Double Deckers and Grown up Kool Aid

This long election campaign season has me looking for quick stuff to eat and drink in between campaigning for my favorite candidates. I absolutely despise fast food. But in this day and age, sometimes it is a necessity.

Thinking about fast food got me to thinking about some childhood comfort foods that I still fall back on, on long weekends when I don't feel like cooking.

My mom still serves double decker sandwiches and pop (soda) if you're grown or kool aid, if you're a kid. A double decker is what the rest of the world calls a club sandwich. It's made of three slices of bread and stuffed with what ever....meat, cheese, lettuce...you get the idea.

Mom made ham and egg double deckers and here in Cincinnati, you could go to any deli and get one. It's a staple around here. But when I grew up and tried to order one in another city, I learned that I had to be more specific. I couldn't just say bring me a ham and egg double decker.

When I did that, the waitress gave me a sandwich with boiled ham, that was okay, but the egg was fried. Here in Cincinnati, the egg is hard boiled and sliced. You gotta specify exactly what you want when out of town. Cincinnati's got many idiosyncrasies that don't translate to the rest of the country.

Now that I'm grown, I've also dispensed with the pop and kool aid, substituting a nice glass of wine instead. I still sometimes use a half dill pickle and some potato chips as my side veggie though.

The wine I like best with my double decker is a german kabinett, usually from the mosel valley. Kabinetts are first harvest wines and not as sweet as spatlese, which is the second harvest. Kabinetts are usually called table wine. I think they're quite good for daily drinking. They pair easily with most food. Kabinetts are not too expensive either. I've got one for this weekend that cost me 19.99, but I've had others that were good, for as little as 9.99.

So when you're feeling lazy about cooking try this: ham and egg double decker w/white wine, your choice.

RECIPE

2-3 slices of ham, your choice in flavor
3 slices bread, toasted
1-2 hard boiled eggs, sliced
tomato
lettuce
mayo or miracle whip or your favorite spread


You're making a sandwich now, take a piece of toast spread mayo, layer egg slices to cover bread from crust to crust
put second piece of bread on top of eggs, spread mayo, layer tomato, lettuce, meat
take third piece of bread, complete the sandwich

Now my mom salt and peppers her eggs, I don't
My sister likes onion on hers, I don't
I have had some people put a slice of cheese on it...sometimes it's okay..but then I have a tendency to leave off the meat and just use the veggies, eggs and cheese

your choice!

Salud!

Bordeaux and Bird

The buzz in the wine world these days is the 2005 Bordeaux. Bordeaux is the rolls royce of wines, very expensive, very collectible, made in France. They can be laid down or cellared for up to 20 years. I've got one in house that was bottled in 1953. The drinking window on this Chateau La Fleur Pomerol is from the year 2000 to 2010. I plan to pop the cork real soon.

This 2005 is being touted as the best in the last 50 years. I tasted it recently. It's okay. I have to be honest, I don't like young red wines, too much bite. I don't drink beaujolais at all. I prefer smoothness in my grape. The older the better, if it's red. This was okay, it will definitely be better in a few years. I tasted cherries, mainly. It was good. So I will recommend this.

I paired it with some grilled turkey. I have an old friend who turned me on to turkey on the grill and I have to admit, that I'm hooked. It's really the only way to fix and eat turkey. So I'm giving you my recipe. It's simple, cause I don't like hard to prepare recipes. I wish I lived in an area of the country where I could grill everyday. I do grill in the wintertime on those rare warm winter days, when it great to get outside...Try this...and...grill some veggies...corn, tomatoes, mushrooms...your choice...



Classic Grilled Turkey

1		oven-ready turkey (select size to fit your grill)
1		tablespoon oil
		Salt and pepper
		Herbs, rub, or seasoning to taste

Rinse turkey and pat dry. Turn wings back to hold neck skin in place. Return legs to tucked position. Brush turkey with oil. Season to taste, inside and out.

Place turkey, breast side up, in a roast holder set inside a large heavy-gauge foil pan. Place in center of cooking grate. Cook 11 to 13 minutes per pound to an internal temperature of 180º F in the thigh and 170ºF in the breast. Remove turkey from grill and let stand 15 minutes before carving.

Makes 4oz skinless portion servings.

Note: To collect drippings for making gravy, pour a little water into foil pan. Replenish water as needed to keep drippings from burning. Remove pan from under turkey about 30 minutes before bird should be done and make gravy. (Continue cooking turkey in the center of the cooking grate)

*thank you Weber grill company

© 2008 Jo Anne Moore, JAM Publications

Pinot, Merlot...It's All Red

The change in season has gotten me started on drinking red wines. This year, I've kicked off my red season with pinot noir, or an occasional merlot thrown in for good measure. I'm not a big cabernet sauvignon drinker, preferring french burgundies when I choose to do some serious slurping. Cabernet is the little brother of french bordeaux which I save for special occasions.

The pinot noirs and merlots are softer than the cabernets, sometimes reminding me of black cherries or chocolate covered bourbon cherries. They go down smoother and the price is right, with or without food. I've been working my way through Australia, lately, and have really come to like Alice White. In addition to being tight little wines, they are also wonderful on the purse. My faves usually come in under ten bucks. I would spend more for Alice, but it's usually not necessary.

Another Australian brand that I would personally recommend is Black Opal, choose your type. Most are below fifteen bucks, and many under ten.

After choosing my pinot, I would pair it with something like Turkey Lasagna. I love lasagna. I'm trying to find recipes to use turkey instead of red meat. This recipe fills the bill. I originally used it for a dinner party, hence the high number of servings. Make the recipe, eat some, freeze some. In this economic climate, left overs are good....

Recipe: Turkey Lasagna

Servings: 16 Preparation Time: 20 min. Cooking Time: 65 min.

Ingredients:

2 Lbs. ground turkey 1 medium onion\cooked, finely chopped 1 tsp. rosemary 1 tsp. tarragon 1/4 Lbs. unsalted butter 1/2 cup all purpose flour 2 cup chicken stock 1-1/4 cups skim milk 3/4 cup dry white wine 1-1/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese 12 lasagne noodle 2 cup lowfat cottage cheese

Cooking Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F. Heat a heavy nonstick skillet or flameproof casserole over medium high heat. Saute ground turkey and onion about 5 minutes, stirring to break up lumps of meat, until turkey is browned. Remove from heat and discard excess liquid. Stir in rosemary, tarragon, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium low heat. Whisk in flour and cook 2 minutes, stirring, without letting mixture brown. Whisk in stock, milk and wine. Increase heat to medium high and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat to low and simmer 3 minutes, whisking often. Stir in 1 cup Parmesan cheese. Set sauce aside. Cook lasagne noodles in a large pan of boiling water 8 minutes, or until al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water, and drain again. Cover bottom of a lightly buttered 9 x 13 inches baking dish with a thin layer of sauce. Arrange a single layer of 4 slightly overlapping lasagne noodles over it. Cover with half of turkey mixture. Spoon on 1 cup cottage cheese, then spoon on another third of sauce. Arrange another layer of noodles in dish. Cover with remaining turkey mixture and cottage cheese. Spoon on half of remaining sauce. Top with a final layer of noodles, then cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan cheese over top. (Dish can be prepared to this point; cover and refrigerated for 1 day before baking.) Bake about 50 minutes, until lasagne is bubbling and top is lightly browned. Let stand about 10 minutes before serving. If freezing cooked food, divide into freezer/oven-proof containers in the amounts you will use at one time. Cool as quickly as possible to retain freshness. (Dairy, egg and meat based dishes should cool in refrigerator.) Cover tightly and place in freezer for up to 3 months. Reheating options: Place frozen food in oven and turn on heat to 375° F. Bake about 1 hour, or until bubbly. Or, transfer food to a covered microwave-safe container and heat on high setting until bubbly. (USDA recommends reheating meats to 165° F to destroy any bacteria.)

Per Serving: calories 243, fat 12.8g, calories from fat 47%, protein 18.5g, cholesterol 66.4mg, dietary fiber 0.5g *thanks Nubella! © 2008 Jo Anne Moore, JAM Publications