My Very Own Chef

Raspberry Streusel Muffins

2010-02-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

These muffins will rock your world. The recipe is originally from one of the many gifted cooks in my hometown church in southern MN. The recipe itself was published in our church cookbook which is a treasure trove of the tasty recipes I grew up eating at potlucks and at home.

I'm not sure you can get that cookbook anywhere anymore but if someone would like one, I can try to check on their availability.

Muffins:

1/2 C butter

1/2 C sugar

1 egg

1 C sour cream

1/2 C milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 C all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 C fresh or frozen raspberries

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. In a small bowl, mix sour cream, milk, and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients. Stir into creamed mixture, alternated with sour cream mixture until just moistened. Gently fold in raspberries. Batter will be thick. Fill greased or paper lined muffin cups almost full.

Streusel Mix for Top of Muffins

1/4 C all purpose flour

1/4 c quick cook oats

3 T sugar

1/4 tsp grnd cinnamon

1/3 tsp salt

3 T cold butter

Confectioner’s sugar

Combine flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Mix well. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over muffins.

Baking

Bake at 400 for 20-26 minutes or until top is lightly browned and toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 min. Remove to wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar. Yield 1 doz.

Enjoy!

Sprout Doubt

2010-02-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

Last spring, I attempted to sprout seeds at home. Caught up in the romance of nutrition-rich home-grown vegetables, I imagined myself like some pioneerswoman, supplementing our winter diet with a steady rotation of different sprouts.

For my first attempt, I tried mustard seed, brown rice, and black-eyed peas. The mustard seed never did anything but sit sadly in its jar. The rice and peas both sprouted - the beans quite nicely.

In order to sprout seeds, they need to be soaked for several hours. Then, they need to be kept moist but clean for several days. This requires rinsing them a couple times a day to prevent spoilage. It was the required regular rinsing that spurred disaster. Running late one morning, I didn't have time to rinse my sprouts before school... and really, I thought they'd be fine. By the time I got home, however, they had gone bad. Ugh, the smell.

Seeds vary in how long they take to sprout as well as how often they need to be rinsed. I used the Rodale's Basic Natural Foods Cookbook as a reference. This cookbook is one of my favorite procedural books for handling raw foods. It also has a lot of excellent recipes (although for my tastes many of them are under-salted). This was also the book that taught me how to can foods as a teenager and so my copy is tie-dyed with various berry, tomato, and vegetable juices.

The Qualities of Quiche

2010-02-05T08:00:00.000-08:00

As a girl, I got the impression that quiche had some mystical properties that allowed only the most skilled and determined cooks to master it. Like so many other childhood impressions, this turned out to be entirely not true.

Below, I've written out a recipe for quiche crust that I selected after several blind taste tests with friends who are all too willing to serve as ginny pigs. This crust is simple, fast to make, and will yield consistent results. It is slightly thicker and more dense than a number of crusts that we tried (not nearly as flaky as a desert pie crust) but that seems to stand up better to the stronger flavors of a quiche.

Crust (for 1 shell) *adapted from Rene Verdon's 1968 The White House Chef Cookbook.*
1 1/2 C flour
1/2 C butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 C cold water

Place flour, butter, and salt into a bowl and work together with hands until smooth. Add eggs and water and work with hands until of rolling consistency.

Roll out on a floured surface to about 1/4 to 1/8 inches thick. Carefully transfer crust to a 9-inch pan and crimp edges. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Filling (1 quiche) *from my Aunt Jean*

Below I've written a standard quiche filling. If you want a denser custard, add more eggs. You can also add lots of other filling ingredients. (see below)

1/2 C grated cheese (swiss, mozzarella, cheddar, whatever you like)

1 C lightly browned diced onions

3 eggs blended with enough cream to make 1 1/2 C liquid

pepper & salt to taste

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Put the cheese and onion (and other ingredients) in the bottom of the pie shell. Pour the egg mixture over everything and agitate gently to make sure the egg is evenly spread.

Bake 30-45 minutes at 375 until the center puffs. If all the ingredients are cold, it may take longer.

-------------Note-------------

You can add any set of ingredients you want to a quiche, just don't overfill the crust. You will need to cook most ingredients first. I suggest frying up the individual ingredients in a little frying pan and setting them aside. You can do this (and make the crust) the night before serving. If you're frying a lot of little ingredients, be careful about the total amount of grease you add to the quiche. Too much extra fat will make the custard oily and heavy.

Some suggested additional ingredients:
fresh herbs: any to your taste, basil, chives, oregano, etc.

veggies: mushrooms, spinach, brocolli, greens, eggplant, zucchini, cauliflower

meat: bacon, sausage, turkey sausage, ham, shrimp
cheese & cream: feta, gouda, any stronger flavored cheese of choice, sour cream, non-sweet yogurt
   (Note: By adjusting the cream or cheese, you may alter the
   consistency of custard.  Just be aware of this when you're
   playing around with the recipe, try to adjust other
   ingredients to compensate, and watch what happens.)

Avocado, Shrimp & Mango Salad

2010-02-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

This simple but sophisticated salad requires some prep but comes together quickly. Enjoy with a crisp white wine for a light refreshing afternoon meal.

Ingredients:
Fresh greens, washed ~ 2/3 Gallon in volume
1 or 2 fresh mangoes
2 medium tomatoes
1 lb. raw medium shrimp
1/3 C mayo
1 Tbsp horseradish
1/8 C lime juice
1 avocado
1 tsp each of salt, sugar, fresh ground black pepper

Procedure:
Dice the tomato and mango.
Poach the shrimp in quickly simmering salted water for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until just done. Drain the shrimp and rinse under cold water to avoid tough shrimp. (Note: You can also add flavoring to the poaching liquid, e.g. a quartered lemon, cayenne pepper, shrimp boil powder, whatever you like)
Mix the mayo, horseradish, lime juice, salt, sugar and pepper in a small dish. Toss greens, mango, tomato, shrimp and dressing together in a large bowl. Plate and garnish top with fanned avocado half.
Makes 2 large salads or 3-4 small salads.

Last Summer's Gardens

2010-02-01T08:00:00.000-08:00

Food and gardening are (or at least should be) intimately intertwined activities. Unfortunately, I didn't take a ton of pictures last year, but here are a few from early summer.

As well as a couple pictures from various harvests.

Hurry Spring! Hurry!

Passing round blueberry pie

2010-01-31T08:00:00.000-08:00

I have been meaning to share my Aunt Jean's blueberry pie recipe for a while now and I think its fitting to begin re-posting with this dish.

It always feels presumptuous to share other people's recipes. I suppose in part because it doesn't feel like its mine to give. Even more, though, I think its because I have relationships with these dishes and the people with whom I've shared them.

This pie recipe is a gem, as my grandmother would have said. It has rescued the grumbling bellies of many an all-night game session, become the dessert for surprise guests, and served as a backup for a botched potluck dish that got a little too creative. Its a quick prep pat in crust that you can use with almost any berry combinations. I often keep frozen berries around and, therefore, can always whip this up if necessary at a moments notice.

Crust:

2 C flour

1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2/3 C oil (something with mild flavor is best)
3 Tbsp milk

Pie Filling:
4 C fresh blueberries (or 2 pkgs. frozen)
1 C sugar
1/4 C flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp butter

Mix ingredients for crust.

Pat all but 1 cup into the bottom and sides of a 9-10" pie pan to form an even crust.

Mix berries and dry ingredients for filling.

Pour into crust. Dot with butter.

Sprinkle the reserved 1 cup of crust over the top and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake at 400 for 40-50 minutes until it bubbles in the middle.
Allow to cool and serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Laziness

2010-01-30T08:56:00.000-08:00

Its officially been over a year since I last posted on this blog and, frankly, my posting had been sporadic at best for a couple years before that. I could generate all kinds of reasons to explain my negligent behavior, but I suppose this post's heading is as fair a rationale as any.

On the bright side, we finally have internet at our home. For three years I've survived without internet by writing lists of emails to send, articles to look up, searches to make. I've huddled in the snow to find wifi points near my house and tried to cram in every spare internet chore I could between tasks at school. and thank god for the public library.

I know. It was stupid.

But it was cheeper. And it was quieter.

Just also terribly, horribly, cripplingly inconvenient.

In conclusion, I promise two things:

1) there will be another post

2) it will be about food

Memories of Summer's Green

2009-01-24T09:41:00.000-08:00

Once again, I have fallen far behind in posting in part because of laziness and in part because my camera went missing. Fortunately, it was recently replaced by Ken's parents (Thanks!!). As I was digging through my photos and reorganizing my files, I came across the last few photos I had downloaded before the disappearance of my camera.

The bright fresh green of our vegetables seems almost gaudy in contrast to the drab white of January... but they certainly are beautiful.

Pork & Sprouts

2008-08-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

Above and below are pictures of a recent meal Ken made for a good college friend of mine. The entire meal was just fantastic. The top image is of a squash blossom salad with baby greens and roasted eggplant, zucchini, and pine nuts. It was a refreshing and flavorful start to our meal. I certainly wasn't the only one to consider how improper licking the plate might be.

Above is an image of the walnut encrusted pork with a brussel sprout and corn compote. The pork was moist, nutty, rich, and yet somehow still light. The gravy was mouthwatering. As always Ken's brussel sprouts were fantastic. This was the first time he had included the corn and made more of a medley. It was a great variation of the dish and very tasty.

For dessert, we went to a local custard shop in Champaign called Jarling's a Custard Cup. The custard is rich, creamy, and made fresh on site. We only live a few blocks from the place and are often tempted on summer nights to take late night jaunts over to enjoy some custard with the flocks of ever-present customers. Jarling's frequently wins awards and excellent reviews from all kinds of folks-- I highly recommend stopping by if you're ever in Champaign, IL.

Garden Treats: Basil Pasta, Zuchinni, and Mashed Turnips

2008-08-04T08:40:00.000-07:00

Back to some food pictures.
Here's a picture of a recent meal that Ken whipped up one evening with produce from our garden and the local farmer's market.

He made homemade basil pasta with some of the massive amounts of basil we've harvested from the garden and a sweet tomato sauce to top it. The zuchini dish was just amazing - I've never had anything quite like it - and can't wait for Ken to make it again before zuchini season is over. The mashed turnips had a really unique flavor but the texture was not as creamy as regular mashed potatoes. I think next time we'll try half potato/half turnip and see what we get.

Hope everyone's summer is going well and that you've all been able to enjoy some of the abundance of amazing summer produce.

All I ever post are garden pictures...

2008-07-29T14:17:00.000-07:00

The garden is growing beautifully and we've harvested quite a number of lovely vegetables. Crunchy peppers, flavorful eggplant, cherry tomatoes, yum.

More Garden Photos

2008-06-16T12:12:00.000-07:00

These photos of the garden are about a week old. I'll put up newer photos when I take them. Its really amazing how much the garden can change in one week. Right now, most things are flowering. We've harvested a lot of greens and a few peapods. We can see the very first tomatoes and peppers starting to take shape. Its all very exciting.

Main Garden

Tomatoes and Peppers

Growing Gardens

2008-05-31T10:53:00.000-07:00

As Ken's cooking expertise has grown, he has become increasingly interested in organic and local produce. One of his dreams is to grow and raise all of the food for his future restaurant himself. So we figured it was probably a good idea to begin greening up our thumbs by planting a small garden. Ken and I both grew up in families that did a lot of gardening but we haven't really ever had our own gardens as adults. (I did participate in a community garden with a group of friends while living in Chicago. We had a lot of fun and I highly recommend community gardens-- but I wouldn't have called that garden my own.) So this is a new experience for both of us. Ken purchased a book, The Vegetable Gardener's Bible, that he loves and recommends. The author encourages use of deeper beds, wide raised rows, and organic methods. He also has specific recommendations for growing different vegetables, composting, and many tips to make your garden beautiful and healthy.

Below are 2 pictures of the garden when it was first planted. You'll notice in the picture that there is a large pile of dirt/gravel that Ken had to take off the top of the garden. We're not really sure what that's about--- we're renting and we suspect that the garden area was used as a garbage/lawn waste area at some point.

Here is the garden after a couple weeks...

And pictures from a couple days ago...
The top image is of the big garden where we've planted lots of different greens, herbs, beans, peas and pea pods, beets, squash, etc. The bottom image is of the tomato/pepper/eggplant bed which is separate from the rest of the garden.

I'll post more pictures of the garden soon and I think we'll probably be having our first salad of garden greens sometime in the next week. I can hardly wait!

Until then-- Here's a picture of an activity that I've found to often go hand in hand with gardening. The grill was a gift from Ken's parents for his birthday. Thanks again Andy and Diane!

Elk Steaks

2008-05-30T10:26:00.000-07:00

I only have a second, but wanted to put up some pictures of a dinner we had with a few friends a month or two ago. The main course featured elk steaks from a local Illinois farm. This elk meat was extremely tender and had a subtle nutty flavor. We've been making an effort to buy local produce and meat so this elk is an excellent option. Elk also requires substantially fewer resources to raise than something like beef-- so that's good too!

Mixed greens with homemade caesar dressing & croutons (infinitely better than store bought)

Elk Steaks with leeks, roasted vegetables, and a savory puff

Chocolate covered cream puffs and after dinner games

As always, please feel to email or comment with recipe requests etc.

One Fish, Two Fish

2008-05-26T10:46:00.000-07:00

Now that its summer and I have time to start posting pictures again, I am faced with a dilemma. While I would like to be putting up pictures of our garden and latest feasts, I have this massive backlog of beautiful pictures of Ken's food. At this point, I've stopped taking new pictures because there are so many old ones. Even more unfortunate, I don't remember much about the old photos-- how the food tasted, how it was made, specifics of the event.

In order to resolve this problem, I'm just going to post some of the older pictures with minimal details as I run across them. I'll also start taking and posting new pictures as I am inspired

Below are two images of fish dinners that we had at some point over the winter. Ken and I have been trying to eat more fish as it is a healthy alternate source of protien.

Wild Salmon, Asparagras, and Leeks

Fried Catfish with Ginger Spinach and Roasted Squash

Waffles for Spring

2008-04-20T09:04:00.000-07:00

I'm in the middle of preparing things for the end of term, so I don't have long to write. On the bright side, I have a number of food pictures ready to go and on a computer that I can post from... so I should be able to put up some more posts over the next several days.

To the left, you'll see a picture of our very first Spring flower. Last Fall, Ken's mom purchased a variety of bulbs for us which I planted around the garden. We've been having so much fun discovering all the growing green things in our backyard and we're planning to plant a vegetable garden this weekend. I just love Spring.

Also, wanted to share my waffle recipe with you all. We've been making waffles regularly because they're easy to reheat in the toaster for a quick breakfast. In an effort to make this a healthy as well as easy breakfast option, I've come up with a waffle recipe that I really like. The flavor is excellent and they're much more filling than regular flour waffles.

Combine in a large bowl:
1 C whole oats
1 C bran
1 C bran flour or whole wheat flour (or 1/2 and 1/2)
1/4-1/2 C sugar (or honey or brown sugar)
Enough low-fat buttermilk for a soupy consistency

Let sit for about a half hour to soften the oats.
(This isn't necessary but will ensure that you don't get any whole oats that are hard and uncooked)

Stir in:
2 eggs
1 T baking powder
1 T baking soda
1/4 C oil
enough milk to make waffles pourable (the buttermilk will probably have soaked into the
any seasoning you prefer (vanilla, cinnamon etc.)

Oh and one quick note about the oil-- you have to include some fat in the recipe or the waffles won't hold together. You can use butter or oil, whatever you prefer. I usually start with just a dash of whatever fat, cook the first waffle, and then add more if necessary.

Recipes for things like waffles, pancakes, muffins, quick breads, etc are really fun because you can muck around with them a lot and usually still get a tasty final dish. Unlike yeast doughs or fragile butter pastries, they're pretty hardy and can handle some mistreatment. If you want to experiment with baking, I highly suggest playing around with some of these kinds of recipes.

Anyway, back to work.
Toodles.

2008? February? Really?

2008-02-21T07:42:00.000-08:00

I realize that I've become really really bad at posting with any regularity. I feel mildly guilty about this. Once I would have felt really guilty about this. Now, though, the dizzying swirl of constant obligation and the perpetual feelings of inadequacy, the life that is graduate school, has dulled any such torment of conscience into a mild nagging feeling. And besides, I've found that the last thing I want to do after a long day of working is to spend any more time on the computer.

The absence of photos/recipes of wonderful food on this page does not mean that Ken has stopped cooking... quite the opposite. He is happily working for a small start-up bistro that specializes in high-end catering and he is able to spend most evenings at home. He frequently makes us beautiful and scrumptious meals and has stoically accepted his role as guardian of my sanity- for which I am eternally grateful.

I've attached images of a recent meal/s--
The first is an image of cream of asparagus soup. This soup was delicate, fresh, and made me long for spring.

The second is tuna (half seed-encrusted, half-jerked), mushrooms, and spinach with ginger. Every part of this meal was just amazing. The mushrooms were rich and musky. (Ken has taken to finishing most of his vegetables with chicken stock-- I highly recommend this.) The spinach and ginger was bright and just perfectly wilted... and the tuna was... well, yum

Sorry the photos aren't better. I've gotten a little lazy about taking them since they so rarely go anywhere anymore.

I'll try to post again soon but no promises.

Creme Brulee

2007-11-14T12:07:00.000-08:00

When my father spent a few days visiting, we discovered that he LOVES crème brulee. It turns out that the dish is not very difficult to make, so Ken gave us a couple cooking lessons. It was certainly a chore to make and eat those delicious delicate desserts, but we all make sacrifices for family. I believe that my dad recently tried the recipe on his own. Maybe he will post a comment to let us know how it went.

Ingredients:
1 qt. heavy cream
6 egg yolks
1 C sugar
1 vanilla bean, split (scrape out the bean if you don't want a speckled brulee)

Heat the cream and vanilla bean over-medium high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Remove vanilla bean.

In a non-reactive bowl, whisk 1/2 C sugar with the egg yolks until creamy and the egg yolks start to lighten in color.

Slowly pour a little of the cooled cream into the egg mixture while stirring. Continue until the cream and eggs are well mixed.

Pour the liquid evenly into small dishes (ramekins) and place them in a baking pan. Fill the baking pan with enough water to come up about half way around the dishes.

Bake the crème brulee at 325 degrees until the brulee is set but still trembles when agitated (about 45 minutes). Then, cool the brulee in the refrigerator for several hours.

Dust the brulee with a thin layer of sugar and then use a blow torch to caramelize the sugar and form a crispy top layer.

Enjoy!

Banana Coffee Cake and Quiche

2007-11-12T07:58:00.000-08:00

With all of the houseguests we've had recently, I've had the opportunity to brush up on my brunch cooking skills. To the right you'll see pictures of a banana coffee cake. This recipe is amazing and combines the best parts of banana bread and coffee cake. I found the recipe in one of my mother's old cookbooks, The Anderson House
Cookbook. The cookbook is from a lovely bed and breakfast that my parents used to frequent in Wabasha, MN. The Anderson House is located near the Mississippi River and at 150 years old, is the oldest bed and breakfast in Minnesota. This cookbook is a compilation of recipes that have been collected and served at the Anderson House since it first opened. Accompanying many of the recipes, you'll find historical accounts about the origins of a recipe or how the inn used to operate. All in all, its an excellent and fascinating cookbook and has old hearty Minnesotan recipes that you couldn't find anywhere else.

Below the coffee cake, there are a couple images of a spinach, caramelized onion, goat cheese, and chive quiche. My aunt is a master of quiches and she has inspired me to also often serve them for brunches. I think Ken would get sick of eating them on so many Sunday mornings if they weren't so versatile and, um, really really good.

Tilapia with Fall Harvest Vegetable Medley

2007-11-10T10:19:00.000-08:00

So as I'm behind on posting and have a lot less free time for everything, I probably won't put up recipes for every set of pictures I post. If, however, there is a recipe that anyone would like, please feel free to post a comment or email me.

These photos are from a dinner we had with a visiting friend about a month ago. The salad is a pretty basic balsamic reduction vinaigrette with fresh greens. Ken made a version of goat cheese croutons that we've really enjoyed on a number of occasions. They're quite tasty and are from The Wine Lover's Cookbook which I previously mentioned in this post. We also had a three step cornmeal breaded Tilapia with Burre Blanc and a medley of squash, zucchini, and shitake mushroom. Ken has really been enjoying this vegetable medley and you'll probably see it accompanying a few other dishes. At some point, I will post pictures and a recipe for the vegetable dish, as it’s become one of our favorites.

Ravioli

2007-10-30T17:30:00.001-07:00

Apologies again for being bad about posting. I have a whole bunch of images just waiting to be put on-line but I seem to be continually pre-occupied with this whole school thing... and sleeping. Sleeping is nice.

In any case, I thought I'd put up some photos of a recent visit from a couple friends of ours. We had a lovely weekend with them and spent a lot of time playing cards, drinking, and catching up. On Saturday night, we decided to make ravioli as its sort of a fun and interactive dish. In fact, making ravioli always reminds me a bit of doing arts and crafts during day camp... except that you can eat your final project. Hmmm, well I guess arts and crafts often involve dry pasta, which technically you could eat... and there are always some kids that eat a bit of paste... but I'm sure this final project tastes way better.
Anyway.

We started the meal with a scrumptious fresh cesear salad with homemade crutons and dressing (see above). Ken made the pasta and the fillings but we all worked together to stuff them. The fillings were a shitaki mushroom and cream filling, a chevre and savory filling, and a roasted corn and peppercorn cheese filling. The fillings were all pretty amazing and we ended up eating the extra with spoons. Once the pasta was cooked, we tossed it with butter and roasted garlic and served it with green beans. The three raviolis went together very well and melted in your mouth. Mmmm. To the left you can see pasta pictures and Friel and John putting the ravioli together. I also have other pictures of homemade pasta from different dinners, so I hope to write a more detailed account of how to make pasta when I post about one of those meals.

Take care and I'll try to post again soon.

Update

2007-09-29T21:47:00.000-07:00

I know that its been ages since I've written. We've been a bit preoccupied by crazy complications in our lives and, of course, I'm just starting graduate school. (Turns out thats quite a bit of work. Who knew?) On the bright side, I have a lot of new scrumptious looking pictures of food. I promise to post some of them soon.

Until then... Toodles.

Penne with Sausage, Shiitake and Portobello Mushrooms, and Zinfandel

2007-09-10T07:57:00.000-07:00

I made this dish the other night while Ken was at work. It was delicious and not very difficult to make. The recipe itself is based off of a recipe found in The Wine Lover's Cookbook written by Sid Goldstein. Ken and I like this cookbook quite a bit. I originally found it in the sale section of a bookstore, leafed through it, and was drawn to the detailed explanations of wine and food pairing. While many of the recipes are a little too complex for a beginner and call for rare and sometimes expensive ingredients, there are a number of innovative and really quite remarkable recipes as well. A number of our favorite dishes were directly inspired by recipes in this book. I would certainly recommend that a dedicated cook check this cookbook out... but vegetarians beware, most of the recipes involve meat or seafood.

Here's this recipe.

12 oz. Italian sausage
2 T olive oil
1 1/2 C chopped yellow onion
4 cloves garlic, chopped
8 nice shiitake mushrooms
(original recipe calls for 2 oz. dried porcini)
3-4 portobello mushrooms
1 T crumbled dried rosemary
1 T dried thyme
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp fresh black pepper
1 1/2 C Zinfandel
(original recipe calls for Syrah)
1 C chicken stock
4 tomatoes diced
(can use 2 cans of diced tomatoes)
2 T tomato paste
shredded Asiago cheese to top

1 lb. dried Penne

Saute the sausage over medium heat until browned. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon and reserve (pat dry with paper towels).

Heat the olive oil and saute the onions and garlic until the onions are translucent (approx. 5 min). Add the mushrooms, herbs, salt and pepper and continue to saute until the mushrooms start to soften and cook down (4-6 minutes).

Add the wine and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the wine is reduced by half. In a saucepan, start heating water for the pasta.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and chicken stock. Simmer until the tomatoes soften (10-15 minutes). Add the pasta to the boiling pot of water sometime while the sauce is cooking. When the sauce is at the desired consistency, add the sausage and heat through. Salt and pepper to taste.

Drain the pasta and add the sauce. Mix thoroughly (for the picture, I didn't mix the pasta and sauce which was sort of silly. It tastes better all mixed together and is very pretty as well.)

Top with shredded Asiago cheese and serve with Syrah or Zinfandel.

Tamarillos: The tomato fruit?

2007-09-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

Ken spotted an unusual looking fruit as we wandered through the grocery store last weekend. Always willing to try something new, we purchased the fruit and brought it home to try. It was a tamarillo.

The fruit was described to us as tomato-like so we decided to first try it raw. It was unlike anything I'd ever had before. The first bite tasted a bit like a peach with a plum's texture. As I started to chew, the flavor morphed into a distinctively tomato-like flavor. The effect was not altogether pleasant but that may just be because it was so unique.

I think that we're both interested in experimenting with this fruit again. I've looked up a few recipes but if anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I'll certainly write a post if we come up with any tasty tamarillo creations.

Hearty Beef Stew

2007-09-06T21:14:00.000-07:00

I grew up in rural Minnesota and no matter how far I travel or how different my life becomes, Minnesota will always hold a rather sizable chunk of my heart. I have no doubt that with little effort I could overwhelm you with memories, theories, and plenty of poetic sense and nonsense about my home state. However, I believe I have the restraint to keep my musings brief... at least for the moment. You may be wondering what any of this has to do with beef stew. While this is a reasonable question, the answer seems rather obvious to me. Being a Minnesotan, I cannot in good conscious ever discuss beef stew without first offering a brief nod to the land of 10,000 lakes. In Minnesota we know and love our stews, hotdishes, casseroles, pot pies, pasties... basically, we specialize in any hearty meal that involves a bunch of meat, potatoes, vegetables, and other miscellaneous items jumbled together in a large vessel. I can imagine nothing more welcome on a frosty afternoon than a steaming bowl of beef stew, and nothing more wholesome than a spread of 20 hotdishes and a sea of friendly faces at a potluck. It would seem like a terrible betrayal to write about this one beef stew and its rather charming chef without also acknowledging the lifetime of amazing food shared with me by the community that first shaped my life. Thank you all.

So. Ken made this stew as part of the meal planning/organizational extravaganza that I mentioned in the previous post. In the end, the stew was really quite remarkable. I probably shouldn't give away the big secret that made this stew so fantastic- but, eh, what the heck. The secret ingredient was the leftover reduced beef gravy from the roast dinner. It was extremely rich and flavorful and was just the right addition to transform this stew from a good meal into a succulent mouth watering experience.

The recipe follows. As autumn sets in and cold weather starts to arrive, I highly recommend making a nice stew. Really, there's nothing quite like it.

1 lb cubed raw beef
3 carrots coarsely chopped
1 onion, chopped
4 potatoes in chunks
green beans, cleaned and cut into sections
2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
4 C beef stock
1 T tomato paste
1 bay leaf
dried thyme, salt & pepper to taste

Cook the carrots and onions in a heavy saucepan over med-low heat until they are just starting to caramelize. Next add the tomato paste and fry it for about 1 min. Then add the stock. In a regular frying pan, brown the beef chunks. Once the meat is browned, dump it and everything else into the saucepan and cook for 4 hours.

We ate the stew with toasted and buttered sourdough bread. Yum.

Roasted Beef, Roasted Rosemary Potatoes, and Roasted Asparagus

2007-08-29T22:58:00.000-07:00

To economize and have more organized meals, Ken and I have been working on planning our shopping and cooking schedules ahead of time. I have no idea if we'll actually be able to do this for more than a few days but so far its been working alright. At this point we have managed to use a chuck roast to make roasted beef and a delicious beef stew and we're planning to turn a roasted chicken into enchiladas and chicken pot pie.

Below are a series of photos of the meal prep. I am not going to write out a recipe because I think its fairly intuitive. (If anyone would like the recipe, please feel free to write a comment and I will put it up.) The only slightly unusual thing that Ken did while making the sauce was to reduce beef stock for a long time to make it more flavorful.

Look for a recipe and photos of the beef stew very soon.
cheerio!

p.s. Ken just came over to look at the pictures I was putting up and started muttering angrily at himself. Apparently, he wrapped the roast the wrong way. He said if the striations in the meat were going lengthwise, the meat would have been more tender after it was sliced. Not a cooking disaster per se, but I'm sure he'll be more careful next time.

Pan-Fried Tilapia with Salsa Verde and Spinach and Tomato Pilaf

2007-08-26T09:30:00.000-07:00

I don't really have much of a story for this recipe. We wanted to have fish for dinner one night last week and Ken came up with this recipe. We chose tilapia because it is a mild-flavored and affordable fish. Most tilapias, according to Ken who knows a lot about fish for some reason*, are omnivores. This means that they are easy to raise in fish farms and the flavor difference between wild and farmed tilapia is small.

The dish turned out quite well and the contrast between the salsa verde and the mild fish and rice was tantalizing. Unfortunately, the final pictures did not turn out as well as usual for a few reasons (which include things like pan frying instead of deep frying, which yields a less evenly coated batter; the similarly mottled appearance of each component of the final plate; over-sized portions; and an impatient and starving photographer.)
Huh. I guess I did have something to say after all. In any case, I've included a recipe below.

Spinach and Tomato Rice:

When Ken makes rice, he usually begins by sweating some small onion pieces over low heat in a saucepan with a bit of oil. Once the onions turn translucent, he adds the rice and fries it for a bit over high heat (stirring frequently). When the rice turns a sort of pearly color, then he adds the appropriate amount of water, brings the pot up to a boil, covers the pot, and puts it in the oven at 350 until it is cooked (20-30 minutes). I always used to make rice on top of the stove, but I have been completely converted to this method of making rice. Not only do you save stove space, you avoid having to watch for boiling over and the rice NEVER burns to the bottom of the saucepan. Its amazing. If you don't cook rice this way, you should. (If you don't want onions in the rice just leave them out and lightly fry the rice before adding water.)

In any case, this rice was slightly more complicated than what I've described above. Before Ken added the water to the rice, he also added about 1 C of diced tomato and fried the tomato with the rice/onions until they were a little soft. He then added a bay leaf and the water and put the covered saucepan in the oven. Once the rice was cooked, he removed the pan from the oven and set it on the stove to cool. He opened the lid and added several large handfuls of fresh spinach and covered the pan again. The spinach began to wilt while the rice cooled. Once the spinach was a bit wilted he tossed the spinach into the rice until evenly mixed and added salt and pepper to taste.

Salsa Verde

10 tomatillos
1 medium white onion
poblano chillies (or favorite green chili) to taste
fresh cilantro to taste
lime juice
salt
pepper
sugar to taste (very little- just enough to cut the bitterness of the lime)

Roast the tomatillos in the oven until they are soft and the skin starts to have dark spots. Let them cool and then put everything in a food processor and blend until it is of the desired consistency. Cool in refrigerator.

Pan-Fried Tilapia

To make the tilapia, ken cleaned and washed the fish and then evenly coated it with corn flakes. He lightly fried the fish in oil over the stove.

So that's all seems easy enough, huh?
It was a nice refreshing meal on a summer's day and really didn't take too long. Plus, we had mad left over salsa verde which was very nice.

*Ken wanted me to point out that "some reason" is actually that he enjoys fishing as a hobby and that it is also part of his job to know about the fish he cooks. I maintain that all of those rationales were adequately covered by the more general category of "some reason". Nevertheless, now I've explained it all and everyone feels happier. Relationships are all about compromise folks.

Glazed Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Apples and Shallots

2007-08-21T19:17:00.000-07:00

A while back in Chicago, I was spending a lazy afternoon watching cooking shows on PBS. When Ken got home from work later in the day, I described my hazy recollections of a few interesting dishes that I'd seen. There was a recipe for fish baked in a huge pile of salt, grilled artichoke hearts, and a recipe for pork served with roasted apples and shallots. Recently, we were planning a shopping list and thinking about some meals we wanted to try when we recalled the pork dish. Ken purchased ingredients and made up a recipe based on my descriptions of what I'd seen. The final product was fantastic and Ken commented that it might be the best pork tenderloin he'd ever eaten- let alone made. I thought the roasted apples and shallots were just a spectacular combination. Yum.

As I was preparing to write this post, I did some searching and managed to locate the show that I had seen and the original recipe that I was remembering. Ken's variation is a bit more complex, but I imagine their recipe would be quite tasty as well. I remember the show itself as being cute and inviting. I would certainly recommend watching it if you happen to run across it on television. After reading about the two chefs a little more, they seem like an interesting and knowledgeable pair.

Preparing the Apples
and Shallots:
2-3 nice apples
8 shallots
4 T melted butter
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 375.
Clean shallots and cut big bulbs so that the shallots are roughly the same size. Cut the apples into chunks that are a similar size as the apples. While cutting the apples make sure to toss them in the butter immediately to avoid browning. After the apples are coated in butter, place them on a baking sheet. Then coat the shallots with the remaining butter and pour all of the shallots and butter onto the baking sheet with the apples. Season lightly with salt. Toss the apples and shallots a little on the baking sheet to insure that the entire sheet is lightly coated with butter. Roast the shallots and apples until they are soft and starting to turn brown (1 1/2-2 hours).

Preparing and cooking
the Pork:
1 medium-sized pork tenderloin
1 T salt
1-2 tsp cracked black pepper
2 T olive oil
1/2 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary

Take pork out of fridge about 2 hours before you want to cook it to allow the meat to come up to room temperature. (Ken says the meat cooks more evenly, doesn't dry out, and allows for more control if its at room temp.) Season the meat about 15 minutes before cooking with an even coating of salt and cracked black pepper. While you wait for the meat, mix the olive oil with thyme and rosemary. When the meat is ready, take the herb soaked olive oil and rub it over the raw meat. Heat a regular saute pan over high heat with a tsp of olive oil. Coat the pan well and then sear the meat on all sides. Once the meat is browned put the meat on a rack in the oven next to the shallots and apples. Cook the meat until done (30-45 minutes).

To baste the meat:
3 T honey
3 T melted butter
2 T nice spicy mustard
1/2 tsp molasses

Whisk together honey, butter, mustard, and molasses. Use a brush to coat the pork every 10 minutes while it cooks in the oven.

Preparing the Sauce:
1 cup chicken sauce
4 T butter

While the meat is cooking, take the saute pan that has the left over browned pork bits. Use white wine (or water or chicken stock) to deglaze the pan over heat. Once the meat and shallots/apples are finished cooking, remove them from the oven. Add the remaining honey glaze and all of the juice and browned bits from the baking sheet with the pork drippings and apple shallot remnants. Add some chicken stock. Cook the sauce down until a little thicker and adjust to taste by adding salt, additional ingredients, etc. Remove the sauce from heat, add the butter and swirl it around until it melts.

To serve:

Plate everything and eat.
Bon Apetite!

Bad Behavior

2007-08-17T16:21:00.001-07:00

I write with sad sad news... but never fear. I intend to quickly distract you from all that sorrow by talking about my lively pup.

But first. Our desktop computer recently suffered a mid-life crisis and decided to take some time off. Now while this is really annoying for a number of different reasons, its particularly obnoxious because that computer held most of our electronic data... including all of the food pictures that I've taken over the last few months. Right now, we're mired in trying to recover data and determine what (if anything) was backed up. I'll let you know how that goes. But basically, this means that I can't show you some of the lovely pictures of scrumptious food that had yet to be uploaded... and unfortunately, I just cleared the memory card on the camera-- so they may be gone for good.

In the meantime, I thought I'd put up some rouge pictures of my dog, L (named after the elevated trains in Chicago). I adopted L about three years ago from a dog shelter. I have been meaning for some time to contact the shelter (and one employee in particular) to let them know that L (formerly Naomi) has found a happy home and has a good life. While I know that any shelter would be pleased to know that one of their dogs found a good home, I think they might be particularly pleased that L is doing well because it wasn't always that way.

When I first adopted L, she had severe dominance issues. I believe (for several reasons) that L was abused before I knew her and I know (from shelter records) that L was placed repeatedly and unsuccessfully with many families. Learning to take care of her and dealing with these issues took a long time and a lot of hard work. I had to learn about and extensively research canine behavior and dominance issues. I spent even more time working with L, training her, and teaching her how to be a good companion. Sometimes progress seemed slow but over time she has become a loving mellow animal who is part of the family. These kinds of behaviour issues always require constant vigilance but, overall, today she is a happy and lucky dog with a good life.

She is also very playful and often quite clever. One of the things that made her a very bad dog when she was challenging authority is also one of the most fun things about her now that she behaves well. L is particularly sensitive to moods, generally attentive to people and their behavior, and extremely stubborn. You can imagine how unpleasantly these qualities could be combined to, say, steal and angrily guard a person's wallet for several hours... alternatively, they could be used in a positive manner to learn new games and tricks. L loves learning new things. One of L's favorite games is hide and seek. We play this a few different ways. Sometimes, I will just tell L to sit and wait while I run off and hide. I then tell her "Ok! L!" and whistle for her. Other times, Ken or I will hide and then the other will tell the dog to go find that person. L loves these games, bounds around, and always looks so pleased when she's found us. She's also learning to go find toys and specific objects in the house. It's all great fun.

In any case, I guess my point here is that if L can change from being an angry frightened animal to a lovely well-behaved dog, don't give up hope... Perhaps my computer will abandon its blue screen of death, turn on, and miraculously have all of my files in working condition.

Here's hoping.

One Last Dinner in Chicago

2007-08-13T13:54:00.000-07:00

On one of our last nights before we packed everything away into boxes, we had a quiet dinner with two of our dear friends. In many ways, it was like so many dinners we'd had before in that apartment. The company was lovely, the food was amazing, the wine flowed freely, and the tiny kitchen was sweltering and nearly uninhabitable. I will miss Chicago and my friends, but Ken and I are both glad to be living in a house with central air and a usable kitchen.

Below are pictures of our meal. Unfortunately, I do not recall the wines we paired with each dish (although I do remember that our friends brought over a lovely red). Below, I've written the names of the dishes and a few of my impressions of the food.

Mixed greens,
fig compote with prosciutto, and blue cheese.

This dish was quite remarkable. I would never have thought to add warm figs to a salad, but the gently sweet, soft, warm tones and textures of the figs contrasted well with the prosciutto, lettuce, and blue cheese. This may be my new favorite salad.

Ruby Red Trout Fillet poached in lemon juice, shallot, and butter with a chive buerre blanc.
Served with sauteed baby leeks and chive mashed potatoes in a potato cup.

The trout was perfectly done and the sauce was really delicious. It was a lovely light meal for a hot day. The leeks were also flavorful, very well cooked and went well with the sauce. I think the only complaints about the plate were 1) the potatoes could have been a bit more creamy and 2) the sauce, while extremely tasty, might have been more visually striking if it were of a slightly different color.

Bananas Foster

The bananas foster were good but not particularly surprising. We remembered, belatedly, that one of our guests detests bananas. Nevertheless, she managed to choke down most of the desert- saying she had never enjoyed a banana more. Of course, I don't know if that says more about Ken's bananas foster or our friend's politeness. In any case, for most of us the heavy creamy desert was quite appealing after such a light meal, but the ice cream melted very quickly. With that heat, it took only moments for the hot bananas and cool ice cream to turn into a luke-warm soup. Oh well. Everybody loves soup.

Camarones en Salsa de Serrano

2007-08-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

Apologies all around for the long hiatus. However, I do have some good news. We are now officially moved and unpacked. I have lots of food pictures and news to catch up on, so we should be posting more regularly again from now on.

Below is a recipe that Ken made on a summer's night while my younger sister was visiting. It is a very fresh, bright, and beautiful dish that is perfect for serving on an oppressively hot day. This recipe is based on a recipe from Rick Bayless. Ken tweaked the recipe slightly but it remains similar to the original.

Salsa Preperation:
In a non-reactive bowl, combine the following ingredients:
4-5 medium sized ripe tomatoes, finely diced
1 finely diced & rinsed medium onion
3 serano chilis, very finely diced (quantity to taste)
2 T fresh cilantro,
fresh lime juice, salt and pepper to taste.

Taste and adjust ingredient quantity as necessary. Put the bowl in the refrigerator to rest for at least an hour (could be made the day before).

Shrimp Preparation:
You will need 1 lb (18-20 ct.) shrimp. Here we used tiger shrimp.
Peel and de-vein the shrimp. In a non-reactive bowl, combine the shrimp with the juice of 2 limes, 1/2 T salt, 1 tsp cracked black pepper. Adjust seasoning to taste. Marinate shrimp in fridge for about 1/2 hour.

Cooking the Shrimp:
You will need to use two different skillets to cook this dish, a heavy regular, or cast iron pan (it should NOT be non-stick) and a regular non-stick/stainless steel pan. Coat the cast iron pan with a thin layer of olive oil and heat it to medium high heat. Pour about 1/2 inch layer of the salsa mixture into the non-stick pan and heat it over low heat (the salsa should reach a low simmer).

Once the pans are heated, put one layer of shrimp in the cast iron pan and let them cook for 15-30 seconds. After that, move the shrimp into the second non-stick pan with the uncooked side down. Put another layer of raw shrimp into the cast iron skillet. While the shrimp in the cast iron skillet cooks, remove the shrimp from the salsa pan and set it aside. Then, move the shrimp from the cast iron skillet into the salsa, and so on. Repeat this process until all of the shrimp are cooked. Be sure to add more salsa and olive oil to their respective pans as necessary.

Once all of the shrimp are cooked and set aside, pour all of the remaining salsa into the non-stick pan and heat through. Pour the salsa over the cooked shrimp.

Garnish with cilantro. Serve with fresh warm tortillas and rice.

many mini-munchies

2007-07-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

I know that a few of you have already seen these pictures, but I thought that I'd share them anyway. About a month ago, Ken and I worked together on our first independent catering gig. Overall, it went pretty well. The food was beautiful and tasty, and we received a number of compliments. Of course, there were also several things that we decided to do differently if we do this again. I don't want to reveal any trade secrets, but suffice it to say that it was certainly a good learning experience.

The Spread:
Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Bruschetta:

Fresh Pepper, Mozarella, & Basil Brushetta with a Roasted Red Pepper Sauce:

Salmon Carpaccio:

Spinach and Goat Cheese Mini-Quiches:

Apple & Aged Cheddar Fruit Bites:

Cranberry Nut Squares:
Raspberry, Strawberry, Kiwi, & Blackberry Mini-Cheesecakes:

Pack 'em up and Move 'em out

2007-07-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

We're gonna move to a brand new house!

I apologize for the lack of posting over the last several days (and probably the next several as well). We are in the process of moving which has left us with less time for cooking, computers, and remembering recipes. In the meantime, I'll try to put up a few posts that have been waiting in the queue, but no promises.

Ricotta and Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast

2007-07-20T06:26:00.000-07:00

After writing this post, I decided that I should start enhancing my own family meal planning skills by creating some quick simple recipes. I'm not planning on having children anytime soon or anything so maybe developing my family meal planning skills is a little premature. However, I will be starting graduate school in a month and having some standby recipes ready in case of hunger emergencies seems wise.

I made this recipe up a few days ago while in the grocery store. I tried to keep the ingredient list simple with common components and the prep relatively quick. It turned out quite well and Ken said it was excellent (which is not a rating he gives lightly).

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
1 package frozen spinach
(thaw and press out water)
1 small container ricotta cheese
1 onion
1 small can of tomato paste
1/4 C sherry
3 T butter
1 T olive oil
cooking twine

First, I finely diced the onion. (You want to make sure the onion is really finely diced so that you don't end up with raw onion chunks in the filling.) Then, I mixed about 1/3 of the diced onion, the thawed spinach, and some of the ricotta cheese in a bowl. Use your own judgment as to the amount of cheese. I would say you don't want the filling to be too soupy or too dry. Next, I used a meat mallet to pound the chicken breasts. This doesn't take much time and makes a difference in how easy the breasts are to stuff and how tender they are. Then, I put probably a 1/4 C (or less) of the filling on the rough side of the breast, wrapped the edges of the chicken around it, tied the bundle with twine, and lightly salted the chicken. (See picture for how I tied the twine).

Once all the breasts were prepped, I turned the oven to 350 and began browning the chicken (2 at a time) in a hot non-stick pan (with about 1 T of oil). I then put the chicken in a small casserole dish, dotted each breast with a little butter, and put it in the oven to cook.

While the chicken cooked, I started the sauce. I left the browned bits in the pan and added the sherry to deglaze. I let the sherry cook off and then added about 1 T of butter. Once the butter melted, I tossed the rest of the onion into the pan. I let the onions cook until they were soft and then added a few spoonfuls of tomato paste. I browned the paste a little and then turned the heat off to wait for the chicken to cook.
Once the juice from the chicken in the oven ran clear (about 30 minutes), I removed the chicken and put it on a plate to cool. I poured all of the chicken juice from the casserole pan into the frying pan with the onions and turned the heat back on. I let the sauce cook down for a few minutes while I removed the twine from the breasts and got everything set up for dinner. All that's left is to serve and eat. I would recommend serving the chicken with a vegetable of some kind and possibly a side of buttered herbed pasta.

A few suggestions from Ken:
He really liked the sauce but thought there should be more of it. Perhaps adding tomatoes and chicken stock would be helpful.
Also, he mentioned that there is another (prettier) way to stuff chicken breasts. It sounded like it involved injecting the filling into the breast. It sounded complicated but maybe we'll try that someday.

Seared Sea Scallops

2007-07-17T12:50:00.000-07:00

Ken and I were thinking that for every large several course meal that we photograph and post on the blog, we would also write a more specific post with recipes and prep instruction for one portion of the meal. Here is the recipe and some cooking suggests for the seared sea scallops from the Feast on the Fourth meal.

Ingredients:
-10 fresh jumbo sea scallops
-1/2 - 1 lbs. blanched green beans (smaller beans are better)
-8 oz. fresh shitake mushroom caps
-1/2 T fresh thyme leaves
-blanched spinach, rapini, or dandelion greens (or any other green you like-- mostly for decoration, so choose something with large leaves)
-olive oil
-vegetable oil
-beef stock reduced to nappe (should be thick enough to coat a spoon very well)
-shallot
-1 1/2 C port
-salt and pepper

Port Shallot Sauce (can be done in advance):
-Take beef stock, and reduce it until it has thickened considerably, and is approaching the texture of demi-glace.
-Heat the reduced beef stock in a pot over medium heat.
-In a separate skillet, over high heat, lightly brown the shallot, with very little oil.
-When the shallot is softened and starting to brown, add about 1 1/2 cups of nice, sweet port wine, and reduce to a very heavy syrup (au sec).
-Strain, and add the reduced port to the stock reduction, and reserve for service.

Prep for the Meal:
-Blanch the green beans for 3-5 minutes (depending on the size), until they are mostly tender, but still have some firmness, then chill them in an ice bath.
-While the beans are cooling, slice the mushroom caps into thin 1/4" pieces.
-Once the beans are cool, slice them each into roughly three pieces on a bias (try to get them to be the roughly the same size and shape as the mushroom slices).

Cooking the Vegetables:
-In a large skillet, heat some olive oil over high heat.
-Add the mushrooms to the pan, and saute, adding some oil if necessary, as well as salt.
-When the mushrooms have completely softened, add the thyme, and allow it to bloom in the heat for a few seconds.
-Next, add the green bean pieces to the pan. Add salt and pepper and fresh thyme to taste. Toss to mix, cover, and then leave the pan on the stove over low heat until you're ready to plate the scallops.

Cooking the Scallops:
-Preheat your oven to 500.
-Get a nice, decently heavy frying pan hot over high heat, then add enough veg. oil to coat it well. Allow the oil to come up to heat for a minute or two (do not use a non-stick pan for this, or you will not get a nice sear.)
-Season the scallops with a small amount of salt
-Once the oil is hot, sear the scallops on one side in batches. Make sure to not crowd the pan, as putting too many scallops in at once will cool off the pan, and you won't get a good sear. Once your batch of scallops is nice and brown on one side (takes one to one and a half minutes), remove it from heat while you finish the rest.
-Once all the scallops are seared place them all, together, back in the pan, and place it in the oven for about 1-2 minutes (seriously, do not overcook these, or they will suck).

Finishing the Sauce and Plating:
-Arrange the veggies on the plate, use the leaves to make a bed/canvas, and make a nice pile of the mushroom/g.b. mixture on top.
-Take your scallops out of the pan, and set them on a rack for the moment, to cool.
-Take the pan from the scallops, add red-wine to deglaze, then reduce au sec (til it's dry), add a little (1/4 cup) of water, and add this juice to your sauce
-Arrange the scallops on the plate, pour the sauce, and serve!

Thanks, Ken, for writing this recipe out!

Shelling Peas

2007-07-14T20:41:00.000-07:00

During our camping trip in Wisconsin, my older sister drove past an Amish house with signs advertising fresh vegetables for sale. From the women's kitchen, my sister bought fresh baked loaves of bread, beans, peas, radishes, greens, tomatoes, and a few other wonderful fresh vegetables.

Most of these vegetables were eaten by the family while camping (the green beans were just fantastic), but I was given the peas (still in their pods) to take home. I was initially very excited by the big plastic bags of pea pods and imagined all kinds of exciting possibilities. However, when I got home and mentioned the peas to Ken, he wasn't immediately inspired to use them. Time passed and we ate several pea-less dinners.

One evening while Ken was at work, I was (once again) scrounging through the fridge looking for something to eat for dinner. I ran across the bag of peas buried in the vegetable drawer and nearly passed them by again. But I paused and decided to pull them out to check if they were still eatable. I realized, while examining the pea pods, that the reason we hadn't eaten these peas yet was that shelling hundreds of peas was a chore that neither Ken nor I was excited to complete. I remember helping my mother shell peas, snap beans, and clean corn on the deck as a child, but I can't ever remember shelling peas as an adult... it was just too much work. I decided that these peas needed to be shelled immediately. Some were already too woody and were going to sprout soon, so I sat down to work.

At first, I wasn't even sure if I remembered how to shell peas correctly and thought I might have to look it up on-line. But after a bit I got myself organized and settled into the cadence of a repetitive task. To the ping of the peas hitting the bowl, my thoughts started to wander. I thought about gardening and cooking, my mother, simple tasks, and the slow quiet reflection they inspire. It was very pleasant to take time to sit quietly and reflect on life. I think the next time I find myself considering whether or not to shell peas, I'll try to think of it as an opportunity instead of a chore.

After shelling the peas, I steamed a small portion of them to eat. They were very good, and hardly comparable to frozen store-bought peas. I wonder how I ever convinced myself that the frozen peas were just as good. Oh well.

Look for a post about what we did with the rest of the peas sometime soon.

Pecan Encrusted Pork Chops, Green Beans, and Sweet Potatoes

2007-07-12T07:38:00.000-07:00

Ken's love of cooking and good food has been inspired and encouraged by his parents, who are both wonderful cooks. Ken's father is originally from the South, and this pork recipe is directly related to one of his father's recipes for lightly fried, pecan-encrusted pork.

This partially impromptu meal turned out extremely well (so well that we replicated it several days later for a dinner with some good friends of ours). The sweet potatoes and beans each complimented slightly different characteristics of the pork, which made for a rich and dynamic eating experience. The pecan crust added a sweet, warm, oaky flavor to the pork that contrasted well with the slightly creamy and flavorful pan sauce. The entire meal paired nicely and easily with wine. I remember it being a very satisfying meal overall. It wasn't too heavy but had the warm comforting feel that beloved childhood recipes seem to inspire.

The green beans were made by first blanching the beans, and then Frenching them (e.g. breaking them in half along the seam and removing the bean peas). Usually in this kind of recipe the bean peas are discarded, but I insisted that Ken not waste one of the more nutritional part of the vegetable and he set them aside for later use. Ken then sautéed garlic, shallot, and tomatoes. He cooked off the liquid from the tomatoes, and then added the green beans and the bean peas into the pan. He lightly sautéed the beans and then put them in the oven to warm until the pork was finished. (By the way, adding the bean peas to the dish creates a pleasing texture and flavor contrast and we've now made saving the peas a habit when making beans)
The sweet potatoes were pealed, cut into one inch slices, lightly tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper and roasted in the oven for around 50 minutes at 350 (until they are soft but not mushy).

Here is the recipe for the pork:
6 Boneless Pork chops, pounded to 1/4-1/2"
almonds
eggs
buttermilk
bread-
crumbs
salt
pepper
flour
parsley
butter
olive oil
chicken- stock

For the crust, mix equal parts bread crumbs and chopped toasted almonds, add about half a tablespoon of salt and 2-4 tablespoons of parsley (or to taste).

3 step bread the pork, first coat with flour, then dip in an egg/buttermilk mixture, and finally the crust mixture. Pan-fry the pork in olive oil and butter over medium heat for about 2 min. per side, or until the coating has turned a golden brown.

To make the sauce, take the pan with the oil and browned bits. Add flour and stir, until you have a light paste in the pan. Return the pan to heat, and cook until the paste turns very light brown, and becomes more liquid. At this point slowly whisk in your chicken stock, reduce the sauce (or not) to whatever consistency you desire. Season with salt if necessary (it shouldn't be necessary) and serve!

NYT: Family Dinner Plans

2007-07-11T09:22:00.000-07:00

I am not married or a mother, but I have a few older siblings with children. From them, I have learned that feeding a family is a never-ending and often thankless job. As an adult on my own, I can eat when I'm hungry and skip meals altogether. I can go out to almost any restaurant with minimal planning or eat a meal that took 4 hours to prep at 10:00 at night. The only other person I need to consider when cooking or shopping has a complex palate and a willingness to try almost anything. This is not the case for my siblings with young children. For them, serving healthy well-balanced, cost-efficient, home-cooked meals can be very challenging... and getting everyone to eat those meals is nearly impossible.

I ran across this article in the New York Times today. I thought it had some useful suggestions for parents with children. I wasn't sure if it was appropriate to post an article link here, but I figured if it helped someone that was a good enough reason for me.

Marinara Sauce Attempt

2007-07-08T18:18:00.001-07:00

While there are some fantastic advantages to dating a cook, there are some disadvantages as well. I get spoiled with amazing food, on-site food expertise, and someone who enjoys doing a lot of the cooking work (in a quarter of the time it would take me). That may not sound like much of a disadvantage, but it means that when my chef is at work (which as anyone in the restaurant industry knows-- is a lot of the time), then I am at loose ends in my kitchen and often scrounging for edible scraps.

Today, I found myself searching through the fridge and trying to decide whether the jar of pickles or the last ancient fossilized piece of pizza called to me more. As it was already a good 90+ degrees in my kitchen, I figured "hey, what's a little more heat" and began making pasta. Of course, there was no sauce in the house, just noodles, so I attempted to whip up a quick marinara sauce in the stifling heat.

First I chopped an onion and 4 cloves of garlic. I began sautéing the onions in a bit of butter and olive oil while I chopped some carrots and some fresh basil and oregano from my wilting herb plants. (I would have added fresh thyme as well, but my chef, it turns out, is not as gifted with plants as he is with food and it died while I was away camping.)

I added the garlic to the pan for a bit, and then added the carrots and herbs. Then, I poured about 1/2 cup of an old opened red wine into the pan and let it cook off.

I added a can of diced, unflavored tomatoes (I know, I know, but I didn't want to run to the store for fresh tomatoes) and let the whole thing simmer while I started the pasta. I also added a bit of water, a large pinch of brown sugar, salt, pepper, and a few additional spices. Once the carrots were soft, I used an emulsion blender to make the sauce smooth.

I finished the pasta and ate. It wasn't as good as a 5 course gourmet meal but it was certainly better than gnawing on old pizza.

After cooking something, I often discuss the recipe and technique with Ken. He has a lot of helpful comments and usually manages to not sound patronizing. I've written a few of his suggestions below.

-dice the veggies very small
-use celery as well as carrot and onion
-sweat the vegetables in a bit of butter until they're completely soft and starting to brown
-then add garlic (raw or roasted as is your preference)
-add any whole dry spices
-use a bit of tomato paste and brown it in the pan
-use fresh tomatoes if possible
-use granulated sugar instead of brown (although, personally, I prefer the smokey molasses taste so I'm not changing that)
-also ken says to use ground beef (he's a really big fan of meat... as a matter of fact this is where his helpful comments ended because he started ranting about how delicious different meats were.)

A Feast for the Fourth

2007-07-06T18:43:00.001-07:00

On the fourth of July, Ken and his father (pictured left) made a six course birthday feast to celebrate both Ken's mother's birthday and my birthday on the 5th. They spent a lot of time planning the meal and each had their own ideas reflected in the final menu. It was a magnificent meal and a tasty treat for all of us. We spent over 4 hours savoring the food, wine, and lovely company. At the end of the meal, Ken's mother announced she had never had a better birthday and I think I might have to agree.

Below I have listed the menu and paired wines next to photographs. I will try to post about the specific dishes and how they were prepared very soon.

Moules Meuniere
served with a 2004 Quincy
(Sauvignoun Blanc)

Salad of field greens, red pepper, radish, and crispy fried pumpkinblossoms with a walnut oil, balsamic reduction vinaigrette

Seared sea scallops with sauteed green beans and shiitake mushrooms with a port shallot sauce
Served with a 2003 Auxey-Duresses (Chardonnay)

Black pepper and mustard rubbed Filet Mignon served with broccoli and roasted potatoes and a mushroom shallot sauce.
Served with a 2003 Columbia Crest Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

Three layer red white and blue cheesecake with almond sponge cake, mascarpone cheese mousse, morello cherries, blueberries, raspberries, and chantilly cream icing

Camping: Carne Asada

2007-07-05T07:06:00.001-07:00

On our first night camping, Ken made carne asada and a baby green salad with strawberries and some left over raspberry vinaigrette. Both dishes were surprisingly simple to make and tasted fantastic. I don't know why I had never thought to make a salad while camping before, but it was refreshing and the children loved the strawberries. Ken made the carne asada by marinating the beef in lime while he cut vegetables for the salsa and prepared the peppers. Once the salsa was made, he grilled the meat and peppers. Everyone assembled their own tortillas with the meat, peppers, salsa, and cilantro. We ate standing around the picnic table in a silence that was disrupted only by chewing and compliments for the chef. The food disappeared with remarkable speed.

Camping Disaster: rancid lamb may look pretty but tastes baaad

2007-07-04T09:43:00.000-07:00

So I like cooking and am generally not too bad at it, but I've had a few disasters of my own over the years. There was the time when I was 11 and thought the angel food cake looked and smelled done after 15 minutes of baking and ended up with sticky goo all over the new floor, and the time I made pasta at 3 in the morning, fell asleep, and almost started my apartment on fire. I guess now I have one more cooking disaster story.

So, Ken had to go back to Chicago after a few days and I stayed behind to continue camping with my family. As we didn't use all of the lamb from the hunter's stew, the rest was left in an electric cooler for use later in the week. When my dad and I pulled the lamb out of the cooler several days later, we noticed the lamb now had a sweet and sour smell. It was clear that the meat was starting to go bad, but my dad thought that if we cooked the meat well done, the bacteria would be dead and the meat would probably be fine. So I took a deep breath of fresh air, began cleaning the lamb, and made lamb kabobs. I seasoned them very well and grilled them over a fire. They looked lovely and smelled great while they were grilling. Before serving them, Dad and I each tried a bite. At first all was good, but as you continued chewing the taste of rancid meat slowly overwhelmed the other flavors. We spit the meat out and had a lovely dinner of potatoes, broccoli, and fresh fruit instead. Oh well.

Cooking while Camping: Hunter's Stew

2007-07-02T18:25:00.000-07:00

This past week, I brought Ken along on a family camping trip. It was the first time he met several members of my rather large family and I think he was intent on impressing them with his cooking prowess. The trip went very well and my relatives became fond of both Ken and his cooking. Phew.

I plan to post pictures of a few of our different meals and thought I would begin with his Hunter's Stew. This is a dish that he first learned to make as a boy scout and has been making while camping ever since. It is simple and an easy dish for any camper to make. Ken was also able to tantalize the taste buds of my sometimes picky nieces by having them watch as he assembled the food, and then allowing them to pick what went into their own foil packets.

This Hunter's Stew was made with lamb purchased from Nea-Agora Packing Co in Chicago. Ironically, when I went to search for a link to their web page (they don't have one), this review came up. It was written by a friend of ours about a previous outing to Wisconsin when we pit-roasted a lamb. Small world.

In any case, Ken seasoned the meat with a bit of salt and pepper and then browned it on a stove (which is not a necessary step if you're really roughing it).

We then cut up some potatoes, carrots, and onions and put them in a tin foil packet with some rosemary and thyme. Ken added a little flour (corn starch would also work), sealed the packets up, and threw them on the fire.

Over a wood fire, the packets should cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. We cooked our food over a charcoal fire and it took about 50 minutes.

After we pulled the packets from the fire we let them cool for a minute, poured them out on plates, and ate them. It was a very satisfying meal and the kids loved it.

Chicken Noodle Soup for the Sick

2007-06-26T19:26:00.000-07:00

I think one of my favorite perks of dating a chef is getting homemade chicken noodle soup when you've got the sniffles. The warm rich aroma of this chicken soup was the first thing I remembered being able to smell in days. Mmmm.

Ken first roasted a chicken to make this soup as I don't care for the taste of boiled chicken. He made homemade noodles, which was a bit of a trick as we don't currently have a pasta roller. In the end, the soup was just fantastic. As you might notice in the picture, I didn't even think of taking a picture until after I had eaten most of it (including all the noodles). I always enjoyed store bought chicken soup as a kid, but homemade soup is an entirely different experience. Well done, Ken. It was very sweet of you to make me soup.

Hamburger Bun

2007-06-24T20:10:00.000-07:00

So, Ken is the chef in the household. He is professionally trained, works in a restaurant, does catering, all that fancy stuff. But, I have always enjoyed food and eating, and am also not too bad at cooking if I don't say so myself.

A bit ago, I was trying to figure out what to do with some hamburger we had on hand. I figured I hadn't had a good juicy burger in a while but realized that we didn't have any buns. I looked around on-line for a while and found this recipe.

The buns turned out very well. They were flavorful and had a nice light crumb that was excellent when lightly grilled. We ended up with far more buns than the recipe indicated, but enjoyed them over the next few days with all kinds of different things.

Seared Poppy and Sesame Encrusted Tuna

2007-06-24T12:46:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are some prep photos of the Seared Poppy and Sesame Encrusted Tuna. In the interest of honesty, however, I have to confess that these pictures are not from Thursday but from Monday. I was surprised last Monday with impromptu date plans which involved a new tuna recipe. Little did I know, this romantic gesture served the dual purpose of being a practice meal for Thursday's dinner. Oh well. Really, who can complain about eating fantastic tuna twice in one week.

Below you will find prep pictures and an outline of the cooking procedure. If anyone is reading this and would like a recipe or more specific details. Please feel free to post a comment.

Rub the tuna with salt on both sides and let sit (for 1-1 1/2 inch thick steaks approximately 10 minutes).

Cut and prep mushrooms, green beans, and thyme.
Prep shallots and ginger for the sauce.

Prepare the mushrooms and green beans and then keep warm in the oven until they are to be served.

Sear the tuna on all sides. If you prefer your tuna rare (like me!), make sure not to overcook it.

Set the tuna aside on a rack to rest and prepare the sauce.

Cut the tuna carefully.

Arrange everything on the plate and eat.
Yum. That looks tasty.

Beginnings: A Farewell Dinner

2007-06-22T07:17:00.002-07:00

I have been meaning for some time to begin posting pictures of Ken's food, some recipes, and descriptions of our cooking endeavours. Up until this point, I have been quite successful at avoiding actually carrying out this plan, but now, as I have a pretty long list of other things to do, I guess its time to begin.

As these things go, it seems somehow fitting that a beginning should start with a farewell. Below are photos of a lovely 5 course meal that Ken made this Wednseday as a farewell dinner for a good friend of his who is moving away from Chicago. I intend to post pictures of the prep (with recipes?) very soon. Apparently, my todo list just got longer. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Moules Meuniere
(mussels poached in wine and shallot broth)
Served with 2005 Séguinot-Bordet Chablis

Berry Salad
(field greens, strawberries, raspberries, candied walnuts and Cabrales blue cheese with a raspberry mustard vinaigrette)

Seared Poppy and Sesame encrusted Tuna Loin
(with sauteed shitake & green beans, and a ginger shallot, soy-reduction and beef demi-glace sauce.)
Served with 2005 Michael Sarrazin, Bourgogne Rouge (Pinot Noir Les Vielles Vignes)

Followed by a 2005 Vega del Rio, Rioja from Calificada

French Silk Pie

Strawberry, Blueberry and Lemon Gillato
Served with 2005 St Christopher, Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling - Spatlese