Homemade Pasta on a Imperia Pasta Machine

Nothing quite says love like homemade pasta. It really doesn't take all that long to do, and it will be better than anything you can buy at the market. My grandmother showed me how to make homemade pasta for the first time when I was about 9.

My grandmother doesn't remember when she got her pasta machine, but knows that the one shes uses is the one shes always had... I got my Imperia pasta machine at Williams-Sonoma. There are a few different types of pasta machines out there - pick the one that makes you happy...


Once you get the machine together it's time to make some pasta! The recipe I use is really easy:

2.25 cups of flour
3 eggs
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon water
1 splash olive oil

Pile the flour on your counter or a cutting board. Make a well in the middle of the flour large enough to hold the eggs, water, and olive oil. Add the eggs, water, and olive oil to your well - scramble the eggs with a fork. Once the eggs are well incorporated start bringing in the flour from the sides of the well. Keep mixing in the flour and when you get to a point where the eggs are not runny anymore you can put up the fork and use your fingers. Bring together the dough and knead for 10 minutes. You will end up with a smooth dough ball. Wrap the dough ball tightly in plastic wrap and let rest for 20 minutes. You can either put it in the fridge or leave it on your counter. Once rested cut your dough ball into four pieces. Working with one at a time, flour the piece and hand form it into a disc. Set your machine on it's widest level and start working the dough through. After each pass, set the machine to the next smallest level. The dough will get thinner and thinner as you go. Once done use the pasta cutter to cut the pasta. You can either hang the pasta or coat it with corn meal and let dry. Bring a gallon of water to boil and salt it well. Boil the pasta until it has a nice bite - about 5 minutes. Sauce the pasta and plate. Eat & Enjoy...

Bon Appetit...

~Nikko

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How To Crack An Egg One Handed...

Cracking an egg one handed is not too hard - it takes a bit of practice and a lot of confidence. If you have any out of date eggs in the house that's a great place to start. You'll get more out of the video than you will my writing on how to do this... What I will say is, crack the egg carefully, then commit to getting the job done and just do it....

Bon Appetit...

~Nikko
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Curried Egg Salad Bagel

The first time I had a curried egg salad was 1996. I remember this because I had just bought a house down the street from a good bagel joint. One day I ordered an egg salad bagel and he had put curry in it. I loved it! I've been making curried egg salad ever since. This is an easy sandwich to make and is good anytime of the day...



Start with a dang good bagel. My favorite bagels come from Ray's Bagels. They're made by Just Bagels in Brooklyn. They're fantastic...












Toast the bagel...

I use Penzeys Spices - They're the best I've found and they're cheaper than what I get in the market... You can use a sweet or hot curry powder...
www.penzeys.com and tell them cookingmyway.com sent you!

Cut up a few hard boiled eggs. I'm not going to go through the process of making boiled eggs here because we'll get to that in another post.

Start with a teaspoon of the curry powder then go from there to get the taste you want.








Mix in a few tablespoons of mayo. You can make your own mayo for this (it would be really good I assure you), but I get mine from Kraft...














Wash and dry some nice lettuce. Put a few pieces on the bottom of the bagel.













Top with the egg salad...

The finished sandwich...
It's quite messy to eat so get a fork and a few napkins... It's well worth it though...

Bon Appetit...

~Nikko

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Cliff from Just Bagels

Redneck Eggs Benedict

I love breakfast... Just so many ideas to try...

It was the 5th of July when this creation came to mind. On the 4th of July I normally go over to my buddy Tom's house bright and early and we cook enough BBQ to feed an army. The day starts off with me making enough biscuits and gravy to feed everyone and anyone who cares to have some breakfast - Then it's cases of ribs in the smoker, beer bum chicken on the grill(s), gallons or beans - slaw - tater salad all made from scratch - I'm getting hungry just thinking about it... Anyway, this was the day after and I had brought home a few racks of ribs that were left over. Eggs Benedict sounded really good, but then I saw the bottle of Redneck Pepper sitting there and Redneck Eggs Benedict came to life.

Plain white toast instead of an English muffin or a crumpet
Nice smoked rib meat off the bone instead of Canadian bacon
A fried egg with a dose of Redneck Pepper instead of a gentle poached egg
And last but not least a healthy covering of your favorite hot sauce instead of hollandaise

I had thought about making an extra spicy hollandaise but thought just hot sauce would be more redneck - and I don't think hollandaise would really work here...

4 Slices of white bread, toasted
1-2 Cup(s) warmed rib meat
4 Eggs, fried
Redneck Pepper (www.redneckpepper.com)
Hot sauce

big yum...

Sour & Spice - Hot & Sour Soup

Hot & Sour Soup

The original recipe for this soup came from a Saveur magazine. We've added a few things over the years to make it our own...

For some reason Hot & Sour Soup has always held somewhat of a mystery to me. I used to work at a Chinese restaurant called 456 when I was a kid and it always amazed me when they made the soup. It was one of the few things that was made in somewhat of a secretive fashion. Until I read the recipe in the magazine I had never tried to make it myself (actually I have never made it myself, Tina always makes it). I do the prep work and always fuss to make sure the potato is cooked enough (she would put them in at the last second and have the half raw if she could)... Anyway, this is a very simple recipe and it's better than anything I've ever tried in any restaurant.

For the Pork:

1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp brandy (won't be missed if you don't use it)
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 Lb lean pork, cut into 1/4" dice

For the Soup:

3 Tbsp cornstarch
8 Cups chicken stock (can use pork but chicken is better)
3 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 Tsp freshly ground pepper (or more if you're a pepperholic like me)
1/2 Tsp cayenne
1 Tsp coarse salt
1/4 Cup cubed peeled potato
1/4 Cup or so shitake or wood ear mushrooms, trimmed, and cut into a 1/4" dice
12 oz. Firm tofu, drained and diced to your liking
1 Egg, lightly beaten
1 Tsp Asian sesame oil (not a necessaty we don't use it and the soup is great)
1/4 Cup chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

For the pork: Combine the soy suace, brandy (or some water if you're not using brandy), and cornstarch in a small bowl, add the pork and mix well. Let stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

For the soup: Combine the cornstarch and 1/4 cup water in a small bowl. Put sotck, soy sauce, vinegar, pepper, cayenne, and salt into a large pot. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Add the pork, cornstarch mixture and reduce the heat to a medium low, and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until the soup has thickened, about 30 minutes. Add the potato, mushrooms, and tofu and gently simmer until the potato is tender, 15-20 minutes.

Slowly drizzle the egg into the simmering soup in a thin, steady stream (do not stir as your pour, or the egg will form lumps). When the egg strands float to the surface, stir in the oil (if wanted).

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the cilantro. Eat & Enjoy!

Bon Appetit...

~Nikko

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Part 1 of 2



Part 2 of 2





This soup goes well with Potstickers! That's another show...

Pad Thai

Pad Thai literally means "Thai-style stir-fried noodles". I think it really means "Rice noodles of love...".

If you are using a Pad Thai sauce (like the one I used from CurrySimple www.currysimple.com) this is a very easy dish to make. Without using a pre-made sauce it's a bit more involved.

You would think we were getting paid from them to use their stuff but that's just not true - It's just that good of a product so we like using it!

Anyway - This couldn't be any more simple. Soak your rice noodles in water until they soften. This should take about 20 minutes or so. They will soften in cold water and they won't be starchy like they are when you use hot water. Once your noodles are ready, stir fry up your tofu, chicken, scramble your egg, add the green onions. Add the rice noodles and pour on your Pad Thai sauce (I used about a quarter of a cup but you can use more if you like). Mix all of this well and bring it to temperature. Add your bean sprouts and mix through. Plate up your dish and add chopped roasted and salted peanuts, cilantro, and a wedge of lime. Eat and Enjoy!

1 package rice noodles softened in cold water
1/2 brick of firm tofu cut to your liking
1/2 pound of chicken cut to your liking
3 green onions sliced into bite sized pieces (you can use more if you like)
1 egg - scrambled in the pan
1/4 cup pad thai sauce (from CurrySimple www.currysimple.com)
cilantro
roasted salted peanuts
lime wedges

There are thousands of Pad Thai recipes out there - This one came out really dang good! It was super simple and very tasty without the hassle of making your own Pad Thai sauce...

Bon Appetit...

~Nikko

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