Election Night Chicken

Lately I have had a hankering for chicken piccata, so tonight I decided to do a repeat of Ina Garten's chicken picatta that I made before here. I tend to not repeat many recipes as there are always so many new ones that I want to try, however, tonight I decided to go back to one that we enjoyed once before since I knew it was quick, easy, and tasty. One of the things I love about chicken piccata is the tang and bright fresh flavor from the lemon and that was what I was really craving. It was also a perfect meal for tonight since it is quick with it being election night. We ended up with plenty of time to not only enjoy a home cooked meal, but also watch all the exciting election coverage. Tonight's repeat chicken piccata was just as yummy as the last time we had it! A wonderful repeat. Russ gives it a 9 once again.

Our Old Favorite Stir Fry

Recently I talked about how my sister made the comment that I was fairly critical of stir fry recipes and I admitted that she is right (see this post). I mention that there is a recipe that there is an older Cooking Light stir fry recipe that we love that we used to make frequently and then for some reason have not made since I started blogging. Well, tonight I decided to revisit it to see if we still love it like we remember and in hopes of blogging about a chicken stir fry recipe that we really love. The recipe is for Kung Pao Chicken.

To make the Kung Pao chicken you start by adding a little bit of oil a non-stick skillet or a wok if you happen to have one. Then add the broccoli florets and some of the ginger and saute for a couple of minutes. Then add just a little bit of water and cover the pan and let the broccoli stem until it is done like you like it. For stir fries I like to have my vegatables slightly on the crunchy side. Then remove the broccoli from the pan and set aside. Add the rest of the oil to the pan along with the remaining ginger, crushed red pepper and chicken. Saute for a couple of minutes. While the chicken is cooking add the chicken broth, hoisen sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, cornstarch, and minced garlic to a bowl and wisk it all together. Then add the sauce to the pan and let it cook for about a minute until it thickens. Then add the broccoli and toss it to mix everything together and coat it with the sauce. Serve over hot rice and top with peanuts. I did make two additions to the recipe by adding bamboo shoots and onions to it. I love both bamboo shoots and onions and think they work well with the broccoli and add a little complexity and more texture to the dish. Also, the pictures are of Russ' plate without peanuts since he doesn't care for them in his food; I on the other hand love the crunch and saltiness that they add.

I absolutely love this simple stir fry. It takes little preparation, cooks quickly and is an entire meal in and of itself. Now, if you don't happen to keep ingredients like hoisen sauce, rice wine vinegar and ginger around I don't want this to turn you off from this recipe. When I first started cooking I wanted to try different Asian recipes, but was concerned that I would end up with a fridge and pantry full of bottles of sauces that I would never use again. Well, I finally bit the bullet and bought hoisen sauce and made this recipe. I now have a pantry and fridge full of Asian ingredients that all get used frequently. Back to my review... I really enjoy the slightly sweet, yet spicy sauce in this dish. The sauce really makes this for me and is part of why I am often critical of sauces in other stir fries. I think this sauce is incredibly well balanced with a hint of sweet from the hoisen sauce and a punch of flavor from the garlic and rounded out with a kick from the crushed red pepper. We usually serve this over brown rice, but tonight we used white as we were out of brown. Both work well, but we prefer the brown as white tends to be fairly bland. Russ rates this a 9.

Since Cash has not made an appearance on the blog in far too long here are a few new ones of him including one in his Halloween costume!

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.

Tagine Night

Some weeks I have more recipes I want to try than nights for cooking and then there are other weeks where I am just at a loss as to what to cook. This week fell into the latter category. So, I started perusing some of my cookbooks, magazines, and several websites looking for some inspiration. I ended up finding it online at Cooking Light’s website. I love my tagine that Russ gave me for Christmas, so when I ran across a recipe that not only used my tagine, but also sounded super tasty I was sold. So, tonight we tried an older CL recipe for Chicken Tagine with Lemons and Olives.

To start with you let the chicken marinate in a little bit of lemon juice for about 30 minutes. I did use boneless, skinless chicken breasts instead of thighs since I had some in the freezer that needed to be used. Once they have marinated then I cut them into large pieces and tossed them in the flour. Then I sprinkled the spice mixture (salt, pepper, cayenne, and tumeric) over them. Next you add a little oil to pan and brown the chicken on both sides. The chicken does not need to be cooked all the way through at this point, but I wanted it mostly cooked. Then set it aside and add a little more oil to the pan and sauté the onions, garlic, and ginger until they are soft. Next add the olives, lemon rind, cinnamon stick, and chicken to the pan. Finally add the chicken broth and bring it to a boil. Once it is boiling then you reduce the heat to a simmer and put the top on and let it slowly simmer away for about an hour. Once it is done you add the cilantro to it, however, I forgot to do this so we just topped ours with the cilantro. I served it over cous cous with a side of steamed broccoli.

This was very tasty and flavorful. I really liked the subtle lemon flavor and the tang from the green olives. It makes plenty of sauce which I liked and it was nice to put over the cous cous which soaked it up. The chicken was tender and flavorful. We both really enjoyed this recipe and while I did feel like I used a million bowls and plates while I was preparing it overall it was fairly simple to make. Russ rates the dish a 9.

Not quite vegetarian...

We recently went to the beach with some friends and on the way down Russ and I stopped and had dinner at a cute place in Milton, Florida. Russ ordered red beans and rice for dinner and it took me a little by surprise. You see I tend to think of red beans and rice as a vegetarian dish. One that I love, but that Russ would be underwhelmed by its lack of meat; however, what I forget is that it doesn’t have to be vegetarian in fact it usually isn’t. Russ and I both love beans, so I decided to put red beans and rice on the menu soon.

I didn’t have a recipe, so I went online and found an Emeril recipe that looked very tasty. It starts with dried red beans that I soaked in water overnight. When you are ready to get started drain the beans and set them aside. To get started you add bacon grease to the pan. I did this by cooking a couple pieces of bacon in the pan and removing it while leaving its grease. Next you add the onions, green pepper, and celery to the pot and season them with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Let the vegetables cook until they are soft. You can also add tasso ham as the recipe calls for, but I couldn’t find it and just left it out. Once the vegetables are soft you add the bay leaves, sausage (I used turkey sausage), parsley, thyme and ham hocks and let it brown for a couple of minutes.

In case you are waiting for me to say that I left out the ham hocks I’ll explain how Russ made sure they were included. I looked for them at the grocery store and I really did look, but I couldn’t find them anywhere. So, I called Russ on my way home to tell him that there was no ham hock in the store and I didn’t have time to stop anywhere else to look for it. Well, Russ absolutely hates going to the grocery store, but in this case he loves his pork enough that he stops on his way home and finds the smoked ham hock. So, thanks to Russ we did include the ham hocks. Back to the recipe… you then add the garlic and let it cook for a minute. Next add the beans and stock (I used homemade chicken stock). Bring it all to a boil and then lower the temperature to bring it to a simmer and leave it uncovered to simmer for about two hours. After two hours, mash about a ¼ of the beans against the side of the pot and then let it continue to simmer for about 15 or 20 more minutes until it is creamy and the beans are tender. Serve over rice and top with green onion slices.

This was very tasty. The beans had nice flavor that was both smoky and savory. The sausage complemented the beans well without trying to compete or overpower them. The beans were rather thick and somewhat creamy. I especially loved the green onions as a garnish. They not only added a punch of color, but also added a nice fresh flavor to it. Russ and I both felt like despite the beans soaking overnight and simmering for almost 2 and half hours that they still could have cooked for longer to be a little more tender. Russ also said he would have preferred if the bean mixture had not been quite so thick. Next time I can change this by not mashing the beans and by adding more stock as the mixture cooks. Overall we both thought it had wonderful flavor and was tasty meal. Russ rates it a 9.

Red Beans and Rice, Emeril Lagasse 2001

Yield: 8 servings

1 lb. dried red beans, rinsed and sorted over
3 tablespoons bacon grease
¼ cup chopped tasso or chopped ham
1 and ½ cups chopped yellow onions
¾ cups chopped celery
¾ cup chopped green bell peppers
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch cayenne
3 bay leaves
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
½ lb smoked sausage, split in half lengthwise and cut into 1 inch pieces
1lb. smoked ham hocks
3 tablespoons chopped garlic
10 cups chicken stock, or water
4 cups cooked white rice
1/4 cup chopped green onions, garnish

Place the beans in a large bowl or pot and cover with water by 2 inches. Let soak for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and set aside.

In a large pot, heat the bacon grease over medium-high heat. Add the tasso and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the onions, celery and bell peppers to the grease in the pot. Season with the salt, pepper, and cayenne, and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are soft, about 4 minutes. Add the bay leaves, parsley, thyme, sausage, and ham hocks, and cook, stirring, to brown the sausage and ham hocks, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the beans and stock or water, stir well, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and starting to thicken, about 2 hours. (Should the beans become too thick and dry, add more water, about 1/4 cup at a time.)

Remove from the heat and with the back of a heavy spoon, mash about 1/4 of the beans against the side of the pot. Continue to cook until the beans are tender and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the bay leaves. Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.

Ready for Fall

I love Fall and I get so excited about it every year and am just waiting for it to turn cool and crisp outside, so that I can make warm soups, chilies, and all the other yummy Fall and Winter dishes that I love! Like every year in the past I get impatient and at some point decide that while it is not as cool and crisp out as I would like that it is cool enough and I make my first soup, chili or stew of the season. The September issue of Cooking Light had a fantastic chili section that included a Venison, Sausage, and Black Bean Chili recipe. It just so happens that I still have a freezer full of venison and am still not quite sure what to do with it. So, this recipe kills two birds with one stone by fulfilling my burning desire to go ahead and declare it soup / stew / chili season and a way to use up some of the venison that has taken over our freezer.

To make the chili you heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and coat it with cooking spray. You then remove the sausage from the casing and add it along with the onion and garlic to the pan. I could not find spicy chicken sausage, so I went with spicy turkey sausage instead. Next add the venison to pan and cook until it is browned. I used ground venison instead of loin since we have lots of ground venison and both Russ and I prefer ground meat in our chili. Next stir in the tomato paste and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Then add the chicken broth, tomato (I used two cans of diced tomatoes), ancho chile powder, water, salt, and cumin to the pot. Cover the pot and let it simmer for about an hour. Then stir in the black beans and let it continue to cook for ten minutes until it is heated through. Check for seasoning and add salt if needed. Serve toped with goat cheese and jalapeño slices.

This was a very simple and easy chili to make in fact I made it on a weeknight and usually I save dishes like this for a weekend when I have longer for it to simmer. The venison gave it a nice flavor and worked really well with the black beans. I didn’t have a lot of ancho chile powder left, so I used some chipotle chile powder too. The combination worked well adding a nice level of heat and smokiness to it. I especially loved topping it with goat cheese. This was a nice way of balancing out the heat and adding some creaminess to it. This was a nice change for us from just the traditional chili I usually make. I really liked it, but both Allen and Russ thought it was excellent! Russ rates it a 9.

Venison, Sausage, and Black Bean Chili, Cooking Light September 2008
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup chili and 1 tablespoon crumbled goat cheese)

1/4 pound spicy chicken sausage
Cooking spray
2 cups chopped onion (about 2 medium)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound boneless venison loin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup chopped plum tomato (about 2 medium)
1 cup water
2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled goat cheese
Jalapeño pepper slices (optional)

Remove casings from sausage. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sausage, onion, and garlic to pan; sauté minutes or until onion is tender, stirring to crumble sausage. Add venison; cook 4 minutes or until venison is browned. Stir in tomato paste; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken broth and next 5 ingredients (through cumin), scraping pan to loosen browned bits; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour and 15 minutes or until venison is tender. Stir in black beans; cook 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Top each serving with crumbled goat cheese. Serve with jalapeño slices, if desired.

Back to Blogging and Cooking

So, my poor blog has been on the back burner lately. In fact cooking has been on the back burner lately. Life has been busy with changing jobs, adjusting to a new routine, and becoming an Aunt to Andrew and Walt. I have truly missed cooking and blogging, so I am excited to finally feel like I am back in a place where I can find the time for both. I have been cooking some, so you will see those posts coming up in the next few days. I do backdate them as I like to keep up with how many blog worthy meals we cooked each month. So, here we go again…

We love to grill in the summer and tonight we decided to try a new Grilled Maple Salmon recipe out of the July Cooking Light. The marinade is super simple with only three ingredients - rice wine vinegar, orange juice, and maple syrup. You put the marinade and salmon in a plastic bag and stick it in the fridge for three hours. After three hours you remove the fish and pour the remaining marinade into a saucepan and bring it to a boil and let it reduce down. Once reduced take the salmon and grill it and baste it with the reduced sauce.

This was a very simple recipe that packed great flavor with just a few ingredients. I really like the sweetness from the maple syrup and the tang and citrus flavor from the orange juice. We didn't have quite 3 hours for it to marinade, so I think it would have been even better if we had let it marinade for longer. This is a solid, simple marinade for salmon. Russ rates it a 9.

Roasting with Friends

I have mentioned several times on previous posts how one of the best parts of living in Birmingham is having both of our families within about a ten mile radius. I am not sure I have mentioned that one of the other best parts is having so many childhood friends living within that same radius. We have friends that we have known since preschool and elementary school just minutes away. While we love all our friends, old and new, it is really special to have memories with someone that date back twenty plus years. As is life not all of our friends from growing up still live here in Birmingham, however, lucky for us they tend to come and visit their families every so often and we usually get to see them too. This week Julie, Brian, and their precious little ones were in town for a few days. So, tonight Sumner, John, Julie, and Brian all came over for dinner. It was a fun time catching up, sharing some wine and food, and maybe even playing a little Wii!

I decided to make a dish that could be in the oven when everyone arrived, so that all I had to do was pull it out and place it on a serving platter when it was done. These are the types of dishes that are great for entertaining as it maximizes the time you get to spend with your guests and it allows you to have the kitchen cleaned up before your guests arrive. For tonight I made Mediterranean Chicken with Mushrooms and Zucchini from one of the recent issues of Fine Cooking.

To start you mix the balsamic vinegar, rosemary, brown sugar, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Next add the olive oil and mix it well until incorporated. Then take 1 tablespoon of the mixture and set it aside to use later. Next take your roasting pan and scatter the pearl onions over the bottom. Then add the mushrooms placing them cap side up. Stir the vinegar mixture and then brush the tops of the mushrooms with the mixture. Then scatter the pancetta over the mushrooms and onions. Next arrange the chicken pieces, skin side up, over the mushrooms and onions and brush them with the remaining vinegar mixture. Place this in a preheated oven (400) and roast for 30 minutes. While it is roasting toss the zucchini with the reserved vinegar mixture. Next combine the wine, rosemary, balsamic vinegar and salt in a measuring cup and stir together. Once the chicken has roasted for 30 minutes remove it from the oven and pour the wine mixture around the chicken. Then scatter the zucchini around and lower the temperature to 375. Put the chicken and vegetables back in the oven for 20 to 30 minutes more or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

This was a very savory and delicious dish. The chicken was tender and the vegetables were cooked perfectly. I really liked the flavor combination of the mushrooms, zucchini and onions. The rosemary and balsamic vinegar both gave great flavor that was savory and earthy. Like I mentioned earlier I love dishes like this when I am having friends over. When everyone arrived the dish was roasting in the oven and all the dishes I used doing prep were already in the dishwasher or put away. It makes for a nice relaxing dinner where you can enjoy everyone’s company. Roasting meats and vegetables is also a very simple process that if you have not tried before I would encourage you to do so. Russ rates this dish a 9.

Mediterranean Chicken with Mushrooms and Zucchini, Fine Cooking

3 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp. firmly packed light brown sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/2 cups peeled red pearl onions (6 to 7 oz.), halved if large
8 oz. cremini (baby bella) mushrooms, stems trimmed
2 oz. pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 1/3 cup)
4-lb. chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces, trimmed of extra skin and fat, patted dry
2 small zucchini (4 to 5 oz. each), trimmed, cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick half-rounds
1/2 cup medium- to full-bodied red wine, such as Merlot or Syrah

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F.

In a small bowl, mix 1 Tbs. of the balsamic vinegar, 1 Tbs. of the rosemary, the brown sugar, 3/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper; stir to dissolve the sugar and salt. Add the olive oil and mix well.

Scatter the pearl onions over the bottom of a metal, glass, or ceramic baking dish that measures about 10x15x2 inches. Add the mushrooms, cap side up. Stir the vinegar mixture to mix well; spoon 1 Tbs. into a second small bowl and reserve. Use about half of the remaining mixture to brush the mushroom caps. Scatter the pancetta over the mushrooms and onions. Arrange the chicken pieces, skin side up, on top of all, and brush with the remaining vinegar mixture. Roast for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss the zucchini with the reserved 1 Tbs. of the vinegar mixture. In a measuring cup, combine the wine with the remaining 2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp. rosemary, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Remove the roasting pan from the oven and reduce the temperature to 375°F. Pour the wine mixture around the chicken and then scatter the zucchini around the chicken, keeping it toward the edges of the pan as much as possible. Return the pan to the oven and continue to roast until the vegetables are tender and an instant-read thermometer registers 165ºF in several pieces of chicken, 20 to 30 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a warmed platter. With a slotted spoon, arrange the vegetables and pancetta around the chicken. Sprinkle the vegetables with a little salt.

Tilt the roasting pan so that the juices gather in one corner. With a large, shallow spoon, skim as much fat as possible from the pan sauce. Spoon a small amount of sauce over the chicken and vegetables. Put the remaining sauce in a pitcher to pass at the table.

Fresh Berries

This summer I have had a container herb garden again. I don’t know that I have mentioned it much on the blog, but I have enjoyed it just as much as I have in the past years. We have incorporated the herbs into many meals and they have been delicious. Even though I have loved my container garden, I dream of having an in ground, large garden someday. You see when we redid the backyard I was hoping it would work out to have a large fruit, vegetable and herb garden, but the shade, trees, layout etc. all worked against me and it just didn’t work out. It is probably for the best as I am not sure I have the time to take care of a larger garden right now, but I can still dream right and at least we have Mentone. That’s right, Mentone has a garden of sorts. There are all sorts of things growing up in Mentone and among them are blueberries and blackberries in the summer. This past weekend Russ, Jason, Allen, and I all picked berries. Thanks to Russ being a fabulous picker we ended up with lots of berries. Picking the berries was relaxing and fun and something I look forward to doing again next year. So, until I get a large garden of my own I’ll enjoy some yearly berry picking up at Mentone.

So, what does one do with lots of fresh blueberries and blackberries? Well besides eating lots of them as a snack everyday I decided to make a pie for my Dad’s birthday. There have been so many great blueberry recipes in all of my cooking magazines lately that it was a tough choice of which to make, but in the end I decided on Fine Cooking’s Black and Blueberry Pie with Lemon-Cornmeal Crust.

To make the pie you start by making the dough. You start by adding the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and lemon zest into a bowl. Then begin adding the cold butter by cutting it into the dough. Once the butter is still in large pieces add the cold shortening and continue cutting it in until it is pea size. With a fork add the lemon water until the dough comes together. Then wrap the dough in two discs and cover with plastic wrap. These need to chill for at least 60 minutes or up to a couple of hours. While the dough is chilling you can start the filling. Start by combining sugar with the cornstarch, allspice, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Then toss the black and blueberries with the mixture until they are all coated. Then set this aside. Once the dough has chilled roll out one half of the dough and roll it out over the pie pan. Let the dough fall in and cover the bottom and sides. Then add the filling into the pie. Next take the other disc of dough and roll it out. Cut it into strips and then lay these out on top of the pie in a lattice formation. Cut the remaining butter into small pieces and put them in the open spots in the lattice. Next put the entire pie in the freezer to rest for 15 minutes. Have the oven preheated to 425 and put a baking sheet in to let it heat up. Remove the pie from the freezer and brush the dough with melted butter and then sprinkle with sugar. Put the pie on the heated baking sheet and let it bake for 15 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 375 and let it bake for an additional 60 to 80 minutes or until bubbly in the center. Let it rest and cool prior to serving.

This was an excellent pie. I really liked the subtle lemon flavor that was in both the dough and berries. The cornmeal in the dough added nice texture and flavor and overall the dough was easy to work with when it came to rolling out and forming the crusts. The berries were center stage as they should be and had great flavor and texture. Russ and I both felt like it could have been a touch sweeter, so next time I would increase the sugar in the berries slightly. I really liked the combination of black and blueberries and felt like the proportions worked out really well. Overall this was a wonderful pie with fantastic fresh, hand picked berries. Russ rates it a 9.

Black and Blueberry Pie with Lemon-Cornmeal Crust, Fine Cooking

For the dough:
9 oz. (2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour; more as needed
1/3 cup fine yellow cornmeal
1 Tbs. granulated sugar
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 tsp. table salt
6 oz. (12 Tbs.) cold unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces
2 oz. (4 Tbs.) cold vegetable shortening
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice combined with 1/4 cup ice-cold water

For the filling:
2/3 cup plus 1 Tbs. granulated sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/8 tsp. ground allspice
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. table salt
5 cups room-temperature blueberries (1 lb., 10 oz.), washed and drained on paper towels
2 cups room-temperature blackberries (10-1/2 oz.), washed and drained on paper towels
1/2 oz. (1 Tbs.) cold unsalted butter
1 oz. (2 Tbs.) melted unsalted butter

Make the dough: In a large bowl, stir the flour, cornmeal, sugar, lemon zest, and salt. Using a pastry blender or two knives, begin to cut the butter into the flour. While the butter is still in large pieces, add the shortening to the bowl and continue to cut the fat into the flour until most pieces are the size of large peas.
With a big fork, stir in the lemon water, 1 to 2 Tbs. at a time, until the mixture looks shaggy but is moist enough to hold together when pressed. With well-floured hands, gently gather and press the dough into two equal disks, handling it only enough to make the edges of the disks reasonably smooth. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least 60 minutes, but preferably 2 to 4 hours, before rolling.
Roll the bottom crust: Roll one disk of the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 13-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Gently transfer the dough to a 9-inch metal, glass, or ceramic pie plate (I like to fold the dough in half and unfold it into the pan). Don't stretch the dough as you line the pan, or it will spring back when baked. If necessary, trim the overhanging dough to 1 inch from the edge of the pan. Refrigerate until needed.

Make the filling: In a large bowl, whisk 2/3 cup of the sugar with the cornstarch, allspice, cinnamon, and salt. Add the blueberries and blackberries and toss gently until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

Fill and top the pie: Roll the second disk of dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 13-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into 3/4-inchwide strips. Pour the fruit filling into the pastry-lined pie plate, being sure to include any dry ingredients remaining in the bowl. Lay five of the dough strips over the pie, parallel to each other and spaced evenly (use longer strips in the center of the pie and shorter strips near the edges).
Carefully fold back the second and fourth strips a little past the center of the pie and lay a long strip of dough across the center of the pie, perpendicular to the other strips. Unfold the second and fourth strips over the perpendicular strip.
Next, fold back the first, third, and fifth strips and lay a new strip across the pie, perpendicular to the folded strips. Unfold the three strips over the new strip.
Use this alternating technique to weave in three more strips (two go on the other side of the pie), completing the lattice top and evenly covering the pie. Trim the strips to overhang the pie by 3/4 inch.
Roll the overhanging bottom dough and the strips together into a cylinder that rests on the edge of the pie pan.

Crimp the edge. Cut the cold 1 Tbs. butter into small pieces and dot over the open areas of the lattice. Freeze the assembled pie for about 15 minutes to relax the dough.

Meanwhile, position a rack in the center of the oven and set a foil-lined heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet on the rack. Heat the oven to 425°F. Just before baking, brush the lattice top with the melted butter and sprinkle with the remaining 1 Tbs. sugar. Put the pie on the heated baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F and bake until the fruit is bubbling consistently at the center of the pie, 60 to 80 minutes more. This is important—if it isn’t bubbling near the center, it hasn’t thickened yet. If the crust starts to get too brown, cover it loosely with foil during the last few minutes of the baking time.
Let the pie cool to just warm before serving.
The dough can be made up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated, or up to 2 months ahead and frozen. And the baked and cooled pie can be stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Hot Off the Grill

July is proving to be one of our busiest months of the year. I am in the midst of changing jobs, we went to the beach for several days for the 4^th, and we just seem to have lots of plans with friends and family. While we are having a very fun, busy month we are not finding much time to cook or grill. July for some reason just begs you to grill out and bake with fresh berries and we really have not had time for either. So, tonight we decided to dust of The Egg and finally grill out some chicken.

The latest issue of Fine Cooking has a tasty recipe for Grill-Roasted Honey Barbecue Chicken that I had been dying to try. To prepare the chicken you start by butterflying it which I happily let Russ handle. While he was doing this I started making the rub. In a small bowl you mix the olive oil, salt, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, fresh thyme, black pepper, chipotle pepper, and garlic together. One the chicken is butterflied and patted dry you spread the rub all over the skin side and let it sit for about 30 minutes. While it rests you can go ahead and make the honey glaze. To make the glaze you combine the honey, soy sauce, ketchup, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, cider vinegar, and chile paste in a small bowl. You then take ¼ a cup of the glaze and set it aside. Once the chicken has rested you grill it. I would tell you how to do this, but I really don’t know as Russ is the grill expert in our house. Fine Cooking does give great instructions in the recipe if you are not familiar with grilling. You do brush the glaze on the chicken while it is on the grill. Once the chicken is done you remove it from the grill and serve it with the remaining glaze drizzled over it.

This chicken just screamed summer grilling! It had a wonderful tasty outside with tender, juicy meat on the inside. I really liked the sweetness that the honey added to the dish and the overall balance of all the delicious flavors in the rub and glaze. The drizzled glaze on the chicken once it is done just makes the dish. This was a wonderful meal that we would recommend if you are looking for a fun meal to grill on a hot summer night. Russ rates the chicken a 9.

Grill-Roasted Honey Barbecue Chicken, Fine Cooking

2 Tbs. olive oil
2-1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. sweet paprika, preferably Hungarian
1 tsp. light brown sugar
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. chipotle chile powder
1 clove garlic, minced
4-lb. chicken, butterflied, patted dry
1 recipe Honey Glaze

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, salt, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, thyme, black pepper, chipotle powder, and garlic. Rub all over the chicken and between the breast meat and skin. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours or let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Set aside 1/4 cup of the honey glaze for drizzling over the cooked chicken.

Gas-Grill Instructions:

Heat all burners of a gas grill to medium low. An oven thermometer resting on the grill grate (over the hot zone of the charcoal fire) should register about 450°F with the lid down, or you should be able to hold your hand a couple of inches above the grill for 3 or 4 seconds. If it’s hotter than this, lower the burners slightly. Brush the grill grates with a stiff wire brush and then wipe with a lightly oiled wad of paper towels.

Set the chicken, skin side down, on the grill, cover, and cook until it’s nicely browned and easily releases from the grates, 5 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully during this stage and if a flare-up occurs, move the chicken away from the flames until they die down. If necessary, squirt the flames with a little water to quench them.

For a three-burner gas grill, turn the middle burner off and set the front and back burners to medium low. For a two-burner grill, turn the back burner off and set the front burner on high.

Move the chicken to the cooler zone of the grill (an oven thermometer set on the cooler part of the grill (with the lid down) should register about 350°F). Brush the bird with some of the glaze, cover, and cook, brushing with the glaze every 5 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thighs registers 165° to 170°F, about 30 minutes. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 minutes. Carve and serve drizzled with the reserved glaze.

Charcoal Grill Instructions:

Prepare a charcoal fire with a hot zone and a cooler zone by pushing all the coals to one side of the grill. An oven thermometer resting on the grill grate (over the hot zone of the charcoal fire) should register about 450°F with the lid down, or you should be able to hold your hand a couple of inches above the grill for 3 or 4 seconds. If it’s hotter than this, let the coals cook down. Brush the grill grates with a stiff wire brush and then wipe with a lightly oiled wad of paper towels.

Set the chicken, skin side down, on the grill over the hot zone of the fire, cover, and cook until it’s nicely browned and easily releases from the grates, 5 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully during this stage and if a flare-up occurs, move the chicken away from the flames until they die down. If necessary, squirt the flames with a little water to quench them.

Move the chicken to the cooler zone of the grill (an oven thermometer set on the cooler part of the grill (with the lid down) should register about 350°F). Brush the bird with some of the glaze, cover, and cook, brushing with the glaze every 5 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thighs registers 165° to 170°F, about 30 minutes. Check on the fire occasionally; it may be necessary to add fresh charcoal as the fire dies down. Let rest on a cutting board for 5 minutes. Carve and serve drizzled with the reserved glaze.

Honey Glaze, Fine Cooking
Yields about 1/2 cup.

1/4 cup honey
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. ketchup
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. cider vinegar
1/2 to 1 tsp. Asian chile paste, like Sriracha

In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients. Set aside 1/4 cup of the glaze for drizzling over the cooked chicken.

The glaze may be made up to 3 days ahead.

Loaded Baked Potatoes

Without realizing it I am pretty much keeping with the same theme of the last post where I left out a major ingredient in the recipe only this time I left out or rather didn't make the main part of the meal. Russ and I watched an episode of Tyler’s Ultimate and saw his Ultimate Surf and Turf, but instead of making the surf or the turf we decided to make the Ultimate Stuffed Potatoes that he made as a side. It just seemed like the perfect meal for a Sunday night – a baked potato filled with broccoli and oozing with cheese. Yum! For the record the surf and turf both looked very tasty, but for tonight we were all about the loaded potatoes!

To make the Ultimate Stuffed Potatoes you start by baking the potatoes. Tyler has you pierce the potatoes with a fork and then rub them with olive oil and salt. Then let them bake at 400 for about an hour. This will give you a nice crisp skin. While the potatoes cook you start making the filling. First start by cooking the bacon. Cut it into a medium dice and then cook it. Once it is cooked remove it from the pan and pour off the oil. Then in the same pan (with the yummy brown bits on the bottom) combine the butter and flour and then slowly whisk in the milk. I went ahead and used whole milk as the recipe called for, but next time I might try something a little lighter to save a few calories. Next fold in about 2 cups of the cheese until it is melted and incorporated. In the meantime go ahead and blanch the broccoli florets (you can steam them instead if you prefer). Once the cheese has melted into the sauce remove it from the heat and add the bacon, broccoli, chopped chives and season it with salt and pepper. Then remove the potatoes from the oven and cut a slit in the top and fill with the yummy cheese and broccoli mixture. Then top with a little more cheese and put it back in the oven for a couple of minutes until the cheese on top melts. Serve immediately.

These were delicious! The cheese sauce was rich, cheesy, and oozed out of the potatoes. I loved the broccoli and how it played such a key role in the dish and complemented both the potato and the cheese. It also added nice texture and a bright punch of color to the dish. As for the potatoes while I don't bake potatoes very often from now on when I do this is definitely the method I will use. I loved the crisp, salty skin and the soft inside. These were tasty and cheesy and a perfect Sunday night one dish meal. Russ rates the stuffed potatoes a 9.

Without the Beans...

It is not uncommon for me to make minor tweaks to recipes. Sometimes it as simple as just not measuring ingredients, but eyeballing them or swapping out one ingredient for another or leaving out a minor ingredient. Well, tonight I did something I haven’t done before… I intentionally left out a major ingredient. Jamie Oliver recently did an episode titled “Peas and Broad Beans” and I decided to make his Quick Sausage Meatballs with a Tomato and Basil Sauce, Spaghetti, and Sweet Raw Peas from it only I left out the peas. Now I know I said it was intentional, but that is not exactly the truth. The truth is I looked for the peas at the store, but I just went to the regular grocery store and not a vegetable market or a grocery store with more variety and consequently didn’t find them. So, I made the call to go ahead with the recipe and leave out the peas, which was disappointing as I was curious how the raw peas would work in the recipe. In the end the recipe was delicious despite my leaving out the peas, only I am still left wondering what it would have been like had I included them… I guess there is always next time.

To make Jamie’s Quick Sausage Meatballs with a Tomato and Basil Sauce, Spaghetti, and Sweet Raw Peas you start by snipping the end of the casing on the sausage (I used turkey sausage instead of pork) and then pushing the meat out into imperfect balls. These then sauté in olive oil until they are cooked through. While the sausage meatballs are cooking go ahead and start the water for the spaghetti and once it comes to a boil salt it and add the pasta. Once the meatballs are just about done cooking add some herbs to the pan. I used chopped fresh thyme, basil and parsley. In order to cut down the number of pans I was using I removed the sausages from the pan and then made the tomato sauce in the same pan where as the recipe calls for doing them in separate pans. To make the tomato sauce you start by heating olive oil and adding chopped garlic and basil stalks to it. Once these have cooked for a couple of minutes add some of the basil leaves and the cans of tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring this to a simmer and break up the tomatoes with a spoon or spatula and add a swig of balsamic vinegar to the dish. At this point I added the meatballs into the tomato sauce and let it simmer until everything was hot and incorporated. Serve over the pasta and top with fresh basil and Parmesan cheese.

As the recipe name indicates this really is a quick meal. It came together in very little time and was easy to do. I loved the simple tomato sauce, which had a great fresh flavor from the herbs and a little kick from the vinegar. I thought the sauce was so tasty that I would have been happy without the meatballs. However, the sausage meatballs were the easiest meatballs I have ever made and they did add nice texture and density to the dish. Russ loved the meatballs and thought they really completed the meal. While I was disappointed to not have the fresh beans to include in the dish, it was a wonderful meal that was perfect for a weeknight dinner. Russ rates the meal a 9.

My First Time Cooking Game Meat

My palate was opened up to a whole new world of foods and flavors when I finally gave in to my picky eating and started simply giving more foods a try. This really started when I was living abroad in Spain during spring semester of my sophomore year of college and has continued ever since. Now (with the exception of pork) I will try almost anything at least once. Russ is the same way and since we have been married I have exposed him to some fruits and vegetables that he either hadn’t tried before or didn’t think he liked. He now loves butternut squash, pumpkin, and mangos and while he still isn’t a huge fan of zucchini if I make it with enough cheese he likes it. I on the other hand have been opened up to a new array of meats – game meats. While my Dad and brother have always eaten game meat (especially quail and dove) the females in my family have always taken a pass with them. Russ orders them at restaurants sometimes and I have found that I love elk and while I am not a big fan of quail or dove I’ll still give them a try if they are prepared in a new way. I have also been introduced to venison and currently have a freezer full of venison. It is true that it tastes similar to beef, but is leaner which is I think why I am not totally sold on it yet… I miss the fat… Since we have lots of venison right now I decided to give cooking game meat a try for the first time. So, here goes….

If you read this blog at all then you will know that Russ and I love Jamie Oliver and his new show Jamie at Home. He did a mushroom episode a while back and one of the dishes he made was a Wild Mushroom and Venison Stroganoff. At the time we didn’t have a freezer full of venison, but we both made a mental note that when we did this would be a good recipe to try. To start you sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil until they are soft and golden. Once they are done set them aside. Next season the meat with salt, pepper, and paprika. Then add a little more olive oil to the pan and add the mushrooms. Now Jamie went out in the woods and found these amazing Chicken of Wood wild mushrooms. They looked fabulous, but not to my surprise Publix didn’t have them. So, I used a mix of baby Portobello and shitake mushrooms. Once the mushrooms have started to brown add the meat. Next add the parsley stalks and add the cooked onions and garlic back to the pan. Then add the butter and brandy. Now Russ actually added the brandy for me and while he tried to get it to flambé it just didn’t work (I think it was more the pan than Russ’ flambé skills). This was a concern in our home considering how frequently I set of the smoke alarm and the still infamous burnt popcorn… that is why Russ handled the brandy. After it has simmered for a few minutes add the lemon zest and crème fraiche and season to taste. I added a little more salt and pepper at this point. Finally serve over rice and top with parsley leaves, more crème fraiche, and sliced gherkins (yes, really gherkins… I was surprised too, but they really go well with it).

This turned out really well with one major exception… I overcooked the venison. In hindsight I should have just seared the pieces of venison on each side and then let them finish cooking while I finished the dish. I didn’t cook them all the way through when I sautéed them, but I did let them cook longer than needed. Since venison is so lean (I still miss the fat…) it is really important to not over cook it. Aside from my error with the meat the dish was delicious. I was a little concerned about serving what I consider to be a more Fall / Winter dish in June, but the sauce is really on the lighter side since it only has a little bit of crème fraiche in it. It is not a typical heavy, cream based stroganoff sauce, but it still has a smooth, . I have to say that the highlight for me was the sliced gherkins. I am really not a huge fan of gherkins and I came so close to leaving them out, but I decided to bite the bullet and give them a try. I can’t explain it, but the slightly sweet, little green gherkins go so well with this dish that you just have to include them (and if anyone in Birmingham does just this I have a rather large jar of gherkins hanging out in my fridge that I am happy to share). All in all this was a very good. Russ rates it a 9.

Pasta with Lots of Olives

I love it when I get a new Fine Cooking, Cooking Light and Cooks’ Illustrated all within a few days of each other! I spent time going through all three and this past weekend read out a list of recipes to Russ to let him pick one for dinner one night this week. He chose a pasta dish from the new Cooks’ Illustrated.
To make the pasta dish you start by mincing the garlic, chopping the olives, and slicing the sun dried tomatoes. Mix these three along with the olive oil, anchovies, tomato paste, and red pepper flakes in a bowl and set aside. Then you can make the bread crumbs, but I decided to skip this step for the sake of time. While I think they would add a nice crunchy texture to the top I didn’t have the time for them tonight. Next get the pasta cooking and while it is going put the olive mixture in the skillet and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Once it has cooked for a few minutes add some of the pasta water to the pan and let it continue to cook. Then add the cooked pasta to the sauce and toss it together. Finally add the cheese, parsley and basil to the dish and toss. Add additional pasta water if it is needed. I added slices of turkey sausage as Russ is not a big fan of meals without meat. Serve it with a lemon wedge.

The pasta was very tasty! If you love olives then this is a great dish for you as the olives are the dominant flavor. I love the combination of salty olives and the somewhat sweet and savory sun dried tomatoes. The fresh herbs really add a nice pop of color along with a fresh from the garden flavor. I was a little skeptical of serving it with a lemon wedge, but it really did work well with the flavors and I felt like it brought out the flavors of the fresh herbs even more. As for the sausage… Russ, the meat eater himself, felt like it would have been better without it. I certainly don’t think you need to add meat to this dish at all. Russ felt like grilled chicken sliced over the top would have gone well with it. I think if you are going to add meat then that is probably the way to go, but next time I’d rather put the time towards the bread crumbs and skip the meat. All in all this was a wonderful pasta dish. Russ rates it a 9.

Pasta with Olives, Garlic, and Herbs, Cooks’ Illustrated July and August 2008
Serves 4 to 6

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon anchovy fillets (4 to 6 fillets)
¼ - ½ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
¼ cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed, patted dry, and cut into thin strips
1 cup pitted kalamata olives rinsed and coarsely chopped (For a milder olive flavor, use manzanilla olives in place of kalamata.)
2 large slices white sandwich bread (about 3 ounces), torn into quarters
1 and ¾ teaspoons table salt
1 pound mezze rigatoni or fafalle
2 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 cup)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 ½ cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
Ground black pepper
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Combine 3 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon garlic, anchovies, tomato paste, red pepper flakes, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Pulse bread in food processor until coarsely ground, about 16 one-second pulses. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in 12 inch skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add bread crumbs and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in remaining tablespoon garlic and ¼ teaspoon salt. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant and bread crumbs are dark golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Transfer to plate to cool. Wipe out skillet with paper towels.

Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in Dutch oven over high heat. Add pasta and remaining 1 ½ teaspoons salt. While pasta is cooking, return now-empty skillet to medium heat and add olive mixture. Cook until olive mixture is aromatic and oil has turned rusty red, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove ¾ cup pasta cooking water from pot and add to skillet. Bring to simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat while pasta finishes cooking.

When pasta is just shy of al dente, drain pasta, reserving ½ cup of pasta cooking water, and transfer back to Dutch oven. Add olive mixture to pasta and toss over medium heat until pasta absorbs most liquid, about 2 minutes. Stir in ½ cup Parmesan. Adjust consistency of sauce with reserved water. (Sauce should cling to pasta but not be too loose or runny.) Remove pot from heat and stir in parsley and basil; adjust seasoning with pepper. Serve, passing lemon wedges, remaining Parmesan, and bread crumbs separately.

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.

Simple Fish with a Fancy Relish

I love a three day weekend (of course who doesn’t)! For Memorial Day weekend we went up to Mentone with a few friends to relax and enjoy the nice the weather. As I mentioned in my last couple of posts May has been a really busy, fun month. It just seems like we have been going non-stop, so I told Russ earlier this week that while I love cooking I just didn’t have the time or energy to do any menu planning or shopping for this weekend. Being the sweet husband that he is he planned out all of the meals and did all of the grocery shopping. He also included eating out one night at Canyon Grill, one of our favorite restaurants! I had a delicious halibut that was pan sautéed and served with capers and lemons juice (piccata style). It was wonderful! The next day I was relaxing on the porch and reading my most recent copies of Cooking Light and Fine Cooking and found lots of recipes for halibut. Since I enjoyed my halibut so much at Canyon Grill I decided to put it on the menu for this week.

I decided to try the Fire-Roasted Pepper Relish from Fine Cooking and serve it over halibut. To make the relish you first roast the peppers. Now, I normally would roast my own peppers, but a friend of mine recently gave me a jar of fabulous fire-roasted red peppers, so I decided to use those tonight. Whether your roast your own or use jarred you slice the peppers into wide strips. Put them in a bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix everything together and let it sit while you cook the fish. Originally Russ was going to grill the fish outside, but since it was raining we decided to pan sauté it inside. I simply rubbed the fish with a little olive oil and sprinkled it with salt and pepper. I then got my sauté pan hot and put the fish side down and let it cook for several minutes on that side. I then flipped it (so the skin side is down) and let it cook a few more minutes. I served the relish on top of the fish with a side of roasted green beans.

I love roasted red pepper, olives, and capers, so it was no surprise that I loved the relish. It had a wonderful mix of shapes and sizes that gave great texture combined with the soft flakiness of the fish. I like that the mildness of the halibut was complemented by the bright flavors of the relish. Our only complaint was that the parsley didn’t seem to fit with the rest of the flavors and tasted a little off. I’ll be honest I am not sure if we didn’t just get a not so great, not so fresh bunch of parsley at the store (all the more reason I need to finish up my herb garden outside!). Either way, next time I think I will skip the parsley and use either cilantro or basil. All in all this was a delicious, simple, quick and easy meal that was perfect for a weeknight. Russ rates the halibut with the relish a 9. He said that it would have received a 10 had the parsley not been included.

Fire-Roasted Pepper Relish, Fine Cooking
Yields about 2 cups

Serve over grilled steak, chicken breast, or fish fillet such as halibut or swordfish. The recipe calls for both parsley and cilantro, but feel free to use other herbs like sliced chives or chopped basil.

3 red or orange bell peppers
¼ cup pitted Nicoise or Kalamata olives, halved
¼ cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, very roughly chopped
¼ cup fresh cilantro, very roughly chopped
2 Tbs. thinly sliced scallions
2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. capers, rinsed
½ tsp. minced garlic
½ tsp. minced jalapeno or Serrano
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon plus a squeeze of lemon juice
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Prepare a hot gas or charcoal grill fire. Cut the tops and bottoms from the peppers and cut the peppers into 3 or 4 flat pieces, discarding the tops, seeds, and ribs. Grill the pepper sides and bottoms skin side down until blistered and charred all over; 6 to 8 minutes. Put the peppers in a bowl and cover with a plate. Let sit until cool enough to handle. Peel the charred skin and discard. Don’t be too concerned if flecks of skin remain attached. Cut the peppers into bite-size pieces or wide strips.

Put the pepper pieces in a medium bowl and add the remaining ingredients, stirring well and seasoning to taste with lemon juice, salt, and pepper.

Make ahead: The relish keeps well in the refrigerator in a sealed container for at least a week. It’s best to make it a couple of hours ahead to allow the flavors to develop.