Easy Appetizer: Artichoke Poppers

Mellow artichoke hearts are stuffed with herbed mascarpone cheese and salty bites of pancetta, then rolled in crispy panko and baked until gooey on the inside with a crunchy, garlic-infused crust.

Servings: Makes 16 poppers

Ingredients:
4 large artichoke hearts, cooked and cut into quarters
4 oz Mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pancetta, minced and rendered until crisp
1 clove Garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup minced fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Breading ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
Egg wash – 2 eggs beaten with 1/4 cup of milk
2 cups Italian style panko crumbs
1/2 cup garlic infused olive oil (1/2 cup of oil with one smashed garlic clove)

Directions:
In a medium bowl, mix the mascarpone, parmesan, pancetta, garlic, red pepper flakes, parsley and rosemary. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add approximately 2 teaspoons of the cheese mixture to the choke side of the artichoke and place in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 20 minutes.

Set up the breading station. Place the flour in one dish, the egg wash in a shallow bowl, and the panko in a separate dish. Remove the artichokes from the freezer. Dredge the artichokes in the flour, dip in the egg wash, coat with the panko, and place onto the same baking sheet. Repeat until all artichokes have been breaded. Preheat the oven to 425 F. Place the baking sheet into the freezer for another 20 minutes.

Remove the artichokes from the freezer and lightly brush the tops with the garlic-infused olive oil. Bake at 425 F. for 7 – 10 minutes or until the cheese is soft and the breading is golden. Sprinkle with salt to taste and serve.

Chef’s notes:
Fresh artichokes are best, but canned or frozen can also be used. If using canned, purchase whole artichoke hearts packed in water, not oil. Carefully dry as much of the moisture on the artichokes as possible with a paper towel before breading.

Bacon can be substituted for the pancetta, and cream cheese can be substituted for the mascarpone cheese.

Italian style bread crumbs can be substituted for panko crumbs.

Artichoke poppers may also be deep fried. Remove from the freezer and fry in a neutral oil at 360 F until golden brown. Drain on a wire rack with paper towels under the rack to catch any oil and immediately sprinkle with salt.

Braised Country Pork Ribs

Braising, sometimes referred to as pot roasting, is an economical, unfussy combination-cooking method that takes advantage of less-expensive cuts of meat available in grocery stores. The slow cooking time at low temperatures dissolves collagens and gelatins from otherwise tough cuts of meat, adding richness and body to the braising liquid. The cooking liquid is often turned into a gravy or used as a finishing sauce.

Most braises follow the same basic steps. The food to be braised is first seared over high heat, typically in the same braising pot to be used for the entire recipe. Searing caramelizes the surface of the meat, introducing a complex flavor to the entire dish. A small amount of cooking liquid, that often includes an acidic element, such as tomatoes, beer, or wine, is added to the pot, sometimes with stock or water. The dish is then covered and cooked at a very low simmer on the stovetop or in the oven, until the meat is fork tender; typically 2 - 4 hours.

Popular braising dishes include Coq au Vin, pot roast, beef stew, Swiss steak, chicken cacciatore, goulash, and beef bourguignon, to name a few.

The recipe below uses country style pork ribs, but works well with any cut of meat.

Braised Country Pork Ribs

Servings: serves 4 with leftovers
Cooking Method: Braising


Ingredients:
3 lbs. Country style pork ribs
2 tbs. corn oil
3 cups Chicken broth
2 cups Apricot nectar
1 cup Blackberry preserves
9 Cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp. Paprika
2 tsp. Dry mustard
2 tsp. Ground ginger
1 tsp. Salt and pepper (or to taste)

Directions:
Cut ribs into 2" pieces. Heat oven to 300 degrees F. Warm chicken broth, nectar, preserves, garlic, paprika, mustard, ginger,salt and pepper in a sauce pan until the preserves have melted and turned to liquid. Set aside.

Season ribs on all sides with salt and pepper. Place a small roasting pan on the stove top and heat on medium until hot to the touch. Add corn oil and heat through until just smoking. Add ribs and brown on all sides. Add chicken broth mixture to the pan and cover the pan with aluminum foil. Place in the oven for 3 hours.

After 3 hours of braising, the ribs should be fork tender and flavorful. Taste the braising liquid for seasoning; add salt and pepper to taste.

The sauce can be served with the ribs on its own, or strained and transferred to a sauce pan and reduced into a thick, caramel-like sauce. Cream can also be added for a decadent finish.

Pantry Raid!

You heard me, this is a Pantry Raid, people! Tell us what odd ingredients you have sitting in your pantry, freezer or fridge, and we'll post an original recipe that will use up those ingredients.

After you get the hang of it, raid your own pantry and tell us what you cooked, what inspired you, and how your friends and family liked the dish you prepared. We'll feature your pantry-raid ingredients and recipe here on Wicked Good Dinner.

Today, I had coffee, but no cream. I had eggnog though. Hello, eggnog latte! For lunch, I had an unopened container of goat cheese and one piece of zucchini that was about to hit the compost pile...until...it turned into a zucchini terrine with goat cheese and Meyer Lemon oil. Now I just have to figure out what to do with the half box of pasta wheels and can of water chesnuts.

What's in your pantry?

Video: How to Make Perfect Pie Dough

Learn how to make perfect pie dough with me this holiday season over at Chef2Chef.net. We cover traditional pie dough, pate a choux and tart dough.

Edible Holiday Gifts on Fox News this morning

I was at the Fox 35 Studios in Orlando this morning, talking about affordable, edible, holiday gifts. As soon as the link is posted on their site, I'll include it here as well.

Today we filmed in Studio A, the main news studio, which was really exciting. I had an actual backdrop and the super duper studio lighting. Studio B is typically a little more guerrilla-style with a hand-held and two bright lights with just a curtain backdrop.

Set up was challenging. When I'm in Studio B, I've got the whole place to myself and can bang pots and pans and dishes without disturbing anyone. Today I had to be super quiet so the mics wouldn't pick up any of my usual clanging and shuffling about.

We used teleprompters today, which I haven't done in about a year. Not sure if I looked in the right place when talking to the camera. I was more concerned about the black thing sticking out of my head on the monitor. I wasn't sure if it was my hair, or part of the Good Day logo behind me.

Regardless, I hope the segment inspired everyone to make an edible gift this year!

I took these photos of the set design -- I wasn't able to use a flash because they were still filming the news, so the color/focus isn't great. But, the set was lovely :-)

Spiced Flourless Mini Chocolate Cakes

I'm craving chocolate, but have been trying to stay away from flour and gluten for a bit while I get tested for additional food allergies. Inspired by Mexican hot chocolate, these fudge-like mini cakes bring bittersweet chocolate to a whole new level with exotic cinnamon, anise and cardamom.

Ingredients:
10 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
7 ounces plus 2 tablespoons butter, salted
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1/4 teaspoon ground star anise
1/4 teaspoons cardamom
1 scant pinch cayenne pepper
5 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup organic or turbinado sugar
Cocoa powder for dusting
Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325F.

Using the two tablespoons of butter, grease 8 1/3 cup Ramekins and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out any excess.

Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler, stirring occasionally until smooth. Add cinnamon, vanilla bean seeds, star anise, cardamom and cayenne pepper; stir. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs and sugar using an electric mixer. Add the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.

Divide the mixture evenly between the Ramekins and place Ramekins in a large roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with enough boiling water to come up to the middle of the Ramekins. Bake for 1 hour. Insert a wooden skewer or tip of a knife into the center of one of the Ramekins. Look for a wet crumb. If the center jiggles and the skewer comes out wet, continue to bake for an additional 10 minutes. Repeat until the skewer or knife comes out with a wet crumb.

Remove Ramekins from the water bath and allow to cool slightly. Dust with powdered sugar. Cakes can be served warm, room temperature, or chilled and topped with whipped cream.

Baker's Dozen Ultimate Christmas Cookie Exchange winner

Congratulations to NikiTheo from http://nikisbakingspot.blogspot.com/!! Niki has won a 3-month cookie-of-the-month membership from The Pacific Cookie Company.

Niki, please email us at wickedgooddinner@yahoo.com with your name and shipping address and we'll forward that on to the Pacific Cookie Company.