Individual Cucumber Salad Appetizers

This crisp and refreshing appetizer is sure to be a conversation starter at your next social function. The basic recipe itself is simple and harbors an infinite number of variations based upon your own level of taste and creativity. For instance, your can roll the base of the lettuce or mixed greens in proscuitto or thinly sliced ham and then fill the cored cucumber with the combination of the two for a little extra pizzazz. Alternatively, add small cubes of ham, egg, and/or chicken into the cucumber before adding the lettuce. Your imagination is the limit with this one. Give it your own kick of flavor, don’t be afraid to add something you like, break open that stash of hearts de palm, feel free to sprinkle crushed croutons over the top if you want, or even crushed cashews, try some finely diced pieces of dried cranberry, duck, tuna, whatever your little heart desires!

This recipe is good for 5-7 portions…


1 each European cucumber, peeled (reserve a few of the longer peels for plating)
1 cup Mixed Greens, rinsed and blotted dry (aka: spring mix, mesculine mix, look for a good variation of colors, they are your friend)
4-5 each Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half (make sure the overall diameters of the tomatoes you purchase are close to, or slightly larger than the diameter of your apple corer.
2-3 ounces Of your favorite salad dressing or a very high quality Balsamic Vinegar such as *Villa Manodori Balsamico Artigianale*
For more specialty ingredients, check out www.dipaloselects.com


To assemble your cucumber salads:

1.Trim off the ends of your cucumbers and then cut the cucumber into 1-inch to 2-inch segments. You should get five to seven pieces from a standard European cucumber.
2.Use an apple corer to punch out the centers of the cucumbers.
3.On a flat surface, take one-half of a cherry tomato and push it into the bottom of each of the cut cucumbers; Rounded side down. The tomato should fit snuggly into the opening and make a firm seal around the inside so that it doesn’t fall out when picked up.
4.Select multiple colors of lettuce leaves and pinch the bases together, and then push them into the top of the cucumbers.
5.Drizzle your dressing on top of the lettuce leaves. (you can insert some dressing into the cucumber itself at this point if you are using a cone tipped squeeze bottle)
6.Take a few of the longer cucumber peels and lay them out on the edges of a white plate. Cutting them into thin-long strips will give an added visual appeal with very little effort.
7.Arrange your finished cucumber salads in a triangular pattern. (think bowling pins)
8.Serve and enjoy.



For more Smoking Hot, Tips, Tricks, and Recipes check back soon.


Until next time,
Chef James


Have any questions, comments, or topics that you would like to see the Smoking Hot Chef cover? Leave it in the comment box and he will feature them!

Coq Au Vin (Chicken in Wine)

This is a truly awesome dish that I came across and then modified in order to achieve a new flavor profile. This dish pretty much has three different variations, and if you want a change of pace, you can either substitute this recipe with a red wine or you can use your favorite beer. If you use beer, the name of this dish actually turns into Coq Au Beire. (Chicken in beer) I personally like to use Killians Irish Red when making Coq Au Beire. You are not tied to that though, and can pretty much use any beer that you have in your fridge.

If you do choose to use a wine, make sure that you’re willing to drink it! Do not cook with a wine that you would not drink. The only reason that alcoholic beverages are used in cooking is to impart flavor; or to add to the showmanship of your culinary skills by enabling you to set it on fire. There is no other reason.
Not sure what wine to buy?
There are a couple of really nice wines that you can pick up at a very low cost. The grocery store Aldi’s has a wine brand by the name of Winking Owl. Their red wines are comparable to $20.00 bottles of wine in flavor, but at only a fraction of the price. You can buy Shiraz (known as Syrah in Europe), Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay all for under $3.00 a bottle. It’s a great value for a truly nice bottle of wine. The Chardonnay, their white wine, is a little rough, but will work all right for any cooking purposes that may arise in your kitchen. If you would like to enjoy a glass of wine with this dish, I would suggest buying a Fat Bastard Chardonnay. It has a rich and complex buttery/oaky flavor and is the perfect example of a good, decently priced American Chardonnay. (The down side is that this bottle of wine is in the $20.00 price range, so don’t cook with it unless the price doesn’t bother you.)

Enough already. Right?

On to the recipe:

This recipe is good for 4 portions.

4 each Boneless Chicken Breasts, Or Statler Styled Chicken Breasts
3/4 cup Mushrooms, sliced (I prefer portabella or shitake, but any will do)
3/4 cup Red Onions, Sliced
4 cups White Wine (An American Chardonnay or Chablis works nicely)
4 cups Heavy Cream
2 ounces Oil (preferably olive oil)
As needed Salt
As needed Pepper


1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2.In a large oven safe pot, heat the oil over medium high heat and sauté the onions and mushrooms until soft. Remove from pan and set aside.
3.Take two of the chicken breasts and brown both sides, and then set them aside with the mushrooms and onions. Repeat this step with the remaining two breasts.
4.Remove the pan from the heat and add the white wine, half of the cream, the chicken, the mushrooms, and the onions.
5.Cover the pot tightly with aluminum foil then place the lid on top of the foil. (You want an airtight seal)
6.Place in the oven and bake for an hour and a half (1:30) or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 212 degrees. (At this temperature, the chicken excretes all of its natural juices and then absorbs all of the liquids around it, making it tender and flaky.)
7.Remove the chicken from the pot, cover and set it aside in a warm place.
8.Place the pot back on the stove and add the remaining cream.
9.Cook over medium-high heat for 10-15 minutes and make sure you stir the sauce often. Be careful it doesn’t boil over. You may have to reduce the heat or remove the pan from the burner a few times during this process.
10.Once the sauce has thickened, add about a tablespoon each of salt and pepper, more if you prefer, or less if you’re watching your sodium intake; Then add the chicken back to the pan to ensure it is sufficiently warm.
11.Serve the chicken and sauce over mashed potatoes and alongside your favorite vegetable. Green beans go nicely with this dish…


For more Smoking Hot, Tips, Tricks, and Recipes check back soon.


Until next time,
Chef James

This recipe will be featured in a video blog very soon!


Have any questions, comments, or topics that you would like to see the Smoking Hot Chef cover? Leave it in the comment box and he will feature them!