We Likey The Crispy!

After posting that my kids "steal" the crispy skin off the roasted chicken, my friend - Don Lee - stopped by yesterday and dropped off these crazy delish, freshly fried artery cloggers...Are you kidding? Deep fried chicken skins - from the thigh, of course! I can do without the vinegar sauce...Just give 'em to me with a little salt! They are better than pork rinds - they have that fried chicken taste! I think he got them from an "ethnic" market down near the shop in Gardena! I'll post the name when I find out!

Heaven on Earth with EASY clean up!!!

Bone-in Ribeye

Ribeye, baked potato, sauteed spinach & a bottle of EII!!!

So everyone's idea of "heaven on earth" is different...For me this meal is pretty close to "it"! Any meal that pairs well with a bottle of EII Red is a good one in my book!

A bone-in ribeye (US grown & grass fed), 3/4"-1" thick...I salt & pepper the steak about an hour and a half before I want to cook it and leave it covered with a paper towel at room temp.

I start the potatoes about an hour before I want to serve dinner. Preheat oven to 425 degree, wash the russet potatoes well and place on the oven rack (no piercing, no wrapping with aluminum foil!)...Bake for 40ish minutes. Give a slight squeeze to check for doneness - they should give just a little and will continue to cook after they are removed from the oven.

About 15 minutes before I want to serve dinner, I will start to heat a cast iron skillet on high heat. When it's good and hot, I place the seasoned ribeye in to the dry pan (the fats in a well marbled piece of meat will be sufficient). Set the timer for 3 minutes. Turn the steak over. Set the timer for an additional 3 minutes. Remove ribeye to a plate to rest before slicing.

In the same cast iron skillet, add baby spinach leaves, a little salt & pepper and saute until wilted and cooked.

Plate up...If you're hungry and plan to eat the whole ribeye all by yourself, then add the baked potato to the plate and the sauteed spinach...grab a fork and sharp knife and go at it...if you happen in to have a good bottle of red wine, this is the perfect opportunity to pop that cork...

If you plan to share this monster ribeye, then remove the bone from the meat and then slice the steak. Add a good portion to a plate with a side of spinach and a baked potato...Again, enjoy - preferably while watching the Lakers defeat the Spurs!

Leftover Roast Chicken transforms into Chicken Pot Pie

Before

After

More on leftovers...This time using the roast chicken and store bought puff pastry defrosted in the refrigerator overnight and brought to room temp...I remove the breast meat from the carcass, cut into cubes or shred and set aside. Put the bones in a pot and cover with 1 C white wine and 3 C Water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove carcass from poaching liquid. (Alternatively put 1 C white wine and 1 can of low sodium chicken broth in a pot and then) Add 2 carrots - diced, 2 celery ribs - diced, mushrooms, onions...Cook until tender. Remove vegetables from the broth and set aside with the chicken. Reduce the liquid by half to concentrate flavor. In a different pot melt 3 T Butter, whisk in 4 T Flour to make a thick paste. Remove from heat and add the broth, whisk rapidly to blend well, stir in 1 C Heavy Cream. Bring to a boil and cook for 2-3 minutes - This is called a VELOUTE SAUCE. Taste and season with salt & pepper, add the chicken and vegetables to the sauce.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Ladle the hot chicken/vegetables with veloute into oven proof bowls. Take the puff pastry out of the package - Pepperidge Farms will be rectangular and folded in thirds, leave it this way - cut it in 1/2 width-wise, flatten and stretch it to fit over the mouth of the oven proof bowl (I do not waste time & effort with flour & a rolling pin). If your puff pastry is at room temperature, this should be easy. Brush egg wash (1 egg with a T of water) on to the edge of the bowl and lay the pastry on top, press down firmly. Place on a sheet pan and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Breakfast...

Artisan Granola...Sorry no recipe...I'm honing the formula to take to market...Keep your fingers crossed!!!

I will give props to one of my "favorite things" - Non-Stick Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil in a wide roll available at Smart & Final!!! Easily can replace a silpat in a recipe and makes for EASY clean up!!!

http://www.reynoldspkg.com/reynoldskitchens/en/product.asp?prod_id=1795

Love this with Fage "Classic" Yogurt (aka Total) with a little honey stirred in...Top with seasonal fruit!!!

http://www.fageusa.com/products.aspx#/products/classic

Spin on Leftovers!

Sausage & Kale Rigatoni with Mixed Greens & Pork Tenderloin

Pork Tenderloin for the Kids

Having a husband who didn't grow up with leftovers (they ate up everything at meal time), I've become pretty creative...Remember those sausages with kale I made the other day? Well I'm gonna turn it into a rigatoni dish and add tomatoes for color and freshness. I'm also going to do pork tenderloin - so the pasta is a side dish. I'll make a salad too - more for me than for Scott.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Pork tenderloin is very simple - salt and pepper (ahead of time like always), bring to room temperature. Sear in olive oil in an oven proof pan on both sides. Put into oven for 10-12 minutes depending on the size of the tenderloin. Let it rest and slice it up...It should look like the photo above - well done on the ends with a slight pink in the center.

Boys are eating this right now, but with plain pasta and a side of peas. Leftovers will be used in their lunch...Unless, of course, they want alphabet soup again!

Stove Top Popcorn - NO SHAKING REQUIRED!

Our #1 favorite after school snack is Popcorn - we do not microwave popcorn in this house...Primary reason? The taste! Try it this way and you will see what I mean! So easy, even a 5 year old can make it (Colin wanted to be sure you knew he made the popcorn pictured)!!!

In a heavy bottom pot - add a T or two of oil (light coating on the bottom of the pot), Orville Redenbacher Original Gourmet Popping Corn, salt, a little butter (optional). Turn the heat to high and let it go until you hear A LOT of popping...At this point turn the heat to medium and let it finish popping. When it slows to one or two pops every couple seconds it's done. Pour it into a bowl and eat. Enjoy!

P.s. I'm very brand loyal and like what I like...No one is paying me to use something or say I use something!!!

No Waste 2 - ABC...Easy as 123...

Chicken carcass with water to cover.

Our fav ABC pasta!

So I got the time wrong for today's birthday party...It starts at 4, not 2. Just me & Colin off to Chuck E. Cheese... : )

It'll be late before I'm home so Scott and Zack are gonna need something to eat. I started the leftover chicken carcass in water...bring to a boil, turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Just another way to stretch that pricey organic bird to another meal or two (hoping there's enough for tomorrow's lunch boxes!). Remove the carcass from the water (now broth), add salt, bring to a boil and add the ABC pasta - we like Anthony's the best! Add in finely diced carrots and celery. When the pasta is cooked add any chicken you can pull off of the bones. Our version of chicken alphabet soup!

Sunday Late Breakfast - BROILED BACON

Ham & Cheese Omlette with apple wood smoked bacon

Sheet pan with a rack to broil bacon

This is our normal late breakfast post-Church. We have a quick cup of coffee (glass of OJ or milk for the boys) and toast before...So we come back very hungry and it has to be quick because there's always something going on - basketball game, birthday party, etc. Since we are partial to crispy bacon, I broil it on a sheet pan with a rack (see photo). The omlettes are made one at a time I put them on one plate in the oven to keep warm and melt the cheese. When everything's done I plate up and we eat...The kids motor through 12 oz. of bacon in minutes - as Zack says "I love bacon!"...I have to agree!!!

Clean up can wait until later and everything can go in the dishwasher!

Dinner - "HIGH HEAT ROASTING" - Zuni Roast Chicken

What can I say...The boys like crispy skin!

Here is the chicken deconstructed with a pseudo-Zuni Bread Salad.

I'm not big into clean up so I used the same sheet pan to cook the chickens and toast the bread. I roasted mushrooms too. Served with rice and crispy spinach for the boys. Wish I had had a bottle of EII Sauvignon Blanc to serve with it!

Here's a link to the recipe -

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/9123872/

It looks kinda intimidating...Just make sure you dry brine 2-3 days ahead of time. Crank the heat to 450 and cook the chicken for about an hour. Start breast side up, 30 min. in turn it over and cook breast side down for 20 minutes, turn back over and crisp the skin.

If you cook, you must clean...

I'm always up for a good cleaning product recommendation and if you have stainless steel appliances you know how hard that is to find. While reading Bon Appetit I saw an ad for Weiman Stainless Steel Wipes and I noted that they are availble at Target. Target was on my to do list this AM. I found these wipes...Tried them out and I am stunned with how gorgeous my fridge & dishwasher look!

Nick's Mom's Waffles

Nick's Mom is my maternal grandmother - she's the one who makes killer fried chicken and apple pie. She also happens to make excellent waffles - she doesn't make 'em often, but when she does I take a few for the freezer. I had two left and surprised the boys with them this AM. Colin's was gone by the time I grabbed my Blackberry to take the pix!

P.s. No one in my family is named Nick...When I was born my grandmother refused to be called grandmother so my family devised an ingenious way of naming grandparents by using their dog's name with mom. You should have seen people staring at us when we would call our paternal grandmother in public - "Whiskey Mom"!

Aki Restaurant with Poppy!

Poppy

Pakkai

Chicken Katsu & Colin

Every Friday we have dinner with my grandfather, Poppy. Poppy is 97 years old...He'll be 98 on May 1. He'd like me to cook, but hates the 14 stairs to get to my front door and won't fix his 1950's stove/oven. So on Fridays we go out for dinner. We are creatures of habit - we can usually be found at Aki Restaurant on Santa Monica Blvd. in West LA. Once in a while we'll go to Chinese, but we all prefer Aki's. It's a "Cheers" moment every time we walk through that door and the food is consistent and good and comforting!

http://www.yelp.com/biz/aki-restaurant-los-angeles

Tonight Poppy had chirashi (bowl of sushi rice topped with sashimi) and a side of shrimp tempura. Lots of chicken and beef teriyaki at the table...both my boys ordered chicken katsu (I have a great everyday recipe for a future post!)...Aunty Dinky had the saba and I ordered the pakkai (Japanese style sweet & sour pork - bone-in).

Tomorrow's Saturday...Is your chicken prepped???

No Waste - Chicken Liver Pate

As I prettied up those chickens - see below - for roasting on Saturday, I felt the need to save the livers and whip up a quick pate...It's a simple recipe from one of Jacques Pepin's cookbooks - I'm not sure which one as I only have a photo copy of the recipe. I didn't have a 1/2 pound of liver from only two chickens so I made what I could and stored it in a "recycled" jar. Cognac is essential!!!

Thanks to Google I found the recipe (minor changes) at Food & Wine - http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chicken-liver-pate-march-2007

Sausages & Greens - COOKING WITH YOUR EARS & "DEGLAZING"

Brown whole sausages in casing on both sides (any sausages work - I prefer pork, but you're eatin' it not me! Fresh or cooked...I think Fra' Mani [http://www.framani.com/] are delish, but they are expensive and their spicy is hot.).

I heat a pan (preferable one with a lid) on high heat, add olive oil, add the sausages and cover. When you hear lots of crackling turn the heat to low. When you hear almost nothing it's safe to remove the lid and turn the sausages over to brown on the other side. Crank the heat back to high and wait til you hear that crackling again. Turn to low and wait for the sound to stop. Remove the sausages to a plate. Add in water, wine, chicken broth OR vegetable broth (this is called DEGLAZING) - I've been known to even use sake. The amount of liquid you use will depend on the size of your pan. Fill the pan about 1/4" from the bottom. Add in greens of choice, a garlic clove or two and a pinch of salt - kale, chard, rapini (though it should be blanched first), collard greens, cavolo nero, Trader Joe's has a great bagged mix available. Cover and turn the heat to low and just let it go. After about 15-20 minutes add a can of cannellini beans (white kidney beans) drained and the whole sausages right on top of that and cover - if you used fresh sausages the will finish cooking and if you used smoked they will warm through. Just let it go on low (add liquid if the bottom is getting dry - you don't want the greens to burn) - I usually slice the sausages right before I'm ready to serve and put back on top. Give a toss and taste for seasoning - add salt, red pepper flakes - sprinkle shredded, grated, shaved parmigiano reggiano or pecorino romano. Serve with crusty bread (I usually refresh bread in a high heat oven - 450 for 5-10 minutes) and a salad.

NOTE TO CLAUDINE and MO - This is essentially what I brought to Kristy's, except remove the sausage from the casing...I added in blanched rapini - that I chopped up after blanching. Beans were a jar of "Giant Beans" from Trader Joe's. Stirred in shaved parm and served with crackers, but I prefer bread! Really good as a bruschetta/crostini topper or tossed with pasta.

Weekend Prep - Zuni Roast Chickens - "DRY BRINE"

After talking to Glenn I decided to set the dinner menu for this weekend - Saturdays and Sundays we have dinner for 4 (no cooking dinner x 2 on the weekends).

I'm thinkin' Roast Chicken for Sat. night (I'll make 2) and use the leftovers to make chicken soup (my kids like it with ABC pasta) and chicken pot pie.

Go and buy your chickens today - remove from plastic, remove neck/gizzards/liver, salt all over and put in the fridge until Saturday. Prep is done. More on Roast Chicken on Saturday.

Tonight's dinner is March Madness friendly - hot Italian sausages with kale or swiss chard and Cannellini beans (canned), bread and arugula w/parm. There are twists on this "recipe" like using rapini instead of kale or chard or removing the sausages from the casing and it makes a great "sauce" for pasta - Claudine - this is a variation of what I brought to Kristy's ("recipe" for a future post).

Found a good red wine from Costco the other day - I only bought it because they gave a $2 off coupon. Pillar Box Padthaway, Australia Red Blend (Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot)...I think it's normally $8.99.

Oh I like wine too and know a little about it. I lived on HL Vineyards (become a fan on FB - facebook.com/herblambvineyards) while I was at pastry school. Great times!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!

Mac n Cheese - "BECHAMEL & CHEESE SAUCE"

As requested by Randy -

Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter a casserole dish (I use a good old fashioned Pyrex).

BECHAMEL (can also be used in a Lasagne Bolognese - "recipe" for a future date). In a sauce pan (medium sized at least - you'll need it when you add the cheese), melt 1 stick of butter whisk in 8 T Flour. Pour in 6 C milk, all at once and whisk constantly until it starts to boil and thicken. Remove pan from heat, add seasonings (salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, nutmeg - any and all to taste).

Adding in 5 cups of grated/shredded cheese of choice (any combination of gruyere, cheddar, swiss, emmantaler, fontina, pecorino romano, parmigiano reggiano, mozzarella, etc.) turns the bechamel into a CHEESE SAUCE (can be used to get your family to eat veggies - broccoli and cauliflower come to mind). Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a big pinch of salt. Cook macaroni for 3 minutes LESS than directed on the package. Drain well in a colander and add to the cheese sauce. Pour into the prepared casserole dish. Top with 2 C of cheese (again your choice). Sprinkle plain bread crumbs (store bought is fine - Progresso, Pioneer). Dot with butter. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. Patience will be rewarded!

Help for YOUR core!

Okay while the chicken sits and waits to be cooked in about an hour, I want to tell you a little about the book that is a must for your cookbook collection - Judy Rodgers' The Zuni Cafe Cookbook! Zuni Cafe in San Francisco is known for it's Roast Chicken with Bread Salad and Caesar Salad. This simple Roast Chicken is a MUST for your repertoire! Go on amazon.com and order the book now!

Beyond the recipes is technique...Like salting...And truly learning to trust yourself and develop YOUR CORE - the foundation from where you cook.

"The best meals are more than a succession of great dishes resulting from a number of great reicpes. They are fashioned with wisdom and experience and are shaded, always, with spontaneity." Judy Rodgers

2 Dinners per Night

Ahhh the life of a mom with 2 growing boys and a husband that works (relatively) late.

Most nights I do TWO dinners...One for the kids and the other for me and Scott.

I do simplify my life a little by giving the boys our leftovers in their lunch boxes the next day...So tomorrow they will have braised corned beef and rice.

Their dinner tonight will be grilled butterflied chicken and pasta with butter (parm for Colin, but not for Zack)...I normally plan ahead and dry brine the chicken overnight, but I forgot to do this last night so I will do it now and bring the chicken to room temp.

12 On The Fly

Made 12 quick sandwiches for lunch today...My mom had brought ingredients for Chinese Chicken Salad - Took 12 Kings Hawaiian Sweet Bread Rolls out of the package...Sliced the entire thing in 1/2 (like a layer cake)...Added mayo to both sides...Put the shredded lettuce on the bottom, then added the shredded chicken, sesame seeds, salt & pepper...Put the roll lids on top and sliced at the pull apart breaks.

Fastest 12 (mini) sandwiches ever!

My aunt made a soba salad that was delish too...Great combo along with sliced Fuji Apples and Cara Oranges and really special Colossal Potato Chips with a slight BBQ flavor!

P.s. Dinner's in the oven!

St. Patrick's Day - Braised Corned Beef

Gotta get ready for work, but the dinner menu is already planned - Corned Beef, of course! Instead of boiling I braise it in H2O...It is so good...Le Creuset in the oven for 2-3 hours with fat-side up...The fat carmelizes...The water is very salty so I remove the meat when cooked and add more water. Bring to a boil and cook the veggies - carrots, cabbage, potatoes. We eat it with a big scoop of rice (Japanese rice) doused with the cooking liquid...My mouth is watering already!

"Cooking" Loose

It was a warm March day today in Los Angeles - the 80's I think...Beautiful, but who wants to turn on the stove - let alone the oven tonight! So for my first post - "cooking" is a loose term.

It's looking like a light supper - a nice glass of Oregon Pinot Noir, a La Brea Bakery baguette, black forrest ham, some Petit Basque and Cypress Grove Bermuda Triangle...I'll slice up USA grown tomatoes and California cukes. Sounds more like Summer!

All will be enjoyed as the Lakers take on the Kings up in Sacramento...