Stuffed Pork Loin and Roasted Cauliflower

I had an idea that I wanted a pork loin for dinner.  I wasn't sure what I wanted, but knew that two of the ingredients really needed to be cauliflower and arugula.  This time of year, "fresh" produce can either last indefinitely (which makes me suspicious) or can go off overnight - which makes me suspicious.  I decided I needed to use these before I started getting suspicious.

I made a pretty simple bread and arugula stuffing with ingredients already in the house.

Arugula and Bread Stuffing with Bacon

  • 3 slices thick-cut bacon, diced
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 6oz arugula
  • 1 cup bread crumbs
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper

Fry bacon until almost crisp.  Add onion and cook until wilted.  Add garlic and continue cooking.

Add arugula and cook down until wilted.  Remove from heat.

Add bread crumbs, thyme, salt, pepper, and egg and mix well.

To assemble:

With sharp knife, slice pork loin open and flat.  Spread stuffing and roll.  Tie with butcher twine.

Roast at 350° about an hour or until desired doneness.

The potatoes were simply boiled and tossed with butter and parsley, salt and pepper.

The cauliflower was oven-roasted, caramelized goodness.

Roasted Cauliflower

  • Cauliflower
  • olive oil
  • garlic powder
  • salt and pepper
  • Romano or parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 500°.

Mix cauliflower with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  Arrange on baking sheet in one layer.

Roast in hot oven about 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and top with grated cheese.

Cut cauliflower into small florettes.


Glenhardie Dinner Club

Time again for the Men to cook for the Glenhardie Dinner Club.  Menu and recipes are from my friend John McAllister.

Menu

Hors D’oeuvre

Host Choice

Appetizers

Prosciutto di Parma “Purses”

Black Olive Tapenade

Soup

Minestra Di Funghi Selvatice

Wild Mushroom Soup

Pasta

Veal filled Ravioli with Marinara Sauce

Salad

Sweet and Sour Cucumbers

Entrée

Stuffed Lobster Tails with shrimp and crab

Risotto with Peas

Dessert

Oranges in Cointreau

Wine

Luna Di Luna Pinot Grigio…. (White)

Identified By Joseph Mc Guire

PROSCIUTTO DI PARMA “PURSES”

  • 20 sturdy fresh chives each at least 5” long
  • 10 thin slices prosciutto di Parma, each about 8 x 4 inches
  • ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • Ripe cantaloupe ( e.g. Quart container at Whole foods)
  1. Bring a large skillet of water to a boil and add the chives. Stir, separating the chives gently, just until they turn bright green, about 5 seconds. Transfer them with a slotted spoon to a bowl of cold water and let stand for a few seconds to stop the cooking. Remove the chives and drain them on paper towels.
  2. Cut the prosciutto slices crosswise in half to make pieces that measure about 4 inches square. Place 1 teaspoon grated cheese in the center of each square. Gather the edges of the prosciutto up over the cheese to form a “purses”* with a rounded bottom and ruffled top, pinch the prosciutto firmly where it is gathered, and tie a chive around this “neck”.
  3. In a large, preferably nonstick, skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter over low heat. Add half of the purses and cook, shaking the skillet very gently occasionally, until the undersides of the purses are golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Add the remaining tablespoon butter and cook the remaining purses in the same manner. Serve with fresh ripe melon wedges.

Note #1: *Cook these “purses” just long enough to brown them . Overcooking will make them salty and, as prosciutto di Parma is a carefully cured product, it doesn’t need to be cooked to be rendered edible. When buying the prosciutto, ask for slices from the widest part of the ham which will measure about “eight by four inches”.

PREPARED BY JOHN MC ALLISTER

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY DAVID JOHNSON

BLACK OLIVE TAPENADE

Serves 10

  • 3 tablespoons vinegar packed capers (e.g. Small jar--Whole Foods)
  • 1 ½ cups (8 oz./250g) pitted Kalamata olives (e.g. Whole Foods Olive stand)
  • 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
  • 6-8 anchovy fillets, rinsed (e.g. 2 oz Cento can in olive oil-Whole Foods)
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Freshly ground pepper
  1. Drain, and rinse vinegar packed capers and pat dry
  2. In a large mortar, combine the capers, olives, garlic, anchovies, and thyme. Using a pestle, and working in a circular motion, grind together until evenly chopped. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while stirring constantly with the pestle until a very finely chopped spread-not a smooth puree- forms.
  3. Alternatively in a food processor combine the capers, olives, garlic, anchovies and thyme and process until finely chopped about 1 minute. Then with the motor running pour in the olive oil in slow steady stream and process until very finely chopped. ( I used this method ---note: somewhat chunky…not a paste)
  4. Season to taste with pepper.
  5. Serve at once or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

PREPARED BY JOHN MC ALLISTER

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY DAVID JOHNSON

MINESTRA DI FUNGHI SELVATICE

Wild Mushroom Soup

Serves 12

FOR THE SOUP

  • 8 pieces (2/5 ounce) dried porcini mushrooms
  • 1 ½ cups water
  • 5 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 slices bacon, diced
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2 medium potatoes, peeled, left whole
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled, left whole
  • 1 large shallot, diced
  • 2½ quarts (10 cups) Chicken Broth
  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste

FOR THE FRESH MUSHROOMS

  • 5 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 pounds wild mushrooms, cleaned and sliced – see below
  • Freshly ground pepper to taste
  • ¼ cup chopped Italian parsley
  1. In 1½ cups of warm water, presoak the dried porcini about 20 minutes, until softened. Drain, reserving all but the last 2 teaspoons of the steeping liquid (to avoid unwanted sediments). Remove and rinse the softened porcini.
  2. In a 5-quart pot, heat 5 tablespoons olive oil, add the bacon and onion, and sauté until translucent. Add the potatoes, carrots, and shallot, and cook 2 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. Add the stock, drained porcini, reserved soaking liquid, and salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and keep on low boil about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
  3. To prepare the fresh wild mushrooms, heat the olive oil in the large skillet and sauté them in batches, over medium-high heat, until all water has evaporated, about 7 minutes per batch. Transfer the mushrooms to the soup pot and simmer 30 minutes, skimming occasionally. Remove and discard potatoes and carrots. Add the pepper and parsley, and serve piping hot.

Notes:

The soup is best when made with several varieties of fresh wild mushrooms - porcini, shiitake, chanterelle, hen-of-the-woods, etc. Other types of dried mushrooms may be substituted for the dried porcini specified, but porcini are preferable.

The dried and fresh wild mushrooms are available at Whole Foods.

PREPARED BY FRANK PARISI

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY DAVID JOHNSON

VEAL-FILLED RAVIOLI WITH MARINARA SAUCE

Serves 8

Stuffed Ravioli:

  • 24 fresh ravioli stuffed with veal *
  1. Boil Water in suitable pot
  2. Add raviolis and cook for eight minutes or until “entire” raviolis is tender
  3. Place three ravioli on a small plate
  4. Top with sauce and serve .

*Note:

Suggest purchase Ravioli at: Carlino’s Specialty Foods
2616 E County Line Rd, Ardmore, PA 19003 - (610) 649-4046
-or -
128 W Market St, West Chester - (610) 696-3788

Vince’s Marinara Sauce:

  • 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, minced
  • 1 small Onion, chopped (fine…not too chunky)
  • 1 can (28 oz.) whole peeled tomatoes
  • 1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes
  • 4 Teaspoons Dried Basil Leaves
  • Salt and Pepper to Taste
  • 2 Teaspoons Oregano
  • 8oz. White Wine OR 1 Teaspoon White Sugar
  1. In a skillet over medium heat, sauté garlic and onion in the olive oil; about 10 minutes.
  2. Break apart the whole tomatoes with your hands and add to the pan along with the crushed tomatoes, basil, white wine/sugar, salt and pepper.
  3. Cover and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY VINCE SCRIBONI

SWEET AND SOUR CUCUMBERS SALAD

Serves 5

  • 2 medium size cucumbers
  • 3 scallions
  • 6 radishes
  • 1 sprig of parsley, snipped
  • 2 tablespoons tarragon rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon fresh crushed herbs, if available
  1. Peel and slice the cucumbers as thinly as possible.
  2. Slice scallions very thin, including the tops.
  3. Then add sliced radishes and snipped parsley.
  4. Combine vinegar, sugar and oil; pour over cucumber mixture.
  5. Toss, season to taste
  6. Refrigerate1 hour before serving.
  7. Makes about 2 cups.

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY BOB MCKELVEY

STUFFED LOBSTER TAILS WITH SHRIMP AND CRAB

Serves 4

Lobster Tails:

  • ½ stick unsalted butter
  • 1 (61/2 oz).can crab meat, drained
  • 4 lobster tails, prepared as shown( (6 oz. each)*
  • 1 C butter cracker crumb (such below as Ritz)
  • 3 oz. shrimp, peeled, deveined, cut into chunks
  • juice of ½ a lemon
  • ¾ C butter cracker crumbs
  • 2 T. chopped fresh chives
  • ½ stick unsalted butter, melted
  • 1T. lemon zest, minced
  • 2T. chopped fresh parsley
  • Pinch of cayenne
  1. Lobster tails come frozen. To thaw, leave tails in the fridge overnight or run cold water over them for about an hour. Prepare lobster tails by cutting down both sides of the belly (not the meat) to the fan. Remove meat, devein, cut into 1” chunks; reserve the shells.
  2. Preheat oven to 400*; place a rack on a foil-lined baking sheet.
  3. Melt ½ stick butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Stir in lobster, shrimp, and lemon juice; cook just until seafood starts to turn pink. Add chives, zest, and cayenne.
  4. Off heat, stir in crab and 1 cup of cracker crumbs just until combined (use a light hand when stirring the crabmeat – otherwise it will break down into shreds). Divide stuffing among the 4 reserved lobster shells. (Stuffed tails may be covered and chilled for up to 1 day). Arrange tails on prepared rack.
  5. Combine remaining ¾ cup of cracker crumbs with melted butter and parsley, then sprinkle over each prepared tail.
  6. Roast until topping is crisp and stuffing is hot, about 15 minutes.
  7. Serve with Champagne Butter Sauce.

*Note:

- Recommend purchase at Suburbia Seafood, Bridgeport , Pa 610-265-7426

- Recommend not using crackers …Use bread crumbs instead e.g. used Pepperbridge Farm thin white bread, cut crust off and create fine bread crumbs in food processor

- Recommend boiling empty lobster shells before stuffing them

Champagne Butter Sauce;

In French cuisine, this sauce is called a beurre blanc (burr BLAHN). If you don’t have sparkling wine, dry white wine works too. Makes ½ cup.

  • 1 cup dry sparkling wine or dry white wine
  • 1T. shallots, minced
  • 1 sprig fresh thyme
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, cold, cubed (8 T.)
  • 1t. minced fresh tarragon
  • salt to taste
  1. Reduce wine with shallots and thyme in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until liquid is nearly evaporated.
  2. Remove and discard thyme, then whisk in butter 1 or 2 cubes at a time until melted. Finish with tarragon and salt.
  3. To prevent the sauce from “breaking” (separating), keep it warm in a bowl of hot water rather than on the stovetop.

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY JOSEPH MCGUIRE

RISOTTO WITH PEAS

Serves 10

  • 2 pints Chicken Broth
  • 5 tablespoons Butter
  • ½ cup small onion finely chopped
  • 1 ½ cups Arborio Rice
  • ¾ cup dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Reggiano Cheese-(e.g. Whole Foods)
  • Salt and pepper to taste (very little)
  • Freshly Shelled Peas packet -(e.g. Whole Foods)

Pot #1

Put broth in pot and cook to almost boiling

Pot #2

Put onion, butter (3 tbls) in pot and brown onion

Add rice for about 1 min. (should be translucent)

Add wine

Add broth to cover rice and constantly mix

When liquid disappears add more broth

Medium high heat (17 mins. cooking time)

It took a little longer for me …test rice ..do not cover

Pot #3

Cook peas until tender ---just covered peas with water –high heat

Drain

Assemble :

Fold in Peas then rest of butter and Parmesan cheese (1/2 cup)

Serve

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY JOHN MC ALLISTER

ORANGES IN COINTREAU

(from Sanibel-Captiva Cookbook)

  • Twelve to fifteen navel oranges, peeled and sliced or segmented
  • One and one-half cups sugar
  • One and one-half cups water
  • One and one-half cups cane sugar syrup (Karo syrup)
  • One-quarter cup lemon juice
  • One-quarter cup Cointreau
  • Pepperidge Farm Milano Double Chocolate cookies
  1. Place the orange segments in a large jar or other sealable container such as Tupperware.
  2. Combine next three ingredients in saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir until sugar is dissolved.
  3. Remove from high heat and place on medium heat. Keep saucepan uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes until slightly thickened.
  4. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and liqueur. Pour over oranges and refrigerate at least overnight. Serve cold.
  5. Serve on individual plates, perhaps five or six segments per plate.
  6. Add one or two Pepperidge Farm Milano Double Chocolate cookies to finish the plate

NOTE: If the oranges are good sized, half this recipe should probably suffice for a dinner party. I recommend segmenting the oranges. In heating the mixture, forty minutes seems to be overkill. Go with the slightly thickened criterion..

RECIPE IDENTIFIED BY BOB MCKELVEY


Cooking in a Winter Wonderland

I was a serious cookin' machine today!  Beautiful snow falling (but not really sticking) put me in the mood to bake.

In-between baking projects, though, I did cook dinner,as well.  Victor saw a recipe in Parade Magazine of all places that looked intriguing.  Chicken and Peppers in a balsamic vinegar sauce.  We've done a lot of balsamic reductions, but this one sounded just different enough to give it a try.  This one comes from Bobby Flay.

Chicken and Peppers in Vinegar Sauce

  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 8 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 large red bell pepper, stem and seeds removed, thinly sliced
  • 1 large yellow bell pepper, stem and seeds removed, thinly sliced
  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp clover honey
  • 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock or broth
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1. Heat oil in a medium Dutch oven over high heat until it shimmers. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels; season with salt and pepper. Place chicken in the pan, in batches, top-side-down. Cook until golden brown, 4 minutes. Turn over, continue cooking 3 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate.

2. Add peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Add the vinegar and cook until reduced by half. Add honey and broth, season with salt and pepper, cook for 5 minutes. Return the chicken and accumulated juices to the pot. Reduce heat to medium, cover the pot, and cook until the chicken is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken to a platter. Cook sauce until slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Stir in parsley and pour sauce over the chicken.

I served it with a whole grain mahogany rice blend.  I made it with chunks of chicken breast because I didn't have any thighs in the freezer.  It came out pretty good.  I think I like Lidia's Pork Chops and Apples, better, though...

One thing I was definitely going to make today was an apple pie.  And yes, I make my own pie crusts.  They're just not that difficult to make and I can't find a decent pre-made crust that will fit a standard 10" deep-dish pie plate.

Food Processor Pie Crust

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 cup butter, cubed (I freeze it)
  • pinch salt
  • pinch sugar (if for sweet pie)
  • 1/4 cup ice-cold water

Put flour, salt and sugar (if using) in food processor bowl.  Pulse a second to blend.

Add cold or frozen butter pieces and pulse until well mixed.

Add water while mahine is running and pulse a few times to mix.

Dough will look very crumbly.  Pinch together a small amount to see if it holds together.  if it doies, you're set.

Form into two disks - one larger than the other - and let rest about 10 minutes.

Roll out on well-floured board.

It really is easy to do!

Apple Pie filling

  • 5 large apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1/4 cup melted butter
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp allspice
  • pinch salt
  • 1/4 cup apricot brandy

Place all filling ingredients in large bowl and mix well.

Place filling into pastry-lined pie plate.  Top with crust and crimp edges.

Bake at 400° about an hour.

It came out really good.  It didn't even need ice cream!

The other thing I was obsessing about a bit today was Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread.  I almost bought a loaf and then decided I could make one just as easy.

Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread

  • 3 cups flour, more or less, divided
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 envelope active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp butter, melted

In a large mixing bowl combine 1 cup flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Beating at low speed, add the water and butter. Continue beating at high speed for 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup flour and beat 4 minutes longer. Stir in 1 1/2 cups flour, or enough to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic, adding a little more flour as necessary.

Place dough in a large buttered bowl, turning to butter top. Cover with a clean towel and let rise for about 1 hour in a warm place, free of drafts.

Punch dough down; knead until smooth. Roll into a 12x9-inch rectangle.

Brsh with melted butter.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar and then spread raisins evenly.

Starting with the narrow edge, roll up, turning ends under to make loaves to fit pans. Place rolls seam side down in greased loaf pans, 9x5x3-inches.

Cover pans with clean towel and let rise in warm place until double, about 45 minutes.

Bake loaves at 400° for 25 to 30 minutes, or until loaves sound hollow when tapped with fingers. Remove from pans to racks; brush with butter.

This was supposed to be for breakfast tomorrow.  Needless to say, we didn't wait.

I could eat this every day.

As for the snow storm that was supposed to droip another 18" of snow?  It hasn't quite hit yet.


Debbie's Chicken

 

Many moons ago, my sister-in-law Debbie made a great chicken dish.  I don't recall where the original recipe came from, but it's a dish that was in our regular rotation for years.  She even submitted the recipe for a Family Reunion Cook Book.

As I said, we made it often.  And then, for whatever reason, it faded away.

Until tonight.

I've been thinking about it recently and, as luck would have it, we just happened to have all the right ingredients in the house!

It was every bit as good as I remembered it!

Chicken Zucchini Parmesan

  • 1/4 C dried breadcrumbs
  • 1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese
  • 4 chicken breasts, boned and skinned
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3 tbsp oil
  • 1-15 oz, can or jar marinara sauce
  • 2 tbsp parsley
  • 1/2 tsp garlic
  • 1 lb. zucchini, sliced
  • 8 oz. Monterey jack cheese, grated

Mix 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese with dried breadcrumbs. Dip chicken in egg, then into breadcrumbs and cheese. Heat oil; add chicken and brown on both sides. Set aside.

Place 1/2 of the marinara sauce in a pan. Top with zucchini, then chicken. Sprinkle with 1/2 of the jack cheese and 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese. Top with remaining sauce. Cover and bring to boil. Simmer 25 minutes until chicken and zucchini are tender.

Sprinkle with remaining jack cheese and Parmesan. Cover and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.

My only changes were that I used homemade sauce, used mozzarella and provolone cheeses, and after putting it all together, put it into a 375° oven for about 30 minutes.

Thanks, Deb.  It's back in the rotation!


Sunday Dinner

Sunday Dinner.  The perfect excuse to eat a big meal early in the day.  I picked up an on-sale-buck-a-pound ham yesterday and called Victor's brother as soon as I got home to invite them over for dinner.  A 9-pound ham needs more than two people.  A lot more.  We ended up with seven.  (Well, six.  One is a vegetarian.)

I was actually a good boy.  I didn't go crazy like I usually do.  One appetizer.  A simple bruschetta for starters.  One.  I amazed myself.  I resisted.  And won.

Besides the ham, we had sweet potatoes, broccoli, a big salad and dinner rolls.  I made some croutons from a loaf of old bread...  Cubed the bread and drizzled it with olive oil, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning.  Baked about 20 minutes at 350°.

The sweets were good.  I steamed them a bit and then put them in a covered casserole with a splash of maple syrup, a splash of sherry, and a bit of salt and pepper.  Baked about 40 minutes.  Steamed broccoli with a bit of butter.  Simple and basic.  And really good.

Marie made dessert.  A Rum Cake that really was good.  We snagged a hunk for a second dessert later on tonight while watching the Olympics.  After ham sandwiches, of course.

My stomach is smiling.


Tomatoes Fresh (Frozen) from the Garden

Back in September, I froze the last of our homegrown tomatoes.  We had a great crop last year and had more than we could quickly use.  I put about a dozen of them on sheet pans and put them right in the freezer.  When they were solid, I vacuum-packed them.  I was looking forward to fresh sauce in the middle of winter.

With a couple of feet of snow still on the ground, I think this classifies as "the middle of winter."  I pulled them out of the freezer last night and in my nicest voice I asked Victor if he wanted to make fresh sauce today while I was toiling away at work.  My pathetic look worked.   I came home to a simmering pot of outrageously perfect marinara.  And it tasted fresh from the garden.

We never bother to peel tomatoes when we're going to use them in sauce, but since these had been frozen, the peel slipped right off.  An added bonus.

He cooked up some rigatoni and browned a couple of sausages and pork chops.   Those he simmered in tonight's dinner.  The rest of the sauce went into the 'fridge for another day.

Fresh tomato sauce - and the tomatoes didn't have to travel - unripe and hard as a rock -  half-way around the world.


Creamy Chicken and Mashed Potatoes

My Winter Variety Cooking Quotient is just about maxed.   I seem to be continually drifting back to a creamed chicken something.  Fortunately, I really like creamed chicken somethings - and tonight's version had the added bonus of emptying out the freezer of three different partial-bags of frozen vegetables.  For the first time in months, I can see into every shelf-bin in there.  Monday will be a fun shopping day.

It's still winter here outside of Valley Forge.  There's still lots of snow on the ground.  That means it's still creamed-chicken-something - or saucy-something - or baked-noodle-something - or fresh-baked-bread-and-soup-something time.  I'm thinking how nice it would be to fire up the grill.  A thick, juicy steak and tomatoes fresh from the garden.  I'm ready to expand the repertoire again.  Fresh vegetables grown locally - not grown 8,000 miles away and picked rock-hard and unripe.  I'm ready.

In the meantime, tonight's creamy-chicken-something was similar to a pot pie filling topped with mashed potatoes, and baked in a 400° oven for about 20 minutes.  Perfect comfort food and perfect for the weather.

The weather.

I think I need to pick up a bag of charcoal on Monday.....


Vellutata di asparagi

Over time I have let just about all of my cooking magazines lapse.  The same dozen recipes kept coming back month after month with little variation.  And more and more recipes seem to be relying on processed, packaged or boxed ingredients.  We all know how much I love that stuff.  Riiiiiiight.......

A noticeable exception has been La Cucina Italiana.  It's a fun read, and although I don't make a lot of the recipes, they always inspire me and get me thinking outside the box.  Like the April issue that just arrived.

Thumbing through the magazine - actually, sitting on the couch getting rid of the blow-in cards - I saw a picture of a soup.  An Asparagus Soup.  With a fried egg floating in the center.  It was so unexpected.  It looked wonderful. I kept going back to it. I  knew I was immediately going to make it.  Or, at least a variation of it.  I was truly  mesmerized.

The magazine arrived yesterday.  Tonight I did my variation.

2 things about the magazine recipe; the soup itself seemed just a bit bland, and I thought a poached egg would work better than a fried egg.  As I said - they inspire me, I don't necessarily make things the way they do.

So here's what I did:

Asparagus Soup with Poached Eggs

  • 1 large leek, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 2 lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into uniform pieces (reserve a few tips for garnish)
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup creme fraiche
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 4 eggs, poached

Saute leek and garlic in butter until soft.  Add asparagus, then broth, water, and nonfat milk.  Bring to boil then reduce heat and simmer until asparagus is tender.

Add lemon juice, salt and pepper.  (Soup will probably look like it is curdling.  Don't worry.  It's okay!)

Use an immersion blender and puree soup.  If you don't have an immersion blender - go buy one - they're cheap.  Or, puree in a blender - but do be careful.  Hot liquids and blenders cause explosions.

Mix in creme fraiche and check for seasoning.  Keep warm while poaching eggs.

Ladle soup into bowls and add poached egg.  Garnish with a few reserved asparagus spears, if desired.

This was just a totally unexpected treat.  I didn't add any other herbs or spices because I wanted the asparagus flavor to come through.

I also made especially runny eggs because I figured they would continue cooking in the hot soup.  It was a good call.  Had I cooked them to a more normal doneness, they really would have been overcooked by the time we sat down.  I wanted the yolk to still be runny - not a golf ball.

It really worked well and I can see this with a lot of different soups.  More experimenting to come!


Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

Dinner tonight was pretty simple - burritos.  Ground beef, rice, and beans, chilis, olives, cheese.  Simple, basic, and filling.

So after dinner, Victor laments that we don't have dessert tonight.  Situations are actually reversed, for once.  Usually it's my sweet tooth looking for goodies.  Being the unsympathetic person I am, I said there were two pieces of Valentine chocolate left.  One for each.  Dessert is covered.

Victor said he was going to bake cookies.  My clever ruse worked.

I left the kitchen and Victor went to work.

When we bake cookies, we use ice cream scoops (known as "dishers" in the food biz) to scoop out the dough.  We have about a half-dozen of them in varying sizes.  They are so much easier than trying to deal with tablespoons and the like - and you get a consistent-sized cookie!  (They're also really good for making cupcakes and muffins!)

Victor used a #16 scoop tonight - 1/4 cup.  These are big cookies!

The recipe is a variation on the recipe from the lid of the Quaker Oats container.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

  • 1/2 pound butter, softened
  • 1 cup peanut butter
  • 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups rolled oats

Heat oven to 350°. In large bowl, beat butter, peanut butter, and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded 1/4  cup scoops onto parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake 13 to 15 minutes or until light golden brown.

Of course, you can drop them by rounded tablespoons (try a #40 disher) and bake for about 10-11 minutes.

They totally rocked.


Chicken Wings

 

Victor's had a hankerin' for chicken wings.  Tonight, we had them!

He marinated the wings all day in peanut oil, lots of garlic, honey, sambal oelek, and salt & pepper.  Into the oven.

We don't really eat a lot of chicken wings.  A lot of chicken, yes.  Wings?  No.  So this was a treat.

And we weren't all bad.  We had roasted potatoes and roasted carrots along with it.

And then we had the last of the chocolate whiskey-peach upside-down cake for dessert.

We were a little bad.

 


Jamie Oliver on Obesity in the United States

Sharing powerful stories from his anti-obesity project in Huntington, W. Va., TED Prize winner Jamie Oliver makes the case for an all-out assault on our ignorance of food.

This should be posted and reposted and reposted again.  Spend the 20 minutes to watch it all.

Fast food has taken over the whole country. We know that. The big brands are some of the most important powers, powerful powers in this country. Supermarkets as well. Big companies. Big companies. 30 years ago, most of the food was largely local and largely fresh. Now it's largely processed and full of all sorts of additives, extra ingredients, and you know the rest of the story. Portion size is obviously a massive, massive problem. Labeling is a massive problem. The labeling in this country is a disgrace. They want to be self ... They want to self-police themselves. The industry wants to self-police themselves. What, in this kind of climate? They don't deserve it. How can you say something is low-fat when it's full of so much sugar?


Feed A Cold...

And boy, do I have a cold.  Ugh.  "Cold Remedies" do absolutely nothing for me.  The cold is going to stay with me for two weeks no matter what. Things that do help alleviate the discomfort?  Chicken soup, saline nasal rinse, and drinking plenty of fluids.   And rest.  And eating well, in general.

Especially the eating well in general part.  Researchers really have given a medical imprimatur on chicken soup.  It really does work.  And while it may be more psychological than medical fact, I do feel better eating certain comfort foods.  Smooth, creamy, softer textures are what I want.  And tonight's dinner fit just that bill.  And it made me feel better.

Floured and pan-fried chicken scallops with mushrooms over egg noodles with  peas.  Total simplicity.  No weird, unpronounceable ingredients.  Wholesome and made from scratch in 20 minutes.  The older I get the more cantankerous I get over packaged and processed foods.  And if my body is already trying to fight off a virus, the last thing I want to do is put processed and manufactured food-product-stuff into my body and screw up the fight.  I want to give it ammunition, not hobble it.

With that in mind,  I made dinner.  For the chicken, I split a thick chicken breast in half, cut it into serving-sized pieces and pounded it thin.  I then dredged it in a mixture of flour, paprika, poultry seasoning, turmeric, salt and pepper.

Into a hot skillet it went with a splash of olive oil.

After quickly browning it, I took it out and added a variety of mushrooms.  I cooked them down, added some white wine, cooked it down, added some chicken broth, and then thickened it with a bit of corn starch.  I put the chicken cutlets back in to heat through.

A healthy start-to-finish 20 minutes.

And in other news...

It's snowing outside!  It's not supposed to really amount to much, but one can always hope!