Wilted Brussels Sprout Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

Some people see salad as a side dish, merely something they grudgingly eat to get to the main course. But this is a salad that you'll be hard pressed to just want to 'get' through. Even those who don't like Brussels Sprouts or vegetables for that matter, will enjoy this salad. It's surprisingly light but packed full of flavor. The sweet, sour and salty bacon dressing goes perfectly with the warm Brussels Sprouts and crispy bacon bits. The slightly wilted Brussels Sprouts are still crunchy and have the taste and texture similar to sauted cabbage. It's like a really good coleslaw, but better because it has bacon in it. 
Now that I think of it, this salad would be amazing on a burger, just like coleslaw. Hmm... I'm going to whip up a batch for our next BBQ and pile it high on a burger with extra pickles. Absolutely delicious! Give this recipe a whirl.

Wilted Brussels Sprout Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing
(recipe from Cuisine at Home, Nov/Dec 2014)
Makes 12 servings

1 1/2 pounds Brussels Sprouts, ends trimmed, shredded
8 oz. thick sliced bacon, diced
1/4 cup shallots, diced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 T light brown sugar (I added an extra Tbsp of sugar)
1 T stone ground mustard (I used a Country Dijon)
salt and pepper, to taste

Shred Brussels Sprouts in a food processor or using a slicing blade.
Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet until crisp. Transfer bacon to paper towels to drain. Drain all but 2T of bacon drippings.
Add shallots to the skillet. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Deglaze skillet with vinegar, and whisk in brown sugar and mustard. Add Brussels Sprouts and bacon. Toss to wilt brussels sprouts, 2-3 minutes. Serve warm.

Other salad recipes to try:
Brussels Sprout Salad with Garlic Balsamic Vinaigrette
Green Goddess Primavera Salad
Kale Salad with Strawberry Mango Salsa

Slice of Life: Chef Tech Cooking School

Recently, I had a chance to step out of the kitchen and away from my computer to take part in a networking event for food bloggers in my area.  Small Chicks Big Eats partnered with Chef Tech Cooking School here in Long Beach and held a Bloggers Networking and Cooking Workshop last month.

I found out about the event by chance after having a glass of wine one night with my friend Gina at the Willmore Wine Bar, which happens to be a few doors down. Chef Tech Cooking School's bright lights flooded the dark sidewalk and the smell of baked bread peaked our curiosity. We peered in through the storefront window and what a sight it was. It was about 8:30 at night and the baking class students were taking their glorious breads, muffins and rolls out of the oven. Perfect timing.
Chef Teri waved us in. She let us try some of the warm potato rolls with butter. Yum! As we talked, Gina mentioned that I had a food blog and Chef Teri asked if I was coming to their food bloggers event that coming Sunday. In short, I rushed home, signed up and cleared my Sunday plans so I could make the event. 

It was an amazing day filled with learning, eating, and meeting some amazing fellow food bloggers. We had bakers, home cooks, teachers, business owners, caterers, food editors and YouTube bloggers each demonstrating our love of food. 
 
Let's take a look at the wonderful food, Chef Teri prepared for us.

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Grilled Chicken Breasts

Shaved Fennel Parmesan Salad

Strawberry Rhubarb Quick Stir Cake

Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Here are some the pictures from the event. Beginning with homemade Vanilla Ice Cream. What's the saying? "Life is short. Eat dessert first."
This was unbelievably smooth and decadent.

Next up, the Strawberry Rhubarb Quick Stir Cake. (I would of posted in process pics but the pics were blurry and all around not good...so let's jump to the finished product! Ta Da! Beautiful!)

Now it's time to get those Chicken Breasts in the brine and get them ready for grilling. I've only brined chicken a handful of times and usually it wasn't chicken breasts. It was legs and thighs that kind of thing. Well... I learned that you shouldn't brine legs and thighs of chicken because they have built in fat between the muscle fibers that naturally keep them moist. Brining meat serves to not just flavor the meat but seal in juices. I have yet to do this at home with chicken breasts but believe me, this will be my 'go to' way to prep chicken breasts because they were delicious. 
I didn't get any shots of these lovely ladies soaking in salt water but I did get a post-spa day picture of these hot chicks sunbathing on the grill. :)

AND NOW ON TO MY FAVORITE FOOD...SALAD!

Not only did I get to eat this delicious salad, I learned a few things along the way. I learned the difference between Vinaigrette and Dressing and I learned what that little hole at the bottom of the insert at the top of my Food Processor is used for. It was a full day of salad learning for me! :) 
I'll share what I learned when I blog this recipe in an upcoming blog.
 
Here's a picture of Chef Teri emulsifying by hand with a whisk. Later, she added the vinaigrette to the food processor and emulsified it further. Easy breezy.

Here's Chef Teri demonstrating her knife skills. I plan on taking Chef Tech's Knife Skills class!

(Stay tuned, I will be blogging this salad recipe in the very near future...As you know, I love salad and I love fennel. It's my new favorite ingredient...check out another great recipe with fennel with my Rustic Minestrone Soup with Butternut Squash and Fennel)

At the end of this amazing experience, the one thing I know for certain is that I need to take the Knife skills class. It's a given. I also want to take the Professional Chef 1:Foundation classes at Chef Tech Cooking School in September. Now I just have to save up for it and enroll. :) 

Thank you to Small Chicks Big Eats for organizing this wonderful event and to Chef Teri at Chef Tech Cooking School for opening your doors to this home cook with a blog.  

For more information about classes and workshops at Chef Tech Cooking School visit their website for their calendar of events. 

Check out these amazing ladies:
smallchicksbigeats.com 
figsontop.com
Tanayastable.com
FloriCooks.com
Lacooquette.com
Bakingwithmelissa.com
Instagram@juliegoeshealthy
Instagram@cremedelacroom
Instagram@Kel_Shiroma (thefoodcritique.com)

Spicy Slow Cooker Beef and Sweet Potato Stew

This is hands down the best beef stew recipe I've ever had. The Latin spices and the sweet potatoes in this beef stew sets this one apart. Traditional beef stew is kinda bland to me, but this one is pure greatness. Spicy, full of flavor with a bit of heat in the end. And the sweet potatoes are a nice change of taste and texture from traditional starchy potatoes. 
I substituted the poblano chilies in this recipe for some New Mexico chiles that I got from my friend Danielle last year. I still had one bag of them left in the freezer and tossed them in. Maybe that's where all the heat came from in this version. You just never know how hot or mild those New Mexico chilies will be. I don't mind, for me the hotter the better. But not so great for my kiddos. I'll file this recipe under, "Recipes my kids won't eat". Next time, I'll make it milder for them, substituting with roasted mild Anaheim chilies. Whether you like it spicy or mild this recipe is super delicious and easy because the slow cooker does all the work. Enjoy!

Spicy Slow Cooker Beef and Sweet Potato Stew (slightly adapted recipe from Cuisine at Home)
Makes 12 cups

1 boneless beef chuck roast (2.5-3 lb), trimmed, cut into 1-inch cubes
salt and pepper.
3/4 c flour
3-4 T vegetable oil
2 T tomato paste
4 c beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1 large onion, diced (2cups)
2 T garlic, minced
1 T each of chili powder, dried Mexican oregano and ground cumin
1 t ground coriander
2 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 poblano chiles, charred, peeled, seeded and diced (I used New Mexico Chilies but you can also substitute with mild Anaheim chilies for less heat.)
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 T fresh lime juice

Toss beef with flour to coat. Brown beef in 3-4 batches in 1 T oil per batch in a large skillet over medium heat. Transfer beef to a slow cooker and stir in any remaining flour. Add tomato paste to skillet and cook over medium heat, 1- 2 minutes. Deglaze skillet with broth, scraping up any brown bits. Increase heat to high and boil 2 minutes.  Pour broth mixture over beef in slow cooker. Add tomatoes. onion, garlic, chili powder, oregano, cumin and coriander. Cover and cook for 4 hours. Add sweet potatoes and cook an additional hour. Stir in chiles, corn, cilantro and lime juice.  

Other recipes to try:
Corned Beef, Cabbage and Leek Soup
Tomato Garlic Soup with Cheese Tortellini
Minestrone for a Crowd