Feeling Minnesota? ….Set the Winter Blues on Fire!

As much as I love Minnesota and its people, I cannot help but wish I lived somewhere a bit warmer in the winter. Spending years in the southwestern deserts and getting used to having sunburn rather than frostbite in mid-February, my mind can’t help but wander out of winter mode and into a “‘Caliente” mindset.

Those that know me understand the influence the southwest and its cuisine have had on me and my cooking. It's understandable that when I look out the window and see my grill buried in the snow, I tend to get a little antsy for some heat. Grill season is a little more than a month away, yet March seems an eternity to me and all backyard chefs and grill enthusiasts.

I have learned that a good way to set the winter blues ablaze is to start adding words like Ancho, Pasilla, Guajillo, Chipotle, New Mexico Red and Chiltepin to your home menu. Most Minnesotans tend to fear the chili rather than embrace, simply because they are unaware of the total variety and the uniqueness each chili has and what they can bring to the simplest of recipes.

When starting, a general rule is the bigger the chili, the lower it ranks on the Scoville Scale. (This is the method for measuring the Capsaicin level in each pepper. Capsaicin is what gives peppers & chilies their bite!) The higher the measure on the Scoville Scale, the hotter the chili. The dried Ancho chilies that you see in most grocery stores are a great chili to start on your journey towards the Southwest. They have a dark, almost smoky flavor that brings out the southwest in most any dish. They have minimal heat with maximum flavor. What more can you ask from a chili?

Simmering an Ancho pepper in my favorite soups and stews instantly brings me back to the mountains of Arizona and the vision of Pinion Pines and Prickly Pears. Below is a recipe that I have used many times over the years not only because it is good, but it is fast when you need to have dinner ready on the fly. Simply purchase a rotisserie chicken from your favorite grocery store, pull the meat from the bone, and toss in the soup. Not only does it save time, but the flavor of a whole roasted chicken simply adds another dimension to the soup. …and you don’t have to worry about raw chicken around all your fresh ingredients.

Hope this recipe melts the blues and heats things up!
\m/ Richard Dollarhide

Ancho Chicken Soup

The What:
6 white corn tortillas – cut into strips and fried
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon Ancho Chili (chopped)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 bay leaves
1 carton (32 oz size) chicken broth
2 tomatoes (Diced or a large can of Diced Stewed Diced tomatoes)
1 pound shredded chicken
Chopped avocado
Lime sour cream ** Recipe below
Chopped fresh cilantro
Shredded Cheese

The How:
In a large saucepan, heat oil. Add onion; cook 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in ancho pepper, garlic, cumin and bay leaves. Add broth and tomatoes and shredded rotisserie chicken. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes. Discard bay leaves
Top with avocado, Lime sour cream, tortilla strips and cilantro, if desired. For additional heat top with your favorite hot sauce

**Lime Sour Cream
Simply squeeze the juice of one like to ½ cup of sour cream.

Show her you love her!

Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday this year. Instead of going out, stay in. What would start a perfect Valentine Sunday than breakfast in bed?

This recipe is for the guys! Not for the eating but for the making. Show her you care and you can cook. Here is a spin on a classic that is made to impress. In fact I made this recipe for my in-laws back when I was still trying to impress them!! Not only was the recipe such a hit, but they let me marry Molly. I thought it was for all my charm and wit, but later I found out the crab cake that was the decider in their blessings!
\m/ Richard


Crab Bennies a la Dollarhide
4 Crab Cakes (see below)
4 Poached eggs (see below)
1/2 cup Hollandaise Sauce (see below)


Crab Cake:
1 lb. lump crab meat, (Phillips brand is good and can be found at most grocery stores in the seafood station)
1/3 cup mayonnaise (Use Real Mayo for this one. Nothing says 'I love you' more than Fully Loaded!)
1/2 cup sour cream
1 T whole-grain mustard
1 tsp Old Bay Season
a touch of Worcestershire Sauce
1 egg, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
Mix the mayo, sour cream, mustard and egg in a mixing bowl. Gently fold in the crab until just combined. Shape the mixture into patties and place on baking sheet. Bake the crab cakes for 15 minutes or until lightly golden. Run a spatula under them once or twice to make sure they're not sticking. Place them under the broiler for a minute or so until golden brown.


Hollandaise Sauce:
3 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tablespoons cold water
1/2 cup warm clarified butter
1 to 3 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Dash hot red pepper sauce (optional)
Salt and ground white pepper to taste

Place in the top of a double boiler or in a large stainless-steel bowl set up as a double boiler. Off the heat, whisk the egg mixture until it becomes light and frothy. Your arm may feel like it is going to fall off, but I assure you it won’t, besides remember your doing this for 'Love'.

Place the top of the double boiler or the bowl over, not in, barely simmering water and continue to whisk until the eggs are thickened, 2 to 4 minutes, being careful not to let the eggs get too hot. You don’t want to “cook the eggs. You are just heating them.

Remove the pan or bowl from over the water and whisk to slightly cool the mixture. Whisking constantly, very slowly add butter, then whisk in lemon juice, pepper sauce and salt and pepper. If the sauce is too thick, whisk in a few drops of warm water.
Assemble with Crab cake on bottom, Poached egg on top and sauce on top of the egg.


Perfect poached egg!
Fill sauce pan full of water and bring it to just boiling. Add a tablespoon of white vinegar. Carefully crack your eggs and drop in water. Turn the water off. Gently fold the whites towards the yolk. Let cook for roughly 4 minutes until the egg white is cooked. With a slotted spoon, take out of water and place on the cake.

Add Hollandaise, garnish with a little flat leaf parsley and serve with a smile!

Starting off the New Year Right!

In the age of Big food coming from Big factories being over seen by Big lobbyists, I cannot stress enough the importance of buying local and getting to know the people behind what you eat and drink.

Recently I was lucky enough to watch the documentary Food, INC and it brought to light the importance of sustainable food and taking care of the local farmers, growers and producers. The simple fact is, we are what we eat and we need to educate ourselves on what we put in our body. My New Years resolution was to simply eat “Clean”. Clean by ways of knowing where my food comes from and what steps were taken to bring it to my families table. Doing so is not as challenging as it seems when dealing with local people.

Besides, how cool is it to know the farmer who produced your dinner and the maker who created the wine you drink? In my mind there is nothing better. I look forward to another year and hope to see you all at the Winery!

Local produce in Minnesota winter, who woulda thunk?
Purchasing local produce in Minnesota during the heart of winter is not as hard as you think. Due to improvements in storage and such most of the potatoes, carrots, radishes, mushrooms and even apples we consume in the winter are produced by farms in Minnesota.

Some of the big producers such as Bushel Boy, in Owatonna are even producing live basil and lettuce packs in our grocery stores. Fresh basil from home in the heart of winter sounds pretty good to me. Another cool thing is all the cheese that is being produced locally. Sure, we are far behind Wisconsin in the cheese department but like our football team we will always be ahead in quality. (Sorry, I could not resist a poke at the Packers).

Most of the cheese makers provide tours and better yet, tastings year round. To find some of the local cheese maker visit http://www.sfa-mn.org/cheesemaking.php.