http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBjLW5_dGAM
Don't try this one at home!! Strictly for the professionals! Enjoy!
Friday, September 25, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Potato Pizza
This is surprisingly good, but wouldn't make a dinner by itself like a good ol' delivery-type-pizza-with-2-pounds-of-cheese! I usually make this when I make a few kinds of "gourmet" pizzas and a salad. This one takes some planning ahead, so we can't put this in the "quick dinner in a pinch" category.
1. Make the pizza dough found here on my blog (a few months ago) the day before (same day works too, just don't refrigerate).
2. Make the melted onions well ahead, like at least an hour or 2.
Melted Onions (make ample and refrigerate the rest for other uses)
Thinly slice 2 or 3 large sweet onions. Use a heavy skillet with tight fitting lid if you have one, or a dutch oven, anything with a larger surface area and tight lid. Heat it over med/hi heat for a few minutes with about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Sprinkle the onions with a tablespoon of sugar and liberally apply fresh ground pepper and salt. Add onions to the oil in the pan and toss around until they are well coated with oil. Keep heat a little high for a few minutes, then turn down to way low and cover. Continue cooking on low and stirring occasionally for an hour or so or until the onion slices are indistinguishable and you have a brown paste-like product (that smells heavenly!) Allow to cool to room temp. Can be made well in advance.
Potato Pizza
Preheat oven to 425. Spread out pizza dough to very thin and prebake the crust for 8 minutes on a heavy pizza pan. Remove from oven (I place mine directly on my granite counter top to stop the cooking quickly) On the prebaked crust, spread a thinnish layer of the melted onions as you would tomato sauce. Cover with thin slices or shreds of Jarlsberg or other nutty Swiss cheese. Cover the cheese with very, very thin slices of Yukon Gold (new) potatoes. Brush the potatoes with a little extra olive oil (or olive oil spray/mist) and sprinkle liberally with fresh thyme, cover with kosher salt and pepper. I also like to sprinkle a little freshly grated Parmesan over the whole thing. Sprinkle flour on a pizza peel and pick up the pizza with it. Place directly on the oven rack set in the top of the oven. Bake about 15 minutes or so. Check every 5 minutes, as ovens can be very different. You want the potatoes to be done and slightly browning, and you want the crust crisp but not burnt on the bottom.
1. Make the pizza dough found here on my blog (a few months ago) the day before (same day works too, just don't refrigerate).
2. Make the melted onions well ahead, like at least an hour or 2.
Melted Onions (make ample and refrigerate the rest for other uses)
Thinly slice 2 or 3 large sweet onions. Use a heavy skillet with tight fitting lid if you have one, or a dutch oven, anything with a larger surface area and tight lid. Heat it over med/hi heat for a few minutes with about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Sprinkle the onions with a tablespoon of sugar and liberally apply fresh ground pepper and salt. Add onions to the oil in the pan and toss around until they are well coated with oil. Keep heat a little high for a few minutes, then turn down to way low and cover. Continue cooking on low and stirring occasionally for an hour or so or until the onion slices are indistinguishable and you have a brown paste-like product (that smells heavenly!) Allow to cool to room temp. Can be made well in advance.
Potato Pizza
Preheat oven to 425. Spread out pizza dough to very thin and prebake the crust for 8 minutes on a heavy pizza pan. Remove from oven (I place mine directly on my granite counter top to stop the cooking quickly) On the prebaked crust, spread a thinnish layer of the melted onions as you would tomato sauce. Cover with thin slices or shreds of Jarlsberg or other nutty Swiss cheese. Cover the cheese with very, very thin slices of Yukon Gold (new) potatoes. Brush the potatoes with a little extra olive oil (or olive oil spray/mist) and sprinkle liberally with fresh thyme, cover with kosher salt and pepper. I also like to sprinkle a little freshly grated Parmesan over the whole thing. Sprinkle flour on a pizza peel and pick up the pizza with it. Place directly on the oven rack set in the top of the oven. Bake about 15 minutes or so. Check every 5 minutes, as ovens can be very different. You want the potatoes to be done and slightly browning, and you want the crust crisp but not burnt on the bottom.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
White Chili with Chicken
This recipe is adapted from one in the Jan/Feb issue of Cooks Illustrated. (I hear the 5th grade parents liked it at the parents' party!)
3 # bone-in chicken breasts
salt & pepper
1 T vegetable oil
3 medium jalapeno chiles
3 medium poblano chiles
3 medium Anaheim chiles
2 medium onions
6 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 - 4 oz cans diced green chiles
3 cans cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
3 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
4 green onions sliced thin (optional, for serving)
Preheat oven to 400. Stem, seed and core all peppers and cut into 3 or 4 pieces each (5 or 6 if very large). Cut onions into large chunks. Place half of the peppers, minced garlic and onions in a food processor and pulse to fairly fine bits, not pureeing, but no remaining large chunks. Remove to a large pot with the oil and begin sauteeing. Pulse the remaining peppers, onions and garlic. Place half of that batch into the pot and reserve the other half. Reserve the food processor bowl as is. Saute pepper mixture until quite soft. Remove from heat and set aside.
Bake chicken breasts on a rimmed baking sheet until tender, about 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to a temperature that you can comfortably handle. Shred meat and pour any juices from the pan into the pot.
Place 1 can of beans in the food processor bowl and add 2 cups of sauteed pepper mixture and 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Puree until smooth. Pour into pot. Add remaining beans, chicken broth, cumin, coriander and canned green chiles. Stir all and simmer for about 45 minutes. Add chicken, remaining chopped fresh chile mixture and simmer another 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice and chopped fresh cilantro. Garnish with green onions if desired.
3 # bone-in chicken breasts
salt & pepper
1 T vegetable oil
3 medium jalapeno chiles
3 medium poblano chiles
3 medium Anaheim chiles
2 medium onions
6 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 - 4 oz cans diced green chiles
3 cans cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
3 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
4 green onions sliced thin (optional, for serving)
Preheat oven to 400. Stem, seed and core all peppers and cut into 3 or 4 pieces each (5 or 6 if very large). Cut onions into large chunks. Place half of the peppers, minced garlic and onions in a food processor and pulse to fairly fine bits, not pureeing, but no remaining large chunks. Remove to a large pot with the oil and begin sauteeing. Pulse the remaining peppers, onions and garlic. Place half of that batch into the pot and reserve the other half. Reserve the food processor bowl as is. Saute pepper mixture until quite soft. Remove from heat and set aside.
Bake chicken breasts on a rimmed baking sheet until tender, about 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to a temperature that you can comfortably handle. Shred meat and pour any juices from the pan into the pot.
Place 1 can of beans in the food processor bowl and add 2 cups of sauteed pepper mixture and 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Puree until smooth. Pour into pot. Add remaining beans, chicken broth, cumin, coriander and canned green chiles. Stir all and simmer for about 45 minutes. Add chicken, remaining chopped fresh chile mixture and simmer another 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice and chopped fresh cilantro. Garnish with green onions if desired.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Absolutely Fabulous Pot Roast (Really!)
Why am I making pot roast at 8:00 on a Wednesday morning? Because we have a kickball game at 6:00 and I can't seem to remember to plan ahead. So today will be different! We will have supper ready as soon as we get home from the game...just need to remember to make the mashed potatoes some time today!
This recipe is of my very own making. I have been trying different recipes and methods for years, and I sort of guessed at this technique and it was a winner. We like ours simple. We don't use wine or shallots or a melange of winter root vegetables. Meat. Fat. Flour. Beef stock. Garlic. Salt. Pretty simple, huh?
1 3# chuck roast, I like Angus, which is uniform thickness, well-marbled, room temperature
1 tsp. pureed garlic (jar is fine)
2 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp fat of choice (we use anything from olive oil to bacon grease, your choice)
salt
2 cans hearty beef stock/broth
Preheat your oven to 475. In a heavy dutch oven or other stove-to-oven heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid heat the fat on high heat. Dab any moisture off the roast with a paper towel and lay in the hot fat (yes, completely naked!). Do not move it for several minutes as you want a nice brown crust. Turn and brown other side for several minutes. Remove from heat and spread the garlic over the top and give it a generous pinch of kosher salt (or less generous of table salt). Sprinkle the flour around the edges of the meat into the fat in the pan, stirring so it mixes with the fat. Place this, uncovered, into the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and turn the oven down to 325. Pour in the beef broth and cover. Bake for 1 hour. If you like potatoes and carrots baked with your roast, add them now and bake an additional hour. If you just want the beef and gravy, continue baking and check after 45 minutes for doneness. This will keep for a while in the dutch oven after coming out of the oven, or rewarm on the stovetop.
I remove the meat to a platter and scrape the bits off the bottom of the pot and give the gravy a good whisking over medium low heat. Then I pour it into a fat separator and let the fat rise to the top, pouring off the gravy from the bottom.
Enjoy!!
This recipe is of my very own making. I have been trying different recipes and methods for years, and I sort of guessed at this technique and it was a winner. We like ours simple. We don't use wine or shallots or a melange of winter root vegetables. Meat. Fat. Flour. Beef stock. Garlic. Salt. Pretty simple, huh?
1 3# chuck roast, I like Angus, which is uniform thickness, well-marbled, room temperature
1 tsp. pureed garlic (jar is fine)
2 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp fat of choice (we use anything from olive oil to bacon grease, your choice)
salt
2 cans hearty beef stock/broth
Preheat your oven to 475. In a heavy dutch oven or other stove-to-oven heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid heat the fat on high heat. Dab any moisture off the roast with a paper towel and lay in the hot fat (yes, completely naked!). Do not move it for several minutes as you want a nice brown crust. Turn and brown other side for several minutes. Remove from heat and spread the garlic over the top and give it a generous pinch of kosher salt (or less generous of table salt). Sprinkle the flour around the edges of the meat into the fat in the pan, stirring so it mixes with the fat. Place this, uncovered, into the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and turn the oven down to 325. Pour in the beef broth and cover. Bake for 1 hour. If you like potatoes and carrots baked with your roast, add them now and bake an additional hour. If you just want the beef and gravy, continue baking and check after 45 minutes for doneness. This will keep for a while in the dutch oven after coming out of the oven, or rewarm on the stovetop.
I remove the meat to a platter and scrape the bits off the bottom of the pot and give the gravy a good whisking over medium low heat. Then I pour it into a fat separator and let the fat rise to the top, pouring off the gravy from the bottom.
Enjoy!!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Grammy's Pecan Puffs
A friend asked about an eggless sugar cookie and, though this is not a sugar cookie, it came to mind. The kids love these!
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup ground pecans (not too fine)
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup cake flour
powdered sugar for coating
Mix butter, sugar and vanilla. Add flour, then pecans. Chill dough at least an hour. Half an hour before baking, preheat oven to 300. Roll dough into 3/4" or 1" balls. Bake at 300 for 40 minutes. While hot from the oven, roll in powdered sugar. Cool completely, then roll in powdered sugar again. Store at room temp, but also freezes well. (1 recipe never makes enough, if you know what I mean... :o)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup ground pecans (not too fine)
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup cake flour
powdered sugar for coating
Mix butter, sugar and vanilla. Add flour, then pecans. Chill dough at least an hour. Half an hour before baking, preheat oven to 300. Roll dough into 3/4" or 1" balls. Bake at 300 for 40 minutes. While hot from the oven, roll in powdered sugar. Cool completely, then roll in powdered sugar again. Store at room temp, but also freezes well. (1 recipe never makes enough, if you know what I mean... :o)
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Say your friend gives you 5 gallons of tomatillos...
What do you do? 1.) Soak in cold water to soften husks and remove. 2.) Grill them or place under a broiler until blackened in spots and softening. 3.) Whir in a food processor until mostly liquid but still a little chunky. 4.) Freeze in premeasured containers. (FYI, 5 gallons made 5 quarts of pureed roasted tomatillo.) Stay tuned for fun recipes to use this delicious concoction! I am thinking Green Pork Chili!!!
UPDATE: We made wonderful green salsa the other night with this. I partially thawed one of these containers, slid the whole block out and just cut the top off with a knife. I put the other half back in the freezer. I threw it into the Cuisinart with the top cut off a bunch of cilantro, 1 slightly heaping teaspoon of chipotle chili puree, juice of a lime, and 3 very small jalapenos that I blackened over the gas flame on the stove. A little salt & pepper and YUMMM! This would be great on grilled chicken or pork or, my fave, tortilla chips!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
How about this wonderful tip...
I love fresh tomatoes, but when they look like mine do right now (every stinking one is green, green, green) I might just use grape tomatoes in a pinch. I find that they are usually better tasting than any other store-bought ones, even during tomato season. I saw this in either Bon Appetit or Saveur Magazine:
Use 2 lids such as those from quart-sized yogurt tubs. Place 1 with the top down on the table and load it up with as many grape tomatoes as you can put in a single layer. Place 2nd lid on top of them, top side up. Use a long, sharp knife and, holding the top lid, slice between the 2 lids. Just like that you have a load of halved grape tomatoes (grapes, olives, whatever...). I love this tip because I avoid these little guys when the recipe calls for them to be cut.
Enjoy!
Use 2 lids such as those from quart-sized yogurt tubs. Place 1 with the top down on the table and load it up with as many grape tomatoes as you can put in a single layer. Place 2nd lid on top of them, top side up. Use a long, sharp knife and, holding the top lid, slice between the 2 lids. Just like that you have a load of halved grape tomatoes (grapes, olives, whatever...). I love this tip because I avoid these little guys when the recipe calls for them to be cut.
Enjoy!
Smoked Trout Dip
I was going to a party. No time to run to the store. What do I have on hand? Hmmm. Let's try this:
1-4 oz can of smoked trout in olive oil, slightly drained
1 hard boiled egg, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp finely minced red onion
1 Tbsp finely minced chive
1/2 tsp yellow (not hot) curry powder
S & P to taste
1/3 cup light sour cream
Pulse trout, egg, onion and chive in food processor just a couple of times, to a consistency of coarse crumbles. Remove to a mixing bowl and stir in sour cream and curry powder. Add salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with a few long chive pieces and an extra sprinkle of curry powder on the top. Serve with something crunchy like pita chips or bagle chips. (I think this was a hit...!)
1-4 oz can of smoked trout in olive oil, slightly drained
1 hard boiled egg, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp finely minced red onion
1 Tbsp finely minced chive
1/2 tsp yellow (not hot) curry powder
S & P to taste
1/3 cup light sour cream
Pulse trout, egg, onion and chive in food processor just a couple of times, to a consistency of coarse crumbles. Remove to a mixing bowl and stir in sour cream and curry powder. Add salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with a few long chive pieces and an extra sprinkle of curry powder on the top. Serve with something crunchy like pita chips or bagle chips. (I think this was a hit...!)
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