Bella Bruschetta

Broo-sket-tah, Italian for fabulous appetizer, is my go to dish for dinner parties and potlucks.  It requires minimal effort and you can bring something dazzling, flavorful, and healthy to the table.  A small batch of bruschetta goes a long way.  I made a small dish and it served 5, easily.

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Consuming tomatoes provides an array of benefits to your health, including reducing bad cholesterol, improving skin, making stronger bones, fighting cancer, regulating blood sugar, making hair shinier and stronger, and preventing kidney stones and gallstones.  To avoid using white bread, I served bruschetta with whole grain wheat toast for a healthier take on the traditional recipe.

In terms of taste, they say the uglier the tomato, the tastier it is.  Here, I used 10 ounces of mini heirloom tomatoes from Trader Joe’s.

Recipe after the jump!

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Smoked Salmon Mango Salad with Mustard Dressing

If you’re looking for a new recipe for smoked salmon, this mango salad is a satisfying and fresh plate.  It’s also low carb.  Yay!

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Recipe after the jump!

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Oysters Magic Sauce

Oysters don’t have to be reserved for a special occasion or only enjoyed in a fine restaurant.  They’re quite easy to prepare at home whether served raw or cooked.  I’d also like to share with you a delectable, magical, fantastical sauce made from Hog Island’s hogwash recipe and my own little sumthin sumtthin on top.  This preparation is absolutely the best way I’ve had oysters.
IMG_1236Recipe and how to shuck video after the jump.  I hope I’ve demystified making oysters at home for some 🙂

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The Best Way to Cook Dungeness Grab

Here on the West Coast, Dungeness crab season is well under way.  The crab season peaks at the start in December and runs through June.  Here are more Dungeness Crab Season Facts.

Some people lament on how dry Dungeness crab meat can be, but they may not be doing it right.  I’ve experimented with cooking live crab at home and I found the perfect method to yield totally cooked but very juicy meat.  I prepared crab for a picnic party of 10 and made dipping sauces.  The crab meat was so good on its own that no one used the sauces!

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Recipe after the jump! 🙂

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Soft-Boil Eggcellence

Macheesmo.com posted this method for  fail-proof, perfect soft-boiled eggs.  This is truly a game changer.  No more overcooked or undercooked eggs, ever.  The instructions involve boiling eggs in 1/2 inch of water, covered for 6 minutes and 30 seconds.  America’s Test Kitchen also validated this method after experimenting with thousands of eggs.

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Here is the result of my replication:
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Adding a teaspoon of baking soda to the boiling water is supposed to help with separating the egg-shell when peeling.