PB, Bacon & Banana

Makes 4 sandwiches, probably

Pretty sure Elvis had this with regular slices of banana - but we’ve turned them into crispy little banana fritters, and oh snap they’re insane!

1 cup all purpose flour plus 6 tablespoons, you’ll see

Big pinch Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 pound bacon

2 cups dry roasted peanuts

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon oil

Kosher salt, if needed

2 ripe bananas

1 egg

Pinch salt & pepper

6 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon maple syrup

2 cups crushed corn flakes - not 2 cups THEN crushed

Oil for cooking

Bread for toasting

• Heat oven to 400

• Combine 1 cup of the flour, s&p and cayenne on a plate, mix well

• Lightly coat both sides of each piece of bacon, shake off excess and put on a rack on a baking sheet

• Bacon until beautifully golden, 30-35 minutes

• Put peanuts in a processor with the ‘S’ blade and mix until becoming pb - this will take a solid couple minutes, but it’s very cool

• Add the honey, whiz again and taste and add salt if you want - set aside (it’ll keep a couple months in the fridge)

• Mash banana in a bowl then add the egg, remaining 6 tablespoons flour, syrup and a salt & pepper - stir well to combine

• Heat enough oil to cover the bottom of a pan to about 350 degrees, or until a little of the banana mixture will sizzle when put in

• Spread out the cornflakes on a plate, and put spoonfuls of about 2 tablespoons of the banana mixture at a time into the flakes

• Cover with the cornflakes, then lifting carefully with a large spoon gently lay into the oil

• Cook until golden and crispy - a couple minutes each side - then put on paper towels and keep warm in a 250 oven if not using right away

• Build the sando: toast, pb, bacon and a few fritters

• Oh snap!

Blue Cheese & Olive Bread

Having dinner with friends is the best and we recently went to Matt & Peg's. In addition to having the usual great time (we played "Ooh, Ahh", don't ask) Peg served this bread with dinner. It's way rich, way delicious and way easy!

Ingredients

• 1 loaf French bread
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic - crushed
• 12 oz Kalamata olives (Greek Olives), pitted and coarsely chopped
• 10 oz crumbled Blue Cheese, approximately

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425
2. Cook onions over medium heat in a saute pan with approx 1 tablespoon of the oil until softened and beautiful
3. Slice loaf in half long ways
4. Mix remaining olive oil and garlic in small bowl
5. Spread garlic oil mixture on cut side of each loaf
6. Layer each half with onions, then olives and then blue cheese
7. Bake in oven for approximately 10-15 minutes or until crispy
8. Remove and cut into serving slices and bingo, you're done

Pear & Gorgonzola Bread

Makes one loaf

This comes from our wonderful friend Peg, who lives up the street. I added the sauteed red onions because almost everything is better with them.

Ingredients

• 1 large red onion, cut into thin slices
• Olive oil
• 1 loaf good crusty bread, like an Italian or French loaf
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup crumbled gorgonzola or blue cheese
• 4 pears, ripe and sliced into thin slices

Directions

1. Cook red onion with a little olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat until well softened
2. Preheat oven to broil
3. Mix butter and gorgonzola well in a small bowl, set aside
4. Slice loaf in half lengthwise
5. Drizzle olive oil on cut side of bread and place under broiler a minute or so until it just starts to get crispy
6. Remove and cover cut side of bread with red onion and then cover that with pear slices
7. Then spread gorgonzola butter over pears
8. Put under broiler until light brown and bubbly
9. Remove and slice into serving pieces

Pepperoni Pizza Appetizers

Makes about 15

To make this really simple, it can all be mixed in a Cuisinart. Unless, like me, you don't have one and need to cut everything into tiny pieces by hand. Not that I'm complaining. I mean, is it really a big deal if a guy with a cooking show doesn't have a Cuisinart? Nope - I can handle it. It would be nice; but I can handle it.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sliced pepperoni
• 1/2 cup Swiss cheese
• 1/4 cup onion, diced
• 3 tablespoons sundried tomato paste
• cocktail bread slices, rye or pumpernickel - about 15

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Either throw everything (except the bread) in a Cuisinart and mix until pretty smooth, or
3. Chop everything (except the bread) by hand in a fine dice and mix with tomato paste
4. Spread thickly on bread
5. Bake about 10 minutes then
6. Broil about 2 minutes until brown & bubbly

Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs

Makes 24 halves

Think deviled eggs are old-school and don't belong in contemporary life? Think again junior.

Ingredients

• 12 hard-boiled eggs
• 6 ounces package smoked salmon, chopped fine
• 1/3-cup mayo, roughly
• 1/2 cup red onion, diced small
• 1 or 2 tablespoons hot sauce
• 1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
• Big pinch Kosher salt
• Pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup green onions, chopped fine
• Caviar

Directions

1. Slice eggs down the middle lengthwise (you knew that right?)
2. Put whites on your serving plate, and the yolks in a bowl
3. To the yolks add the salmon, mayo, red & green onion, hot sauce, salt, pepper & mustard
4. Mix all well and then fill each of the egg halves
5. Add a tiny amount of caviar to the top of each egg and sprinkle with chives
6. NOTE: You can get these all set a few hours in advance, but don't add the caviar until the last minute because when it sits on the eggs too long the liquid can come out and make the top of the eggs a bit messy.

Blue Cheese & Red Onion Quesadillas

Serves 4 as an appetizer

Think about this - melty blue cheese married to caramelized red onion that's been sweetened with a little brown sugar. On second thought - don't think about it - just make it.

Ingredients

• 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2-3 ounces crumbled blue cheese
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 8 corn tortillas

Directions

1. Cook red onion in a non-stick pan over medium heat until very soft, then stir in brown sugar
2. Add blue cheese and mix until cheese is melty
3. Divide onion and blue cheese mixture between 4 tortillas, spread out and top each with another tortilla
4. Cook in non-stick pan until both sides are lightly browned, remove, cut into wedges and serve

Sweet Hoisin Wings

Makes 2 dozen

Hoisin is sort of an Asian bbq sauce. You'll find it in the Asian aisle at the supermarket

Ingredients

• 24 small chicken wings, frozen even
• 1/2 cup hoisin sauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon chili paste, optional

Directions

1. Mix hoisin, honey and garlic (and chili paste if using)
2. Place wings in zip lock bag and add hoisin mix - keep a little out for dipping after
3. Place bag in fridge, making sure the wings all get covered with sauce - the longer they marinate the better, from 30 minutes to 24 hours
4. Grill until cooked through and browned - serve with extra sauce

Toasted Pitas

Great for serving with appetizers, dips and spread-kinds-of-things.

Ingredients

• Pita bread
• Butter

Directions

1. Slice pitas around, so you end up with two circular halves.
2. Butter inside of each lightly, and cut into triangles.
3. Put on a baking sheet under broiler until slightly golden.
4. Serve with dip.

Tomato, Onion & Goat Cheese Pie

This is no quiche - not that there's anything wrong with that. It's just a wonderful collection of simple ingredients that you'll love. My teenager had friends over one day when I was making this and they all ate it. All of it. Here's what they said:

Nick: "Sam at the top of his game." John: "It was a loped out dank piece of pie." Dean: "It was a gnarly chill pie." Josh: "It's a creeped out danky piece of dank cheese pie."

You can see how moved they were. Maybe you should try it for yourself.

Ingredients

• 3 large red onions, sliced thin
• 3-4 large ripe tomatoes, in 1/4 inch slices
• 6 ounces crumbled goat cheese with herbs
• 1-9 inch unbaked pie crust
• Olive oil

Directions

1. Saute onions in olive oil until softened, season with salt & pepper
2. Place pie crust in pie plate, and fill with onions
3. Cover with sliced tomatoes in a nice pattern
4. Sprinkle cheese crumbles over the top
5. Bake at 350 until edges become brown
6. Remove from oven and slice into wedges

Won Ton Chips

These are perfect to use when you have a flavorful dip you don't want to take add additional cracker taste to.

Ingredients

• Won ton wrappers

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 250
2. Place individual wrappers on un-greased baking sheet
3. Bake for 15 minutes

Filipino Pork & Noodle Soup

Serves 4

You know how those little Jewish Grandmothers are famous for their chicken soup? It turns out the little Filipino grandmothers are no different - except it's pork. Which I suppose is considerably different when comparing to a Jewish soup - but it's easily as good.

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1-2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 package angel hair pasta
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 egg, scrambled
• fresh cilantro, chopped
• limes wedges

Directions

1. Cook pork with onion and garlic in oil until fully cooked
2. Add broth and pepper and bring to a boil
3. Add noodles and bring to a boil
4. When noodles are ready, reduce to a simmer and add soy and scrambled egg
5. Allow to thicken slightly and serve - garnish with cilantro and fresh squeezed lime

French Onion Soup

Rumor has it that years ago a beautiful French woman named Marie was so desperate for a divorce from her husband, but he would not consent. So to annoy him, she started cooking with the food that he hated most, onions. She put them in everything - sandwiches, salads, breads and yes, soup. Unfortunately, the plan backfired because the soup was so delicious, her husband asked for it everyday. And as you can imagine, he never left. There's a moral in there somewhere, I just can't find it.

Ingredients

• 3 lbs yellow onions halved & thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 large cloves garlic, minced

• Kosher salt & ground pepper

• 3 tablespoons sherry wine

• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, leaves only 3/4 inch

• 5 cups beef broth

• 2 tablespoons soy

• French bread (day old if possible) cut into 3/4” thick slices, if using fresh: cut into 3/4 slices as well and put into a 350 oven about 10 minutes

• One pound Gruyere or Swiss Cheese, grated on the larger holes of a box grater

Directions

1. Melt butter & oil in a large pan on medium/high heat and put in onions and let cook - stirring often until they soften a lot and begin to darken but without burning - about 25 minutes

2. Push onions out of a corner of the pan, add a teaspoon more oil and the garlic - let sit about 45 seconds then mix

3. Add sherry, let sizzle & steam a minute or so, and then put in thyme, soy and broth - keep on a low simmer for 30 minutes

4. When ready, ladle into soup bowls, top with a slice or 2 of the bread, then add a lot of cheese to each

5. Place on a baking sheet, then under broiler about 8 inches (below) until brown & bubbly

More soup recipes

Shrimp & Corn Chowder

Makes 4 servings

So good, so simple, so quick. Made even easier by keeping a bag of raw shell-on shrimp in the freezer and a can of corn in the pantry.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup onion, finely diced
• 1 - 15 ounce can whole corn kernels
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 1/3 cups milk
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 large potato, cut into large dice
• Salt to taste
• 1 pound 31/40 raw shrimp, peeled, deveined

Directions

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat and add onion, garlic and corn
2. Cook until softened then add the paprika and cayenne and cook, stirring until mixed well
3. Add the milk, stock, potato and salt
4. Bring almost to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover
5. Stir occasionally for about 30 minutes, or until potatoes are tender
6. Add shrimp during the last 5 minutes of cooking, and cook until they just turn opaque
7. Add some fresh chopped parsley on top
8. Serve with tons of good crusty bread and a big fat salad

Potato Soup

I'll be the first to admit that potato soup sounds boring. But this one isn't. The red onions help it taste great, plus it's way fun because your guests get to customize it themselves with a choice of cool toppings. Think baked potato - but way better. It's so good, just serve a salad with it and you're done.

Ingredients

• 2 big baking potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 large red onion, diced
• 3 cups chicken broth, diced - just kidding
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 cups whipping cream
• 1/2  teaspoon cayenne
• 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
• Kosher salt & fresh ground black pepper

Directions

1. Put potatoes in large pot, cover with chicken broth and simmer until soft, about 15 minutes
2. While it cooks, saute onions in butter and cayenne until softened
3. Add about 3/4 of the onions to the pot along with the whipping cream and parsley
4. Continue cooking the remainder of the onions until crispy and blackened - but not burnt
5. Simmer soup on low about 5 more minutes until it thickens a bit
6. With back of large spoon, mash some of the potatoes in the pot while it's simmering (this will help to thicken) - season well with salt & pepper
7. When the soup is the thickness you want, serve in bowls with a selection of the following toppings - add any and all you'd like:

• Crispy bacon pieces (if I said bits, you might buy those crappy artificial ones and I'd be mad)
• Thinly sliced green onions
• Croutons or even crouton remnants - from the bottom of the box
• Crispy thin Asian noodles
• Shredded cheese - cheddar works nicely
• Any hot sauce you like
• Diced leftover chicken, turkey, steak, pieces of a leftover broken up burger
• Anything else you can think of - just look in the fridge

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Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Makes about 4 cups

Feel free to make this using fresh red peppers and going through the whole roasting, steaming, peeling, cleaning and chopping process. Or - you could just use the delicious ones that are already roasted and in a jar and be done in about 5 minutes. But it's up to you...

INGREDIENTS

• 1 small onion (yellow, red or white – it’s up to you), chopped small

• 1 garlic clove, minced

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 32 ounces jarred roasted red peppers, drained and cut into a large dice

• 1/2 - 3/4 cups vegetable or chicken broth, depending on thick or thin you like it

• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

• Salt & pepper to taste

• Freshly chopped cilantro for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Sauté onions in olive oil in a pot over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes

2. Add garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes more then add drained peppers - stir well

3. Either use an immersion blender right in the pot, or blender or processor to blend into a soup right in the pot with about 1/2cup broth and cayenne, or put everything in a processor or blender with 1/2 cup of the broth, cayenne and process until smooth – add more broth if you like it thinner

4. Season to taste with salt & pepper, then heat mixture in the pot

5. Serve in bowls (hot or cold) with some fresh chopped cilantro, and a small grind of fresh pepper

 WATCH ME MAKE THIS

A Tale of Two Fruit Salads

Serves 2

One fruit salad - two serving suggestions. The second one uses 'Sugar in the Raw' - which is that heavily granulated brown sugar you see in little brown packs at coffee shops or on tables at restaurants. You can buy it in boxes of like 50 - or just borrow an extra one or two the next time you're out.

Ingredients

• Your choice of any or all of these:
• Peaches
• Plums
• Raspberries
• Grapes
• Apricots
• Blueberries
• Champagne
• Sour cream
• Sugar in the Raw (those little brown packs)

Directions

1. Cut into bite sized pieces, then...
2. #1 - Serve fruit salad in a tall champagne glass - and fill with champagne
3. #2 - Serve in a martini glass (or a smallish bowl will do) and top with a spoonful of sour cream and sprinkle lightly with the 'sugar in the raw'

Greek Panzanella Salad

Serves 4

A Panzanella is just a salad made with cut up leftover bread - but not crunchy like a crouton. Here they soak up the dressing and become little bread pillows of amazing deliciousness. Did I just write that stupid line?

Ingredients

• 1/2 day old baguette, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons oregano
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 4 medium ripe vine tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
• 1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
• 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, cut in half
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and sliced into half rounds
• Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300
2. Place bread chunks onto a baking sheet and bake until kind of crispy (but not as hard as croutons, maybe 15 minutes)
3. Mix olive oil, oregano, red wine vinegar and sugar and set aside
4. Put the veggies, cheese and bread chunks in a large bowl and toss with dressing
5. Let sit about 15 minutes before serving

Corn Salad

Serves 4

You can use either fresh corn that you grill or a can of corn - and trust me...the can is very easy and still really really good. Don't knock it until you've made it.

Ingredients

• 3 ears of corn, husks removed, or
• 15 ounce can corn kernels
• 1 red pepper, diced small
• fresh cilantro, finely chopped to make about 1/4 cup
• 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 4 ounces goat cheese crumbles
• Juice from 1/2 lime
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• Pinch of Kosher salt

Directions

1. Brush corn with about 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and roast on the grill until softened and brown in spots (probably 20-25 minutes)- let cool, cut off the husk and put in bowl, or
2. If using the canned corn, drain the water and cook corn in a very hot pan with a little oil until it softens a bit and starts to get browned in spots - then put in a bowl
3. Add all remaining ingredients and mix well - serve and smile

Steak Salad with Blue Cheese Crumbles

Serves 4

There's nothing particularly earth shattering about a steak salad - other than it's really, really great. The problem is, we just don't have it often enough. A cold steak salad is a no brainer - just cook an extra steak the night before and have it on the salad cold. I like the steak warm, because it makes the blue cheese all soft and wonderful.

Ingredients

• 1 medium steak - you choose
• 1/2 bag pre-washed mixed greens
• 3 tomatoes, cut in wedgesItalian dressing
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese

Directions

1. Grill steak until desired doneness, remove from grill
2. Toss greens lightly with tomatoes and dressing and separate to plates
3. Slice steak thinly across grain and place on top of salads
4. Top with blue cheese and serve

Blue Cheese Wedge

Serves 6

Who says iceberg lettuce is only for burgers or rabbits? Try this awesome, crispy throw-back for dinner one night while watching Walter Cronkite & serving roumaki as an appetizer.

Ingredients

• 1 head iceberg lettuce
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 2 ounces blue cheese crumbles
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2-3 tablespoons milk
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1 ripe avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup cook & crumbled bacon

Directions

1. Remove outer, ugly lettuce leaves and slice down the middle
2. Slice each half into 3 wedges, and put on a plate
3. Mix sour cream, mayo, blue cheese and Worcestershire
4. Mix well and add as much milk as needed for desired thickness - I like mine a bit more creamy
5. Spoon dressing over each wedge and scatter with the diced tomatoes, avocado and bacon
6. Top with fresh ground pepper... of course