What's "Cooking" in Tiki Central?

My niece (who's old enough to know better) challenged me to make a potato themed dinner (sorry, crappy cell phone pics)

Mashed potato bar (in the martini glass), French Fried Potatos, Potato Salad, Ham & Cheese Potato Cassarole, Potato Latkes (pancakes) with sourcream and green onions

And for desert, Maple Pecan Potato Cheesecake garnished with a Chocolate Dipped Potato Chip. Potatos were diced small, fried in butter, carmelized with maple syrup and stirred in to the cheescake batter. The cheesecake was finished with a maple-pecan sauce.

That is alot of work to turn out those dishes, Mike
a weekend at Oasis didn't do you in enough?
still had enough energy to cook all day too!

MDM,

Potatos?

How about some Beer-Butt-Chicken, Tiki style!

DC

Wasn't that walking around Tiki Oasis?

Just threw some Chicken, Italian Sausage & a Pork Loin in the smoker
for some BBQ.....

ATP, now that's smoking!

Caught a Halibut for dinner.

Cooked it up Cajun style, blackened.

With a shrimp/hollandase topper

That included Asparagus, rice and fresh green beans.

DC

That sounds real tasty Dusty! my favorite way to prepare fish.

Went rock fishing on Friday at the Channel Islands and did well.

Decided to try something new, Red Snapper Veracruz style on the BBQ. Stuffed with herbs and spices.

Started with Lamb Pops and BBQ Shrimp.

Great dinner.

DC

Dusty, I will get the Cessna Skymaster in the air & pickup MDM, see you in time for dinner!

I just smoked a Pork Shoulder & a Beef Round roast for Taquitos & Tacos
which I have posted before, still tasty as Hell!

Mr Dustycajun have you made a Fish stock or a Veloute fish stock out of
these fish you catch?
I make these stocks and they are very good.
The only thing is I can't get fresh fish fins and heads you need for this.
But you would be able to make great stocks for stews, chowders ect with the fresh fish
you catch all the time.
These stocks can be frozen and used later as well.

I tried to make a fish stocks but the don't have a neck or wrists so they just wiggle loose :D

Good looking food here, I need to get cooking!

Buzzy bought a new deep fryer for his Chop so I wanted to try deep fried cheescake.

Made crustless cheesecake in a rectangle pan and cut it into chunks. Wrapped it in uncooked tortillas and used a little water to seal the edges. Made some plain, some with chocolate, and some with raspberry jam.

They were pretty tasty. They helped partially redeem me from the fact the my Donga Punch Sorbet failed to freeze! I don't know if I put too much rum in and it lowered the freezing point or if the freezer wasn't cold enough after the trip to San Diego?

Mike, that looks very yummy! The big thing down here this year at football games and fairs is deep fried honey buns...or as I like to call it "Cardiac Arrest".

In my continuing efforts to perfect the "Hamburger"
I submit this: Bacon Pepperjack Burger

Sauteed Onions, Shredded "Pepperjack" cheese & cooked "Applewood Smoked Bacon"
all folded into Sirloin Chuck, BBQed & topped with even more "Pepperjack"
on a toasted sesame seed bun.

Bacon AND Pepperjack - WINNER! WINNER!

I just if all the hype comes true about the pork shortage, bacon will be the upscale garnish of the future - like truffles or caviar are now :lol:

I've said before that my daughter and I are allergic to shrimp, crab, lobster, and crawfish. I pretend that I wouldn't like them anyway, that they are just big searoaches. But the truth is that they look really good. I had heard the monkfish is supposed to taste like lobster. It used to be know as "poor man's lobster" back before it got popular. Now at $20-25/lb, I think it cost more than lobster. I made some ceramic lobster tails a few years back and finally found some monkfish to cook in them. (sorry about the blurry cell phone pic)

Baked with just a little garlic salt and served with lemon and butter it was pretty good. Also made some monkfish ceviche and monkfish tacos. Did it taste like lobster? How would I know? I've never tasted it :lol: Others at the table said that the taste was remarkably like lobster but the texture was not the same. Was it worth $25/lb? I'm not a big seafood fan, it was OK but frankly I'd rather have 3 pounds of steak at $8/lb instead of a pound of monkfish at $24/lb :D

EDIT - in case you haven't seen one before, monkfish are an ugly bastard! DC, you catch any of these?

When you come across a big kettle of crazy, sometimes it's best not to stir it
Pirate Ship Tree House

[ Edited by: MadDogMike 2012-10-13 21:24 ]

:) :) :)

MDM,

I have had monkfish before, and I can affirm that it does taste like lobster. Never caught one, as they live in the Atlantic on the east coast.

Funny timing on your post, I went Lobster hoop netting on Friday night and bagged a couple of bugs.

BBQ Lobster for dinner last night with potatoes Au Gratin and steamed broccoli. Tasted like monkfish.

I like your lobster dishes.

DC

"Tasted like monkfish" :lol:

I'm sorry, guys, but THIS is a lobster!

Oh yes it it BK...being from Maine....I agree. Truly the BEST!

Well you "East Coasters" do know how to do good seafood
just wish I could understand those accents, though :lol:

Funny, I was talking to Kirby last week & I said, "Wintah", three times before he figured out I meant "Winter"! :D

Opulence I has it, Welcome Comrades to the peoples dinner
I give you Beef Stroganoff...

Great looking food DC and ATP. Stroganoff is one of my wife's wonderful dishes. And OK ATP, Gawd Dam It, I'll stay outta your yaaad. :)

Boy, it's been a while...

Here's some facon and eggs with tomatoes and sautéed mushrooms, onions and arugula.

Fried tofu and greens with Japanese style broth.

Last Sunday was a typical cold and mega rainy Wisconsin fall day....which screams for "comfort food". My wife's homemade chicken and dumplings w/ "Northwoods" (a versatile Penzy's spice mix) roasted chicken breasts and fresh veggies in the trusty Le Creuset. Satisfying and not $. DC, I am very envious of your fishing excursions and the awesome fresh dishes that they become. Hell, either Coast...fresh fish rocks.

[ Edited by: Or Got Rum? 2012-10-18 12:17 ]

OGR,

Nice looking comfort food! It has been 80 degrees here in Santa Barbara lately, so not quite the weather for that yet.

Fresh fish is great, but dry-rubbed BBQ Memphis style ribs with a Mustard/Vinegar mop sauce are good to. This weekend's treat.

DC

Looks great Dusty!

Sweet ribs DC..mouthwatering indeed. That's funny, I use mustard also...prior to rubbing. Do you make your own rub? Kim (my wife) has developed a super rub recipe. Anyway, a little warmer here and time to honor the Jewish Deli....the "New Yorker"....lean Pastrami, 1/2 of a split grilled all beef (we like Klement's---Hebrew National or Vienna Beef work well also) hot dog, Swiss Cheese, Broccoli Cole Slaw, and homemade Russian dressing...all on grilled "Breadsmith" Rye. A truly Awesome sandwich combo. OGR

OGR,

We get our dry rub recipe out of The Barbecue Bible by Steven Raichlen. The mustard/vinegar sauce is mopped on the ribs once they are cooking. Great looking sandwich, love the Jewish deli food myself.

Now, back to the "it tastes like lobster" theme. We catch a fish out here called the California Sheepshead. It has big cruncher teeth and feeds on shrimp and crustaceans, which can make the meat taste a bit like lobster.

Got three of them this weekend and cooked them up with cajun fries and salad.

DC

^
Yum, yum, yum...and yum!
I need to try some of your catch of the day one of these days.

Soyrizo breakfast!

Shrimp and crispy tofu on longkou vermicelli with some veggies.
Almost forgot the part I made....peanut butter teriyaki sauce.

[ Edited by: Tonga Tom 2012-11-04 15:22 ]

Great photos Tom.

Linguine with red clam sauce (did I mention the Bacon!).

Served with Whole Foods garlic cheese bread.

DC

Red Clam Sauce with bacon? Hmmmm... maybe chopped smoked oysters could be used also instead of bacon?
Looks good DC

Tom and Dusty, Very tasty looking entrees...."makes your mouth waaatttter"-Remember the old 7-up commercial? No? Oh well. The weather again calls for a soul soothing special....Plaza III Kansas City Steak Soup, from the 1962 Country Club Plaza culinary icon's original recipe. I'm sure 8Ft and Silverline have had this before. OGR

Chicken Curry and Cinnamon Syrup (not to be served together :D )

Stuff for Santa to bring to get your kitchen cookin.
This one is for you Mike. You could add smoke flavor to anything.
Even rum.
See it in action here.
Smoked bourbon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wQ5JhbsF-g
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE7uNQkipYM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6Y-2OpgF6A

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••**•
MERRY CHRISTMAS!

[ Edited by: tikiskip 2012-12-13 16:29 ]

Very cool TikiShip, I'll have to check that out.

Tonight was the annual Christmas bash my brother and I do for family and friends, this year we decided to do Italian. We took the block from last year's pig roasting oven and made a wood fired pizza oven.

Then we stated making food for 50 people in roaster ovens

Stuffed Shells (Italian Sausage, Mozarella, Ricotta, Parsley, Marinara Sauce), Bow Tie Pasta (Pasta, Alfredo Sauce, Mozarrela, Polsa Kielbasa, Artichoke Hearts, Bell Pepper, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Pepper Flakes), and Lasagna

Chicken Parmegan, Salad with ALL the fixings (marinated mozarrela, salami, peppercinis, etc), Italian vegetables, bread with dipping oil & vinegar. We made 10 wood fired pizza with lots of combinations of toppings (sausage, ham, chicken, salami, pepperoni, pineapple, bell peppers, onions, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, olives, mushrooms, etc)

And my daughter hand made cannolis and tiramisu. (Costco made the cream puffs)

I ate like a PIG!!!! My belly is so full I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight! :lol:
Now to come up with a theme for next year :D

Thank God for Italian food! looks great Mike.

Mad Dog,

Way to make double use of the pig roaster, great idea. That spread looks great.

At the Dustycajun household we do fish smoking for the holidays for Christmas gifts. This years batch included Albacore, Yellowfin Tuna and Bluefin Tuna bellies.

Slow smoked in the Big Chief with a maple syrup, Soy Sauce, Ginger glaze.

To be served with crackers, cream cheese and...

Jalapeno Jelly.

DC

This ain't as spectacular as home smoked fish, but it was the hit of our holidays.

I wanted to try something different with deviled eggs, so I tossed the regular recipe out and just experimented.

The final "recipe" uses feta cheese, greek yogurt, french mustard, garlic roasted in olive oil, and a generous dash of hot sauce sneakily placed under the green-and-red pimento on top of each piece - like the wasabi dab on sushi.

It doesn't look like much but I had to make 2 batches cause people went crazy over the first one...

Cammo,

I'm a big fan of the Deviled Eggs, those look and sound great!

We tried something a little different for Christmas eve dinner, Spanish Paella.

Chicken thighs, Linguisa Sausage, saffron rice.

Topped with fresh Mussels and Clams.

Everybody loved it, a new tradition here.

DC

Looks great Dusty!

Oh, I love paella! Great looking fish and eggs too. My next post here should be sushi!

We had our week of Italian food, that I like to call "Tiki Italiano"
sure what does it have to do with Tiki? well we ate it in the "Atomic Tiki Lounge" so there!

Started off the week by making Italian Meatball's

Gotta have the Garlic Bread with that!

Spaghetti & Meatball's, hey whatsa matter you!

Next night it's Bow-tie Pasta "Farfalle" with Pesto & Chicken Sausage

Then we end the week with a classic Meat Lasagna

I hope this falls under some kind of pasta diet or we gonna have a heart attack!
Gratzi for looking.

Now thatsa lotsa pasta! Those meatballs look great, ATP. We had Chicken carbonara last night.

Some foodie friends twisted our arms over the holidays to host a Mele Kalikimaka dinner part. The menu.

Some exotic ingredients.

Started off with old-school Chinese spare ribs.

Then home made Lumpia Rolls (like egg roles but better)

Rock Fish katsu

The Kalua Pork slow cooked in Banana leaves.

Served on Hawaiian rolls

Sides included fried rice with Portuguese sausage and Hawaiian-style Macaroni Salad (from L & L)

A full plate!

The bar.

Surf Room Mai Tais.

It was fun!

DC