orange and green ceramic pumpkin bowls instead!

Butternut squash can be a difficult to cut, but luckily many stores (including Costco and Trader Joe’s) sell packages of already peeled and cubed squash. If you can’t find them, look at the “Tip Index” on this site and learn how to correctly (and safely) cut a butternut squash.  Save the oil the sage leaves are fried in to use in place of olive oil for just about any Thanksgiving recipe, especially those that have herbs included in them or to saute vegetables.

Butternut Squash Soup with Blue Cheese, Walnuts, and Sage

Fried Sage Leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
About 24 small fresh sage leaves

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
1 tablespoon reserved olive oil from frying sage leaves
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds butternut squash cubes
2 apples (Granny Smith, Fuji, or Gala), peeled, cored, and cubed
2 whole cloves
3 cups chicken or turkey stock or vegetable broth
1 cup spiced apple cider
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon rubbed sage

1 cup blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup toasted walnut halves

Sage Leaves: Heat olive oil in a small skillet over high heat. Fry sage  leaves, 8 at a time, gently stirring, 5 seconds. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and season with salt. Do not discard “sage” oil from frying sage leaves.  One tablespoon is used below, allow remaining oil to cool and pour into a bottle or jar and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.  (Leaves will crisp as they cool. Sage leaves can be fried 2 days ahead, cooled completely, then kept in an airtight container at room temperature).

Melt the butter and 1 tablespoon “sage” oil in a large heavy pot.  Add the onion and sauté over medium-low heat until onion is soft and translucent. Stir in the salt, pepper, squash, apples, and whole cloves; cover pot and sweat until the squash and apples are tender, about 15 to 18 minutes.  When tender, add the stock and apple cider and simmer 15 minutes.

Remove the whole cloves from soup and discard. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the solids to a blender or food processor with a ladle full or two of the hot liquid. (be sure to remove to feed tube from the machine so the steam can escape) and puree until smooth, adding more liquid, if necessary.  Return the puree to the pot with the remaining liquid and stir to combine. Add the cream and rubbed sage and cook over low heat for 3 minutes. Taste for seasoning and correct with salt and pepper, as needed. (Soup can be make 2 days ahead, brought to room temperature, covered, and refrigerated, then reheated before serving).

To serve, ladle hot soup into bowls, sprinkle with blue cheese crumbles, toasted walnuts, and 3 fried sage leaves for each bowl. Serve immediately.

Serves 8