Page 22 - Florida Sentinel 9-18-15 Edition

Recipes
While football's athletes are gearing up for game day, get your kitchen game-day playbook ready.
Garlicky Meatball Sliders
This recipe gets garlic flavor in two forms: from chopped, lightly pungent garlic baked into the meatballs, and from sweet, earthy roasted garlic that's incorporated into a creamy spread.
1 whole head garlic plus 4 cloves minced Olive oil, for drizzling
Kosher salt
1 slice white bread, torn into chunks
1/3 cup milk
4 slices bacon
1/2 medium onion, roughly chopped 1 pound 85% lean ground beef
4 tablespoons chopped chives Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup creme fraiche
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
24 slider buns
1/2 small head Boston lettuce, torn
into small pieces
DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut the top third off the head of garlic to expose the cloves. Place on a piece of foil and drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt. Wrap the head in the foil and roast until the garlic is very tender, about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine the bread and milk in a small bowl and let soak until the milk is com- pletely absorbed, about 10 minutes.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Combine the bacon, onion and minced garlic in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Transfer to a medium bowl along with the ground beef, soaked bread, 2 tablespoons of the chives, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pep- per. Combine gently with your hands and form into 24 meatballs, about 1 1/2-inches in diameter (dampen your hands with water to make rolling easier). Arrange the
meatballs on the prepared baking sheet and bake until cooked
through, about 20 minutes. Turn the oven to broil and cook until
the meatballs are browned, 3 to 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, squeeze the roasted garlic out of the white paper husks, place it in a small bowl and mash with a fork. Season it with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Stir in the creme fraiche, mustard, and the remaining 2 tablespoons chives.
Build the sliders by placing a small piece of lettuce on the bottom of a bun, top with a meatball, spread the top bun with the roasted garlic cream and place on top. Secure with a toothpick or short bam- boo skewer. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Serve warm.
Spicy Serrano Guacamole
For those who like their guacamole hot, add two Serrano peppers (seeds and all) for plenty of fiery flavor.
2 Serrano peppers (optional)
1 shallot, peeled and halved
4 garlic cloves, peeled Vegetable oil, for drizzling Kosher salt and black pepper
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds 4 ripe avocados (pitt and peel) 2-3 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1/2 teaspoon chipotle hot sauce Tortilla chips, for serving
DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss the Ser- rano’s, shallot and garlic in some vegetable oil in a small bowl. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast until the vegetables are soft and brown, about 15 min- utes. Roughly chop the vegetables and set aside.
Crush the whole cumin seeds using a mortar and pestle. Add the roasted vegetables to the mortar and mash into a smooth paste. Add 2 of the avocados and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the mortar and mash with the vegetables until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Alternately, pulse the cumin, roasted vegetables, avocados and salt in a food processor.
Roughly chop the remaining 2 avocados and fold them into the smooth avocado mixture. Fold in the lime juice and hot sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving dish. Serve with tortilla chips.
Salt-and-Vinegar Potato Skins with Bacon
These salty, vinegary, bacony potato skins are reminiscent of your favorite salt-and-vinegar potato chips.
8 small russet baking potatoes (6 ounces each), scrubbed, unpeeled
Vegetable oil, for brushing and deep frying
Kosher salt and ground black pepper 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar,
plus more for serving
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 slices thick-cut bacon
2 teaspoons light-brown sugar
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese 2 scallions, sliced
Sour cream, for serving
DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Brush the potatoes with vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange on a baking sheet and bake until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork and the skins begins to crisp, about 1 hour. Cool completely. Halve the potatoes and scoop out the flesh (reserve for another use), leaving a shell about 1/4-inch thick. (This can be done a day ahead.)
Meanwhile, heat the apple cider vinegar, white vinegar, butter, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
Arrange the bacon in a large skillet with 3 tablespoons of the vinegar sauce and the brown sugar. Cook over medium heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is slightly caramelized, about 5 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels (don't let the bacon cool completely on the towels or it will stick), then crumble and set aside.
Heat 3 inches of vegetable oil in a large saucepan or oven until the temperature reaches 375 degrees F. on a deep-fry thermometer. Add the potato skins in batches and fry until the skins are very crisp and deep golden brown, about 4 minutes per batch. Drain on paper towels, cut side down. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, cut side up. Brush the insides with some of the reserved vinegar sauce and sprinkle with salt.
Fill each potato half with some grated cheese and bacon.
Bake until hot and the cheese melts, about 10 minutes.
Brush with the remaining butter-vinegar sauce. Garnish
with sliced scallion. Serve with sour cream and extra apple cider vinegar for drizzling.
From Tonia Turner
PAGE 10-B FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2015