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We’ve eaten Fra Diavolo in restaurants, both chicken and seafood. We both really like it so I’ve been on the lookout for a good recipe we could try at home. “Fra Diavolo” means Brother Devil. This dish receives it’s name due to the heavy use of red pepper flakes in a tomato sauce.

I was watching Food Network and saw Giada De Laurentiis make Shrimp Fra Diavolo with Lemon Spaghetti. I just knew this would be a dish I would have to make soon. I didn’t have any shrimp on hand but since we’ve had this as a chicken dish in restaurants, this would be how I make my dish.

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Sure I don’t have a spit at home to roast the formed pork, lamb and beef usually found in a gyro. Instead we used steak. It wasn’t as traditional as a true gyro which I love in Greek restaurants but it was still very good. It is also a meal which can be prepared in less than 30 minutes minus the marinating time. Of course if you want it be more like a gyro found in a Greek diner, serve it with fried potatoes.

Ingredients:
Steak (I used top round sirloin)
lemon juice
olive oil
oregano
garlic
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients but the meat in a plastic storage bag. Add the steak and allow it to sit for 1-3 hours.

Grill steak as desired. Throw a couple of pitas on the grill at the end of cooking time.

Slice the meat thinly and serve on pita with cucumbers, onions, lettuce and tomatoes. And Tzatziki. Lots of Tzatziki. (yogurt, cucumbers, olive oil, garlic, and a bit of lemon juice)

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Doesn’t that sound delicious?

I can tell you, it was. We were in the grocery store and saw in the bakery section cherry cobbler bread and peach cobbler bread. We decided to try the cherry. It is very good on it’s own but from the time it went into the cart at the store, I was thinking french toast.

Slice the bread thin because it’s a quick bread and if it is thick, it won’t cook up good without getting too dark on the outside.

For the custard:

2 eggs, beaten
2 cups of half and half
2 Tablespoons vanilla
1/4 cup brown sugar

Mix well together. Soak bread in custard mixture and fry in a pan with a little butter. Serve with bacon or sausage, real maple syrup, and powdered sugar.

If you can find this bread, give it a try and let me know how you like it.

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Brussels sprouts get a bad rap. I think it’s because until Food Network came about people were throwing them in a pot of water and boiling them to death. Boiling too long makes them bitter. Now in the Food Network era, everyone is all about roasting vegetables. Brussels sprouts are perfect to add to the roasting pan.

Not only should you try roasting Brussels sprouts just because they’re delicious, but they’re also very good for you. They are high in potassium, vitamin C, vitamin A, folate and those phytosterols we are hearing so much about in helping to lower cholesterol.

If you’ve only ever had boiled Brussels sprouts, you owe it to yourself to give the roasted ones a try. They really are delicious. My husband used to say he hated them until he had them roasted. Now they’re a favorite on our table.

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I’ve heard about tri tip from all of my west coast friends. They all love it and tell me how great it is on the grill. I have looked for it all over. I finally found one the other day at the commissary. I grabbed it as soon as I saw it even though I had no idea what I was going to do with it when I got it home.

I talked to a couple of my friends and they all told me to grill it whole. I decided I’d give it a rub much like that we use on our briskets. I went a little less sweet and a bit heavier on the heat. I let it sit with the rub for about an hour at room temperature so the meat would grill more evenly, plus it gave it time for the rub melted into the meat. I put some hickory chips on the grill and oh man, I wish you could have been here to smell the smoke coming from the grill.

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