IN MY KITCHEN, DECEMBER 2011

Posted in In My Kitchen by sallybr

Life has been pretty busy. I am shocked to realize that my last “In My Kitchen” post happened three months ago! But, before 2011 says goodbye, I take you to a little virtual tour of what is happening in our kitchen, again inspired by Celia, who started these virtual tours and got many bloggers following her lead.

In our kitchen….
My pressure cooker, that goes into reverse-hybernation during the warm months, but comes out to play in the Fall and Winter. Cooking beans, potatoes (mashed potatoes in 15 minutes), soups, stews, even risotto. Many people are afraid of pressure cookers, but nowadays they are very safe and easy to use. Ours even has a cool timer attached to the lid, that counts down from the moment it reaches full pressure, beeping when the time is up.

A few goodies brought from Trader Joe’s during our short visit to Los Angeles last month. Assorted dried mushrooms, dried cranberries… Their Pound Plus dark chocolate bar is great for baking, although it’s hard to resist grabbing a little square here and there to nibble with a cup of capuccino.

And, speaking of capuccino, as the weather turns cold and sometimes gray outside, we brought some color to our kitchen, with these fun cups to serve our first java of the day.

But when only a shot of pure espresso will bring us back to life, these cute cups we bought in an antique store in Germany many years ago are perfect to enjoy them.

A madeleine pan – a blog on madeleines will be up next year (it’s only a couple of weeks away 😉 – with a non-stick coating that helps these delicate little cakes come out easily after baking. But, I don’t use it only for baking….

Their shape is perfect for laying a piece of plastic wrap on top, and spooning items to be frozen. For instance, we love a particular brand of salsa (Victoria), but they only sell a huge bottle. We simply spoon portions on the madeleine pan and freeze the tray. After that, the portions are dropped in a zip lock container, and stored in the freezer. The shape of the madeleine pan is perfect for this use, better than muffin tins.

My most recent acquisition, a Christmas gift I gave to myself: a bread proofing box! It stores flat, but once you assemble it….

It turns into the perfect environment to proof starters and bread doughs, no matter how cold your kitchen is. I am absolutely smitten with it! Stay tuned for a post on my first bread made with it.

And, finally… not exactly in our kitchen, but in our dining room…
A chandelier we brought from Brazil after my Dad passed away. It was in my parents living room, but my Mom moved out of that house and had to keep it stored in a box for years, waiting for a loving home. Phil painstakingly assembled it last week, looking at old photos to figure out how to do it. I know my Dad would love to see it in our home.

I hope you enjoyed this little tour through our kitchen… So, what’s happening in YOUR kitchen these days?

ONE YEAR AGO: Homemade Ravioli

TWO YEARS AGO: 100% Sourdough Rye

15Dec2011

FEASTIE: A SEARCH ENGINE JUST FOR RECIPES

Posted in General by sallybr

If you are like me, and suffer from CRCD (Compulsive-Recipe-Collection-Disorder), you probably use Google to find recipes in the blogosphere. Did you know that cooking recipes account for 1% of all online searches? That is pretty impressive! It is not surprising that earlier this year Google came up with their own version of a search engine geared exclusively for recipes. However, it has serious drawbacks, particularly from a food blogger’s perspective, as it favors “mega-sites” to show up on top of the search. If you are interested in learning more about it, read the excellent article written by Lydia Walshin, a veteran food blogger, host of The Perfect Pantry and Soup Chick.

Recently I was introduced to Feastie, a new search engine for recipes (with a nice blog associated with it), and was very pleased with it. When you enter a keyword in their search box, the output is in a beautiful format, with photos of the recipes and links to the food blogs where they were found. But, as a bonus, once you click on a particular recipe, you’ll also see all the ingredients required to make it, ready to take to the grocery store (you can even save it straight on your phone). Another great feature added this past week: if you cook a recipe listed on the site, a simple click on a chef’s hat icon gets it added to your profile, so that you can retrieve it easily in future visits. You can read more about it here.

Much to my delight, the recipes from Bewitching Kitchen are all indexed in Feastie, so if you’d like to see them in a format that is quite a bit better than my own index page, click here. I had a small rush of adrenaline when I first saw it!

If you are a food blogger and would like to see your site listed on Feastie, drop them a line at recipes@feastie.com. And no, I don’t work for them. By now I guess it’s clear I only endorse what I’m really fond of. From cookbooks, to gadgets, to cookbook authors (Dan Lepard comes to mind! ;-))…

13Dec2011

A HIGH PROTEIN LUNCH

Posted in Poultry, Rice and Grains by sallybr

I could call it “my secret weapon” to counteract usual over-indulgences. Back in June, I bought the book “The Dukan Diet” and tried that nutritional system for a while. I found out that I really like his oatmeal galette, a nice source of protein and complex carbs that became part of my weekday lunches. The galette can also be adapted for breakfast by omitting the salt, pepper and spices, and adding a little Splenda or the sweetener of your choice.

HIGH PROTEIN LUNCH
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

for Dukan-type pancake
1 egg white
2 Tbs non-fat yogurt
2 Tbs oatmeal
salt and pepper
pinch of dried thyme

for chicken
chicken breasts, boneless
water to cover
splash of soy sauce
1 Tbs green tea
2 star anise
a few peppercorns
piece of ginger
salt
squeeze of lemon juice

Poach the chicken by bringing all ingredients to a gentle boil in a saucepan, cover the pan, turn the heat off, and allow the meat to sit in the liquid for 25 minutes. Remove from the pan, and keep in the fridge until needed (I usually cook 3 chicken breasts on the weekend, and save for lunches the following week).

Make the pancake by beating the egg white in a small bowl. In another bowl, mix the yogurt with the oat bran, salt, pepper, and thyme. Add the beaten egg white to the yogurt, and mix gently with a silicone spatula. Spray a very light coating of olive oil on a non-stick frying pan, heat the pan over medium heat, and pour the pancake batter on it. Fry the first side until the top seems to be getting dry, then carefully flip the pancake over. Cook the second side for a couple of minutes, and slide the pancake on a plate.

Cut the chicken breast in slices, add to the same pan you cooked the pancake, adding just a little more oil if necessary. Saute the chicken slices briefly just to warm them up and get some color. A squeeze of lemon juice at the end brightens up the flavor. Serve it with the pancake and a small bowl of non-fat cottage cheese, seasoned with salt and pepper.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

I love poaching chicken in green tea and soy sauce. The meat gets a delicate hint of color, and the addition of ginger and star anise imparts nice flavor. You can use chicken poached this way in other recipes, of course. Shredded for salads, filling of fajitas, or even incorporated in a sauce for pasta. As to non-fat cottage cheese, I admit it’s not very gourmet… The low-fat version is better, the full-fat truly delicious, but when I’m on my protein-only mission, I stick with the zero fat, and use it to build not only muscle, but character. 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Festivus Dinner Rolls

TWO YEARS AGO: New York Deli Rye

11Dec2011

CELEBRATE WEDNESDAY WITH PLUM-GLAZED DUCK BREASTS

Posted in Celebrate Wednesday, Poultry by sallybr

It wasn’t our wedding anniversary, nor his birthday, nor mine. Valentine’s Day won’t arrive for a couple of months. It was just a simple Wednesday, stuck in the middle of a frantic week with the usual extra-struggles after traveling for a while. But, I wanted a special dinner for us, just for the fun of it. Duck breast filets (maigret de canard sounds even better… ;-)) are very easy to prepare, although potentially intimidating if it’s your first time to cook them. A recent issue of Fine Cooking had a recipe with plum preserves to form a saucy glaze, perfect with the duck meat, that shines with a little sweetness and a little spice.

PLUM-GLAZED DUCK BREASTS
(from Fine Cooking magazine, October 2011)

2 boneless, skin-on duck breast halves
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/2 cup plum preserves
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes

Heat the oven to 425°F. Trim any excess skin and fat from the duck breast and, using a very sharp knife, score the skin and fat underneath in a 1-inch diamond pattern. Be careful not to cut all the way through the flesh, you want to just get the layer of fat underneath the skin to be exposed, so the fat renders more efficiently. Pat the duck dry and season with salt and pepper.

Heat an oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Put the duck in the skillet skin side down, reduce the heat to medium low, and render the fat until only a thin, crisp layer of skin remains. It will take 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the preserves, soy sauce, five-spice powder, and red pepper flakes. Remove the duck to a platter, pour most of the fat off the skillet, and return the filets to the pan, skin side up. Brush the preserves mixture over the breasts. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a breast registers 135°F for medium rare, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the duck to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Heat the remaining plum mixture briefly, slice the duck diagonally and spoon the pan juice over.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

You won’t need much else to round out this meal. White rice and carrots with an agave nectar glaze were wonderful for us, next to the rich and flavorful duck. But the best part of this meal was the smile on Phil’s face when I said we were having maigret de canard for dinner… Sweet memories of Paris make any evening a special event!

ONE YEAR AGO: Holiday Double-Decker

TWO YEARS AGO: Tried and Tasty!

8Dec2011

GRILLING RIBBONS

Posted in Veggies by sallybr

We use our outdoor grill pretty much the whole year, as even during the winter we’ll have nice breaks in the weather, with temps reaching the mid 60’s. Grilling brings a glimpse of summer into the kitchen, and that is a feeling any Brazilian-American always appreciate!

I found this recipe in a Food and Wine magazine, and the first thing that called my attention was the way it treated the squash: thinly cut as ribbons, then threaded into skewers. The photo in the magazine was quite gorgeous, evidently some practice is needed to cut the squash in the perfect thickness and grill them carefully enough to preserve a nice shape. Let’s say my technique needs to be improved before serving this dish to guests… But even if you don’t hit the jackpot with your technique, this is a fabulous side dish. Don’t omit the prosciutto, it is a key component.

GRILLED SQUASH RIBBONS AND PROSCIUTTO WITH MINT DRESSING
(adapted from Food and Wine magazine)

1 teaspoon lime zest
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped mint
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil + more for brushing veggies
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 medium zucchini, very thinly sliced lengthwise
2 medium yellow squash, very thinly sliced lengthwise
6 ounces sliced prosciutto

Prepare a gas or charcoal grill, brushing or spraying the grids with a little olive oil. In a small bowl, combine the lime zest and juice with the mint, and the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.Alternately thread the zucchini, yellow squash and prosciutto onto 4 pairs of 12-inch bamboo or metal skewers (soak the bamboo skewers in water to prevent them from burning). Lightly spray the vegetables and prosciutto with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.Grill the skewers over high heat until the zucchini and yellow squash are lightly charred, maximum of 2 minutes per side. Serve the mint dressing on the side (it is great for salads too).

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I suppose the same recipe would work without going through the trouble of making the ribbons, but they do add a lot of charm to the dish. I wasn’t sure about grilling the prosciutto, as it is a bit dry to start with, but it turned out as a great match for the squash ribbons. Salty and chewy, it gave that extra bite to the veggies, just like croutons on a Caesar salad. We both loved everything about this recipe, a real winner!

Food & Wine suggests using these veggies + dressing as a “sauce” for pasta. Simply cook the pasta al dente, and slide the veggies off the skewers, mixing with the pasta while it’s still very hot. Add some of the dressing, adjust the consistency if needed with the pasta cooking water, and voila’: heaven on a plate!

ONE YEAR AGO: Peppery Cashew Crunch

TWO YEARS AGO: Ossobuco Milanese (a GREAT dish!)