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Showing posts from March, 2021

Roast Chicken with Chile-Basil Vinaigrette, Charred Broccoli, and Potatoes

  This is a multi-day dish, but it's not complicated. At night - plot chicken in brine and place in fridge. In morning, remove chicken from brine and let dry. Lunchtime, make marinade. Mid-afternoon, marinate chicken. Then, it's fairly normal after that -- and well worth the effort. This is very flavorful and worth the hype! Next time, I would easily double the vegetable portion. And, the vinaigrette makes a lot. A lot a lot. In making leftovers, I used the leftover vinaigrette as marinade for additional vegetables.   Roast Chicken with Chile-Basil Vinaigrette, Charred Broccoli, and Potatoes Food & Wine For the entree: 4 quarts water 1 1/2 c + 1 T coarse salt, divided 1/4 c sugar 1 4-pound chicken, in pieces 6 heads garlic 1/3 c + 7 T olive oil 1/3 c DIjon style mustard 5 sprigs thyme, divided 1 lb fingerling potatoes, halved lengthwise 1 1/2 lb pearl onions (or 4 shallots), halved 1 sprig rosemary 2 heads broccoli, in large florets 2 tsp red pepper flakes 1 1/2 T lemon jui

Jamie Oliver Traybaked Chicken

  This dish is super tasty. I used 3# boneless chicken breast and cut it into tender-sized strips, which reduced the roasting time to about 30 minutes. I just prefer it to thigh. The advantage of cutting the chicken into strips is a shorter and more consistent bake. The disadvantage is that you need only 30 minutes, which means the garlic won't be mellow / edible. The original recipe, hyperlinked below, has a slightly different name which seemed a bit aggressive, so I named it after the author here instead. Jamie Oliver Traybaked Chicken Jamie Oliver 4 tomatoes, or, 1 pint cherry tomatoes 2 red onions, in quarters 1 red bell pepper, in chunks 1 yellow bell pepper, in chunks 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken, in strips 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled, smashed 1/2 bunch thyme 1 tsp smoked paprika 2 T balsamic vinegar Preheat the oven to 350. Quarter the tomatoes and place them in a large bowl. Add onions, peppers, garlic, and chicken. Top with thyme leaves and sprinkle over the paprika.

Chicken Traybake with Roasted Poblano and Tomato Salsa

  This dish is delicious! Easy! And, beautiful to look at! The original recipe calls for you to process all the cooked vegetables together into a chunky salsa, but I recommend serving it as is so you have an automatic side dish. The original also calls for cooking chicken bone-in, but, the more I cook traybakes, the more I advocate for slicing chicken into tenders and cooking boneless. Just a safer bake that way because everything comes to the same temperature at the same time. Chicken Traybake with Roasted Poblano and Tomato Salsa  Milk Street 1 T chili powder 2 poblano, stemmed, seeded, chopped 1 yellow onion, root end intact, in 8 wedges 1 pint cherry tomatoes 1/4 c olive oil 1 T brown sugar 1 T oregano, dried 3 lb chicken, bone-in, skin-on, trimmed 10 cloves garlic, peeled 1 T vinegar 1/4 c cilantro, chopped Heat oven to 450. In small bowl, stir together chili powder and 2 tsp salt. In large bowl, toss together pobloanos, onion wedges, tomatoes, and 1 T of the chili-power/salt mix

Celery Bisque

  Well, isn't this soup just lovely. Probably best as a side soup, and not the main course. It is light and palate clearing. Celery Bisque Sunday Soups 3 T unsalted butter 1 1/2 c leeks, white and light green only 4 c celery, sliced 1/4" thick 12 oz Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, in 1/2" dice 4 c stock 1 c creme fraiche 2 tsp coarse salt 1/4 tsp cayenne 1 1/2 T parsley, chopped, for garnish Heat butter in a large pot over medium. When hot, add leeks and celery and saute, stirring, for 4 minutes. Add potatoes and stock. Bring to a simmer then lower heat. Cook, uncovered, at a simmer until tender, 20-25 minutes. Puree in batches then return to the pot. Stir in creme fraiche. Taste soup and adjust seasonings with 2 tsp salt and the cayenne.

Vegetable in Papillote

  This is from a cookbook I have used regularly since I bought it in 1994. I will go a few months without remembering to reference it, and then flip through the pictures and remember all the excellent meals I've had from it. This particular recipe is included in the original book as a way to cook zucchini and asparagus, but I find the format exceedingly forgiving for any vegetable. Because the vegetables steam inside the parchment, you need no oil or vinegar for cooking. I am including the original recipe below, but you can see from the pics that I make variations frequently. Vegetables en Papillote 50 Quick & Healthy Vegetarian Dishes 2 zucchini 1 leek, julienned 8 oz asparagus, trimmed into 2" lengths 4 sprigs tarragon 4 cloves garlic, whole, unpeeled Preheat oven to 400. Using a vegetable peeler, slice zucchini lenthwise into thin strips. Cut 4 sheets of parchment into 12x15" size and fold in half. Draw a large curve to make a heart-shape when unfolded. Cut along

Garlic Naan

  These are surprisingly good, and quite easy to assemble and bake. I am a fan of leaving unbaked balls of dough in the fridge (covered) for days, so that you can bake breads like this -- breads that don't store well or re-heat well -- on demand.  Garlic Naan Food and Wine 1 tsp yeast 2 T sugar 1/4 c water, room temperature 4 c flour 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking power 3/4 c whole milk, room temperature 1/2 c plain yogurt, full fat 3 T garlic, minced 1 stick unsalted butter, melted In a glass measuring cup, combine the yeast, sugar, and water and let sit for 10 minutes. In the meantime, mix the flour, baking soda, and baking powder in a large bowl. Whisk together the yeast mixture, yogurt, and milk, and stir into the dry ingredients. Knead with your hands until the dough forms a smooth, soft ball, about 2 minutes. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Leave at room temperature until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Remove the dough from the bowl and turn ont

Italian Sesame Bread

  Italian Sesame Bread King Arthur Flour 3 3/4 c (447 g) flour 2 tsp yeast 1 1/2 tsp (9 g) salt 2 T (25 g) olive oil 1 1/4 c (283 g) water Topping: 1 egg white, beaten sesame seeds Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients until you've made a smooth, elastic dough. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, turn to coat, cover, and allow it to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until puffy. Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into three equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 20"-long rope, tapering the ends slightly. Place the ropes on a lightly greased or parchment lined baking sheet. Braid them loosely; pinch the ends together, and tuck them under. Cover and let it rise for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until puffy. While the bread is rising, preheat the oven to 400°F. Immediately before you put the loaf in the oven, brush with the egg white and sprinkle the sesame seeds on top. Bake the braid for 20 to 25 minutes, until it's golden brown.

Black Bean Tostadas with Cabbage Slaw

Yum, yum, and yum. The slaw is a lovely addition and the whole thing is a treat to offer to guests. I assembled leftover tostadas for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the next few days. Just terrific! If you had pulled meats on hand that you wanted to use, you could also add those in as a topping. Black Bean Tostadas with Cabbage Slaw Cooking Light  3 c beans, cooked* 1/2 c pico de gallo, drained 4 T olive oil 2 T red wine vinegar 1 tsp oregano, dried 1/2 tsp salt 10 oz cabbage, shredded 1 c radish, chopped 1 c cherry tomatoes, halved 1/2 c red onion, thinly sliced 6 tostados 6 oz questo fresco cilantro *You can use any bean you'd like, except perhaps beans in the lentil or lima category. I recommend cooking beans via the Parsons method -- it's foolproof and eliminates any food safety issues. Combine beans and pico de gallo in a small saucepan. Cook over medium, stirring often, until hot, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and cover to keep warm. Whisk together oil, vinegar, or

Refried Beans - using the Parsons Method for foolproof beans

This recipe is eminently tweak-able and forgiving. I adjust seasonings based on what is in the house. And, I can even adjust portions overall, making a small batch just for lunch one day. Refried Beans Lean Bean Cuisine 1 c beans, any type 1 onion, peeled and halved 2 T vegetable oil 1 onion, diced 1/2 jalapeno, seeded, minced 1 tsp cumin 1/2 tsp salt 2 T cilantro, minced 1/2 - 2 tsp Tabasco   Prepare beans via the Parson's Method by putting beans in an oven-safe pot and covering with severla inches of water. Bring to a boil on the stove while the oven preheats to 350. Once the beans are at a boil, toss in an onion, place the lid on the pot, and put beans in the oven. Cook for 1-2 hours, depending on the age of the beans. When cooked, drain the beans, reserving 1/2 c cooking liquid. Discard the onion. Heat oil in pan. Add onion. Saute 5-7 minutes. Add jalapeno, cumin and salt and cook 1 minute. Add half the beans and a little of reserved liquid. Cook over medium heat. Mash beans wi

Deacachimba!

  Deachimba Shaker and Spoon Steve Minor, mixologist 2 oz dark rum 1 oz blood orange - guava barmalade 5 drops chipotle cocktail spice 1/2 oz citric saline solution 1 oz coconut water Shake ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker. Strain into a chilled coupe glass.

Old Fashioned Butterscotch Pudding

  This was my first effort at pudding - and it definitely worked and tasted great! It was slightly grainy, which I understand from further reading is likely the fault of my lack of vigorous stirring. Blame the fact that I'm still nervous about scratching the new All-Clads. Old Fashioned Butterscotch Pudding The Raleigh Newspaper 4 egg yolks 3 T cornstarch 1/2 tsp fine sea salt 1 T unsalted butter 2 c whole milk 1 c heavy cream 1 T bourbon whiskey 2 tsp vanilla extract   Put egg yolks, cornstarch and salt in a large bowl and whisk until smooth and lump-free. In a medium pot over medium heat, combine brown sugar and butter. Whisk until brown sugar melts, 1-2 minutes. Let cool, whisking constantly, utnil mixture starts to smell like hot caramel and darkens slightly, about 1 minute longer. Immediately pour milk and cream into the pot. It will bubble fiercely and seize up. Continue to cook, whisking constantly, until clumps melt, 2-4 minutes. Slowly whisk 1/2 c of the hot cream mixture

Rustic Spinach Tart

  This comes together in a snap. Surprisingly good for such general ingredients. I have made this with refrigerated pie dough, and with homemade crust. Both are good, though the homemade is flakier and better. Rustic Spinach Tart Real Simple 1 T olive oil 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 10 oz package frozen spinach, thawed, chopped, drained, and squeezed of extra moisture 1 tsp coarse salt 1 tsp pepper 2 ready made pie crusts 1 c cottage cheese 10-12 button mushrooms, thinly sliced 1 12-oz jar roasted red pepper, drained and chopped 1 T thyme, fresh, or 1 tsp dried 1/4 c Parmesan, grated 1 egg, lightly beaten   Preheat oven to 400. Place the olive oil in a medium skillet and place over medium heat. Add garlic. Cook and stir 1 minute. Add spinach and saute 2 minutes. Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Coat a large baking sheet with Pam. Unfold 1 piecrust onto the baking sheet. Spoon spinach mixture evenly over crust, leaving 1 " border around the edge. Layer th

Chicken Vindaloo

          As you would expect with Milk Street as the source, this is very good. The finished dish has a deep, complex flavor and not at all hot. It doesn't make much sauce, but just a coating is all you need -- it makes enough to even increase the amount of chicken by at least another 8 ounces.    Chicken Vindaloo Milk Street 1/4 c + 2 T white vinegar, divided 12 cloves garlic, smashed, peeled 1 1" piece ginger, peeled, roughly chopped 2 T sweet paprika 2 T brown sugar 4 cloves 2 1/2 tsp turmeric 2 tsp cumin seed 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 1/4 tsp cinnamon 2 lb chicken thigh (boneless, skinless), trimmed and in chunks 2 T grapeseed oil cilantro, for garnish   In a blender, combine 1/4 cup vinegar, garlic, ginger, paprika, sugar, cloves, turmeric, cumin, cayenne, cinnamon, 1¼ teaspoons each salt and pepper, and 3 tablespoons water. Puree until smooth, scraping the blender as needed. Pour into a medium bowl, add the chicken and toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 15 min

Chicken Tikka Masala

I've been making this recipe since it was first published in Bon Appetit in 2013 and it still knocks my socks off. They suggest serving the chicken as breasts, but I prefer to go ahead and cube it before starting prep. Chicken Tikka Masala Bon Appetit 6 cloves garlic, grated 4 tsp ginger, grated 4 tsp turmeric 2 tsp garam masala 2 tsp coriander 2 tsp cumin 1 1/2 c yogurt (not Greek) 1 T coarse salt 2 lb chicken breast (boneless, skinless, cut into chunks) 3 T ghee 1 onion, thinly sliced 1/4 c tomato paste 6 pods cardamom, crushed 2 dried chiles de arbol, or, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 1 28 oz can tomatoes 2 c heavy cream 3/4 c cilantro, chopped Combine garlic, ginger, turmeric, garam masala, coriander, and cumin in a small bowl. Whisk yogurt, salt, and half of spice mixture in a medium bowl; add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and chill 4-6 hours. Cover and chill remaining spice mixture. Heat ghee in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion, tomato paste, cardamom, and chiles