Cod with Zucchini and Preserved Tomatoes

Cod with Zucchini and Preserved Tomatoes

This is a big one. Why, you ask? I'll tell you. This is the first time I have ever, EVER, cooked fish (and only the second time in memory I have eaten fish)! I never liked fish and was recently served fish by a friend, so I decided the time had come to try it again. It was ok. I could eat it. I could even like it... maybe... if I tried it again soon. And that is why I made this dish. It is from the same cookbook as the Cold Caesar Salad Soup recipe-- Artisanal Cooking.

The Recipe (with my modifications):

2 tbsp. red wine vinegar

1/2 C. plus 3 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 C. packed basil (washed, dried, and thinly sliced)

12 pieces oven dried tomatoes (see recipe below)

salt/ pepper

1 medium zucchini (cut on the diagonal into 8 pieces)

4 cod fillets (6-7 oz. each)

Whisk 5 Tbsp. oil into the vinegar to make a broken vinaigrette (it can stay separate). Stir in the basil and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the zucchini in a small bowl and drizzle with 2 tbsp oil, season. Heat a heavy bottomed 10 inch saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook the zucchini in the pan, 2 minutes on each side (until lightly golden). Add to the tomato mixture.  

Pat the cod fillets dry and season. Heat a nonstick 12 inch saute pan over medium heat. Add 1/4 C. oil and heat. Add the cod, without crowding the pan and cook 3-4 minutes on one side, flip and cook for an additional minute. Place the fish over the tomato mixture. Spoon some of the vinaigrette over the fish. 

Preserved Tomatoes:

6 plum tomatoes

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly

2 thyme leaves

salt

Preheat oven to 200. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Cut halves in half again. Toss tomato quarters with the other ingredients. Place tomatoes onto a wire rack set over a baking sheet and bake until dry but supple (2 hours).

Remove from oven and allow to cool until you can handle them. Remove peels. If saving the tomatoes refrigerate, covered with oil, in an airtight container.

Cold "Caesar Salad" Soup

I first saw this recipe while flipping through my favorite cookbook (of the moment), Artisanal Cooking, by Terrance Brennan and Andrew Friedman, and decided to remember it for the summer. Well, we got a full head of romaine lettuce in our CSA this week so I decided the time had come to try this unique recipe.

Cold "Caesar Salad" Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 C. Spanish onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
2 teaspoons, plus 1 pinch, salt
3 C. chicken stock
1 lb. Romaine Lettuce (about 1 head), cleaned and coarsely chopped
1/4 C plus 2 tablespoons finely grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
4 (preferably salt packed) Anchovy fillets, soakedm drained and patted dry (optional)
1/4 C. plus 2 tablespoons EVOO
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Parmesan and Black Pepper Croutons (Recipe follows)

Heat olive oil in heavy-bottomed stock pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and a pinch of salt and cook until soft but not browned (4 minutes). Add chicken stock and boil over high. Lower the heat and simmer until the onions are tender (15 minutes).

Meanwhile, fill a large bowl (I used the sink) with ice water.

Raise the heat to high and return the stock pot to a boil. Add the romaine lettuce and let boil for 4 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and add 1/4 C. cheese, 2 tsp. salt, and the anchovies (I left these out). Puree in batches, slowly adding the EVOO in a smooth stream. Transfer the mixture to a stainless steel bowl and set the bottom of the bowl in the ice water. Stir the soup to cool quickly.

Refrigerate the soup for up to 3 hours. Stir in the lemon juice right before serving.

Serve in chilled bowls. Garnish with croutons and 2 tbsp. cheese.

Parmesan and Black Pepper Croutons

Ingredients:

2 C. 3/4 in. cubed country bread or baguette
1 tbsp. EVOO
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 tsp. grated garlic
1/4 tsp. plus a pinch salt
2 tbsp. finely grated paramesan cheese
1/2 tsp. fresh black pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Put the bread cubes in a mixing bowl and set aside.

Warm the oil and bitter in a sauce pan over low heat. Add garlic and salt and cook until melted but not brown. Pour over bread cubes and stir to coat evenly. Add cheese and black pepper, stirring.

Spread cubes in 1 layer onto baking sheet and bake 5-6 minutes. The cubes should be golden-brown and crisp on the outside but chewy on the inside.

Review:

My expectations for this soup were not high though I was super intrigued by it. The blurb in the cook book above the recipe reads, "Soups fashioned from leafy greens are nothing new; spinach and escarole have been the basis of any number of examples. But you might be surprised at how well romaine works in this context and how naturally anchovy, lemon juice, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and black pepper fit in."
I hoped to be surprised.

The soup was, as you would expect with a soup made primarily our of lettuce, very green. It was also extremely salty. I did add a little extra salt, to make up for not using the salt-packed anchovies, something I will definitely scale back on the next time I make this recipe. Another change I plan to make is to add some Worcestershire sauce, since this is a key ingredient in my Caesar Salad dressing. 

So yes, this is a recipe I am going to attempt again- I am still intrigued and hoping to be surprised. The croutons, however, were amazing!!! I do love homemade croutons.

Spinach Borsetti in White Wine Butter Sauce

What!? Two food blog posts in 1 week! Obviously the school year has ended and Rachel has nothing to do!

When I have a whole day to myself at home, with little else to do, I often make pasta. I nearly always go into the pasta making adventure thinking I will make ravioli and then either end up making fettuccine or some other form of filled pasta, like tortellini or borsetti (little purses).
When I decided, today, that I wanted to make ravioli I joked that since we have so much kale and spinach in our CSA I should make that into the filling, then I realized spinach is actually a very common ravioli filling... woops. So, of course, I used spinach and kale in the filling!

Homemade Sheet Pasta:

4 Eggs
3 1/2 C. Flour
1 Tsp-tbsp. water (depending on the size of your eggs)
salt
chili pepper

Place all of the ingredients in a kitchenaid with the flat attachment. Mix on speed 2 for 30 seconds (until flour isn't poofing out). Then attach the dough hook and mix at speed 2 for 2 minutes. Hand knead to really incorporate all of the flour. If the dough is sticky add a little more flour. If it is brittle and falling apart, add just a tiny big of water (sometimes I wet my hands and then knead the dough- that is how little water it takes). Cover the dough with a dry cloth and let sit for 15 minutes.

Form the dough into a log. Cut off sections about 1/2 inch thick and run through the pasta sheet kitchenaid attachment on setting 1. Fold the dough and run through, repeatedly, on setting 1 until you get a long fairly rectangular sheet of pasta roughly the width of the kitchenaid attachment. Then run the pasta through on setting 2. Continue until you get to setting 6. Run the pasta through at least twice on setting 6. Lightly flour the long sheet of pasta and set aside. When all of the pasta is rolled cut each long strip into 4 inch by 4 inch squares. Allow the squares to dry slightly on towels or a drying rack (leave our for no more than 1 hour! Refrigerate or freeze within an hour if you are not ready to cook them!)

Pasta filling:

1 C. Ricotta Cheese
1 lb. of Spinach and Kale (mixed, chopped)
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. Dried Red Chili Flakes
4 Garlic Cloves (minced)
2 Shallots (minced)
2 Tbsp. Herbes de Provence (or any dried herb medley) 
1 Cooked Chicken Breast (cubed)
4 Tbs. Mixed Fresh Herbs (chopped)
1/4 C. Parmesan Cheese
Salt, Pepper

Place the ricotta in a coffee filter over a mug or bowl and allow any liquid to drain.
Place the spinach and kale on a paper towel, lightly salt, and wrap to allow extra moisture to drain (This will help your filled borsetti to not open when you boil them!)

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Add garlic, shallots, and chili flakes. Cook until fragrant. Squeeze any excess moisture out the spinach and kale and add them to the saute pan, add the dried herbs. Once the spinach has just wilted remove from the heat and add the chicken, fresh herbs, and both cheeses. Stir all together. Season and stir again.

Allow the filling to cool slightly (so you don't have a blender explosion). Working in batches, if necessary, blend the filling so that it is slightly chunky (just slightly more chunky than canned tuna fish). Scoop the blended filling into a zip-lock bag. Cut one bottom corner of the zip-lock bag at a diagonal so that the opening is slightly less than 1/4 in. Congratulations! You just made your own pastry bag (and it is even better because you don't have to wash it- they are the worst things ever to wash!)



White Wine Butter Sauce:

1 Tsp. Olive Oil
2 Garlic Cloves, grated or minced
2 Shallots, minced
1 Tsp. Dried Red Pepper Flakes
1 Tsp. Dried Herb Medley (same one you used in the pasta)
1 C. White Wine
1 Tbsp. Butter
1 Tbsp. Flour
2 Tbsp. Ricotta
1 Tbsp. Parmasean
Salt, Pepper

In a saute pan heat the oil. Add the garlic, shallots, pepper flakes, and dried herbs. When fragrant add the wine and let reduce for 5 minutes. Whisk in the butter. When the sauce shows it's first sign of darkening whisk in the flour. Remove from heat, whisking, until the temperature cools slightly and the sauce thickens. In a separate bowl whisk the ricotta, Parmesan and seasoning (I actually whisked in some creme fraiche to make it a little smoother).

Spinach Borsetti  (Little Purses) in a White Wine Butter Sauce

Putting it all together:

Arrange your workstation so that you have the pasta squares, a small bowl of water and a small brush, the "pastry bag" of filling, and a clean space. Lay 1 pasta square in the clean space and very slightly wet two edges of the pasta. Pipe a small amount of filling into the middle of the pasta square. Fold the two dry edges onto the wet edges of the pasta, carefully squeezing out any air. Thoroughly pinch the edges together. Now you have ravioli. To make borsetti (little purses) fold the two corners along the folded edge together and also fold the top corner down to meet them. Pinch all three corners together. Place finished pasta on a baking sheet lined with plastic wrap. Continue making pasta and placing it on the plastic wrap.

Bring two large pots of salted (more salt than you think you should use!) to a boil and then turn the heat down so they are barely simmering. Place the White Wine Butter Sauce in a large saute pan over low heat on a back burner. Place 5-10 borsetti in each pot and cook for about 5 minutes (less for the first few rounds, since they will continue cooking in the sauce). With a slotted spoon or skimmer remove the borsetti and place into the saute pan, whatever extra pasta water caught in the pasta will help thicken the sauce.

Once all of the pasta is cooked and into the sauce pan add the ricotta mixture, carefully stir, add some extra chopped fresh herbs, and serve!

I've made some revisions to the recipe, based on how it turned out last night. As you can see last night I didn't stir in the ricotta mixture, and instead plated them next to each other on the plate- not a great idea. Definitely stir it in. Another difference is that I was planning to serve this with a homemade tomato sauce and then realized I had a summer squash I wanted to use, too. but that would have been too chunky of a sauce for a filled pasta! I want you to be able to taste all of the wonderful filling ingredients! So I started the tomato sauce by heating olive oil and adding lots of cherry tomatoes. Once the tomato skin charred a little, and got all wrinkly, I added white wine to the pan, so the tomatoes were half covered. Then I added lots of last years "Herbes de Vermont" (a homemade play on herbes de provence made from herbs from my garden). At the last minute I added sliced garlic, shallots, fresh herbs and spinach, to mimick the filling. I served this as a side with the dinner, but poured the wine and oil from the pan into the White Wine Butter Sauce so that it had that wonderful tomato, squash, herb flavor. I think the way I have transcribed the recipe above will suffice, though it will not have the tomato flavor.

They were wonderfully delicious! I often make filled pasta with goat cheese instead of ricotta, because I love goat cheese, but this time went with ricotta. I am getting so hungry writing this-- good think I have the leftovers of this dish and will be eating them for lunch in about 20 minutes! Yum!

(very) Mixed Green Salad with Herbed Chickpea Cakes with a Creamy Herb Dressing

I found this recipe, by accident, while looking for kale recipes because we are getting bombarded with kale from our CSA. Luckilly, no kale this week. I found a recipe from the same website, a kale and chickpea stirfry, and then clicked onto this recipe, not realizing it did not contain kale... woops. I added kale anyway!

The recipe, which I was reluctant to show to Matt, was for "ultimate veggie burgers". I chose to tell Matt it was a chickpea cake (like a crab cake!) You can see the actual recipe here. I am only going to include my, very revised, recipe is below:

(very) Mixed Green Salad with Herbed Chickpea Cakes

Creamy Herb Dressing

1. C. Mayonaisse
3/4 to 1 C. nonfat, plain yogurt
1-2 tbs. lemon juice
lemon zest
1 garlic clove, grated
1 tsp. worcester sauce
chopped herbs (basil, dill, parsley)

Mix

Herbed Chickpea Cakes:

 1 can garbanzo beans (also known as chickpeas), dried and rinsed
3 large eggs
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chili pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh herbs (I used basil and parley and some kale!)
3/4 onion, chopped finely
2 cloves of garlic, grated
Grated zest of one large lemon
1 cup toasted  bread crumbs
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Combine the garbanzos, eggs, salt and pepper in a food processor. Puree until the mixture is the consistency of a very thick, slightly chunky hummus. Pour into a mixing bowl and stir in the herbs, onion, garlic, and zest. Add the breadcrumbs, stir, and let sit for a couple of minutes so the crumbs can absorb some of the moisture. At this point, you should have a moist mixture that you can easily form into twelve 1 1/2-inch-thick patties. Add more bread crumbs a bit at a time to firm up the dough if need be. Conversely, a bit of water or more egg can be used to moisten the batter.
Heat a grill to medium, add the cakes and cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Turn up the heat if there is no browning after 10 minutes. Flip the patties and cook the second side for 7 minutes, or until golden.

Meanwhile, Rinse and spin a large bowl of greens (we used many kinds of greens: mesculin, spinach, kale, young collards and arugula). Dress the salad with the creamy herb dressing. Top with a warm chickpea cake. Enjoy immediately.

This meal was a success because it was different than anything we normally eat. I am excited to make the chickpea cake again, but try to jazz the flavor up a little more, it was a touch bland (the dressing definitely helped with that!)

Chicken and Anduille Gumbo

Gumbo has been a long awaited meal in my family for some time now. I don't remember how long ago, but many months ago my parents asked me if I had ever seen okra anywhere, to buy. I assumed it wouldn't be that difficult of a thing to find. I checked big chain supermarkets in the fresh, canned and freezer aisles. I checked local, organic stores. I checked the "healthy, natural" grocers. Nowhere. Nada. Nothing. So I was very surprised when I was out at the big chain store Tuesday doing my regular weekly shopping and noticed a can of okra tucked among the garbanzo beans. I snatched the can up and immediately added the other key ingredients in gumbo to my shopping list.

What I didn't expect was that another of the key ingredients would be nearly as illusive to find! And so begins the tale of the Great Anduille Sausage Hunt of Oh '11!

While at the store, where I found the okra I started the hunt for anduille sausage. I knew that there were acceptable substitutions for anduille, and I even knew that I don't like anduille nearly as much as other sausages, but I felt like since this meal was so long awaited and since I (finally!) found he okra, I had to use real anduille. At the big chain store I found many kinds of sausage. Breakfast sausage, spicy sausage, chicken sausage (in a variety of flavors), chorizo, smoked sausage, pepperoni. But, alas, no anduille. I called it for the day, knowing I wasn't going to prepare the meal until the following night (when I had invited my parents over for dinner) and would have another whole day to continue the G.A.S.H. '11

The next morning I resumed my hunt for the illusive anduille and I was quite confident that it would be no problem to find the sausage. I had thought it through and had a very good idea of the store, if there was one in Vermont, that would have it. Cheese Traders --one of my favorite stores! This store buys their cheese and wine in bulk and then divvies it up and sells it as much reduced rates. Since going to Murray's Cheese Shop in NYC last summer I always feel a little nostalgia when I enter Cheese Traders.
I hopped in the car and made the 15 minute drive, knowing I would find my treasure. At Cheese Traders I found, and bought, many things. Anduille was not one of them. Though I did find true authentic chorizo from Spain and Manchego cheese (which started me thinking about another possible recipe blog entry)...
But, readers, do not fret! I had a back-up plan!
I jumped back in the car and drove to the close by Healthy living Natural Foods Market! This store, although having a wonderful selection and fun atmosphere, stresses me out like no other grocer. They are constantly moving things around and, to me, the food items seem to be in no discernable order. I braced myself and entered the store. There was no way for me to head straight for the meat section, since there are coolers and refrigerated cases everywhere, so I tried to wend my way down the main path. I must have looked like a fool. I left no stone unturned. I looked in every chest freezer (because every local farm has their own), every refrigerated case and every wall freezer. I don't know what made me do it, but I circled the store one more time and saw a lone freezer standing in the middle of the store, well off the beaten track (I try to stick to the paths in this store for fear of never finding my way out). I saw some sausage looking packages so I ventured over. I found the most amazing selection of sausages and sausage like meats in this freezer! I found blood sausage, bratwursts, and things I didn't even know how to pronounce. But no anduille. I closed the freezer door, abashed, and looked up at the freezer, where I had been sure I would finally find my target. Through the clear freezer door I saw a package of something, on the top shelf, way in the back. I couldn't see what it was but decided, hey, why not. I opened the door again, stood up on tip toes, and pulled the package out of the freezer. IT WAS ANDUILLE!!!!! I galloped over to the wine selection and bough a bottle of anduille-finding celebration wine (that I thought would complement the meal). I headed home, to actually start the gumbo!

And what you all have been waiting for: THE RECIPE

Chicken and ANDUILLE gumbo

This recipe comes from The Spicy Food Lovers Bible

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (cut into 3/4 in. cubes)
1 tbs. Cajun seasoning
1 lb. anduille sausage (cut into 1/4 in. slices)
2 tbs. vegetable oil
1 1/2 c. chopped onion
1 c. diced bell pepper
1 c. chopped celery
3 jalapeno chilies (stems and seeds removed, chopped)
1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic (I used substantially more...)
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried basil
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. white pepper
6 c. chicken broth.
1 c. dark roux (see below)
10 oz. frozen okra (I used canned)
2-3 C. cooked white rice (or potato salad, I hear)
1 C. sliced green onions

ROUX:
 Another long story, I'll give the short version.

Rule number 1. Don't use butter (for a dark roux). It will burn and you will have to start over. I did.

Heat a saucepan over high heat. Add 1 C. vegetable shortening. Let it melt and start to bubble. Add 1 1/2 C. flour (preferably bread flour though I'm not sure why) a bit at a time, whisking continually, and adjust heat to low/medium. Hopefully you have been doing your arm workouts- you need to continually stir for about a half hour, as the roux turns from white, to a peanut butter color, and beyond to a chocolaty color (see pictures below). Be careful stirring, the roux burns when it flecks out and hits your skin. Ow. Once the roux is between a peanut butter and a chocolate remove the pan from the heat and pour into a heat-safe bowl (so it stops cooking).

 GUMBO:
Combine chicken and Cajun seasoning and let sit 30 minutes, to marinate.

In a heavy stockpot heat oil over high heat. When hot, reduce the heat to medium and add the anduille and brown. Add the chicken and onions, cook for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the bell pepper, celery, chilies, and garlic and sauté for another 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Now add the oregano, basil, bay and peppers and sauté for an additional 2 minutes.

Stir in the broth and bring to a boil. Whisk in the roux, a little at a time, stirring continuously for 5 minutes. Simmer the gumbo for 25 minutes, stirring often.

Add the okra and simmer for another 20 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more Cajun if necessary. Remove from heat and stir in green onions.

Serve over rice. Traditionally you also serve it with a bottle of hot sauce.

 I have to say, I didn't think the gumbo was going to be that good. I was intrigued enough to want to make it, but was never super excited about eating it. But it was good! Really good! I think I got the spice just right- since it had to be a little spicy (Come on! It's gumbo!). In contract to the above recipe I only used one jalapeño but added dried red pepper flakes and chili powder. I actually liked the flavor of the anduille, thank god- it would have been terrible if the G. A.S.H '11 was in vein, but I wouldn't hesitate to try a different sausage next time.

Curried Squash and Red Lentil Soup

This week's recipe was suggested by Sarah, Matt's sister. We had given her a subscription to Gourmet Magazine for Christmas and she had made this recipe from it and then passed it along to us since she liked it! Matt had been very interested in the recipe because when he studied abroad in Spain he ate a lot of lentils. I was less enthusiastic since I had never had lentils and assimilated them with beans (which I do not like) but when I actually looked into it found that lentils seemed like something I could try out.

Curried Squash and Red Lentil Soup

For soup:

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 pound butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 celery rib, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced peeled ginger
• 1 tablespoon curry powder (preferably Madras)
• 1 cup red lentils, picked over and rinsed
• 2 quarts water
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste

For cilantro oil:

• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  

• Accompaniment: cooked basmati rice

Make soup:
Heat oil with butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat until foam subsides, then cook squash, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, ginger, and 1 teaspoon salt, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

Stir in curry powder and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring frequently, 2 minutes.

Add lentils and water and simmer, covered, until lentils are tender, 25 to 40 minutes. Stir in lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.

Make cilantro oil:
Purée cilantro, oil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a blender.

Serve soup drizzled with cilantro oil.

Remarkably, I actually followed this recipe pretty exactly. One of the things that I didn't follow, which I should have, was cutting the squash and other vegetables down to a very small size. Almost all of the soups I make end up being pureed (at least partly) with an immersion blender so I didn't worry about cutting the veggies down but then when we were eating the soup I found some of the squash cubes a little larger than I would have liked.

The other thing that I found surprising about this recipe was that even with lots of minced garlic and ginger, with the curry powder and multiple seasonings with salt and pepper, I found the soup a little bland. This was quickly remedied by adding salt and pepper at the table. I understand that butternut squash tends to soak up salt and take a lot to be noticeable but, like I said, I added salt and pepper multiple times during the cooking as well as before serving. I would be interested in adding some garlic, ginger, and maybe some hot pepper to the cilantro oil to help with the end flavor. 

Even with the above criticism I really liked this soup. It tasted better with each bite! I am looking forward to eating the half that we froze at a later date!

Creamy Fettuccine with Leeks, Mushrooms and Spinach

This week I have two things that I want to write about. The first is an event that Matt and I attended last Monday in Stowe, VT. The event was a benefit dinner, gala, and auction for the March of Dimes. It was called the Signature Chef Event. Thirteen of Central Vermont's best chefs were on hand, each at a station, cooking up some amazing sample size meals. There was also a silent auction and a live auction, but for the sake of this food-style blog I want to focus on the amazing food!

Before getting into the food I should explain that I was an amazingly picky eater as a child. I would literally only eat hot dogs and macaroni and cheese (never together). My relatives still like to point out this fact every time we get together (as do my highschool friends). This is relevant to the story because two of my relatives were also at this gala and we, of course, talked about how far I had come as an eater. I truly pushed the boundaries of food I'd try-- adding at least 4, and probably more, items.

Some of the really challenging things I tried at the event: pork belly, pork cheek, lamb, duck and fish.

The small element that I saw in one of the chef's dishes that was really interesting and I look forward to trying myself was fried garlic chips. Think of a potato chip, but made out of a slice of garlic. These were truly amazing and were served by Michael's on the Hill chef, Michael Kloeti as a garnish over lamb stew that was served atop a mound of amazing mashed potatoes. I loved the lamb stew flavor... unless I got too big of a chunk of lamb... Don't make fun! This was a challenging thing for me even to try!

The best overall food item I ate was a tie between the Fried Pork Cheek served over a creamy, garlicy tartar sauce and the cider braised pork with homemade pickled bell pepper served on a homemade thick-cut potato chip. This is truly amazing since usually I don't care for pork!

Honorable mentions in my mind went to Suzanna Keefer of Suzanna's Catering who made a delicious Cesar Salad that was wrapped in thin prosciutto (we were sure to take one of her cards!) and a duck tamale from Frida's Taqueria in Stowe.

I look forward to using the flavor combinations and techniques I saw at the event in later posts.

Now, onto the recipe!

This week I was lucky to cook dinner for Matt and a special guest, my dad! My mom was away for business in Connecticut (enjoying a company paid dinner at Ruth's Chris) so we took pity on my dad (who tends to eat his culinary specialty, a bowl of cereal, when my  mom is away) and invite him to dinner. I was trying to decide what to make while flipping through a binder of torn out magazine recipes and hand written recipe cards when I saw a recipe I pulled from Real Simple Magazine. It was titled Creamy Fettuccine with leeks, corn and arugula. I thought about the CSA items still in the fridge (one of which was leeks). I decided to make a variation of this recipe, using the local, fresh ingredients I had. When I looked at the other ingredients in the recipe I noticed heavy cream and thought... hmm... why add heavy cream when I can make just as creamy and delicious a sauce with a roux, skim milk, some neufchatel (fat free cream cheese) and some regular cheese... below is the adapted recipe (see real recipe here)

Creamy Spaghetti with Leeks, Mushrooms, and Spinach

3/4 box of spaghetti or other noodle pasta

1 tbs butter (I used the roasted garlic compote butter I had in the freezer from last week)
1 tbs flour
1 cup skim milk
1/4 cup neufchatel (fat free cream cheese)
1/4 cup other cheese (I used some parmesan and some mozzarella)
salt and pepper

1 tbs olive oil
2 leeks (white and light green parts, cut into thin half-moons)
1/4 - 1/2 hot pepper, minced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
2 cups spinach
1/2 cup dry white wine

Boil pasta according to directions (or 1 minute shy if you like al dente because it will cook a bit in the skillet, too).

Meanwhile melt butter in a sauce pan, whisk in flour. Heat, stirring, over low-medium heat until smokey in color. Whisk in milk. When the milk starts to thicken add neufchatel and other cheese. Stir until all cheeses and melted and thoroughly combined. Season. Remove from heat.

In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add leeks, garlic and hot pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender (4 minutes). Add the mushrooms and wine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the wine has reduced by half. Add the spinach and white sauce to skillet (you may have to reheat the white sauce slightly so it pours easily). Stir until the spinach is wilted and mushrooms are cooked. Stir in the pasta and cook until heated through. Season.

Serve hot, with lots of bread and good cheese (we had brie and local chevre)


As often happens with meals I cook, this meal turned out a little spicy. There are two reasons as to why this may have occured: 1- When my dad comes for dinner I DO NOT hold back on the garlic. He has a motto, "There is no such thing as too much garlic!" or 2- the hot pepper I added may have been massively hot. My dad grew these peppers and the heat varies extremely from pepper to pepper. Since I like hot food I tried the pepper before putting it into the pasta and didn't think it was outrageously hot so I am inclined to think it was the garlic. I add the hot pepper more to enhance other flavors than to actually make the dish spicy because Matt is not a fan of hot food. This meal wasn't too hot, but it was definitely spicy. If you don't like spice feel free to leave out the hot pepper or reduce the garlic (just don't tell my dad).

The other interesting thing about the spice in this dish is that is complemented the leeks amazingly. The leeks added a sweet taste to the dish that would have been too much for me if it had not had a little spice.

Roasted Garlic and Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This final chicken recipe was completely made up by me and turned out to be quite delicious (and pretty healthy, too) however, this blog post does not follow the normal format since I am not relating a recipe from an established source.

I knew the time had come to eat some of the frozen chicken out of the freezer but since it is getting too cold to grill outside I wanted to do something different with it. I had never made stuffed chicken breasts before but it was something I had looked into making multiple times. The recipe evolved a lot from what I first imagined to what I finally placed on the table so I am looking forward to playing around with the recipe some more at a later date.

ROASTED GARLIC

Full heads of garlic
olive oil
salt

I love roasted garlic and for some reason I was in the mood to roast some. I placed 7 garlic heads (with the tops chopped off) in a 8 X 8 glass baking dish and piled all of the chopped off tops in a pile in the middle. Then I, fairly generously, drizzled them with olive oil. I covered the pan with tin foil and placed it in a 350 degree oven. I started checking around 25 minutes later and removed most of the chopped off (smaller) pieces so they wouldn't burn. Around 35 minutes some of the smaller heads were done and removed but it took about 50 minutes for the larger heads. I allowed all of the heads of (now roasted) garlic to cool.

ROASTED GARLIC COMPOTE BUTTER (aka what to do with the rest of the roasted garlic)

2 heads roasted garlic
1 stick butter
salt

Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the papery heads and place in a mortar, sprinkle a little salt over the garlic. With a pestle mash the garlic. Add 1 stick of softened butter and mash again. (Add any other flavorings you want- I use a little chili powder, rosemary, etc.) Scoop out the mixture and place in the middle of a piece of parchment or waxed paper and roll into a long (tootsie roll looking) cylinder. Twist the ends. Refrigerate and use in a couple of days or freeze.

 Final Recipe:

Roasted Garlic Stuffed Chicken Breasts

2 chicken breasts (skinless, boneless)

2 heads of roasted garlic

2 tbs. chevre (creamy goat cheese)

2 tbs. (low-fat) cream cheese (softened)

1/4 lemon, zested

1/4 lemon juiced

toothpicks

2 tsp. dried sage

1/4 c. flour

salt

pepper

olive oil

Preheat oven to 350.

Start by slicing the chicken breasts horizontally, not all of the way through the back, so that you can lay the chicken breast open (like a book). Season. 

In a small bowl mix roasted garlic, chevre, cream cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Stir until smoothish. Spread over opened chicken breasts and then close the chicken breasts and secure with toothpicks so that filling does not leak out. 

On a shallow pie plate mix flour, sage, salt and pepper. Dredge chicken breasts in flour. 

Heat oil in large fry pan over medium high heat. Brown all sides of each chicken breast and place into an oven safe dish and place in preheated oven. Remove when chicken reaches 165 degrees. 

When I first started imagining this recipe I was thinking about an appetizer recipe from this month's Real Simple magazine-- a goat cheese log rolled in cranberries and walnuts. In my initial plan I was going to make a cranberry sauce to go over the chicken and when I was actually making it decided not to do that so instead I included cranberries in the brussel sprout side dish. We also had Italian bread with the roasted garlic compote butter spread in the middle and then warmed in the oven.

Spinach Crepes with Two Fillings

Matt and I are very lucky to live in a state, Vermont, that prides itself in local, fresh, delicious food. One way that we take advantage of this fact is enrolling in a CSA (community supported agriculture) program where we pick up a basket of veggies once a week throughout the summer (winter CSAs are available also). The drawback is that we do not get to choose what we get each week, instead, we get whatever the farmers have a lot of. Our CSA is really good about not giving us the exact same thing each week so that we do not get bored with the food. One of our items this week was leeks.

I love leeks! It took me a long time to discover them and actually start using them-- I think I didn't actually cook with leeks until college (which is strange because I remember finding wild leeks as a child). I started out using leeks in the normal way- Potato Leek Soup. Now, one of my favorite autumn recipes is a chicken, leek and apple dish (which was partly the inspiration for this blog's recipe). Also, for my birthday this year, my family took me out to a fancy Italian restaurant in Burlington, VT that I had wanted to go to for a long time. This restaurant is known for using local, fresh ingredients and fine Italian imported items together. When we visited the veggie of choice was roasted leeks which were served with nearly all of the secondi (meat) menu options.

With a fridge full of fresh Vermont leeks I went to the internet and searched foodandwine.com and foodnetwork.com for different recipes that I could try out. I came up with 5 possibilities that I wanted to try and let Matt choose which one he was in the mood for. He chose chorizo-leek crepes (see link to foodnetwork recipe below).

I have a tried and true crepe recipe from one of my cookbooks, which I use often. The recipe is actually for spinach crepes but I usually leave the spinach out and make sweet crepes (really just an excuse to eat nutella). This was the first time I included the spinach (another product of the CSA this week) to make savory crepes.

Spinach Crepe Recipe from Fifteen Minute Meals by Emalee Chapman

1/2 cup small spinach leaves (no stems)

1 egg

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup flour

3/4 cup milk

Place all ingredients in blender, blend for 1 minute, let sit a few minutes. 

To cook crepes (wait until fillings are prepared to cook crepes): 

Heat a small skillet (or crepe pan) until "a drop of water jumps in the pan". Put 1-2 tbsp of batter into the pan and immediately swirl the pan to allow the batter to spread into a 6-7" round. Watch as the batter cooks from the outside in and when the very middle of the crepe seems 3/4 cooked use a small rubber spatula to separate the crepe from the pan. Stack cooked crepes between layers of waxed paper. The crepes are so thin you do not have to flip them, also crepes will cook in about 30 seconds. Time is of the essence.

This recipe makes a lot, probably 15-20 crepes depending on size and they are bright green, which I love. 

As for the filling, the recipe I had was for Chorizo and Leek crepes with sour cream but I made my own filling so I'll post my invented recipe. 

Crepe Fillings

5 leeks, sliced thinly (white and light green part only)

2 links spicy Italian sausage, casing removed, chopped finely

2 tbsp Olive oil

1/4 lemon, zested

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

1 Macintosh apple, cored and chopped

1/2 cup apple cider

1/4 lemon, juiced

1 cup spinach leaves

First wash leek slices very carefully by filling a large bowl (or a clean sink) with cold water and dropping in leek slices. Swirl leeks around in water and then let them come to a complete stop, allowing the grit and dirt to sink to the bottom. Scoop out leeks, drain water, refill with cold water, repeat until leeks have no grit left! You may need to gently separate leeks to allow stubborn dirt to come out.

Next, add 1 tbsp of oil to a large skillet and cook leeks over m/h heat for 5-7 minutes. The leeks should be pretty tender, move half of the leeks to a bowl. Add sausage chunks and a bit of the lemon zest. Cook until all of the sausage is cooked through. Use a rubber scraper to move all of the filling to another bowl and add half of the goat cheese.

Heat the rest of the olive oil (1 tbsp) in the same large skillet. Place the cooked leeks back into the skillet and add the chopped apple, the cider, the lemon juice and zest. Cook until the liquid has evaporated. Move the filling to one side of the skillet, add the rest of the goat cheese.

Turn the heat to low. Return the sausage filling to other side of the skillet. Place spinach leaves in center of pan to wilt. Cover skillet until sausage filling is reheated and spinach is wilted. The goat cheese should be somewhat melted.

(The best idea is to let the fillings warm over low heat while cooking the crepes (procedure above), as seen here!)

Now, assemble the crepes by placing a crepe on a plate, add a spoonful of whatever filling (or mix them!) and a few wilted spinach leaves to the very middle of the crepe, and fold one side over the filling, then the other side.

Matt asked if the folding was like a fajita or burrito and I told him that crepes are french! Therefore, the fold is far more delicate and fancy than anything Mexican. Think of it like a silk robe, where each side covers just enough of what is inside that some is still peeking out.

This was a really fun recipe to make. We used to have crepes fairly often as a brunch of breakfast item but it is definitely something we got away from, and I am glad to have it back. The actual crepe part of this recipe is super fast and easy and then you get to be creative with the filling. The fillings can be as complex or simple as you want. A very simple filling would be chopped lunch meat and cheese. I'm glad we didn't just choose to have potato leek soup (although we have lots of different kinds of potatoes from the CSA and it would have been delicious) because this was really fun to make and eat!