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Showing posts with label bad movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bad movies. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Cinema, Cuisine and Cocktail : "The Woman in Red"

In honor of Rock the Red Pump™ day (coming up in two short days!), I decided to put together a very very special Cinema, Cuisine and Cocktail post. When thinking of what movie to use, it didn't take me very long to go to the 80s comedy, "The Woman in Red": Gene Wilder, Gilda Radner, Kelly LeBrock, GREAT soundtrack by Stevie Wonder.... hilarious movie!!! While it's admittedly not a movie synonymous with HIV/AIDs prevention,(It's about a married man trying like hell to cheat on his wife! lol) we can still enjoy the movie AND be aware!



The Ultimate Barbecued Chicken

Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence, Food Network

Ingredients

Brine:
2 quarts water
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, smashed with the side of a large knife
4 sprigs fresh thyme
6 chicken legs and thighs, still connected, bone in, skin on, about 10 ounces each

The Ultimate Barbecue Sauce:
1 slice bacon
1 bunch fresh thyme
Extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika if available
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

For the brine, in a mixing bowl combine the water, salt, sugar, garlic, and thyme. Transfer the brine to a 2-gallon sized re-sealable plastic bag. Add the chicken, close the bag and refrigerate 2 hours (if you've only got 15 minutes, that's fine) to allow the salt and seasonings to penetrate the chicken.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Wrap the bacon around the bunch of thyme and tie with kitchen twine so you have a nice bundle. Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the thyme and cook slowly 3 to 4 minutes to render the bacon fat and give the sauce a nice smoky taste. Add the onion and garlic and cook slowly without coloring for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, give the sauce a stir, and turn the heat down to low. Cook slowly for 20 minutes to meld the flavors. Once the sauce is done cooking, remove about 1 1/2 cups of the sauce and reserve for serving along side the chicken at the table. The rest of the barbecue sauce will be used for basing the legs.

Preheat oven 375 degrees F.

Preheat a grill pan or an outdoor gas or charcoal barbecue to a medium heat. Take a few paper towels and fold them several times to make a thick square. Blot a small amount of oil on the paper towel and carefully and quickly wipe the hot grates of the grill to make a nonstick surface. Take the chicken out of the brine, pat it dry on paper towels. Arrange the chicken pieces on the preheated grill and cook, turn once mid-way, and cook for a total of 10 minutes. Transfer the grill marked chicken to a cookie sheet and then place in the oven. Cook the chicken for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven and then brush liberally, coating every inch of the legs with the barbecue sauce and then return to the oven for 25 to 30 more minutes, basting the chicken for a second time half way through remaining cooking time. Serve with extra sauce.

Roasted Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes

Recipe courtesy of Life's Ambrosia

Ingredients

1 lb red potatoes, cleaned, scrubbed and cut into quarters
1 bulb roasted garlic (recipe follows), skin removed
1/4 cup half and half
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In large pot of water, boil the potatoes until a fork can be inserted and removed easily from the potatoes. About 10 minutes. Strain.
Return the potatoes to the pot add roasted garlic, half and half, butter and salt and pepper. Mash until potatoes are your desired consistency.

Roasted Garlic

You will need:

1 bulb garlic
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon lemon juice
kosher salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut 1/4 inch off the top of the bulb of garlic to expose the cloves beneath, but do not peel the garlic, you want to roast it in the skin. Place clove on a piece of aluminum foil, place butter on top, pour lemon juice over the garlic and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bring up all sides of aluminum foil and twist together to close. Cook for 60 minutes or until garlic cloves are soft and golden in color.

Roasted Red Pepper and Parmesan Biscuits

Recipe courtesy of Epicurious.com

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
a pinch of cayenne
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/3 cup finely chopped drained bottled roasted red peppers, patted dry
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons milk

Directions

In a bowl whisk together the flour, the baking powder, the salt, the cayenne, and a pinch of black pepper, add the butter, and blend the mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Add the roasted peppers, the Parmesan, and the milk and stir the mixture until it just forms a dough. Drop the dough in 6 mounds about 2 inches apart onto a buttered baking sheet and bake the biscuits in the middle of a preheated 425°F. oven for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they are golden and cooked through.

Red Rooster Cocktail

Recipe courtesy of I love Chicken Wings

Ingredients

1 1/4 ounces 151-proof rum
1/2 ounce crème de noyaux
6 ounces guava juice

Preparation

Splash of grenadine
Build in a collins glass with ice.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Cinema, Cuisine and Cocktail : "Rhinestone"


Okay, huddle up everybody... I am about to share a big secret: I LOOOOOOOOOVE this movie! LMAO

Rhinestone is one of those movies that intellectually you know is a) Dumb as hell. b) 0% believable (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is more based in reality!) and c) Obviously a huge income-tax write off for some Hollywood executives.... but still it makes you laugh!

While I don't own the movie (do they even have it on DVD?), I've seen it every single time I've managed to catch it on cable, and I always laugh hysterically (sometimes at the actual jokes in the movie.. but mostly at Sylvester Stallone's singing.)

As a way to come out of the bejeweled "Rhinestone" closet, I've decided to create a very special Cinema, Cuisine and Cocktail post in honor of the wonderfully ridiculous stinkburger of a film! It also served as a great challenge: A movie that pairs the Italian Stallion with the Queen of Dollywood? It had to be Italian cuisine... with a Soulful Southern influence. What in the barbecue cannoli hell kind of recipes could I possibly come up with? Fortunately, I was off to a great start when I went to my good friend (in my head) Paula "Hey Y'all" Deen.

Fried Ravioli with Marinara Cream Sauce

Recipe courtesy Paula "Hey Y'all" Deen, Food Network

Ingredients
9-ounce package frozen 4-cheese ravioli
2 cups ground pecans
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
Oil
Marinara Cream Sauce, recipe follows
Directions
Cook ravioli for 2 minutes. Place cooked ravioli on paper towels to drain; set aside.

Combine pecans and cheese in a shallow dish. Whisk together milk, eggs, salt and pepper in a bowl. Dip ravioli in egg mixture then dredge in pecan mixture. Pour oil to a depth of 1/2-inch in a skillet or Dutch oven; heat to 360 degrees F. Fry ravioli, in batches, 2 minutes on each side, or until golden. Drain on paper towels. Serve with Marinara Cream Sauce.

Marinara Cream Sauce:

1 1/2 cups prepared marinara sauce

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

In a large saucepan, combine sauce and cream. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

Yield: 2 cups

Cook Time: 2 to 3 minutes

Ease of preparation: easy

Neelys Baked Ziti

Recipe courtesy The Neelys, Food Network

Ingredients
Salt
1 pound ziti
1 pound hot Italian turkey sausage, casing removed
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
6 ounces pesto
15 ounces ricotta cheese
1 (9-ounce) package washed spinach
Butter, for baking dish
2 cups shredded mozzarella, plus more for topping
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan, plus more for topping
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add ziti and cook until al dente. Drain in a colander.

In a large skillet over medium heat, saute turkey sausage. Add onion and garlic and saute until the sausage is cooked through. Use your spoon to break up the sausage while it cooks. Add the can of diced tomatoes and pesto and let simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the ricotta cheese, spinach, Parmesan and mozzarella to a large bowl, and stir to combine.

Butter a 4-quart baking dish, add the cooked pasta, then sausage mixture and cheese mixture. Top with a sprinkling of mozzarella and Parmesan.

Bake until completely heated through and golden and crisp on top, about 20 minutes.

Bling Bling Cocktail (What's Rhinestone without the bling!?!)

Recipe Courtesy of Alex's Cocktail Recipes

Ingredients

2 chambord
1 cointreau
.25 lime juice
2.5 cranberry juice

Instructions

Mix all ingredients in a shaker with ice and shake. Pour into sugar rimmed cocktail glasses. And adorn glass with Apple slices.