SECRET RECIPE CLUB: LITTLE BITES OF PARADISE

Posted in Appetizers, Secret Recipe Club by sallybr

First Monday of October, and here I am to divulge the recipe chosen from my assignment in The Secret Recipe Club. Life has been beyond busy for us lately. Allow me to take a little detour. In our work we are subject to the “publish or perish” doctrine. Once we gather enough data, we write a scientific article and submit it for publication. A group of referees reads it and the assigned editor comes back with the verdict. Accepted or not. But the usual outcome, instead of a simple yes or no answer, turns out to be a lengthy series of requests from each referee for clarification, objections to this or that, “suggestions” of additional experiments. Sometimes the requests are valid, sometimes they are not. But even when they are not, we need to address them and, using as much tact as possible, explain our rationale. Obviously, you never win by getting nasty with a referee. Never. It turns out we have two articles in this final stage of negotiations, so it is a bit of a roller coaster at the moment. What does it have to do with The Secret Recipe Club? Usually I jump on my assignment right away and have the post ready to go within a couple of weeks. This month, believe it or not, I am composing this post mere 24 hours before Reveal Time. Talk about living on the edge! I hyperventilate a little as I type. This month, I was assigned the blog Lori’s Culinary Creations. I must share with you Lori’s motto, which I find perfect:

Today is life-the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today.
Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake. Develop a hobby.
Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you.
Live today with gusto.

That is pretty much what we should all be doing, shaking ourselves awake, paying attention, enjoying the ride. Do not sweat the small stuff might be too cliché of a phrase, but it is always a valid point to keep in mind. Lori is from California but now lives in Utah with her husband and a bunch of pets. Her recipes are geared for busy empty nesters. For the most part they are recipes that you can put together quickly but then she also enjoys making more complex creations during the weekend. Busy empty nester. It describes me to a T. I stalked her site and saved a bunch of options to share today. Like Spanish Meatball Appetizer (which I would love to have as my lunch); Seafood Crepes for a Romantic Valentines Brunch (write that down, folks, V-day will be here before we know it); Savory Griddle Cakes (I adore this type of concoction); Sweet Potato Burger with Roasted Jalapeno; Chickpea Carrot Burgers; and strangely enough I just saved one dessert, her Easy and Delicious Peach Blueberry Hand Pies. Am I losing my sweet mojo? I hope not. So, what did I fell for? The very first recipe I bookmarked because I could not shake it off my mind. Little Bites of Paradise, made with Brie, Canadian bacon (I used prosciutto), and green apples. Are they adorable or what?

PROSCIUTTO, BRIE & APPLE WON TON APPETIZER
(slightly modified from Lori’s Culinary Creations)

2 medium Granny Smith apples (chopped small)
2 tablespoons pomegranate vinegar
12 won ton wrappers
3 slices prosciutto
3 oz brie cheese, cut in chunks
chopped chives

Heat the oven to 325 F.

Place the chopped apples in a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of pomegranate vinegar. Set aside.

Spray a mini muffin pan lightly with cooking spray. Lay the won ton wrappers in the cups, filling every other cup and pinch the four sides as you go so it forms a flower bowl. Pinch the sides, not the corners.

Sprinkle an equal amount of prosciutto pieces on the bottom of the won ton cups. Place a small chunk of brie in each cup. Top with the apples, then with the chives.

Bake for 15 minutes.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This was SUCH a fun recipe to put together! Won Ton wrappers are quite versatile, and in this type of shaping they turn into cute flowers, waiting for you to pick them and…. wolf them down. There goes the poetic image… But, seriously, these were awesome. A perfect combination of salty and sweet, apples and brie are one of those matches hard to beat. I baked them in our small toaster oven and it took a little longer than 15 minutes, maybe closer to 20 minutes. The idea is to get the edges crisp and golden brown. By that time the Brie will have melted and be all comfy with the diced apple. As you can tell, I forgot the chives before baking them. I sprinkled some all over once the appetizer was out of the oven, and pretended it was meant to be like that. Oh, well… Perfection is overrated.

A LITTLE BITE OF PARADISE INDEED!

Lori, it was fun to stalk your site, I hope you enjoy my post on your beautiful Culinary Creation!

For my readers, click on the frog below to see what my friends came up with this month. For those interested in the ongoing friendly war between me and Dorothy, she gave me a royal beating this month. But I lose a batter. Never the war! Bring it, Dorothy, bring it!

ONE YEAR AGO: Coxinha de Galinha: A Brazilian Delicacy

TWO YEARS AGO: Prosciutto-Wrapped Shrimp Skewers

THREE YEARS AGO: A Simple Dinner

FOUR YEARS AGO: Brown Butter Tomato Salad

FIVE YEARS AGO: Spelt and Cornmeal Rolls

SIX YEARS AGO: Roasted Potato and Olive Focaccia

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Multigrain Bread Extraordinaire

29Sep2016

ZAKARIAN’S PROSCIUTTO-WRAPPED CHICKEN BREAST

Posted in Poultry, Sous-Vide Cooking by sallybr

One of the only shows I watch on FoodTV these days is The Kitchen, with Marcela Valladolid, Sunny Anderson, Katie Lee, Jeff Mauro, and the one and only Geoffrey Zakarian. The crowd has great chemistry together, each person bringing something different and fun to the show. Zakarian offers that touch of class and knowledge, sophisticated without ever being obnoxious, a tricky line to negotiate. Recently he shared a recipe with his characteristic signature: elegant, complex, but not overly fussy. Chicken breasts filled with ricotta, wrapped in prosciutto, crisped up on the stove top and finished in the oven. A quick pan sauce beautifully crowned the dish, bringing capers to the party. I have a weak spot for capers, in case you did not notice yet… As I watched him prepare the recipe, I could not stop thinking that the whole thing would be perfect for sous-vide. And sous-vide was the path I took. It was O.M.G. delicious. With the most enthusiastic happy dance to go with it. Of course, if you don’t have the Anova gadget, don’t let that stop you. I give you the exact method used by Zakarian in the show. However, I tell you, the texture of the meat cooked at that magical 141 F for hours… was superb. Superb!

PROSCIUTTO-WRAPPED CHICKEN BREAST
(adapted from G. Zakarian)

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup (about 60g) sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (divided)
150g ricotta cheese
4 tablespoons chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon finely minced fresh sage
1 large egg yolk
salt and freshly cracked black pepper
9 slices prosciutto
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
1 shallot, finely diced
1/4 cup (60 mL) Verjus (or white wine)
1/2 cup (120 mL) chicken stock
1 tablespoon butter

If using regular cooking, heat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Using a small knife, make an incision in the top rounded end of a chicken breast, cutting through the center and to the ends without breaking the sides, to form a pocket for the stuffing.

Combine 1/2 cup of the tomatoes, ricotta, walnuts, sage and egg yolk in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Using a spoon (or place the filling into a piping bag without a tip), stuff each chicken breast with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then lay the prosciutto into sheets of three pieces each, and roll around each stuffed breast. Heat the canola oil in a large, ovenproof saute pan until almost smoking. Sear the chicken breasts on the seam side of the prosciutto, then flip and sear the other side.Transfer the whole pan to the hot oven until the center of the chicken registers 160 degrees F, about 15 minutes.

If using sous-vide method: wrap each piece in plastic, then seal in a foodsaver type bag. Submerge in a water bath set to 141 F for 4 hours. When the time is up, remove the meat from the package, dry well and proceed to browning both sides on the stove top.

For both types of cooking, continue to make a pan sauce: remove the chicken from the pan, add 1/2 cup of the sun-dried tomatoes, capers and shallots and cook over medium-high heat for 1 minute to soften the shallots. Add the Verjus to deglaze the pan, the chicken stock and cook until reduced by half, then swirl in the butter. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

Slice the chicken and serve with the sauce.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I had a bit of a tough time filling the chicken. First I tried it as recommended, without a tip in the piping bag, but my bag was too thin, not sturdy enough to force the filling in. I tried with a tip, but the largest one I had was not wide enough and kept plugging with the pieces of walnuts. Since I was going to wrap the pieces with plastic anyway, I ended up cutting a slit around the side, opening the meat like a book, then rolling the prosciutto around. During the sous-vide cooking, it all turned into a perfectly shaped package. If you have a sturdy piping bag, it should work well.

What I love about sous-vide is how flexible you can be with timing. I served this meal for dinner on a super busy Sunday, in which we had no idea when we would be ready to finally sit down to eat. I set the water bath at 3pm and knew that whenever we wanted to have dinner, it would be a matter of 10 minutes to sear the pieces, and make the pan sauce. I had side dishes already made, just waiting to be re-heated. Easy but very impressive dinner. Meat was perfectly cooked, the prosciutto gets all crusty and salty and tasty. And the sauce… capers are the perfect addition. Zakarian really knows his way around food, Iron Chef that he is. And his beautiful gray hair only adds to his charm. Partial? Me? You’d think? 😉

About that Verjus: If you don’t have it, use white wine or simply chicken stock. I am getting more and more fond of its subtle flavor, the way it brings mild acidity to a sauce or dressing. And, by the way, did you know that a little Verjus mixed with carbonated water is a fantastic drink? Elaine tried it first and raved about it. Some people add sweetener, but we both like it straight. I am very fond of carbonated water with drops of bitters such as Angostura, so I’m not surprised that Verjus pleased me so much.

But, I digress. This is about the Zakarian’s recipe, and you definitely need to try it! Perfect for a dinner party, you can assemble the chicken before, sear it quickly and bake it. Your guests will be impressed, thinking you slaved away for hours. But truth is, you did not…

ONE YEAR AGO: Amazing Apricot Bars

TWO YEARS AGO: Spiralizer Fun

THREE YEARS AGO: Linguine with Cauliflower Pesto

FOUR YEARS AGO: Carriage House Apple-Walnut Pie

FIVE YEARS AGO: Chicken Marsala

SIX YEARS AGO: Home, sweet home

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Levain Bread with Caramelized Onions

25Sep2016

A DUET OF SORBETS

Posted in Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Now that Fall is upon us, I need to get these sorbets out before it’s too late. Although of course, I have always my wonderful friends from Brazil and Down Under to consider, the lucky ones who are starting their beautiful march towards SUMMER! The first sorbet is for those who appreciate the bite of citric fruits, and prefer desserts that are not overly sweet. The second is a lot more mellow, but it has a secret ingredient to shake things up. Don’t knock it until you try it. Trust me!

TRIPLE CITRUS SORBET
(inspired by Cook’s Illustrated)

1 cup granulated sugar (1 + 1/4 cup if you prefer)
1 teaspoons grated lime zest
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 + 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup fresh citrus juice
(1 lime, 2 lemons, fresh orange juice to 1/2 cup)
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon Cointreau (or vodka)

to print the recipe, click here

This was absolutely delicious! If you have a particularly heavy meal, maybe a bit high on fat content (think ribs, maybe?) this sorbet is going to be perfect. The original recipe called for 1 + 1/4 cups of sugar, but I added less and felt it was enough for our taste, as we tend to dislike excessive sugar in desserts. Try the base before churning, and adjust. Make sure to process any additional sugar until it is fully dissolved. I always add some alcohol to our sorbets because it improves texture in the freezer. It is not mandatory for flavor, you can omit it.

CANTALOUPE-CAYENNE SORBET
(adapted from Food Videos)

1 + 1/2 pounds peeled, seeded cantaloupe (about 4 + 1/2 cups, packed)
1/2 cup white sugar (100 g)
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons vodka
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (1/4 teaspoon if you dare!)

Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until smooth. Place in the fridge to cool completely for at least 4 hours.

Give a stir with a spoon, pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and process it according to the instructions of your machine.

Freeze and enjoy!

to print the recipe click here

Comments: I made the sorbet with only 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, and thought it was perfect. However, the moment I mentioned to Phil there was a secret ingredient in it and divulged its identity, he suggested we (we, got it?) should make another batch without it. He likes the pure flavor of the fruit to shine through. So that was that. A second batch was prepared (and I must admit we did it together) the following weekend without the cayenne and the vinegar for a side-by-side single-blind experiment. He liked the version without cayenne better. Me? I loved the peppery one. It gives just a nice background heat, that I thought complemented the fruit quite well. If you like the combination of sweet and savory, grab your bottle of cayenne and churn away…

ONE YEAR AGO: Sobering Peach Sorbet

TWO YEARS AGO: Spiralizer Fun

THREE YEARS AGO: Beer-Marinated Grilled Skirt Steak

FOUR YEARS AGO: Secret Recipe Club: Corn Chowda

FIVE YEARS AGO: Page-A-Day Calendar (Pits and Chief 5 minutes of fame…)

SIX YEARS AGO: Home Sweet Home (our beloved Pits in one of his last photos)

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Marbled Rye

21Sep2016

PORK RIBS: STICKY, SPICY, AND AWESOME

Posted in Pork by sallybr

Have I already mentioned how much we love ribs? I am sure I did, and more than once. My default recipe is the first one I blogged about back in 2011, a favorite with Phil and the kids. But I am always trying new versions, although the basic method, cooking low and slow, then blasting them in high heat stays unchanged. This recipe was recommended a while ago by my friend Kathy, and once I read the magical words Gochujang, I knew I was going to love it. Plus, when you marry Gochujang with apricot jam, well… you see where this is going. Explosion of flavors. Get your napkins. You’ll be digging into these babies with enthusiasm.

STICKY AND SPICY GOCHUJANG PORK RIBS
(adapted from The Splendid Table)

to cook the ribs:
1 large rack of pork spare ribs
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh ginger root (yes, half a cup)
2 whole garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup soy sauce

for the sauce:
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/4 cup gochujang (Korean red chile paste)
1/4 cup apricot jam
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon white rice vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and minced

Put the ribs in a large saucepan or stockpot with the ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and let cook gently for 1½ hours, until the ribs are tender and cooked through.

Meanwhile, combine all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix together well. Line a roasting pan with foil and heat the oven to 400°F.

Arrange the cooked ribs on the prepared pan and brush with the sauce to coat evenly. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes, turning and basting the ribs with more sauce halfway through cooking. I do that step with the ribs loosely covered with aluminum foil.

Remove the pan from the oven and put the broiler on high. Brush the ribs once again with the remaining sauce, then broil until the sauce is sticky and just beginning to char at the edges.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Don’t be put off by the look of the meat once it’s out of the cooking liquid. Yes, it looks like hospital food, but a smear with the killer gochujang sauce and the perfect environment of a hot oven (or you could use the grill too if you prefer) will turn this ugly duckling into a gorgeous swan…

I like my ribs to be falling off the bone, and that’s the reason why I baked them covered after they were out of the pre-cooking bath. It helps to take them to that stage. They are quite spicy, but the ginger and sweetness of the apricot jam balance the heat quite well. I served them with thick spiralized cucumber, very simply dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, and a sprinkle of Tajin, a Mexican spice mix I’m very fond of. Of course, you can go the more authentic route of rice and beans, maybe some cole-slaw, but ribs are heavy by definition, so I opt for a light side dish to compensate.

ONE YEAR AGO: Sobering Peach Sorbet

TWO YEARS AGO: Buttermilk-Blueberry Breakfast Cake

THREE YEARS AGO: Silky Cauliflower Puree with Almond Milk

FOUR YEARS AGO: Beef and Broccoli Stir-fr

FIVE YEARS AGO: Wheat Germ and Sage Sourdough Bread

SIX YEARS AGO: Popeye-Pleasing Salad
.

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Summer’s Finale

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17Sep2016

SOURDOUGH LOAF WITH CRANBERRIES AND WALNUTS

Posted in Breads by sallybr

I blogged on a similar sourdough last year, but this is a slightly different version, with a bit of semolina and whole wheat flour. I baked this bread for a very special occasion, the visit of dear friends I had not seen in 15 years! A cute story behind our friendship needs to be told. Back in 1995. When I moved from Paris to Norman to join the University of Oklahoma, a colleague from our department insisted I should meet Denise, a Brazilian graduate student from the College of Education. It so happens that I’m not that wild about this type of arranged meeting. I don’t know exactly why, maybe I simply prefer to meet people naturally and make connections independently of the place where they were born. And guess what? Denise felt exactly like me about the whole thing. But we both liked that Professor very much, and decided what the heck, let’s just give this a try. To make a long story short, we “clicked” in a way that we could not have anticipated in a million years! Our friendship continued after she, her husband Hélio and three kids (now three adults) emigrated permanently to England a few years later. Hélio now travels to Texas on a regular basis for work, and that made it easier for them to plan a quick visit to our neck of the woods. Fifteen years! Hard to believe time passed so quickly… Denise loves cranberries, so this bread was a natural choice to welcome them to our home. She also loves white chocolate, but that story shall be left for another post…

DENISE’S SOURDOUGH WITH CRANBERRIES AND WALNUTS
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

For the starter (you won’t use everything)
30 g sourdough starter (at 100% hydration)
55 g water
45 g all-purpose flour

For the dough:
65 g starter (about half of starter prepared)
220 g water
160 g semolina flour
120 g bread flour
35 g whole wheat flour
7 g sea salt
80 g dried cranberries
50 g toasted walnut pieces

Make your starter 12 hours before you intend to prepare the dough. Let it ferment at room temperature.

To the appropriate amount of starter (65 g, remember you are not using the full amount made) add the water and mix gently to dissolve it. No need to completely dissolve the starter at this point. Add the flours and mix, allow it to sit with the water for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Sprinkle the salt over the dough, mix it by folding several times, to incorporate the salt. Add the cranberries and the walnuts, mix them gently. Allow the dough to ferment for 5 hours. Fold 5 times at 30 minute intervals. That will take you to 2.5 hours fermentation. Allow the dough to ferment for 2.5 more hours undisturbed.

Shape the dough as a ball, place it in the fridge overnight. Remove it from the fridge one hour before baking, as you heat the oven. Invert the shaped loaf on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper for easy transfer to the oven.

Bake at 450 F with initial steam for 20 minutes, reduce temperature to 425 F and bake for about 25 more minutes. Use your favorite method to generate steam, I like a covered Dutch oven with the lid moist with water before covering the bread. After 30 minutes I open the lid to allow the bread to brown. Cool completely on a rack before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I am always a bit anxious when it comes to baking bread for special friends. I want it to be perfect, delicious, awesome, but sourdough is a harsh mistress… You can make one perfect loaf, use the same starter, the same recipe a couple of days later and open the oven to find a bread that turned out more like a flat pancake. Usually still very tasty, but… well, you get my point. I made this bread the day before they arrived, so that if it was not worthy of my friends, I could have time for a plan B: a frantic drive to the grocery store. Imagine that! But to my relief it all had a happy ending. A beautiful marriage between cranberries and walnuts, nice balance of whole wheat with regular flour so that the bread itself had a nice texture and taste. Perfect with goat cheese, but even just a little butter will work well. Honestly, even naked it’s great. The bread. Obviously.