Have your pie and eat it too

I told The Boyfriend recently that I'd make him a pie. Any pie he wants. This was before Thanksgiving so I'm thinking maybe apple is his favorite? Pumpkin? Mincemeat? The response...

Chicken and Mushroom Pie

Okay. So not exactly what I had in mind but delicious nonetheless. And luckily for me, many of the same principles apply. We'll start with filling. I started by cooking onions in butter in a saute pan until translucent. Then I added thinly sliced carrots followed by sliced mushrooms and frozen peas. Herbage consisted of thyme and sage picked right off the plants. I sprinkled the whole mess with some flour to help thicken it up while cooking in the oven since I knew that the mushrooms and peas would continue to release moisture. Now gravy. The sauce component of this pot pie is technically a veloute. Start with equal parts butter and flour. Once this cooks and loses its raw smell, you add chicken stock to create what is for all purposes, a gravy. Instead of butter, I used duck fat leftover from a duck I cooked coated with Chinese Five Spice powder. So this duck fat has an extra, exotic spice to it. Very subtle but tasty. The gravy and filling get mixed together and set aside to cool slightly.

Of course the most important aspect to this is the pie crust. I have never bought pie crust and personally never plan to start. Homemade pie crust is far better in both flavor, price and time. Yes I said time. In the time it takes you to drive to the store, you can have one finished. Customization for the dish at hand is also possible. A pie crust for Chicken Pot Pie needs to have great flavor but also all over brown-ness (if I can use that as a word.) It should be light and flaky but still substantial enough to not get soggy. The following techniques produced that perfect crust.

Start with everything cold, cold, cold. Butter, lard, flour, milk. All cold. I started by cutting in 1/2 stick of unsalted butter and 4 tablespoons lard into 1 1/2 cups flour with a large pinch of salt. Once the butter is the size of large peas, I added milk a splash at a time until it began to come together. Began is the key word here. Not all of it is in a ball, there is still loose flour. I put it in some plastic wrap to form the ball and created layers by folding the dough several times. This went into the fridge to rest while the filling was prepared, about 45 minutes. I divided the dough into two pieces (top and bottom) and rolled them out for a small, oblong casserole dish. I am now deeply enamored by this dish. First of all, it is green. If you know me, you know that if anything is green, I love it. But most importantly, the dish is clay. Not glass, ceramic or metal. Clay pie dishes brown crusts to perfection because they distribute heat so well. This particular clay dish is Emile Henry and was *free* to me because I work in a kitchen store and sometimes we get free samples. This dish produced an astounding crust. All over flaky and delicious but best of all the bottom crust was brown and crispy with no leakage.

Perfect Chicken and Mushroom Pie.

Schizophrenia in the Kitchen

Lobster for Dinner, Tater Tots for Breakfast

Yesterday was a long day. I taught the signature demonstration class at the store for a steadily growing class. The night before I had 12 people signed up, I walked in at 12:30 to a total of 18 and somehow by the time class started at 2:00, I had a grand total of 22, two of whom had signed up literally 5 minutes before it started. The mood was slightly chaotic to say the least. Luckily, the class went smoothly but of course, I now had 22 people to clean up behind. So done with most of the cleaning at 5, I moved out onto to retail floor as manager and store closer. Meanwhile, I had to keep ducking into the kitchen to finish up all the cleaning. And as always, people crowd into the store from 8-9, making closing at 9 tricky. Where do these people materialize from? I suspect they are leaving dinner and we are the only store open at 9. Luckily closing also went well and I was able to walk out the door at 9:45.

I always leave work fairly hungry and eat when I get home around 10:30. Last night I was particularly eager to return because I knew that the Boyfriend had lobsters at home! Why??? His employee went to Maine and brought us back two live lobsters. He steamed the big guys with celery, dill and shallots and we ate them with a really nice, salted melted butter which sells for about 10 bucks for a 1/2 pound. We only use it for special food and I do believe lobster counts. Normally, I like lobster but love crab. Lobster is a nice treat but I honestly find it slightly boring compared to crab. Apparently, I have just never had a good lobster because these two last night blew crab out of the water. The meat was SO flavorful and buttery on it's own. Dipping it into butter didn't make it seem buttery, just more intensely lobster flavored. With a nice arugula salad with heirloom tomatoes and some salt and vinegar chips, all washed down with a cold Peroni, this was a perfect meal. I had that giddy, falling in love with life feeling that always envelops me when I am surprised by the deliciousness and perfection of a particular meal. Life is good.

Then you try to go to bed and the damn cat won't stop attacking your hair. You can't catch it and by the time you do, you can't get back to sleep. So in the morning you wake up exhausted and starving and cook Tater Tots for breakfast. Yin and Yang. Thus is life.

Bernaise is good for you..

Seriously! It's half eggs and eggs are good for you. It also has fresh herbs and shallots plus wine which is good for your heart. Okay, so maybe the stick of butter is not exactly health food but at least it's not lard!

Maybe I should just leave it at Bearnaise is good. Seriously delicious stuff using the glorious natural sauce that is an egg yolk. Bearnaise has hollandaise as its base, which people have been scared out of making due to the possibility of the sauce either breaking or worse, curdling. I first made hollandaise 3 years ago and got it perfect on the first try. Not because I am so amazing in the kitchen but due to the fact that it is actually not that hard. For those of you who may not know, hollandaise is that wonderful yellow sauce they pour over your Eggs Benedict at brunch, you know, the one you pay obscene amounts of money for despite the fact that you are eating approximately 1 dollars worth of food (and your eggs are probably cooked wrong anyways.)

Basically, you heat egg yolks over a double boiler, whisking until thick. Then you whisk in butter, half in cold cubes, the other half melted. Then you season. For Bearnaise, your seasoning is a mixture of shallots and tarragon cooked in wine and vinegar until syrupy and then cooled.

I served my Bernaise over a fantastic grilled Flat Iron Steak. These are similar to flank steak but a little more fatty and tender. I marinated the steak in a mixture of soy sauce, Worcestershire and rosemary and then it was grilled with a little hickory to give it flavor. On the side, I served Brussel Sprouts sauteed in a little bacon grease and a nice baguette. This was a simple yet rich weekday meal that will also impress any dinner guests.

Have your cake and eat it too..

Let's face it, crab is expensive, unless you want to go catch your own and then it is merely a huge time suck. I am also completely over crab cakes. I love hot, freshly steamed crab that drips down your arms served with a little drawn butter but the cakes are only mildly interesting to me. So instead, last week I made some fantastic fish cakes using Tilapia, sour cream, tarragon, shallots, garlic and lemon. Fish cakes have some similar tasty attributes to crab cakes: crispy on the outside, fried in butter and served with a mayonnaise based sauce. They are also much lighter in flavor and texture as well as being a lot more affordable.
Try these at home, it's easy! Mince the garlic and shallot first and then process the fish and all the ingredients in the food processor. Just be careful not to overprocess, just pulse a couple of times. If you don't have a food processor, you can finely mince the fish with a knife. Divide the mixture into even balls, approximately 2 inches and then roll them in either fresh or panko bread crumbs. Pan fry in a little butter, pressing down lightly to form a cake, and brown on each side. These cakes are best served over a mixed green salad. I also made a lemony garlic aioli to serve with the cakes and the aioli serves double duty as a salad dressing.

Better than your Grocer's Freezer

I love Lasagna. I am going to tell you the best way to make Lasagna. It is very easy and concerns the sauce. The rest, (noodles, meat, ricotta, cheese, spinach) works just like you would think. Cook, grate, layer.

First, make your your own red sauce. This is not hard and is also very cheap, or should we say, "cost-effective."

Step One: In your food processor, grind up 3 garlic cloves, 1 celery stick, 1 carrot and 1 medium onion. If you don't have a food processor, you are going to need to cut these VERY tiny.

Step Two: Heat olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add your ground up veggie mixture. Let it cook and don't stir it around a lot. It needs to brown and stirring all the time does not help matters. Personally, this is hard for me as well. Go play on Facebook and forget about it for a minute or five.

Step Three: Add 2 big cans of whole tomatoes, diced tomatoes or tomato puree. Just make sure the tomatoes don't have any added spices or herbs. Now add your own fresh or dried herbs. I like a few sprigs of thyme, some chopped basil/oregano and a couple of bay leaves (off my own bay tree, I will NEVER have to buy bay leaves again.) Let this simmer for a good while and then puree with an emulsion blender or regular blender, just be careful. I make the sauce first so by the time I cook the noodles, grate the cheese, cook the beef and make the bechamel (your next task), it will be ready.

Second Part of Ultimate Sauce Making: Bechamel

Step One: Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium. Once melted, add an equal amount of flour (e.g. 2 Tablespoons butter and 2 Tablespoons flour.) Whisk to incorporate flour and cook until it smells slightly nutty. You don't want it to brown but you do want the raw flour smell to cook out.

Step Two: Add Milk. You will need 1 cup milk for every 2 Tbl butter. Add a bay leaf and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly (make sure you get in the corners of the pot, flour likes to hide there.) Cook until it has begun to thicken. Grate in some fresh nutmeg and salt/pepper to taste.

Okay, now the fun part. COMBINE equal parts red sauce and bechamel. This stuff is seriously delicious. Use this as your sauce component in your lasagna. Since I have learned about this neat trick, I make lasagna quite often.

If you serve it with a salad, it's healthy, right??

Grilled Cheese - Caprese Style

You should make this for lunch today.

This sandwich is SO good. Plus it is easy, which is good for a sunday lunch item.

Ingredients:

Buffalo Mozzarella, sliced

Tomatoes

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Fresh Basil, chiffonade

Bread, sliced

Butter

1. Combine olive oil, balsamic, basil and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Slice your tomatoes and add to the bowl. Let marinate for about 5 minutes.

2. Spread your bread slices on one side with butter. Build your sandwich, placing Mozzarella and tomatoes on bread. Grill like you would a grilled cheese sandwich. Do I need to write directions for this?

Serve with cucumber salad or homemade fridge pickles (okay, they don't have to be homemade.)

Cheesecake for Breakfast

Eggs, Cream Cheese, Honey, Oranges...


Those all sound like breakfast items to me! And so today I had a Orange, Honey and Ricotta Cheesecake for breakfast. Thank you, Giada!


I have been wanting to make a cheesecake for a while now, having purchased my new springform pan as well as many packs of cream cheese. I haven't yet followed through because a whole cheesecake seems to require an occasion. One cheesecake for two people is a bit excessive. However, I found myself with a surplus of ricotta cheese left over from the aforementioned catering event. Normally, the only thing I use ricotta for is lasagna and homemade ravioli. We had lasagna last week and ravioli would not use up a large enough amount of the ricotta. I had heard of ricotta in cheesecakes so I did what any good blogger would do: I googled it. Giada's recipe showed up first. I have never had any trouble with any of Giada's recipes. They are usually fairly simple and straightforward and always work out well. So I went with her Honey and Ricotta cheesecake flavored with Orange Zest. Since I had graham crackers on hand, I used these for the crust instead of the biscotti called for in the recipe. I'm surprised she didn't use Amaretti Cookies, which seem to pop up in 9 out of 10 Giada recipes, because, you know, she's Italian.

As you can see, the cheesecake came out beautifully. I made it yesterday afternoon and since it needs to cool at least 8 hours, we had to wait until today to enjoy it. Cheesecake for breakfast? Why not, it's Saturday! I highly recommend this cheesecake to anyone who wants a lighter version of the classic. It is less sweet, due to the substitution of honey for sugar and also lighter in flavor since ricotta is in place of some of the heavy cream cheese. If I make it again, I will probably omit the Orange Zest and maybe add lime or lemon instead. This is just a personal preference as I do not particulary enjoy orange flavoring in creamy or chocolatey desserts. I think it gives it a slightly bitter taste. A lot of people love it though, and if you are one of those people, go for it. It does give the cheesecake little flecks of orange, which look beautiful. If you want to try it, the recipe is listed on the Food Network web site.

Eat, Drink and Be Married

My Labor Day Weekend spent Laboring...

Saturday was my first independent catering job, for a good friends' aunt. I had a fantastic time! There were a few small missteps but overall, it went smoothly. The food was a hit and I spent the evening with some great friends.

The Menu:

Shrimp & Grits Station: Shrimp sauteed to order with a White wine/Shallot Cream sauce served over Grits with toppings (Bacon, Kielbasa, Green Onion, Aged Cheddar)

Sauteed Crab Cakes with Tarragon and Lemon served with Shallot & Tarragon Tartar

Thai-marinated Chicken Satays with Coconut-Chile Peanut Sauce

Summer Squash Casserole with Crispy Panko Topping

Asian Pulled Pork served with Jicama Slaw, Soft Rolls and Homemade Pickles

Bruschetta Trio: Caprese; Pesto, Mushroom and Ricotta; Homemade Pimento Cheese

Misses:
The Jicama slaw did not turn out that well. I thought I could just substitute Jicama for cabbage and use my normal slaw dressing. However, Jicama is much more starchy and slightly bitter and sweet at the same time. The texture was also more like potatoes so the cut I used didn't hold up well when mixed. When this was placed on the sandwich, it worked well. But most people ate it on the side, or I should say didn't eat it at all because there was a lot left. The boyfriend was somewhat dismayed that I would make something for a catered event without consulting a recipe. In my defense, I didn't consult a recipe for anything else either, many of which I had never made, and those turned out great.

A super annoying mistake was made on my part as well. I bought the wrong kind of grits. I thought I had bought stone ground, which take about 40 minutes to cook and stay smooth. Somehow, I bought instant grits which take about 5 minutes and get all clumpy and thick. Yes, I had lumpy grits. I am clearly not fit to be called a good southern cook. Please hold your jeers for later.

The only other miss was the chicken satays, my marinade needed to be much stronger. I used lime juice, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, honey and lemongrass. I needed more soy and more lime. The suggestion was also made to me to marinate the chicken alone in lime juice for thirty minutes. This is the method used in making the Indian dish, Chicken Makhani, but with lemon juice. The acid helps the chicken to later absorb the flavors better. I should also have added coconut milk or even just oil to make the flavors more well rounded.

Hits:

The bruschetta was the most popular item (or items) by far. Mainly because you could pick them up and eat them by hand and also, mainly because they were delicious. The caprese version consisted of the classics: fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and olive oil. A form of caprese salad is popular at any function. It always tastes clean and fresh, not heavy. The pimento cheese version of bruschetta is enjoyed by all, as a familiar and super-cheesy bite. I never liked pimento cheese until I made it myself. I roast my own red peppers and use an aged white English Cheddar. These two steps make all the difference. The third version is the one I am most proud of: Herb Pesto (in this case, thyme and sage), Sauteed Cremini Mushrooms, Ricotta and Toasted Pine Nuts. This is a fantastic combination of flavors.

The Asian barbecue was eaten up quickly as expected. The barbecue sauce was homemade with roasted red peppers, ginger, garlic and hoisin. Squash casserole was also devoured. What's not to like about squash casserole? And of course, the crab cakes. I don't really like making crab cakes for functions because they are never as good on a buffet. The coating doesn't stay crispy which I think is an integral part of a perfect crab cake. But people love to have crab cakes at their wedding for some reason, so crab cakes it was. And of course the guests ate them up, they were super tasty served with the best tartar sauce recipe I have ever found. Not as good as freshly seared, but you can't really go wrong with something that consists 95% of crab meat.

And finally the shrimp! The cream sauce for the shrimp was PERFECT! Super flavorful, with a nice white wine flavor, it thickened perfectly and clung to the shrimp without tasting overly heavy. The fresh shrimp flavor was able to shine through. Here, I have to give a big THANK YOU to my shrimp de-header, peeler and de-veiner. All 6 hours of your time was greatly appreciated. Since I loved this sauce so much, I thought I should share it with everyone. It goes great with the shrimp, just saute your shrimp in butter until almost fully cooked. Then add a spoonful of the sauce per person and heat through, coating the shrimp. It is also fantastic with pasta. For dinner, I sauteed mushrooms and tossed them with farfalle pasta and this sauce. Excellent.

White Wine and Shallot Cream Sauce

Ingredients:
2 shallots, finely minced
1 cup white wine

3 Tbl unsalted butter
4 Tbl flour
1 qt heavy cream
freshly grated nutmeg
Salt
Pepper
1/2 bunch parsley, finely chopped

Method:
1. Add the shallots and white wine to a wide saucepan. Cook on med-low until the white wine is evaporated. Remove shallots from the pan and set aside.
2. Using the same pan, melt the butter on medium. Stir in the flour and cook until it smells slightly nutty. You do not want to brown the flour.
3. Add the heavy cream and cook until thickened, stirring frequently. Once thick, season to taste with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
4. Once cool, add the shallots back to the sauce along with the chopped parsley.

You can make this ahead of time and keep in your fridge. It will be good for 3 or so days.

ENJOY!

Jobby the Jobster

Despite the fact that I have worked part-time at my current place of employment on and off for approximately 1 1/2 years, I have somehow not led, on my own, the store's signature class. Mainly because I've never been full-time and also mainly because it is scary. You have to talk for an hour and a half while cooking a full meal for 10 to 35 people. Then serve, pour wine and take questions. During this entire period, it is also helpful if you are some, but preferably all, of the following: informative, witty and interesting. It goes without saying that cooking nasty, burnt food is unacceptable.

I finally gave in and taught the class today. Since I wanted it to be perfect, I cooked everything at home earlier this week. Plus, I took pictures so you can see it all!

Menu: Pecan Encrusted Tilapia, Blackeyed Pea Succotash, Chocolate Chess Pie

At home, the tilapia and succotash were fantastic. The succotash consisted of peas, fresh corn, bacon, onion, garlic, tomatoes, okra and a little chicken stock and it was served over white rice. The tilapia was perfect with some of Mama Bev's relish. The chess pie crust was a little undercooked but the overall pie was still tasty, flavored with vanilla and bourbon. We ate them the next morning for breakfast with coffee.

In class, I used catfish and it was perfect. And this time, the pie crust was browned and super flaky and delicious. The succotash... not so much. It was definitely well cooked and everyone ate all the food on their plates. BUT somehow, in my nervousness, i never added salt or pepper. No salt!!!! Luckily, it had bacon which compensated somewhat. I was embarrassed but didn't say anything. Like Julia says, Never apologize for your food.

Get some sand in my shoes...

Jacksonsville: Part Deux

Thursday was a French-themed day in Jacksonville. Coffee for breakfast. Lunch was another Chowhound recommendation: The French Pantry. This spot was also located about 10 miles from the downtown area, off of good ol' I-95. This breakfast/lunch/dessert place is housed in a small addition to the front of a GIANT Bakery. We literally drove past it three times because it looks like a warehouse. It was well worth the confusion and angry Florida drivers. They bring you a huge bread plate, at lunch, with excellent olive oil and balsamic. The Boyfriend had the shrimp Po Boy, which wasn't fried so I don't think that counts, but it was very tasty and on their house made bread rolls. My choice was the standout: Bruschetta with Shrimp, Mozzarella, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Leeks with a huge salad in the middle. I will eat anything if it says it has leeks on it and this worked out particularly well.

Dinner at Orsay, once again about 10 miles from downtown, was the fantastic recommendation courtesy of Aunt MA's friend via Facebook. I had already decided on the Trois Fois Mousse before we even left Charleston and I was not disappointed. Chicken, Goose and Duck Liver Mousse were whipped until fluffy and served in a small pot with chives and sea salt. A glossy, perfect red onion marmalade with crisp toast points was on the side. If I have a last meal choice this would certainly be it. The Boyfriend had a med-rare hangar steak with Bernaise alongside Pommes Frites and homemade mustardy-mayonnaise. He may choose this as his last meal request as well. Sadly, no pictures were taken. But you can check out the cool dining room in this picture I "borrowed" off the internet.

Orange Blossom Special

*Identities obscured to protect the gluttonous*

My vacations are primarily centered around FOOD and this trip to Florida was no exception. We knew we wanted to be in Daytona for the weekend but wanted to go somewhere else for a couple of days beforehand. So I searched Chowhound and on the basis of a single recommendation for an Indian restaurant, booked a hotel for two nights on the river. What a great decision! India's Restaurant is located in a strip mall ten miles from downtown but it is well worth the drive. I have never had Indian food this delicious. Granted, my experience has been limited but even the British boyfriend says it is as good as takeout Indian in London, which is high praise indeed for any Indian restaurant here in the states.

The Menu: (you are going to see some bad spelling in the following lists, hopefully you don't know the Indian language --- I clearly don't)

Cobra and Taj Majal Beer

Pappadums with three dipping sauces

Onion Bhaji

Pea and Potato Samosos

Lamb Biryani

Tandoori Chicken

Baigan Bhartha (maybe) - it was mashed, roasted eggplant with peas and potatoes

The tandoori chicken was a miss, very bland but the Baigan Bhartha is my new favorite, delicious eggplant dish. Eggplants are underrated and I wish I had a Tandoor oven to roast my eggplants whole like they do. One day! Inspired by this visit, Friday night is Indian night here on Johns Island. Are delicious Onion Bhaji's in my future???

In the beginning...

First post and I'm just gonna dive right in...

Chickpea and Rice Fritters

These were originally conceived of as a possible "tryout" food for the sort-of job interviews with a local restauranteur that I've been undertaking (Don't ask, I don't even know what's going on.) My mission has been to use rice in an interesting way with an Asian and/or Lowcountry leaning. These fritters are VERY Indian in flavor and a bit too heavy for the concept, as I get the impression they are leaning towards more Thai and Japanese flavors. I love these though, they turned out beautifully and feature my favorite spice blend: Garam Masala. Garam Masala blends vary from brand to brand but they all have undertones of cinnamon. Cinnamon is severely underused in cooking in my opinion. Most people think sweet when cinnamon comes to mind but it lends a lovely, earthy spice to many foods, especially meats. In these fritters, the Garam Masala is combined with turmeric to give it a deep yellow color. They are fantastic with mango chutney but I have been eating them with Momma Bev's homemade fig preserves. It's Indian/Southern Fusion!

Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chickpeas, cooked

1/2 cup cooked rice

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 egg

4 Tbl rice flour (can use all-purpose)

1 Tbl Garam Masala

1/2 tsp dried cumin seeds, ground

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp dried coriander, ground

2 Tbl cilantro, chopped

2 Tbl heavy cream (can substitute milk)

1 tsp Sriracha (can substitute any hot sauce - but Sriracha is best)

1 tsp lime juice

1 tsp garlic puree (use a microplane)

1 tsp ginger puree (ditto)

2 tsp Tahini *optional

1 tsp salt

Directions

1. Saute the onion in 1 Tbl butter until soft and just beginning to brown, set aside.

2. Mash the chickpeas in a bowl with a potato masher. You don't want it smooth, you just want to break up the whole peas.

3. Add in the rest of the ingredients, including onion, and stir until combined.

4. Heat 2 Tbl canola oil with 2 Tbl butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

5. Drop 1 large spoonful of the chickpea mixture into the pan, making roughly 2 inch circles.

6. Fry on each side until browned and crispy, about 2 minutes.

7. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot with mango chutney. If you know Momma Bev, ask her for some fig jam.

Tips

Buy these spices at your local Indian or Asian store. They usually come in bulk and are MUCH cheaper than the grocery store. Here in Charleston, Nelli Grocery in West Ashley has a terrific Indian selection. Also, we buy a garlic/ginger mixed puree there that makes things like this very easy.