Chicken in a Basil Cream Sauce

This is a rather simple and quick dinner that people will think took a long time to make. The total preparation and cooking time is about 30-40 minutes. What is nice about the dish is the blend of the Parmesan Cheese and chopped Basil. Fresh basil is definitely required for this dish as it is a key ingredient and probably wouldn't work very will with a dried herb substitute.

Chicken in a Basil Cream Sauce
Serves 4

1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 (4 ounce) jar sliced pimento peppers, drained
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper


DIRECTIONS:
1. Place milk and bread crumbs in separate, shallow bowls. In skillet, heat butter or margarine to medium heat. Dip chicken in milk, then coat with crumbs. Cook in butter or margarine, on both sides, until juices run clear (about 10 minutes). Remove and keep warm.

2. Add broth to skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat, and stir to loosen browned bits from pan. Stir in cream and pimentos; boil and stir for 1 minute. Reduce heat.

3. Add Parmesan cheese, basil and pepper. Stir sauce and cook until heated through. Pour mixture over chicken and serve.

Food Inc.'s Impact on Our Food Buying Decisions

My wife and I watched a very interesting and, by seeing how my Sunday went, potentially life-changing film called “Food, Inc.” It’s basically a documentary that tries to cover the steps of where our food comes from. It’s not as graphic or gory as some documentaries I have watched on the subject of animal cruelty and factory farming. Sure it has a little of that and there are some tear-filled moments, but this film is less sensational and more informational.

After a long discussion with Stephanie about what changes we could make in our family’s diet we decided to do a bit of research. Fortunately, our diet is filled with a lot of home cooking with fresh meats, fruits and vegetables. Plus we buy a lot of organic products. Very little of our consumption is processed foods and we had already eliminated high-fructose corn syrup from our diets a few years ago after Stephanie watched an episode of Oprah featuring Doctor Oz.

What you learn in Food, Inc. is that “organic”, “natural”, “anti-biotic free” are labels that while good are simply scratching the surface and factory farming has bastardized many of the terms. So what do you look for?

Here is an article I highly recommend everyone to read: Avoiding Factory Farm Foods.

Read it and then come back to this article if you care to see what changes we did.

A few easy decisions involved changing our diary choices. We bought a lot of Organic but only milk from the Organic Valley brand. They are very well respected and a very easy decision when buying diary products so we are now exclusively using their products. Sure there are some other labels out there that are just as good, but Organic Valley is pretty much everywhere we shop.

We eat a lot of meat, mainly boneless, skinless chicken which is probably 70-80% of our meat choice. Stephanie doesn’t eat seafood and I eat very little of it. The other 20-30% is mainly beef and a little pork.

Our beef and pork are all bought from Costco. Well, I should say WERE bought from Costco. We’ve decided to go exclusively with a farm that we bought some meat from at last summer’s Birmingham Farmer’s Market – John Henry’s. It’s a local farm that raises pasture beef and pork. They do home delivery in our area. I used to bulk buy from Costco and individually freeze the meat with our Food Saver. Now I’ll just buy bulk from John Henry’s Farm and freeze.

Chicken can also be purchased from John Henry’s but I wanted to see if we could find it more easily since it’s a larger, more frequent part of our diet.

Organic Valley's meat brand is Organic Prairie that sells prairie raised animals. Problem is it’s very hard to find (Whole Foods Rochester Hills and a Co-op in Ann Arbor) and the cost is exorbitant. For example, frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts run about $5 per chicken breast. Trader Joe's frozen all-natural boneless, skinless chicken breasts I used to buy are about $2.75 per chicken breast. Of course the Trader Joe's chicken is not free-range raised. The best route to buy free-range chicken is to buy from a local farm like my local farmer's market meat seller, John Henry's, which charges only $5.29 a pound (or about $3.50 per chicken breast.)

Fortunately, I went back to Trader Joe’s this evening and bought some of their individually wrapped packaged Organic Chicken. It’s about $4 per chicken breast ($7.49/lb.) The difference between the All-Natural I used to buy and the Organic is tremendous. Here is how the label reads on the Organic package:

“These certified organic birds eat organic feed their entire lives – their corn and soy based diet is free of antibiotics and animal by-products. They’re free range, raised in spacious, naturally lit houses and large, fenced outdoor pens, where they are free to roam.”

If you read the article I mentioned above, you’ll know the last sentence is very important and major difference from other suppliers. For instance, I went to Whole Foods’ website and it says nothing of the sort, only the following is mentioned:

Poultry

* No antibiotics — ever
* No animal byproducts in feed
* No beak trimming for broiler chickens and game hens
* Appropriate beak trimming for turkeys allowed when necessary*
* Appropriate litter provided for comfort and to satisfy natural foraging instincts

So there you have it, our changes after a day of research. I’m sure we’ll do some more looking into things with other products, but this at least gives us some good information to ‘vote with our dollars.’

Please share any brands, products, farms, etc. that you do to improve how and what you eat.

Deb's Chicken Pot Pie

Facebook is a great resource for talking food with friends and family. Fortunately, I have a good network of fellow home cooks. One such friend is Deb Tighe who kept talking about a chicken pot pie she was making over and over again. She was in a bit of a food rut, but thank god because if it wasn't for her rut and Facebook status posts about it I would've never made this delicious pot pie.

Most pot pies I have had are a bit over done in the ingredients department, they are often over flavored. Other recipes are a bit too simple and well bland. This recipe has a very nice balance of flavor letting you enjoy every ingredient.

I did make a few minor tweaks to Deb's original recipe (my changes are in the recipe here.) I added a small amount of Thyme and Oregano and also pre-boiled the potatoes so they would be fully cooked.

Enjoy and thanks again to Deb for an excellent recipe!

Deb’s Chicken Pot Pie

Serves 8 (2 pies)

1 10 oz. package frozen mixed vegetables
1/3 c. butter
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. chopped onions
1 potato, peeled and diced into small cubes
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp dried Thyme
1/4 tsp dried Oregano
1 3/4 c. chicken broth
2/3 c. milk
3 c. chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 pie crusts (9 in.)

Boil potatoes in hot water for about 8 minutes to soften. In a large skillet, melt butter and add onions, potato, flour, salt, thyme, oregano and pepper. Stir and cook until bubbly, remove from heat. Stir in chicken broth and milk. Stir constantly and heat to boiling. Boil one minute while stirring. Stir in veggies and shredded chicken.

Prepare bottom pie crust and pour chicken mixture into crust. Add top crust and crimp edges or pie. Prick top of crust. Bake at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes. Cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Chicken pot pies can also be frozen before baking for use later. When ready to use, thaw in refrigerator and bake as directed above.

Restaurant Style Prime Rib Roast

I was at Trader Joe's rummaging through the packaged meats when I ran across a Prime Rib Roast. Never having made one I immediately checkout allrecipes.com and found a recipe that was simple and highly rated with over 200 positive reviews. Turned out it was very easy to make and cooked perfectly.

The recipe may seem odd as it requires you to turn off the oven and leave the roast in for 3 hours. While doing this, you cannot open the oven for anything since the secret here is to trap the heat and slow cook the roast for the majority of the cooking. Trust me it works.

Restaurant Style Prime Rib Roast
Serves 6-8

1 (5 pound) standing beef Prime rib roast
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Allow roast to stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Combine the salt, pepper and garlic powder in a small cup. Place the roast on a rack in a roasting pan so that the fatty side is up and the rib side is on the bottom. Rub the seasoning onto the roast.

Roast for 1 hour in the preheated oven. Turn the oven off and leave the roast inside. Do not open the door. Leave it in there for 3 hours. 30 to 40 minutes before serving, turn the oven back on at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) to reheat the roast. The internal temperature should be at least 145 degrees F (62 degrees C). Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before carving into servings.

Shepherd's Pie a Party Pleaser

I made this for a gathering of over 20 people today, my sister in-law's son Cooper turned one. The recipe was tripled for the party and really made for an easy meal for a large gathering. It also reminded me of how simple Shepherd's Pie is to make. The meal takes about an hour to prep and cook, not bad and it looks like a lot more time went into it. The flavor of this recipe is very traditional in that there is nothing odd or gourmet about it; it's just a simple, flavorful recipe.

Cheddar-Topped Shepherd's Pie
Serves 8

2 pounds baking potatoes (about 4),
peeled and thinly sliced
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
6 medium carrots, halved lengthwise,
quartered and thinly sliced
6 celery stalks, thinly sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 pounds ground beef chuck
1 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 450. Place potatoes in a large saucepan, and cover by 1 inch with salted water. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer. Cook until potatoes are easily pierced with a tip of a paring knife, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a 5-quart Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add carrots, celery, onion, and thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add flour and tomato paste; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add beef; cook, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 1 cup water; bring to a boil, and simmer 1 minute. Set beef filling aside.

3. Drain potatoes; return to pain. Cook over medium, stirring, until liquid has evaporated and a thin film covers bottom of pan, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat; add milk and 1 cup cheese. Mash until smooth; season with salt and pepper.

4. Pour beef filling into a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Drop dollops of topping over filling; spread to edges with a spatula. Using a fork, make decorative peaks; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Bake until topping is browned and filling is bubbling rapidly, about 20 minutes (if topping and filling were chilled, increase to 35 minutes.) Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Pork and Cabbage in Milk

This is kind of a strange dish. We liked how the cabbage and bacon added a nice flavor to everything without either overpowering the dish, but it wasn't great. It was good. This is something to add to the mix in the fall or winter months that is hearty and tasty, but not as heavy as a stew or roast.


Pork and Cabbage in milk
Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless pork loins (1-inch thick, fat trimmed)
coarse salt and pepper
4 strips bacon, coarsely chopped
1 medium onion, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/2 head green cabbage, cored an cut into 4 wedges
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups whole milk

1. Preheat ove to 400 and set a large roasting pot over high heat on burner, add oil to pot. Season pork with salt and pepper; brown each side - 3 to 5 minutes. Flip and cook 1 minute more. Transfer to plate.

2. Reduce heat to medium. Add bacon; cook until golden, about 5 minutes stirring often. Add onion; cook until softened, 5 minutes. Add cabbage and cook until light golden, about 6 minutes. Flip and cook until slightly tender, about 3 more minutes. Add flour 1 tablespoon at a time to 2 cups of milk in a bowl, stir each tablespoon with whisk until blended. Add milk and flour mixture to pot and cook until thickened for 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then return pork loins to pot (with any juices.) Transfer pot to oven and bake until pork is cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Hickory-Smoked Beef Brisket

I decided to do a modified version of this recipe from the LA Times. Last night I made a rotisserie chicken and tonight I decided to do a rotisserie version of beef brisket that actually turned out fantastic. The meat was very moist and I put in adjusted cooking times from the LA Times recipe to account for a smaller piece of meat. The recipe that follows works great for a 2-2 1/2 pound brisket. If you want to use a larger piece, follow the LA Times recipe.

For the barbecue sauce, I went with Bandana's BBQ sauce from St. Louis, Missouri. I used their Sweet & Smoky version which went very well with the hickory smoked meat.

Hickory-Smoked Beef Brisket
Serves 4

1/2 tablespoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 (2 1/2 pound) beef brisket with a layer of fat no thicker than 1/2 -inch

2 bottles of beer

1 cup water

Hickory chips, soaked

1. In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper, onion powder, cumin and garlic powder. Rub the mix into the brisket and let sit at room temperature, 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, prepare your smoker or grill to cook over low, indirect heat for several hours. Set up a drip pan underneath where the brisket will smoke, and fill with the beer and water. Shortly before cooking, adjust the heat as needed to maintain a temperature around 250 degrees, and add hickory chips to start smoking.

3. Place the brisket on a rotisserie rack and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Set a pan with beer and water mixture below rotating beef making sure the beef dips into the basting sauce. Adjust the heat as needed (add several coals to either side of the grill as needed if using a kettle grill) to maintain the ambient temperature (around 250 degrees); replenish the chips as needed to keep smoking. The rotisserie will baste the brisket keeping it moist.

4. After 1 1/2 hours, wrap the brisket (fat side up) tightly in foil and continue to cook over indirect low heat until the meat is fork-tender, 2 additional hours (time may vary depending on the heat of the smoker and size and thickness of the brisket).

5. Remove the brisket from heat and, still wrapped in foil, cover it with a layer of newspaper and kitchen towels to keep warm. Set aside, covered, for at least 15 minutes before serving.

6. Slice against the grain of the meat and plate. Squirt barbecue sauce over meat and serve an extra portion of sauce on the side.

Rotisserie Chicken in a Cherry Ale Basting Sauce

This recipe requires a rotisserie. Also, I used Cerise Cherry Ale from Grand Rapids, Michigan for the beer which added a nice sweetness to the basting sauce. You can use any beer, I would just avoid stouts or porters as they overpower everything.

I did not make a sauce the night I did this recipe. It is optional.

Our local farmers market
Rotisserie Chicken in a Cherry Ale Basting Sauce
Serves 4

One whole roasting chicken

Basting Sauce
12 oz. beer
12 oz. water
1 stick butter
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
flour

Heat grill rotisserie for 15 minutes on high.

Wash chicken and pat with paper towel to remove water. Cut one tablespoon of butter off stick of butter and place into cavity of chicken. Put chicken on rotisserie rod.

In a pan add beer, water, butter, pepper, salt, and garlic powder. Place chicken on grill rotisserie and place basting pan under chicken so chicken is dipping into the sauce. Cook chicken for 1 1/2 hours on high heat in closed grill.

When done cut chicken into serving pieces. Add about half of the basting sauce to a small sauce pan and heat at medium on stove, bring it to a boil. In a small bowl, add 2 tablespoons of flour and mix with equal part water and blend so there are no lumps of flour, add water as necessary. Reduce basting sauce when at boil and add flour/water mixture and mix. Let it heat so the sauce thickens.

Plate chicken and drizzle sauce over chicken.

Gnocchi with Red Sauce

You can make this recipe without the Italian sausage for a vegetarian version. Also, you can skip the whole oven process and just serve the pasta with the red sauce and pasta finished in a saute pan. If you make it without the oven steps, skip the bread crumbs but still use the mozzarella and parmesan cheese just cook them in the pan with the pasta and sauce until they mozzarella partially, but not fully, melts.

Gnocchi with Red Sauce
Serves 4

1 lb ricotta gnocchi
14 ounces of red sauce*
1/4 lb. italian sausage
1/3 lb. fresh mozzarella balls
1/2 cup of cooked spinach
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons bread crumbs
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat water for gnocchi to boil, reduce heat to a gentle boil. Add a sprinkle of salt to the water and add gnocchi. Cook according to package directions. For fresh gnocchi, cook for about 2 minutes.

In a pan on medium-high heat, add italian sausage, sprinkle dried basil and oregano over sausage, and break it into smaller chunks with spoon. Cook until done, about 4 mintues. Mix often and set aside once cooked.

Heat olive oil in saucepan on medium heat. Add sliced garlic to pan and let it cook for 1 minute. Add spinach and cook spinach until done. You want to make a 1/2 cup of cook spinach. Set aside once done.

Heat red sauce in pan on medium heat. Reduce heat once it boils to remove boil. Add spinach with garlic and add cooked sausage. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook for 1 minute.

In a dutch oven or oven safe ceramic pan, add cooked gnocchi and red sauce mixture together. Tear mozzarella balls into pieces and mix in with gnocchi and sauce. Mix in parmesan cheese. Sprinkle top of pasta with bread crumbs and drizzle with olive oil to help brown bread crumbs in oven.

Place dutch oven in oven and cook for 15 minutes. Sauce should be bubbling and bread crumbs should be golden brown when finished. Plate with garlic bread or salad. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over pasta.

* For the red sauce , I use Mario Batali's Basic Red Sauce recipe. The most important thing about this recipe is using the right canned whole peeled tomatoes. I highly recommend using ONLY Carmelina 'e San Marzano. I make it according the recipe and freeze about 4 containers with enough sauce for making a pound of pasta. For this recipe you just need 1 container, approximately 14 ounces.

20-Minute Tabbouleh with Chicken

This simple recipe is all prep. In fact, if you don't want to cook a single thing all you have to do is substitute the chicken I use with a store-bought rotisserie chicken. This would leave you with only having to heat a cup of water to a boil, remove from heat and add the bulgar wheat to thicken. Beyond that, all you have to do is chop, chop some more and keep chopping until you finish a few simple dashes of spice and some crumbled feta cheese. Easy.

The best part is that this meal is really, really good. It's the perfect summer meal or dieting meal. There is so little to it that all you have to do is make sure you wrote down all the ingredients before making a trip to the market.

Here is the recipe using boneless-skinless chicken breasts. Like I said above you could substitute the chicken with a rotisserie store-bought and avoid cooking altogether.

Chicken and Feta Tabbouleh
Serves 4

3/4 cup uncooked bulgar
1 cup boiling water
2 cups shredded chicken breast, skinless boneless
1 cup chopped plum tomato
1 cup chopped cucumber
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup (2 oz) crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup finely chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic (or 2 chopped cloves)
1/2 teaspons ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Place bulgar in a medium bowl; cover with 1 cup of boiling water. Let stand for 15 mintues or until liquid is absorbed.

Slice chicken into bit-sized chunks and saute in a pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat cooking and turning for about 8 mintues. Remove from pan and set aside.

Combine remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add bulgar to mixture and toss gently to combine. Spoon out mixture on plates and top with chicken.

Mediterranean Turkey Burgers

The idea of a burger made from anything not red kind of repulsed me until today. Sure I’ve had garden burgers, but they always leave something to be desired like, oh I don’t know, animal? Recently, there has been a bit of a movement for turkey burgers as an alternative to beef hamburgers.

It wasn’t until this weekend that my wife found a recipe that looked appealing. Why? Because we both agreed it was a recipe that didn’t try to replicate a traditional burger with bun, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, onion and tomato but was made with ground turkey. Why not just make beef burgers if you are going to do that? Instead this recipe uses pita bread, tzatziki and arugula. It looked refreshing and fit well with a lighter meat.

Mediterranean Turkey Burgers
Serves 4

1 pound ground turkey
1/2 panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
1/4 cup (1 oz) crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon minced red onion
2 tablespoons commercial pesto
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

2 cups arugula or mixed greens
4 pitas, toasted and halved

Tzatiki:
1/2 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup finely chopped, seeded cucumber
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a bowl; mix until combined. Divide mixture and shape into four patties about 1/2-inch thick.

Mix Tzatiki ingredients by combining all into a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat grill and add patties cooking about 6 minutes on each side until done.

Slice patties and pita bread in half. Stuff pitas with Tzatiki sauce, arugula, and turkey patty. Serve.

Jamaican Chicken Curry

I can hardly believe it's been two months since my last post. It must be a busy summer. Fortunately, this week I decided to catch-up on some cooking magazine reading and ventured into Martha’s Food magazine that has an excellent stew recipe in its May 2009 issue.

The following recipe has some “kick, but just enough to make it intense, yet not insane” as my wife said while we enjoyed a couple plates. Three tablespoons of Indian curry did the trick (the recipe calls for Jamaican curry but I only some hot curry powder from a local Indian market.) Also, I went with organic frozen peas that I think add a nice sweet flavor to the dish. We also spent the morning at the local Farmer’s Market and picked up some great onions, carrots and garlic – all perfect for this recipe. The carrots were like butter.

Jamaican Chicken Curry
Serves 4

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized chunks
coarse salt and pepper
1 medium onion, rough chop
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon thyme, dried
4 carrots, bite-sized sliced at an angle
1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk
1 cup water
1 package (10 oz) frozen peas
Cooked rice for serving

In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Working in two batches, brown the chicken, 3-4 minutes per side. Transfer to plate.

Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, garlic, cumin, curry, thyme and 1/2 cup water and season with pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion has softened, 3-5 minutes.

Add carrots, frozen peas, coconut milk, 1/2 cup water and chicken with any accumulated juices. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover partially, and cook until chicken is cooked through and carrots are tender, about 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and serve over rice.

Cinco de Mayo Enchiladas

I know it's May 9, but that's because I'm behind writing this. We did enjoy these excellent enchiladas last Tuesday.

I'm including the best way to make these with the two recipes below. Making homemade salsa verde takes this recipe to a 9 out of 10. You can use store-bought salsa verde but that brings the recipe to a 7 out of 10, still good but not amazing.

Swiss Enchiladas
Serves 4

For the sauce
2 cups of Salsa Verde (see recipe below)
1/2 cup heavy cream

12 6-inch Corn Tortillas
1/4 cup canola oil
4 cups of shredded store-bought rotisserie chicken

For the toping
1 cup shredded queso Chihuahua
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 375.
Make the sauce: Pour the salsa verde and cream into a saucepan and simmer over low heat.

To soften store-bought tortillas: Heat canola oil in sauté pan on medium-high heat. Place a tortilla in the hot oil and quickly turn to heat both sides, about 10 seconds per tortilla. Put on paper towel to soak up oil.

Fill and roll each tortilla with 1/3 cup of chicken in each tortilla. Rollup and place in 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Keep doing until you fill baking dish.

Pour the salsa verde sauce mixture over the enchiladas. Jiggle the dish so the sauce settles in the between the enchiladas. Sprinkle with cheese evenly over the top. Bake until sauce around edges bubbles and the cheese is golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let it stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Scatter the onions and cilantro over enchiladas. Serve with plenty of sauce on each plate.

Salsa Verde
Makes 2 cups

2 pounds Tomatillos, husked and washed
2 jalapenos
3 small garlic cloves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 bunch cilantro, thick bottom stems removed, the remainder washed and shaken dry
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon salt, or to taste

Put the tomatillos and jalapenos in a saucepan, pour in enough cold water to barely cover and bring to a boil. Cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let it sit in water for 15 minutes.

Drain the tomatillos and chiles in a colander. Wipe out the saucepan and set aside. Put the tomatillos, jalapenos, garlic and cumin in a food processor. Blend for a few seconds, until tomatillos are coarsely chopped. Add the cilantro and blend until sauce is smooth and speckled with finely chopped cilantro. Do not overblend, make the sauce thick and shiny.

Heat the oil in the saucepan over medium heat. Pour in the salsa, bring to a simmer until lightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Season with salt. Sauce can be refrigerated for 3 days or freeze. Reheat on low heat before using.

Truffled Gnocchi with Peas and Chanterelles

"Truffled" is used loosely in this case. There are no truffles at all in this recipe, Chanterelles in fact, but I couldn't find them and went with a mixed gourmet mushroom package from Papa Joes grocery. It turned out fantastic, even without the better mushroom choice; though, I'm still looking forward to trying it with Chanterelles.

The best part is it only took 10 minutes to make this meal.


Truffled Gnocchi with Peas and Chanterelles
Serves 4

1 lb. Potato gnocchi
2 tbsp. Extra-virgin olive oil
10 oz. Chanterelle mushrooms, roughly chopped
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup peas, fresh or frozen
2 tsp. Finely chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. Finely chopped chives
Freshly grated Parmesan

Cook potato gnocchi according to package directions.

Bring a 12” skillet over medium-high heat to high; add cream, peas, mushrooms, and thyme and cook. Stirring occasionally, until cream reduces by half. Season mushroom sauce with salt and pepper and remove skillet from heat. Add drained, gnocchi pasta to sauce pan and turn to coat, turning down heat to low. Plate pasta and sauce. Sprinkle parmesan and chives on top to serve.

Stuffed Savory Chicken Duxelles

You learn something new every day. Apparently, my lesson for Tuesday April 14th wasn't oh shit I better print and sign my taxes, it was what "Duxelles" means. Duxelles is a thick paste of mushrooms, shallots and herbs. See how simple that lesson was.

The recipe was pretty simple and provided a nice alternative from my typical breadcrumb, cheese and spinach stuffing. The white wine in the stuffing reduction provides some nice, subtle flavor to the meat too.


Chicken Stuffed with Savory Duxelles
Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, mashed
1 shallot, peeled and minced
1 lb. White button mushrooms, finely chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
2 whole boneless chicken breasts with skin, split

Heat oven to 400°. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon oil. Add garlic and shallot; sauté, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the mushrooms; cook, stirring, until mushrooms release their juices, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add white wine, and continue cooking until liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in the parsley.

Pull skin back from one chicken breast, keeping skin attached at one end. Season with salt and pepper. Mound 1/3 cup mushroom filling on breast; pull back over filling. Tuck ends under breast, forming a ball. Secure with toothpicks. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts. Return chicken to sauté pan and brown for about five minutes, turning to brown evenly.

Place stuffed breasts in a roasting pan, keeping them close together but not touching. Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over top. Transfter to oven; roast until skin is golden brown and chicken has cooked through, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven and serve.

Simple and Lighter Chicken with Biscuits (really)

I love it when I get an email in the middle of my work day saying, "Can you make this?" Stephanie occasionally will find a recipe she would like to try and knows I love a challenge. This recipe wasn't much of a challenge, though. In fact, it ended up being a pleasantly simple recipe that only took 20 minutes to make.

I used frozen biscuits from Trader Joe's to accompany the chicken dish; instead, of doing homemade biscuits. Note: you can find the full recipe with homemade biscuits here at Martha Stewart's website.

Lighter Chicken and Biscuits
Serves 4

2 teaspoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
1/2 cup low-fat (1 percent) milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 carrots, thinly sliced
5 celery stalks, thinly sliced
1 box (10 ounces) frozen pearl onions, thawed
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

Prepare frozen biscuits according to package instructions or have fresh biscuits ready.

In a 5-quart Dutch oven or large heavy pot, heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high. Add carrots, celery, and onions; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are tender, 7 to 10 minutes.

Sprinkle vegetables with remaining 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour; stir in remaining 3/4 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, and thyme. Simmer until liquid is thickened, stirring occasionally, 2 to 3 minutes. Add chicken; simmer until cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Serve chicken stew with biscuits.

Thai Green Curry Chicken

I bought some green curry paste for another recipe I made a couple weeks ago--it wasn't good, so I didn't post it on the blog--and so I was left with an ingredient I don't use that often. Thankfully, there is Allrecipes.com which is a great resource for finding a ton of recipes that can be searched by a single ingredient. I ended up finding an excellent, authentic tasting curry recipe. I made two tweaks to it. One I increased the curry paste by an extra tablespoon and I reduced the fish sauce from one tablespoon to one teaspoon, both changes are in the recipe below.


Thai Green Curry Chicken
Serves 4

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons cooking oil
3 tablespoons green curry paste
2 green onions with tops, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 cups coconut milk
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, for garnish


Toss chicken first in 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce, then in the flour, coating pieces evenly. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Place chicken in the skillet, cook and stir chicken until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken.

Reduce heat to medium and stir in curry paste. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant, then stir in green onions, garlic, and ginger; cook an additional 2 minutes. Return chicken to the skillet, stirring to coat with the curry mixture. Stir the coconut milk, fish sauce, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and sugar into the chicken-curry mixture. Allow to simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes until the chicken is tender. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves.

original recipe.

Stuffed Chicken in Chardonnay Cream Sauce

I have made this recipe since the early 1990s. I had caught it watching a Northwest cooking show when spending a summer with my dad in, of all places, Boring, Oregon. Fortunately, the local PBS station was anything but boring when it came to some delicious recipes. I don't recall the show's name but it was sponsored by Chateau Ste Michelle Winery.

The recipe that follows is not from the original television show. I have modified the original to make it less complex, but still retain the complexity of the flavors.

Enjoy! This is always a hit and, believe it or not, it only takes less than hour from preparation to on the table. I made tonight after work without much effort.


Stuffed Chicken in Chardonnay Cream Sauce
Serves 4

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup of spinach, coarsely chopped, uncooked
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 egg, whites only – discard yolk
2 oz. Goat cheese
1 shallot, diced
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup Chardonnay or dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven at 375 degrees.

Cook spinach in lightly oiled pan for about 3 minutes too soften. Fillet chicken breasts by cutting through middle of thickest side, but keep attached, as you will use the filleted chicken center as a pocket for the filling. For the filling, mix the cooked spinach, goat cheese, breadcrumbs, egg white, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Spoon filling in chicken breasts, about a tablespoon or more, filling them enough but not too much that you can’t wrap the chicken around the stuffing. Secure the chicken around the stuffing using toothpicks, about 3 per chicken. Make sure you leave some of the toothpick ends poking through enough so they are easy to remove after cooking.

Heat sauté pan on medium high heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and butter to pan. Add chicken when bubbling. Cook on each side to brown for about 2-3 minutes per side for about 10 minutes total. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil if necessary to keep pan well oiled. After browning chicken, move pan to oven and heat for 20 minutes.

Remove pan from oven and remove chicken breasts from pan. Set aside. Being careful with hot sauté pan, add 1 tablespoon of butter and melt adding diced shallots. Cook for about 1 minute and then add wine to deglaze the pan. Reduce wine to about half, about 3-4 minutes. Add heavy cream and whisk sauce adding salt and pepper to taste.

Plate chicken by cutting into one inch thick slices at diagonal. Drizzle sauce over cut, stuffed chicken.

Pork Loin with White Wine Reduction

There are so many ways to make a sauce, but most have one of the following main ingredients: heavy cream, butter or wine. And, yes, some great sauces use all three. The one I invented last Friday night used a white wine reduction.


Breaded Pork Loin with White Wine Reduction
Serves 4

4 pork loin cutlets, trimmed of fat
1 egg, white only - discard yoke
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil

For Sauce:
1/2 cup of white wine, Chardonnay or table wine
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 medium red onion or 1 shallot, finely chopped
Juice from half a lemon
1/2 teaspoon capers
salt and pepper to taste


Heat butter and olive oil in medium high saute pan. Place pork loin cutlets between saran wrap and pound thin with meat tenderizer. Mix egg white and orange juice together in shallow bowl. Mix bread crumbs, fresh parsley, and salt and pepper in a separate shallow bowl. Dip pork cutlets into egg wash and then dip into bread crumb mixture, coating both sides. Cook cutlets for about 5 minutes on each side. Remove cutlets from pan.

In saute pan, add onions and 1 tablespoon of butter, if necessary. Cook onions until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add capers and cook for 1 minute with onions. Add white wine and reduce by half. Add lemon juice, remaining 3 tablespoons of butter, and salt and pepper whisking ingredients to wine reduction. Return cutlets to pan for about 1 or 2 minutes as sauce thickens.

Remove cutlets from pan and pour sauce over to serve. Sprinkle with any remaining parsley, optional.

Real Home Cooking: Shortcut Ravioli

One thing I wanted to do with this blog was to make it about home cooking, not just gourmet cooking. Home cooking isn't about doing everything by scratch, well at least the non-idyllic version isn't. Home cooking is often about finding shortcuts and having dishes that are easy to make after a long day at work.

The following dish is all about shortcuts. First, I started with fresh frozen ravioli from Alcamo's in Dearborn. The ravioli I like from Alcamo's is the chicken portobello mushroom. It has diced all-white meat chicken breast combined with diced mushrooms. They are excellent, but run $10 for a package that serves two. If you don't have Alcamo's in your neighborhood, than any store bought cheese ravioli works.

I was going to accompany the pasta with my homemade Alfredo sauce, until I realized my heavy cream expired last week. So, I went with a backup sauce packet. Knorr's garlic herb white sauce actually works very well for store bought ravioli. I did add some fresh asparagus and Parmesan Reggiano to bring some fresh elements to the dish.

There are a lot of dishes that come together without much effort. This was just one of them. I hope you find it useful if you ever are in a pinch.

Crock Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

It's Saint Patrick's Day so I decided to do the traditional thing and make some corned beef and cabbage. The following recipe is a better version than most, as it leaves the cabbage separate from the main crock pot, giving the cabbage a more independent taste when combined with the corned beef and other vegetables when served.

This year I found an excellent brand of corned beef. Our local Market Square grocer carried a trim corned beef made by a Detroit company from Eastern Market -- Wigleys Famous Eastern Market Corned Beef. They have been in business since 1920, first in Ireland and then here in the U.S. Visit Wigleys at either of their Eastern Market locations: 3405 Russell St., Detroit, 48207, 313-833-3030; or 1429 Gratiot Ave., Detroit, 313-567-2857. This was by far the most tender and trim corned beef I've ever had. It is really worth seeking out. The whole family was impressed and said it was the best they have ever had too.

Crock Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage
Serves 6

3 carrots, cut in 3 inch pieces
3 red potatoes, cut in 3 inch pieces
2 med. onions, quartered
3 to 4 lb. corned beef brisket
3/4 to 1 1/4 c. water
1 sm. head cabbage, cut in wedges

Put all ingredients, except cabbage wedges, in crock pot in order listed. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours (high 5-6 hours).

Cabbage: To prepare cabbage, cook it separately in 6 quart pot. Remove 2 cups of broth from crock pot during last hour of cooking; pour over cabbage wedges in skillet. Cover and cook slowly for 20 to 30 minutes.

Products I Like: Geeta's Indian Sauces

As much as I enjoy creating sauces from scratch, I don't always have the time or patience and just want a good quick meal after a long day at work.

I love Indian cuisine and have found a few good store bought sauces that are worth trying in your kitchen. My favorite prepared sauces come from Geeta's. Geet's makes a wide variety of Indian standbys like Rogan Josh, Saag, and Makhani to name a few.

I find all the you need to have a good quick meal is some sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts and coarsely chopped onions. The Spice & Stir Geeta sauces come with a plastic top with a tablespoon of spice that you coat your chicken slices with as you saute them in a pan of olive oil.

Once the chicken is cooked, add the onions and let them get translucent for about 3 minutes. Add the jar of sauce and just a little bit of water (maybe 25% of the empty jar filled with water to thin the sauce a bit.) Serve with some rice and Naan bread.

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Note: Even though the picture above shows the Saag sauce in my cupboard, it was the first time I used this sauce flavor and it was not as good as some others I enjoy like Karai Bhuna and Jalfrezi.

Honoring Grandpa with His Infamous

One of my absolute favorite dishes growing up was one we had often when visiting my grandparents. My grandpa, Yoshio, would wrap pork and put a small slice of egg into a wonton and serve it with some white rice and soy sauce.

I have removed the egg from the recipe below, but if you want to add it you can simply cook a layer of eggs, like you make an omelet. Cook the egg and remove it from the pan like it is a pancake and cut small strips about an inch long and maybe a 1/3 of an inch wide. Basically make some small egg strips that you place in the wonton with the pork mixture.

There are two cooking methods listed in the recipe: steam or boiled. Boiled makes the wonton skins really soft and flowing. The steamed method is a bit more hard around the edges.

You can also take steamed or boiled dumplings, after cooking them, and add them to a saute pan with a tablespoon of oil and cook the dumplings by browning them on each side. This will create a crispier dumpling.

Unfortunately, I won't enjoy grandpa's dumplings when visiting as he passed away last month. My sister, wife, and I honored him this evening by making our favorite meal from him.

Yoshio’s Japanese Dumplings

Serves 6-8

1 1/2 lbs. ground pork
2 dashes worstershire sauce
1/4 tsp. curry powder
1/8 tsp. sage
1/8tsp. orange peel powder
1/8tsp. thyme
2tbs. poppy seed
1tsp. celery seed
dash pepper
3 dashes garlic powder
1/2 tsp. accent or msg
1/2 tsp. oregano
5-6 tbs. fine chopped onions

1 package of wonton skins, 4” squares
8 oz of water and a 1 tsp of cornstarch

Mix all ingredients and knead until meat becomes very smooth. After kneading, refrigerate (covered) overnight before making dumplings. Any excess mixture can be frozen for future use.

Optional: Cook 1 egg with dash of soy sauce. Cut cooked egg into small strips to put into wonton.

Get six-inch square egg roll skins and cut into 4” squares. Wrap meat, which can be wrapped without tearing egg roll skin, seal loose skin with a dab of water and cornstarch mixture. Let wrapped skin stand about 1-2 hours so skill will seal meat.

Boil a pot of water and cook dumpling for 15 minutes. You can also do this using a steamed method where the dumplings are steamed for 15 minutes.

Serve 6-8 pieces with a side of white rice (preferably short grain) and a small dish of Dumpling Goyza dipping sauce or soy sauce.

Fettuccine Alfredo with Broccoli and Chicken

Here is a simple pasta recipe that only takes 20 minutes to make. I highly recommend fresh pasta or at least the refrigerated pasta you can find at gourmet markets. If you're local to SE Michigan, definitely add Ventimiglia Italian Foods in Sterling Heights to your shopping routine and pick up some of their fresh Fettuccine.

Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken and Broccoli

Serves 4

1 lb fresh Fettuccine
1 1/2 cups heavy Cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups grated Parmesan
2 garlic cloves, smashed and sliced
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated Nutmeg
salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 boneless skinless chicken breat, cut into bite size slices
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup fresh broccoli, tops only

Boil enough water for the Fettuccine; add a few dash of salt to the water. Heat the butter and olive oil and cook the chicken in a sauté pan, turning to brown both sides, 10 minutes. Remove chicken from the pan, set aside.

Start the sauce, using the sauté pan you cooked the chicken in (do not wash). Add the butter and garlic to the pan on medium heat. Once the butter is fully melted add the heavy cream and Parmesan to the pan, mixing the sauce with a whisk. Add the grated nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Once well blended, get the sauce to a boil and then reduce heat to low and stir occasionally.

Put the broccoli in a small pan with water barely covering the vegetable. Add a dash of salt for flavor and heat the pan on high heat. Once boiling, let it cook for two minutes and then remove broccoli.

Add the broccoli and chicken to the sauce. Now, add the fresh Fettuccine to the pasta water that is boiling. Cook the fresh pasta for about 3 minutes and add the Fettuccine to the sauce in the sauté pan and mix the pasta and sauce together to fully coat while still in the pan, this is easiest if you add the Fettuccine in small batches and toss, repeat.

Serve the pasta and add some chopped parsley and sprinkle with more Parmesan. Add some garlic bread or focaccia slices to complete the meal.

Taco Truck Tacos... Simple and Great

When I lived in South Pasadena, California I used to stop by a taco truck in Pasadena along Fair Oaks Boulevard. It was a big yellow truck parked in an empty parking lot that sat there in the late hours of the night. We would usually get some tacos there around midnight, or later, after having some fun. The tacos were simple. They were like no taco I had ever had before. There was no shredded cheese. No shredded lettuce. No sour cream. All it was were small corn tortillas with diced onions, chopped cilantro, hot sauce, a slice of lime, and chopped beef (though you could order brains or intestines if you wanted, I was never so daring.)

I created a very similar taco at home. Here is the recipe. Hope you enjoy it. It's not exactly taco truck, but it is pretty damn close. Also, if you like a nice economical meal, it is a cheap dinner for the family that is quick and easy to make. Let me know what you think!

Taco Truck Tacos
Serves 4
Makes 12 tacos

1 1/4 lb ground beef
1 tablespoon cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1 red onion, finely diced
1 cilantro bunch, chopped
corn tortillas
vegetable oil for frying

3 limes
your favorite hot sauce

Heat the ground beef in a medium high pan. Add cumin and salt and pepper to taste the ground beef, continue to brown for about 5-8 minutes. Once cooked all the way turn heat down to lowest setting to keep warm. While the beef is cooking, chop the red onion and cilantro and mix the two together. Set aside.

Heat oil on medium-high in saute pan. Add enough oil, about a 1/2 inch, to dip corn tortillas into turning each side to cook 5 seconds on each side. Remove each tortilla quickly and set on paper towels. Continue until all tortillas are cooked (should be soft after cooking in oil, you don't want them crispy.)

Assemble tacos by placing spoonful of beef atop tortillas then spoon cilantro and red onion mixture over beef. Add some hot sauce and serve with sliced limes. Squeeze lime slices over tacos and enjoy.

Restaurant Review: Mind, Body, & Spirits

The above photo is the Half Roasted Chicken at Mind Body & Spirits a new restaurant in Rochester Hills, Michigan that we enjoyed last Friday night. And by enjoyed, I mean the food but also leaving the boys with the in-laws.

Mind Body & Spirits is a very unique restaurant. We discovered them when I came across some Vegan cookies at Plum Market. Oscar is allergic to egg so finding Vegan treats is a rare thing even if the bag of cookies was a hefty $8.99 for eight. Stephanie checked out their website and noticed the restaurant. The place is an "eco-conscious restaurant." A what? Eco-conscious? But I just want some good food. Do I really care if they have a high capacity food waste compressor, bamboo floors, on-site greenhouse and solar panels? Not really, but it is unique and if the food is good, I'll be really impressed.

We started with a fairly unusual appetizer, Tarragon Gnocchi. It was made with homemade potato gnocchi, tarragon, balsamic vinegar, arugula, and Hoisin sauce. It was very different and at first bite not sure if either of us liked it. Second bite, I think this is good? Third...fourth...fifth bites and I'm starting to wonder how to make this at home (yes, expect an attempt on the blog soon.)

For dinner, Stephanie had the chicken dish which was flavored by a Hoisin glaze and I went with one of their Vegan dishes, Winter White Bean Cassoulet. Both meals were very good, but we had to try some desserts. I went with a small plate of Madelines (not as good as my friend Lorriane, but still very enjoyable with my coffee.) Stephanie went all out with an impressive brownies and cookies and cream (see photo at right.)

We will definitely return to try some other meals and were impressed by a kids menu too.

Freezer Cooking: Easying Meal Planning in One Evening

There is nothing really special here recipe wise; instead, I wanted share an approach to cooking I have taken up in the past six months -- freezer cooking. Freezer cooking is all about preparing the same recipe 3 or 4 times at one sitting and freezing each meal portion separately for use on another day. I find making 3 or 4 recipes three times each takes about one or two hours (depending on complexity of the recipes) that you can do any evening after work. This way you now have about 15 meals that require no thinking over the coming two months by spreading out your freezer meals from your normal cooking.

There are a few cookbooks I use to do freezer cooking that I have found helpful:

Fix, Freeze, Feast: Prepare in Bulk and Enjoy by the Serving. This one is my favorite. I haven't had any issue with the recipes. The blackjack flank steak recipe is very good that is made using balsamic vinegar. Great flavor.

Don't Panic: Dinner's in the Freezer. A couple bombs in here, like the Hawaiian chicken that was aweful, but there are some good like the Raspberry chicken.

Of course there are places where you can do food prep and bring the meals home. My wife tried this once at Super Suppers and the meals were good. I just find I don't have the time to head over to a place and spend a couple hours preping meals, so I do the home method but I do recommend the places like Super Suppers as we have had great success with their menu.

Freezer cooking is just a great way to take some of the thinking out of cooking every day by making meal planning easier. Also, if you do it yourself, you can save money too if you approach your meals with cost budgeting in mind.

Pear and Gorgonzola Cheese Salad Dressing

I celebrated my birthday, earlier this month, at one of my favorite local restaurants - Sweet Lorraine's in Southfield, Michigan. They make some great food that is always very fresh and sometimes very interesting. I had a mixed grill dish with couscous, lamb sausage, shrimp and chicken all in a Moroccan styled marinade. It was excellent (sorry don't have the recipe for that.)

I did have a disappointment on my last visit. They had by far my favorite salad dressing, a Pear Gorgonzola dressing. Unfortunately, it wasn't ordered enough so they discontinued making it. Well that got me thinking about trying to replicate their recipe. After some Googling of pear and gorgonzola salad recipes, I found a basic pear dressing recipe that I modified a bit to emulate Sweet Lorraine's dressing.

My mother in-law was over at dinner last night when I served the dressing with some fresh greens, sliced red onions and sliced carrots. She says I should bottle it. It was amazing. A four out of four stars, according to her. Everyone else really enjoyed it too, especially odd from a bunch of people who don't like Gorgonzola. So, even if you are anti-stinky cheese, this recipe is sweet and very tasty I'm sure you'll find it to be one of your favorite dressings too.


Pear and Gorgonzola Salad Dressing

Makes enough for approximately 10 salads

2 canned pear halves in natural juice
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons crumbled gorgonzola cheese
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons light olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
black pepper

Separate the pear halves from their juice, keep pear juice aside. In a blender or food processor, puree the drained pear halves with the lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper until very smooth and silky. You may need to adjust by adding some pear juice liquid to thin the dressing or add another drained pear to thicken the dressing. Puree to desired consistency and add Gorgonzola cheese at the last moment and pulse the blender or food processor to quickly blend into dressing. Transfer to a jar, cover and refrigerate.

Country Cider Hot-Pot

Sunday night was a birthday party for my twin boys. We were having some family over so I decided to try something new and something that could just sit in an oven for a hour and not need a lot of attention.

The original recipe from a cookbook I own called for rabbit for this dish, I decided to go with boneless skinless chicken breast instead. Also, I found that the cider really needs to be increased about another cup (the recipe below includes the extra amount of cider so please use about 3 cups of cider, get it to where it just covers the chicken and vegetables.)

Country Cider Hot-Pot

Serves 4

2 tsp flour
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thirds
2 tsp butter
1 tsp olive oil
15 baby onions
4 strips of bacon, chopped
2 tsp Dijon mustard
3 cups apple cider
3 carrots, chopped
2 parsnips, chopped
12 ready-to-eat pitted prunes
1 fresh rosemary sprig
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the flour, salt and pepper in a plastic bag, add the chicken pieces and shake until coated. Set aside.

2. Heat the butter and oil in a flame-proof casserole and add the onions and bacon. Fry for 4-5 minutes, until the onions have softened. Remove with a straining spoon and set onions and bacon aside.

3. Fry the seasoned chicken pieces in the oil until they are browned all over, then spread a little of the mustard over the top of each piece with a spoon (doesn’t have to be perfect.)

4. Return the onions and bacon to the pan. Pour on the cider and a add the carrots, parsnips, prunes, rosemary and bay leaf. Add more cider if food is not covered with liquid. Bring to a boil, then cover and transfer to the oven. Cook for about 1 hour until tender.

5. Remove rosemary and bay leaf and serve with mash potatoes.

Chicken Goat Cheese Burritos

It was at my first culinary class at a local culinary college in Portland, Oregon that I tried my first taste of goat cheese. Back in 1993 goat cheese just wasn't that common. I had tried it on toasted french bread in a French Bistro cooking course. It was excellent. Since then I have enjoyed goat cheese in several recipes, including this one that I make about every couple of months.

The photo above includes a dollop of sour cream and instead of green salsa I used Jack's Special Medium Salsa. I also made some fresh guacamole to accompany the main course. Usually, I just make some Spanish rice but simply forgot tonight, so hey chips and guac is always a good quick backup!

The other thing I tried this time was a tortilla product at Whole Foods by IndianLife foods. They are large tortillas with a good flavor but not enough of an improvement to justify the $4.79 price compared to the ~$2 packaged flour tortillas. My favorite choice is picking up fresh made tortillas at Mexicantown Bakery in Detroit's Mexican Village.

Chicken Goat Cheese Burritos

Makes 4

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tsp. ground cumin
1⁄2 tsp. (each) salt and pepper
4 flour tortillas
1 can (15 oz.) black beans
1 tsp. oil
1⁄2 cup soft fresh goat cheese, broken into small chunks
1 cup fresh green salsa

1. Cut chicken into bit sized strips. In a bowl, coat evenly with cumin, salt, and pepper.

2. Seal tortillas in foil and warm in a 350° oven until hot, about 10 minutes.

3. Place beans and their liquid in a 1-quart pan and cook over medium-high heat until bubbling,
about 5 minutes.

4. In a 10-inch frying pan over medium-high heat, frequently stir chicken and oil until meat is no
longer pink in center, about 6 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, combine the goat cheese with a little olive oil in a small bowl to make a paste.

6. Lay tortillas flat. Spread some goat cheese paste on tortillas. Then toward one edge of each,
fill equally with chicken, beans (including liquid), and salsa. Fold over sides and roll up tightly
to enclose. Add more salsa to taste.

Beef and Chorizo Chili Comes with a Kick

This is a recipe from Cooking Light magazine that I had torn out of an issue years ago. The best part is a serving is only 325 calories, if you care about such things. I rarely do. I have my Wii Fit now, so I don't have to worry about calories, right?

Calories aside, this chili recipe has a great bite from the chipotle chiles and chorizo sausage. Chorizo is probably one of my favorites, make sure you go to a good deli counter like Papa Joes.

Beef, Black Bean, and Chorizo Chili

10 servings (serving size: about 1 cup chili)

Ingredients
2 links Spanish chorizo sausage (about 6 1/2 ounces), thinly sliced
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 (14-ounce) cans less-sodium beef broth
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped
2 tablespoons masa harina
2 (15-ounce) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
Preparation
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chorizo to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until browned. Remove chorizo from pan. Add half of beef to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until browned. Remove beef from pan. Repeat procedure with remaining beef. Add onion and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes.

Remove 4 chipotle chiles from can, and chop. Reserve remaining chiles and sauce for another use. Add chorizo, beef, chopped chiles, tomato paste, and next 6 ingredients (through ground cumin) to pan, and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in red wine, lime juice, beef broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Gradually stir in masa harina. Add pinto beans and black beans; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes.

Cilantro and Lime Chicken, a Family Favorite

My wife has a couple of favorites that she reminds me about on occasion. This recipe is one that comes up a lot. The best part is it is very simple; though, it does require a few ingredients I don't usually have readily available (lime, fresh ginger and fresh cilantro.) You can also make it in a large batch and freeze a few servings, just double or triple everything in the recipe.

The flavors are rather complex in this dish and you definitely want to measure, especially the lime juice as you don't want it to become too acidic. Also, make sure you use fresh ginger. Since there are so few flavors in the dish, every flavor needs to stand out, requiring everything to be fresh. You can't shortcut with dried cilantro or jared ginger.

Cilantro and Lime Chicken

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4

2/3 cup coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
4 chicken breast fillets, boneless, skinless, cut into strips
Plain flour, for coating
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, plus extra for garnish

1. Whisk together the coconut milk, stock, lime juice, and ginger. Lightly coat the chicken with flour

2. Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the chicken over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the pan and keep warm. Add the coconut cream mixture to the pan and bring to the boil. Cook for 5 minutes, or until reduced by half and thickened slightly. Tip: If not thick enough, mix a small amount of cornstarch and water together and add a couple tablespoons to the mixture to thicken.

3. Return the chicken to the pan, add the cilantro and simmer for 1 minute to heat the chicken through. Poor mixture over rice and sprinkle with a garnish of cilantro leaves.

Japanese "Popcorn"

I’m sure we all have our weird snacks, or maybe not? Maybe only I enjoy an occasional weird evening snack. My choice is mochi and yes it is not the most appetizing looking snack.

What is mochi you ask? It is a small Japanese rice cake that when baked in the oven (the way I like it) its outer shell becomes very crispy and the center of the rice cake becomes gummy. It is said that eating mochi is said to bring the spirits of the gods into your body.

I prefer mochi that is sold in a bag, individually wrapped, stored at room temperature (try this online shop or Noble Fish Market in Clawson, Michigan). There is another variety that is refrigerated or frozen that I’m not a fan of for this recipe.

Here is my recipe for what my father called “Japanese Popcorn”:

Baked Mochi

2 Mochi
1 Tbl butter
1 salt to taste

Preheat oven on Bake (500 degrees) and slit the mochi cakes with a knife three times, the slits are not deep, maybe 30% into the thickness of the cakes. Cook for 9-10 minutes making sure that the mochi is only light brown in color on the outside. The rice cakes will bubble out. Remove the mochi and put in a few slivers of butter into each mochi’s gooey center and sprinkle both with salt. Enjoy.