10 Funny Quotes, Late Night Show Funnies, Spiritual Thought of the Day, Why Obama Deserves Nobel Peace Prize

Pomegranate Photo by geishaboy500 @ flickr

What's going on at some of the other blogs today:

This Weeks Roundup of Sunday Funnies - Biden's Nobel Hairpiece Prize

10 Funny Work Quotes for Monday Morning

What is the Simplest Good Spirituality and Why?

Everyone is Wondering What the Nobel Peace Prize Committee Saw in President Obama

Awesome Layered Venison with Bacon, Foie Gras, Apple Fries in Cognac Cream, Balsamic Pomegranate Reduction

From Denny: Louisiana is known as the Sportsman's Paradise. No wonder the food here is so good! Both hunters and fishermen are known as wonderful cooks here; just the average guy cooks well.

This week was a cause for food celebration and those who love to dine well. There was a cooking competition at the American Culinary Federation of Greater Baton Rouge’s 25th annual Culinary Classic and these folks pulled out all the stops on the fancy tasty food.

Today's recipe took the Best in Show top honors for the happy cash prize of $3,000. Scott McCue was the winner; he is the executive sous chef at Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton, Louisiana. He is a native of Arizona and has been working at the casino for thirteen years now. McCue says he "researches trends, tries different sauces and thinks about ingredient combinations in creating new dishes year-round. Competition focuses the effort, and it’s fun as well as challenging.”

Whether you have a hunter in your family or just want to try your hand at cooking low-fat high mineral dense venison this fall this is a gorgeous recipe to try. All of these layer recipes are simple and quick to make. This would make a beautiful Sunday dinner for guests or family.

You could also try this with a good cut of pork chop too. And, if you and your family is like mine and don't care for liver dishes, skip the liver (foie gras) as it would be awesome without it too, reducing the expense of the meal. After all, this was created for a showy competition. Enjoy!

***

Bacon Larded Venison Tenderloin Layered With:

* Seared Foie Gras
* Granny Smith Apple Fries in a Cognac Cream Sauce
* Balsamic Pomegranate Reduction


From: Scott McCue, Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton

Serves: 10

Venison

Ingredients:

10 (6-oz.) venison filets
5 each strips of bacon, frozen and cut into ø–inch strips, 2 inches long
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Use a thin wire to make incisions into the venison large enough to push the frozen bacon strips through, push 6 to 8 pieces of bacon into each filet.

2. Season thee filets with the salt and pepper. Heat oil and sear venison on all sides. Cook in a 350-degree oven until desired doneness.

Foie Gras

Ingredients:

10 (1-1/2–oz.) slices cleaned foie gras
Kosher salt
Black pepper

Directions:

Heat a skillet over high heat; season both sides of the foie gras with salt and pepper and flash sear on both sides.

Granny Smith Apple Fries

Ingredients:

2 whole eggs
2 tbls. cold water
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch strips
1 cup all-purpose flour
Fine-ground Japanese bread crumbs

Directions:

Blend eggs and water, set aside. Coat apples with flour then toss in egg wash and coat with bread crumbs. Fry in 350-degree fryer until golden.

Balsamic Pomegranate Reduction

Ingredients:

1/2 cup pomegranate syrup
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar, reduced by half

Directions:

Simply combine both ingredients and mix well.

Cognac Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups cognac
3 cups demi-glace
3 cups heavy cream
2 tbls. cracked peppercorns
Salt, to taste

Directions:

Heat the cognac in a medium saucepot and burn off the alcohol, add the demi-glace and heavy cream, let reduce by half, add the peppercorns and season with salt. Reserve warm.

2 Easy Basic Brownie Recipes

From Denny: With all the fancy brownies these days, adorned with several layers of everything but the kitchen sink, sometimes it's good to get back to basics. In my mind, it's all about the chocolate! :)

Brownies are nothing but a simple basic blend of sugar, flour, eggs, chocolate and butter or oil. I've enjoyed every brownie I've ever tasted that was home made and not from a box or commercial - unless it came from a small business bakery and those are usually nothing short of divine!

There are so many textures of brownie to choose: dense and fudge-like because it is undercooked and intensifies the chocolate flavor and then there's the original simple cake-to-cookie-like version but softer. Then there's the argument about whether to include nuts. We like pecans in our house; I like roasted chopped almonds as to my taste it is the perfect combination with anything chocolate. My friends like their brownies with walnuts.

Another variation is to frost your brownie with conventional buttercream frosting like you would adorn a cake or powdered sugar. Cream cheese frosting is a huge hit and the only frosting I prefer when I'm not dusting those delectable brownies with powdered sugar. I just love the look of expresso brown against the bright white of the sugar, very appetizing - and you can even make designs if you like with the sugar.

Brownies really have evolved over the years into culinary monstrosities that are great fun: many have two and three layers, are stuffed full of more nuts than batter, unusual fruit combinations like mango and lychee, coffee, green tea or herbs like peppermint added. Historical Brownie Trivia: The old hippie culture used to make cake brownies with dried marijuana added. That must have been some wild experience!

These two recipes are back to basics, especially good for beginner cooks. Once you know the basic simple recipe it's easy to branch off from there to put your own mark on the recipe. One recipe is set up for a larger batch for those football parties this time of year. They go fast so you might want to make a second large batch to save for you and your family! I'm all for a secret stash of chocolate... :)

Mom’s Chocolate Fudge Brownies

From: “Extra! Extra! Read All About It!” by Corinne Cook @ 2theadvocate.com

Makes: 16 brownies

Ingredients:

1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
3 tbls. cocoa
1 cup flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans
Chocolate-Pecan Frosting (recipe follows)

Directions:

1. Prepare pan by lining 8x8-inch baking pan with foil. I let the ends lap over the sides to be able to lift the brownies from the pan for cutting. Spray inside of pan with nonstick coating.

2. Melt butter. (I do this in the microwave.) Set aside.

3. In separate bowl, whisk sugar, cocoa and flour together. Whisk in the melted butter, eggs and vanilla. Stir until blended together. Add the nuts. Stir, then pour into prepared pan.

4. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for 25-30 minutes.

Chocolate-Pecan Frosting

Ingredients:

1 (1-oz.) square unsweetened chocolate
1 tbl. butter or margarine
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tbls. whole milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans (or some prefer walnuts)

Directions:

1. In heavy saucepan, melt chocolate and butter together over low heat. Stir until smooth.

2. Remove from heat and quickly stir in powdered sugar, milk, vanilla and pecans until blended. Spread over top of warm brownies and allow to cool thoroughly before cutting.

***

Big-Batch Brownies

From: Corinne Cook

Makes: about 24-26 pieces

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter (1-1/2 sticks)
6 tbls. cocoa
2 cups sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans
Ice cream, optional OR dust with sifted powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare pan by lightly greasing and flouring a 9x13-inch pan, OR line pan with foil and spray with nonstick coating.

2. In large saucepan, melt butter and cocoa together over medium-low heat. When melted, stir in sugar, stir and remove from heat.

3. In separate mixing bowl combine beaten eggs, flour, vanilla, nuts and reserved chocolate/butter mixture. Stir until just well combined. Pour into prepared pan.

4. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for about 23-25 minutes. When cooled, cut into 2-inch squares.

5. Serve with small scoop of ice cream or a sifting of powdered sugar.

Cheeky Quote Day Over at The Social Poets 7 Oct 2009

From Denny: Every Wednesday is Cheeky Quote Day over at The Social Poets blog where I put up whatever crazy funny quotes I find for the week. This week the challenge was to find funny quotes about poetry. Let me tell you, that really turned out to be a challenge! Not too many poets have a great sense of humor! Fortunately, we can always count on funny guys like Oscar Wilde, Carl Sandburg, Robert Frost and Walt Whitman among others.

Here's a sampling of 5 quotes for you to enjoy:

* I could no more define poetry than a terrier can define a rat. - A. E. Housman

* If Galileo had said in verse that the world moved, the Inquisition might have let him alone. - Thomas Hardy

* Poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion; it is not the expression of personality, but an escape from personality. But, of course, only those who have personality and emotions know what it means to want to escape from these things. - T.S. Eliot, Tradition and the Individual Talent, 1919

* Poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese. - G.K. Chesterton

* There is the view that poetry should improve your life. I think people confuse it with the Salvation Army. - John Ashbery


To visit Cheeky Quote Day, go here.

Recipe: Fast Easy Creamy Chocolate Tarts

From Denny: Scouting around on the web, I was looking for something simple, easy and quick to make yet still get that full chocolate flavor. This simple recipe came from Hershey's Chocolate but you could use a better grade of your favorite chocolate if you prefer.

Also, found some other goodies on their site I'll be trying out this weekend when I have time to bake. I've used their recipes for years and have enjoyed every one of them! This recipe really does not involve baking at all and is perfect for a busy parent. You could also enjoy this recipe as a cooking project with your kids!

Hershey's Creamy Chocolate Tarts

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

2/3 cup HERSHEY'S SPECIAL DARK Chocolate Chips or HERSHEY'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup cold whipping cream
6 (4 oz. pkg.) single serve graham cracker crumb crusts
Sweetened whipped cream
Sliced fresh fruit or maraschino cherries or chilled cherry pie filling or fresh mint

Directions:

1. Place chocolate chips, milk and sugar in small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH (100%) 1 minute or until milk is hot and chips melt when stirred. With wire whisk or rotary beater, beat until mixture is smooth; stir in vanilla. Cool to room temperature.

2. Beat whipping cream until stiff; carefully fold chocolate mixture into whipped cream until blended. Spoon or pipe into crusts. Cover; refrigerate until set. Top with sweetened whipped cream. Garnish as desired.