The Best Maryland Crabcakes + Tortilla Crusted Tilapia

This is a favorite. I don't remember where I came up with it. I think I had it at a restaurant and came home and reproduced it. I figure you can't go wrong with these ingredients. I used tilapia, dipped in beaten eggs, then in crushed tortilla chips, and fried (sauteed sounds better) in canola or olive oil. It takes no time at all. I smushed up some fresh avacoda with the most incredible fresh salsa from Sam's and threw a bowl of Tostitos Scoops on the table. We love all these ingredients, so can't go wrong with this. Warning: the house smells kind of fishy the next day. A small price to pay.

What makes this do-able for me is that I buy the Tilapia from Sam's and it is individually vacuum packed per piece and I throw it in a big bowl of warm/hot water about 20 minutes before I am ready to cook and it's completely thawed by then. It's good in foil on the grill with lemon, butter and some seasoning.

I made the miraculous Maryland Crabcakes the other night

More Cast Iron

All of a sudden, I'm a magnet for cast iron (get it?). On my trip to visit my mother's side of the family, my cousin gave me two dutch ovens, a corn stick pan and 3 skillets! I gave my sister one of the dutch ovens, two skillets and the corn stick pan I already had (smaller and newer than the one my cousin gave me). Only problem was all the rust. He'd had them stored in his barn, so they were all pretty rusty. Today's project was to tackle the rust. My cousin said I'd need to have them sandblasted, but since I don't even know where to begin to have that done, I Googled "cleaning rusty cast iron" and came up with the idea of using vinegar. I soaked and scrubbed and soaked and scrubbed and am down to the bare iron, with the exception of a few patches of rust that'll need more work. I think the vinegar took a layer off my hands, too. For now, the bare iron looks pretty dry and forlorn, so I'll probably give it a light coating of Crisco until I get around to working on it again. I didn't even start on the lid.

In the meantime, I'll be on the lookout for good dutch oven recipes so I'll have something great to start off with.

Inspiration - Covington Chili

I just returned from Covington, KY, just across the river from Cincinnati. They are famous for their chili. It comes in two basic forms with several variations on each form. There's the Coney, which means a hot dog in a bun covered with chili and cheese. Or you can get Chili Three Way, Four Way or Five way. Three way means spaghetti noodles topped with chili and cheese, four way means add beans or onions, and five way means all of the above. My personal preference was a four way with onions. The coneys come in the same variations, with or without mustard (I chose without).

There are several factions of chili brands in and around Cincinnati. The most famous is probably Skyline. My uncle (who was my gracious host) prefers Gold Star. My mother loves Covington Chili. Skyline and Gold Star are chains, and Covington Chili is a one of a kind place and it's been around, in the same place, for around 70 years. It's really a cool place, complete with juke boxes at each booth - not sure how that works exactly (we sat at the counter) but I think it's a special thing. I've included two pictures of Covington Chili, inside and out.

My uncle had taken me to Gold Star, where I'd eaten a Chili Four Way and a Coney, and an hour later, when we were touring downtown Covington, I decided I needed to do a taste comparison. I meant to order 2 coneys, one for each of us, but the waitress thought I meant TWO each, so I tried my best, but only managed to eat one. I called my mother right before I dug in, and she was understandably jealous. Then the pressure was on. Which one did I like the best? I tried to be diplomatic, and truthfully must say they were both wonderful, but a little different. Covington's was spicier and darker (more chili powder I suppose). It's like trying to choose your favorite child. If pressed, I'd have to choose Covington Chili, if not on the flavor alone, because of the wonderful atmosphere and originality. Besides, aren't chain restaurants inherently evil?

I really wanted to try Skyline, but wanted to be a polite guest, and my uncle was not a fan of Skyline. Not to fear, though. We made a stop at the grocery store and I stocked up on cans of both Gold Star and Skyline, as well as Queen City sausage weiners (the skinny little hot dogs they use for the Coneys). Big bonus was that when we stopped by my cousin's house on the way home, he gave me his recipe for Skyline Chili. With all these supplies and good information, I've decided to spend an afternoon at my parents' this week, while my uncle's here for a vist, and do a blind taste test. I'll make my cousin's homemade Skyline recipe as well as cans of Skyline and Gold Star, and we'll see if there's a winner. I'll be happy if the recipe comes close! In case you're interested, there's cinnamon in it, which sounds strange, but it's really good and makes it way different from Texas chili.

Oh, I also brought back two rolls of Goetta (there happened to be Goettafest going on while I was there, but we couldn't squeeze it in). But that's another post!

Another One Bites the Dust

One more burner is out. I'm choosing to look on the bright side. I don't have to do Thanksgiving for a while. We've spent roughly $8,000 on travel this year after six years of NO vacations. I don't regret it, and am happier with our memories than I would be for a kitchen redo. Of course, I'm sure it would be impossible to redo a kitchen for that, but maybe I could get a new floor and stove for that. I don't know and don't care. Sometimes I want a whole new house, but I really do love ours and I know there's lots of potential. For now, our priorities are getting our kid through expensive private school, then college, trying to take a few nice vacations before he has a family of his own, and just getting by from day to day.

I'm picking up new business and am hoping that I'll be successful with my new venture - working from home and at clients' offices. I'll just wait and see. If I can pay for our trips and have enough left over for some kitchen updates, that'll be dandy. For now, I'm moving a rug in here to cover the split linoleum!

Cast Iron Skillets, Part II

My mother recently commented that she doesn't cook any more. I seized the opportunity to tell her I wanted her cast iron skillets when she didn't need them any more. Lo and behold, on my last visit, she gave me three graduated skillets. I used the largest one to make pineapple upside down cake when she was sick this winter. When she gave me the skillets, she told me that my brother loved pineapple upside down cakes and that she hadn't had one since she'd made one for him before he died nine years ago, until I made that one for her. I didn't know that, and surely wouldn't have made one when she was so sick, if I had. Maybe it was buried in my subconcious.

I can't make peanut butter cookies to this day. I went to see my brother in the hospital when he was taking megadoses of chemo. He had just gotten some anti-nausea medication that must have spurred his appetite. I had baked some peanut butter cookies (I'm ashamed to say from a mix) and took them to him, still warm. I'll never forget how much he enjoyed them. He ate almost all of them and told me how good they were. How many times have I tried to make something really special for my family only to be thanked by "It's ok."? And I threw these together from a mix and they really hit the spot. Of all the sadness I feel for him, I am thankful for the peanut butter cookies. As I'm sure my mother is for the pineapple upside down cake. It was a mix, too.

So for all the food snobs out there, it really is the thought that counts. And how hungry we are. And how thankful we are to have our appetite back. God forbid we should ever get so sophisticated that we can't enjoy the love behind the food.

Mushrooms

You, too, can feel like a gourmet chef. Take three simple ingredients. Well, it would be more if you didn't cheat by using tapenade. For those of you who don't know what tapenade is, I'll explain. I get a huge plastic thing at Sam's, but they have smaller, much more expensive glass jars at Fresh Market or places like that. Here are the ingredients: Olives (black & green), olive oil, red pimientos, garlic, capers, mustard, spices. You could just chop up some olives and it would be fine.

Back to the three simple ingredients. Tapenade, goat cheese and mushrooms. Not fancy mushrooms, just the white button kind. Twist the stem out of the cap. If you have trouble, use a grapefruit spoon, but usually they pop right out. Smush in some goat cheese. Top with tapenade. You could add parmesan, or whatever else you can squeeze in. I say, buy french bread, tapenade, goat cheese, mushrooms, parmesan, bruschetta (this is the key), and mix or match and you will not go wrong. Throw in a pepperoni or two for the carnivores, and you'll really be admired.

Pizza Stone

My favorite kitchen thing. Of all time. More than my toaster oven. It's a Pampered Chef rectangular pizza stone. No, this is not a plug. As a matter of fact, I don't even know a Pampered Chef person. If you get a chance, though, buy this. I use it all the time. It's hard to store, so I just keep it in the oven. It's great for anything you want to be crisp and not soggy. Like the Bruschetta in this picture. I loaded up some french bread with the Bruschetta stuff from Sam's (will give details later), goat cheese and fresh grated Parmagiano Reggiano - Heaven!