The Real KPK

Hey Everyone! I miss you and I miss my KPK blog, although I have been spending a lot of time in my real KPK fo-rizzle. I will try & update you by recapping my cooking adventures since my last post, which, by the way, I'm still licking my wounds from having been beat out by PB & J quesadillas in the Macy's contest. WT? Actually, the dude who won first place did have a really great video. He was the unemployed guy from Boston who made the tilapia. Not sure how his food tasted but the video quality was excellent. It was polished and professional. The 9 runner up winners, on the other hand, were kind of a mixed bag. I'll live. I don't think they even showed Tyler Florence my video entries. I'm sure they didn't. LOL. Anyway, I appreciate all of your support and everyone's great comments on the Macy's site, including those from my sister, Teri and all of her multiple personalities. Love you guys.

Here are some recent KPK adventures . . . Fried artichoke hearts ala Vito DePalma. This method is still being fine-tuned for greatness to achieve the identical final product as my maternal grandfather, Vito. Emily is coaching me in artichoke handling and etiquette (or is that eat-i-quette)?

Salads galore. Mediterranean carrot salad is a refreshing and simple combo of shredded carrot, thinly sliced radishes and chopped parsley with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and a swirl of olive oil. Talk about color!

Does anyone out there love boiled eggs as much as I do? How come no one ever talks about the simplicity and perfection of a boiled egg? I love eggs prepared in a gazillion ways but there is something so wonderful about a medium cooked egg with a golden, oozy yolk that needs nothing but a sprinkling of salt to really make it delectable. When we were little kids, my mom frequently made soft boiled eggs for us. I remember the little porcelain pedestal egg cup that would pristinely hold the egg and my mom would crack and peel the top half for us, sprinkle on a little salt, and serve us buttered, toasted white bread, which she cut into perfectly sized strips so that we could dip them into the warm and delicious yolk. Thanks Mom! Happy Mother's Day, by the way, and thank you for all of the amazing meals and warm memories which have given us so much happiness and appreciation. We have all learned by your loving and nurturing examples of how to be an outstanding home cook, making the most out of the most simple. Bravo Amelia!

I love to top all kinds of salads with a warm boiled egg or two. Sometimes I'll open them but just as often, I like to give the guest the pleasure of opening, salting, and enjoying the whole egg in all of it's glory as part of the appeal of the meal. Large eggs are only around 70-75 calories each, right? How can that be bad?

I posted a note previously about how much I love French style potato salads. They're luscious and hearty and mouth watering. Favorite ingredients are: boiled waxy potatoes like red, yellow, fingerling or "gemstone", sweet onions, green beans, Kalamata olives and tomatoes. Excellent with champagne vinegar or white balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and Dijon mustard. I also add some canned Italian tuna packed in olive oil and a few boiled eggs for a more complete meal. Delicious with some French baguette and glass of wine. That's what I'm talkin' about.

Also featured in KPK at home in the last month or so . . . , Michael Chiarello's "Forever Roasted Pork", (here's a shot of it before it goes in for a long, long, roast..........this pork shoulder (butt portion - I still don't know how you get a butt out of a shoulder), is split open like a book and filled with an aromatic blend of sauteed onion, garlic and sage, then rubbed with a homemade toasted spice rub of ground fennel and coriander seeds, crushed red pepper flakes, California chili powder, kosher salt, and cinnamon. It was tender, juicy and way way better on the next day.

I also whipped up a huge pot of tomato sauce with pork spareribs and homemade meatballs plus more addictive roasted tomatoes.

I roasted a whole turkey breast on the grill and baked a batch of homemade sourdough and baby bella stuffing on the side. A follow-up to the "grill-roasted" turkey breast was a creamy and spicy turkey salad for Mark's lunch. Cut-up turkey breast, finely chopped celery and sweet onion all blended together with smoky hot chipotle mayonnaise. The salad was served up on a crusty baguette with crisp romaine leaves right from the heart and some Mexican chihuahua cheese. Damn good lunch. That sammy was packed up in a brown bag with a
sweet and fresh fruit salad of strawberries, red grapes and blood

orange segments.

Recent adventures also included fried scallops and cod, ruby grapefruit salad, mushroom risotto, plus an outrageously delicious Steakhouse Night with pan-fried filets and homemade onion rings.

Until my next post, keep cooking and having fun. Send me a note about what you're up to and any ideas, suggestions, requests or comments.

As always, I want you to feel ever comfortable in Katie's Passion Kitchen.

So long for now and Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful moms out there who spend much of their time keeping their families happily nourished. God Bless You!

Love, Katie