Kenmore & Craftsman Get Efficient With Sandwich King Jeff Mauro

There used to be a Kenmore Live Studio and a Craftsman Brand Experience. These two spots showcased their respective brands with free events that were broadcast live online. It’s a brilliant concept. What’s even more brilliant is combining the two spaces into one, especially since they’re both part of one bigger brand, Sears.

The new space is called, appropriately enough, the Kenmore Craftsman Brand Live Experience. Essentially the Craftsman space was gutted, some showcase kitchens were added, and the center was opened to make room for demonstrations. I recently attended one with Sandwich King Jeff Mauro. This was also appropriate, considering the sandwich is one of the most efficient meals out there.

The concept for this particular event was to show off some of Kenmore’s new appliances and how they can help you be more efficient. To illustrate how much faster their Kenmore Elite Front Load HE Steam Washer is, a timer was set for 24 minutes, the amount of time saved over other brands and models, and then Mauro was challenged to make baked onion rings, with sauce, from scratch, before the timer dinged. He did this using a Kenmore Elite Electric Free Standing Double Oven. Instead of just one oven, this baby gives you two with a combined capacity of 7 cubic feet.

Not only did he beat the timer, he had about four minutes to spare. They gave us the recipe so I tried it at home. With my regular old oven. It took about 40 minutes.

Keep your eyes out for more events at this space on Kenmore’s Facebook page. Just be forewarned: if you go to an event there you may end up with a new oven or washer or drill or refrigerator or…

Oven “Fried” Onion Rings with Roasted Tomato Dippin’ Sauce

Recipe courtesy Jeff Mauro

Oven “Fried” Onion Rings

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 3 cups panko breadcrumbs
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large, yellow sweet onions, sliced ¼” to ½” thick

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place parchment paper onto to baking sheets and set aside.

In a small bowl combine together flour, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and paprika. In another bowl or shallow dish whisk together the buttermilk and egg. Add half of the flour mixture to the buttermilk and beat until smooth and thickened.

In a separate bowl combine the panko and the olive oil and remaining 1 teaspoon of kosher salt.

Lightly dredge the onion rings in the flour mixture and then drop into the buttermilk. Drain the excess batter and then dredge into the panko mixture.

Arrange on the prepared sheet pans and place in the oven until golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Halfway through the cooking time, flip over each onion rings to ensure even crisping and browning.

Roasted Tomato Dippin’ Sauce

• 1 carton of cherry tomatoes – tossed with 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and pepper
• 1 cup of mayo
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon capers
• ¼ teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• Salt and Pepper

Preheat bottom portion of oven to 500 degrees F.  Place tomatoes on parchment lined baking sheet and bake until slightly caramelized and soft, about 10-12 minutes.  Let cool.  Place tomatoes and remaining ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve with onion rings!