June 5th Round-Up!

It is Tyler Florence Fridays time again, so get ready to drool over some great recipes as we see who was in the kitchen with Tyler this week!

BTW--did anyone catch Tyler's "Twitterlicious Weekly Cooking Lessons" on Twitter this morning? I made the supreme effort of being up and functioning before 6:00 AM (It is on Fridays at Noon EST which translates to 6:00 AM or "way too early" here!), just so I could report back to all of you. Today's lesson was about making the "ultimate" burger, his Green Chile Cheeseburger. You can see the recipe and some beautiful photos like the one below, at Tyler's website here. Made of twice-ground brisket, with Swiss cheese, bacon and topped with a green chile mayo, this is one gorgeous burger!

As for using Twitter as a forum for "real time" cooking lessons, the theory is great, it just needs some fixing of the technical aspects to make it work. It was a bit confusing for everyone to figure out where they needed to be and exactly what they should be doing. As Tyler himself said, "We'll get better at this as the weeks go by but we welcome comments or suggestions on making this an amazing experience for everyone." I found that since Tyler was leading the class and the Q&A, (due to the volume of questions I think), was going to occur after class, with Tyler replying back to all the questions, it was much easier and less distracting to just follow along on Tyler's Twitter profile. That way I didn't have to deal with the random "chatter" of people "tweeting" to all their friends that they were in "class" on the #twitlish page. On the plus side, it was fun to read Tyler's play by play tweets and I did pick up some good burger and grilling tips and ideas this morning. If this all sounds like a foreign language to you, I apologize, I am just learning about the Twitter world myself. If you don't use Twitter, you can still benefit from the recipes, photos and step by step on Tyler's site each week. Tyler will be posting some topics/recipe ideas at his site on Monday and anyone interested, can vote on what recipe will be on next week's lesson plan. The wonders of technology!

And now on to the food!

Having just received a popover pan as a gift, Kim, from Stirring the Pot, created some sugary goodness, with Caramel-Covered Popovers. Kim says: "Tyler's popovers remind me of a fresh, hot, sugary glazed donut with a hint of egg flavor. I can see why Tyler says they are good with your morning coffee. The popover itself is a texture explosion due to the crisp outside and the soft and fluffy inside. I really enjoyed these, as I enjoy all of Tyler's sweet treats!!." 

Donna from My Tasty Treasures is back and has a sure cure for her husband's cheesecake craving, Tyler's Ultimate Cheesecake, with its graham cracker crust, creamy filling and her own topping of fresh strawberries. Donna says "Tyler's Ultimate Cheesecake is wonderful. If you need a go to cheesecake, this is it! I am telling you, it is fantastic. Freaking fantastic!" It looks pretty wonderful to me!

Needing a kid-friendly beverage for her neighbor's BBQ, Susy from Everyday Gourmet, adapted (and removed the alcohol) from Tyler's Vodka Lemonade recipe and created her Strawberry Summer Lemonade. Susy says, "This was a great summer drink recipe! I took the basic recipe and added limes, crushed strawberries and lemon slices. Everyone loved it and the kids couldn't get enough!"

Due to the late post, we didn't get to show you Susy's TFF entry from last week, where she turned Tyler's samosas into the Ultimate Samosa Pie. The savory, spicy filling with a hit of cinnamon was a hit at her house too!

It's official, Tyler's Ultimate Barbecued Chicken has found it's biggest fan in Pam from Sidewalk Shoes, who loves the moistness from the brining and the the thick, rich smoky sauce. Pam declares,  "I am introducing you to the best barbecued chicken recipe in the whole world, that's why. I'm not kidding. I don't make these statements lightly. This is seriously the best barbecued chicken recipe ever. And I am not just saying that because it's Tyler's and because there is always the possibility that he may feel the need to come thank me. In person."  Well Tyler?

Bringing us "Part 2" of her Farmer's Market potato bounty is Jenny at All Things Edible. This time she used "All-Blue" potatoes (Jenny says they "really are blue inside although once you cook them they look more purple"), in Tyler's Crispy Twice Cooked New Potatoes with Garlic Aioli. Jenny states, "I admit, the biggest draw for this recipe, for me at least, was the garlic aioli. I love garlic. Love it. And I love garlic sauce on crispy potatoes." Yum!

Megan from My Baking Adventures went with her challenge pick this month and made Tyler's Summer Rolls with Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce this week. Megan says, "I could barely finish taking pictures before the hands started reaching for them. I think the best part of these is their versatility – the options are limitless. I did make a few changes, based upon what I had in the house. Anyways, this was a fantastic recipe to kick off the summer – and I highly recommend you try these!" As good as these look, I am looking forward to making this month's challenge recipe too!

Kristen from Sogkonnite Living found her recipe for Pork Tenderloin with Ginger Ale Sauce at Oprah's site and she served it with some Balsamic Glazed Carrots. Kristen says, "we got mixed reviews here for this meal. It was not a big hit with the kids- they didn't like the sauce for the meat. BUT, hubby LOVED the pork, saying it was one of the best recipes I had tried! Woo-Hoo!!! It had very interesting flavors, sometimes you would get a sweet bite from the raisin or sometimes one of the toasted pecans, delicious!"

Developing a love for cheesecake from watching the Golden Girls with her Mom, (go read the entire cute story on her post!), Karen from Something Sweet By Karen, made trying Tyler's Ultimate Cheesecake a must. She liked the way it came together easily, how creamy it was, and she found that even though she typically prefers her cheesecake plain, she loved lemon-blueberry topping. Karen says, "if you want to use my words for the round up it may be easiest to use my one word review - phenomenal!"

Also feeding her sweet tooth is Heather from girlichef who was looking for a quick recipe with ingredients she had on hand. She found it in Tyler's Strawberry-Lemon Puddings. Even stopping mid-recipe to take the kids to dinner and a movie, these little desserts turned out perfectly. Heather says, "a lovely, fluffy, sweet and dreamy whipped thing for this Tyler Florence Friday. And believe me when I say that this was divine. I think I'll make this for a special occasion or a party next time, because it looks like a lot of work, but it's not a lot of work...and a taste makes you roll your eyes back into your head."

Craving "the classics; a little pasta.. some chicken... lots of cheese..." was Natashya from Living in the Kitchen with Puppies who made Tyler's Chicken Parmesan. Taking advantage of the good weather, she and her hubby enjoyed the meal dining al fresco. Natashya says, "this was a very tasty dish, I loved the kalamata olives in it. It reminded me of a puttanesca sauce and I thought that next time I might add some anchovies, capers, and hot peppers to the sauce. But that's just me, always looking for huge flavour. This was a definite winner, with generous servings and lots left over for lunch the next day. Great with a bottle of Cab Franc. (But then again, what isn't?)"

This week's offering from Arlene of The Food of Love is Tyler's Cold Pasta Salad with Roasted Chicken, Plums, Blue Cheese, and Basil. Arlene says that her favorite Tyler recipes are those for pasta dishes. She notes, "This particular recipe though it has 'cold' in its title, was absolutely incredible served warm the first night and cold as leftovers. This is the first incarnation of Tyler's cold pasta salad, but it will not be the last. I am going to make it again in the coming week with my own twists." One of those twists includes bacon, so stay tuned."

A fan from the first time she tried risotto, Beth from The Seventh Level of Boredom, spotted the aborio rice in Tyler's Arborio Rice Pudding with Rum Raisin Mascarpone and was sold on making it. Making a few changes and substitutions to fit her tastes and the ingredients she hand on hand, she ended up with great results. Says Beth, "my pudding turned out a bit thinner than I anticipated, mainly because I prefer my rice more al dente than most people do so I didn't cook it quite as long, but it still tasted wonderful!" 

Reeni at Cinnamon, Spice & Everything Nice defines one way to achieve "true bliss" as being Tyler's Tempura Green Beans with Chile, Garlic, and Sesame Aioli. A perfect side dish to some scrumptious peanut butter chicken she created, Reeni loved how "light and fluffy" the tempura batter was. She says, "the batter was delicate and crunchy and encased the string bean trapping its moisture and sweet, crispy flavor inside. The aioli was wonderfully cool in contrast to the warm beans and spicy-hot at the same time."

Michelle from Big Black Dog says, "As soon as I saw the recipe for Tyler Florence's Grilled Flat Bread with Crunchy Red Grapes I knew I had to try it. There's just something about Tyler and Red Grapes that appeals to me! "I served this with Tyler's Wild Mushroom with Roasted Fennel Soup and although this soup is wonderful, after one bite of the Grilled Bread I decided to save my soup for another day and just had Grilled Bread and a glass of De Bortoli Petite Sirah for dinner. I really can not tell you how good this bread was but I could not wait to take another bite!"

As for me, over at Kahakai Kitchen, I did my second round of baby eggplant, this time in Tyler's Baby Eggplant with Curry and Coconut Milk. I found this creamy, mild and flavorful curry to be delicious and enjoyed it thoroughly, despite a throbbing burnt finger and thumb (that I am not holding against Tyler!). I lightened it up by taking out the butter, reducing the amount of the olive oil I used to replace it and using "lite" coconut milk, and even with the changes, it was still hearty and good. If you like eggplant and curry this one is for you!

Announcements! Announcements!

Such an incredible group of recipes! Thank you to everyone who cooked along with us this week! You all did such a wonderful job, it made the decision on which recipe would be posted on Tyler Florence's site this week VERY difficult. We only wish we could post all of them but having the link to our TFF site should mean even more traffic to view your wonderful work.

Without further ado....(drum roll please!)  The winner is:

It's Karen at Something Sweet by Karen for her great post and incredible photo of Tyler's Ultimate Cheesecake!  Congratulations to Karen! Remember we will be picking a post each week to send to Tyler's site, so keep those excellent posts and photos coming!

Book Giveaway

It is time to giveaway another Tyler Florence Cookbook for June, either Stirring the Pot or Dinner At My Place, (we have one of each left!). In order to win your choice, you'll need to leave a comment on this post and we will randomly draw from the comments left. Since Father's Day is this month, in your comment share a brief memory or thought of a father figure in your life (husband, father, grandfather, step-father, etc.) We will announce the winner next week.

"Megan's Challenge"

Finally, don't forget about the optional recipe "challenge", selected by Megan each month. As you can see by her post this week, you won't want to miss making June's pick: Tyler's Summer Rolls! You can get all the details here.

Have a wonderful weekend full of good food and good fun!