About West PA Chefs
West PA Chefs is a group of Independently owned and operated Personal Chef Services providing Customized Meal Solutions to a variety of clients in Western PA and bordering counties in Eastern OH and the Northern Panhandle of WV.
The group meets at least 6 times per year to provide support, networking and continuing education opportunities to its member chefs and is open to all personal chefs in the region regardless of national association affiliation.
If you are interested in becoming a personal chef and would like more information on Personal Chef Training options, please visit the Culinary Business Academy website at CulinaryBusiness.com.
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Fresh Green Bean Saute
written by Chef Shane Russo; Owner of Russo’s Cooking Personal Chef Service
As a personal chef, people always expect me to cook things that are so complex and involved that the “normal” person could never recreate it. That is certainly true of some things. THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE!! This recipe is an insanely simple side dish that packs a ton of flavor. It takes only minutes to prepare and is one of my favorites. Enjoy!
Green Bean Saute 4 Servings
I use fresh green beans whenever possible but frozen or canned could be substituted. I don’t recommend it though!
1 lb Fresh Green Beans (with the stems removed)
2 tbs olive oil
4 medium shallots – diced
2-5 cloves of garlic (depending on preference) – minced
Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions:
Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add shallots, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook until the shallots start to soften. Be careful not to burn them. Add the green beans and cook until tender yet still crispy; about 15 minutes. The shallots and garlic will start to caramelize when close to being done.
Serving: drizzle a little olive oil over green beans after plating.
Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate
written by Chef Shane Russo; Owner of Russo’s Cooking Personal Chef Service
Of the many things I love about this time of year, ranking right near the top has to be drinking hot things to warm the body. Anyone that knows me knows that I love hot chocolate. However, ever since my gastric bypass I had to come up with a way to get it without all the sugar. Solution: make it from scratch. The first time I made hot chocolate from scratch it was ok but I don’t settle for ok. I want awesome! Below is a recipe for a variation I made today. Any of the sugar-free ingredients can be changed with “regular” items. No matter which way you do it this recipe is sure to warm you up on an icy day!
Peanut Butter Hot Chocolate
2 cups milk
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 cup Splenda (or to taste)
2 tbs no-sugar-added Peanut Butter
Cooking Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat and whisk until blended well. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly to help prevent burning the milk. Serve immediately.
Enjoy guys!
Chef Shane Russo
Healing Foods
Catherine's Personal Chef Service
My work with clients who have special diets as well as various health issues has lead me to do more research and coursework in Healing Foods. Recently one of my cancer patient clients was having much difficulty with nausea before eating (a common issue for cancer and chemo patients). In addition to her meals for the week, I prepared a pitcher of Cinnamon and Fresh Ginger Tea. Fresh ginger root is a fantastic natural remedy for nausea and cinnamon is an appetite stimulant. This tea really calmed the nausea and stimulated her desire to eat a bit. If your stomach is having an off day, sipping this tea may be a calming remedy for you. If you haven’t tried fresh ginger definitely give it a try. It is not the same as dried ground ginger. Fresh ginger root can usually be found in the refrigerated produce section of your market.
Cinnamon and Fresh Ginger Tea
Makes 2 cups
2 cups of water
1 slice of ginger root about 1 inch long, ¼ inch thick
½ cinnamon stick
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to boil then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for about 8-10 minutes. Take off of heat and remove ginger and cinnamon. Add a bit of your natural sweetener of choice if desired; honey, agave, stevia.
Enjoy the warm tea and feel better!
Chef Catherine, Certified Personal Chef®
Catherine’s Personal Chef Service
Special diets, custom meal preparations, dinner parties and more!
www.personalchefcatherine.com
412.513.6603
April News from Catherine’s Personal Chef Service
Has Spring Finally Arrived?
I know I could use a bit of sunshine! How about a healthy, light, and sweet salad dressing to jump start your taste buds?
Try the following salad dressing recipe with a mix of organic baby field greens, some toasted walnuts and finely sliced red onion or when those sweet strawberries are ripe – some fresh baby spinach, sliced strawberries and toasted almonds. The fresh lemon and orange zest will perk up any salad greens.
Citrus Honey Dressing for Salad Greens
1/2 cup cider vinegar 1/4 cup fresh orange juice (about 1 large orange) 2 tablespoons honey 2 teaspoons lemon zest 2 teaspoons orange zest 1 cup extra virgin olive oil sea salt and freshly ground pepper to tasteCombine vinegar, orange juice, honey, lemon and orange zests in small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil.
Dressing can be prepared up to 8 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewhisk dressing before using.
Makes about 1 1/2 cups.
Speaking of Spring, we start to think of all the wonderful fruits and vegetables that will be here in the coming months. Do you buy organic fruits and vegetables? Sometimes they are hard to find and they can be more expensive especially in the winter months. When shopping for my personal chefs clients, I encourage purchasing specific organic vegetables and fruits, at least.
(Those fruits and vegetables that typically have high pesticide use, we purchase organic ones.)
In an effort to try to keep it simple, I found a helpful guide on this subject from The Environmental Working Group website, The Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides. Download the handy guide at: http://www.foodnews.org/ It’s small enough to fit in your wallet.
This guide will give you The Dirty Dozen (Did you know peaches are the worst in terms of pesticide use?) and The Clean 15 (Onions are the lowest in terms of pesticide use).
This will give you a starting point to try to incorporate organic fruits and vegetables into your shopping. Check out the link to read more about this subject in a quick and easy to read format.
As the farmers markets start in a couple of months here in the Pittsburgh area, notice the growing number of local farms with organic produce. You can talk to these farmers at the markets about their farming methods, and do some research on your own. Its always a good idea to talk with them about their organic farming methods, the history of their soil and what methods neighboring farms are using.
Check-out Chef Catherine’s updated website at: www.personalchefcatherine.com and her current Chef’s Special Offer.
Next month: Chef Catherine will give you some interesting information from the fascinating subject of Food As Medicine.
Catherine’s Personal Chef Service
special diets, custom meal preparations, dinner parties and more!
www.personalchefcatherine.com
412.513.6603