Have you ever invented a recipe

In My Humble Opinion
1

…or a novel cooking technique?

let’s hear it.

One of mine (may not be a truly innovative technique, but I did think of it for myself and I’ve never seen anybody else do it):
Fried Eggs: if you have a frying pan with a (preferrably glass) lid, fry the eggs in a little fat at full heat with the lid off, when the edges are starting to crisp, drop about a tablespoon of water into the pan and quickly put the lid on. It will spit and seethe violently, but the steam produced will cook the upper surface of the egg nicely (no snotty white bits) while leaving the yolk nice and liquid, it also removes some of the grease from the top of the fried egg. [sup]I should add that this is potentially quite dangerous if you aren’t VERY careful[/sup]

2

That sounds a little bit similar to the French ‘oeufs sur le plat’ (eggs on a plate).

In a sense, I’m always inventing recipes. Within the broad guidelines of culinary principle, I make it up as I go.

3

I guess this is a recipe…

When we grill chicken breasts, we grill a little extra.
The next day or so, we get a Boboli pizza crust. (If Boboli is not available near you, or you have no idea what it is, it’s just a ready-baked bread “crust”. You just add toppings and voilá: instant pizza. You can make your own too.)

Top to bottom in layers:
-A sprinkle of Parmesan
-8 oz. white cheese (Montery Jack is fave. Mozzerela is good too. Provolone would work.)
-A couple handfulls of French’s Fried Onions (They used to be Durkee. Fried onions that come in a can. You can use regular onions or sautéed onions.)
-Diced, cold grilled chicken. (You can get pre-cooked chicken at the store if you don’t want to grill it.)
-Ranch dressing to taste.
-Boboli bread shell.

You cook it @ 450 for 10 minutes or untill the cheese is melted.

This was “invented” one day when we had left-overs and didn’t want chicken salad. So we put it on a Boboli and covered it with cheese.
-Rue.

4

My variant of Cauliflower cheese:

Remove the leaves and woody parts of the cauliflower, wash it, but do not cut up into florets, steam it until tender (but not mushy)

The cheese sauce is just a thick Bechamel with some cheese melted into it (butter, flour, milk, cheese, maybe a little mustard powder)

Invert the cauliflower head in an ovenproof dish and pour some of the cheese sauce into the branched cavity, leave this for a few minutes to adhere nicely.

put two slices of white bread, half a red (bell) pepper, a teaspoon of paprika, half a teaspoon of salt and one clove of garlic into the food mixer and whizz until finely chopped.

Turn the cauliflower right-side up agin and pour some more of the sauce over it, then apply handfuls of the breadcrumb mix all over, pour on a bit more sauce, more crumbs, more sauce etc until it’s thickly coated.

Bake in a medium oven until it goes crispy then cut into wedges and serve. It’s a nice vegetarian main course, although like me, you may find that vegetarian food is ideally accompanied by meat.

5

I did this one this weekend. My wife didn’t care for it, but you can’t please everyone.

Mexican breakfast torta
For the crust:

1 cup Bisquick
1/2 cup masa harina or cornmeal
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 tsp baking powder
1-1.5 cups milk (depending on how soft you want the finished crust to be)

Mix all ingredients, making a fairly wet dough, and press gently into a 11’X 9’ baking pan or dish, pushing up at sides like for piecrust.

For the filling

3 good quality Mexican chorizo sausages (not the kind made from pork lymph nodes)
1 ripe tomato, cubed 1/2 inch (or just roughly chopped)
1/2 green pepper, chopped (I used a pasilla, but regular green is good too)
4 green onions, chopped fine
1/2 bunch or 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 eggs, beaten with
1/2 cup shredded cheese (used white cheddar)
1-2 minced garlic cloves (optional at breakfast for the timid)
1/2 tsp each chili powder and cumin
Brown the sausage in a skillet and do not drain. You need the grease to make it good.
Spread the sausage on the crust evenly, then add the vegetables, cilantro last. Combine the eggs, cheese and seasonings and pour over the top. Bake for about 25 minutes in a 350F oven or until the cheese/eggs are bubbly with browned spots. Good at room temperature or hot out of the oven. Sour cream and salsa optional garnishes.

6

The portions have yet to be worked out. The working title is “Montezuma’s Revenge.”
[ul]
[li]Some amount of Kahlua[/li][li]Some amount of Amaretto[/li][li]Some amount of Hot Damn® (Cinnamon Schnapps)[/li][/ul]

Once I get the portions right it’ll be the rage in all the bars across the country.

7

Here’s one that I worked on for about six months. I think I have it perfected now:

Warm Scallop Salad with Tomato/Bacon Concasse:

1 pound fresh scallops, the big ones
Wondra Flour
Butter for sauteing scallops (I use clarified butter, but a butter/oil mixture ought to work)
1 head Boston Bibb lettuce (or similiar), cleaned and divided into two salad bowls/plates
4 slices bacon
2 tomatoes
Scallions or chives, minced (the garlic chives out of my garden are wonderful)
Fresh Italian Parsley, minced
Vinegar (balsamic or red wine)
Canola Oil
Olive oil
Mustard (Mustard with lemon is good, or any dijon style)
Parmesan cheese, shredded

Tomato/Bacon Concasse:

Fry the bacon in a large pan. Remove bacon from pan. Remove bacon grease from pan, reserving a tablespoon. Wipe pan lightly with a paper towel, removing some of the grease, but not all. Put pan aside.

Boil a small pot of water. Wash tomatoes & score a small X with a sharp knife at the bottom. Drop tomato in boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove from water, peel tomato. Cut in half, remove the seed. Dice remaining tomato into medium dice. Place in small bowl with scallions/chives & the crumbled bacon. Add a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and a touch of vinegar. Go light on dressing this, as the salad itself will have a vinagrette as well. You’re just looking for a little something to brighten it up.

Vinagrette:

In small bowl, whisk together 2 teaspoons mustard & 2 Tablespoons vinegar. Measure out 5 tablespoons of Canola oil & remaining 1 T bacon fat into a small liquid measuring cup. Whisking vigorously, slowly add oil/fat mixture to vinegar/mustard mixture. Whisk to emulsify. Add salt & pepper to taste.

Scallops:

Mix Wondra Flour and some salt and pepper. Heat butter in the same pan you cooked the bacon in. Figure high or medium high heat. Dredge each scallop in flour/sp mix, and when butter is melted & hot, add scallops to pan, making sure not to crowd. Cook for a minute or two on each side, until brown & cooked. Do not overcook.

Assembly:

Divide concasse over the lettuce on the salad plates. Add vinagrette. Place 1/2 the scallops on each salad. Sprinkle with parsley and parmesan cheese. Eat & enjoy!

8

Golden Chicken Lasagna

Makes 6 generous servings

Ingredients:
6 lasagna noodles, cooked
1 lb. diced chicken breast meat, cooked
3 tablespoons chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 (3 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 clove of garlic
pepper to taste
1 pound ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup breadcrumbs

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

  2. Cook the lasagna noodles as directed on the package. Cook and dice the chicken.

  3. In a small saucepan, saute onion and mushrooms in chicken broth. Remove from heat. Stir in soup, milk, basil, oregano, garlic and pepper. Mix well.
    Set aside.

  4. In a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish, arrange 3 of the lasagna noodles. Layer as follows: 1/2 the ricotta cheese, 1/2 the chicken, 1/2 the Cheddar cheese, 1/2 the Parmesan cheese and 1/2 the mushroom/soup mixture. Add the other 3 lasagna noodles and repeat layers. Top with breadcrumbs.

  5. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for approximately 50 minutes.

9

Liver Brownies for Dogs

1 cup unbleached wheat flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 lb. chicken liver, cooked
2 eggs
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 clove chopped garlic
1/4 to 1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Lightly grease a small (10x14) cookie sheet.

Place the liver in a saucepan and add water until it is just covered. Simmer until just cooked. Drain the water and then use a handheld mixer or a blender to puree the liver. Place in a large mixing bowl and add the flour, cornmeal, eggs, cheese and garlic. Mix by hand about 25 strokes - mixture should be very dry. Add 1/4 cup of water and mix another 25 strokes. If needed, add the remaining 1/4 cup of water. You should end up with a thick, very slightly sticky dough.

Place the dough ball on the cookie sheet and use hands or the back of a spoon to spread the dough evenly on the surface of the sheet, all the way to the edges. Mixture should be about 1/4-inch thick when done.

Bake in 300 degree oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Cut or break into appropriate size pieces for your dog. Refrigerate until all is gone.

10

I dunno about “invented,” “heavily reworked” is probably a better term, or “adapted to new ingredients.” When it comes to cooking, I’m a big believer in there’s-nothing-new-under-the-sun, with rare exceptions.

One of my heavy reworkings is a low-fat turkey meatloaf, which has morphed over the years. The original recipe called for chopped fresh apple, chopped fresh onion, and sage as the primary flavorings. The result was a fairly well-flavored but slushy mess; ground turkey seems to have a lot more water than ground red meats, and the recipe just didn’t accommodate that fact at all. Also, the onion tasted raw, and I’ve since read that the internal temp of a meatloaf just doesn’t get high enough for long enough for the onion to cook properly.

So, out went the apple, for which I substituted golden raisins (sultanas in British), which absorb liquid rather than give it. I sauteed the onion beforehand, which improved the flavor and reduced the water. I lowered the amount of milk, upped the bread crumbs, and now have something that works pretty well:

For metric users: 1 T(ablespoon) = 15 ml. 1 t(easpoon) = 5 ml. 1 c(up) = 240 ml.

Autumn Meatloaf

In a large mixer bowl, combine:

1 c plain rolled oats
1 scant T ground allspice
1 scant T ground sage
2 t salt
lots of freshly ground black pepper

Add:

2/3 c milk, scalded

Set aside. While mixture cools, brown over medium heat:

1/2 large onion, chopped

in

1-2 t olive oil

In a measuring cup, mix together:

1/2 c dark, thick apple butter (Bauman’s, from Pennsylvania, is excellent[sup]*[/sup])
1/4 c ketchup

Add all but two tablespoons to meat mixture.

Mix together well on low speed with paddle attachment. Add onions and:

4 oz golden raisins
2 T Worcestershire sauce
2 eggs
2 1/2 - 2 2/3lb ground turkey

In a Cuisinart, process:

5-6 slices fresh whole wheat bread from large loaf, which will give you 3-4 cups of light crumbs (measured without packing them down)

Add to meat and mix well. Mixture should be heavy and thick, almost like biscuit or scone dough. Press into large loaf pan. Brush top with reserved apple butter/ketchup mixture.

Bake for 75 minutes at about 300-325 degrees, or when center is at 160 degrees. Cool in pan for at least 15 minutes before turning onto serving platter.

[sup]*[/sup] If you don’t have good apple butter available, just use 3/4 cup ketchup.

Substitutions: For a nondairy version, use broth or apple cider instead of milk

11

Psychedellic California Strawberry Shortcake
(My own invention stolen from nowhere.)
Serves: Four people

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:

1 Pint high-test vanilla ice cream
4 White chocolate Macadamia nut cookies
1 Basket of fresh blueberries
Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400°F
Wash and pick over bluberries
Place cookies in hot oven
Remove cookies once they are soft
Place one cookie in each of four bowls
Top each cookie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Garnish with blueberries

Scarf while making animal noises.

The reason that this is called Psychedellic California Strawberry Shortcake is because there are no strawberries or shortcake, yet the combination tastes even better. Use only the specified ingredients. No others work with the correct effect. If you only have chocolate chip cookies, use raspberries.

12

I didn’t invent it, but I altered it to the point where I could call it mine.

Back in the late '70s, my mom got a wok, and the corresponding cookbook. Pepper steak was the only recipe that survived. When I got my own apartment, it was the first capital-D dinner I made, and soon became my signature recipe. Over the years, I modified it to suit my cooking style and Mr. Rilch’s taste.

Originally, the vegetables, besides the green pepper, were celery, snow peas, and…there might not have been a third vegetable. I gave up the celery early on because I tired of picking it out of my teeth, and substituted green onions. Mr. Rilch let me know that he preferred mushrooms to snow peas, and later requested water chestnuts. My mom mixed the gravy separately, but I add it in the skillet (I don’t have the wok) so that it’s more viscous and adheres to the meat and veg. Recently, I’ve cut out the middleman and just mix in cornstarch to make “organic” gravy. Also, it was my idea to put a beef cube into the water for the rice.

I gave the recipe to someone once, with the stipulation that he had to call it “Rilchiam’s Pepper Steak” until or unless he modified it to make it his. Also, the recipe is mine, but either my mom or the cookbook still holds the patent on the pineapple chunks.

13

A lot of children hate vegetables and I know a lot of adults aren’t too fond of them. I wonder sometimes why vegetables are eaten so much all over the world. In an effort to make vegetables more palatable for children I once created a “vegie cake”. I have a well-known recipe for a delicious chocolate zucchini cake which has 350 grams of zucchinis. I replaced the zucchinis with 350 grams of vegetables of different sorts: Carrots, beetroot, broccoli, cabbage, pumpkin etc. The children I tested it on didn’t really suspect they were eating anything healthy. I don’t believe so, anyway. It was just chocolate cake to them. Can anyone tell me, though, do vegetables cooked like this retain their vitamins and minerals? Kids and adults are always going to eat sweet food like cake so I don’t see anything wrong with eating vegetables at the same time. The question is: are vegetables still worth eating cooked in cake? Is it the same as steaming or stir frying as far as health goes? It would be preferable of course to have a larger ratio of vegetables to flour and sugar than the 350 grams I used but I couldn’t work out anything acceptable.

14

I haven’t invented a recipe, but I desperately want to.

My idea is to come up with a dessert – cookies or a cake – that has raisins in it. I would then call these Raisin Deeters. The only reason they would exist would be so that they could have the raisins in them.
It’s a great idea, but I actually hate cookies and cakes with raisins in them.

15

I don’t know if this counts as my own invention exactly, but it certainly proves that necessity is the mother (or at least the sister-in-law) of invention.

Most of the ingredients in my chicken marinade are pretty standard, although quantities vary; white wine, a bit of soy sauce, sweet chili, a bit of either ginger or garlic, and one other ingredient.

I was desperate one day. I was most of the way through making this when I realised I had no honey, which is the other ingredients. Hunting frantically through the pantry I found a bottle of cough syrup, one of the honey-lemon herbal things. Read the ingredients; no colourings, no added sugar, no pseudoephedrine or anything like that…

So the cough syrup went into the chicken marinade[sup]1[/sup].

Tasted great.
tav

[sup]1[/sup] And I hadn’t even seen that “Flaming Moe” episode of The Simpsons either.

16

Athena’s warm scallop salad is great!

Read it yesterday and it sounded good so I served it last evening. It was a big hit!

Thanks, Athena!

17

Something simple I came up with in my bachelor days. Very good in the wintertime.

Slice up an onion and some mushrooms and sautee in olive oil until light brown. Set aside.

Fry some thin strips of pork until brown, then add the onions, mushrooms, and a large helping of kimchee. Fry together for about a minute.

Pour about a cup of water over the food, then heat until it boils off. This allows the kimchee flavor to mix thoroughly with the other ingredients.

Serve over rice.

Not particularly imaginative, but my girlfriends were all amazed that a guy could prepare something more involved than instant ramen.

–sublight.

18

In my college days, my roomate(s) and I used to make pan-o-stuff. This involved hitting the grocery store (or the farmer’s market, if it was summertime) and getting some assortment of vegetables that looked like they’d taste good together, then stir frying with appropriate-seeming spices (primarily cumin or oregano and lots of garlic powder). Usually the combination of vegetables was random, but some favorites evolved. The best of these was:

HOME-DOWN POTATOES

3 large potatoes
2 Tbs olive oil
1 Vidalia onion (if in season)
1 green pepper
1 jalepeno pepper (pronounced juh-LAP-eh-no)
1 tsp garlic powder (more to taste)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro, if available.
Shredded cheese (cheddar, colby, and/or jack)
plain nonfat yogurt and salsa to taste (preferably, gobs and gobs.)

Cube the potatoes and boil until just tender (about 10 minutes). As the potatoes boil, chop the onions and green pepper, and remove seeds from the jalepeno and mince. Heat the olive oil and saute onions until transparent, then add the peppers. Drain the potatoes and add to the skillet. Add the spices. Be sure to taste! Cook until the potatoes are starting to brown. Remove from heat, stir in cilantro, and sprinkle cheese on top. Serve with lots of yogurt and salsa on the side.

In our student days, this constituted a one-course meal.

19

Ahhh…pan-of-stuff…also a staple of my early cooking days. I lived off of random veggies over rice, random veggies with beans, random veggies with potatoes, random veggies with pasta, random veggies with soup, and random veggies with toritillas. Everything was cooked with garlic and fried oninons and plenty of assorted spices.

Now I have a boyfriend-that-cooks to compliment my lame cooking skills. He invents many recipes, most of them good. Last night we had his famous open-faced melted cheese sandwiches. It is the prefect comfort food.

Lay out a few slices of good wheat bread on a baking sheet. Lay slices of cheese over them (preferably Jack). Bake until the cheese melts. While it melts, make some guacamole. You can use my recipe (mash avacodos with lots of garlic, salt, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper and little bits of tomato, adding a little sour cream for creaminess) or his (mash avocados with picante sauce and spices). When the cheese is melted on the bread, put a generous dollop of gucamole on top. On top of that, put a slice of tomato. Finally, top with a little bit of picante sauce.

mmmmm…yummy…

20

Whooohoooo! I’m famous!

OldBroad, if I remember correctly, you’re in the Boulder area, right? If so, the fresh, never-been-frozen scallops from Whole Foods are the way to go on this recipe. They are soooooo good - very light & sweet. A little pricey, like $13.99/pound, but if you’re up for it it’s worth it!