Outback Steak House Garden Salad

Outback Steak House Garden Salad

Salad:
Romaine lettuce - washed and chopped
Red onion - sliced
Outback croutons - I buy a bag at Outback for around $5.00
Cucumbers - sliced and cut in half
Grape tomatoes - cut in half lengthwise
Shredded Cheese (thick not thin)

Spicy Ranch:
1 heaping tsp. Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing mix (Buttermilk recipe)
1 cup of mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 tsp coarse ground black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder

Combine all ingredients in medium bowl.  Mix well.  Cover bowl and chill dressing at least 30 minutes before serving.

Candy Clay/Molding Chocolate

Candy Clay/Molding Chocolate

Ingredients:
12 oz. bag of your preferred color of candy melts
1/4 cup light corn syrup

Method:
In a microwave-safe bowl add candy melts and microwave in 30 second intervals stirring in between. It usually takes 3 times at 30 seconds to melt the chocolate.  Stir to smooth out.  Add corn syrup and gently stir from the outside in, using a folding method. Stir until soft serve ice cream consistency.  Don’t over stir.

Once finish pour mixture onto a large piece of plastic wrap and spread it out with a spoon to flatten.  Add another piece of plastic wrap on top and flatten out even more.  Seal and leave on counter for a few hours until completely cool.  It will be hard, don’t worry.  Start kneading and it will soften right up and you can mold it into whatever shape you would like.

Marshmallow Fondant

Marshmallow Fondant

Ingredients:
8 oz. mini marshmallows
2 Tbs. water
4 cups powdered sugar
Food coloring (optional)

Method:
Place marshmallows and the water in a large microwave-safe bow.  Microwave on high for 1 minute, until marshmallows are puffy and expanded.

Stir marshmallows with a rubber spatula until they are melted and smooth.  If some unmelted marshmallows remain, return to microwave for 30-45 more seconds, until the marshmallow mixture is free from lumps.

If you want colored or flavored fondant, you can add several drops of food coloring at this point and stir until incorporated.

Add powdered sugar and begin to stir with the spatula.  Stir until sugar begins to incorporate and it becomes impossible to stir anymore.

Scrape the marshmallow sugar mixture out on to powdered sugar sprinkled surface.  It will be sticky at first, totally ok.

Dust hands with powdered sugar and begin to knead the fondant mixture like bread dough, working the sugar in the marshmallow with your hands.  Continue to knead until fondant smooths out and loses its stickiness.  Add more sugar if necessary.  Make into a ball, wrap in Saran Wrap and let rest for a 1/2 hour on counter.

Steaks Vidinhar Style

Steaks Vidinhar Style

Rib eye steak - Costco
Sprinkle with:
Olive oil
Garlic Powder
Hawaiian Sea Salt
Pepper

BBQ on high and then turn heat to medium.  7-8 minutes on each side for Costco thick steaks.  Slice and serve

Shrimp Vidinhar Style

Shrimp Vidinhar Style

Ingredients/Method

Raw shrimp thawed (Bruce buys it from Costco)

Metal Skewers - 5 shrimp on each skewer

Zest of one lemon - sprinkle over skewered shrimp

Drizzle skewered shrimp with olive oil

Sprinkle with:

Hawaiian Sea Salt

Black Pepper

Garlic Powder

Chopped parsley 

Cook on the BBQ on medium heat, 3-4 minutes on each side until pink

Vidinhar Chow Funn

Vidinhar Chow Funn

Ingredients:

2 pckgs. Hula Brand - Chow Funn (Can be bought at Longs in Hawaii)

1 cup of celery cut down the middle and then slivered on the diagonal

1 cup of sliced carrots, cut on the diagonal in discs and then slivered (buy a huge carrot)

2 onions sliced

1 bunch of green onions chopped

1.5 cups of Spam thinly sliced & slivered

1 Tbs. minced garlic

1 Tbs. minced ginger

1/4-1/2 cup oyster sauce

Method:

First - boil noodles for 8-9 minutes in salted water. Drain and set aside.

In a wok add 3-4 Tbs. vegetable oil.  Heat/Cook on high entire time.  Add spam and sauté until lightly browned.  Add garlic and ginger and sauté a few minutes.  Add carrots and celery and sauté.  Add onions and sauté. Add pre-cooked noodles and oyster sauce to taste (about a 1/2 cup) mix/sauté. (Watch for the right color).  Add bag of bean sprouts and mix.  Add green onions and mix.  Serve while hot.  

This dish because of the beans sprouts only lasts a couple days in the fridge.

Lion House Lemon Truffle Pie

Lion House Lemon Truffle Pie

Ingredients: 

Baked 9” pie shell

1/2 cup water

2 Tbs. sugar

1 egg

1 Tbs. cornstarch

1 Tbs. sugar

Zest of 1/2 lemon

1.5 Tbs. fresh lemon juice

1/2 Tbs. butter

1 cup vanilla chips

8 oz pckg cream cheese

1/2 cup whipped cream, sweetened

1 Tbs. toasted almonds (optional)

Method:

Put water and 2 Tbs sugar in sauce pan and bring to a boil.  In a large bowl, mix egg, cornstarch, 1 Tbs. sugar, and zest of lemon.  Slowly add hot water to egg mixture in bowl; then pour entire mixture back into pan.  Heat until thickened, stirring often.  Remove from heat and add lemon juice and butter.  Stir until mixed and cool.

Pour 2/3 of filling in bowl.  Add vanilla chips to the filling remaining in pan.  Add filling with vanilla chocolate chips to cream cheese and beat together.  Spread this mixture in bottom of pie shell.  Spreading remaining 2/3 of lemon filling on top.  Chill for two hours.  

Top with whipped cream and garnish with toasted almonds

Paije’s Fluffy Mashed Potatoes

Paije’s Fluffy Mashed Potatoes

Method/Ingredients:

10-15 lb. bag of russet potatoes - cut into 1-2 inch chunks

Boil in salted water for 20 minutes until fork tender

You will have to do the next part in batches......

Use the Kitchen Aid w/ whisk attachment and mix on slow 4-5 times around to let steam out

Let sit about 2-3 minutes

Add 1 full tsp. Of salt per batch/bowl

Mix another few times to get most of the chunks out - don’t over mix 

Add 1/2 stick of butter per batch/bowl - butter should be room temperature

Add 1/4 tsp. white pepper

Spin slowly while butter incorporates

Add 1/2 cup or 2 heaping tablespoons of sour cream

Whip until smooth (If too thick add more sour cream)

Prepare 2.5 hours before event and keep warm in oven

Variation: sprinkle with bacon bits and shredded cheese for Loaded Mashed Potatoes