Enchiladas!!

I broke down and re wrote the review.  Please forgive me for any spelling or grammar errors. 
I have been making this recipe for a LONG time so I don't usually measure anything for this recipe, I had to really go back in my archives to find the actual measurements and such.  This recipe is simple, just a little time consuming and laborious.  Start by browning the ground beef.  Once that's completed mix all the ingredients for the sauce except for the water.  I like my enchiladas a little saucier so I use an extra can of tomato sauce than the ingredient list calls for and just pump up the spices a little more too.  While the sauce is starting to simmer I combine the rest of the ingredients for the meat in the saute pan and mix and heat it on low until its well combined.  Turn the heat off and get ready to get dirty.

Pour a ladle of the sauce in a dinner plate and place the tortilla on top, flipping it to coat both sides in sauce.  Place a good scoop of meat in the lower half of the shell and roll it up by first  folding the bottom up first, then folding in the sides and lastly flipping the top down.  Place it in a 9x13 pan and continue on til you run out of meat, add sauce to the plate as needed.  Once you've completed all the tortillas add 2/3 cup of water to the sauce and pour it over the enchiladas.  I sprinkle a little more cheese over the top before I bake it uncovered for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Meat Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese
2 tbsp parsley
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Sauce Ingredients:
2 - 15fl oz cans tomato sauce
1 glove garlic, chopped
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cumin
2/3 cup water.

Parkside 23

So I just spent like 20 minutes making a blog for my favorite enchilada recipe and accidentally deleted it before I 'published' it.  I really didn't have it in me to redo tonight.  Sorry!  Instead you get to read my review on this fantastic restaurant in Brookfield, WI.  It is called Parkside 23.  The restaurant uses all local ingredients, some grown in their own back yard where they have about a quarter acre of home grown vegetables and herbs.  The menu is broken down by prices.  Aaron and I usually get a local beer and a glass of wine, share a flat bread and get our own main course.  This is one of the few restaurants that I don't get the same thing at every time I go. 
At this particular visit we shared the Caprese Flat Bread that was drizzled with balsalmic vinegar.  They change up the menu so this isn't always available or it is slightly tweaked.  It was wondeful this time.  I like the consistency of the flat bread, its not too tough.  I could go with a little less of the balsalmic but it never stops me from taking a 2nd piece.  I ordered 1/2 a Rotisserie Chicken on this particular visit.  It is well seasoned and cooked wonderfully.  I like the skin to be pretty crispy and it still had that kind of chewy texture but I just pulled it off and didn't eat it, its not all that good for you anyways...  this dish came with mashed potatoes which were divine and cooked cauliflower.  I really don't like cooked cauliflower but its a nice alternative to the usual veggies you seem to get with meals like this.  There is also a corn bread muffin served with most of their dishes.  I don't like whole kernels of corn in my corn bread, may sound weird, but I hate that texture.  This corn bread would be absolutely to die for it it weren't for all the corn in it!  Aaron got the fried Amish chicken breast which comes with greens sauteed with bacon and mashed potatoes.  Also comes with a cornbread muffin that Aaron doesn't eat either.  The chicken was incredibly juicy and the breading was crunchy!  Aaron also really likes the mashed potatoes.  They are very creamy, whipped up real good. 
We really like the restaurant.  It has a wonderful atmosphere and a VERY large dining area.  It is a little pricy, you'd think that when your getting all your ingredients locally or in your own back yard it would bring the price down a little but that's not quite the case.  The service has always been good and I don't think we've ever had to wait for a table.  We don't frequent this establishment often but we do go when we want more of a comfort food type meal.  Check out the website and the restaurant and support our local establishments!!  They are amazing!
http://www.parkside23.com/

Quick and Delicious Breakfast!!

Well, I have been pintrest-ing lately like my life depends on it.  Seriously, all night.  Its ridiculous. But this recipe was totally worth the sore wrists!  Cinnamon roll waffles!  I thought (and was right) my husband would be skeptical about this dish.  When I told him I was making it for Sunday breakfast he asked me to also make him some eggs, bacon and toast... he's so kind.  BUT once I slapped that waffle on his plate and covered it in icing it was gone in a flash!  He even bragged about it later in the day! 
Really, very simple.  Take a tube of Cinnamon Rolls, put your waffle iron on a medium-medium high setting, spray it with some PAM, put 1 or 2 or 3 uncooked rolls on at a time (depending on the size of your waffle iron) and cook until it seems done!  Serve it immediately so the icing melts in all those nooks. MMMmm.

A quick bite of pizza with a view

I already blogged our favorite pizza place, Cataro's.  But when the weather is nice on a Saturday afternoon and we want a good lunch we head to Milwaukee's 3rd Ward to Rustico for Italian food right on the river.  The service is always good and they have tables on the boardwalk along the river that is always busy with boats.  This year we started and ended our summer at Rustico.  We just love sitting outside and the wait staff never rushes out. 
They have a good selection of dishes but we usually head there for the pizza.  Its a thin crust pizza and they have a lot of different options.  The sauce is sweeter with some tomato chunks which can turn some people off.  This time we went with our go-to.  Pepperoni and Kalamata Olives on half.  We got an antipasto meat platter for an appetizer to enjoy while watching the regatta.
If I'm not feeling pizza they make a dish similar to my Agli Oilo recipe. I always ask them to add sliced salami and the chefs never have a problem doing that.  They also have a brunch menu and an AWESOME lunch special.  Check out the menu! http://www.rusticopizzeria.com/   If you end up checking out the restaurant let me know what you think!

It's been a while!

So I got a job and recently started a more serious schedule and have seriously neglected my new blog.  But I'm back and I'm ready to catch up! 
I'm excited to share this pasta recipe with you.  It took me a few tries to finally get right, but it is SOOO good!  We call this Pasta alla Papa.  Its a hearty pasta with lots of browned pork and egg.  I start by browning my meat.  I get ground italian sausage (1/2 lb), the kind you would use for a pizza and chop it up pretty small, between taco meat and pizza sausage.  I also fry up some bacon (5-6 strips depending on your preference) then tear it into pieces.  Lastly I cut some pepperoni (10-15 slices) in half and throw all the meat in the pan one last time to merry the flavors and warm the pepperoni. 
After its all cooked and combined I throw it on a plate to drain over some paper towel.
At this point I will start to bring my largest pot of water to boil.  While the water is boiling melt 3 tbsp. of butter and add 1 clove of garlic and cook it for about a minute.  Add cooked meats, 3 tbsp. parsley, 1 pinch of basil and oregano.  Get it all mixed up and heated through. Meanwhile, when the water comes to a boil add 1/2 lb. fettuccine (I used Pappardelle Pasta for this particular batch) and cook according to the package.  Once the noodles are done drain and throw it into the skillet with the butter and meats. Get it mixed up as well as possible.

In a separate bowl mix 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese and 4 beaten eggs.  Quickly and completely mix the egg mixture with the pasta and make sure everything is warmed through.  You don't want the skillet so hot that you get scrambled eggs, you want your eggs to slowly set.  Taste a noodle (or two) and add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve it immediately cause it is best piping hot!  The hardest thing for me to get perfected was getting the eggs to set the right way.  I kept the skillet with the meat warm over low-med heat while I was mixing everything together.  That seems to work the best.  My husband and I like most any green       vegetable with this meal.  This is also a great leftovers dish!

Enjoy!

Grilled Peanut Butter and Jelly

If you read one of my first posts where we attended the Wisconsin State Fair you saw that I love love love deep fried peanut butter and jelly.  Clearly that is not something I should be eating every day so I thought of this instead.  A grilled peanut butter and jelly. 
Make it just like a grilled cheese but stuff it with peanut butter and jelly!!  Soooo simple!! Perfect for something warm in the morning or a filling afternoon snack.  I don't have the time or patience to figure out any of the nutrition facts but I'm pretty darn sure its healthier for me than a deep fried peanut butter and jelly!  Try it out!

 Start by lightly buttering one side of the bread. Then spread one side with peanut butter and the other side with jelly!

 Put one half in the pan, butter side down and place the other half on top, butter side up.  I warm up my pan over medium heat and it only takes 1-2 minutes per side.

Check it and when its the preferred done-ness flip it!  Then enjoy!

Motor Bar and Restaurant - Harley Davidson Museum

Milwaukee and Harley go hand in hand.  They fairly new Harley Davidson Museum located at 400 W. Canal Street in Milwaukee had a lot to offer.  Obviously a generous history of Harley and Harley in Milwaukee and also so great shopping, great bike viewing and great eating!  They house a restaurant called Motor Bar and Restaurant.  They just started a year long party to celebrate their 110th anniversary and they are only about 15 days in so I highly recommend getting there before their 110th anniversary party REALLY kicks in!!  We went there with my brother and his wife.  There was some sort of party going on, like a school reunion or a company party or something so they had a lot of tables reserved and we had like a 45 minute wait, but we got some drinks at the bar and found a little corner of comfy chairs to sit in and wait.  I would highly recommend making a reservation!  Their number is 1-877-436-8738 or you can make reservations on opentable.com.  Also, if you're from out of town or a Harley fan I suggest coming early before the museum closes and check it out!
Now for the food and drink!  I ordered a glass of white wine, which they kept on top of the bar outside of a cooler, very weird.  I like my white wine chilled, as I think most people would.  They seemed to have a full bar with lots of options.  The bar was quite packed with lingerers from the party I spoke of earlier, but it took quite a while to get someones attention for drinks and when some seats at the bar opened up we decided to grab them and the bar tender tried to fill the old customers glasses for us to drink out of... yuck.  I know it was busy, but he didn't realize we were completely new people?
Once we were seated at our table our waitress came who was very pleasant.  We ordered some cheese curds (are you shocked?) and a big pretzel.  The cheese curds were battered which I love!  They were very good and a mixture between white and yellow cheese.  I can't say for sure they were cheddar and mozzarella or just a white and yellow cheddar, I really don't know.  They came with a good dipping ranch sauce.  The pretzels were quite large.  Very good.  Just salty enough and soft on the inside.  They came with two different dipping sauces, a Ground Mustard and a Beer Cheese.  I don't like mustard so I didn't try that one, but the beer cheese dip was good.  Light and flavorful. 

I ordered a BBQ Pork Flatbread.  It was HUGE!!!  I'm so glad I talked to the waitress before ordering a side of fries cause she warned me just how large the pizza was.  Fries were not necessary.  The crust was VERY good.  There was a lot of cheese on the pizza which some people like but I could have gone a little lighter on the cheese.  Also, the pieces of pork were quite large and I really wish they were smaller and more spread out.  It was good!!  Don't get me wrong!  I'm just being nit picky!
Aaron got a rack of ribs which he said were too saucey.  Hes not big on super saucey ribs so this didn't shock me.  He said they were cooked right and were plenty meaty.  He did finish the whole rack, so they were by no means bad.










Jamie and Elise (brother and sister-in-law) sent me their own reviews and I would like to share that with you

Jamie got the stuffed burger and this is what he had to say:

    "It wasn't as good as I was hoping it was going to be. There wasn't as much oozing cheeseness and bacon coming out of the center as I thought there would be. The beef of the burger was very good, juicy and a good flavor. I honestly wouldn't recommend it, a standard bacon cheeseburger would suffice just fine. Unless they pump more cheese in the middle it's just ok."



Elise got a BBQ pulled pork sandwich and this is what she had to say:
  " Let’s start with the pork – it was very juicy and tender. The barbeque sauce was very good - it was tangy and full-flavored. I liked that the pork wasn’t drenched in the sauce.  There was one small onion ring than came on top of the sandwich. It was a bit soggy but tasted good. The bun was really big, so I ended up only needing half of it."
Elise also gave me her opinion on the appetizers and her overall opinion of the restaurant, so here they are:

"Cheese curds: I really enjoyed them. They came out hot and fresh. Unlike many other restaurants where they give you a mound of curds, the Motor Bar provided a smaller portion. But I definitely prefer quality of quantity.  And these were quality. The batter was great – it was much lighter than other cheese curd coatings. It had a nice saltiness to it but wasn’t overpowering. I also liked that you couldn’t really taste a lot of the grease. It came with a buttermilk ranch dressing that was very light and tasty."

" Big pretzel: Delicious. It wasn’t too salty and it had a nice crust but was soft in the middle. I loved the beer cheese dipping sauce and mustard that accompanied the pretzel. The beer cheese was so good. It was much thinner and lighter than other cheese sauces that often come with pretzels. You could really taste the beer but it wasn’t overpowering. The mustard was stone ground and had a nice kick to it."

"My overall impression:  I really enjoyed the food and the ambiance of the restaurant. I think the chef did a good job of taking traditionally richer and greasier foods and making them taste lighter without compromising the flavor."

Check it out!  Let me know what you thought :)  Harley Davidson Museum Website

 

Labor Day 2012 in the Northwoods

           A view of the lake (Big Twin Lake) WAY WAY up in the Northwoods!


My In-Laws own a fantastically quaint Northwoods property.  It was once a barn and it was transformed into a nice cabin.  We have some Wave Runners and Snow Mobiles and ATV's and his parents also own a pontoon boat so there is ALWAYS something to do up there.  Its on Summit Lake which is nestled between Antigo and Rhinelander.  Its WAY up there!  If you've been up there with us you can attest to its beauty and guaranteed fun.  Our favorite things to do up there aside from enjoying the lake or trails is to Eat and Drink.

 Stopping at Nueskes in Wittenberg is always a pretty solid must.  You can't have a weekend at the cabin without enjoying some Nueskes bacon.  We also like to frequent the 'local' bars and get some broasted chicken.  I don't know what the deal is with broasted chicken but it is almost non existent until you pass the Oskkosh area heading north.  One thing at a time though!
 Nueskes is an applewood smokehouse.  They serve an assortment of meats prepared in a variety of ways, for example beef jerky, thick cut bacon, homemade sausage links and even racks of ribs or good sized steaks/pork chops.  They also serve an assortment of Wisconsin cheeses and other boutique foods from around the State.  Its all quite fantastic.  We always get a pound or two (or 5) of bacon.  It really is a must stop when traveling up to the Northwoods.  Check out their website for sure!  I think you can order some stuff online.  http://www.nueskes.com/
One thing I forgot!  They have homemade root beer in this barrel in the corner of their store.  Its soo good and they give free samples!!  It's so creamy, just like A&W's.

 

Now for the broasted chicken!  There aren't many RESTAURANTS in the northwoods.  It is mostly bars that serve a good assortment of fried food and a limited assortment of beer.  Its fun, trust me.  This Labor Day we made it known we wanted to have "the best broasted chicken in the northwoods" and were invited to come to a restaurant called The Lighthouse in Gleason, WI.  It was quite a hike from Summit Lake to Gleason especially for some fried food but I sure am glad we made the drive.
Broasted chicken is deep fried in a pressure cooker kinda device.  It leaves the chicken super juicy with a nice crispy crust.  This particular chicken had an amazingly flavored crust and was incredibly juicy.  Definitely the best broasted chiecken I've had in the northwoods. 
They also offered a good assortment of appetizers, sandwiches and dinners.  Of course being in Wisconsin they had a fish fry but Aaron and I both don't like ANY seafood.  They also had a lot of sides....  crinkle cut french fries, french fries with skins on, sweet potato fries, double baked sweet potato or a regular baked potato.  They also offered a Bok Choy salad, coleslaw or a cranberry relish. 
For appetizers we got fried pickles and cheese curds.  I don't like pickles but they were fried pickle spears.  They were lightly breaded and crisp, consensus was that they were homemade.  The cheese curds were just ok, breaded and fried, I like battered ones better.
They had just a few beers on tap, Miller Light and Miller High Life, Bud Light a Wisconsin Amber and also Root Beer.  Super cheap beers! We ordered 3 beers and 1 soda and it cost $2.00, no joke. The food was also pretty cheap.  I think that 5 of us ate and drank for $60.  Not bad!!
We all ordered broasted chicken just in various sizes with mixtures of the sides.  I included 3 of our meals just so you can see the size portions and the different sides.  

Its always an experience in any bar in the northwoods.  We sure love it.