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Tag Archive: Chef Dan

Dan’s Yorkshire Pudding

Written on November 16, 2011 by Rhianna.Robins in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

We are now into the season of BIG heavy celebratory meals. With Thanksgiving behind us, a multitude of Christmas dinners ahead, Christmas parties and New Years too, our bodies are gearing up for a calorie OVERLOAD over the next few months!

Last weekend we had a big family gathering and what goes better with a nice 4 bone Canada AAA prime rib roast than a big mess of Yorkshire pudding?

The Yorkshire pudding recipe as we know it today goes back to the 1700’s. A women’s circular in 1737 first published a recipe telling housewives how to make use of the drippings from roasts, and to make a “Dripping pudding”. Back then it was common to fill a whole pan with hot fat dripped from roasts, and to pour the batter into the pan, and cut squares of it out of the pan. While some people still use that method, another common method is to make mini Yorkshire puddings in muffin tins. The little round wonders that make a great well to pour gravy into!

You’ll need a good amount of beef fat dripped from a roast. Prime rib is a very well marbled roast and you are guaranteed to get a lot, but if you want Yorkshires to go with a less fatty roast, you can always substitute beef fat for lard.

Mix up your batter at least ½ hour ahead of cooking. You want to try and let the mixture warm up a bit and settle before cooking.

To make the batter for 12 mini yorkshires, you’ll need:

1 2/3 cups of flour
5 eggs (the formula is 1 egg per 1/3 cup of flour)
1 cup of room temperature buttermilk (you can also acidify regular milk by adding 1 tbsp of vinegar to every cup of milk used)
1 tsp baking powder

 Mix the batter well. You want the batter to be thin enough so that it drips off of a spoon at a medium speed. It can’t be too thick, and can’t be too runny either. Once you’ve mixed it all up, let it stand for 15 minutes.

When you are ready to cook the Yorkshires, add about two tbsp of fat or lard to each muffin tin and put them into a hot 420F oven. When the oil is nice and hot, remove the pan from the oven, and pour in the batter. Each tin should be about ¾ full. Put back into the oven, and bake until the puddings have risen, and slightly browned. You are looking at approximately 17-19 minutes total bake time.

Serve the puddings immediately! As I said, they make an excellent cup for gravy! If I can find a muffin tin big enough, I think it would be fun to try and make a Yorkshire pudding soup bowl! This is an excellent addition to any Sunday or holiday roast, and when you make them homemade, you will impress your guests to no end!

Enjoy!

- Chef Dan     

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Dan’s Easy Cheesy Rotini

Written on November 16, 2011 by Rhianna.Robins in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

 Today’s recipe is one to pull out when you have little time to prepare a meal, but you need something that will be more than boxed fish sticks calibre. I have nothing against boxed fish sticks, but you can’t always pass good cooking for boxed fish sticks, and you can’t always have prime rib either. My easy cheesy rotini takes two pans, and takes 15 minutes or less to make.

 What you’ll need:

1 lb of ground beef
1 large onion chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 tbsp basil, or Clubhouse brand Italian pre-mixed seasoning.
2 cups dry rotini cooked

 For the cheese sauce:

2 tbsp flour
1 tbsp butter
2 cups milk
1 ½ cup cheddar cheese cubed into ½” cubes
½ brick cream cheese
1 tbsp of honey mustard (if you only have regular mustard that will do too)

Cook the pasta and set it aside. In a skillet, brown the ground beef and drain off the excess fat. Add the onions and green peppers and sauté for another two to three minutes. While that is cooking down, make the cheese sauce. In a small saucepan on low to medium heat, add the butter. Once it has melted down, add the flour and combine with the butter. Add the milk. Slowly bring up the temperature and add the cheddar and the cream cheese. Use a whisk to mix it up really well. Once the sauce has mixed smooth, remove it from the heat and add the mustard. Mix it in and add it into the beef mixture. Slowly combine the cheese with the beef mixture and allow it to stand for 3 minutes before serving.

This dish is a two pan, easy clean up dish that the whole family will be happy about, and it makes for some great leftovers to take to work the next day! So get off the boxed fish sticks and try my easy cheesy rotini tonight!

- Chef Dan     

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Dan’s Eggs in a Bag

Written on November 16, 2011 by Rhianna.Robins in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

This past summer I had tonnes of folks ask me about this recipe and so I thought we’d do an encore presentation of my “Friends and Omelettes” recipe – AKA: Eggs In A Bag! It is a fun and easy way to have breakfast ready fast for the whole family, or even a big gathering! The problem with making omelettes the traditional way is that you might only have one or two pans, everyone wants something different in them, and by the time the last person is served, the first person to eat has long finished. Try this recipe, and it will be a talked about hit for some time!

What you need:

2 Eggs for each person

1 small Ziplock bag for each person

1 large pot of boiling water rolling on the stove

Chopped Omelette Toppings:

  • Diced ham
  • Diced bacon
  • Peppers
  • Onions
  • Tomato
  • Cheese
  • Whatever you want really
  1. Give each person a ziplock bag. Have them add whatever toppings they want to their bag. Then, crack 2 eggs into each bag, seal, and shake them up.
  2. When everyone is ready, put all of the sealed bags into the boiling water.
  3. In about 7 minutes, everyone’s omelette will be cooked! A light fluffy texture, no burned parts.
  4. Open bag and the cooked omelette will slide right out.
  5. Serve alone, with some classic breakfast sides, or on soft taco shells as an egg taco!

- Chef Dan              

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Dan’s Bison Stew

Written on May 18, 2011 by chef.dan in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

Ok, we’re going to mix it up a bit this week, and a recipe that you can either do in a pot on the stovetop, or in your slow cooker. And if you are feeling a little bit adventurous, then you can try my bison stew.
You may not find a lot of bison meat in the counter at your local supermarket. In fact, I’d be hard pressed to believe that some supermarkets even had the bison code programmed into the sticker machine that they label the weighed meat with. BUT, if after speaking to the meat manager at your local supermarket and you still can’t get it, you can visit your local tried and true butcher, and there is an excellent chance that if they don’t have some, they could get it for you.
Bison meat is very lean. It is a low fat meat that is quite dense and it has a sweetness to it that you’ll only understand once you eat it. Bison is not a wild animal and thus does not taste wild. Because there is very little marbling of this meat, it needs to be cooked low and slow, or it will be tough and dry. This makes for a great stew meat. Bison is also is rich in vitamins and nutrients, and because of the very low fat, and low cholesterol nature of bison meat, it is becoming more and more of a popular choice for diabetics.
To make the stew, you’ll need:
2lbs of bison meat (cubed)
½ cup of white wine
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 potatoes cubed
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 ribs of celery chopped
½ of a rutabaga cubed
1 jalepeno pepper diced
1 bay leaf
Dredge Mix (1 cup flour, 1 tsp seasoned salt, 1 tsp oregano)
Salt and pepper to taste

Dredge meat in seasoned flour and brown in a frying pan with a little oil. Transfer the meat to a large pot or slow cooker, and add the rest of the ingredients with enough water to cover everything. Simmer for 2 hours on low or 10 hours in the slow cooker. Adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve with a nice loaf of crusty bread or some delicious warm baking powder biscuits. And if you simply can’t find any bison at your local butcher, or you don’t have the nerve for it, you can do the exact same recipe with some nice, safe stewing beef that will absolutely be available in the counter, neatly wrapped and labelled at your local supermarket!

Enjoy!

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Baked Ground Chicken

Written on March 24, 2011 by chef.dan in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

Dan’s Baked Ground Chicken

There are times when an afternoon in the kitchen just isn’t an option. You had to stay later at work then you expected, it was slow getting home, and a  hungry crew is expecting something good and hearty. My baked ground chicken will get it done fast, be tasty, and keep you well in the limits of your grocery budget!

Here’s what you need:

1 1/2 lbs. ground chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp. chopped onion and bell pepper
2 tbsp. flour (1 tbsp. rolling patties)
3 tbsp. evaporated milk
Salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder to taste
Paprika (topping)

2 tbsp oil (for frying)

In a bowl, mix the ground chicken, onion, bell pepper with flour, egg, seasonings and evaporated milk. Really work the mixture good with your hands. If you are a little bit squeamish to touch the raw chicken, wear some food grade plastic gloves. (But really, raw chicken will only hurt you if you eat it!) Grab about ½ to ¾ cup of the mixture and form into patties. Lightly dredge them in flour. In a hot skillet with a bit of oil, quickly brown the patties on each side. You’re not trying to cook them here, just crisp them up a bit. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 – 22 minutes. Remove from oven, drain fat. Pour the chicken soup over patties, sprinkle with paprika. Return to oven and bake until bubbly.

This comfort food goes great with mashed potatoes! They are great for soaking up any stray sauce that gets left behind on your plate. Enjoy!

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Slow Cooker Ribs

Written on March 16, 2011 by chef.dan in Breakfast Club, What's Hot in the Kitchen

Dan’s Slow Cooker Ribs

Who doesn’t love slow cooked pork back ribs? Baby back baby! The absolute best way to have them is after spending 10 hours in the backyard smoker, very slowly coaxed along to tender greatness! Ribs can be done eight ways to Sunday. You can oven them, grill them, smoke them, any way you do it is fine, but the key always is low and slow.

Pork ribs while tasty are fairly tough customers when raw.  They require a long slow cook to break down the tissue to tender. Ribs also have a membrane type tissue on the back side of the rack that should be removed before marinating or cooking. It is tough, not tasty, and will not allow the full flavour and texture of the ribs to come through if left on. You can easily pull it off with a sharp knife to raise the edge of the membrane, and then pull it off with your hand.

Baby back ribs (a.k.a. loin ribs, back ribs, or Canadian back ribs) are taken from the top of the rib cage between the spine and the spare ribs, below the loin muscle.  “Baby” indicates the cuts are from market weight hogs, rather than sows. They have meat between the bones and on top of the bones, and are shorter, curved, and sometimes meatier than spare ribs. The rack is shorter at one end, due to the natural tapering of a pig’s rib cage. A rack of back ribs contains a minimum of 8 ribs but can include up to 13 ribs, depending on how it has been prepared by the butcher. A typical commercial rack is 10-13 bones. If there are fewer than 10 bones, butchers call them “cheater racks”.

But maybe you don’t have a smoker, or the time to let your backyard grill burn off 6 hours of propane on low. Let your slow-cooker do the heavy lifting!

What You’ll Need:

½ rack of ribs for each person served

Dry rub or dry spice (your choice)

Sauce (again, your choice)

Rub ribs down with your favourite spice and allow them to spend the night in the fridge. 6-7 hours before service, place the ribs, on their side inside of your slow cooker crock. Put the lid on, and cook on low. Every hour or so, remove any fat that has rendered off. You can lightly baste the ribs with it, but you don’t want to boil them in the pork fat! The ribs will be ready when the meat easily separates from the bone and is fork tender. Depending on the temperature of your slow cooker,

Remove your ribs from the slow cooker crock, and finish them either on your backyard grill, or in the oven under the broiler. This is when you want to sauce them up. BBQ sauce has so much sugar, you’ll burn them to a crisp if you try and use sauce any earlier. Baked beans and mashed potatoes go REALLY well with this meal! Enjoy!

Dan’s Slow Cooker Ribs

Who doesn’t love slow cooked pork back ribs? Baby back baby! The absolute best way to have them is after spending 10 hours in the backyard smoker, very slowly coaxed along to tender greatness! Ribs can be done eight ways to Sunday. You can oven them, grill them, smoke them, any way you do it is fine, but the key always is low and slow.

Pork ribs while tasty are fairly tough customers when raw. They require a long slow cook to break down the tissue to tender. Ribs also have a membrane type tissue on the back side of the rack that should be removed before marinating or cooking. It is tough, not tasty, and will not allow the full flavour and texture of the ribs to come through if left on. You can easily pull it off with a sharp knife to raise the edge of the membrane, and then pull it off with your hand.

Baby back ribs (a.k.a. loin ribs, back ribs, or Canadian back ribs) are taken from the top of the rib cage between the spine and the spare ribs, below the loin muscle. “Baby” indicates the cuts are from market weight hogs, rather than sows. They have meat between the bones and on top of the bones, and are shorter, curved, and sometimes meatier than spare ribs. The rack is shorter at one end, due to the natural tapering of a pig’s rib cage. A rack of back ribs contains a minimum of 8 ribs but can include up to 13 ribs, depending on how it has been prepared by the butcher. A typical commercial rack is 10-13 bones. If there are fewer than 10 bones, butchers call them “cheater racks”.

But maybe you don’t have a smoker, or the time to let your backyard grill burn off 6 hours of propane on low. Let your slow-cooker do the heavy lifting!

What You’ll Need:

½ rack of ribs for each person served

Dry rub or dry spice (your choice)

Sauce (again, your choice)

Rub ribs down with your favourite spice and allow them to spend the night in the fridge. 6-7 hours before service, place the ribs, on their side inside of your slow cooker crock. Put the lid on, and cook on low. Every hour or so, remove any fat that has rendered off. You can lightly baste the ribs with it, but you don’t want to boil them in the pork fat! The ribs will be ready when the

Dan’s Slow Cooker Ribs

Who doesn’t love slow cooked pork back ribs? Baby back baby! The absolute best way to have them is after spending 10 hours in the backyard smoker, very slowly coaxed along to tender greatness! Ribs can be done eight ways to Sunday. You can oven them, grill them, smoke them, any way you do it is fine, but the key always is low and slow.

Pork ribs while tasty are fairly tough customers when raw.  They require a long slow cook to break down the tissue to tender. Ribs also have a membrane type tissue on the back side of the rack that should be removed before marinating or cooking. It is tough, not tasty, and will not allow the full flavour and texture of the ribs to come through if left on. You can easily pull it off with a sharp knife to raise the edge of the membrane, and then pull it off with your hand.

Baby back ribs (a.k.a. loin ribs, back ribs, or Canadian back ribs) are taken from the top of the rib cage between the spine and the spare ribs, below the loin muscle.  “Baby” indicates the cuts are from market weight hogs, rather than sows. They have meat between the bones and on top of the bones, and are shorter, curved, and sometimes meatier than spare ribs. The rack is shorter at one end, due to the natural tapering of a pig’s rib cage. A rack of back ribs contains a minimum of 8 ribs but can include up to 13 ribs, depending on how it has been prepared by the butcher. A typical commercial rack is 10-13 bones. If there are fewer than 10 bones, butchers call them “cheater racks”.

But maybe you don’t have a smoker, or the time to let your backyard grill burn off 6 hours of propane on low. Let your slow-cooker do the heavy lifting!

What You’ll Need:

½ rack of ribs for each person served

Dry rub or dry spice (your choice)

Sauce (again, your choice)

Rub ribs down with your favourite spice and allow them to spend the night in the fridge. 6-7 hours before service, place the ribs, on their side inside of your slow cooker crock. Put the lid on, and cook on low. Every hour or so, remove any fat that has rendered off. You can lightly baste the ribs with it, but you don’t want to boil them in the pork fat! The ribs will be ready when the meat easily separates from the bone and is fork tender. Depending on the temperature of your slow cooker,

Remove your ribs from the slow cooker crock, and finish them either on your backyard grill, or in the oven under the broiler. This is when you want to sauce them up. BBQ sauce has so much sugar, you’ll burn them to a crisp if you try and use sauce any earlier. Baked beans and mashed potatoes go REALLY well with this meal! Enjoy!

meat easily separates from the bone and is fork tender. Depending on the temperature of your slow cooker,

Remove your ribs from the slow cooker crock, and finish them either on your backyard grill, or in the oven under the broiler. This is when you want to sauce them up. BBQ sauce has so much sugar, you’ll burn them to a crisp if you try and use sauce any earlier. Baked beans and mashed potatoes go REALLY well with this meal! Enjoy!

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Dan’s Cream Cheese Pie

Written on March 3, 2011 by chef.dan in What's Hot in the Kitchen

We did this one a long time ago on Hot In The Kitchen, and after making one on the weekend I figured it would be a great time to bring it back! I got a brand new niece a few days ago, and I made up a big meal for my sister and her husband to put in the fridge to have when the didn’t feel like cooking. One of the dishes that I put in there was my cream cheese pie. My sister loves it, and after making it, I wanted to share the recipe with you again!

The great thing about this recipe is that you don’t have to go near an oven. It’s a cold, no-bake pie, that is VERY easy to make.

What you’ll need to make a 9 X 13 pan of cream cheese pie:

For the crust:

½ box of graham crackers crushed into crumbs

1/3 cup of melted butter

For the filling:

1 -  500ml carton of 35% whipping cream

2 bricks of cream cheese

¾ cup icing sugar

2 tbsp vanilla extract

Use a rolling pin or some other hard object and crush graham crackers into crumbs. In a bowl, mix with the melted butter. Use your hand to really mix the butter in well. The crumbs should feel a little damp, but not wet. Grease your 9 X13 glass pan and press the crumb mixture into the bottom. Pat it down and smooth it out. Place it in the freezer for about 30 minutes to set.

Make the filling by first whipping the cream. Beat 35% whipping cream with the vanilla and sugar until it sets up. Set aside. Whip cream cheese next, slowly adding the whipped cream back in, one scoop at a time. Beat until smooth.

Pour filling on top of crumb crust, and place back into the freezer for 30 minutes until it is firm.

Top with your favourite pie filling. Cherry, blueberry and raspberry go well! Keep it in the fridge until service!

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