I HEART COOKING.
HERE ARE SOME OF MY 2013 DISHES.
Please check out 2011-12 cooking on the previous tab. I'm starting this new year with whole new eats to share.
CHICKEN MOLE
Mole (pronounced Mow-lay) is an amazing chocolate-based sauce full of spices that I used to eat all the time in Mexico. You can make mole a hundred different ways so I basically designed this recipe by combining several. I prepared the sauce separately and then mixed it with some shredded chicken for my Dad's 75th Birthday. You can also store the mole sauce in the fridge and then pour the sauce over whole chicken or make enchiladas with it. Here's what I did to make the sauce. First, I soaked 2 large dried Ancho chiles (the mild ones also referred to as Pasillas) in a bowl of boiling water. Meanwhile, in a pan I sauteed one chopped onion until translucent, added one clove of garlic (minced), and about 1.5 cups of whole canned tomatoes in sauce and let that all mix together. In a separate saucepan I heated up some vegetable oil and added 1/4 cup raisins and about a tablespoon of sesame seeds until the raisins got plump. Now, here's where you have to have a food processor. In a cuisinart or blender, add the tomato/onion/garlic mixture, the raisin/sesame seed mixture. Then go on and add the whole ancho chiles that have been soaking (don't add the water) and one chipotle chile if you have it (this will give it some spice). Then I added 3 tablespoons of peanut butter, 1/2 cup of toasted blanched almonds and about a teaspoon each of cumin, oregano and allspice. Blend it all together to a paste, then pour into a saucepan and heat over the stove. While it's heating, stir in the chocolate! I used one disk of Abuelita chocolate cut into bits, and a chunk of dark chocolate bar in the house. You can also use cocoa powder. Stir until the chocolate melts and then add about 2 cups of chicken broth until the right consistency. This was the perfect flavor for my Dad.
"OSCAR NIGHT" CORN POBLANO LASAGNA
With a group of friends over to watch the oscars, I prepared this variation lasagna. I got the idea from a magazine and found the identical recipe online here. Though it requires heavy cream (and I don't like using cream) I decided to follow the recipe a pie de la letra (follow to the tee) anyway since it appeared so delicious. I used mozzarella instead of Oaxaca cheese (since I had it). It was a big hit!
LAMB FETA SLIDERS WITH FENNEL SALAD
Lamb is gamey and heavy, so it's best to plan for no more than 2 sliders on a plate, with plenty of greens and maybe some potatoes/fries on the side. To make the burgers, mix the ground lamb with some finely chopped shallots (I sauteed them first) a bit of minced garlic, cumin and a tad of ketchup. Fry them in a cast iron pan in only a tad of oil, and watch how they shrink! Top them with some feta cheese and serve on mini brioche buns. For the fennel salad, mix fennel strips (I julienned mine) with arugula, and toss with a olive oil, lemon juice and parmesan.
FANCY EGG-IN-A-HOLE BREKKIE WITH ARUGULA
Have you tried egg-in-a-hole, aka egg-in-a-basket, aka fried egg inside some bread? I've been eating this very fast, protein-rich and tasty breakfast since I was a wee kid. Rip a circle out of your favorite bread. Then melt some butter in a frying pan and lay the bread down in it, letting it soak up some of the butter. Crack the egg inside the hole of the bread. Wait until it's fried on one side and then flip it over. Depending on how runny you like the yolk, let it fry for a couple minutes longer and then remove. Serve on top of fresh arugula tossed with olive oil and a side of cherry tomatoes. Classy 4-minute meal.
PAD THAI FOR REAL
The trick to making authentic pad thai? Tamarind paste. You have to make the sauce first combining fish sauce, vinegar, tamarind paste and sugar on the stovetop. While the sauce is cooking, soak the rice noodles in boiling water until they're soft. Then for the other ingredients, you can cook up the chicken, tofu and/or shrimp pieces in a little garlic in another sautee pan. In a larger pan, scramble 1-2 eggs, then add those noodles (drained), and the chicken/tofu/shrimp. Pour the sauce on top and coat well. Pepper everything with paprika, stir in peanuts, and then top with bean sprouts (I didn't use those here), cilantro, and lime wedges. Fyi: If you are used to a more tomato-based pad thai sauce (that they serve in the U.S.), you can add a bit of tomato paste to the sauce, but only if you think you need to.
PRETTY PERFECT MATZO BALL CHICKEN SOUP
Bubbie! You can make the broth however you like. For me, I use chicken bouillon cubes, shredded chicken, celery, carrots and a little parsley. For the matzos, I admit I usually just use the Manischewitz box mix to make the balls (it's really sufficient, and it's so much quicker). But I've also made matzo balls from scratch by using matzo meal, eggs, salt and oil...plus some garlic salt and dried parsley. You don't need chicken fat, or melted schmaltz in my opinion. This is the perfect meal for a cold night of dancing the hora.
SPICY CHICKEN AND BLACK BEAN ENCHILADAS
First rule: Never buy canned enchilada sauce. Always make your own. I did this one the simple way using chili powder instead of soaking dried chiles (which is the old-school way). This quick enchilada sauce is literally a combination of vegetable oil, flour, chili powder, chicken stock, tomato paste, cumin and salt, and it takes less than 20 minutes on the stove top, so it's well worth it! For the filling, take your shredded chicken breast (remember I always poach chicken) and fry it up with some onions, jalapenos and black beans. Add a little spice like Tajin, Valentina, or Cholula, mixed with some lime to give it some zest. Then, take your tortillas (I used big flour ones this time around, but you can use small corn) and fill the middle with the chicken filling. Pour some enchilada sauce to coat the bottom of the casserole dish, and place the tortillas (folded side down) in rows. Once they're all snug in the pan, pour the enchilada sauce, coating them well all around. Top with some shredded Monterrey jack (or Oaxaca) cheese, and cook in the oven. (Like any cheese-topped dish, remember to cover with foil at first and then remove foil for the last 10 minutes of baking).
EASY BEEF BOURGUIGNON (BOR-GEEN-YON)
First, I have to admit that I was too hungry and a bit too tipsy to remember to take a picture of this, which is why you're getting a half-baked shot with a fork in it! Trust my word, this was an amazing meal, and gave us great leftovers for a week. I did not follow Julia Child's recipe or do anything that took 10 hours. I wanted to make something for New Year's Eve that took me no longer than 3 hours, so I roughly followed Ina Garten's recipe online. It took a little over an hour to get the meat tender, but it was worth it. Some "quick" recipes online call for putting the stew in the oven, but the stovetop worked for me! Also, you can try a crockpot recipe if you have less time. Just remember, beef cubes, bacon, pearl onion and wine, you can't go wrong. I served this over garlic mash potatoes.
DELICIOUSLY PURE TURKEY/BEEF MEATLOAF
Meatloaf doesn't look good in pictures. I mean, how do you shoot a piece of meat? (Wait, that sounds like hunting.) Anyway, Ami had been craving meatloaf for like a month, so I finally caved and made this dense dish. I used a pound of ground turkey and a pound of ground beef. I threw it in the food processor with one carrot, one onion, one clove garlic, one egg and about a cup of panko bread crumbs to keep it all together. For spice, I added some salt and pepper, thyme, Worcestershire sauce. Pour that mushy mixture in a bread pan and form into a loaf (weird). Lastly, the most important part: the meatloaf sauce! Some people just used ketchup or BBQ sauce, but I combined a little of both ketchup and BBQ sauces, with some honey, cumin and hot sauce. You can spread the sauce (generously, I'd say) on top after the meatloaf has cooked about half way. I cooked it at 325 for about an hour, but I had to use a meat thermometer (needs to get to 155 degrees) to make sure it was okay.
MULLIGATAWNY ("PEPPER WATER") STEW
If you watched the Seinfeld "Soup Nazi" episode, you've likely heard of this soup. This is a sort of Indian-adapted curry hearty stew (it literally means "pepper water") and it can be made with cream or without (these recipes, for example, call for half and half or coconut milk). I opted for no cream. If you try to look for a recipe online, beware, you will find at least 50! I used chicken thighs instead of breasts, and I mostly made the stew using onion, celery, carrots, apple, adding some rice and lentils. You can make it with potatoes, and less veggies if you wish. The most important thing is to season with a combination of garam masala, coriander, turmeric and cayenne pepper, for a perfect combo of flavors. I topped the stew with cashews and cilantro, and served it with heated Roti and mango chutney.
BUTTERNUT SQUASH/GINGER SOUP,
CRAB CAKES
AND CARROT SALAD
Can we say CUISINART for Christmas? My mom bought me a super deluxe food processor which has made my cooking SO much easier. I mostly stole from recipes for this meal, just adapting them slightly. For the crabcakes, I bought lump crab and followed the Cuisinart recipe book. I loved it because they crab cakes were baked, not fried, so they came out light and fluffy. For the butternut squash/ginger soup, I adapted a recipe from epicurious which came out delicious (even better the next day). The shredded carrot and parsley salad is super easy to prepare. After shredding the carrots in the cuisinart, make a dressing with olive oil, lemon juice, some dijon, salt and pepper and diced parsley.
CHICKEN PICCATA WITH GREEN BEAN SALAD
A really quick meal, and totally delish! Chicken piccata can be made various ways, but here's how I did it. I dried the chicken pieces, sprinkled them with salt and pepper and dredged them in flour. Then I browned the pieces on both sides in some butter in a saucepan and transferred them to a plate. I added some chicken broth, lemon juice and capers to the pan and mixed it all together until it boiled. Then I added the chicken back to the pan to soak up some of the liquid. I removed the pieces, and placed them on fettuccine, pouring the rest of the sauce on top. You can garnish with parmesan cheese and parsley. For the side salad, I blanched some green beans, and added cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, and chunks of parmesan cheese. I tossed it in a lemon vinaigrette.
FANCY MAC AND CHEESE WITH HAM
Ami came home with three types of New Zealand cheeses which was a perfect opportunity to make fancy macaroni and cheese. I used ham and panko bread crumbs and baked it in the oven to create a fantastic casserole. I made a variation of this recipe online but I used less butter, substituted half and half instead of heavy cream, used different cheeses and added the ham cubes. It came out amazing and tasted even better the next day. Great for groups.
CURRIED CHICKEN SALAD
This is a regular recipe I make. Whenever I poach chicken for a dish, I dice whatever chicken is remaining and put it in a bowl with some chopped celery, chopped apples and raisins. I stir in a bit of mayonnaise (you can use plain yogurt too), with some fresh squeezed lime or lemon and sprinkle in madras curry powder with a dash of cayenne pepper and salt. Everything to taste. Best to coat the chicken until it's moist. This chicken salad is delicious in sandwiches, with crackers or on top of lettuce.