Chef Russ

While I do most of the cooking in our house, Russ is very involved. He does all the grilling, dishes, pictures for the blog and sometimes he takes the reigns and cooks the entire meal. Tonight was one of those nights when I had a meeting after work and knew I would come home hungry, too tired to cook, yet wanting a home cooked meal. Enter the sweetest husband ever who cooked up his new specialty that he has made once before for me, Pasta Puttanesca while I was at my meeting.

Russ loves this recipe because not only does it taste great, but he says it is fairly simple to prepare and all the ingredients are ones that almost always have in the pantry. I love it because it is delicious and required no effort on my part. It has great flavor from the capers and garlic, a nice kick from the fresh cayenne peppers from our garden, and fantastic color and texture from the olives. The tomatoes still take center stage and are just amplified by all the other tasty ingredients. I give it a 10 and Russ rates it a 9.

A Big Hit with No Meat!

Every now and then my meat loving husband will agree to a vegetarian meal if enough cheese is involved. Tonight was one of those rare occasions. Whenever I go through a new issue of Cooking Light I dog ear the pages of recipes that catch my eye. In the September issue this was one that not only did I dog ear, but also I kept coming back to each time I flipped through it. The recipe is for Ziti with Spinach, Cherry Tomatoes, and Gorgonzola Sauce. Russ and I both love macaroni and cheese and Cooking Light touts this recipe as a grown up version by showcasing the pungent flavor of gorgonzola cheese.

To make this dish you start by heating the water and cooking the pasta. This dish comes together so fast that you have to start the pasta first or you will be sitting around waiting on it. Then heat olive oil in a pan and add the cherry tomatoes, crushed red pepper, salt, and garlic. Once they have cooked for a minute or two then add the half and half and gorgonzola cheese and cook it for about two minutes while stirring constantly. Once it has thickened some add the spinach and allow it to wilt. Drain the pasta and then add the pasta to the pan with the sauce and mix to combine. Serve immediately.

This could not have been any quicker or easier to make. The most time consuming part is literally boiling the water for the pasta and cooking the pasta. This is a great weeknight dinner when you don’t have a lot of time or just don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. It is also a great one dish meal since it includes your veggies. The strong pungent flavor of the gorgonzola is fantastic and creamy. The sauce while still being light is rich and wonderful. The spinach and cherry tomatoes add beautiful colors to the dish and great, fresh flavors. We both thoroughly enjoyed this dish and it will definitely be repeated in our house. Russ rates it a 10.

Crazy about Squash

As you know I always love getting a new cooking magazine in the mail, however, this one was squeal worthy! Quite literally as I flipped through it I was squealing with delight over all the delicious recipes and was beyond thrilled to see a fantastic squash section. You see I didn’t like squash growing up because I thought it was all yellow squash and zucchini, neither of which I liked as a child. Since then I have not only grown to love both yellow squash and zucchini, but also to realize that there are so many other fantastic squashes out there that I absolutely love! After the first time I cooked with a butternut squash my cooking world was shaken. It is a totally different kind of squash then what I had known before and I loved everything about it. Well, tonight I tried a new to us squash, spaghetti squash, and I absolutely loved it!

Tonight I made Fine Cooking’s Spaghetti Squash with Indian Spices. To make the squash you start out by cutting it into half lengthwise and roasting it. This was the hardest part. I have had trouble cutting a butternut squash before and my hand was sore for a day after cutting and peeling a pumpkin, but this spaghetti squash would not budge for me. We ended up eating later tonight than planned because I had to wait until Russ got home for him to cut it in half. Now don’t let this turn you off from this recipe or any squash recipe for that matter as I now have a new trick. Literally the next day I was reading more of the articles from this issue and in the back it includes tips for cutting squashes and tells you to prick it with a fork in several places all over and microwave it for just a minute or so and let is soften just a bit so that it will cut easier. Anyway, once cut in half you scoop out the seeds and roast it at 350 for about an hour. Then remove it from the oven and let it cool slightly. Then use a fork and rake out the flesh into strands. While the squash is cooling I added oil to a skillet and put the mustard seeds in and covered it. The seeds pop and once the popping has died down then you uncover it and add the butter. Next add the onion, ginger, cumin (I used ground as I couldn’t find the seeds), and coriander and let cook until the onion is soft. Next add the tomato (I used canned petite diced tomatoes) and chile to the dish. Next toss in the squash and finally season with salt and toss in the cilantro.

This was fantastic! I absolutely loved the soft, warm Indian spices and the mild, delicious flavor of the spaghetti squash. The texture of the squash with the soft onions and tomatoes was perfect. This is one of my top ten favorite dishes I have ever made. I could have eaten a bowl of it with nothing else for dinner and been beyond thrilled. Russ liked the dish, but was not as crazy about it like I was. The main reason that Russ didn’t care for it as much as he felt like it had too strong of a squash flavor. In reality it is a mild squash, however, Russ strongly prefers the flavor of sweeter squashes such as butternut, pumpkin and acorn, so to him this was too “squashy”. Russ gives it an 8, while I give it a strong 10.

Spaghetti Squash with Indian Spices, Fine Cooking November 2008

Serves four to six.

1 small (3 lb.) spaghetti squash
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 tsp. brown mustard seeds
3 Tbs. unsalted butter
1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
2 tsp. minced fresh ginger
2 tsp. chopped garlic
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 cup seeded and chopped tomato
1 small serrano chile, seeded and minced
Kosher salt
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a sturdy spoon. Set the squash halves cut side down on a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet, and bake until strands of flesh separate easily when raked with a fork, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Taste a few strands—they should be tender. If not, continue to bake. Set the squash halves aside until cool enough to handle. Use a fork to rake the cooked squash flesh into strands. In a 10-inch skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until hot. Add the mustard seeds and cover. The seeds will start popping; cook until the popping subsides, about 1 minute. Uncover, reduce the heat to medium, and add the butter. As soon as it melts, add the onion, ginger, garlic, cumin seeds, and coriander and cook, stirring, until the onion is soft, about 3 minutes. Add the tomato, chile, and 1 tsp. salt and cook, stirring, until the tomato begins to soften and the chile is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Increase the heat to medium high and add the squash to the skillet. Continue to cook, tossing with tongs, until heated through, 1 to 3 minutes. Toss in the cilantro, season to taste with more salt, and serve. You can bake the squash in advance and then finish the dish right before serving.

My New Toy

I love kitchen gadgets and really can always find a few more that I would like to have, but our kitchen is getting full so I have to make sure it is something that I really want and will use in order to buy it now. While up in Pawley’s this summer I went to one of my favorite cooking stores and found a utensil that Jamie Oliver had used on a recent episode of Jamie at Home, a bean cutter. I had never seen one before, but I knew if I ran across one I would just have to get it. So, I picked it up and was anxious to try out the recipe Jamie had made on the episode. It is Grilled Butterflied Monkfish with a Sweet Runner Bean Stew.

To start out making the stew you put all the beans through the bean cutter and they end up in gorgeous, thin slices. Next you add olive oil, anchovies, garlic and the chile to a pot and let them cook until the anchovies have broken down. Next add the tomatoes, beans, and rosemary to the pot. Season it with salt and pepper and bring it to a boil. Once boiling turn it down to a simmer and cover the pot. To prepare the fish (we used grouper instead of monkfish) we salt and peppered it and grilled it. I skipped the gremolata that looks and sounds delicious, but we ran out of time. Serve the fish over the beans.

We both absolutely loved the runner bean stew. Beans and tomatoes are one of my very favorite flavor combinations and mixed with the savory rosemary it is just fantastic. I also really liked the texture of the thin slices of beans. I would highly recommend a bean cutter as it was a neat tool to use and cut the beans slices that were a perfect thickness. The beans complemented the grilled fish very well and made for a beautiful presentation. All in all this was a delicious meal and that I anticipate us making again in the future. Russ rates it a 10.

A Perfect Summer Dinner

Lately the days have been hot and hotter and by the end of the day Russ and I both want just a light, fresh meal for dinner. Tonight’s dish is exactly that – light and fresh and perfect for a hot summer night.

Tonight I made Sautéed Chicken Paillards with Herb Salad and White Balsamic Vinaigrette from the May issue of Fine Cooking. This came from the quick and delicious section, so it is quick and easy for a weeknight dinner. You start by making the dressing. You mix both the white balsamic and white wine vinegars together with the shallot, mustard, salt and pepper. Then you slowly whisk in the olive oil into it until combined. Next you season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper. Now I usually stay away from convenience items because they are more expensive and I just prefer to chop my own onion, garlic etc., but when it comes to chicken cutlets I let the grocery store do the pounding. This to me is worth the extra little bit to not have to pound away at the chicken. Once the chicken is seasoned you heat the olive oil in a skillet and then cook the chicken until it is browned on both sides and just cooked through. Next toss the mixed greens and herbs with the salad dressing reserving some of the dressing to drizzle over the chicken. To plate the dish you place the chicken on the plate and drizzle it with the reserved dressing and top it with a large pile of the mixed greens and herbs. For the herbs I used a mixture of mint, parsley, and basil.

This was a very quick and easy and absolutely delicious! It was light and fresh with the bright dressing just topping it all off. The dressing was perfect with the shallots adding a nice flavor and texture and the mustard adding warmth and tang. We both also loved the mixture of mixed greens and herbs. Russ felt like the parsley was a little too strong, so next time I’ll cut back on it a little bit and add a little more mint which was a great flavor addition to the meal. The herbs definitely made the dish feel and taste like summer. The chicken complemented the salad perfectly and was very tasty with the drizzle dressing over it. This was close to the perfect summer dinner and Russ rates it a 10. This will definitely be repeated in our house.

Sautéed Chicken Paillards with Herb Salad and White Balsamic Vinaigrette, Fine Cooking May 2008

1 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar
1-1/2 tsp. white-wine or cider vinegar
One-half small shallot, finely chopped
1/4 tsp. Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. olive oil; more as needed
8 boneless, skinless, thin-cut (1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick) chicken breast cutlets (1-1/2 to 1-3/4 lb.)
5 cups mixed baby greens
3 cups mixed fresh, tender herb leaves, such as flat-leaf parsley, mint, chives, tarragon, basil, and chervil, roughly torn if large

In a small bowl, mix both vinegars with the shallot, mustard, and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper. Slowly whisk in 3 Tbs. of the oil.

Season the chicken on both sides with 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Heat the remaining 2 tsp. oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Working in two to three batches to avoid crowding, cook the chicken until lightly browned on both sides and just cooked through, 1 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer each batch to a platter, cover loosely with foil, and keep warm. If the pan seems dry at any point, add 2 more tsp. of oil.

Combine the greens and herbs in a large bowl. Add about three-quarters of the vinaigrette and toss well. To serve, arrange two cutlets on each serving plate and drizzle the remaining dressing over the chicken. Divide the herb salad among the four plates, piling it attractively onto the chicken.

Quite Possibly the Perfect Meal

I tend to be skeptical of super simple recipes that only have a few ingredients. From my experience cooking it seems that more often than naught the more you put into a dish (blood, sweat, tears, time, energy, ingredients…) the more delicious it turns out in the end. For instance I am sure Rachel Ray, the queen of quick dinners on the Food Network, has some wonderful, tasty meals, but whenever I have seen her show I always think to myself that if you just take a few minutes longer and make a few changes or let it simmer for a half hour instead of five minutes then it is bound to be even tastier. Most of the time I pass these recipes by, maybe I am gluten for punishment or just enjoy the process of cooking as much as the final product, but whatever it is I shy away from really simple recipes that only have a few ingredients.

Well never say never right… Tonight I was looking in Cook with Jamie (one of the awesome cookbooks Russ gave me for my birthday) to find something we could grill out. We both wanted to eat at home but didn’t want to spend all night in the kitchen. I found a couple of options and showed them to Russ to have him pick. Well, the one he ended up picking you actually don’t grill, but roast it in the oven. I had thought we could convert it to using the grill, but decided in the end to just follow the recipe as is and roast it in the oven. The recipe is for Roasted Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus and it is so simple with so few ingredients, but good ingredients that go well together. This is really a classic Jamie Oliver recipe. He is after all the Naked Chef because he takes away the fussiness of food to make simple dishes that are packed with good quality, fresh ingredients and lets them do the work for him. Well, not that I have ever doubted him, but he was spot on with this one. Despite it only having a few ingredients and taking almost no time at all to put together it was fabulous. I’ll probably still be a little skeptical of really simple recipes, but I am definitely more open to the idea now.

To make the Roasted Chicken Breast with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus you start by trimming the asparagus and cutting the tomatoes in half. Then toss them in a bowl with the rosemary sprigs, rosemary leaves, olive oil, chicken (bone in, skin on breasts), salt and pepper. Toss this to get everything seasoned and then make small rimmed packets of aluminum foil. Place the asparagus and tomatoes on the bottom of each packet and top with a chicken breast and a sprig of rosemary. Add a little white wine to the bottom and pop in the oven. Let them roast for approximately 40 – 45 minutes or until the chicken is just cooked through. Mine took a little longer than the recipe indicated, but I think this is because I did bone in and large breasts. I also forgot to drizzle them with balsamic vinegar when they were done which would have been a fantastic way to finish it off.

As I said above these were fabulous! I was so impressed with how well the asparagus, chicken, tomatoes, and rosemary worked together. It was a perfect symphony of flavors and ingredients – savory, fresh, bright colors, and fragrant. It takes just minutes to prepare and then you just toss them in the oven and let them bake. I really think this is the easiest meal I have ever made and not only that, but one of my favorites. I highly recommend this recipe and for those of you who are new to cooking this is a great one to try. It is definitely one that you could serve to company or just cook for a simple weeknight dinner. I didn’t serve it with anything else, but you could add another side or bread if you wanted. Russ rates this recipe a solid 10! This is one that I know will be repeated frequently in our house. Jamie has three more similar recipes (baked chicken in foil packet) with different ingredients and seasonings that I can’t wait to try.

Roasted Chicken Breast with Cherry Tomatoes and Asparagus, Cook with Jamie
Serves 1

Preheat the oven to 400F. Put 1 chicken breast, with its skin left on, in a bowl. Add 8 trimmed sticks of asparagus, 6 halved cherry tomatoes and the leaves from 1 sprig of fresh rosemary plus a whole sprig of rosemary as well. Toss everything together with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Put the veg into an aluminum foil pan and place the chicken and rosemary sprig on top. Season well. Add some white wine and cook in the middle of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes. Serve drizzled with balsamic vinegar.

Dip and Drinks

I am not sure why, but appetizers are one of my real weaknesses when it comes to cooking. Just look to the left at the number of times I have posted about appetizers since I started blogging… six, just six appetizers in over a year. Now, to my credit there are plenty of times we have served cheese and crackers, fruit, chips and salsa, or cashews as appetizers and while these are all tasty they are not creative, exciting, or different. I think part of my issue is that if I am cooking the entire meal then I don’t leave enough time or don’t start preparing far enough in advance to include a more creative appetizer. Also, there are plenty of appetizer recipes out there that would take you just as long to prepare as a main course and somehow on nights like tonight when that is all I am preparing then I feel like I should get a break and not have to work as hard for just an appetizer. The thing is though when we eat out appetizers tend to be my favorite. I love the idea that they are tiny dishes that can still have all the flavor, complexity, and texture of a main course, but in a nice small package. Tonight I decided to not go the super simple / quick and easy route, but to not get too elaborate or involved either. I flipped through my cookbook from Magnolias and found a recipe for their Spinach and Artichoke Dip. After reading through the ingredients I was sold on it. You might be thinking in my excitement over the recipe that I forgot about dessert. Me… forget about dessert… are you kidding! We planned what we were doing for dessert a week and a half ago! More on it later.

To make the Spinach and Artichoke Dip you start by sautéing the onions in butter. Once they are soft you add the garlic and let it sauté for a few minutes. Next add the flour and stir everything together to make a roux. Keep stirring it for a couple minutes and then add half the cream until it thickens. Then add the rest of the cream and let it thicken. Next add the spinach (thawed and drained), artichokes (chopped), Havarti cheese, Parmesan cheese, nutmeg, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Stir this together and let it cook for a few minutes. Serve warm with herb toasts. Russ made the herb toasts and he started by making the olive oil, herb mixture. He minced the garlic, chives, and basil. He put these in a bowl and added the olive oil, salt, and pepper. After mixing it all together he cut the baguette into quarter inch thick slices. He then tossed the slices in a bowl and poured the mixture over them tossing to coat. These then bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. They can be served at room temperature.

This really turned out well. The Spinach and Artichoke Dip was creamy and warm with a nice balance of cheese, spinach, and artichoke. I felt like the nutmeg and cayenne didn’t really show through. Next time I might increase the amount of both slightly to add a little more of a kick and spice to it. The herb toasts were a nice change from a plain baguette, but I do think a plain baguette slices (toasted, untoasted, or grilled) would work fine too. Russ and I did taste test it after I finished it and felt like it was slightly salty. I added a little more cream and let it cook down to try to counter act the saltiness and I think it worked. Next time I won’t add all the salt at first, but add part of it and then taste it before adding any more. All in all this was very tasty and creamy and a real hit. While not a complicated appetizer it was well worth the effort and a nice change from cheese and crackers. Russ rates it a 10!

I still haven’t forgotten about dessert and I guess you could say I am saving the best for last. The Country Club makes these amazing dessert drinks called Mississippi Muds. We both love them and Russ figured out that all they are made of is vanilla ice cream and Kahlua. The key is to getting the right consistency – thick, but not too thick. Russ has been practicing and he made them for everyone tonight for dessert. They are creamy and sweet without being too sweet. It is a great quick and easy dessert. They were a huge hit that even the non-sweet eater of the group, Dowe, requested one! Unfortunately we drank them before getting a picture, but I imagine they’ll show up again on the blog another day. Russ wouldn't rate them since he made them, but I'll give them a 9. They were a little on the thick side this time or they would have received a 10.

Spinach and Arthichoke Dip, Magnolias - Authentic Southern Cuisine
Makes 3 ½ cups

3 tablespoons butter
½ cup minced onion
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups heavy cream
3 (10 oz) packages frozen spinach, thawed and all the liquid pressed out
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and cut into ½ inch pieces
6 ounces Havarti or fontina cheese, grated or finely diced
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon white pepper
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring to prevent browning. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the onion and garlic mixture to make a roux. Stir well to combine and allow to cook over medium-low heat 1 minute more. Add half the cream and stir vigorously until the mixture combines and thickens. Use a spatula to release any of the mixture that may be stuck to the bottom edges of the pan. Add the remaining cream and stir again until the mixture is smooth and thickened. Add the spinach, artichoke hearts, Havarti or fontina cheese, Parmesan, nutmeg, salt, white, black, and cayenne pepper. Continue to stir over medium-low heat until the cheeses have melted. Check seasoning for a balanced flavor. Serve with Herb Toasts.

Herb Toasts, Magnolias – Authentic Southern Cuisine

¾ cup light olive oil
2 teaspoons mashed garlic
1 tablespoon very finely minced chives
1 tablespoon very finely minced basil
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 long loaf of fresh, crusty French bread cut into ¼ inch thick slices (or less)

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all of the ingredients except the French bread and let sit for 15 minutes. Place the slices of bread in a large bowl and drizzle on the oil and herb mixture as you are tossing the bread slices to coat. Lay the bread slices out on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are crisply toasted and light golden in color. Remove from the oven and allow for them to cool to room temperature before stacking in a basket.

Exceeding Expectations

I have always liked mayonnaise spread on my sandwiches in fact it is my preferred condiment when it comes to sandwiches. It has a creamy texture and great flavor that just add that perfect touch to a sandwich. I’ve always loved it in chicken salad and pimento salad too. It wasn’t until I ate hot artichoke dip for the first time and requested the recipe that I realized I’ve probably been eating mayonnaise in lots of other dishes for years and not even known it. When I saw the ingredients in baked artichoke dip for the first time I almost fell out of my chair. I couldn’t believe that baked mayonnaise with just some cheese and chopped artichokes could be good. I mean really the thought of hot mayonnaise is disgusting and this is coming from a long time fan of mayonnaise. I am not sure I will ever understand how hot, baked mayonnaise can actually taste good, but you know what it really does. Even knowing that I like it baked in dishes such as hot artichoke dip I am still skeptical every time I try a new recipe that involves baking with mayonnaise. Tonight’s recipe was no exception. After reading the recipe I thought these are going to taste like hot mayonnaise… but once again I was proven wrong. I guess I need to just accept the fact that I am an all around fan of mayonnaise cold or hot.

To make the chicken tenders you start by mixing the panko with salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. I would highly recommend not substituting a different kind of bread crumb for the panko. You can now find panko in almost every grocery store and it really is the best for this recipe. Then you trim the chicken tenders to remove any of the exposed tendon if they have it. Then in another bowl mix the mayonnaise, hot sauce (I used wing sauce), cayenne, and salt together. Then add the chicken tenders to the mayonnaise mixture and make sure each one gets a good coat on it. Then take each chicken tender and roll it around in the panko mixture and then place them on a rimmed baking sheet. Preheat the broiler for at least ten minutes. Once the broiler has been thoroughly heated then put the baking sheet in making sure it is far enough away from the flames to not burn the breading. Let them broil for about 6 minutes on each side. While they are broiling mix the blue cheese, sour cream, milk, salt and pepper together in a bowl. This made a lot, so next time I would cut this back by half. I served the chicken tenders with carrot sticks, celery sticks, and John’s slaw.

These really exceeded my expectations! They were crisp on the outside and moist on the inside. They had a little bit of a kick from the wing sauce and cayenne without being too spicy. They were really simple and quick to make in fact I think tonight was the earliest we have eaten dinner in a long time. These were excellent as an entrée, but I think they would also make a fabulous appetizer or great game day food (if you are watching the game at home). The blue cheese dipping sauce was very creamy and tasty. I felt like it definitely had a fresher and brighter flavor than most store bought blue cheese dressings. It did make a ton, so as I mentioned before next time I'll cut the recipe for the sauce in half. Russ and I both really enjoyed the chicken tneders and blue cheese dipping sauce. After a having the last four recipes come in at 8s I have finally broken the streak and Russ gave the chicken tenders a 10! (Hass: I think you would really like these.)

Crisp and Spicy Chicken Tenders with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce, Fine Cooking
Serves four.

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper1-1/2 lb. chicken tenders3/4 cup mayonnaise1 Tbs. hot pepper sauce (I actually used our favorite wing sauce – Phil’s)1/4 tsp. cayenne3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese (about 4 oz.)1/2 cup sour cream3 Tbs. milk

Pour the panko into a shallow dish (like a pie pan) and toss with 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.

Trim off any exposed tendon ends from the wide tips of the chicken tenders, if necessary. In a medium bowl, whisk 1/4 cup of the mayonnaise with the hot sauce, cayenne, and 1/8 tsp. salt. Add the chicken and toss with your hands to coat well. Coat each tender in the panko and arrange in a single layer on a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet. Refrigerate while you heat the broiler and make the sauce. Position an oven rack 6 inches from the broiler element and heat the broiler on high for at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1/2 cup mayonnaise with the blue cheese, sour cream, milk, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a few grinds of pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk until well combined and only small bits of cheese remain intact. Broil the tenders, flipping once, until they are crisp and golden brown in spots on the outside and cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes per side (rotate the pan as needed for even browning). Transfer the tenders to a platter or to individual plates and serve with the dipping sauce.

Serving Suggestions:

As with Buffalo wings, fresh carrot and celery sticks are perfect here.

Spring Cooking and Spring Showers

I consider myself to be a fairly patient person; however, when it comes to the arrival of Fall and Spring I just get flat out impatient. It is almost April, Easter has come and gone, our azaleas are blooming, we have had a few warm days, everything is turning green, and it is officially Spring now… but we still have colder days and I haven’t worn my flip flops yet. Today has been gorgeous our and sunny and warm and just how I like Spring to be. So, we decided to dust off the grill and have some friends over to eat outside tonight. Well, I managed to forget another major characteristic of Spring is rain. After the major drought last year I am not going to complain about the rain, but it did remind me that for some reason though we always manage to pick nights when it rains to grill out. Tonight was no exception. While today was gorgeous and sunny it started raining just about the time that Russ was starting up the coals for the grill… Lucky for me Russ doesn’t seem to mind grilling in his rain coat.

Tonight we did a somewhat early Spring meal that came from my new Jamie Oliver cookbook, Cook with Jamie. I also made an appetizer from my other new cookbook, Jamie’s Italy. Elizabeth, Seth, Mary Catherine, and Allen (and their furry ones, Wagg and Bitzy) all came over to eat with us tonight. For the appetizer I did crostini with mozzarella and chiles and some with cherry tomatoes instead of chiles. Russ grilled the slices of baguette for me and then I rubbed garlic on one side of each. I topped them off with pieces of fresh mozzarella and either some of the red chile or tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil, and torn pieces of fresh basil.

For dinner we decided on Grilled Fillet Steak with the Creamiest White Beans and Leeks. Russ and I both like a traditional steak and potato meal, but I love it when I come across a recipe that takes a new twist on the traditional. Here Jamie keeps a creamy starch in the picture, but uses white beans and leeks instead of potatoes. The recipe calls for canned lima beans and while I am a fan of canned beans I have never used canned lima beans and the thought kind of scared me (especially when I looked at the sodium in them). I do use frozen lima beans fairly frequently and decided to use those instead because while I am sure the canned are fine I am much more comfortable with the frozen. I just cooked the frozen lima beans until they were done, but not too soft in water with a little salt and pepper. When the beans are cooked go ahead and drain them and set them aside. While the beans were cooking I put the sliced leeks, thyme, and chopped garlic into the pan with a little olive oil and butter. I kept it over low heat for about 20 minutes. Many of you may already know this, but if not then here comes a fun cooking fact. The combination of olive oil and butter here is not an uncommon combination and there is a reason why he is using both. Oil has a much higher threshold for heat and butter has a lower threshold for heat, but it has more flavor than oil. So combining them the oil will help keep the butter from burning and the butter will add flavor. Back to the recipe now… Once the leeks are soft and sweet then you turn up the heat and add the white wine. Let the wine come to boil and then add the beans and a little water until the beans are almost covered (don’t cover them or it will take too long to reduce). Let the beans simmer and reduce a little until they are creamy. Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed for taste. Last add the chopped parsley, crème fraiche, and a little olive oil. For the steaks, Russ got some really pretty looking New York Strips and salt and peppered both sides. He then grilled them to medium and pulled them off to let them rest. While resting he drizzled them with olive oil and fresh lemon juice. He decided to not carve the steaks into thin slices, but rather serve them whole. We served the steaks over the beans and with a simple side salad of mixed greens with homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

The crostini were really simple and quick to put together. Russ grilled the baguette slices on the grill which was complicated by the fact that it was raining and since the grill was hotter than it needed to be (since he had prepared it for grilling the steaks since I forgot to mention to him that I needed him to do the bread too), but other than that is only took a couple minutes that had a great toasty texture to them. The mixture of mozarrella with the red chiles was wonderful! I was a little worried about the red chiles, so I did some with tomatoes too. Both were really good and I enjoyed having a little variety to them. I love simple appetizers like this and think you could come up lots of easy variations based on ingredients you have on hand or ones you love. Russ rates the crostini a 10.

Russ did a fantastic job on the steaks and they grilled perfectly. They were flavorful with great color and texture. The beans were fantastic! I love lima beans and leeks and the combination was wonderful. The crème fraiche at the end really added an extra creamy touch to the creamy beans and the parsley added a punch of flavor and freshness. The beans definitely take center stage in the dish with the other ingredients just adding to their flavor and creaminess. The steak and lima bean combination was fantastic and they both complimented each other well in texture with the chewiness of the steak and the creaminess of the beans and flavor. This was a great meal for entertaining and if I had been a little better organized and started the beans earlier then I think this is a dish that you could have ready before your guests arrive (up to where you add the crème fraiche, parsley, and olive oil) and then just turn off the heat and put the lid on it until a few minutes before you serve when you can reheat it and add the last few ingredients. Had it not been raining then we would have been outside before hand which would have allowed Russ to grill the steaks while still being with everyone. This is definitely a dish that I would recommend for Spring entertaining. Russ rates the Grilled Fillet Steak with the Creamiest White Beans and Leeks a 10.

Grilled Fillet Steak with the Creamiest White Beans and Leeks, Cook with Jamie
Serves 4

4 leeks, washed, trimmed and finely sliced
A small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
Olive oil
A knob of butter
A wineglass of white wine
1lb. 2 oz good-quality canned lima beans, drained and rinsed
A small handful of freshly picked parsley leaves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon crème fraiche
Good-quality peppery extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
7 oz. well-marbled fillet steaks, preferably free-range or organic, 1-1 and ½ inches thick
1 lemon

Sweat the leeks, thyme, and garlic with a splash of olive oil and the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan on a low heat for 20 minutes until they are soft and sweet. Turn up the heat and add the white wine. Let the wine come to the boil, then add the beans and a splash of water, so that the beans are almost covered. Allow to simmer gently for 5 to 10 minutes until the beans are lovely and creamy. Add the parsley, crème fraiche and a good glug of the extra virgin olive oil and taste for seasoning.

Heat a griddle pan until white-hot, season your steaks and pat with olive oil. Grill a 1 and ½ inch steak for 2 to 3 minutes on each side for medium-rare. You can keep them on there for longer, turning as you go, until cooked to your liking. Remove from the grill on to a dish and rest for 5 minutes. Squeeze over some lemon juice and drizzle over some extra virgin olive oil. Carve the steaks into thick slices. Divide the creamy beans between your plates and place the steak on top, drizzling over some of the resting juices.

My Notes: I used frozen lima beans and just cooked them first. Russ grilled the steaks on the Egg and let everyone slice their own steak.

Crostini, Jamie's Italy

Ingredients:
1 loaf of ciabatta bread, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 large clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half
good-quality extra virgin olive oil

Grill your slices of ciabatta. While they're still hot, rub them gently with the cut side of the garlic and drizzle with good-quality extra virgin olive oil. Finish with your favorite toppings.

Buffalo Mozzarella and Chili

Tear 3 5 oz. balls of buffalo mozzarella into quarters, then top each of your hot crostini with one of the quarters. Deseed and finely chop a fresh red chili and sprinkle this over the mozzarella. Add a little seasoning and finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Lovely with a little fresh basil torn over it.

Super Yummy Tomato Soup

As you probably know by now I LOVE soup and I love it in any form thick and chunky, thin and pureed, brothy, with meat, without meat… Russ likes soup, but I am not sure he feels quite as passionately about it as I do. He also tends to prefer just the hearty soups that include meat; however, he has a soft spot in his heart for Campbell’s Tomato Soup. This is his go to soup when he is not feeling well, but he likes it paired with a grilled cheese sandwich even when he is healthy and feeling fine. Call me a food snob, but I’ll be honest I really can’t eat Campbell’s soup unless I am super sick and no one will bring me Hot and Sour Soup or Chicken Corn Chowder from the Chinese restaurant. So, when Fine Cooking had an entire section on tomato soup I was elated because we could now both enjoy a meal of tomato soup since it wouldn’t be coming out of the red and white can. I let Russ pick which recipe we try first and he selected the Classic Tomato Soup. While the other recipes sound a little more interesting and different what better place to start than with the classic. So, I made it and I am in LOVE with this soup and once Russ eats the last can of Campbell’s Tomato Soup that is sitting in the pantry I will never buy it again because this was so, so, so much better and super easy to make.To make the soup you start by heating the oil and butter in a large Dutch oven and then adding the garlic and onion until they are soft. Then mix the flour in with the garlic and onion until they are combined. Next add the broth, tomatoes, sugar, thyme, salt and pepper. (A couple things on the can of tomatoes: First be sure and buy a high quality brand of tomatoes. Second, I realize that you are buying a can of whole tomatoes just to puree it, however, I forbid you to buy a can of pureed tomatoes for this recipe. You will be compromising the taste and it only takes a couple seconds to puree the whole tomatoes.) Bring this to a simmer while stirring and then reduce the heat to low, cover it, and let it simmer for 40 minutes. Once it has simmered remove the thyme sprig and throw it away. Then puree the soup. I used a hand blender which if you don’t have one is a very useful thing to have for making soups or smoothies (which is why Russ bought ours). Then taste it and add salt and pepper as needed. Ours needed both with a little more salt than pepper. You can then top it with any of the garnishes mentioned in the recipe. I went simple and just used a dollop of sour cream. After tasting it though I am definitely going to garnish it with thin slices of fresh basil next time.This soup is so simple and really quick to make except for the 40 minutes of simmering and the taste is fabulous! Both Russ and I were blown away with what great flavor it had! We both thought it would be good, but it was really fantastic with a light, fresh tomato flavor and a smooth texture. My only complaint is that I wish I had made more. Next time I make it I will definitely double if not triple this recipe. The leftovers will be eaten tomorrow for lunch, but this would freeze really well. It would be a great soup to make and stock your freezer with the leftovers for a cold, rainy day or really any ole day for that matter. We served ours with a side of cheese toast, but I think a small salad of mixed greens with balsamic vinaigrette would be another great side option. Russ rates the soup a 10.

Classic Tomato Soup, Fine Cooking February / March 2008
Yields about 8 cups, serves eight (Russ and I had it as an entrée, so in our case it would serve 4)

2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 large white onion, finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, smashed and peeled
2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
3 cups lower-salt chicken broth
28 oz. can whole peeled plum tomatoes, pureed (include the juice)
1 and ½ tsp. sugar
1 sprig fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 Tbs. thinly sliced fresh basil, chives, or dill, or a mixture of all three (omit if using one of the garnishes below)

In a nonreactive 5 to 6 quart Dutch oven, heat the oil and butter over medium-low heat until the butter melts. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add the flour and stir to coat the onion and garlic.

Add the broth, tomatoes, sugar, thyme, and ¼ tsp. each salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat while stirring the mixture to make sure that the flour is not sticking to the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes.

Discard the thyme sprig. Let cool briefly and then puree in two or there batches in a blender of food processor. Rinse the pot and return the soup to the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reheat if necessary. Serve warm but not hot, garnished with the herbs or dolloped with one of the garnishes below.

Add a creamy touch:
Sour cream, goat cheese, and Parmesan garnish: In a small bowl, combine ½ cup sour cream with ¼ crumbled goat cheese. Add 1 Tbs. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, 1 Tbs. thinly sliced chives, and 1 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil. Mix thoroughly and season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a dollop to each serving.
Crème fraiche, herb, and horseradish garnish: In a small bowl, combine ½ cup crème fraiche with 1 Tbs. minced fresh dill and 1 Tbs. minced scallion. Add ½ Tbs. well-drained prepared horseradish and mix well. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add a dollop to each serving.

My Sweet Tooth

For as long as I can remember I have had a major sweet tooth. My biggest weakness is candy which my family, friends, and dentist can all attest to; however, no sweet is safe around me. I am just not one of those people who can have a bag of candy or homemade cookies in the kitchen and not eat them. If sweets are in the house and I know about it then they are gone within days… okay hours… fine, I’ll fess up they are gone within minutes… So, while I love baking sweets I have to either give most of them away shortly after making them or wait until we are going to be with friends or family who join me in demolishing them. A weekend in Mentone with three guys seemed like the perfect opportunity to try a new cookie recipe or two.

I couldn’t decide between two cookie recipes I found on Smitten Kitchen’s blog, so I made both. The first is a Peanut Butter Cookie that has both chocolate and peanut butter chips in it and the second is Smitten Kitchen’s favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie. Like most cookie recipes both of these you mix the wet and dry ingredients separately and then add the dry slowly to the wet. Once the dough is formed you fold the chips into it. The only unusual part to me is in the Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe where you use cold and not softened butter. I am not quite sure why he calls for cold butter, but I imagine there is some reason I am not aware of for it. It did take longer for it incorporate with the other ingredients. I followed both recipes exactly with the exception of leaving the nuts out of the chocolate chip cookies (since apparently boys’ prefer cookies with no nuts). Both cookies required longer baking times for me, but I think the cold weather may have played a part in this. Either way be sure and watch them and just adjust the baking times as needed without over baking them.

While everyone liked both cookies the Peanut Butter were hands down the favorite. The Peanut Butter cookies had great flavor, texture, and chip to cookie ratio. I really liked not only the peanut butter flavor, but also the addition of the two kinds of chips. They were sweet, but without being super sweet. They were thick, but not chewy. They don’t really brown, so be sure and don’t over bake them waiting for them to brown on the edges. These were enjoyed by all and will certainly be repeated! The Chocolate Chip cookies were good, but nothing special and I felt like they were missing something. I will say that I do think that this recipe needs the nuts in it for the extra texture and flavor and this is probably what I sensed what missing. If you like cookies with nuts then I would love it if you gave it a try and told me how they turned out. These also spread a lot on me and ended up being a fairly thin cookie and I tend to prefer a little bit thicker texture. Russ rates the chocolate chip cookies a 9 and the peanut butter cookies a 10.

Keeping Warm in the Kitchen

I imagine that if you have read this blog at all that it is obvious by now that I enjoy cooking and baking, however, you probably also know that there are certain aspects of it that I especially love. One of those is a lazy, long weekend with no real plans and plenty of time to cook and bake. This weekend Russ, Cash, and I went up to Mentone with Allen and Gil. The boys were planning to take advantage of it being one of the last weekends in deer season and I was planning on taking advantage of the cold weather and staying inside either in the kitchen or curled up by the fire with a book. I pretty much accomplished my goal considering I didn’t leave the house, tried out three new recipes, repeated one old recipe (in addition to the Santa Fe Soup in the previous post), read the new issue of Fine Cooking cover to cover, and started a new book. Top it off with good friends, Cash curled up on his blanket and it was a wonderful, long, winter weekend!

To start the cold morning off right I decided to try out the Fastest Cinnamon Buns from the November issue of Fine Cooking. I actually wanted to make these for Christmas morning to go with the Cinnamon Bread… because apparently I didn’t think one cinnamon bread would be enough for just Russ and me…. but I ran out of time to make it and have had it on the top of my bread list to try ever since. The reason these are called the Fastest is that there is no rising involved and the dough comes together very quickly. To make the dough you toss the wet ingredients in the food processor and until it is smooth. You then add the dry ingredients and pulse until the dough just comes together. You then take it out and put it on a floured surface and knead it until it is smooth. Then roll is out into a rectangle and brush it with melted butter. Then mix the filling ingredients together. I left out the pecans as Russ is not big on nuts in his breads and apparently neither is Gil or Allen. I also used Vietnamese cinnamon that Russ gave me for Christmas which is stronger than regular grocery store cinnamon. Spread the topping evenly over the dough and roll it up. Then cut it into 12 pieces and place them cut side up in a pan that has been sprayed with Pam. The recipe calls for you to use a springform pan, however, we didn’t have one in Mentone so I used a round cake pan that worked perfectly. Then bake them at 400 F for about 20 to 28 minutes (ours took around the 28 minute mark). While they bake mix together the confectioner’s sugar, milk, and vanilla extract for the glaze. I used more confectioners’ sugar than it called for because it seemed too runny to me. You want a thick, but pourable glaze, so you will just need to add more confectioners’ sugar if it too runny or more milk if it is too thick. Once the cinnamon buns came out I poured some of the glaze over them and served the rest on the side (which was a hit with the boys).

The cinnamon buns were delicious! They are sweet with a great balance of dough and filling. This was my first time using the Vietnamese cinnamon and it was fantastic! While the buns have good balance the cinnamon really does shine and Russ even commented on how good the flavor of the Vietnamese cinnamon was – potent, fragrant, and fresh. I am generally not a fan of icing on cinnamon rolls as I find it too thick, too much, and too sweet; however, the glaze on these is just the perfect amount of extra sweetness and the gooey texture really works well with the baked buns. I think that these buns would be lacking if you left it off. Russ rates the cinnamon buns a 10!

Side note on Vietnamese Cinnamon: Usually when you use a stronger cinnamon you are encouraged to cut back on the amount called for in a recipe, but since it was my first time and I am just a baking rebel I wanted to try it with the full amount to see how it tasted. I think there are definitely recipes where I might cut back on the cinnamon if I use the Vietnamese so that it won’t overwhelm the other flavors, but I liked the strong flavor of it in this recipe. Call me a baking snob, but I am not sure I can go back to using the grocery store cinnamon… especially when Penzey’s has so many different ones I need to try!

For dinner I decided to make one of Russ’ favorite dishes, Chicken Marsala. This is a recipe of Giada’s that is for Veal Marsala and I just substituted chicken for the veal (either works great). To make this dish you start by sprinkling the chicken with salt and pepper. Then heat a skillet and add a little butter and olive oil. In batches cook the chicken for a couple minutes on each side. It will cook a little more once you pull it out and later in the recipe, so don’t cook it all the way through or you might over cook it in the end. Set the chicken to the side and add a little more oil to the pan and then add the shallot and garlic. Once this has sautéed for a couple minutes add the mushrooms. I increase the amount of mushrooms because I love them and I used a mix of white and baby bella this time. Any combination of mushrooms will do, so pick what looks best and what you like. Once the mushrooms are tender and the juice has evaporated add the remaining ingredients. I increased the amount of shallots, garlic, Marsala, rosemary, chicken broth, and rosemary sprigs since I increased the amount of mushrooms. Once this has cooked down then add a little more butter, salt, and pepper. Lastly add the chicken back in until everything is heated through. I served it over linguine with a side of spinach salad.

If you love mushrooms and rosemary then you will really enjoy this dish! The woodsy flavor of the mushrooms and rosemary is brought out and complemented by the Marsala for a delicious combination. I like to serve this over pasta to help soak up some of the extra sauce. I chopped and prepped everything ahead of time which made it come together very quickly and easily when I prepared it. Russ rates it a 9.

Fastest Cinnamon Buns, November 2007 Fine Cooking
Yields, 12 buns

Cooking Spray for the pan

For the Dough:
¾ cup cottage cheese (4% milk fat)
1/3 cup buttermilk
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 oz. (4 Tbs.) unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
9 oz. (2 cups) unbleached flour; more for rolling
1 Tbs. baking powder
½ tsp table salt
¼ tsp baking soda

For the Filling:
¾ oz (1 and ½ Tbs.) unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1 and ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground cloves
1 cup (4 oz) chopped pecans

For the Glaze:
2 and ½ oz (scant 2/3 cup) confectioners’ sugar
2 to 3 Tbs. cold whole or low-fat milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Heat oven to 400 F. Grease the sides and bottom of a 9 or 10 inch springform pan with cooking spray.

Make the dough: In a food processor, combine the cottage cheese, buttermilk, sugar, melted butter, and vanilla. Process until smooth, about 10 seconds. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda and pulse in short bursts just until the dough clumps together (don’t overprocess). The dough will be soft and moist.

Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it with floured hands 4 or 5 times until smooth. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 12x15 inch rectangle.

Make the filling: Brush the dough with the melted butter, leaving a ½ inch border unbuttered around the edges. In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. Sprinkle the mixture over the buttered area of the dough and pat gently into the surface. Sprinkle the nuts over the sugar mixture.

Starting at a long edge, roll up the dough jelly-roll style. Pinch the seam to seal, and leave the ends open.

With a sharp knife, cut the roll into 12 equal pieces. Set the pieces, cut side up, in the prepared pan; they should fill the pan and touch slightly, but don’t worry if there are small gaps.

Bake until golden brown and firm to the touch, 20 to 28 minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Run a spatula around the inside edge of the pan and remove the springform ring. Transfer the rolls to a serving plate.

Make the glaze: in a small bowl, mix the confectioners’ sugar, 2 Tbs. milk, and vanilla to make a smooth glaze. It should have a thick but pourable consistency, so add up to 1 Tbs. more milk if necessary. Drizzle the glaze over the rolls. Let stand 15 minutes and serve.

Delicious Salmon with Lentils

My Mother doesn’t like fish or shellfish, so growing up the only seafood we would ever eat at home would be tuna fish sandwiches or salmon croquettes both from canned fish. Since she did all the cooking at our house she would cook things she liked and I certainly don't blame her. I liked the tuna fish sandwiches, but was always not too happy when the salmon croquettes showed up on my plate. These were my only experiences with fish and since I only liked one of the two then I just assumed I didn’t like fish. Fast forward a few years and I decide to study abroad in Granada, Spain for a semester in college. One of the most popular meats in Spain is ham in fact there are stores that just sell ham legs, different cuts of pork, and different cured pork products. Well, as any of you know me know I don’t eat any part of the pig and haven’t since I was very young and took a favoring to pigs which has lead to a large pig collection over the years. Anyway, since I don’t eat the most popular meat in Spain and my sweet host mother, Gloria, agreed that she wouldn’t make it for me then I knew I had to eat anything else she prepared including seafood. Lucky for me Gloria is a fabulous cook and from her fabulous meals I realized that I actually love fish and shellfish! Gloria’s cooking and my introduction to new fruits, vegetables, meats, and spices really got me started on my culinary journey. My good friend Sumner always says that my living in Spain was the best thing I ever did and she is right on many levels including that it finally opened up my palate.

Tonight I decided to try Ina Garten’s recipe for Salmon with Lentils. I really enjoy legumes and prefer fresh or dried, but sometimes on week nights there is not enough time to cook them. Lentils due to their small size cook much faster than many other varieties, so they worked perfectly for a weeknight dinner. To prepare the lentils you put them in a heat proof bowl and pour boiling water over them and let them sit for 15 minutes before draining them. In the meantime you cut up the onion, leeks, garlic, carrots, and celery. The onion and leeks sauté in a little olive oil with some salt, pepper, and fresh thyme until the onions are translucent. You then add the garlic and sauté for a couple minutes. Next you add the lentils, carrots, celery, and chicken broth. Cover the pan and let them simmer for about 20 minutes. Once they have simmered you add a little red wine vinegar and check for seasoning. I followed her recipe exactly and they came out perfect!

For the salmon you heat a sauté pan on high heat for 4 minutes. You rub olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on the salmon fillets and then place them seasoned side down in the hot pan. Turn the heat down to medium and don’t touch them for 2 minutes. Then flip the fillets over and put the pan in the oven at 450. Ina serves her salmon rare, however, I prefer my fish cooked through (except for tuna) so I cooked it for about 11 minutes.

This dish was excellent and quite possibly my favorite recipe of Ina’s! The lentils are very tasty and I really loved all the vegetables with them. The red wine vinegar adds the perfect finishing touch. I told Russ that these lentils would give Frank Stitt a run for his money as they are that good. The salmon works really well with the lentils and by searing it in a hot pan the top forms a nice crust while the inside is still moist and tender. I served it with just a simple salad on the side. This salmon with lentils were fantastic and Russ rates them a 10.

Back in the Saddle or Kitchen Again

Since Thanksgiving I can count the number of meals we have eaten at home on one hand. Maybe that is an exaggeration, but it certainly seems like we have been so busy with fun holiday plans that we haven’t had many relaxing dinners at home. While we love the holidays and all the dinners and parties that come with it I was really starting to miss cooking dinner at home for just the two of us. Now that 2008 is here I am back in the saddle or kitchen rather again and loving it.

For the first meal of the year in our kitchen I went with a new to us pasta dish out of Giada’s Everyday Pasta. Russ and I both had a run in with the stomach bug over New Year’s and I’ll spare you the details, but as of now we are still craving simple, plain food – nothing too rich or spicy. We went with Pasta with Tomato and Peas and added grilled chicken to the top. The pasta dish is very simple and uses lots of pantry items and other ingredients that we always have on hand which makes it nice for a night when you don’t feel like going to the grocery store. To make the sauce you cut up the shallots, carrots, and garlic and then sauté them in a little olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Once they have softened you add the tomato paste, some of the water from the pasta, and the other seasonings. Once the pasta has finished cooking you add it along with the peas to the sauce and toss.

Giada says it take 15 minutes to make and while I didn’t time it I would guess it takes a little longer than 15 minutes, but it is still very quick and easy meal to prepare. The pasta has great flavor and while it is not anything super special it was perfect for a tasty weeknight dinner. The peas really work well with the subtle tomato flavor. The sauce just coats the pasta which I love instead of an overly saucy dish. Russ loved it and rated it a 10. It makes a ton and while I don’t always think pasta reheats well, we actually both enjoyed the leftovers for lunch the next day.

A Frozen Gift

I am sure many of you can almost impossible to buy gifts for my Mother. She always says she doesn’t need or want anything and she truly doesn’t want any “stuff” for the house or clothes for her closet. So, as December rolled around this year Jessica, Will, and I were back to trying to figure out what to get Mom for Christmas. The only things that Mom ever needs are more hours in the day or more energy to get through them. Since we can’t exactly give her either of these we decided we would go out on a limb and try a new gift idea for her – homemade frozen food. She and my Dad both love home cooked meals, but some days it is hard for Mom to find the time or energy to make them. This way she will be able to have a few stored up in the freezer for days when she wants a break, but doesn’t want to pick up Chinese food or go out to eat. After running the idea past our Dad and Mom’s sister, Aunt Judy, we decided to make one frozen meal each for her and then supply her with coupons for more meals at later dates.

For my frozen meal I decided to make a version of my mother in law’s Beef and Vegetable Soup. To make the soup you use either leftover roast beef or brown ground beef with some onions. You then add any mix of vegetables (canned, frozen, leftovers from the week, fresh), some canned tomatoes, a can of Rotel, salt, pepper, and a little Tony’s and let is simmer away. You can also add rice or pasta if you like. I used ground beef and a mix of frozen and fresh vegetables. Russ and I did a taste test and thought it was yummy and would make a great gift for Mom. I divided it into three containers and froze them. (This is pretty much the recipe, but I'll post the full recipe shortly.)

Mom loved our new gift idea and will hopefully love the soup when she tries it in the near future! The soup is hearty and filled with lots of yummy different flavors from the various vegetables. I really like the vary the sizes of the vegetables which not only gives the soup a good look, but a nice variety of textures. We served it with a piece of cheese toast per Russ' request. It is delicious for lunch or dinner and freezes and reheats very well. Russ rates the soup a 10. (I didn't get a picture of Mom from Christmas, so instead I included one of her favorite child, Bernie.)

The Manly Sandwich

Early on when Russ and I were dating I learned that he is without a doubt a meat and potatoes kind of guy or more specifically a cheeseburger and French fry kind of guy. I am pretty sure that there is nothing that Russ prefers to eat over a good cheeseburger with a side of fries. If he let himself then he could eat them several nights a week without getting tired of them. I too enjoy a good burger, but for me it is more of an every now and then kind of food. Despite Russ thinking I try to sneak vegetarian meals in on him we eat meat at most every meal, however, I would not describe our diet as a meat and potato one. While I know Russ enjoys the meals I make ever now and then I try to make something that I know caters to his meat and potato side. Tonight it came in the form of a sandwich that I knew not only Russ, but also Allen would more than appreciate.

Seeing as I have a blog I do enjoy checking out other blogs especially other food blogs. I ran across The Pioneer Woman Cooks a while back and have enjoyed following her food and non-food blog ever since. This is her husband’s favorite sandwich and I think it may now be my husband’s favorite too. To make the Marlboro Man Sandwich you sauté onions (and I did mushrooms too) in a cast iron skillet with butter. While the onions cook you cut cube steak across the grain and sprinkle it with Lawry’s season salt. Once the onions are cooked you remove them and add more butter to the skillet. Then you add the beef and once it browns you add Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, and a little more butter to it. While it finishes cooking you butter the buns and toast them on a buttered skillet. Once everything is done you layer the beef, onions, and mushrooms on the bun and I topped it with some of the sauce and sliced mozzarella cheese. To try to put something a little healthier on our plates I served it with a simple salad of mixed greens and homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

Let’s just say Russ and Allen fell in love with the sandwich and said they would be just fine eating these every day for the rest of their lives… well not the rest of their lives, but they did say they wouldn’t mind having these at least once a week. I’m pretty sure we don’t need to eat this much butter once a week, but I could see these becoming a traditional beer brewing dinner. Russ rates them a 10 and if our rating scale went higher I imagine so would the rating on this sandwich.

Holiday Cookie Baking

In elementary school I would each invite all the girls in my class over for a Gingerbread House and Cookie Decorating party every December. Mom made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers using a melted sugar mixture as glue and sugar cookies in different holiday shapes in advance. Each child would get their own house to ice and decorate with colored hard candies, gum drops, and candy canes. We would also ice and decorate sugar cookies with different colors of icing and sprinkles. This was a holiday tradition in our house for years that not only I participated in, but also Jessica and Will and there classmates. After elementary school we no longer had the individual parties or decorated gingerbread houses. However, my Mother would still make her holiday sugar cookies along with her fudge and my Dad would make his famous peanut brittle and Aunt Bill’s (a candy similar to blonde fudge). As the years passed and we all went to college and moved out of the house many of these traditions became a thing of the past. A couple years ago Jessica and I decided to begin a new family tradition of having a Saturday in December dedicated to holiday baking. For the past few years we collect different cookie recipes and narrow it down to a select few to try. The past two years Dad has joined us to help make his famous holiday candies. It has become a day that Jess and I both look forward to and enjoy spending together. From what we hear it sounds like our family and friends who are recipients of some of the goods enjoy it too!

This year we decided on three cookie recipes and two candy recipes. Apparently we were being a little overzealous as we didn’t end up having time to make one of the candies. In order to have plenty to share we tripled one cookie recipe and doubled all the others. We really put Jess’ Kitchen Aid mixer to the test this year, so next year we plan to use both our mixers to accommodate the larger quantities. The selections this year were Linzer Cookies, Chocolate Butter Cookies, Nut Crescents, and Dad’s Peanut Brittle.

Russ gave me an early Christmas gift of a Christmas Linzer Cookie set. It had a recipe that came with it that looked really yummy with only four ingredients including orange extract. The dough did require lots of chilling in the fridge at different stages, so despite the few ingredients it took a while to have it ready to roll out. Once they were baked we decided that we probably should have rolled it a little thinner. The flavor with the hint of orange and the buttery texture were wonderful. We used apricot (homemade by Elizabeth) and raspberry jam in between the two cookies which added both great color and fantastic flavor that worked with the hint of orange. I love the beautiful look of linzer cookies with their window effect and the color of the jam contrasting with the dusting of powder sugar – picture perfect!

Both the Chocolate Butter Cookies and the Nut Crescents came from the holiday baking issue of Cooks’ Illustrated. The Chocolate Butter Cookies started out well with the dark dough coming together and forming easily into smaller portions to chill in the fridge. When the dough came out we rolled it out attempting to get it to be 3/16 of an inch thick. The problem is that the dough is very difficult to work with and has to stay cool in order for you to cut the cookies out and move them to the baking tray. As you roll it out in order to get it that thin the dough warms up too much and becomes very sticky and soft. It was quite an ordeal, but in the end we rolled them slightly thicker, cut them out, put them back in the fridge to chill again and then removed them and placed them on the baking sheet. Once they were baking we had two trays with silpats and two with parchment paper (the recipe calls for parchment paper). Well, the cookies on the parchment paper burned on the bottom making them inedible…. So, we only baked them on the silpats from then on and were thankful we had doubled the recipe since we had to throw out the burned ones. The next night we go to decorate these with melted white chocolate. Let’s just say that turned into a sticky mess, so we opted for undecorated cookies. The flavor was delicious with a distinct chocolate and espresso flavors and the texture was perfect from the butter. All in all these cookies were a huge hassle and consequently we won’t be making them again which is a shame as they were quite tasty. On the other hand the Nut Crescents (usually called Mexican Wedding Cookies) came together without any trouble. We used pecans in our batter and then formed the dough into rings instead of crescent shapes. They baked up perfectly and looked pretty with their powder sugar dusting. If I don’t say so myself I think this may be the best Nut Crescent style cookie I have ever tasted. They were not dry at all as I sometimes find this kind of cookie. They had a wonderful somewhat crumbly texture that was still moist and full of flavor from the pecans. These are definitely a recipe to be repeated! So, Cooks’ Illustrated is currently 1 for 1 which means we’ll probably still seek out their holiday baking issue next year, but we’ll keep an eye out for pesky recipes!

Dad has been our guest chef for two years in a row now and we love having him join us. This year he came and made his homemade Peanut Brittle which is his Dad’s recipe. It is a fairly simple recipe with only a few ingredients, but it comes out with a great crunchy texture and tons of yummy peanuts! He hasn’t made it in several years now, but it tasted just as we remembered it.

Russ gives the Peanut Brittle a 10, the Nut Crescents and Chocolate Butter Cookies 8s and the Linzer cookies a 9. It was a very fun afternoon and a tradition that I look forward to each holiday season.

Linzer Cookie Recipe

1 cup butter
2 cups sifted Cake Flour
1 tsp. Orange Extract
1/2 cup Powdered Sugar
1 jar Raspberry or Apricot Jam

Mix butter, orange extract and sugar. Stir in 1 cup of flour at a time, mixing well. Chill the dough at least 2 hours. Roll out 1/2 the dough on cookie sheet to 1/4 inch thick and chill 30 more minutes. Cut with the Linzer Cutter without an insert. Remove excess dough and bake immediately at 350F for 12 minutes. Roll out the other half of dough on a second cookie sheet and chill for 30 minutes. Cut with the Linzer Cutter with your choice of the 6 inserts in place. Remove excess dough and bake immediately at 350F for 12 minutes. Cool completely. Dust tops with powdered sugar. Spread 2 teaspoons jam on each cookie bottom. Place tops over bottoms to create the sandwich effect. Makes 10 - 12 cookies.

Other recipes and more pictures are coming soon. The pictures above are not great since my regular photographer was out of town duck hunting. The good news is he brought home duck... so stay tuned for my first attempt at cooking duck!