Free State Studios:

NEW YEARS DAY RECOVERY MENU

Tropical Smoothie

Ingredients

4 tablespoons orange or plain yogurt
6 to 8 ounces (1 1/2 to 2 cups) fresh or canned pineapple, cut into chunks
1 banana, peeled and cut into chunks
2 teaspoons sugar (optional)
8 ice cubes

Place the yogurt in the blender. Add the pineapple, banana and sugar, if desired. Cover and blend for a few seconds to pure the fruit. Add the ice cubes and blend until smooth. Serves 2.

Eggnog French Toast

Ingredients

2 eggs
1 cup eggnog
1 teaspoon sugar
pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh nutmeg, grated
1 tablespoon dark rum
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 to 14 French baguette slices, 3/4-inch thick
2 tablespoons butter, melted
maple syrup, warmed
powdered sugar

Whisk the eggs together in a medium bowl. Whisk in the eggnog, sugar, salt, nutmeg, rum and vanilla. Place the baguette slices in a single layer in a large baking dish. Pour the eggnog mixture over the bread slices and let stand for 2 minutes. Turn the slices over in the eggnog mixture, cover and refrigerate overnight.

To bake the French toast, brush a non-stick baking sheet with 1 tablespoon of the melted butter. Place the soaked baguette slices on the baking sheet and brush the tops with the remaining melted butter. Bake in a 500 degree oven for 4 minutes. Turn the bread slices over and bake for 4 minutes more, or until the tops are golden brown.

Serve the French toast topped with warm maple syrup or dusted with powdered sugar. Serves 3 to 4.

Option: To cook the French toast on a griddle, heat the griddle (or a large skillet) over medium heat. Brush the griddle with melted butter and place the soaked baguette slices on the griddle. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Brush the tops of the bread slices with butter and turn them over. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes more, until golden brown. Reduce the heat as needed to prevent burning the bread.

Faux Mimosa

Ingredients

fresh-squeezed orange juice, chilled
sparkling water, chilled

Fill Champagne flutes half to two-thirds full with orange juice and top off with sparkling water.

Diner Burgers

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
prepared mustard
4 hamburger buns
dill pickle slices

Place the ground beef in a large bowl. Add the salt and pepper and mix well. Form the ground beef into 4 patties.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet or braising pan over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and cook, turning occasionally, until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Divide the cooked onions into four piles in the skillet. Place the hamburger patties on top of the onions, and press down with a spatula. Fry the hamburger patties for about 3 minutes, then turn them over, with the onions on top. Press down lightly, reduce the heat to medium-low and fry the burgers for 3 to 4 minutes more, or until nearly done. Drain most of the accumulated fat from the skillet, if desired. Top each burger with 2 or 3 dill pickles slices. Spread the mustard on the top halves of the hamburger buns and place them on the burgers. Piggyback the bottom halves of the buns on the top halves. Cover the skillet or braising pan with a lid, reduce the heat to low and let the burgers finish cooking and the buns steam for about 2 to 3 minutes more. To plate the burgers, remove the bottom half of the bun and place it under the burger as you slide it off the spatula and on to a plate. Serves 4.

Spicy-Hot French Fries

Ingredients

2 medium russet potatoes

Ingredients: Spicy-Hot Blend

2 teaspoons dried parsley
2 teaspoons dried chervil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 24-ounce bottle peanut oil

Peel the potatoes and slice them lengthwise, into 1/4 to 3/8-inch thick slices. Cut the slices into thin strips. Rinse the potatoes under cold running water to remove the starch. Immerse them in a pan of ice water, cover and let stand in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.

Spicy-Hot Blend: Place the parsley and chervil in a spice grinder or mini food processor and blend to a fine grind. Add the garlic powder, salt and cayenne pepper and blend briefly to combine. Store the blend in a close container.

Heat the peanut oil (as much as needed) over medium-high heat in a large pan or Dutch oven. (Fill the pan no more than half way up to avoid hot oil bubbling over when the potatoes are added.) While the oil is heating, drain the sliced potatoes well, wrap them in heavy-duty paper towels and pat completely dry. (Moisture on the potatoes will cause them to pop and splatter when placed in the hot oil.)

When the oil is hot enough to sizzle, add the potatoes using a large slotted spoon to lower them into the hot oil. Fry, turning occasionally, until golden brown. Remove the fries from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Immediately sprinkle the fries with the Spicy-Hot Blend to taste. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

"Not So Bloody" Mary

Ingredients

Bloody Mary mix or spicy tomato juice
lime wedges
celery ribs with leaves

Fill tall glasses with ice. Pour in the Bloody Mary mix or spicy tomato juice. Squeeze a lime wedge over each drink and garnish with celery ribs.

Hoppin' John

Ingredients

1 16-ounce bag dried black-eyed peas
black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 10 to 12-ounce ham steak

Ingredients: Tomato Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
4 celery ribs, diced
2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 garlic clove, chopped
dash cayenne
salt, to taste
2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes

Ingredients

2 cups uncooked white rice, cooked according to package directions
Skillet Cornbread (recipe follows)
hot pepper sauce
hot pickled peppers

Rinse the black-eyed peas well, remove stones and quick soak them according to the package directions. To cook the black-eyed peas, place them in a large pot or Dutch oven, cover with water and heat over high heat until the water comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and grind some black pepper into the pot. After the beans have simmered gently for 30 minutes to 1 hour, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ham steak and sear quickly to brown on both sides. Cool the ham briefly, cut into bite-size pieces and add to the beans. Deglaze the ham drippings in the skillet with a few ounces of water and add to the pot. Simmer the beans for 1 to 1 1/2 hours more, until tender.

Tomato Sauce: In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and peppers and saut until the vegetables are tender-crisp. Add the basil, garlic, cayenne and salt and saut for 1 minute more. Add the tomatoes and simmer the mixture over low heat for 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

To serve, ladle the black-eyed peas and ham over a bed of rice and top with the tomato sauce. Serve with cornbread, hot pepper sauce and hot pickled peppers. Serves 8.

Hoppin' John by Lieutenant Firefighter Ed Noonen.

Skillet Cornbread

Ingredients

5 tablespoons vegetable oil or bacon drippings, divided
1 cup stone ground yellow cornmeal
1 cup unbleached flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 7 or 8-ounce can corn kernels, drained
2 or 3 tablespoons chopped jalapenos peppers or green chilies (fresh or canned)

Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Pour1 tablespoon of vegetable oil or bacon drippings into a 9-inch stainless steel or cast iron (oven-proof) skillet and place it in the oven to heat for 5 minutes. Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg and milk together. Whisk in the remaining 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil or bacon drippings. Stir in the corn kernels and chopped jalapeo's or green chilies. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring until combined.

Remove the hot skillet from the oven and immediately pour the cornmeal batter into the skillet. Return the skillet to the oven and bake the cornbread for 18 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. After removing the cornbread from the oven, place a handle cover over the skillet handle to prevent burning hands. Serve the cornbread from the skillet or transfer to a large serving plate. Makes 8 servings.