Welcome to Day 2 of Tomato Week here at CEK!
I love waking up on a Sunday morning, having a cup of tea with my hubby before the kids get up and finding a movie on tv to watch while the house is quiet. A few Sunday's ago, that movie happened to be the 1991 film, Fried Green Tomatoes written by Fannie Flag. I just love this movie and can watch it over and over again, but the thought of making fried green tomatoes intrigued me. I had tried them out years ago and loved them, but never made them again. No real reason, I guess I just forgot. So when my father in law asked me to go pick more of his tomatoes, I grabbed some green ones this time too.
I thought a dipping sauce to go with nicely with these and had recently been to Chili's restaurant where I tried some of their avocado dip they served with their southwestern egg rolls. So I cheated here a little bit and made this simple Avocado Ranch dip using bottled ranch dressing. These were crispy and delicious and the cool flavor of the creamy dip against the piping hot tomatoes was incredible! These would make a great appetizer or side dish.
Fried Green Cherry Tomatoes with Avocado Ranch Dipping Sauce
12 Green Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 c. Flour (I used All-Purpose)
Egg wash (1 Egg + splash of 2% Milk)
1/2 c. Italian Flavored Breadcrumbs
Canola Oil, for frying
Directions:
1. Prepare three separate bowls for the flour, egg wash and breadcrumbs.
2. First dip the tomato halves into the flour, then into the egg wash, and finally the breadcrumbs. Repeat for all pieces.
3. Heat some oil in a frying pan, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
4. Add the tomatoes and fry 2-3 minutes per side until lightly browned.
5. Remove the tomatoes from the pan and drain on paper towels or brown paper bags to remove excess oil. Serve immediately with dipping sauce. Serves 4.
Avocado Ranch Dipping Sauce
1 Avocado
1/2 c. Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
Directions:
1. Cut the avocado in half to remove the pit.
2. Scoop out the insides and add to a mini food processor or blender.
3. Add the ranch dressing and pulse until well blended and creamy. Makes 1 cup.
Enjoy!
*Tip: Best when served hot, immediately after frying. They didn't reheat well when placed in the microwave.
I can honestly say one of the best things about having this blog (and there are many!) is the many other styles of cooking I get to see each and every day. Each of them are talented in their own rite and I love learning about new products and styles of cooking. For example, I've heard of Grapeseed oil before, but I never used it personally until I heard it mentioned on a fellow bloggers Facebook page, Lauren Kelly, Certified Nutritionist. According to Lauren, Grapeseed oil is packed with polyunsaturated fats, which studies have shown helps lower cholesterol. It has a mild, neutral flavor like canola oil and has a hight smoke point, which means it can be used at higher temperatures unlike olive oil. Studies have even shown that the antioxidants in grapeseed oil even help prevent against certain cancers and heart disease. So on my last shopping trip, I picked up a bottle, which was about the same price as the Canola Oil I usually buy, and tried it out on these pork cutlets. They were very good and had a light, refreshing flavor. It was hard to tell a taste difference with the coconut and lime flavors but the breading browned nicely and the oil wasn't burning, causing that smokey flavor an oil sometimes gets if left on the heat for too long. So thank you Lauren for the great tip and I can't wait to try it out in salads as well!
Coconut & Lime Breaded Pork Cutlets
4-6oz. Center Cut, Boneless Pork Chops
1c. Flour
1 c. Panko Breadcrumbs
1c. Flaked Coconut
1 Lime, zest and juice
2 Eggs
1/4 c. 2% Milk
Grapeseed Oil, for frying
Trim any fat from the pork chops then cut horizontally into 1/4" thick slices (approximately 2 per chop depending on the thickness) then pound to thin out using a meal mallet so that they are uniform in size. Prepare three separate bowls. One for the flour. The second, combine the eggs, milk and lime juice. And the third, combine the breadcrumbs with the coconut. First dip the meat into the flour, then the egg mixture, then into the coconut breadcrumb mixture. Heat a large saute pan with approximately 1/4"-1/2" oil until it is very hot. Gently add the cutlets, browning on each side until they are cooked through and golden. Drain meat on paper towels to remove excess oil then serve. Makes 8-10 cutlets.
Enjoy!
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When Hilary from Baking Bad posted a month ago that she wanted to do a Chopped Challenge on her blog I was all over it. I don't watch many cooking shows (or much tv before 9pm for that matter) but I was introduced to the show Chopped on The Food Network when visiting my Mom in FL last year. Her and her husband are AVID TFN watchers and this show came on during one of our visits. I have to say that the show really intrigued me. The contestants are given 4 ingredients (most of the time they're really "out there") and they have to make an appetizer, meal and dessert course. With each course, one contestant is eliminated, leaving only 2 contestants to make the dessert course where the panel of judges get to decide who gets Chopped and who is the winner. I love to watch the creative juices flow as they decide what it is they're going to make with what they are given.
So with this challenge, we were given 4 ingredients.
1. Instant Mashed Potatoes (which I've NEVER purchased, let alone eaten in my life...well except for the time we had to make them at Johnson & Wales while I was in college for the dorm students!)
2. Shrimp...Which was going to be a little tricky since I don't eat any fish/shellfish. I had to rely solely on my "guinea pigs" ;)
3. Fruit Roll Ups...Here we go, this was going to be the tricky part
4. Pearl Onions...Again, don't eat these either.
So this is what I came up with. The Verdict was that the shrimp were INCREDIBLE and the potato coating was extremely tasty. The Onion Sherbet Dipping Sauce was "ok" but a little sweet for my family's taste. This is what I used, so you be the judge! :)
Potato Encrusted Fried Shrimp with an Onion Sherbet Dipping Sauce
1lb. Extra Large Shrimp (21-25), cleaned and deveined
1-7oz Box Instant Mashed Potatoes
1 Orange, zest only
1 tbsp. Fresh Thyme
Egg Wash (2 eggs + 1/4 c. 2% Milk)
1 c. All-Purpose Flour
Canola Oil, for frying
Prepare three separate bowls. One for the flour and one for the egg wash. In the third bowl, mix together the instant potatoes, orange zest and thyme. Dip each piece of shrimp first into the flour, then egg wash, then into the potato mixture. Pour approximately 1" of oil into a large frying pan and heat. Carefully place shrimp into the hot oil and fry until both sides are golden brown and shrimp is white in color and cooked through. Drain on paper towels or brown paper bag to remove any excess oil. Serve with Onion Sherbet Dipping Sauce.
Onion Sherbet Dipping Sauce
1-9oz. Package Frozen Pearl Onions in Cream Sauce, defrosted
4 Fruity Ice Cream Fruit Roll Ups (Orange, Strawberry, Raspberry)
1/4 tsp. Dried Thyme
1/2 Orange, juice only
1 tbsp. Balsamic Pear Vinegar
In a small saucepan, add all of the ingredients and stir until the fruit roll ups have melted. Pour into a blender and liquify. Strain the sauce through a sieve and reheat sauce. Serve with shrimp.
This recipe will be judged by anyone that goes to the Baking Bad website. This week she will be featuring all of the contestant entries. So head on over there this week grab a cup of coffee or tea and plan to stay a while because Hilary has some wonderful recipes of her own over there. You will be able to vote for the entries and I'll keep you posted as to when the voting will begin! (JUDGING OVER)
Enjoy!
