Chicken Tikka Masala

Ingredients:
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon table salt
2 lbs chicken breasts
1 cp plain whole-milk yogurt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium garlic cloves
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce:
3 tablespoons veggie oil
1 medium onion, diced fine
2 medium garlic cloves
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 serrano chile
2 tblspoon tomato paste
1 tblspoon garam masal
1 (28-oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1) For the chicken: combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of chicken w/ spice mixture pressing gently so mixture adheres (***after-note...had to almost triple these spices, but chicken turned out more seasoned and tasted better...would recommend adding much more than the recipe calls for***). Place chicken on plate, cover w/ plastic wrap, and refridge for 30-60 mins. In large bowl, whisk yogurt, oil, garlic, and ginger; set aside

2) For the sauce: Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering (***ummm who has a dutch oven??***). Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until light golden, 8-10 mins. Add garlic, ginger, chile, tomato paste, and garam masala; cook, stirring frequently, until fragarant, about 3 mins. Add crushed tomatoes, sugar, and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 mins, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream and return to simmer. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.

3) While sauce simmers, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from top) and heat broiler. Using tongs, dip chicken into yogurt mixture (***i used hands, was fine***), (chicken should be coated w/ thick layer of yogurt) and arrange on wire rack set in foil lined rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Broil chicken until exterior is lightly charred in sports, 10-18 mins, flipping chicken halfway through cooking.

4) Let chicken rest 5 mins, then cut into 1-inch chunks and stir into warm sauce (do not simmer chicken in sauce). Stir in cilantro, adjust seasoning with salt, and serve.

**Other notes. I didn't use cilantro, which i think it could have probably used (used oregano instead, which served as a fine substitute). Considering this dish tasted a lot better whenever it was leftovers the next day, I disagree that you shouldn't let the chicken simmer in the sauce. If anything, I would cook it less in the broiler then finish the cooking in the sauce so the juices really soak in. Overall, this turned out really well and was one of the more complex things i've done.

Potato Wedges update

I cooked the potato wedges again for the football game last night. I changed one thing...i added the olive oil and all the spices/seasoning onto a baking sheet first. Then after I cut up the potatoes, I rolled them around in that mixture. This really helped get the potatoes more crispy (although the outsides got very crispy, this insides were a little soft). They came out really oily, so i might roll the potatoes on one sheet, then cook on another. But they were mmm mmm good.

Shrimp Fettuccini

So I decided to get a little adventurous/use up what I had left at my apt. So I cooked some shrimp in olive oil. I first cooked some garlic and shallots to get that sweet smell going. Then i added the shrimp with some red peppers and serrano chilies. I seasoned the shrimp with some cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, and some a little bit of Emril's Essence. I also added some broccoli to the final dish. It was really good, good kick to the meal. Not sure how else to make this better in the future, but i'm sure i'll play w/ it later.

Tofu Results

I was SHOCKED how good this was. I actually wanted to eat the leftovers. Crazy right??? It almost tasted like how paella would taste (so in the future can definitely easily switch w/ meat or seafood)

A few notes:
- get rid of the celery, doesn't really add anything and wasn't that good.
- DEFINITELY use beans again, made it good. I used red beans and they actually worked beautifully, so i would keep it the same in the future.
- I added more spices/made it spicier. I like a little more kick, so this was good. Depends who is eating it but it was good.
- Lastly, just watch with the rice, you can tell how much you'll need to soak up the juices, i used a little more than the recipe called for.

YUM!

Tofu Jambalya

Tofu Jambalaya

1 lb extra-firm tofu, frozen and defrosted
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lg. onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup white rice
1 lg. can tomatoes, chopped in can
1/2 cup tomato juice or water
2 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme
a few drops of Liquid Smoke seasoning (optional)
red and black pepper to taste

Prepare the tofu by gently squeezing out the excess water and cutting it into 1/2-inch cubes. Set aside.

In a large, non-stick pot, sauté vegetables in oil until soft. Add rice near the end and brown slightly. Add tomatoes, water, chili powder and other seasonings, and stir. Gently stir in tofu, cover tightly and put on low heat. Cook for 30 minutes or until rice is done and liquid is absorbed.

4-6 servings

Birthday Dinner Results

Wow.... took about 4 hours worth of cooking/eating, but the meal was definitely the best/most complex meal I've cooked to date. Here are my thoughts for the future:

Appetizer: Probably need more than just bread/the blood orange olive oil. It was good, but probably got tiring after a couple of pieces.

Salmon: Differing opinions. I thought it was fairly bland, or at least you couldn't really taste the blood Orange olive oil. Personally, I would probably season w/ oranges or something, to make it even more citrusy.

Potato Gratin: This was pretty fantastic, possibly the best meal I have ever cooked. I used Crimini mushrooms instead of the Porcini (couldn't find these at the stores I went to). I also added Asiago cheese to the recipe. I would DEFINITELY recommend using cheese (asiago worked VERY well). Perhaps even use more than I did. Ended up cooking just about the same amount of time that it recommended, perhaps a little more. But really, it turned out crispy and great.

Asparagus/Sauce: The sauce actually turned out REALLY well. My mom loved it, she took all the spare and soaked it up with some bread after we were done. It was creamy, and the citrus was very mild in it. My mom recommends it would be good with fish and I think i agree. I tried some on the Salmon and it actually tasted pretty well. This was a nice way to spice up a relatively simple side of asparagus.

Dessert: I didn't post the recipe to this, but I tried a flavor combo dessert of French Vanilla ice cream, oranges (used mandarin oranges, these worked well, maybe could try blood oranges when they are in season), and then topped it all off w/ Grand Manier Liquor. The flavor combo was really great, although in the future I need to watch how much liquor i use, because a little bit of that goes a long way.

Birthday Dinner

Here's the plan for Mom's birthday:

Salmon cooked with the new Blood Orange Olive Oil I got out in California.

potato and portobello mushroom gratin

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups hot water
1 1/2-ounce package dried porcini mushrooms*

1 1/2 pounds portobello mushrooms

12 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced

4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes or white-skinned potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Preparation

Combine 1 1/2 cups hot water and porcini in small bowl. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 30 minutes. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup soaking liquid. Chop porcini; set aside. Remove and chop stems from portobellos; place in large bowl. Using small spoon, scrape away dark gills from portobellos and discard. Cut portobello caps into 1/2-inch pieces; add to bowl.

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped portobello stems and caps and sauté 4 minutes. Stir in garlic and reserved porcini and sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat each of two 13x9x2-inch glass baking dishes with 1 tablespoon oil. Combine remaining 7 tablespoons oil, potatoes, parsley, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper in large bowl; toss to coat. Layer 1/6 of potato mixture in each prepared dish (there will not be enough to overlap slices). Top potatoes in each with 1/4 of mushroom mixture. Repeat layering. Top with remaining potatoes. Pour 1/3 cup reserved porcini soaking liquid over potatoes in each dish. Cover dishes with foil.

Bake gratins 45 minutes. Uncover and bake until tops are brown and potatoes are tender, about 40 minutes longer. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Cover with foil and rewarm in 350°F oven about 20 minutes.)

*Dried porcini mushrooms are available at Italian markets, specialty foods stores and many supermarkets.

maltaise sauce for asparagus

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Servings: Makes about 1 cup.

Ingredients

2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
a pinch of freshly ground white pepper
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon grated orange zest (preferably from a blood orange
,available seasonally at specialty product markets)
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh orange juice (preferably from a
blood orange)

Preparation

In a blender or food processor put the egg yolks, the lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and the white pepper and with the motor running add the butter in a stream. Add the zest and the orange juice and blend the mixture well. Force the mixture through a fine sieve set over a small bowl and keep it warm, its surface covered with a buttered round of wax paper, set in a pan of warm water. Serve the sauce over asparagus.

Random Notes

Just a couple random notes....just had spaghetti with Emeril's Roasted Red Pepper sauce. That plus some turkey meat (added some pepper to this), had some really nice kick and was pretty good.

On the negative, I used 30-minute marinade Honey and Dijon chicken last week. This was absolutely horrendous and I need to remember to never get this again.

That is all...

Football Party

Home Made Fries- These actually turned out REALLY well. A few changes, i boiled the potatoes a little long, but then left them in the oven about 35 minutes (until they were crispy). I would also mix all the spices together first and then pour it on to spread it out. I also added a bit of Chipotle Powder to add some spicy:

3 pounds Idaho potatoes
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin

Cover the potatoes with cold water in a large saucepan and cook until almost tender. Drain and dry the potatoes. Cut each potato lengthwise into quarters. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and brush both sides of the potatoes with oil. Combine the chili powder, salt, and cumin in a small bowl, and sprinkle over the potatoes. Grill the potato wedges for 3 to 4 minutes per side until golden brown. Serve with ketchup.

Crab Dip (notes on this one, i made it more spicy by adding more hot sauce/chili powder...was great for me who likes things spicy):

One 4-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning or other seasoned salt
6 ounces fresh or canned lump crabmeat, drained
Loaf of French Bread
Bread Bowl

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Place all the ingredients except the crab in a medium bowl and blend together with a spatula. Stir in the crab. Turn the dip into the bread bowl and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes, or until heated through.

For the party we also made some sweet Nachos (only note here was that Courtney creatively used my deep-dish pizza pan to bake the nachos in...smart for large groups).

I ran out of time to make the coconut shrimp i wanted to try...but maybe i'll make that soon.

Peasant Pasta Results

Overall, this was a pretty easy recipe. I tried being a little different and tried cutting the sausage into slices (w/ casing on), rather than just having shredded meat. It was good, but i think it would be easier (both cooking and to eat) by just following the recipe . Only couple things I would try to change in the future:
1) Make it more flavorful (wasn't a bad sauce, was just kinda plain)
2) Make the sauce thicker (was a little runny)
3) Use all hot sausage (personal preference, but I like the spice more than the plain)

Peasant Pasta

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray Show: 30 Minute Meals Episode: 30-Minute Big Family Dining

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan 1/2 pound hot Italian sausage, available in bulk at butcher counter or, 2 links, casings removed 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, available in bulk at butcher counter or, 4 links, casings removed 3 to 4 cloves garlic, chopped, optional 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes 1/2 cup heavy cream Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 cup frozen green peas 24 leaves fresh basil, torn or thinly sliced 1 pound penne rigate pasta, cooked to al dente Grated Italian cheese, for passing Heat a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan. Add sausage meat. Crumble sausage meat as it browns. Add chopped garlic to the pan. When all of the crumbles have browned evenly, deglaze the pan drippings using chicken or vegetable broth. Stir in crushed tomatoes and bring the sauce up to a bubble, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir cream into your sauce, this will blush the color and cut the acidity of the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir peas and basil into your sauce to combine. Toss hot drained penne rigate in pan with the sauce, then transfer pasta to serving bowl.

Results for T-bones

Well learned a few things....

First, again learned the benefit of appetizers. I was happy I made bruschetta (I bought some pico de gallo and threw that on top of some fresh motz i bought at the farmers market). Girls loved it (cooked for my neighbors)

Second, I was VERY impressed with myself because as the one picture shows, I was juggling multiple things. HOWEVER....HUGE problem, this many things going at once, there was just too much smoke for my vent to absorb and it started filling my apartment. So BEWARE of this recipe these T-bones REALLY smoke from all the seasoning. That said, they taste fantastic! I thought the potatoes were a little on the spicy side (too much spice, need to be concerned about cooling down people's mouths in the future perhaps?), but one person LOVED them. Guess its just a matter of taste. Overall, was really happy with this recipe.

Fiery T-Bones

Fiery Hot Texas T-Bones with Chipotle Smashed Potatoes and Hot and Sweet Pepper Saute

3 whole jalapenos 3 bell peppers, choose 3 different colors 2 1/2 pounds small potatoes, such as baby Yukon gold or small red skin potatoes, coarsely chopped Salt 4 slices bacon, chopped 2 tablespoons chipotle powder, divided 1 small onion, chopped 1 cup sour cream 1 tablespoon dark chili powder 1 tablespoon ground cumin 2 tablespoons grill seasoning (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick) 2 large T-Bone steaks 1 1/2 inches thick, 2 1/2 pounds total 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, 3 turns of the pan, divided 1/4 cup bourbon, eyeball it Seed and slice the hot and sweet fresh peppers and reserve. Cover potatoes with water and bring to a boil. Add salt to boiling water. Cook potatoes until tender, 10-12 minutes. Chop and brown bacon in a small skillet and add a tablespoon of chipotle powder and onions. Cook 5 minutes over medium heat until onions are tender. When potatoes are tender, drain and return to hot pot. Add bacon mixture and sour cream to the potatoes. Smash potatoes and season with salt, to taste. While potatoes are working, combine dry spice rub: chili powder, remaining chipotle powder, cumin and grill seasoning. Rub steaks liberally on both sides with the mixture. Heat a 12 to14-inch skillet screaming hot. Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, 2 turns of the pan. It will smoke. Add steaks and do not turn for 6 minutes. Flip and cook another 6 minutes for medium rare, up to 10 minutes for well done. Remove skillet from flame and add bourbon. Return steaks to stove and flame the pan. When the fire goes out, transfer the meat to a large serving platter and pour pan juices over the top. Let meat rest for juices to redistribute. Return pan to heat and add remaining tablespoon vegetable oil to the skillet. Add hot and sweet peppers to the pan and saute them for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pile peppers alongside steaks. Remove meat from the T bones and cut into 4 portions. Top with some peppers and pile some chipotle smashers along side. Spoon drippings and juices over meat and serve.

Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Results

So today's meal was quite interesting. First off, it took a LOT longer to prep than a lot of the meals I've made before. That said, I feel like this was a next step in a little more complex cooking.

Okay, so real results...
1) BE CAREFUL (Courtney sliced her finger while peeling the potatoes badly).

2) I screwed up on how I cooked the carrots a bit (didn't boil first), but at least they still worked. Although the potatoes tasted amazing in the butter, the carrots really didn't gain too much. Perhaps try a different way in the future.

3) Although I will probably have a heart attack in a year, those potatoes were AMAZING. I put plenty of pepper on them, at that really made it taste really great, nice kick.

4) The Chicken was really interesting.... It was difficult to put the filling in (filling btw was REALLY great...chives were really good in it). I think i needed to work it in more (difficult because it got stuck on my fingers). But i was surprised by the fact that it was difficult to distribute when i ate it the filling w/ the chicken. Also, based upon the pictures, i probably needed to really coat it in flour more to get that look from the initial picture. And lastly, the chicken took FOREVER to cook. Apparently, I wasn't careful about the size of my chicken breasts (they were bigger than the 6 oz they called for in the recipe). So my potatoes and carrots were done way early and the chicken required another 15 minutes in the oven.

Overall the meal went really well, it is something that will impress people if I cook it (i think/hope), but I could have been MUCH better at executing.

Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken, Julienned Carrots and Potatoes

Okay, I mixed and matched a couple recipes this week, but the mushroom risotto wasn't looking great, so I'm subbing some potatoes instead. I'm excited about this one!

4 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
3 ounces goat cheese
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons minced chives
1 teaspoon minced parsley leaves
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Essence. recipe follows
1 large egg
2 teaspoons water
1/4 cup clarified butter or vegetable oil
Mushroom Risotto, recipe follows, if desired
Julienned carrots, accompaniment, recipe follows
Chopped fresh parsley, garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

With a chicken breast flat on a cutting board, using a sharp knife, about 1/3 of the way down the thick side, cut a deep pocket horizontally into the center of the meat about 3/4 of the way down, being careful not to cut through to the other side. (The pocket will be about 2 1/2 inches long and 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep.) Repeat with the remaining breasts. Wash hands well.

In a small bowl, mash together the goat cheese, butter, chives, parsley, thyme, lemon juice and garlic. Season with a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Divide into 4 equal pieces and form plugs to fit inside the chicken breasts. Insert 1 into each breast and press the edges of chicken meat to seal. Lightly season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

In a large shallow bowl, combine the flour and the Essence. In another bowl, beat the egg with the water.

One at a time, lightly dust the chicken on both sides with the flour, then dip in the egg, shaking to remove any excess. Place again in the flour and turn to completely coat, shaking to remove any excess. Set aside.

In a large, oven-proof skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sear until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the chicken is cooked through, 7 to 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Arrange the risotto in the center of 4 plates and place the chicken to the side. Arrange the carrots along the bottom of the plates, and garnish with parsley. Serve immediately.

Julienned Carrots:
1 pound large carrots, ends trimmed and peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

To prepare an ice water bath, fill a large bowl with water and ice. Set aside.

On a cutting board, using a sharp, heavy knife, cut the carrots in half crosswise, then in half lengthwise. With the flat edge down, cut into thin slices. Place the slices in a stack and slice into even matchstick pieces. (If a fine dice is required, these pieces in turn are chopped into equal small cubes.)

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the carrots and blanch until just tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and shock in the prepared ice bath to stop cooking and preserve color.

When ready to serve the carrots, in a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. When foamy, add the carrots and cook, stirring, until warmed through and glossy, about 1 minute.

Remove from the heat, sprinkle with the parsley and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings

Sauteed Fingerling Potatoes:
1 1/2 pounds fingerling potatoes
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Special equipment: A mandoline

Using the mandoline or a knife, slice the potatoes into thin rounds of uniform thickness. Melt the butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and saute the potatoes until cooked through with a golden, crispy crust. Season with the salt and pepper.

Random Cooking

So it had been awhile since I've cooked anything, and I was getting the itch. I mean, I didn't have anything to cook but some random leftover types, but turned into a great meal. I had the leftover chicken that was marinaded in italian dressing (frozen from the bbq that i didn't use). So I ended up baking that, but a little more fresh italian dressing, salt and pepper on it and baked it. I cooked up some rice, and made some frozen broccoli & cheese. Ended up being really really tasted, and will give me a couple lunches this week :)

Birthday Cookout

My menu included: Chipotle Chicken Kabobs, Cuervo Shrimp Kabobs, Burgers and Hot Dogs. People always love my burgers how I make them, so I wasn't too concerned about that. But the Kabobs were a new thing. I just marinated the chicken overnight in Chipotle marinade, and people really did RAVE about the chicken. I did realize that I have to get more veggies. I included zuccinni, squash, mushrooms (people liked the mushrooms a lot) and red peppers. Overall, they just didn't go as far as I thought. Oh, also, i need to cut my chicken smaller than I thought. However, i was most proud of the shrimp, because that was a legit recipe. I added a little extra jalapeno, and I would actually encourage adding some more in the future to give this a little more kick. I bet mixing in some other peppers would probably be good as well. Although people seemed to really love how this turned out. Oh, and this sauce makes PLENTY for the recipe (i doubled it for double the shrimp and still had a lot of the bowl left). Overall was a great cookout.

8 metal skewers (wooden skewers that have been soaked over overnight may be substituted)24 medium-sized shrimp, cleaned, peeled, tail on
1 large red bell pepper, cored, deseeded, diced into 8 large square pieces
1 zucchini, sliced in 1/4-inch round pieces
8 button mushrooms, whole
Marinade:
2 cups orange juice
2 limes, juiced
1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded, stem removed, roughly chop
1 ounce Cuervo 1800 tequila
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon cumin
Salt and ground black pepper

Preheat outdoor grill (or hot air balloon, if handy).
To assemble, onto a skewer, first slide on a shrimp, followed by a red pepper, then another shrimp, then a slice of zucchini, followed by another piece of shrimp, and finish with the mushroom at the end. Repeat with the other seven skewers. Set aside until ready to cook.
To make the marinade, put all ingredients except salt and pepper in a blender. Puree mixture for 1 to 2 minutes, or until jalapeno pieces are broken down. Season with salt and black pepper and blend for another 10 seconds. Strain marinade through cheesecloth or fine sieve. Pour marinade into a clean spray bottle.
To cook, spray each kabob with marinade and place on grill. Be sure when spraying, to spray away from flame. You will need to spray each kabob twice more before the shrimp are completely cooked. Again be sure to spray away from flame.

Cookie Results

Making these cookies was actually a lot of fun. It was the first time I have ever made cookies from scratch, was a cool feeling. I learned it would probably be easier to use chocolate chips as they will melt faster. One other thing I learned is that they tasted more like brownies for the first couple days than cookies. Perhaps I could have cooked them longer on low heat (had a problem with cookies burning on the bottom), or just waiting a day or two, because after that, they tasted like cookies. Overall, people LOVED them! :)

Beef Stroganoff Results

So
I was actually shocked how AMAZING this tasted. I followed the recipe closely which was key. Other key was I found some of the best strip steak I have ever had in my life. You can just tell from the raw picture how good it was. Oh, and I also discovered SOME mushrooms are good, I actually really liked the ones in this recipe. I'm stupid for forgetting to save the picture of the final product, but I assure you it looked great. GOOD STUFF!

Chocolate-Toffee Cookies
Makes 27 cookies

Shop:
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder (NOT baking SODA)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (this is about a bag and a third of chocolate chips usually)
1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter (helps to chop this into pieces for easy melting)
1 3/4 cups (packed) golden brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (splurge and buy the real stuff, NOT imitiation extract)
5 (1.4-ounce) chocolate-covered English toffee candy bars (such as Heath or Skor), coarsely chopped (1 bag of heath bar pieces, found next to the chocolate chips)
1 cup walnuts, toasted, chopped (you can leave these out)
parchment paper (near aluminum foil)

Cook:
1. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl; whisk to blend.

2. Make a double boiler. Get a pot and fill with about an inch of water. Find a bowl that fits on top of the pot. Turn the stove on low. Stir the chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth. Be sure to constantly stir the mixture since you don't want the chocolate to burn. Be careful because there will be steam escaping from beneath the bowl (I use a towel or tongs to hold the bowl in place while I stir).

Remove the mixture from the heat and cool to lukewarm. While it cools, using an electric mixer, beat the sugar and eggs in a separate, large bowl until thick, about 5 minutes. Beat in the chocolate mixture and the vanilla (add the chocolate mixture little by little). Stir in the flour (little by little otherwise you end up with a face full of flour) mixture, then the toffee and (optionally) nuts. Chill the batter until firm, at least 45 minutes and up to one day.

3. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop the batter by ice-cream scoopfuls (this makes WAY too large of cookies. I use a small spoonful, maybe about 1/2 to 3/4 the size of a golf ball) onto the baking sheets, spacing them about 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake the cookies just until dry and cracked on top but still soft to the touch in the center, about 15 minutes (with the smaller size, it's usually about 12 minutes, but it really depends on your oven. Watch the cookies carefully. You can test if they are done by using a toothpick like for brownies. If it comes out clean, it's done). Cool on the baking sheets. (The cookies can be prepared two days ahead; store in an airtight container at room temperature.)

Beef Stroganoff

So I haven't made this recipe myself, but it looked relatively easy, used mainly ingredients that you are familiar with, and I could have sworn you liked the dish.

A couple of things I thought of regarding the dish - for beef, I'd use either tenderloin or top sirloin. You could also use ground beef or ground turkey if you want to make it a quicker dish. You could also leave out the mushrooms, since I know you're not a fan of mushrooms.

Shop:
6 Tbsp butter
1 pound of top sirloin or tenderloin, cut thin into 1-inch wide by 2 1/2-inch long strips (Note: you could use a cheaper cut of meat if you want...use some meat tenderizer or pound it...if you don't want to spend the money. You could also use ground beef or turkey.)
1/3 cup chopped shallots (can substitute onions) (Note: I KNOW you know how to cut shallots now!)
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced (Note: these taste quite different from regular mushrooms)
Salt to taste (Hopefully you are still using kosher or sea salt)
Pepper to taste (Do you have a grinder for fresh ground pepper?)
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (good to have in your spice rack)
1/2 teaspoon of dry tarragon or 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh tarragon (I'd use fresh)
1 cup of sour cream at room temperature (I'll try and find another recipe that uses sour cream so you can get rid of your leftovers after this)
1 bag of egg noodles

Prep:
This is listed in the ingredients, but slice the beef, chop the shallots/onions, mushrooms and tarragon.

Cook:
1. Cook the egg pasta in salted, boiling water. Drain the pasta and set aside. If you want, you can do the prep work while the water is heating up/pasta is cooking.

2. Melt 3 Tbsp of butter in a large skillet on medium heat. Increase the heat to high/med-high and add the strips of beef. You want to cook the beef quickly, browning on each side, so the temp needs to be high enough to brown the beef, but not so high as to burn the butter. You may need to work in batches, since if you put all the beef in the pan, it will not cook evenly. While cooking the beef, sprinkle with some salt and pepper. When both sides are browned, remove the beef (use tongs or something, don't pour it since you want to save the oil and drippings in the pan) to a bowl and set aside.

2. In the same pan, reduce the heat to medium and add the shallots. Cook the shallots for a minute or two, allowing them to soak up any meat drippings. Remove the shallots to the same bowl as the meat and set aside.

3. In the same pan, melt another 3 Tbsp of butter. Increase heat to medium high and add the mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 4 minutes. While cooking, sprinkle the nutmeg and the tarragon on the mushrooms.

4. Reduce the heat to low and add the sour cream to the mushrooms. You may want to add a tablespoon or two of water to thin the sauce (or not). Mix in the sour cream thoroughly. Do not let it come to a simmer or boil or the sour cream will curdle. Stir in the beef and shallots. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Serve immediately over egg noodles.

Steak Results

So I cooked the steak last night...few thoughts:

1) Trader Joe's SUCKED. They didn't have so much of what I wanted/needed. Biggest change was they had no Kale, so I had to improvise. As you can see I cooked up some garlicy red potatoes and green beans

2) They also didn't have the right kind of bread, but I bought some foccacia bread which turned out really well (although I think i cut it a little too thick, was a little hard to cut/eat)

3) This dish turned out to be the best looking thing that I have ever cooked. Looked impressive and tasted really really good. I think in the future I realized i need to make more of the garlic butter sauce. I was surprised how much the bread absorbed (but by the end where the bread was kinda mushy from the sauce, that with the steak and some onions was AMAZING).

4) I was really proud of myself for juggling 4 burners and the oven all at once (in fact I didn't have enough pots to cook w/, so had to cook the onions/peppers then pull them off to make the rest of the sauce).

Overall this meal went very well, and I would definitely recommend it in the future.

Garlic Buttered sliced steak w/ onions, kale gratin panchetta

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan
2 large yellow skinned onions, thinly sliced
2 roasted red peppers, drained well and thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
A generous handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
4 (1-inch) thick slices from a round loaf of good quality semolina bread, from the center of the loaf
4 tablespoons butter
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 (12 ounce) NY strip steaks

Preheat broiler.

Heat extra-virgin olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-low to medium heat, then add onions and roasted peppers, season with salt and pepper and cook gently until soft but not caramelized, 12 to 15 minutes. Stir in parsley.

Heat a large skillet or a cast iron griddle to high.

Toast the bread under broiler and reserve.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat, add garlic. Remove pan from the heat and set aside until the steaks are cooked.

Season 1 side of the steaks with salt and pepper and place seasoned side down in the hot skillet or griddle.. Cook 3 minutes until the meat can be moved easily. Season the reverse side of meat. Flip steaks, reduce heat to medium and cook 6 to 7 minutes for medium rare, 8 to 10 for just pink. Remove meat and let rest a few minutes. Slice steaks 1/4-inch thick against the grain. Pile onions over toast, top with sliced steak, and spoon garlic butter down over the top of each portion.

1 1/4 to 1 1/3 pounds kale, stems stripped and chopped, about 6 cups
Salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 pound pancetta, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1 cup cream
2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg, eyeball it
Black pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Pecorino Romano

Preheat the broiler but place the oven rack on the second shelf down from the heat source.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a deep skillet or pot, add the kale and salt and cook 5 to 6 minutes; drain and dry the greens.

Return the skillet to the stove over medium-high heat and add 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and pancetta. Crisp the pancetta and add the cream and garlic. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper then reduce 7 to 8 minutes to about 1/2 to 2/3 cup. Add cooked greens to cream and stir to coat evenly. Transfer to shallow casserole.

Toss with breadcrumbs with the remaining 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil. Season the crumbs with salt and pepper and combine with cheese. Place the casserole on the second shelf under broiler and brown breadcrumbs and cheese for 5 minutes.

Chicken Piccata results

So thoughts on Chicken Piccata. First thought...make sure you copy the entire recipe before you make something... (remember the salt and pepper). Second, that was the greatest smelling sauce I have ever smelled in my life. Biggest thing I would change for next time is LESS lemon juice. It tasted how a lot of chicken piccata tastes, but for my own preferences, the lemon was just a little overpowering. Thoughts for next time are to maybe just use the extra sauce from the chicken on top of the pasta. Overall, this is a great/easy recipe that looks/tastes good and could be good for entertaining people with.

Chicken Piccata

Doing it a bit differently this week...have a recipe from online, we'll see how it goes, but it should look like the picture? Let's see how close we get.

2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed
1/3 cup fresh parsley, choppedSeason chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes. When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to plate. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.

Into the pan add the lemon juice, stock and capers. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.

Shrimp Fettuccine

So I didn't really do all the cooking for this one, but so I don't forget the recipe I figure I should write it down.

In a skillet throw some olive oil in, along w/ a couple cloves of garlic (remove the garlic after it has cooked a bit), then add the shrimp, pinenuts, rosemary and cayanne pepper (we also used mushrooms, but since i'm not a fan of those, i'd pass on including them in future attempts). Cook till shrimp are done.

Cook the fettuccine like normal, when done add the pesto on top. Then add the shrimp.

Was actually a very easy/good meal.

Taking the rest of the week off since things are crazy, but look forward to my next cooking adventure.

Salmon Dinner

I was actually REALLY proud of myself for this meal. I seasoned it with Mrs. Dash (okay i'm not too adventurous yet...but when I do this the next time I will probably try something more adventurous, but for now that seasoning had a good kick to it). Really this was a quick/easy meal that tasted fantastic. The rice pilaf was from a microwavable bag, but it was so good that I ate the entire bag (supposed to be for 2-3 people). The asparagus which i seasoned w/ butter and salt turned out really well. I actually was amazed how well the steamer worked. The salmon, which I was slightly concerned about getting it cooked the correct amount also worked. So kudos to christine for a very idiot-proof, easy recipe. Thanks!!

Chicken Ravioli Results

So this was actually what I cooked tonight. Tonight was much more of a crazy/I don't know what the hell I'm doing kind of experience. I really thought I had screwed up mulitple times and it would be awful. Crazy thing was it was AMAZING. The ravioli might have been my favorite thing i've ever cooked. Tasted so good (that sauce was amazing, GOOD WORK). And I also learned that shallots burn my eyes...I don't care if you think i'm a Wuss...

Anyways, looking forward to next week

Week 2: Ravioli with Brown Butter and Sage, Salmon with Asparagus

*****Update 6/11/07: Just an idea....if you're doing a "lessons learned"/commentary on a recipe, try putting it in as a comment. If it's a generic, non-recipe specific post, make a new post. Ok, yes, I'm being a little OCD consultant over here, but hey, it's what I get paid to do! Also, this week, I tried to incoporate timing a little better. Let me know if it helps at all.

I'm also trying to keep things rather general. I rarely measure when I cook, so its hard for me to write out measurements. I haven't really provided them, hoping that you'll be able to experiment and get a feel for things yourself. Plus, cooking is all about personal taste, so you can learn to adjust amounts to your own palette.

Make special note in your head of some of the things I mention, like how to smash garlic first and how to prep asaparagus. These are things that you'll use over and over again that I've learned from Food Network, cookbooks, Daddy, etc.*****

Quickly, because I know you are trying to get to the grocery store....you survived week 1/lesson 1....so here's your next challenge to cook 2 totally new meals in the next week....

1. The Grocery Store

For the Ravioli with Brown Butter and Sage
- Fresh ravioli (this is usually near the fresh salsa section, sometimes near the deli). Pick whatever kind you want. I'd say the default is cheese. Chicken might also be good. Beef, not so much because you're pairing it with a somewhat delicate flavors (butter and sage). If you can't find fresh ravioli, look in the freezer section. You can also use these, they just aren't the ideal.

- 2 medium shallots. These are like mini onions. You can find them in the onion section. If you can't find shallots, you can get a small, sweet (Vidalia) onion.

- Garlic. I'm guessing you already have this. Update: You want fresh garlic, one clove. You won't use it all, but you can use it in the future.

- Fresh sage. These are usually in plastic cases in the fresh herb area.

- Grated parmesan. You might already have this. If not, you probably should since pasta is so easy and it adds a little yummyliciousness :)

- Fresh vegetable. I'd go with broccoli. Refer to my first post for buying it.

For the salmon:
- Salmon fillets. The grocery store sometimes sells this in a big package. I like to buy the big package, cut it up into pieces, freeze some and use some for now. It saves you trips to the store, and as you'll see, salmon is really easy and versatile. Otherwise, just get a couple (think leftovers) filets from the store.

- Seasoning for salmon. I think I'm going to try and encourage you to be creative in general in this blog. As in give you guidance, but let you make decisions. It'll make you a better cook. For the salmon, you could just use salt and pepper, plus the lemon at the end. Mrs. Dash (yellow container in the spice aisle) also makes for pretty good seasoning, plus you can use it for lots of other things (shrimp, chicken, etc.). Wander into the spice aisle and take a look and see what you like. My recommendation would be Mrs. Dash since it would make a good addition to your kitchen supplies :)

- Lemon. Always tastes so good with salmon.

- Rice-a-roni Wild Rice. I love this stuff. Feel free to substitute with another type of starch.

- Asparagus. Always goes well with salmon. To pick asparagus, usually look for slender stalks. Pick up the bundle and look at the bottoms. Usually you want them not to be dried out. Sometimes you have no choice. Pick what looks best.

- Steamer. You'll need this for both meals.

2. Prep

- Salmon. You can pre season the salmon the night before, like you did with the chicken. Drizzle the salmon with olive oil and rub it all over. Then, take the seasoning and rub it into the salmon. Let it sit overnight.

There isn't much other prep for these dishes that you can do the day before.

3. Cook

Ravioli with Brown Butter and Sage

Ravioli
Shallots
Garlic
Butter
Sage
Parmesan
Broccoli

Cut up the broccoli, shallots, and garlic. For the shallots, remove the outer layer, then slice into thin slices. For the garlic, pull off a couple sections (3-4). Lay them down on a cutting board. Place the knife flat against the garlic and smash it with the palm of your hand. This makes the garlic easy to peel. Then, mince the garlic. For the sage, tear off about 15 leaves (so you don't want the stems) and rinse them off. Be sure you dry them off.

Boil two pots of water (one for the ravioli, one for the broccoli with the steamer - water should be about a half an inch, should not see the water above the steamer). Bring to a boil. Salt the water for the ravioli. Cook the ravioli according to the package; this is usually 5 or 6 minutes when the raviolis are floating. When the raviolis are done, drain them and rinse in cold water (which stops the ravioli from cooking). Once you put the raviolis in, put the broccoli into the steamer and cover. The broccoli should take about the same time as the broccoli. A fork should go into the broccoli easily when its done. Be sure to take the broccoli off the heat when its done and don't leave it covered, otherwise, it'll get mushy.

While the broccoli and raviolis are cooking, prepare the sauce for the ravioli. Put about 6 tablespoons of butter in a pan and put on medium high heat. The butter should start to be somewhat frothy/bubbly. When that happens, dump in the garlic and the shallots. Cook for about 1-2 minutes until the flavors start to come out (you'll smell it). Add the sage. Stir occassionally until the sage starts to become crispy-ish (it gets much darker in color). While this is happening, your raviolis and broccoli will probably finish up. Take care of those and then come back to check on the sauce. Once the sage/garlic/onions start to brown, turn off the stove and take it off the heat. Add the raviolis into the pan and gently mix it up. Yum!


Salmon with asparagus and wild rice

- Salmon seasoned with Mrs. Dash
- Lemon
- Asparagus
- Wild rice


Pre-heat your oven to 450F for the salmon.

Measure out water in a pot for the wild rice according to the package and bring to a boil. Follow instructions according to package.

Cover a baking pan/dish in foil. Drizzle a little olive oil wherever you will place the salmon so it doesn't stick. Place the salmon on the tray. Cover with another piece of foil and stick in the oven when its done pre-heating. It should take about 12-15 minutes. You will know when the salmon is done when it flakes with a fork.

Meanwhile, prepare the asaparagus. Bring a pot with water to a boil with the steamer. Rinse off the asparagus. Take one asparagus in your hand, holding the bottom end in one hand and somewhere around the middle in the other. Give it a little bend. It should naturally break somewhere, which is where you want to cut them all. This removes the not so tender part. Place the asparagus in the steamer and cover. It probably takes about 5 minutes for them to cook. Again, you'll have to just check until they are tender and bright green. Don't forget to turn off the stove and remove from heat uncovered when they are done.

Notes from Lesson 1

So I learned a few important lessons after this one adventure:

1) Cooking is FUN and christine rocks my world for doing this!
2) Don't switch phones before you send the pictures you took of your first real meal on the original phone
3) Be leary of going to the Safeway in SW DC, not the greatest selection

But to be more serious, i did learn a lot.

The meal consisted of:
- Havarti & Crackers as an appetizer (learned an important lesson here to have SOME food ready in case the real meal will still take some time when people arrive)

- Corn (need to get more adventurous w/ the veggie next time, but store will dictate this)

- Carribean Jerk Chicken (this actually turned out REALLY well. My piece was undercooked (just got impatient more than anything) but the other couple were fantastic. Great/easy meal for sure (just needs a little planning in advance), but i really like the Carribean Jerk seasoning.

- Twice Baked Potatoes (This was my last minute change to the menu when i decided i felt like using potatoes). Overall, I was proud of myself for being able to try something new. My biggest problem was i didn't have anything to really mix/beat the potatoes prior to the second baking portion, so they were too hard to start with. Then I probably overcooked them.... so overall they were just too hard. Tasted alright, but not what I would have ideally wanted.

Biggest struggle with the meal... How do you manage having multiple things going at the same time and then having everything be ready at the same time? I really need to figure it out so that everything is hot at the same time and ready to prepare (this was one of the reasons the one piece of chicken was undercooked). So i'm not really sure. Overall, I was pretty proud of myself and am looking forward meal number 2 (really 3, the spaghetti I made the other night was great...simple, but learned that i will ALWAYS use ground turkey from now on for the spaghetti sauce, tastes so much better than ground beef). BRING ON THE NEXT LESSON!!!

New Beginnings

So here's my brilliant idea that will keep you from being bored at night, teach you to cook, create something entertaining to read later, and most importantly, keep me amused. Because clearly, this is all about me. Seriously though, I think this could be something pretty cool and hopefully something that gets you out of the little rut you're in now.

I mentioned to you that I'd send you recipes to cook, you'd cook them and then tell me how it goes. Well, instead of shooting emails back and forth, I figured having a blog that we could both access would be easier, plus it'd create a history for you to 1. reference back to in the future for recipes that you like, 2. track your progress, and 3. provide some amusement later on. If you ever get a digital camera, you can post pictures here too. Hopefully, you like the idea so far.....

I had to create a gmail account for this....I'll email you the password separately since a techie would never post a password on a website, even if it is for something as frivalous as this.

Your first recipe is super easy....the chicken that I baked in Tahoe. This is super detailed, since I dont' know how much you know. Give me feedback if its too long, too detailed, not detailed enough and I'll tailor future recipes accordingly.

1. Grocery store trip - day before you want to cook

Marinade - Find a marinade you like. It's usually in the aisle with the condiments. I like Carribean Jerk, but there are TONS of flavors (lemon pepper, teriyaki, pepper steak, whatever your heart desires). They are also usually on sale, so you can pick up a couple different flavors for the future if you want to be cheap and save money.

Chicken - You can either buy frozen or fresh. If you buy frozen, you can buy a huge bag of boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the freezer section for pretty cheap. If you only want to buy a small amount, or you are trying to cook this the day of, you can buy chicken breasts fresh and defrosted.

Sides - I usually do a steamed vegetable. Broccoli is pretty easy and healthy. You'll have three options for broccoli usually - whole, heads and prewashed. To save time, you might want to buy the pre-washed in the bag. If not, I'd get the head even though its a little more expensive than the whole, unless you like the stems a lot.

If you need something in addition to chicken and broccoli, I'd grab a loaf of garlic bread (You can buy this in the bakery section usually prepared minus baking. The instructions for baking should be on the bag. If the bakery section doesn't have it, you can look in the frozen section) or Rice a Roni/Uncle Ben's (They have things like Rice Pilaf, wild rice, etc. Usually all you do is stick the rice in boiling water, add seasoning packet and wait.)

Baking Pan - Hopefully you have a Pyrex baking dish at home. If not, the grocery store usually has them for about $10.

Steamer - You can buy this pretty cheap at the grocery store or at a Bed Bath and Beyond. It should be a little metal contraption. Shouldn't be more than a couple bucks. You can see one here: http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/21VHXJ687JL.jpg


2. Prepping
Since you're doing this the day before you're going to cook/eat, you want to marinade the chicken overnight to get the best flavor. Get a big ziplock bag, put a couple chicken breasts in (however many you want to eat...this makes for great leftovers) and then pour the bottle of marinade in. Seal VERY well. Stick the bag in a bowl (to catch any leaks) and put it in the fridge overnight.

3. Cooking
Pre-heat your oven to 375. Meanwhile, get the baking dish and empty the contents of the ziplock bag (chicken and marinade) into the dish. The chicken should be well covered in marinade. Once the oven has reached 375, put the chicken in for 35-40 minutes. To check if the chicken is done, cut one piece in the middle. The middle shouldn't be pink at all. If it is, stick it in for a couple more minutes until its done.

If you are doing the garlic bread, you will probably put it in a little after the chicken.

After the chicken has been cooking for about 20 minutes, cook the vegetables. Get a pot that fits the steamer. Fill it with about an inch of water. Put the steamer in the pot. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Throw the vegetables in the steamer and cover. It should take probably 5 or so minutes for the broccoli to cook. To see if its cooked, stick a fork in hte broccoli. It should enter easily. Once the broccoli is done, take it out of the steamer, otherwise it will continue to cook and get mushy.

The chicken should be done at this point. Pull it out of the oven (don't forget to turn the oven off), add the broccoli, and enjoy!

Hopefully by the time you've reached the end of this, you aren't too disheartened or bored. Let me know what you think!