I'm sorry, I can't help it.

Hi, my name is Scott and I'm addicted to Risotto.


The latest issue of Fine Cooking arrived yesterday and had a great write up and recipe guidelines for risotto from Lidia Matticchio Bastianich. I love Lidia. She is the Italian American verison of Paula Deen.

In a nutshell, here's what the article says...

7 steps to a classic risotto:

1) Prepare your ingredients. Chop what needs to be chopped. If you are adding meats, pre-cook those. Measure everything. Tonight I browned 1/2 a pound of sweet Italian sausage. When it's done, remove and drain.

2) Sweat the aromatics. Since I precooked the sausage, I didn't need to add much extra olive oil. But to sweat the aromatics, heat olive oil in a nice sized kettle, add onions, shallots or leeks and lightly saute over medium heat until translucent. Tonight it was leeks.

3) Toast the rice and add the wine. Add two cups of Arborio rice, stirring constantly to coat each grain of rice with oil, about three minutes. Add one cup of white wine and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. I forgot the wine tonight.

4) Create the foundation of flavor. If you want, add in a main flavor backdrop. (Saffron, Tomatoes, Dried Mushrooms, Radicchio.) I skipped this step.

5) Add the liquid in increments. Next to the type of rice, this is the most important step. Keep a pot of hot liquid next to the pot with the risotto and add 1 ladleful of liquid at a time. Stir until absorbed, then add another ladle. Continue until the rice is nearly, but not fully al dente. Usually will need 6 cups, sometimes a little more or a little less. The quality of the liquid will lead directly to the quality of the final product. I have said and will say again, Swanson's Low Sodium Chicken Broth is a very good product to use. I personally don't have time to make homemade stock on a regular basis.

6) Add vegetables or meat. Right prior to the rice being done, add in your flavor highlights. Leeks, Zucchini, Asparagus, Butternut Squash, Shrimp, Scallops, Sausage, Bacon, Pancetta, Chicken, Beef or Pork....etc. etc. etc. etc.

7) Finish your risotto. Taste to see if the cooking is done, al dente and creamy. Do you need more salt or not? Then: choose one or more: Parsley, Basil, Mint, Scallions, Lemon Zest, Orange Zest, Balsamic Vinegar; Choose one, 2-3 TB: Butter, Extra Virgin Olive Oil; Choose one grated cheese, 1/2 to 1 1/2 cups: Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano, Pecorino romano.

Yum and Yum.

Tonight's was Sausage and Leek Risotto. I virtually followed the guidelines as above...but I messed up slightly....I cooked the sausage, rendering out the fat. I forgot to remove it and just tossed in the leeks....oops, but it was good.

Here's the risotto in the early stage, step 3. Before the wine I forgot to add.

1/2 lb sausage
1 1/2 leeks, trimmed and rinsed and sliced thinnly
1 TB olive oil
1 cup Arborio rice
1 tsp Fennel seeds
1 tsp Red pepper flakes
6 cups Swanson's Chicken Broth, low sodium
1 TB butter
3/4 cup Parmigiano Reggiano

There you have it. I'm tired and need to go to bed....!

OH NO, what is Scott planning on doing!!?!??

Could it be? Yes, it could.
Something's coming, something good,
If I can wait!
Something's coming, I don't know what it is,
But it is
Gonna be great!

What Are Those Things?

I picked up a big fat bag of these things today at Giant. I'm really looking forward to two recipes in which I will be using them. But for now...What Are They?

Cardamom is the name for a plant species and its seeds which is native to India and Southeast Asia. Cardamom belongs to the family Zingiberaceae. True cardamom is classified as Elettaria cardamomum. It grows to about 10 feet (3m) in height. Cardamom has large leaves and white flowers with blue stripes and yellow borders. The fruit is a small capsule with 8 to 16 brown seeds. The seeds are used as a spice and the plant itself is a perennial herb. It has a fleshy and thick rootstock with flowering stems that extend 6 to 12 feet (1.83 to 3.6m) high.

Cardamom is pungent and aromatic. It was first used in India and was probably imported into Europe around A.D. 1214. Today, it is cultivated in Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Central America, Thailand, Guatemala and Mexico.

Cardamom is typically sold in seed pods, or with the seeds removed from the pods (decorticated) or with the seeds ground to a powder, which is the most common form. Pods have the texture of tough paper and are available whole or split. It is best to buy the whole pod, otherwise it may quickly lose flavor.

Cardamom is a favorite herb in India, where it grows wild in the forests. Indian cardamom comes in two main varieties; Mysore cardamom and Malabar cardamom. The Mysore cardamom contains more limeonene and cineol, making it the most aromatic.

This ancient herb has traditionally had many uses. Ancient Egyptians are known to have chewed cardamom as a tooth cleaner; The Greeks and Romans used cardamom as a scent in perfume. The Vikings discovered it in Constantinople about a thousand years ago. They introduced cardamom to Scandinavia where it remains popular to this day.

Cardamom, like Saffron, in an expensive spice. As such, it is frequently adulterated. Many inferior substitutes for it exist, such as Nepal cardamom, Siam cardamom, winged Java cardamom and a variety called bastard cardamom.

Stolen from this site.

The photo is Green Cardamom.

new sites

I've been looking for some new sites to visit on a daily basis...i.e...stalk.

There are some updates on the links page. If you get bored waiting for me to post something new, please go out and visit some of the millions of food bloggers. Each link I have yields a bajillion more. Have fun.

Been busy, sorry

It's been kinda krazy lately, so I haven't done much planning and shopping for major cooking efforts. Sorry.

I did make a big fat pot of soup the other night, well, it's a Rachel Ray recipe, so it's acutally a "stoup."

Italian Sub Stoup

It's really good and we've had it before. I took some pictures of it, but I'm not posting them. With the flash, it looks really unpleasant. It's meaty.

I've added some new comments to the original recipe if you want to know anymore about it. But it is good and worth making!

I hope in the next few weeks to be back to a more normal posting schedule.

-sse

Chicken & Dumplings

This was super and tasty and I can't wait to make it again.

I didn't have a recipe, so what I have here is the best I can remember. Hope it makes sense.

In a medium kettle, I bought 1 can of chicken broth and two cans worth of water to a boil, to which I added two boullion cubes, 'veggie' cubes. I didn't have much at home, but I did have onions and carrots and fresh thyme. So...to the broth, I added an onion-chopped, carrots-chopped and some fresh thyme. I added some bay leaves and a few grinds of black pepper. Once this all was simmering, I added two boneless, skinless, chicken breasts.

Once this is going, you can leave it alone and walk away for a bit.

For more of the finished product, I took a second onion and chopped that into a medium dice, chopped a few handfuls of baby carrots into medium dice, and a shallot into a fine dice. Set these aside. Also set aside 4 TB of butter and approximately 1/2 cup of flour.

After ten minutes, this broth and your chicken are basically done, but they can go ten minutes long if you want. When it's done, pour it all out through a strainer, reserving the broth. Pick out the chicken breasts and discard the remaining bits and pieces.

Return your kettle back to the stove and over medium high heat, melt your butter. Add your onions and the shallots. Stir and lightly saute until they begin to turn translucent. Stirring the onions, add the flour until a paste forms and all the butter is absorbed. This is your roux! Gently stir and continue to stir for two to three minutes. This will cook out the floury, pastey taste. At this point, carefully and slowly add the broth back, stirring constantly. You might get some lumps at first, but they will dissolve quickly. In short order, you will have a rich, smooth, creamy broth.

Add the carrots. Dice the chicken breasts and add that into the pot. Let this all simmer over low heat while you prepare your dumplings. Oh, and add 1 TB of dry sherry if you have it!

In a medium bowl or your food processor add 1 cup flour, 1/2 stick of butter-COLD, 1/2 cup COLD water, 1 TB baking powder, 1/2 TB salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Give this a quick whirl until it looks like coarse corn meal, if in the food processor. If you are mixing in a bowl, mix with a pastry blender or your hands, mixing the butter and flour, making a quick dough. When it all pulls together, pull out onto the counter and give it a few quick kneads. Roll out to about 1/4 inch thick and cut into 1 inch strips. Drop the dumplings into the pot and cover for ten minutes.

Serve big fat ladlefuls into the bowls and enjoy.

The instructions sound hard and indepth, but really it's not. It was easy and really comforting.

Butter for the soul

I've been sickly for the past few days. So, last night I made Chicken & Dumplin's. Delish! 1 full stick of butter for the recipe...feeding two people. I'll actually be posting the recipe and photo on Friday at some point.

But in the meantime, to satisfy your dirty, buttery urges, head over to Lost in Somewhereistan and read Brunette's recent, delicious post on Butter!



Enjoy and stay well.

Sloppy Bobs

Long story short, at some point in my childhood we started calling Sloppy Joe's, i.e. Manwiches, Sloppy Bob's....Don't ask me where the story came from because I don't know where/why or how. But I do remember them being something that I enjoyed, both at home and at school. The school ones were only good with a slice of American cheese on them though.

Here is the recipe that I made tonight. I pulled it mostly from this online source.

I've made some alterations, so here is my recipe:

Sloppy Bobs

1 lb ground beef
Pinch of salt
Shake of Mrs. Dash

1 medium onion, diced finely
1 bell pepper, diced finely

1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3 TB brown sugar

2 tsp cider vinegar
1 1/4 cup water
1 6 oz can of tomato paste

and something extra:
1/2 tsp Zanzibar Cheromula from Nirmala's Kitchen. (I thought it would be good. It was, I'd add more in the future!)

In a large pan, brown the beef, while browning season with a little salt and Mrs. Dash....I always give my ground beef a little season, even if more is seasoning is coming later...it'll just taste better. Drain of most of the fat. Add the onions and peppers and cook for about 5 until the onions and peppers soft. When they are done, add in the spices and stir for about a minute. Add the water, cider vinegar and tomato paste. Allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes until hot, sloppy and bubbly.

Serve on hot roll and garnish with cheese if you like, I do!

Here they are. We had funny square bagels that I toasted up under the broiler and put some cheese on. Perfect. I'd highly recommend this and think it would be great with a ground turkey or chicken as well.

Cloud 9

I saw this over at Stef's site this afternoon. How fun! Based on a random word pull, that would be a Word Bubble t-shirt from my blog!!! I love that Objectionable and Sausage are both in there.

Sorry, not foodie related...

but freakin' funny...

For all Project Runway fans out there, VH1 brings us, THE TIM GUNN NETWORK!!!!

Opa!

Tonight I went back to the new favorite Italian tome, "The Silver Spoon" and made...Greek Chicken! Yep, an Italian Cookbook for Greek cuisine. Doesn't surprise me at all. You pick up any "American" cookbook and it'll be filled with food from all over the world, so why can't an Italian cookbook have a recipe from their Mediterranean neighbor?

I'll say right out, that I had to alter the recipe some because when I went to the store they didn't have a full chicken! This has happened to be a few times before. The shelves are overrun with over-priced, over-processed boneless skinless chicken breasts (which are fine and I use them ALL THE TIME!), but this time I wanted a full chicken...and there were none...and the packages of parts...really were unpleasant in appearance. I just need to make a commitment and head back to Eastern Market once a week for things like this. It's out of the way for me now, but really worth it.

So anywho...here is tonight's dinner:

Greek Chicken
Pollo alla Greca

1 chicken
5 TB olive oil
juice of 1 lemon, strained
1 TB fresh, chopped oregano
Salt & Pepper

Gently rub the outside of the chicken with salt and pepper and put a pinch of salt in the cavity. Whisk 4 TB of oil with the lemon juice and half the oregano in a bowl, season with S/P, add to the chicken and marinate for at least 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 350. Drain the chicken, reserving the marinade an dplace in a roasting pan with the remaining oil. Roast, turning frequently and basting with the reserved marinade, for 1 1/2 hours until tender. Serve sprinkled with remaining oregano.

That's how the recipe is in the book.

Here's what I did:

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 TB olive oil
juice of 1 lemon, strained
2 tsp, dried oregano
Salt and Pepper

Again, no full chickens at the store and no fresh oregano. Dried herbs are more potent than fresh, so use less.

Trim up any leftover fat on the chicken and place in a ziptop bag. Add the marinade as described above with the 4TB of oil and lemon juice. Allow to marinade for an hour.

In a large fry pan over high heat, place the chicken breasts, (reserve the marinade) give them five minutes per side and allow to get a good nice sear on them. Then transfer to the oven set at 425 for about 10 minutes--until cooked through.

Meanwhile take the reserved marinade and put in a tiny saucepan--there won't be much--and bring to a boil and allow to reduce for a minute or two. I have nice stainless steel measuring cups...I put the marinade in the 1 cup measure and carefully held it over the gas flame...it was the perfect size. When the chicken is done, pour over!

I served the chicken with:

Roasted Red Onion and Tomato Orzo

Fresh thyme, about 2 tsp, give or take
1 medium red onion, diced medium
1 can diced tomatoes, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Combine all of the ingredients, in a small, shallow baking dish. Put in the oven and roast. My batch took an hour, I stirred the mixture every 20 minutes. The last five minutes got about a TB of olive mixed in and then went under the broiler to get everything nice and carmelized.

--

And PS: I want to give a shout out to Ms. Chase for a lovely time on Saturday afternoon/evening. We meet up for a blogger blind-date and had a great dinner at Rosa Mexicano in the Penn Quarter. She's pretty freakin' cool! Good times.

It's almost spring...

...and in the spring my Germanic foodie heritage comes parading out. I guess it should be more along October with Oktoberfest, but for me it seems more a spring thing...? I don't know what that's about. Must have been all the crack I've smoked.

When I speak of my dear dear grandmother, I have had people say things like:

"She sounds like a lovely Southern woman."
"Are you sure she ain't black?"
"You're Jewish right?"

No, no and no. But I would love all three!!! OMG I would love it! Nope, actually grandma was just a lovely Irish lass who married a strapping lad of German lineage. This is all on my mom's side. On my father's side...I have no idea...as far as I know...I could care less...he took off when he found out mom was preggers, came back when I was three, took off again and I didn't meet him until I was 14, saw him again @ 16 and haven't seen him since...so good riddance to bad rubbish. Anyways...sidetracked...

Irish + German = BEER

All that said, grandma made some amazing food and I have a few of her authentic German recipes and will be sharing them in the near future. But as a preview, Simply Recipe had this one up the other day that got me really excited....it's one that we had on a regular basis when I was growing. And the world famous....(I CAN'T EVEN SAY IT YET--You'll have to hold your britches!)

One other thing though that I will share...and hopefully try soon...as the loyal readers know, my mom and aunt visited this past weekend and we were chatting on Friday night with some guests who were visiting when my aunt reminded me of grandma's French Fried Pork Chops. Yes, French Fried Pork Chops. You know on Seinfeld when Elaine PUSHES someone and yells SHUT UP! That was me. I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT THE UNBELIEVEABLY AWESOMENESS that was grandma's French Fried Pork Chops.

Way Way back in the land before time...actually not that long ago...my aunt is only going to be 40...my grandparents owned and operated a tavern called Heinie's in Appleton, WI. There was the beer and booze, but there was also the food. I think Friday night's were for Fried Chicken and grandma went to grab the chicken to prepare it from the freezer, but grabbed the wrong thing...oops. She grabbed pork chops. Oh well, she continued. (I don't have a recipe here...so if you try this...trial and error) Coat the chops in flour then dunk them in a beer batter of Aunt Jemima and fry them in big ol' pot of hot oil until golden brown and delicious.

The chops get the nice crispy coating and then stay perfectly moist on the inside. I seem to always remember having these with some sort of potato, usually mashed, maybe home-fried, or maybe just fries? Now that I mention it I can't remember. The chicken was made with the same batter...as was the fish....!

I've put a call out to the family for more of grandma's recipes...I do hope to share them with you all.

Have a good weekend.



And if you want more German locally. How about Blob's Park? Read about it here. and here. I think plans might be forming for a field trip to Jessup, MD to Blob's Park for Polka and Beer!

And there is Cafe Berlin. Cafe Mozart Deli & Restaurant. Old Europe. These are all in DC and the ones I know of...the only one I've been to is Cafe Berlin...many many many times. I've heard good things of Cafe Mozart, it's downtown near the White House and Old Europe is in Georgetown...a friend has been many times and enjoys it.

And in Hagerstown, MD, there is the Schmankerl Stube. We've been a few times and have enjoyed ourselves.

If you know of and recommend other local German restaurants, please share!

I'm still wearing part of tonight's dinner

...just a few little bits of it on my shirt, I guess it was good.

Tonight I dug back into the recipe archives to one of the first recipes I posted on the the blog. It was the second recipe!!!

Cashew Chicken

This really is a simple recipe and really tasty. I highly recommend it. One of the early things I did and am starting to get back to doing again, just need to plan and think...was a "special event." I called it Cooking Without Borders, for lack of a better name. The purpose was to gather a group of friends and readers from all over to have the same dinner, on the same night, in different locations. I'd post a recipe a few days in advance. Then a shopping list, and on a set night, everyone who wanted to play, would get together and make the same recipe and the next day we'd all come back together and post their comments...sharing their experiences, likes and dislikes. Long story short, this was the first recipe that we tried this with and the results were generally glowing. Everyone who tried the recipe liked it, with a few moderations here and tweak there. (HERE is the first event.)

In keeping with varying the recipe, tonight I added an onion, extra garlic, jalapeno, hoisin, sesame oil, both sherry and rice vinegar. It was great! Love it.

I'd also like to share a little info on Sesame Oil. It was not even two or three years ago when sesame oil in or on food grossed me out. Now I like it...I don't want my food swimming in it, as it is a strong flavor, but I do like it. I use it here and I have a few other recipes where it comes into major flavor play.

Sesame oil

Also known as gingelly oil and til oil. Sesame oil is a very ancient ingredient. The Assyrians, more than 600 years BC, used it as a vegetable oil. It was expensive, however, and a hundred years later it is recorded as being used only by the rich as food, ointment and medicine during the reign of King Cyrus of Persia (559-529 BC).

Still used as a medicine in India, oil pressed from the raw seed is used as a massage oil in Ayurvedic medicine. In Burma and some parts of India, sesame oil has long been the universal cooking medium and is what gives the typical flavour to foods of those regions, although fairly tasteless in itself. It may be a clear or golden colour compared to the darker, more aromatic oriental sesame oil used in China, Japan and Korea, which is pressed from toasted sesame seeds. If gingelly oil or til oil is unavailable, use the cold-pressed sesame oil from health food shops mixed with 20 per cent oriental (toasted) sesame oil or use one part oriental sesame oil to 3 parts other flavourless vegetable oil such as corn oil, grapeseed oil or light olive oil. This is a reasonable substitute for the til oil or gingelly oil called for in recipes from India and Burma.

Asian sesame oil derives its dark amber colour and nutty flavour from hulled sesame seeds, toasted prior to pressing. It is used in Chinese and Korean cuisine, not as a cooking medium but generally added at the end of cooking in small quantities as a flavour highlight. There are quite dramatic colour variations in sesame oil, depending on its source. Cold-pressed sesame oil is almost colourless; sesame oil from an Indian store (probably labelled gingelly or til oil) is golden; and sesame oil from a Chinese shop is dark, almost red-brown. Cold pressed sesame oil, however healthy, has none of the flavour of oriental sesame oil since it is pressed from raw, not roasted seeds, and will therefore not produce an authentic result if used in an Asian recipe.

``

Another Breakfast Dinner

Alright. The family has departed and I had the day to rest. I shopped and I dropped. It was great. I also forgot what day it was and what the rest of my week was like. So I shopped for the two meals and knew that a social event tonight would require a quick dinner, so the longer dinners would be for "tomorrow and Wednesday." HA! That implies Tuesday and Wednesday. So stay tuned a new recipe on Sunday night instead of "tomorrow". Wednesday will actually be a repeat of a favorite that I've already done on here a few times...but I'll tell you more about that tomorrow.

So, making due with what I had available...tonight's dinner was a favorite usually reserved for lazy Sunday mornings....Sausage Gravy and Biscuits.

It's a real easy recipe and pretty fast.

Very interesting...if you look closely, you can actually see wisps of steam...fun!

Strawberry Jam

You remember these from last night...these were left over.
Just over 1/2 a pound left over. What should I do???

I decided to make a quick 'jam.'

Really simple and a good way to extend the produce a few extra days. This can be frozen as well to make it last even longer.

Strawberry Jam

1/2 lb Strawberries
1 cup sugar
1 lemon, juiced

Hull the strawberries and rinse them. Roughly chop/quarter them. Put them in a small sauce pan with sugar. Start with 1/2 to 3/4 cups of sugar, you can add more later depending on your preference for sweetness. Add the lemon juice. Over low heat, mash the strawberries with a masher or large spoon. They will start to get very soupy and mix with the sugar. As they heat, stir until the sugar is dissolved. Give a quick taste to see if you want to add a little more sugar or not. I added a full cup of sugar and it might have been a touch too much. Carefully raise heat to medium low to bring slow simmer, keep this going for about 10 minutes to allow the jam to thicken.

I got almost two cups from 1/2 lb of berries.

Allow to cool, cover and refrigerate. You can freeze as well. Just place in the refrigerator the day before you might want to use it, it will thaw overnight.

My Dinner!

--

Two of Hearts, Two Hearts that beat...oh I'm so full!

Happy Valentine's Day Kittens!

So last week I posted what was being made tonight....here are the results!

First up: Chicken Breasts with Brandied Cherry-Chocolate Sauce

This was tasty. Not bad at all. But if I were to make it again, I would make some changes!

1) The recipe calls for 1 oz of unsweetened chocolate. I think this was too much. I would go to 1/2 oz, or 1/2 a block of Baker's chocolate.

2) There is 1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar. This is alright, but maybe make that a 'scant 1/3 cup'. When you add this and allow it to simmer, it is going to make you nose tickle and want to sneeze! Have fun.

3) After you add the balsamic and the cherries, the recipe says to let it simmer for another 8-10 minutes. I think this is too much. Maybe only go 5 minutes...watch this closely. You don't want to the sauce to get too thick!

With this, we had our favorite salad ever!!!! Mixed greens with pears, cashews with basil balsamic vinegarette. Yum yum yum. The vinegarette is from Ken's Steak House. Good Times!

Next Up: Tiramisu Fondue

This was incredible. But sometimes even those of us who can cook up great things can be total fuck ups...pardon my french.

1) I read the recipe 3, 4, 5, 6 times. Yet I still messed up royally. But then I thought I saved everything...and messed up again! Lesson to everyone. Read your recipe until you are familiar with it.

2) OK, all that said, here's what I did...recipe calls for dissolving 1 1/2 cups instant coffee in 1 TB boiling water. 1st mistake I made...brewed a full cup and a 1 1/2 of regular coffee....oops..but I caught that soon enough...that's ok. Then I remembered that I actually wanted to try this Australian Wattleseed....ok, no problem. So I put a few tsps of that in a bowl and added a cup of boiling water to that...and then ADDED THE WHOLE DAMN THING! So, instead of what should have been a thick, rich, velvety fondue, I had a rich, creamy, tiramisu soup! It was really tasty! The Wattleseed was great. Just don't add so much liquid!

Here are some strawberries...because they are good!
Except if you allergic...you know who you are...LOOK AWAY NOW!!!!

Alright. I hope you all had a good night!


A small bit of housekeeping: I'll picking my mom and aunt up at the airport this Friday and showing them around DC for the weekend. That said...I won't be doing much in the way of food, postings will probably be few until next week. But if I get bored with my hosting duties you might just hear from me! Have a good week/end.

Here is another photo of the chicken with the cherry/brandy/chocolate sauce. We thought it looked a little obscene/dirty....so this is shown down here. Alright...I'm tired...I'm going to bed.

*

Sweet Georgia Brown's

Yesterday, while everyone in the DC metro region was waking up and freaking out over the snow, we packed ourselves up and trekked down for a birthday brunch to celebrate with Sterfanie at Georgia Brown's. Read all about our decadent sinfulness here....

But in a nutshell....here's the verdict....GO, FAST & OFTEN, WITH ELASTIC PANTS!!!

Georgia Brown's
15th & K Street NW
on McPherson Square with the green awning
Washington, DC 20005

Make your reservations early and well in advance by calling 202.393.4499

Be brave

A few weeks ago I got my copy of The Silver Spoon. You've heard me talk about it already, so I won't go into it again. But tonight, I ventured into the first recipe!

When I first opened the book, the first recipe that JUMPED OUT AT ME was....

Blueberry Risotto!

There really were no words for my curiosity....reading the recipe shows that it is clearly a savory dish, but really, Blueberries????

So tonight, I give you Blueberry Risotto from The Silver Spoon!

RISOTTO AI MIRTILLI
Serves 4
About 6 1/4 cups Vegetable Stock
3 TB Butter
1 Onion, finely chopped
2 Cups risotto rice
3/4 cup white wine
1 3/4 cups blueberries
Scant 1/2 cup light cream
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, to serve

Bring the stock to a boil. Meanwhile, melt the butter in another pan, add the onion and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes until softened. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly until the grains are coated with butter. Sprinkle in the wine and cook until it has evaporated. Set aside 2 TB of blueberries and add the remainder to the pan. Add a ladleful of the hot stock and cook, stirring, until it has been absorbed. Continue adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, and stirring until each addition has been absorbed. This will take 18-20 minutes. When the rice is tender, stir in the cream and transfer to a warm serving dish. Garnish with the reserved blueberries and serve with Parmesan.

This is right after I added the blueberries and before any of the stock has been added.

The finished product. The photo really doesn't do it justice, but out of 35 photos, it's the best I could get for you. The others were gray or out of focus.

NOTES:
That's the recipe as stated in the book. Plain and simple. I did cut the recipe in 1/2, as it was just the two of us tonight. Please note that "Risotto Rice" is Arborio Rice. Can you use another rice for risotto, read this for the answer.

Arborio rice as I prepare to make the risotto

I didn't have cream, or milk, so I added a little marscapone cheese, thinned with water...it's what I have! Did it work, I guess.

VERDICT:
This was good. But I have to say...this is a dish were the quality of your ingredients is VITAL! I swear by swanson's low sodium chicken broth for many dishes. Including risotto. I just don't have the time, nor the energy to make chicken broth all the time. This recipe called for vegetable stock and as I was very last minute in preparing this tonight, I didn't have much to make a vegetable stock, so I used a swanson's can vegetable stock and a cube of vegetable boullion. I just thought the flavor was to manufactured and unpleasant. It ruined the whole risotto for me. Now, having made this once, per the instructions, I have no objections to making this with chicken stock, I don't see any reason not to.

OK, overall though, this was good and interesting....it was blue~~!


BLUE!

200

This is my 200th post! Who Knew....and in only two or three months Eat With Me will be One Year Old. What Fun!

Anywhoozer.

Last night we had some guests over for dinner and the opening ceremonies of the olympics, as well as a rousing game of Puerto Rico. (The game is great fun, but challenging....get it!)

Dinner was something that has been posted on here before. Sirloin Tacos with Roasted Tomato Salsa. It's very easy, fast and really tasty! Outside of a smoke out from the grill pan and then...I'm sooo sad and going to have to go to Target tomorrow...my timer/digital thermometer got to hot...and melted into a beeping mess!...Outside of those things, it is a very quick tasty dinner. The steak sits for 30 minutes with a quick dry rub...you can do many other things while that's going on. Then while you grill it, you make the salsa...done and done. Enjoy!

When I took the steak off the grill pan to rest, I threw on a red bell pepper and an onion, just to heat up and soften, to add to the tacos...not necessary, but a nice little touch. Also had an extra two tomatoes, so those were sliced up. Other fixin's were some shredded cheese and sour cream and we served them on soft tortillas. Chips on the side.

+=+=

Someone might need a spanking!

Awhile back, Brunette posted a comment that she had a fondue recipe that might be of interest. Sure it would. A reader contacted me offline asking if I had gotten the recipe, because they were interested, but Brunette was off to India for two weeks. OMG! Yesterday, the reader asked if I had gotten the recipe, at the same time Brunette had basically pulled the recipe out to send to me....so now...long story short...I must share with all of you...

I think I'm going to make this as dessert on V-day next week.




Tiramisu Fondue

UPDATED 2/15/06

1 1/2 teaspoons instant coffee (not 1 1/2 cups as originally posted)
1 tablespoon boiling water
17 oz mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
2 tablespoons sweet Marsala wine
2 teaspoons cornstarch
3 large egg yolks at room temperature
finely chopped or grated bittersweet chocolate for dipping

For serving: strawberries, ladyfingers, peaches, etc.

~In a small bowl, dissolve coffee powder in boiling water.

~In the top of a double boiler over simmering water, combine the coffee, mascarpone, sugar, Marsala, and cornstarch, mashing/stirring with a rubber spatula until mascarpone has melted and mixture is smooth.

~In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks to combine. Gradually whisk in about 1/2 cup of the warm mascarpone mixture.

~Whisk the egg yolk mixture into the rest of the mascarpone mixture. Whisking constantly, cook until fondue is hot and thickened, about 2 minutes.

~Transfer to fondue pot and serve over heat source.

~Place the chopped or grated chocolate in small individual bowls.

~Dip your goodies in the fondue, then the grated chocolate right before eating.




A NOTE: Brunette mentioned that Nirmala's Wattleseed might be an interesting option instead of instant coffee. I have the wattleseed at home, and made ice cream with it-it was great, so I might actually try that...I'll let you know.

Pink...it's my favorite color!

Just over a week ago, Katherine at the ToastPoint blog put up a post on Penne alla vodka. Oh Yeah! I have made variations of this decadent dish over the years, no matter how it is made, it is always a pleasure to have.

For those who haven't had or made Penne alla Vodka, it is 1) penne and 2) a very simple tomato sauce with a touch of 3) cream and 4) vodka. The tomato and cream make a velvety sauce that coats your mouth with a full lusciousness that is to die for. Adding the vodka kicks up a natural heat level, warming your lips, throat and belly.

Below is the recipe as found on ToastPoint!



Penne alla Vodka
(adapted from Nigella Lawson's "Feast")

Put on a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.

In another heavy-bottomed pan, warm over medium heat:
2 Tablespoons garlic oil (or 2 Tablespoons olive oil with minced garlic)

Finely dice:
One large onion
A pinch of salt
Add to the oil and cook until soft and just beginning to caramelize, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Add:
2 14 ounce cans chopped tomatoes
Cook over medium-low heat for another 15-20 minutes.

Add:
2 Tablespoons heavy cream, or 1 1/2 Tablespoons creme fraiche
Stir to combine, then remove from heat.

When the water boils, add:
A pinch of salt
1 lb. penne or other similar pasta (I used rigatoni)
Cook until very al dente, then drain and return to the pan.

Add:
1/2 cup vodka
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
I know it seems odd to add that much vodka to your pasta, but it really works. If you're squeamish, you can add the vodka to the tomato sauce to cook off the alcohol, you wimp. Stir until the pasta is coated and strangely fragrant buttery vodka fumes begin to rise enticingly from the pan. Tip in the tomato sauce and stir to combine.

Serve immediately, with grated parmesan cheese for sprinkling on top.



NOTES FROM SCOTT:

Tonight when I made this, I only had 1 can of tomatoes, so I 1/2 everything else. I also only had "mini penne." No worries. All was good. For a touch more added heat, I added a pinch of red pepper flakes with the onions in the very beginning. I used two garlic cloves, minced, added with the onions as well.

When my pasta was done, I drained it, put it back in the pot and added the butter. I then took the sauce, as prepared above, quickly stirred in the vodka, then poured it into the pasta. I did this just to make sure the sauce was evenly stirred together, then allowing it to evenly coat the pasta.

Next time I make this, given the advanced planning, I would see about getting some fresh basil to add in at the last minute, just for a little something extra! But as it, it's perfect!

V-day dinner plan

V-day is just a week away. We're not going to be hitting the restaurants or doing anything really...just a night home. But we will be making it a little special, so this will be our plan for the evening...I'll have to decide what to do for dessert, yet.

Chicken Breasts with Brandied Cherry-Chocolate Sauce

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons salt
4 cups water
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup dried cherries
1/3 cup good-quality balsamic vinegar
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons brandy

1. Mix salt into water in a large bowl or zip-top plastic bag until dissolved. Add chicken and allow to brine for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Remove breasts from brine, rinse with water, and pat dry with paper towels.

2. Preheat oven to 200°. Pour flour onto a plate or pie pan and roll each breast in flour, patting gently to lightly coat.

3. Heat butter and oil over medium-high heat in a heavy 12-inch skillet. Swirl to mix, and cook until butter begins to color. Lay breasts in pan and cook, undisturbed, until brown, about 5 minutes. Turn chicken pieces over and cook on second side, undisturbed, until juices begin to clot around pieces, 5–7 minutes. Remove chicken and keep warm in the oven while making sauce.

4. Add chicken broth to skillet, scraping to release any brown bits. Boil until reduced to 1 cup, 8–10 minutes. Add cherries and vinegar; boil until spoon scraped across pan bottom leaves a visible path in sauce, 8–10 minutes. Stir in chocolate and add brandy. Spoon over chicken breasts and serve.

I plan a salad as a side....probably our favorite...greens, pear, cashew and basil balsamic vinegrette.


I'll report back in a week. Oh, by the way, the recipe came from a magazine that was available free at Teaism called Delicious Living...and available online here.

UPDATE: Here are the photos from this dinner!

Marrakesh

On Saturday night a group of 8 of us went out to dinner to celebrate J-lo's 29th birthday for the Xth time. We went to the Moroccan restaurant Marrakesh. I had been there once before about 7 years earlier. The last time I had been, the group I was with had a good time. Everything is served family style and you eat with your hands from one large plate. I'll talk more about the food in a minute.

To start, you knock on the door to get in...kinda cool. The staff are all in what I gather to be traditional garb. You sit on bench/couches, pillows and eat from low tables. Dinner here is seven courses. The meal was about $29 per person and with the 7 bottles of wine, tax and tip, it was $70/person. Yikes, but for nearly three hours, good food, an alright belly dancer and really good times with good friends, it was well worth it!

***

This was the first course. It was three "dips." From the top, 12 o' clock position are carrots with a corriander sauce, they were perfectly tender and sweet. Next to the right was this cucumber, bell pepper salad and the last one was an eggplant tomato sauce dip. You eat this with a large piece of bread, you take a piece of the bread, dip or scoop up and eat. My favorites were the Carrots and the Cucumbers.

This is a really interesting dish. That is a flaky pastry covering chicken, onions, spices, egg and yes, it is covered with powered sugar with a little cinnamon. Who knew! Very tasty.

I think this was in fact the #1 favorite of the night. I've already found a few recipes online that I'm going to see if I can mimic and recreate for home. Roast chicken with lemon and olives. It was perfect. PERFECT! Tender, juicy, crispy, the olives and lemons. The only problems was that you wanted to eat faster, but it was sooo hot you'd burn your fingers!!!

This was the fourth course. This is the one course I took only a taste of and didn't participate further. It was a tagine of lamb with honey and almonds. It just reminded me that I don't like lamb. The first bite was sooo very lamby, I thought maybe a second bite wouldn't be, but oh it was...just not a flavor I like....moving on. This is something that has been proven over and over in the past few years as I've tried lamb at various places and each time just dont' like it...the only place I thought it was acceptable, but again only had a bite, Ireland.

This is the only course where you get a utensil...couscous with some stuff and squash. The couscous was very tasty. The squash on top was fine, but as we discussed, would have been better with some butter, salt and pepper....but that probably would be more authentic to WI, and not particularly Northern Africa.

***

After the couscous, we got a basket of fruit and nuts, (course 6) and then some baklava (course 7). The final bit the restaurant leaves you with is some tasty, sweet Morroccan Mint Tea. I really liked it at first, but after about 1/2 a glass, I started to taste DC water, so I stopped.

It was a great night and the food was very tasty. 7 courses, a ho-hum belly dancer, nearly 3 hours of fun. Again, a very good evening!!!

Marrakesh
617 New York Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202.393.9393
Fax: 202.737.3737
www.marrakesh.us
reservations required

~

Super Bowl Food

aka-Gut Rot

We're watching the game now. Yep, that's right, we're watching the game. Partly for the commercials, partly for the sport, partly to see who was going to out diva who during the Star Spangled Banner, Aretha Franklin or Aaron Neville. I think, gratefully, it was Aretha.

Anyway, there, needs to be game food. 1) Nachos-YUM, 2) Buffalo Bites by Rachel Ray-not really...see below for the recipe as I had gotten it online a while back, then my notes below that.

Buffalo Popcorn Chicken Bites
Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Vegetable oil, for frying
2 1/2 cups complete pancake mix, any brand, divided
1 1/4 cups water
8 teaspoons hot sauce, divided (recommended: Tabasco)
1 1/4 pounds chicken tenders or chicken breast cut into small bite-sized pieces
1 cup store bought, good quality refrigerated blue cheese dressing (recommended: Marie's brand)
2 scallions, finely chopped
1 teaspoon coarse black pepper, 1/3 palm full
Cut celery sticks, store bought

In a deep sided skillet heat 1 1/2 inches of vegetable oil over medium heat. If you wish to test the oil, add a 1-inch cube of bread to hot oil. If it turns deep golden brown in color in a count of 40, the oil is ready.

While the oil is heating make the batter. In a wide mixing bowl combine 2 cups of the pancake mix, 1 1/4 cups water and about 6 teaspoons hot sauce. (Use a regular teaspoon you would stir coffee with – that's what I did. I don't, technically, have a set of actual measuring spoons.) Place the remaining plain 1/2 cup pancake mix in another wide mixing bowl. Arrange the batter and the bowl of plain pancake mix near the cook top and the heating oil. Line a plate with a few sheets of paper towels and keep within reach.

Once the oil is heated and ready, toss the chicken pieces in 2 teaspoons of hot sauce then toss in the plain pancake mix, coat evenly and shake off excess. The plain dry pancake mix will help the batter stick to the chicken pieces. Add some of chicken to the batter, you are going to want to work in 3 to 4 batches coating and frying. Using a fork, toss the bites in the batter. Remove the first batch from the batter, shaking off the excess batter as you carefully add them to the hot oil. Fry for 2 minutes on the first side, or until the first side is a deep golden brown, flip and continue to fry for another 2 minutes or until deep golden brown all over. Remove from the oil and drain on the paper towel lined plate, season with salt. Repeat until all the popcorn chicken bites are fried. Serve immediately with refrigerated, good quality creamy blue cheese prepared dressing with chopped scallions and black pepper stirred into it for dipping. Garnish platter with celery sticks.

NOTES:
This was alright. Nothing spectacular. The batter was thick and doughy when fried up. So it was sort of like having some bad sweet & sour chicken pieces from a Chinese restaurant, all batter. Maybe thinning it out with more water...or beer?!!?!?!!!

And MORE Hot Sauce. It needed more. You could taste it, but I'd had a few more shakes of hot sauce.

We don't like bleu cheese, so we did ranch dressing...that was tasty.

We had less than a pound of chicken and we didn't even have half of it...so serving suggestions would be for four or six depending on what else you might have going on.

I bought a small box of Aunt Jemima (sp??) pancake mix. It was pretty much exactly the amount needed...give or take a bit.

The nachos were some chips, cheese, beans on 1/2...tomatoes, peppers, some cumin, fresh ground pepper, sour cream, salsa. Yum!


Also, FYI: Giant had Edy's Ice Cream, buy 1, get 1 free! Doesn't mean we didn't buy 3! And they had a one day only special...with a coupon, and your guest card, free 4 pack diet Dr. Pepper!

It's the 21st century. Protection is everyone's responsibilty. Not just yours and not just your partners. Please make sure you are protected. Today I took the step to make sure that we are protected and safe.

News Items

I worked last night on the new Cook Book Catalogue on the right hand side. I've made my way through it, but there is still a ways to go. The only ratings systems I'm going to give is a "MUST HAVE". Anything else is like saying which child is my favorite. Every cookbook has given me something....well most all of them have. So truly the best children will be singled out. A NOTE: I get the feeling that different internet browsers give you different formatting views, this is probably old news to some of you old timer web heads, but it's frustrating to a newbie like me. I spent loads of time last night formatting in Firefox and this morning I looked at it in Internet Explorer and it looks like crapola. I'm sorry. (pouty sad face)


In other news, during my morning news roundup, I noticed on WTOP that ZAGAT's dining guide is looking for online reviews to be submitted and it looks like those that are accepted will recieve a free book! I haven't read any details or log in yet myself, so go have a gander. Good luck.

--also...Happy Birthday Chilefire!!!

Hey Kids...it's the Chitlins Trailer!

We see this puppy regularly as it's right down the street from our apartment. It's really nice to read a little story behind this business venture. I know I'm not brave enough to try chitlins, but if I ever was, I'd have to try them from my neighbor....but again, I'm not that brave....


....running away with tail between my legs.

Life's No Good For A Pimp...

Sorry for getting this post up late...but after dinner last night we watched Hustle & Flow and while that was on, I worked on a side projected. I started cataloguing my cookbooks. You can find those on the right side of this blog now. It's a work in progress, so check back as I keep updating and making changes.

As for the movie...it's not the purpose of the blog...the song...great...the movie...eh.....but if you want more on yesterday's Oscar noms, go to Sterfanie's blog or J-lo's blog.

OK, on to Dinner.

When I moved to DC in 1998 to go to grad school, the place I moved into had a kitchenette. I had a tiny fridge with a freezer that didn't work. A mini-microwave, a double hot-plate and a sink. That's what the apartment came with and that's what I had to work with. I soon added a few things. A blender...I was a college student after all and needed to make margaritas! An electric wok and what was called a "kitchen kettle." I still have the blender, it was a good investment and still works really well. The wok worked well (alliteration!) for awhile, then it went into a landfill. The kitchen kettle stayed around for a few years. It was a marriage of an electric kettle that worked like crap and a slow cooker that was either too hot or too cold. But it was much safer than the hot plates and I had many uses for as a warmer as years went on.

One of the first "dishes" I made actually came out of the wok...and really wasn't a wok sounding food....Spanish Rice.



This is a side dish that served as a main dish more often than I care to admit in those early, very broke, no money years. It is still a a good affordable dish and can be adapted easily to many likes and dislikes. We had it last night with a basic cheese quesadilla...so it was a non-meateaters friendly meal. But not particularly healthy, unless you add more veg, which we could have done, I just estimated wrong in my prep!

Spanish Rice
(serves 6-8, as side)

1 cup rice (we had jasmine rice)
approx 3 cups water (start with 2 cups)
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
6 shishito chiles (it's what we had, or 1 bell pepper and 1 jalapeno)
1/2 yellow onion, diced (it's what I had in the fridge prepared)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 TB Olive Oil
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp oregano
1/2 packet taco seasoning
S/P to taste

In a large skillet heat the olive oil until hot, add the onions and pinch of salt, saute until soft, about five minutes. Add garlic, stir for one minute. Add rice, stir for one minute. Add first two cups of water, bring to a soft simmer and cover for ten minutes.

Remove cover and stir. Add in peppers, tomatoes, cilantro, cayenne, oregano and 1/2 the packet of taco seasoning. Allow to simmer over low heat. Pay attention to the rice and the amount of water in remaining. I always have to add extra water, so I add a few splashes at a time. Last night it was an extra cup, before the rice was done. One reason for the extra water, the taco season has a thickening agent in it that sucks up the water....so play it by ear.

Take a taste and season with S/P.

Roast Chicken wit...?

FIRST, A question: What kind of peppers are these? They were purchased at Super H and labelled only as "Sweet Peppers." Bueller? Bueller?


The Reason I ask, is they were a lead ingredient in tonight's dinner, I sort of made this up as I headed to work this morning and thought of what I had left in my fridge from the last shopping trip:

Roast Chicken with Cilantro, "Sweet Peppers", Lime and Garlic with Mashed Potatoes and Carmelized Onions.


-I had one package of 3 thighs, 3 legs and 3 wings, in terms of chicken bits
-about 2 large handfuls of cilantro
-the juice of one lime
-5 of the "sweet peppers", roughly chopped
-2 cloves of garlic
-S/P
-A few TB of olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a food processor give the cilantro, peppers, lime juice, garlic, S/P a whirl until it just comes together. The turn on and stream in the olive oil until it comes together into a loose paste. Done.

Rub all over the chicken bits and get it under the skin. Put a little extra on top of the skin. Place in a baking pan (skin up) and place in the oven for approximately 40 minutes until the juices run clear. Check about 1/2 way through, turn pan if you need to. My chicken needed a little extra tanning, so I stuck it under the broiler for 5 minutes. But before sticking it under the broiler, I had some extra of the cilantro sauce, so I put that on top, for a fresh burst of flava. Done and done.

We would have liked it spicy, so maybe some of these sweet peppers and one or two jalapenos? We also think it would be better grilled...much better grilled.

+

Tomorrow night these peppers will make one final appearance....stay tuned for a vegetarian night.

-

Earlier today I had this behemoth arrive at my door at the office. This will not serve as a review, but more of an overview. Weighing in at a backbreaking 7lbs (almost) and nearly 1300 pages, I can quickly see why this book as been the cornerstone of true Italian kitchens for the past 55 years and will be the keystone for American kitchens for the next 55 years!

The Silver Spoon was first published in Italy some 55 years ago. And has been THE gift given to every bride since then. It is in every kitchen, literally. There are over 2000 recipes in here, and I can't even begin to describe!!!!

Well, last year it was published in English for the very first time and quickly went on to become a best seller in English speaking countries the world over. I noticed it early on, but didn't realize what it was, Silver Spoon didn't speak, "Italian" to me, so I just moved on. Then I started to read about it and it's importance..... I was impressed, but I didn't see one in person, so I didn't rush out...it was on my Amazon wishlist...it would find it's way to me!!!

Well, I think it was last week, Jon at I HATE BROCCOLI wrote up a post about it and I knew then, immediately, that I had to have it! (Thanks for prodding!!!)

But I was flummoxed. Borders didn't have it on their shelves. Amazon didn't expect to be able to delivery it within a five to seven week period...ahhh! Guess what...I'm not really much of a baker...! BUT...Amazon Marketplace had a few....someone there had an used copy for sale, a few cents cheaper than Amazon no less and they guaranteed shipment in 2-3 days. It arrived today in Perfect, un-used condition!

Jon's post is really good, so you can click over and read it for a more detailed review.

For now, I'm going to keep flipping through and lusting after this new gentle giant with it's tantalizing delights. I commented at I Hate Broccoli that it made me think thoughts I've never had before...mostly about vegetables...but really....I don't like peas...there was a picture in there...I thought I'd died and gone to heaven! There are also some things in there that I'd rather not know about...like cooking kid....a sort of suckling lamb....why did they have to call it a kid....? I won't eat lamb "Don't eat me Lisa", let alone "Kid"!!!!!

Anywhoooosss...if you see it....this is one that deserves a spot on the counter in the kitchen where it will get used...and that way you won't have to lift it too far!!

Pork Medallions with Orange Sauce

This was tonight's quickie dinner.

It was really quite easy! And FAAAAST!

We watched them make it on Everyday Food, J-lo was sent to the store for a few items and we had it for din-din! Easy-peasy!

I made one small alteration, here is my version of the recipe:

Pork Medallions with Orange Sauce
(serves 4)

1 1/2 pound pork loin, trimmed of fat and silver skin, cut into 1/2 inch slices on the bias and pressed lightly to make medallions.
Olive Oil (a few tablespoons)
1 cup flour
S/P
1 medium shallot, diced
3 large, heavy oranges, juiced to make one cup
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 TB capers, drained and rinsed

After your pork loin is trimmed and ready to cook, mix the flour and salt and pepper. Lightly coat the pork medallions in the flour mixture and put directly into the pan with hot oil, do not crowd the pan, you will probably have to do this in 3-4 batches. You will probably have to add a little extra oil each time. Cook each batch for two minutes per side, remove to a warm plate and continue until all the medallions are done.

Toss in the shallot and stir for 30 seconds. Carefully add the OJ and lemon juice into the pan, there will be lots of steam and it will boil quickly. Stir constantly. Toss in the capers. Season with S/P. Allow to boil for a minute. Put the medallions back in the pan. Allow to cook for a minute, turn to coat and serve! Spoon over extra sauce.

We served ours with green bean almandine....Green beans that have been par-boiled for 3 minutes then tossed with toasted almonds, 1 TB butter, S/P! Done and Done!

For some of our dieting friends, the Everyday Food recipe website has the nutritional info, it appears really healthy and the portions were really good! The pork loin is super lean, the only extra fat is the olive oil.

Stir-Fried Noodley Goodness

Last night the Sommeliertrix and I went on a culinary adventure to SUPER H in Wheaton, Maryland. Super H is an Asian Supermarket. But it's much more than that. It's really an international supermarket. They have an amazing produce section, and just awesome products all around. We pretty much kept ourselves to produce and few other items. Our plan: get some items for dinner and move on back to my place where we'll join up with J-lo for some yum yum delights!

Before departing for our adventure I grabbed my most recent issue of Fine Cooking, as there was a recipe I thought would be fun for our adventure....and it WAS! So, here it is in the magazine, then with our notes at the end. WE LOVED IT! I think there were tears of joy at one point!!!!

Stir-Fried Noodles with Shrimp, Chiles & Lime
Serves 2 (we doubled)

3 oz dried wide (pad thai) rice noodles
2 TB fish sauce
2 TB granulated sugar
1 TB soy sauce
1 tsp hoisin sauce
1 tsp chile-garlic sauce
1 TB vegetable oil
1 tsp garlic
6 oz medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
1 4 oz can fire roasted whole green chiles, drained and sliced
1 1/2 cups bean sprouts
2 TB crushed unsalted roasted peanuts
1/3 cup coarsley chopped cilantro
10 mint leaves, torn into small bits
1 lime, cut into wedges for serving

Soak the dried rice noodles.
*submerge in a large bowl in warm water for 30 minutes until they're pliable but still rather firm, about 30 minutes. Take a bit, it's the only way to know how they will taste. Ours weren't right, so we drained them, then poured over boiling water from the teapot for a minute and they were perfect! Al dente.

While the noodles soak for the 30 minutes, prep your ingredients.

In a small bowl, combine the fish sauce, sugar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and chile-garlic sauce.

Once the noodles are done and drained, heat the oil in a large skillet or stir fry pain over high heat until very hot! Ad the garlic and stir--immediately add the shrimp. Stir-fry until the shrimp turn pink and firm, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the fish sauce mixture. Stir to combine for 20 seconds, then add the chiles and the noodles. Stir-fry until the noodles are tender the liquid is absorbed, 1 to 2 minutes. If the noodles are too firm yet, add 1 TB of water and cook for another minute. Add the sprouts and stir-fry until they are slightly limp, 1 to 2 minutes. Toss in the cilantro.

Transfer to a large bowl or serving platter. Garnish with peanuts, mint and lime wedges!

NOTES:
*Our noodles were not labelled exactly as the reciped called, so here is what we used: Bahn Pho Thuong Hang, Size M.
*Frankly, we wanted to save time, so we cheated on the shrimp. We got some pre-cleaned and (sheepishly) cooked shrimp. Not worth it. If you use shrimp, get fresh shrimp, clean them yourself and do all this yourself! BUT....we really didn't even want the shrimp...the noodles without the shrimp were AWESOME!!! So really, I'm going to file this under a veggie friendly recipes!
*I added about a tsp or TB of grated ginger, just because.
*We used 4-6 garlic cloves, just because.
*We think there are sooooooo many different options you could add to this dish....I don't think I could even list them all here....shredded carrots, peapods, broccoli (blech), 'shrooms (blech), and who knows what else???!?!!!!
*Oh, the chiles...we couldn't find the canned fire roasted green chiles...so I grabbed green fresh chiles and just fire roasted them myself at home...but they were sweet and not hot...still great...but we think hot would have been better! If you use sweet instead of hot...add a tsp or so of red pepper flake to your fish sauce mixture!
*The mint is amazing...don't skip it....this is what caused the tears in J-lo's eyes while eating dinner! Same for the cilantro. It just brighten's the flavors!!!

Action Shot!
Serving up the noodles with the mint, limes and peanuts on the side!

Pay no mind to the SAME bowl as the last foodie picture I posted (they are my favorite bowls)...and pay no mind to the stray noodle next to the lime!
It was YUM YUM in my TUM TUM.

And for dessert, we had fresh, homemade mixed berry ice cream,
garnished with fresh mixed berries and amaretti cookies!
Sorry for the bite that was already taken out of the bottom of the photo-couldn't help myself!

BTW: I do not work for FINE COOKING. As I've said many many times before, it is my favorite cooking magazine and I strongly encourage anyone who wants to enjoy cooking more and learn more and explore more in the kitchen to get a subscription to this fine magazine! Try picking up an issue first!! Currently, it is the only magazine subscription I have...I've cancelled or not maintained any other! Period.

Chicken Provencale with Lemon Scented Orzo

Tonight we had this, with Lemon-Scented Orzo.

The Lemon-Scented Orzo...really, I just made the orzo the way the package said and when it was done, drained it, threw in large strips of lemon zest, some olive oil and let that set for a minute while I finished the rest of dinner. I liked it. Bright Flavors.

Unwrapped and Rachel Ray

This chicklet cracks my s**t up and has for a long while....wait until her Olympic coverage!!!

Check this out.

Fennel

Stef asked about Fennel recently in a comment.

Here's some information:

FENNEL

What we call "seeds" are actually the fruit of the plant. These "seeds" (i'm going to have a hard time changing my ways) are used alot in conjunction with sausage and fish. Give them a whack to crack them a bit before tossing them into a dish to let their flavors out. Our Giant sells the Fennel Fruit with a candy coating in the international "Indian" section. Might have to give that another look next time around. I think the Quakers in this country chew it in this country when in their meetings???? I'm probably wrong and grossly uneducated.

The leaves and stalk of the plant can be eaten as a vegetable, and I've done this as a salad before, it's very mild in flavor. Extra crunchy!!!

It's a member of the Parsley Family.

Sweet and Aromatic, the flavor and scent are similiar to anise.

Mediterranean in origin.

Some countries do not distinguish between fennel and anise.

Fruity Snack/Dessert

This was hidden in another recipe post from a few months back, I've served this a few times at my place and have had multiple requests for it. So instead of having it hidden, here it is out in the open.

Pineapple and Kiwi with a Simple Ginger-Lime Syrup

Quantities are rough estimates based on quantities:

*1 whole fresh pineapple, most markets have them prepped already for you in the produce section, this works prefectly well!
*A few kiwis, peeled and sliced
*a handful of Toasted, shredded coconut (optional)
*2 limes, both zested and both juiced
*1 inch chunk of ginger, smashed
*one cup of sugar
*one cup of water

Combine sugar, water, ginger, and lime juice in a sauce pan and bring to simmer until sugar is dissolved. When the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and throw in the lime zest. Allow to cool. Remove the chunk of ginger.

Arrange the fruit on a large, deep platter or in a large bowl, drizzle the syrup over the top and garnish with the toasted coconut.


DID YOU KNOW, that coconut can be spelled coconut and cocoanut? At least according to the American Heritage Dictionary, Fourth Edition.

Quickie Dinner Pizza

Tonight...Sausage and Roasted Red Pepper Pizza

1 lb sausage ( I had the Bob Evans, it was on sale this weekend)
1/2 medium onion, sliced into 1/2 moons
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can whole tomatoes, roughly chopped-reserve all liquid
1 tsp fennnel seeds
S/P to taste
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp red pepper flakes

A poppin' fresh tube of pizza dough

1 cup roasted red peppers
2 cups shredded mozarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Preheat oven according to poppin' fresh's instructions.

Crumble sausage into a large saucepan and saute until browned and cooked through. Add the onions and allow to sweat for a minute. Add the garlic and allow that to cook for a quick 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, toss to coat everything and allow to simmer.

Then, step aside and roll out poppin' fresh into a "quarter sheet" pan...I don't know the official dimensions, but the dough fits really well in it. Put a little olive oil on top and throw in the oven for 15 minutes.

While that is cooking. Go back to your sausage/tomato mixture.

Check for salt & pepper desirability? How...? Taste it! Then add the fennel, oregano and basil. Make sure to give the fennel a little crunch first, get the seeds opened up a bit. Allow to simmer and reduce until the dough comes out.

When the dough comes out, spoon on the sausage/tomato mixture, sprinkle on the crushed red pepper, parmesan cheese and mozarella. Bake an additional 6 minutes. If you have a stupid stove like mine, the broiler is underneat the oven compartment....I had to take the pizza out and put it in the broiler at this point for a few quick minutes to get it golden brown and delicious!

^^^

This was about 20-30 minutes of cooking and I had all ingredients on hand except the poppin' fresh and mozarella. I cut the pizza into 8 LARGE pieces and this could easily have stuffed four people!

So for less time than delivery and less money than delivery...it was pretty damn good if I do say so myself.

It's not figure friendly that's for sure. However, if you were interested in having this on a diet, what's to say you couldn't use just ground pork and less cheese....maybe add more vegetables? This can be very versatile. What would you do?

.

I'm a weiner!

I won!!!


Giggle. Mmmm, hot sauce.

I've got the blues...

This morning I made a quick Blueberry Scone to go with this mornings hot coffee. Not to go into the long long story, I'm on some crazy ass head medicine that leaves me feeling hungover more often than not...the coffee is a godsend! (Two weeks until the next appointment with the Dr., to see if what else we might try-keep your fingers crossed).

Anywhoo....the coffee...yum....but the scones...simple and tasty!

I had a package of dried blueberries in the cupboard. I took 1/2 cup of them and put 1/2 cup of boiling water on them for about ten minutes. Then drained them. Set them aside.

Then I went to this recipe here, for Ginger Scones.

I did everything exactly the same, except that I used the blueberries instead of the crystallized ginger. I didn't have have milk, so I used heavy cream. Also, I added the cream first, then added the blueberries as the last step. Once in the oven, 12 minutes later I had fresh yummy scones!




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And speaking of "The Blues..."

Last night I made Chicken Piccata, a yummy, lemony, buttery, tangy, tasty chicken dish. I didn't use a recipe last night and pretty much went from memory from the past when I've made it, so I may or may not have used garlic in the past...I'm guessing not, because what happened, just about had me calling the food police to make sure we were not going to die!

In a nutshell, chicken dusted with flour, sauteed in olive oil until golden brown and delicious. Remove. I tossed in three minced garlic cloves, quickly tossed that around to prevent burning. Added the juice of one lemon, some chopped parsley, stirred. Added a cup of broth, simmer to reduce. Add some capers and butter, pour of chicken. YUM.

OK, so what happened.

My Garlic Turned BLUE! I'm not kidding. My garlic turned BLUE BLUE BLUE! I've never seen this. OK, so a quick Google search gave me an answer and might have sent my name to the Justice Department?

Garlic contains anthocyanins, water-soluble pigments that turn blue or purple in an acid solution. While this color transformation tends to occur more often with immature garlic, it can differ among cloves within the same head of garlic. The garlic flavor remains unchanged, and it totally edible without bodily harm.

OK, solved! I really was freaked out and my tasty dish looked silly with the blue dots in it. I think the past I didn't do garlic or I did shallots?!?!! But I don't remember. Maybe added the lemon juice later helps?

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