Crispy Oven Fried Catfish

Crispy Oven Fried Catfish is perfect for lunch or dinner.  It's full of flavor and so crispy you won't leave a crumb behind.  My family loves fresh green beans and potatoes, so I decided to spice things up a little with a wine butter and garlic sauce for the beans and thinly slice new potatoes to fry a few chips.  

Crispy Oven Fried Catfish

Recipe:

2 Catfish Filets

1 Tablespoon of Mayonaise

1/2 Teaspoon of Dijon Mustard

1/2 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1/2 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

1 Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

1 Teaspoon of Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice

2 Tablespoons of Fresh Chopped Parsley

Pan Spray

Breading For Fish

1 Cup of Panko Bread Crumbs

1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1/2 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

1 Pinch of Cayenne Pepper

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 Degrees

1. Combine Panko Bread Crumbs, Salt, Pepper and Cayenne in a separate dish.

2. Combine Mayonaise, Dijon Mustard, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Lemon Juice and Parsley in a bowl.  Spread the sauce on both sides of the filets.  Place the filets in the Panko Bread Crumb mixture and flip to fully coat each side.  Lay each filet on a pan sprayed wire rack.  Lightly spray each filet with the pan spray.

3. Place in oven on top rack and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until light golden brown.

Sautéed Green Beans

Recipe:

2 to 3 Cups of Fresh Green Beans

1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1/2 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

1/2 Teaspoon of Red Pepper Flakes

1/3 Cup of Your Favorite White Wine

1 Teaspoon of Fresh Chopped Garlic

1/4 Cup of Thinly Sliced Sweet Onions

1 Teaspoon of Butter

1 Tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add your green beans for 5 to 7 minutes. Fill a large bowl with 2 cups of ice and 1 cup of cold water to make an ice bath for your beans.  This will help to keep them nice and crisp and stop the cooking process.  After 5 to 7 minutes of boiling your beans, remove them from the pot with a spoon and place them in your ice bath for a few minutes.  Drain the water and ice off of the beans then place them to the side.

2. Place a skillet on a medium high heat then add the Olive Oil, Onions, Salt and pepper to sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Next add your chopped garlic and sauté for an additional 2 to 3 minutes.  Reduce the heat to medium , pour your wine into the skillet and cook until the sauce has reduced down to half the amount. This should only take about 5 to 7 minutes.

3. Place your green beans and red pepper flakes into the skillet and toss them in the reduced sauce.

Potato Chips

Recipe:

4 New Potatoes Thinly Sliced

1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

2 Cups of Vegetable Oil

Directions:

1. Heat oil to a temperature of 400 Degrees 

2. Thinly slice your potatoes with a mandolin if possible.  Place them on a towel to dry them.

3. Once your oil is heated to 400 Degrees place your potatoes one at a time into the oil making sure not to crowd the pot.  Fry them for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oil and place on paper towels or napkins to drain.  This is the perfect time to add some of the salt and pepper for flavor.  If you're not going to eat them right away, you can place them in a 200 Degree oven to keep warm and crisp.

Try my recipe and come back to share your experience with us.... Enjoy!

Citrus Water Blend

"Citrus Water Blend"
Spruce up water with some of your favorite fruits. Kids will love drinking water and so will you smile emoticon

Recipe:
1 Lemon
1 Orange
1 Peach
3 to 4 Blackberries
1 Gallon of your favorite Water
A couple twigs of Fresh Mint

Direction:
Thinly slice your fruit and place in the bottom of your favorite pitcher. Fill with water and refrigerate for a few hours and even better overnight. 

I used distilled water, but you can also use purified. Here is some additional healthy water options.  http://www.endlesswaters.com/distilled-or-purified-water

Try my recipe and come back to share your experience with us... Enjoy!

Mom's Pound Cake

How many of us remember "Mom's Pound Cake"... It was just perfect!  So moist and tasty you had to have a couple of slices.... and it was perfect with a cup of morning coffee.

Recipe:

4 Sticks of Room Temperature Unsalted Butter
2 Cups of Sugar
1 1/2 Tsps of Vanilla
6 Extra Large Eggs
3 Cups of Sifted Cake Flour

Glaze: 2 Cups of Confection Sugar, 1/2 Cup of Salted Sweet Cream Butter, 1/2 tsp of Vanilla 

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325. Use Crisco shortening to grease your pan then lightly dust it with flour.

Blend butter and sugar for about 15 minutes until light and fluffy. Add eggs 2 at a time alternating with each cup of flour. Final step is to add your flavoring. It's also good with Almond Flavoring.  Do not over mix. 

Glaze:
Add melted butter to your confection sugar. Once blended well add your vanilla. 

Bake for 1hour and 10 to 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for about 2 minutes.  Remove from bundt cake pan and place on a cake plate.  Stick straw size holes into top of cake where glaze can fill each hole then pour the remaining glaze over the entire top of your cake.  Enjoy!

Try my mom's recipe then come back and share your experience with us!

French Toast

Recipe:

1 loaf of Challah Bread (Slice to desired thickness)

2 Cans of Evaporated Milk

1 Tablespoon of Cinnamon

3/4 Cup of Sugar

4 Eggs

2 Teaspoons of Vanilla

1/2 of stick of Salted Butter ( Unsalted is an option)

1/2 Cup of Powdered Sugar (To Dust the Tops)

1/2 Cup of Maple Syrup or Honey

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.

2. Slice Challah Bread to your desired thickness.  Place each slice in wet ingredient making sure to fully coat on both sides.  It's important to soak wet ingredients into each slice.

3. Heat a non-stick skillet of griddle to a medium high heat and coat pan with salted butter. Unsalted butter is an option, I prefer salted.  It adds a great balance to each slice.

4. Place each slice of the coated Challah Bread into the skillet or on the griddle and fry to a golden brown on each side.  

5. Remove from skillet and plate, making sure to dust each piece with powdered sugar.

Tip: Pour powdered sugar through a sieve, sifter or small shaker to dust the French Toast.

Try my recipe and come back to share your experience with us....Enjoy!

Let's Grill Shrimp

Recipe:

1 lb of Shrimp (Medium to Large)

1 Tablespoon of Fresh Chopped Parsley

1/8 Teaspoon of Cayene Pepper

1/2 Teaspoon of Black Pepper

1 Teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1 Fresh Squeezed Lemon

2 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Directions:

1. Peel and Devein Shrimp.

2. Combine the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl.  Add shrimp, cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes. 

3. Heat up your grill on a medium high heat.  You may need to use a non stick spray on your grill pan.  Add shrimp to heated grill and cook for 3 minutes on each side. Remove from grill and enjoy on your favorite salad, in a taco, served on top of your favorite pasta or just eat them one by one...Yum!

Try my recipe then come back and share your experience with us....Enjoy!