Recipes: Bakersfield.com

Cooking for Myself

My money is not going as far as it used to. I’ve taken a look to see where I can cut back. House payment and bills are pretty much fixed; I solved the gas problem by filling up when the gauge reads half full, cutting my gas bills by 50%. I started washing all of my clothes in one load, saving water and soap. Now I know what they mean by “dingy whites” Checking my credit card, I see restaurant bills totaling hundreds! I will have to stop eating (not a bad idea) or start cooking for myself. I hear it is cheap, and I finally have a reason to watch Rachel Ray!
     In my kitchen I find a coffee pot, beer, Cheerio’s, something that used to be a vegetable in the fridge, bottled water, and cottage cheese in the milk carton.
   I will start simple and work my way up, maybe a sandwich to start things off. No reason to set myself up for failure.
Sitting in front of the television I notice Rachel is using a lot of tools, I have lots of tools, guys love tools, guys like having an excuse to buy tools! She has a big knife in her hand, I need a knife.
   Looking in the yellow pages for knives I have success right away. There is a knife store at the Plaza, off I go. There are lots of knives there and I pick a 10 inch, chrome plated Bowie Knife. Bigger is always better, right? And it is only $90. That is dinner for three and a drink. This knife will last forever and I am excited that I am saving so much money!
   Rachel would be impressed with my newfound culinary skills; I think I will give her a call. But I digress.
   Next thing I notice is all of the pots and pans. I need to buy a pot, you never know when you will want soup. Back to the Yellow pages, not so lucky here so I’m off to Wal-Mart, I hear they have everything. I even found a plate and cup, matching no less! Bill was $27.29, not bad so far, right? I had to buy four plates, but they can be washed and reused, or so I am told.
   Rachel and I are buds now; she just hasn’t had a chance to return my calls.
   My tools in the kitchen are ready; my friend told me they are called utensils, whatever. Now all I need is food. I wonder where Rachel shops.
   There is a grocery store conveniently located near my house and I have made a grocery list, taped to the empty refrigerator.
I am hesitant to leave the house, Rachel could call any time. I need to buy an answering machine.
The grocery store is quite impressive, but very confusing, how do you know where stuff is? I think they should arrange food by the colors. Example: You want to buy broccoli, go to the green isle. You want to buy milk, go to the white isle. Butter, of course, is in the yellow isle. See how easy that is? I will call the manager with my suggestion as soon as I figure out where to put the Fruit Loops.
   First thing required for a sandwich is meat; I choose the already cooked meat and will slice it myself with my new knife. I really have the hang of this! Mayonnaise, lettuce, a tomato, (again the knife) and a loaf of bread (should be in the white isle) are in the bag. $24.56 with a six pack and candy bar.
   I am home and just got through getting rid of that thing growing in the fridge. I am ready for assembly and Rachel is nowhere to be found, putting her on my speed dial has not worked.
   I spent a total of $141.85 for one sandwich. Not counting the trip to the emergency room for stitches. By the way, I hardly got any blood on the sandwich. A week later someone told me I should have put the Mayo in the fridge.
   I am hungry, I wonder if Rachel would like to go out to dinner.

It's Persimmon Season, again

Where did this year go? For me, this is the beginning of the Holiday Season. Persimmons are bitter sweet. I love to receive them, especially FREE, but they can be a pain in the rear. Every year my friend Roger the "Golden Bear Grouch" brings me persimmons that are not ripe, they are hard as a rock. This year he brought 2 big boxes full. He does this because he knows if he brings them to me I will make him persimmon cookies throughout the year. It's like Christmas all year! It's obvious these cookies are his favorite, because he keeps his money way deep down in his pockets and with the cost of gas, he travels great distances searching for these orange jewels. I'm guessing he's taking them from trees encroaching in what he calls "free space" in the alleys in East Bakersfield.

Each year it's an ordeal to figure out how to ripen them, catch them at the right time before they rot. I've tried several ways I've read about, like putting them in a brown paper bag way back in the pantry where it's dark, check on them every other day, turn them, check on them again, forget about them....TOO late. I remember them when I open the pantry door and it's a fog of Gnats. Not a pretty sight and you should hear my husband, "I told you that was going to happen". I promised him I would faithfully keep an eye on them, I failed. What a mess.

So this year when Roger brought me the 2 big boxes full, I smiled & thanked him & let him know he would receive the first batch of cookies. After he left, my husband said "we are not going through the persimmon ordeal this year. I'm taking them down to the community mail boxes and we'll let the neighbors go through the persimmon ripening fiasco!". I immediately went to the computer and Googled "how to ripen persimmons". God, I wish I had bought that stock when it was $90.00 a share, I wouldn't' be screwing with these stupid rock hard persimmons, I'd step up and pay $1.00 each for them at the grocery store.

The information I got from Google was to put them in the freezer for 24 hours, let them defrost and they would be ripe. IT WORKED! It takes about 3 persimmons to make 1 cup of pulp for my cookie recipe. I mash them, put in a baggie, press it flat for fast defrosting & have persimmon pulp all year. Be sure to bring the pulp to room temperature before using for cookies. The pulp will last up to 2 years in the freezer. As it ages it will turn an ugly brown, but it does not affect the taste.

Here's my persimmon cookie recipe. Most recipes are pretty much the same, but these always turn out yummy.

1 cup persimmon pulp at room temp.

1 tsp. soda

1 well beaten egg

1 stick butter soft.....Real Butter ONLY

1 1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp PURE vanilla, if you have imitation, THROW IT AWAY! YUK

2 cups + 2 T flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cloves

1 cup pecans or walnuts

1 cup raisins - optional I don't use

Dissolve soda in room temperature persimmon pulp. Let stand until it resembles Gelatin about 10 minutes. Cream butter & sugar, add vanilla & egg. Then add persimmon pulp. Sift dry ingredients together & add to wet mix. Fold in nuts & raisins. Spray cookie sheets with Pam. Bake @ 350 for about 16 minutes, sometimes more, just keep watching. I also alternate the cookie sheets half way through. Makes approx. 3 dozen. I use a small cookie scoop so they are consistent in size.Take out of oven & let stand for about 10 minutes & then transfer to a rack for about 20 minutes. If stacking, use wax paper or they will stick to each other. Don't ask how many calories or fat grams, during the holidays they don't count, but they do on Jan. 2nd. Enjoy

CrockPot Dressing

5 cups torn bread and 5 cups baked cornbread

(which is 1 pkg. cornbread mix, not Jiffy)

1 cup onion, chopped

2 cups celery, chopped

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. pepper 3 tsp. sage

1 tsp poultry seasoning (optional)

3 eggs

1 tsp white vinegar

2 cans cream of chicken soup

2 cans water

Saute onion and celery in the butter. Add seasonings. In a small bowl mix soup, water, eggs, and vinegar. Mix together the breads, vegetables and soup mix.

Bake in crock pot 1 hour on high and 5 1/2 to 6 hours on low.

Enjoy!!

Former Bakersfield bartender brings home gold from Cocktail World Cup

“Fast Eddie” Perales, a former Bakersfield bartender, helped bring home the gold from the Cocktail World Cup on Sept. 15.

Perales and two other bartenders from Las Vegas competed in New Zealand against 13 other teams from around the world.

The 42 Below Cocktail World Cup is a unique and challenging competition with extreme categories including bungee jumping, mountain top mixing, and jet boat shaking.

Anthony Alba, a mixologist with the Rio Hotel and Casino, claimed victory in the bungee shaking heat by jumping off a 42-meter (138 feet) bridge while holding onto his cup and shaker. While suspended upside down, he mixed a cosmopolitan and finished it off with an orange garnish which he had taped to his arm.

“The third heat consisted of a jet boat going 70 miles (per hour) plus through a canyon, all the while attempting to shake a cocktail and pour it,” Perales wrote in an e-mail. “The poor judge just managed to get a quarter of an ounce of the cocktail we made for him.”

For the final competition, the Vegas team concocted the winning drink “Amplextremo.” It is a two-part cocktail with ingredients such as sweet potato puree, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice, dulce de leche, and 42 Below vodka.

In addition to Perales and Alba, the Vegas team included Gaston Martinez, a bar manager at Nora's Italian Cuisine.

Perales was once owner of Bakersfield Bartending Academy. He now works as a beverage trainer and flair director for Harrahs Entertainment, based at the Rio in Las Vegas.

In Bakersfield, Perales’s school, located downtown off of 19th Street, taught up and coming bartenders the essentials of flair bartending and mixology. He has been in Las Vegas for over four years and has earned the title of Master Mixologist.

Chuck Shakta is the Nightlife Operations Manager at the Rio. He is a former nightclub owner from Bakersfield.

The Las Vegas team’s winning cocktail:

Amplextremo
This cocktail is a two-part drink meant to be sipped from two straws at once.

HOT
2 oz. Navan
2 Tbsp sweet potato puree
3/4 oz. maple syrup
3 pinches chili threads
1/2 oz. chocolate grappa
1 oz. 42 Below honey vodka
4-5 shakes of pumpkin pie spice
1/2 oz. Knob Creek Bourbon
COLD
2 egg yolks
3/4 oz. port wine
1 oz. dulce de leche
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 oz. 42 Below vodka
1/4 oz. eau de vie

Eddie Perales’ qualifying cocktail:

Fast Eddie’s 42 Khewl

6 large fresh leaves of mint
1 whole golden kiwi, peeled and cubed
4 small cubes of fresh cucumber
1 oz. rock candy syrup
1/2 squeeze of fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp. of Asian mixed chiles

Muddle the above ingredients by mashing together to extract flavors.

1 1/2 ounces fresh lemon sour
2 ounces 42 Below kiwi flavored vodka

Shake ingredients and liquors with ice, and strain into a large bucket glass containing 4 large cubes of ice, a peeled kiwi wheel, lemon wheel, cucumber wheel, and a red chili pepper. Garnish with a large mint sprig.

Recipe: Pizza salad

The other night, my friends wanted pizza and I wanted salad. They still got pizza. But I came up with an idea for pizza salad, and it was a hit! Here's the ingredients:

Lettuce
Salami, chopped in cubes
Black olives, sliced
Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Pepperoncinis, sliced
Ranch dressing

Toss and enjoy!

Also, you can experiment with any of your favorite pizza toppings: sliced mushrooms, diced tomato, thinly sliced onions ... the possibilities are endless!

Recipe: Henry's Homemade Corned Beef & Potatoes

1 bag Ore-Ida frozen potatoes O'Brien
1 can corned beef (square can with a key)
Oil
Optional: Eggs or tortillas

Put a little oil in a pan and cook the potatoes first. Use a large pan if you want to make a lot. When the potatoes are almost done, stir them frequently to not burn them.

Add the corned beef to the potatoes, chopping up the corned beef while you stir. Cook for about 8 minutes.

Warm up some tortillas if you want to make burritos, or fry a couple of eggs and you got some good breakfast. Easy to make.

Hamburger Stromboli

Hamberger Stromboli

In a heavy pot, brown 1 lb. ground meat, 2 lg onions diced, 1 can chopped mushroom stems and pieces and 1 stalk celery, 1 tbls. garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.

Drain off 2/3 of the grease. Mix 1 cup of your favorite grated cheese. Velveeta is good for this recipe.

Using a thawed frozen pizza crust, make a rectangle on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with Pam. Down the center place the ground meat mixture. Then fold one side over to the center, covering the ground meat.

Brush the top of that fold with the egg mixture ( 1 egg, and 2 tbls. water beaten together ) and fold the other side of the crust over to lap over 1 inch.

Brush with remaining egg mixture and bake until golden brown. Slice in 2-inch pieces and serve hot.