Meat is the new bread!
Cowboy Fry Bread
From Alchemy at CopperWynd in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Makes about 12 servings
1 cup milk
1 package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
3½ to 4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
Vegetable oil
Heat the milk over the stove or in the microwave until warm but not hot. Pour into a large bowl and add yeast and sugar. Stir in beaten eggs and salt, then slowly mix in flour until mixture forms a smooth, elastic dough. Cover with a towel and allow to rise until double in size (30 minutes to 1 hour). Lightly flour work surface and divide dough into 12 pieces roughly the size of tennis balls, then flatten into discs. Let dough rise again, about 10 minutes.

Heat oil to 350 degrees in a deep fryer, large pot or skillet. Fry dough discs one or two at a time for 3 to 5 minutes, depending on size, turning once.

Tinga Poblana de Pollo
From Los Sombreros Mexican Restaurant in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Serves 6 to 8
8 chicken thighs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
8 ripe, whole Roma tomatoes
4 cups chicken stock
4 chipotle chiles
1/2 pound good-quality chorizo
1 white onion, sliced thin
6 red potatoes, diced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano (not Greek)
1 large avocado, peeled, pitted and thinly sliced
1 cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco or feta cheese
Place chicken in a stockpot and add water to cover. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook for about 20 minutes. If possible, let the chicken cool in the water.

When chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and coarsely shred the meat. Set aside.

Heat a sauté pan over high heat and add the tomatoes (no oil). Blister and char the tomatoes all sides. Turn off heat and add chicken stock and chipotles. Allow to cool. Pour into a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.

Place the chorizo and onions in a stockpot and cook over medium heat. When the chorizo has released some oil, add the diced potatoes.

Reduce heat to low and cook until the potatoes have browned and gotten a little tender. Add cumin, pepper, oregano, the shredded chicken and the pureed tomato mixture. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add salt to taste.

To serve, scoop into deep bowls and top with avocado and cheese. Serve with corn tortillas and Mexican beer.

Margarita Shrimp Salad
From Coach and Willie’s in Phoenix, Ariz.
Serves 2
2 teaspoons olive oil
8 oz. peeled shrimp
1/4 cup tequila
2 tablespoons pineapple juice
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 cups torn iceberg lettuce
2 cups torn romaine lettuce
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
1 cup chopped mango
1/2 cup chopped jicama
1/2 cup chopped avocado
1/4 cup diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
Salad dressing of choice
Coat a sauté pan with olive oil. Over medium-high heat, sauté shrimp in tequila, pineapple juice and lime juice until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes.

Drain shrimp and let cool. In a large bowl, combine remaining ingredients and toss well. Add shrimp to salad.

New England Fresh Fish Chowder
Adapted from From Julia Child’s Kitchen by Julia Child
4 ounces lean salt pork, diced into 3/8-inch pieces
3½ cups sliced onions
3 tablespoons flour
3 cups hot water
2 cups clam juice
4 cups sliced potatoes
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 large bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
salt, to taste
2 pounds of either cod, haddock or halibut
2 cups milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups toasted croutons
1/3 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt pork pieces, and boil for 5 minutes. Remove salt pork.

Saute the blanched salt pork for several minutes in a heavy-bottomed 3-quart saucepan to brown very lightly and to render its fat. Add the onions and cook 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender but not browned. Pour pork and onions into a sieve set over a bowl to drain out the fat, then return them to the pan. Blend in the flour, adding a little of the pork fat if mixture is stiff, and cook slowly 2 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat. Vigorously blend in the hot water, being sure all of the flour is cleaned from the bottom and sides of the pan and absorbed into the liquid. Beat in the clam juice. Add the sliced potatoes, herbs, pepper and salt. Boil slowly for about 15 minutes, until potatoes are tender.

Lower heat to a simmer. Add the fish, simmer about 5 minutes, just until the texture has changes from squashy to lightly springy. Pour in the milk and let come to a simmer.

Ladle chowder into big soup bowls. Top each with a large spoonful of sour cream, a handful of croutons, and sprinkle parsley over all.

Jasper White’s Lobster Salad
Adapted from Lobster at Home by Jasper White
Makes 6 sandwiches
1 pound fully cooked lobster meat
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely diced
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3 small scallions (white and most of the green parts), thinly sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
Place the cucumber in a colander for at least 5 minutes to drain the excess liquid. Cut the lobster meat into 1-inch dice.

Combine the lobster, cucumber and mayonnaise. If the salad is to be served within the hour, add the scallions. If not, add them 30 minutes before serving. Season with salt if needed and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Original Nestlé Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe from Nestlé
Makes 60 cookies
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Nestlé® Toll House® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Pan cookie variation: Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Prepare dough as above. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack. Makes 4 dozen bars.

New York Hot Dog Onion Sauce
Adapted from The Great American Hot Dog Book by Becky Mercuri
Makes about 2½ cups
1½ teaspoons olive oil
4 large onions, sliced and chopped
1 (11.5 oz.) can V8 juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet Hungarian paprika
1 teaspoon corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
3 tablespoons cider vinegar, or more to taste
In a medium pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and add onions. Cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Turn heat to low and sauté onions, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes, or until onions are softened and translucent but not browned. Add remaining ingredients and cook over low heat, uncovered and stirring frequently, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until mixture thickens and onions are very tender. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Emeril’s Favorite Pastrami Sandwich
Adapted from recipe at Emerils.com
Makes 4 sandwiches
24 ounces sliced pastrami
8 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
16 ounces beer
12 slices onion, rings intact
4 tablespoon oil
Salt and pepper
8 slices rye bread or thick crusty brown bread
Preheat a grill. Season onions with salt and pepper and brush with oil. In a large saucepan combine beer and mustard and bring to a boil. Add pastrami and simmer for 3 minutes. Grill onions on both sides and toast bread on a cooler part of the grill. When all ingredients are heated, prepare sandwiches.

Carnegie Deli Cheesecake
Recipe from Carnegie Deli
Crust:
1cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/4 –inch bits
Filling:
1¼ pounds softened cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1½ tablespoons flour
1½ teaspoons lemon juice
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
To make the crust, place the flour, sugar, grated lemon rind, vanilla extract, egg yolk, and butter in a large mixing bowl. With your fingertips, rub the ingredients together until they are well mixed and can be gathered into a ball. Dust with a little flour, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Butter and flour the bottom of a 9-inch by 2-inch spring-form pan, roll out a piece of dough to cover bottom. Dough should be as thick as for a normal sugar cookie (1/4 inch) Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven to a light brown color. Cool the pan and bottom. Butter the sides of the pan. Roll out and line the sides of the pan with more of the cookie dough. Trim excess dough from the edges.
To make the filling, place the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until it is creamy and smooth. Beat in the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, and, when it is well incorporated, beat in the flour, lemon, vanilla, eggs and egg yolk and heavy cream. No lumps please!
Preheat the oven to 485-500 degrees. Oven should be hot to enhance color. Pour the filling into the cookie dough lined pan, bake in the center of the oven until a dark brown color has been achieved. The cake should also start to rise slightly. Cool for 30 minutes and set oven to 350 degrees.
After 30 minutes return cheesecake to the oven for a final baking. This procedure will set the cake. When the cake is bouncy in the center and slightly risen in the middle as well on the sides, it’s finished.
Note: Over bake, the cake will crack and be firm. Under bake, the cake will tend to be soft in the center. Time will vary, due to the variance in each oven. (Usually 25 to 40 min) Cool at least 2 hours before attempting to remove from the pan. Best to refrigerate overnight and serve at nearly room temperature. Fresh fruit is always a great complement.  Always cut with a hot wet knife

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