The concept of ‘loaded cabbage steaks’ is an interesting twist on traditional cabbage dishes and are a tasty alternative to traditional tacos.
Sometimes it’s hard to get excited about cabbage but I think this recipe will change your mind a little bit. Roasting the cabbage provides a subtly sweet flavor. Cabbage is very affordable, mildly flavored and easy to prepare. This recipe involves roasting thick slices of green cabbage with olive oil, salt, and taco seasonings. You can top them with either ground meat or black beans, shredded cheese, diced avocado, sliced cherry tomatoes, and chopped cilantro. Lime crema adds a zesty finish.
It’s time to elevate cabbage from a humble vegetable side dish to the main attraction with these loaded cabbage steaks!
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Loaded Taco Cabbage Steaks
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Instructions
Taco Seasoning
In a small dish, combine all ingredients & mix well.
Lime Crema
Whisk together the ingredients using milk to thin out the sauce to your desired consistency. Set aside.
Cabbage Steaks
Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Keep your cabbage core INTACT, slice your cabbage in half first then into thick slices – ending up with 6-7 slices. Place them on your baking tray & brush both sides of each slice with olive oil. Season with 1/2 of the prepared 'taco seasoning' Roast for 30-35 minutes or until golden.
Ground Meat or Beans
In a large skillet, heat the oil & sauté onion for 2 minutes. Add in the ground meat, using a wooden spoon break everything up until no longer pink & cooked through. Season with remaining taco seasoning. Divide the meat between the roasted cabbage slices then top with the cheese & pop back into the oven until melted – about 5 minutes.
If you're using the beans, simply top the cooked cabbage steaks equally with some beans, covering the cabbage & then top with the shredded cheese. Pop back into the oven until the cheese has melted – 5 minutes.
Remove cabbage steaks from oven & top with tomatoes, avocado & arugula. Drizzle with lime crema & serve hot.
It’s summer and there’s nothing better than the simple sweetness of fresh fruit. Barbecues are the highlight of the season and no doubt you will be making numerous ‘cool’ desserts.
I realize fruit marinated in alcohol is not for just any barbecue, but if it fits the occasion, it adds a nice finishing touch. Marinating fruit in alcohol is nothing new. Many cuisines have special recipes that include dried fruits such as raisins, currants and prunes. You can create endless combinations using fresh fruit with wine, spirits or liqueurs. Of course, the added bonus is this dessert does not require you to turn on your oven.
Limoncello is a traditional digestif of southern Italy, where the lemon trees give an abundance of bright, yellow fruit. The drink concentrates the flavor of those fresh golden fruits, making it the perfect palate cleanser after a rich meal. If you wish, store it in the freezer and serve it over ice.
Fruit is thirsty stuff and will soak up basically any kind of wine or liqueur you chose to pour over it. Put together your own personal ‘magical’ concoction and enjoy!
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Fruit Salad w/ Limoncello
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Instructions
Marinade
In a bowl, whisk together yogurt, lemon curd, honey & vanilla; set aside at room temperature.
Fruit
Prepare & carefully toss fruit together with sugar & limoncello. Allow them to stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes to let fruit macerate with sugar & liqueur.
Serve in dessert dishes with a dollop of lemon yogurt on top. Garnish with a sprig of mint.
Recipe Notes
- If limoncello isn't what you enjoy, other suggestions would be cognac, grand marnier, marsala or Kahlua.
If you have never eaten a German pancake, think of it as a cross between a souffle and an omelette with undertones of French toast. Often called a Dutch baby pancake and not unlike a sweet Yorkshire pudding. ‘Eggier‘ than your typical pancake, but sweeter and lighter than an omelette, with more pastry-like characteristics. The sides of the pancake rise high above the edges of the pan, creating a light, puffy crust with a tender, custard-like middle.
Story has it that the name ‘Dutch Baby’ was coined when a restaurant owner’s daughter (in the USA) could not pronounce ‘Deutsch’, the German word for German, and out of her mouth came ‘Dutch’. Originally served as three small German pancakes with powdered sugar and fresh squeezed lemon juice, the Dutch Baby, moniker was born.
These German pancake ‘bites’ are kind of a fun spin on the classic Dutch baby pancakes. The fresh apricot/raspberry sauce along with the Greek yogurt filling, bananas and chocolate makes them such a decadent addition to brunch.
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German Pancake Bites
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Instructions
Apricot/Raspberry Sauce
In a food processor, place pitted apricots, lemon juice & sugar; pulse several times until the apricots are COARSELY chopped. Transfer mixture to a saucepan. Lightly boil over medium heat, uncovered for 10 minutes; stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Add more sugar to taste depending on how sweet your apricots were. Add raspberries & simmer 1-2 minutes or until raspberries are heated through & softened. Set aside until ready to use.
Greek Yogurt Filling
In a bowl, cream together cream cheese & sugar with a hand mixer. Add Greek yogurt & beat on medium-high until smooth & creamy. Set aside until ready to use. Refrigerate if not using right away.
Pancake Bites
Preheat oven to 400 F. In a bowl, using a hand mixer, blend eggs, milk, vanilla, flour & salt until well mixed. Pour a small amount of the melted butter in 8 MINI loaf pans. Pour 1/3 cup of the mixture into each of the individual spaces.
Bake for about 15 minutes. Remove from oven & invert on a cooling rack. Place 'bites' on a serving plate. Divide yogurt filling, placing some in the bottom of each individual pancake. Top each with some apricot/raspberry sauce & some banana slices. Drizzle with chocolate & sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.
The majority of dried apricots available on the market come from Turkey. What sets them apart from others, is the way they are dried. Generally, Turkish apricots are dried whole, then pitted, resulting in a plumper, thicker fruit then apricots that are pitted before drying.
A velvety sweetness emerges from the golden orange disks, grown on the sun-drenched Mediterranean coast. Apricots are a relative of the peach with an ancient linage that reaches back to China.
These incredibly easy little hors d ouvers, evoke images of the vibrant colorful markets we saw when we visited the country of Morocco. The dried apricots are soaked, candied, stuffed with Greek yogurt and garnished with a unique glazed medley of pistachios, almonds, cherries, pomegranate-flavored apples, a touch of lemon and a dash of pepper. This all comes together to make a perfect, lightly sweet/spicy, one-bite treat with the help of a package of ‘Sahale Snacks’. Gourmet in minutes!
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Turkish-Style Stuffed Apricots
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Instructions
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Soak the apricots in water overnight. In a small saucepan, combine apricots with their soaking water & sugar; bring to a simmer & cook for about 10 minutes. The syrup should thicken slightly; remove from heat & allow to cool. Once cooled, drain off any excess syrup.
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Slice apricots lengthwise 3/4 of the way through. Place about 1 tsp of yogurt in side of each one then press a glazed pistachio or almond into the yogurt. Repeat with the rest of the apricots & serve with the remaining glazed nut & fruit mixture on the side.
The word ‘gratin’ or ‘au gratin’ has been given numerous alternative and incorrect definitions. Many think that the term is French for ‘with cheese’, others say that it refers to a dish with a browned topping and some even claim that gratin means a baked casserole.
The word gratin actually derives from the French word grater or gratter, meaning ‘to grate’. Originally it meant something more like ‘scrapings’. This referred to the browned crusty material that forms on the bottom or the act of scraping loose these crusty bits and stirring them back into the dish during baking. However, it now tends to refer to the browned crust that forms on the top of the baked dish. Toppings generally consist of breadcrumbs, grated cheese, egg and/or butter.
The word gratin is also used to identify the types of cookware in which such a meal is cooked. Traditionally, they are oval, but can also be round and come in graduated sizes and are made of clay-based ceramic, metal or oven-proof glass.
This au gratin combines ham and cauliflower in a creamy, Parmesan sauce and is topped with cheddar cheese. We really enjoyed it.
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Ham & Cauliflower Au Gratin
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Instructions
Fill a medium pot half full of water & add 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil. Cut cauliflower into small flowerets & add to boiling water. Blanche for 3 minutes. DON"T OVERCOOK! Pour into a colander in the sink & let drain well- about 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 6 X 8-inch glass casserole dish with cooking spray. Cut ham into small cubes & slice green onions. In a small bowl, place softened cream cheese, Greek yogurt, Parmesan & sliced green onions.
Return cauliflower to cooking pot; gently fold in sauce mixture & ham. Season to taste with black pepper. Pour cauliflower mixture into prepared baking dish, spreading out evenly. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese.
Bake 30-35 minutes or until the cheese is melted & lightly browned. Mixture should be bubbling & hot through. Remove from oven & allow to stand 10 minutes for any liquid to be absorbed. Serve hot.
I guess because of my German heritage I forever gravitate to German cuisine and food history. Although my mother’s cooking was a mix of German and Canadian, I can definitely see how she correlated the two quite well.
When most people think of pizza, Italy comes to mind. That’s why I’d like to talk about Flammkuchen, a crisp, smoky bacon German pizza. The name translates to ‘flame cake’ and comes from south Germany and the Alsace region of France. Originally it was used by bakers to test the temperature of their ovens. A bit of dough was rolled flat, topped with ‘sour cream’ and baked in their wood fired bread ovens for a few minutes. The oven’s temperature was told in the nearly blistered crispiness of the flammkuchen. When it came out just right the oven was ready to bake bread.
The classic version of German pizza is characterized by its thin, crisp, blistered crust. The dough is spread with soured cream (creme fraiche) then topped with partially cooked bacon, caramelized onions and spices.
Other savory variations include Gruyere or Munster cheese and mushrooms while sweet versions may include apples, cinnamon and a sweet liqueur.
For those of you who enjoy a thin, crispy crust pizza, this one’s for you!
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Flammkuchen-German Pizza
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Instructions
Pizza Dough
In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, water & oil. Mix until dough begins to form; turn dough out onto lightly floured surface & knead until soft & smooth about 3-5 minutes. Place dough back in bowl; cover & set aside. In a small bowl, mix together yogurt & nutmeg; set aside.
Caramelized Onions
In a large skillet, heat oil. Add onion & sprinkle with salt. Cook & stir about 15 minutes or until moisture is evaporated & onion is soft. Reduce heat; sprinkle with vinegar. Cook & stir until golden. Stir in brown sugar; cook & stir until caramel brown in color. Remove from skillet & set aside.
In skillet, saute bacon until it is half way to crisp, 2-4 minutes. Remove bacon to drain on paper towel. Break or cut bacon into small pieces.
Preheat oven to 400 F. On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to about a 11 x 16-inch rectangle. Generously sprinkle a large baking sheet with cornmeal & place dough on it. Spread yogurt mixture over crust, leaving a small border. Distribute onions & bacon evenly over yogurt. Top all with a dusting of black pepper.
Bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven & slice.
