Breakfast at Bintliff’s.  What an array of masterfully-created dishes.  This omelet was custom-made with favorite ingredients, and served with a selection of three potatoes and choice of bread.  Perhaps as excellent as the food is the warm atmosphere.

Bintliff’s American Cafe is a reasonably priced breakfast and lunch restaurant with an up-scale atmosphere, good service and is open daily 7AM-2PM for breakfast and lunch. They are located at 92 Portland Street, directly across from the main post office building.

Using Trader Joe’s Organic vodka sauce, which happened to be on sale for $2.99 on the day I picked it up, I added ground mild Italian sausage, pine nuts, olive oil, and shredded Parmesan.  It all worked well together, over imported penne pasta.  Photo below is the sauce simmering just before serving.

Terra Cotta Pasta Company cracked black pepper linguine (Whole Foods) with a simple sauce of minced clams, olive oil, roasted pine nuts, and Parmesan cheese.  Simple salad (greens, mushrooms, tomatoes) accompanies, with LeRoux kitchen olive oil and vinegar, and Parmesan cheese sprinkles.

Recipe (is adapted from) and concept and creation is from Caiola’s, the wonderful East End restaurant on Pine Street in Portland.  This is a very unique and fairly potent martini… and very delicious.

Start with a chilled martini glass.  In a shaker over ice, add the juice of half of a large or all of a small lime.

To this I added 2 oz. Citrus Vodka and 2 oz. Cold River Gin and a dash of simple syrup.

Now add about 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh cilantro.

Now the secret ingredient, or at least the one that gives the Stinger its name.. And the one you cannot just walk into the store and readily purchase.  It’s Frostbite “flavorless” hot sauce.  (next photo).  What sets it apart from 99% of other hot sauces is its non-tomato base.  It basically just adds the heat without any of its own direct flavor.  I purchased my bottle from amazon.com.  It is not inexpensive, but at one dash (and yes, don’t do the 4 dashes I did!!!!) it will last in your bar for some time.

Shake it all vigorously and strain into the chilled glass.  Garnish with a sprig of rosemary, and enjoy responsibly!!!

My kids’ perennial favorite, and a dish that defies having any leftovers from.  Chicken tikka masala.  You’ve seen it here on this blog before, perhaps, but I changed up the recipe just a bit, having earlier in the week found a treasure trove of hard-to-find Indian spices at Whole Foods Market.

I always start with sauteed green peppers and onions.  In a separate pan, I cook chicken breast cubes in olive oil on medium heat.  When the chicken is cooked, I then add the now-nicely sauteed vegetables to the chicken, then add your favorite brand of Tikka Masala Simmer Sauce (Whole Foods, Hannaford).

Different than other variations I have made, I added some chicken stock and some Indian spices.  The good part is that the dish did not get too spicy for anyone’s taste.  I added Madras Curry Powder, Garam Masala, and Tandoori Spice.  As a garnish once the plates were served, a spoonful of onion chutney added a just-right amount of extra spice for those so inclined.
Meanwhile the Basmati rice that always serves as the base was “spiced up” with those same seasonings, plus some whole cloves.
Because the chicken stock made the sauce a bit thin, I added a can of Cento tomato paste.  And some more of the aforementioned spices.   I started with about 1.5 lbs of chicken breast, and feeding three normal-size kids (two out of three of them were born in India, in case one would like to make a connection of their affinity for this dish : ) ) plus me,  there is barely enough left over for a modest lunch-size portion.

Here is Isaac, out of my four adopted children (the one U.S.-born representative, [born in Tupelo, MS]!) pretending that the dish was too spicy.  It wasn’t. 

I just loved the steam rolling off the top of this pizza I made in the oven; the image was made maybe 15 seconds after it came out of the oven. This pizza features fresh tomato, with onion and black pepper. I used pre-made crusts from Whole Foods, and Amato’s pizza sauce.  Hotter, tastier, healthier, and less costly than most take-out pizzas.

In the lower image, I included it to show my new “rocking” pizza cutter.  Far less messy than a standard “wheeled” pizza cutter, it’s stainless steel, rugged, and best yet, under $10 at LeRoux Kitchen in the Old Port in Portland, ME.

Taking oven roasted potatoes and grilled vegetables left over from the previous night’s dinner, saute in olive oil, add 3 large eggs, a little shredded cheese, salt, pepper, celery salt, and a dash of your favorite herbs (now that I think about it, I should’ve included some cilantro, because, well, is there ever not a good time for cilantro?  Or basil, for that matter?).

Added to the plated serving is my absolute favorite hot sauce, Boulder Hot Sauce Company’s Smokey Serranno. Order some here direct from the manufacturer.  (No affiliation except as a satisfied customer!)  You’ve gotta love their slogan: “I Always Sweat Like This”…

Appetizer course:  Chilled martini glass, lined with butter lettuce sets the base.  Based on a recipe by Kerry Altierio, of Cafe Miranda in Rockland, Maine, and also Maine’s current Lobster Chef of the Year, this appetizer is simply impossible to beat.  I made my adaptation with about 6 oz. of clear lobster meat, a poblano pepper finely chopped and diced, two scallions (the whites and greens), juice of two fresh limes, 1 oz. extra virgin oil, chopped fresh basil, fresh cilantro, and black sesame seeds.  Nothing short of fantastic.
There was a salad as the next course.  Main course was grilled chicken with sauteed vegetables and oven roasted herb potatoes.

This was the first use of my new Staub grill pan for chicken.  (Read earlier posts about the pan and use for cooking beef.  It’s a very often-used addition to my kitchen.  And I am very impressed with how these chicken breasts stayed so moist.  Seasoning was McCormick Montreal Chicken seasoning.   Credit to Whole Foods Air Chilled fresh chicken breast from their butcher shop.

The main course presentation.  A drizzle of Caribbean Mango grilling sauce complimented the spice of the chicken nicely.

A fresh fruit cup dessert was a just-right finish.

Now and again I feature some “stock/archive” photos from the past, that are previously unpublished.   This wonderful lobster club was from DiMillo’s in Portland, during a small lunchtime wedding dinner I was photographing in early August.  A rare treat it was to order from the menu, while working at that.  How it tasted needs no elaboration.  All I will say is that it’s “on the list” for Summer 2013… as is the boat cruise on Casco Bay similar to the one that followed the wedding.

A juicy burger, with fresh high-quality ground beef from Whole Foods.  Winter-time cooking, or in my case, apartment life cooking without outdoor grilling ability, can result in challenges making flavorful burgers and steaks.  But, it doesn’t have to be a show-stopper.

Start with a professional grade grill pan, like I reviewed a few posts earlier, and as picutred here:  This is a Staub, and it is simply wonderful.

Of course, quality meat is a given.  What remains that can make a big difference is the judicious use of certain seasonings.  First up, Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick.  A true staple with beef, and they also make a chicken-specific version, too.

Then, my cooking and blogging pal Liz put me on to Liquid Smoke, by Colgin, readily available in the hot sauce section of Whole Foods.  Used just a few drops in the meat, while pressing the burgers, or mixed a few drops when you are using a marinade, imparts a hickory-smoke flair (flare?) that is certainly reminiscent of outdoor cooking.  Remember, a little goes a long way.In the background of this image are two other seasonings.   Use each sparingly, because, yes, we have several different tacts we are taking here… the first is a BBQ/Grill Seasonings 4-in-one spice set I believe I purchased at LeRoux Kitchen on Commercial Street in Portland (love that store!). LeRoux also has a virtual storefront right at this link.  Anyhow, the second seasoning is celery salt.  Beyond that, just a dash of course ground pepper.

I will not suggest that indoor-cooked burgers and steaks rival an outdoor grill, but when there isn’t an alternative, this strikes mighty close.  And don’t neglect quality relishes, and thought I passed on it for this shoot, what about grilled onions?  Yes, please.  (Thank you, LH……   Russ)