We The Pizza.

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

Continuing our Obama-inspired menu, we drew from POTUS’s island roots and decided to make a Hawaiian pizza- fresh pineapple, thinly sliced ham (proscuitto would be delicious as well), and two varieties of mozzarella make Hawaiian pizza one of the most popular in the States. And then we got crazy and paid homage to his Chicago life ALSO, throwing those Hawaiian toppings on a traditional cornmeal deep dish crust. Check out our recipes for homemade pizza crust and marinara sauce also!

You’ll need:
Deep Dish Pizza Crust
6 oz. shredded mozzarella
2 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese
6 slices of thinly sliced ham or proscuitto
1 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup sliced pineapple
2 cups marinara sauce

Start by rolling out your pizza crust to a 13-inch circle. Rub the inside of a spring form pan with olive oil and set the crust inside the pan, working it two inches up the side of the pan.

Layer on the shredded mozzarella and the sauce on top. Seriously people- cheese FIRST. Sauce SECOND. The cheese sort of melts into the crust and creates this gooey perfection.

Now, layer on your toppings. We were looking for a traditional Hawaiian pizza, but obviously you could use a variety of other toppings:

Pepperoni
Assorted cheeses
Roasted bell peppers
Kalamata olives
A bevy of cured meats
Shrimp
This list could literally go on forever.

Bake at 425° for 20-30 minutes, or until, you know, the pizza is ready. If you don’t know when a pizza looks gooey and crispy and perfect, then shoot us an email and we’ll come to your house and tell you. We charge in pizza slices, if you catch my drift.

Love,

The Hungry Texans

cupcakes we can believe in

Posted on January 16, 2013 by lovettlovett

Even though Obama ate more custards than cupcakes during his first term in office, there are few desserts more “DC” right now than cupcakes. We took a tropical, Hawaiian twist on the DC favorite with these Pineapple-Coconut Cupcakes. What makes these cupcakes extra-special is they use crushed cookies instead of flour. You read right…cookies! One bite of these coconutty, cookie cupcakes & you’ll want to forget flour all together!

For the cupcakes: (makes about 22)
1 stick unsalted butter
½ c coconut oil
2 c sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla
6 eggs
1 c sweetened coconut flakes
¼ c crushed pineapple
1 box of crushed vanilla wafers, crushed into a fine crumb
½ cup of pecans, crushed into a pecan meal

For the icing:
8 oz cream cheese
4 tbl butter
1 tsp vanilla
4 c powdered sugar (or until reaches desired thickness)
2 tbl pineapple

Start by creaming your coconut oil & butter together with the paddle attachment of a stand mixer. Once your fats are combined and a nice pale yellow, add your sugar & continue creaming.

Splash in your vanilla & then start adding eggs. Add eggs one at a time allowing enough time for each egg to integrate (scraping the side of the bowl as necessary). Once you’ve added all six eggs, your mixture should look almost custardy.

At a slow speed fold your coconut and pineapple into the batter. Once combined, add your vanilla wafer & pecan meals to the mix thickening it all up. Scrape the sides of your bowl and give your mixture a final few paddle rotations.

Prep your favorite cupcake pan with liners.

Fill close to the top. These cupcakes will rise a little bit, but not too much, so be generous with your fill!

Bake at 325 for 25-30 minutes or until they’re golden and pass a toothpick test.

For your pineapple cream cheese frosting, start by creaming softened butter & cream cheese together. Add vanilla & pineapple. Begin gradually adding powdered sugar until your frosting reaches your desired thickness (we erred on the thinner side). Once your cupcakes have cooled, frost ’em up!

Excellent room temperature or chilled, we dare you to eat just one!

xoxo,

Hungry Texans

Chicago-Style Half Smokes

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

In honor of Obama’s re-inauguration, we set out to create a Barack-inspired dish that highlighted his ties to both Chicago and our lovely DC. This Chicago-Style Half Smoke combines the prez’s roots in Chi-City with his new home in DC.

The half smoke is an interesting sausage, popularized by DC’s Ben’s Chili Bowl and named aptly because it is usually half pork, half beef. We found a half smoke that was produced in the DMV, and the nutrition facts are kindly out of focus, just like my mind treats all sausage.

So what happens when you load a DC-native half smoke onto a poppy seed bun and heap on Chicagoan toppings? A culinary mixture fit for the President himself!

You’ll need:

8 Poppy Seed buns (make your own with our recipe here!)
8 half smoke sausages
Tomatoes
Atomic relish
Dill pickle spears
Chopped onion
Yellow mustard

Once your poppy seed buns are out of the oven, this recipe is really all about assembly. Heat the half smokes on a grill or on the stovetop, just until they have a bit of color and are heated through. Then pile your Chi-Town toppings- tomatoes, relish, yellow mustard, a dill pickle spear, and chopped onion.

Since we couldn’t decide between a 312 and a DC Brau, we treated ourselves to both!

Poppyseed Hot Dog Buns

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

Well Hot Dog, these buns are delicious. The best part? You get to personalize the bun size. And everyone deserves a perfectly sized bun for their sausage. We adapted this recipe from Serious Eats and pulled our dough together in a Kitchen-Aid mixer, although you could use your hands!

You’ll need:

1 cup lukewarm water
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup instant mashed potato
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups bread flour
1/4 cup semolina flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
Poppy seeds
Egg wash

To start, combine your water, yeast, sugar, and instant potatoes in your stand mixer. Let this mixture stand for 15 minutes to allow the yeast to activate. Then, add the salt and flours, kneading until the dough is smooth.

Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for about 20 minutes. Knead the olive oil into the dough, cover the bowl again, and let the dough rest for about 30 minutes, until it has doubled in size.

When the dough has doubled, knead it on a floured surface, then divide the dough into 8 equal pieces.

Form these 8 pieces into cylinders, then brush with egg wash and sprinkle with poppy seeds. You’ll notice that we tried a few different sizes, not really knowing how each would expand or contract during baking. It really depends on the size of your sausage, but we liked how the shorter, fatter buns turned out.

Pop the buns into a 350 oven for about 30 minutes, then slice down the middle and fill with your favorite sausage-y treats.

xoxo,

Hungry Texans

easy marinara

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

This marinara is so quick and easy, it has become a fast friend in my kitchen. You can add to it whatever ingredients you like and have on hand- fresh zucchini, carrots, or basil are just a few. I’m rarely picky about my canned food brands, but in this case, don’t settle for anything less than San Marzano. I use their crushed tomatoes to eliminate the blender step, but feel free to use the whole tomatoes. As long as they’re San Marzano. Ok, plug over.

You’ll need:
1 cup diced onion
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large cans San Marzano crushed tomatoes
1 tbs butter
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs died oregano
1 tbs basil

In a large pot, melt the butter and add the onions and garlic. Let cook for about 7-10 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the onions and garlic are soft and translucent. Add the crushed tomatoes and dried herbs. Stir and let simmer on low for 30 minutes, or until ready to serve. Before serving, stir in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Use as pizza sauce, over pasta or veggies.

xoxo,

Hungry Texans

chicago-style deep dish pizza crust

Posted on January 14, 2013 by lovettlovett

The Hungry Texans are pro-pizza. Round, square, cracker-thin crust, New Haven style- we’ll take a slice of anything. And now, we’re proud to have a Midwest pizza crust recipe in our back pockets- and with good reason! This recipe, adapted from Cook’s Illustrated, will make enough for one deep dish pizza, so we recommend doubling it. Because, trust us, you’ll want more than one of these crispy, flavor-filled pies.

You’ll need:

1 ½ c + 2 tbs all-purpose flour

¼ c cornmeal

¾ tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 packet instant yeast

½ c + 2 tbsp water (room temp!)

2 tbsp + 2 tbsp melted butter

1 tsp olive oil

Start by combining your dry ingredients (flour, corn meal, yeast, sugar, & salt) in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add your water & melted butter. We started with the paddle attachment & transitioned to a dough hook once the dough began balling up. Knead your dough in the mixer for 6 to 8 minutes or until the dough is a discrete ball & no longer sticky to the touch (it should be leathery & smooth!). Transfer your ball of dough to an olive oil coated bowl with enough room for expansion. Let your dough rest & rise at room temperature for about an hour or until the ball has doubled. Once your dough is doubled, it’s time to get hands-on & tactile with it. Place your ball on a clean work surface (don’t worry about flouring it!). Roll your dough into a 7 x 9ish rectangle, and then brush your rectangle with butter (exclude the outer 1/2 inch perimeter). Roll your buttered rectangle up into a log, place the seam of the rolled cylinder closest to the counter, & then smush your cylinder so it’s more rectangular than cylindrical. Finally, fold your long rectangle into an “s-like” shape (if we’re being fancy, this step is called “laminating”). “S-like” shape, you ask? To achieve this, fold over the top third of your rectangle & then fold under the lowest third of your dough. Voila! “s-like” lamination! Place your dough back in its oiled bowl, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and pop it in the fridge for at least another hour (dare that dough to double again!) or until you’re ready to roll it out as a real life deep dish pizza crust. When you’re at a pause in your dough-making process (we recommend during its first rise!), get your sauce a simmering and toppings ready. Here’s an easy recipe for the most delicious marinara!

After the dough has doubled again (probably 40 minutes), roll it out into a 13 inch circle and place it into your olive-oil-rubbed pizza pan. We used a springform pan and it worked purrfectly. Then, layer your cheese first (so important!) and your sauce and toppings next.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Then let your pizza rest for 10 minutes and pop it out of it’s springform.

That’s it! Easy as pie 🙂

xoxo,

Hungry Texans

cornbread

Posted on January 8, 2013 by lovettlovett

There aren’t many sides more Texas than cornbread, and these HungryTexans love ourselves some cornbread. Hot, cold, honey buttered or molassesed, we’ll eat it any way you slice it & believe it or not it’s almost as easy to make homemade cornbread from scratch as it is to bake from everyone’s favorite blue & white box. You’ll be done in a jiffy (*wink*).

You probably have most of this in your pantry already!

1 c corn meal

1 c flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tbl sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp old bay (Texas meets Mid-Atlantic, yall!)

1 dash of chili powder

1 egg

1 c sour cream

1 tbl honey

1/4 c buttermilk

2 tbl vegetable oil

Preheat your oven to 400 & start by combining all your dry ingredients in a large bowl. Then add your egg (note: I regretted using a whisk for this task, I recommend a fork so your egg doesn’t get all caught up in the tines!).

Then mix in all your soggy ingredients – sour cream, buttermilk, oil & honey.

Pour your chunky-ish batter into a greased loaf pan & bake 25-30 minutes until your loaf is golden!

Serve alongside your favorite soup or g’nosh a big hunk for breakfast!

nommable: scratch dc

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

Maybe one of your resolutions for 2013 is to cook at home more often. And maybe it isn’t. Either way, Scratch DC is making it easier for busy Washingtonians to cook a seriously stellar dinner for a fraction of the time and money required.

Here are three reasons Scratch DC is awesome:

1. Price per ingredient. The ingredients are fresh and locally sourced. They even outline which farms their cheeses & produce came from (ours were from Farmdale Organics, Natural by Nature, Trickling Springs Creamery, and White Swan Acres, all in PA). The price for our two-person brunch (full disclosure: we got a great dinner offer with friends Friday night, so we made our bundle for brunch this afternoon. even more disclosure, we poached eggs and threw them on top) was only $26.00, and I can easily see myself spending twice that at Whole Foods on the same meal. But since Scratch pre-portions all of the ingredients, there are no leftover bunches of parsley or sad can of chipotle peppers of which you only used one. Genius!

2. Time saver. Ordering is easy as pie online, delivery is free and straightforward, and the cleanup & prep work that Scratch DC takes care of for you is incredible. From start to finish, this took us 40 minutes.

3. It’s nom-nom-nommable! The fresh ingredients shine and the guys at Scratch are not afraid of flavor. They tell you which ingredients are most spicy or powerful so that you can add to taste and the components are marinated and seasoned well. Plus, they now include general nutrition facts for each meal.

We chose Friday’s meal- Shrimp and Veggie Enchiladas with a Creamy Jalapeno Sauce. And listen- I’m a Hungry Texan, people, so shrimp and enchiladas are my life blood. I make shrimp of most every variety, and these enchiladas were truly great. Here’s our story in pictures:

The bundle is cute, succinct, and biodegradable:

We made our sauce from the sour cream, chicken stock & jalapenos and sauted our cabbage, spinach & carrots.

And thanks to Scratch’s surprises & delights, we enjoyed surprise cookies and mimosas

(the cookies were a gift from Scratch, and since we didn’t have to worry about prep, we could focus on mimosas!)

And the whole thing turned out beautifully!

Sure, there were a couple things they need to improve on- pictures in the instructions would be nice for unseasoned chefs who don’t make roux on the reg. But this is the first iteration of a company that is fit to succeed. Can’t wait to try it again!

xoxo,

hungry texans

new year’s day supper: grilled pork chops with apple & peach chutney

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Liz Eggleston

Pictured clockwise, from pork: Grilled Pork Chops with Apple-Peach Chutney (progress), Braised Cabbage (wealth), Pan Seared Red Kale & Rainbow Chard with Bacon (prosperity), Black Eyed Peas (luck), Potato Mash (yummy), Ginger-Cabbage Potstickers (multicultural wealth).

Whew! We sure felt lucky this morning. Was it from finishing up a year full of adventure and friendship, starting countless new projects, or finishing up the year with old friends? Maybe. Or maybe it was the symbol-ripe supper we whipped up last night. We covered all of the basics- pork for progress, cabbage for wealth & black eyed peas for luck. And we even found new meaning for mashed potatoes (potato –> irish –> famine –> perseverance?) Special thanks to Man Chef Alan for bringing his perfect pecan pie and Tex-Pat & Boston Boy for peeling themselves away from the couch long enough to churn out a few cabbage dumplings.

This recipe is for the grilled pork chops, but more New Year’s Day recipes will follow. I urge you to try this pork for your next lucky supper or just a quick weeknight dinner!

You’ll need:

4 thick, boneless pork chops (you can use bone-in if you’d like)

For the Brine:

4 cups water

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp red pepper flakes

Combine ingredients for the brine in a large bowl. Place pork chops in a large ziplock bag, then add the brine and be sure the pork chops are covered in the liquid. Let them sit in a bowl overnight.

For the Chutney:

2 apples, diced

2 peaches, diced

1 jalapeno

2 tbs brown sugar

2 tbs vinegar

2 tbs minced ginger

1/2 cup red onion

1 tsp curry powder

Heat olive oil in small pan and add red onion and jalapeno. Cook until soft, then add other ingredients and cook over low heat for 20-30 minutes, until soft. Mash with a potato masher or with an immersion blender, leaving the mixture slightly coarse.

Remove the pork chops from the brine ~30 minutes before cooking. Season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat your grill (or a cast iron grill pan) to medium low heat and cook the pork chops for 4 minutes on each side. After ~10 minutes, glaze the chops with the apple chutney on both sides. Pork gives me a bit of anxiety because I’m always afraid to overcook it, so I use a meat thermometer and take it off the heat when the internal temperature is 160°. Let them rest off the grill for 10 minutes before serving.

savory oyster crackers

Posted on January 1, 2013 by lovettlovett

Happy New Year, HungryTexan-verse! We have a lot up our sleeves to keep your mouths watering and tummies full in 2013. Just in case you woke up this morning reaching for the holy trinity of manymanymany ounces of water, a gatorade, and a grande iced coffee; popping ibuprofen; and scarfing a Five Guys egg & cheese faster than a 10-second countdown to midnight, with the looming knowledge that in a few short hours you need to function like a human and put your best, “I-have-slain-my-hangover” foot forward at New Year’s Day festivities…here’s an easy breezy recipe for savory oyster crackers that all the guests at the party will love munching on! Here’s one of my Mimi’s delicious holiday staples that you’ll nom by the handful.

You’ll need:

1 & 1/2 bag of oyster crackers

1 package of ranch dressing mix

1 tsp garlic salt

2 tsp dill weed

1/2 cup of a neutral oil (I used canola)

Since reading might be a little much right now, here’s a picto-recipe & the captioned cliff notes.

Combine oyster crackers & all seasonings in a large bowl. Once seasonings are evenly distributed, mix in 1/2 cup of oil. Start nibbling immediately.

Stay tuned for the full works on all the recipes you need for a traditional Texas New Year’s Day feast!

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