Spuebens

Hello my Hy-Vee friends!

Happy Spring and happy April Fool’s Day. As much as I like to have fun in the kitchen, I do take food seriously. I work hard every day to share my passion for what we eat so when there is one food that is consistency deemed the “clown prince” of food, I will quickly jump in to defend it.

What food is that you may ask?  It is spam and it is delicious. Its been a joke since the infamous Monty Python’s flying circus spam skit in the 1970's but spam was not always a joke. In World War 2 spam played a crucial role overseas. Since it was cheap, easily transportable, had a long shelf life and is nutritious, it fed our troops in their time of need.

And it is tasty of course. Whether it is diced up and mixed into pineapple fried rice, topped with sushi rice and wrapped in seaweed or made it into a delicious sandwich (see below), spam is certainly no joke.

Spuebens

All you need:

1 can of spam, sliced thin

2 tablespoons butter

4 slices marble rye bread

1/2 cup sauerkraut

4 slices Swiss cheese

1/4 cup thousand island dressing

All you do:

1. Preheat a large skillet or griddle on medium heat. Place 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet and add the spam.

2. Cook until spam is slightly brown and crispy. Set aside. 

3. Lightly butter one side of bread slices. 

4. Spread non-buttered sides with thousand island dressing.

5. On 2 bread slices, layer 1 slice Swiss cheese, 1/2 the spam, 1/4 cup sauerkraut and second slice of Swiss cheese.

6. Top with remaining bread slices, buttered sides out. 

7. Grill sandwiches until both sides are golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.

8. Serve hot and enjoy!

Praise the Lard,

-Chef Alex

Tuna Poke

Aloha my Hy-Vee friends!

With this damp, gray weather outside, my thoughts wander to Hawaii. Sure, the weather is always great and the islands are truly beautiful, but I'm thinking about Hawaii's amazing seafood, specifically Tuna Poke (rhymes with okay). 

At its most basic, you simply small dice the freshest tuna you can get your hands on, toss it with some soy sauce, dark sesame oil and thinly sliced sweet onion and you are good to go. But that is only the beginning—you can mix in and top it with whatever your heart desires. I love to mix in edamame, cucumber and jalapenos and put that over white rice topped with sriracha mayo, sweet teriyaki sauce, tempura crunchies and toasted sesame seeds. So ono (that means delicious in Hawaiian for all you main landers)! 

Tuna Poke

All you need:
12 ounces raw sashimi-grade tuna, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 a sweet onion, such as Vidalia, thinly sliced
1 scallion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon white or black sesame seeds
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

All you do:
1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Toss to combine.
3. Enjoy!

Eat some Poke and as always, Praise the Lard!

-Chef Alex

Colcannon

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Okay, I have to get this off my chest. Corned Beef is not Irish. Even worse is people who think Reubens are Irish. That sandwich was actually invented by a Jewish gentleman in Omaha, Nebraska. There are cows in Ireland but a majority of them produce milk so they have plenty of butter. And lots of potatoes. And lots of cabbage. Put those three things together with some onions and bacon and you have Colcannon, the tastiest mashed potato dish you have ever tried.

Colcannon

All you need:

3 slices bacon

2 pounds small red potatoes, chopped into 1" pieces

1/2 small head of cabbage, about 4 cups chopped small

1 small yellow onion, about 3/4 chopped small

1/3 cup milk

Salt, to taste

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons butter, melted

All you do:

1. Place the potatoes in a pot, along with enough water to cover them. Add 2 teaspoons salt to the pot and bring to a boil. 

2. Simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, about 15-18 minutes.

3. While the potatoes are boiling, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium high heat. 

4. When the bacon has browned and is slightly crisp, remove to a paper towel lined plate. Reserve about a tablespoon of the bacon grease and drain the rest. Leave the rest of the drippings in the skillet. 

5. Add the onions to the hot skillet with the bacon grease and saute over medium high heat for 1-2 minutes, until they are lightly browned. 

6. Add the cabbage and toss lightly while it sautes and wilts, about 5 minutes. 

7. Season generously with salt and pepper as it cooks.

8. Drain and place the potatoes back in the hot pot. Place the pot back over the still-warm burner (or if your stove is gas, set the heat to the lowest setting). 

9. Mash the potatoes over very low heat and add the milk, 1/2 - 1 teaspoon salt and pepper. 

10. Fold in the cooked and crumbled bacon, cabbage, and onions. 

11. Transfer to a serving bowl, form a small well in the center and fill with the butter.  

12. Enjoy!

If you want to truly embrace St. Patrick's Day, forget the green beer, put down your Rueben and make something authentic.

Erin Go Bragh and Praise the Lard!

-Chef Alex

Scallop Aguachile Ceviche

Hello my Hy-Vee friends,

It is lent and with lent my mind turns to fish. If you are familiar with ceviche, and I hope you are, you are aware that it is seafood that has been “cooked” in an acid such as lime juice. You can find this dish all over South America with the epicenter of ceviche coming from Peru. Mexico, however, has its own unique twist with aguachile—literally meaning chile water, serrano chiles are pureed with lime juice and cilantro and tossed with local seafood. For a modern twist, I like to add pineapple and fresh mint. It is spicy, sour, slightly sweet and oh so delicious.

Scallop Aguachile Ceviche

Serves 4 as an appetizer.

All you need:

1 pound bay scallops

4 serrano or jalapeno chiles, stemmed and rough chopped

Juice of 5 limes

1/3 cup cilantro

1/2 cup mint

1/2 cup pineapple

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 small red onion, finely sliced

1 avocado, small diced

All you do: 

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. 

2. Add scallops and cook 5 minutes. 

3. Drain and cool.

4. In a blender puree the chiles, lime juice, cilantro, mint, pineapple, olive oil and salt.

5. Combine the scallops with the puree, red onion and avocado. 

6. Let it sit for 15 minutes and serve.
7. Enjoy!

Eat some fish but as always, Praise the Lard!

-Chef Alex