Cyclops Kitty

So a little while ago, I blogged about the company BANDEEZ, who makes custom silicone rubber bands (similar to silly bandz) for people based on their own designs or ideas they submit, who is manufacturing bandz for our family.  Anyway, reading their blog, I saw they are working on some new ideas of other silicone products besides silicone rubber bands.  I cannot wait to find out what they are.  If the new product is as cool as the people who are making them, then we can be sure something tight will be coming out.  You can read about their new product HERE, although it really does not give much information at all to be honest.

I have created a bunch of new categories for CyclopsKitty, reviews for movies, websites, books, and music, and will be writing a review of their website soon, so come back and check that out.

This Fried Rice recipe is my personal favorite. Great colorful side dish to other Oriental dishes, or can act as a main course as well if you are looking for a light, tasty meal. The key ingredient to the taste of this dish is the Black Sesame oil. It will not be the same with any other type of oil.

Serves: 4   Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

4 Cups cooked rice, room temperature
1/2 Cup Chopped green onion
1/2 Cup Diced Cooked carrots
1/2 Teaspoon Peeled minced ginger
2 Pressed Medium garlic cloves
1/4 Cup Diced green bell pepper
1/4 Cup Diced red bell pepper
1 egg, beaten
3 Tablespoons Black sesame oil
soy sauce to taste
white pepper
1 Cup Diced cooked chicken or pork cut in 1/2" pieces *optional
How to make it

Heat 2 tablespoons of the black sesame oil in a wok or large skillet over medium to medium high heat.
Add green onions, ginger, red & green peppers and garlic and stir fry until fragrant (about 3 minutes).
Add optional meat and cook for a couple minutes until heated.
Add carrots and fold in rice, and stir fry for about 10 minutes, adding the extra tablespoon of sesame oil to taste until rice takes on a light tan coloring from the oil.
Add soy sauce to taste (no more than 1.5 Tablespoons unless you like it really salty) and mix well.
Push mixture to the side of the wok or pan and scramble the egg in the open area of the pan.
Fold egg into rice mixture, season with white pepper to taste, and serve.

This is a very flavorful sauce that can be used with crab meat or lobster, grilled duck, and goes very well with cucumber salad.

Serves: 2  Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice or tangerine juice
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon minced green onion
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons fresh minced ginger
1 tablespoon good soy sauce
1 tablespoon black sesame oil
5 tablespoons canola oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
How to make it

Combine lime, lemon and orange juices in a saucepan and bring to a boil until approx. 2 tablespoons of liquid remains.
Place the citrus reduction in a mixing bowl and whisk in the rice vinegar, green onion, ginger, garlic and soy sauce.
Slowly whisk in the oils and follow up with salt and pepper to taste.
Correct seasonings adding more vinegar or salt if needed.

This twist on the classic Cuban "Media Noche" Sandwich is delicious. That's about the best way for me to describe it

Serves: 4     Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

For the crab Cakes:
1 pound backfin lump blue crab meat, picked thru to remove bits of shell
2 strips of bacon, finely chopped
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and finely chopped
1 rib of celery finely chopped
1 clove of garlic minced
1/4 cup minced fresh herbs (cilantro, parsley and or basil)
3 to 4 tablespoons fine cracker crumbs
1 1/2 teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 egg beaten
1 to 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons clarified butter
For the Sandwich:
4 bullet shaped slightly sweet rolls 6 to 7 inches in length or sections of French, Italian or cuban bread of the same length
8 teaspoons mayonaise
8 teaspoons Dijon mustard
4 ounces sliced swiss cheese (4 slices)
12 thin slices of ripe tomato
4 to 8 iceberg lettuce leaves
12 to 16 thin slices dill pickle
4 tablespoons of butter or margarine, room temperature
How to make it

Crab Cakes:
Fry the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat until lightly browned (about 2 minutes)
Add the shallots, bell pepper, celery and garlic and cook until soft but not browned (about 2 minutes)
Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and let cool.
Stir in the crab, herbs, cracker crumbs, Old Bay, salt ad pepper, and cayenne.
Fold in the egg and enough cream to get a moist but firm consistency. If too wet, add more cracker crumbs.
Wet hands with water and form the crab mixture into 8 small patties. Wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
heat clarified butter in a non stick frying pan and Pan fry the crabcakes until crusty and golden brown - approx 3 minutes each side.
Drain on a paper towel and set aside.
Sandwich:
Slice open the rolls lengthwise and spread the bottom halves with the mayo and the top halveswith the mustard.
Layer the sandwich with 2 crab cakes on each bottom, swiss cheese, 3 tomato slices on each, lettuce and then the pickle slices.
Cover with top of the roll.
Lightly butter the entire outsides of the sandwiches and place in a skillet over medium heat.
Pleace a weight, like a bacon press on top or flatten the sandwich with a long spatula.
Cook the sandwiches until crusty and golden brown on both sides approx 2 to 3 minutes per side, adding butter to the pan as necessary.
Slice the sandwiches in half on the diagonal and serve at once!

Fruit and chocolate lovers are gonna find this dessert pretty satisfying. It goes great with a nice chocolate raspberry latte or cappuccino, to end a perfect meal.

Serves: 8    Time: 65 minutes

Ingredients

1 19oz package brownie mix
1 lb cream cheese softened
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, divided
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup fresh or thawed frozen raspberries
whipped cream to top (preferably homemade, you can add a little of the juices from the frozen raspberries to add a little more flavor and color to the whipped cream.
How to make it

Preheat oven to 350F and grease or butter a 9" springform pan.
Prepare brownie mix using package directions. Spread in springform pan.
Bake until the edges pull from the side of the pan- about 28 to 30 min max. leave oven on at 350F
combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla extract in medium bowl and beat with electric mixer until blended and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time beating well after each egg.
Spoon over baked layer of brownie.
Heat chocolate chips in double broiler until melted.
Drizzle melted chocolate over the prepared layers and swirl with a knife to marbelize.
Bake until set approx. 35 minutes.
Cool in pan on wire rack and then chill for 2 hours or longer.
Combine the raspberries and rest of sugar in a bowl and toss to mix.
Remove sides of pan and slice.
Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with raspberries.

The mixture of the sour cream, cheese, seafood, spices and salsa make this a very pleasing and delicious main course.

Serves: 6   Time:  35 minutes

Ingredients

12 6" flour tortillas
4 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
2 cups flaked blue crab meat - picked thru to remove shells
20 to 25 steamed medium shrimp, halved
1 medium onion chopped (approx 1 cup)
4 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 3/4 cups chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1 1/4 cups tomatillo salsa
2 tablespoons Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin powder
How to make it

Heat an ungreased medium skillet over medium heat and soften tortillas one at a time for 15 seconds per side.
Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 13x9 baking dish with Pam or some other nonstick cooking spray.
Combine 3 cups of the cheese, the crabmeat, shrimp, onion, most of the Old bay (leave about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon to add to the salsa), and the 1/2 teaspoon cumin in a medium bowl and mix well.
Spoon a 1/4 cup of the mixture on each tortilla.
Fold the sides of the tortillas and then roll to enclose all the filling.
Arrange seam side down in the baking dish.
Heat butter in a medium saucepan over med-high heat.
Add flour and mix well.
Stir in chicken broth gradually and cook stirring continually until sauce thickens.
Add sour cream and mix well.
Remove from heat and stir in the bell peppers and then spread over the enchiladas.
Bake until bubbly - about 30 minutes or so.
Take remaining Old Bay seasoning and mix it well with the tomatillo salsa, then pour it over the top of the enchiladas.
Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup of cheese and bake for another 5 minutes or until the cheese has melted, remove from oven and serve!

I personally cannot stand pre packaged curry powder. Freshly ground is the way to go for the best flavor. Here is a recipe I have been using for years to make my own.

Serves: many   Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

4 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 1/4 teaspoons cumin seed
1/2 to 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon whole cardamom seed without the pods
1/2 inch stick cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon whole cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
How to make it

Mix all ingredients in a blender for 2 to 3 minutes until finely powdered.
Store in airtight container in a dark place.
Makes about a 1/4 cup or so of curry powder.

This is the bomb....

Serves: 4 Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb. lump blue backfin crabmeat picked thru to remove shells
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. flour
1/2 c. milk
1 tbsp. minced onion
2 slices white bread, cubed, crusts removed
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 tbsp. lemon juice (1 lemon) separated
1/2 tsp. salt
Few dashes pepper
2 tbsp. butter
2-3 medium sized Jalapeño peppers, deseeded and chopped
paprika for sprinkling
5 slices bacon cut into quarters
20 jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined and butterflied with tail shells removed
How to make it

Preheat oven on broil to 500F.
In medium size pan melt butter, mix in flour.
Slowly add milk stirring constantly to keep mixture smooth and free of lumps.
Cook, stirring over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil and thickens.
Mix in onion and bread cubes.
Allow to cool for about 30 to 45 minutes
Fold in mayonnaise, 1tbsp. lemon juice, jalapeño and salt and pepper.
In another pan, melt butter until lightly browned.
Add crabmeat and toss lightly.
Combine with sauce mixture.
Spoon crabmeat mixture evenly into the opened butterflied shrimp.
Sprinkle paprika over top and fold shrimp to enclose the crabmeat filling..
Wrap each with 1/4 slice of bacon and push 5 each on 4 bamboo or metal skewers making sure to keep bacon firmly wrapped around the shrimp.
Place skewers on broiling pan and broil for 7 to 8 minutes, rotating the skewers every 2 min or so. Make sure bacon is slightly crispy and shrimp are cooked all the way thru.
Remove from broiler and drizzle with remaining tbsp. lemon juice.

This appetizer is a great conversation food - best served where all guests can sit around it at the table and break off pieces of the bread and dip or spread the crab dip over it.

Serves: 8  Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 10oz package frozen spinach, thawed and chopped fine
1 8oz package cream cheese, softened
1 6 to 7oz jar marinated artichoke hearts, chopped fine
1/2 lb backfin lump blue crab meat, picked thru for shells and broken up into smaller bits
1/2 teaspoon Green Tobasco sauce
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
1 6 to 8" sized round loaf of bread
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
How to make it

Preheat oven to 350F
Toss artichoke hearts, spinach and crab meat in a mixing bowl.
Fold in cream cheese, Old Bay and Green Tobasco
Cut round loaf of bread into a bowl large enough to fit 3/4 of the dip into it, by cutting a "lid" from the top.
With a pastry brush, spread the olive oil all over the inside and outside of the bowl and place in the over on a cookie sheet for 5 minutes until the inside gets a little crusty.
Remove from oven and fill with the crab dip, letting it pile up over the top of the bowl.
Place back in oven and cook for 10 minutes, then sprinkle the shredded Mozz on top and put back in oven until melted, but not browned (if you want it browned, add the mozz before baking the crab dip, otherwise the bread will end up too hard)
Remove from oven, place on serving plate.

The best recipe Ive ever tasted for jello shots...

Serves: 8   Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

3 oz. package cherry Jell-O
8 oz. (1 cup) boiling water
4 oz. crème de cacao
maraschino cherries, with or without stems
4 oz. white rum
chocolate “Magic Shell” ice cream topping
Spray can of whipped cream

How to make it

Soak cherries in rum for at least 24 hours
Add some maraschino cherry juice if you need extra liquid to cover the fruit.
Place one cherry in each empty Jell-O shot cup.
Mix cherry Jell-O and hot water, let cool to room temperature, then add crème de cacao and ½ cup reserved rum mixture from cherries.
Pour into cups so that cherries are submerged.
Chill until firm. Cover with a thin layer of chocolate topping and place in freezer for 2 minutes.
Top with whipped cream and serve immediately.