JennaDish

Baked Buffalo Wings

These are the hot wings Alyssa made this year on New Year's Day.  Delish.
 

I got fancy with the empty Frank's RedHot bottle.

Baked Buffalo Wings
Compliments of JennaDish

from Leesah on Allrecipes.com

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
20 chicken wings
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup hot pepper sauce (such as Frank's RedHot®)

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and lightly grease with cooking spray. Place the flour, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and salt into a resealable plastic bag, and shake to mix. Add the chicken wings, seal, and toss until well coated with the flour mixture. Place the wings onto the prepared baking sheet, and place into the refrigerator. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Whisk together the melted butter and hot sauce in a small bowl. Dip the wings into the butter mixture, and place back on the baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven until the chicken is no longer pink in the center, and crispy on the outside, about 45 minutes. Turn the wings over halfway during cooking so they cook evenly.

 

Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter

"This is the simplest of all sauces to make, and none has a purer, more irresistibly sweet tomato taste.   I have known people to skip the pasta and eat the sauce directly out of the pot with a spoon.  
- Marcella Hazan

This is true.  Delicious.  A game changer (finally!) for pasta.  So good, I even forgot to add the freshly grated cheese.  I ground some herbs de provence over it and it was wonderful.

And this is what Alyssa was doing while I was finishing up the sauce...

Steering her new remote-controlled helicopter toward my head...

Nice job Alyssa.

Recommended pasta with this sauce: Potato Gnocchi (prounounced like NYO' KEY).  The best gnocchi, beside homemade, that I've had is frozen.  I've had the vacuum-packed kind and it was rubbery.
UPDATE: I made this sauce a second time and tossed it with a pound of campanelle pasta which was NOT great.  If there's a lot of pasta, and the pasta has grooves in which the sauce hides to make it even worse, then the sauce is too sparse and tasteless.  You need the dish to be saucy to taste the subtleness of the butter, onion flavors.

Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter
Compliments of JennaDish

MAKES 4-6 SERVINGS

from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

2 pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes,prepared as described below* OR 2 cups canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, cut up with their juices (I used canned, certified San Marzano tomatoes)
5 Tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, peeled and cut in half
Salt
1 to 1 1/2 pounds pasta
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese for the table

Put tomatoes in a saucepan, add the butter, onion, and salt, and cook uncovered at a very slow, but steady simmer for 45 minutes, or until the fat floats fre from the tomato.  Stir from time to time, mashing any large piece of tomato in the pan with the back of a wooden spoon.  Taste and correct for salt.  Discard the onion before tossing the sauce with pasta.

Great the next day also.  Leftover sauce is good for supplementing other tomato-based dishes such the Cioppino I made.  Really took it up a notch.

* To blanche tomatoes, plunge tomatoes in boiling water for a minute or less.  Drain them and , as soon as they are cool enough to handle, skin them, and cut them up in coarse pieces.  Some people like to lightly cut an X in the top of the tomato before boiling, to make it easier to peel.

 

Speedy Seafood Supper

Gosh, this once-frozen seafood looks scraggly.  Looks like I defrosted it in the clothes dryer.

UPDATE:  Made it a second time when I had more daylight. No more scraggly fish.

1. This dish is meant to be quick - you know - you forgot to lay anything out.  Everything's frozen or in cans. Check.

2. Has a very nice flavored broth, but I added about 6 shakes of Frank's Hot Sauce which gave it a slight zip as a personal preference.  Check.

3.  It's supposed to serve 2-4 people.  Uh, no check here.  She must be talking about 2-4 super models.  Allen ate pretty much the whole thing.  I ate exactly 1/2 cup because I wanted him to have as much as he needed since he was going out to his men's group.  Yes, I said men's group.

4.  This photo looks absolutely nothing like the one in the Nigella Kitchen cookbook.  Hate that.  Not the first time this has happened. I suspect they do some PhotoShoping. UPDATE: I made again with fire roasted tomatoes and took a better photo. Added 3 jalapeno slices to throw in Allen's bowl.  Also added a little leftover smoked ham but won't do again because it overpowered the fish.

Next time I would double everything.  Possibly double everything except the fish - could do 1.5 times the fish and add some very small pasta, like ditalini.  Also would use something other than diced tomatoes.  Maybe crushed tomatoes. UPDATE: Fire-roasted tomatoes helped.

Mop up the juices with crusty bread.

Speedy Seafood Supper
Compliments of JennaDish

SERVES TWO

adapted from Nigella Kitchen by Nigella Lawson

pinch saffron threads
1 cup freshly boiled water
4 teaspoons garlic flavored oil (I used olive oil and sauteed a smashed clove of garlic)
6 scallions (didn't have it - sprinkled about 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes and sauteed lightly w garlic)
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon (or dill or dried basil)
1/2 cup vermouth or dry white wine
14-ounce diced tomatoes (fire-roasted adds more depth of flavor)
1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1/2 teaspoon table salt, or to taste
1 pound frozen mixed seafood (I used 5-6 oz. each bay scallops, medium shrimp, cod fillet)
pepper, to taste
fresh herbs, to serve (optional)
Frank's Hot sauce (optional)

Put the saffron threads in a bowl and add 1 cup freshly boiled water.

Warm the garlic flavored oil in a wide, shallow, heavy-based pan over a medium heat, and fry the scallions and dried tarragon for a minute or so. (I used my old, not-so-heavy, stainless steel dutch oven - worked just fine).

Add the vermouth (or wine) and let bubble for a minute, then add the saffron in its yellow water, followed by the tomatoes, and let it all come to a boil.  Add half the amount of salt specified above.

Turn up the heat to high (or medium high like I did) add the frozen seafood, and bring the pan back to a boil, then turn down the heat to medium and cook at a robust simmer till the seafood is hot and cooked through, which should be 30 or 4 minutes.

Season with pepper to taste, and add the rest of the salt if required, sprinkle with any available herbs, if you feel like it, and serve, for pleasurable mopping, with some crusty bread. (I sprinkled fresh parsley and did not like it - not necessary.)

 

Cuban Cure Black Bean Soup

I was attracted to this Cuban Cure Black Bean Soup recipe in Nigella Christmas because of Nigella's remarks about why you'd make this during the holidays.  Here's her narrative:

This is the perfect antidote to an evening soured by too much office-party wine.
A clanging head finds solace in fire and fat, and this bean stew of a soup provides both,
with ease and speed.

I, of course, altered it because I didn't have all the exact ingredients, but close.  So mine is what I would call the healthier version. Plus I wanted to double it to make enough for leftovers. My favorite part is the fresh squeeze of a lime right on top of the soup just before taking a bite.  It's a very different taste for me - the coupling of a fresh fruit zest with a hearty bean and meat dish. 

So I'm publishing the original recipe first, then my version. Mine turned out very, very good, but I also want to make the original version to get that "fire and fat" effect from the sausage. The directions are the original, but with my notes in italics. 

Goes great with some bakery fresh bread.

NOTE:  I used an immersion blender in the pan to cream some of the beans and tomatoes.  The outcome was ugly bean bits, no effect on the diced tomatoes, and a greyish colored broth.  Plus after serving a test bowl to Allen, he preferred more beans, so a 3rd can went in, which may or may not have been necessary had I not blended the beans. 

ANOTHER NOTE:  I was worried there wasn't going to be enough taste, with cumin as the only spice.  However, chorizo style meat will absolutely make up the rest of the flavor - whether sausage or chicken.

Cuban Cure Black Bean Soup
Compliments of JennaDish

From Nigella Lawson's recipe from Nigella Christmas

SERVES 2

1/4 lb chorizo sausage (not the salami sort)
2 scallions
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
15 oz can black beans, drained
Fresh tomato
2 cups good quality cartoned or canned chicken broth/stock
juice of 1 lime, or to taste (or packaged lime juice)
2-4 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Cuban Black Bean Soup
Compliments of JennaDish

Adapted from Nigella Lawson's recipe from Nigella Christmas

SERVES 4

2-3 links chicken chorizo sausages (about 6-10 ounces)
3 teaspoons bacon fat or shortening
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2-3 15-ounce cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can crushed (or diced) tomatoes
4 cups (32 ounces) chicken broth
1-2 limes cut in fat wedges
2-4 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (or 2 teaspoons dried cilantro for sprinkling)

Cut the chorizo sausage into slices roughly 1/8 inch thick.  Then cut each coin in half or quarters as you wish. 

Cook the chorizo pieces in a dry saucepan for about 5 minutes, or until they give up their orange oil and crisp up a little.  Remove them with a slotted spatula to a bowl or plate.

Cut off the green parts of the scallions and reserve for slicing later, then finely slice the white part and add this to the pan slicked with orange oil (this is where I added the bacon fat since my chicken chorizo left no fat in the pan), along with the ground cumin, stirring everything together for a couple of minutes over a gentle heat.

Empty the drained black beans into the pan and roughly chop the tomato, adding the pieces - peel, seeds and all (I added the canned tomatoes) - along with the chicken broth.  Stir the pan and let it simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Ladle the soup into 2 bowls; add the reserved chorizo pieces, then give each bowl a good squirt of lime juice (I served with lime wedges to squirt bite by bite) and sprinkle with the finely sliced green part of the scalions and some chopped cilantro.

Bobby Flay's Meatballs

This is a recipe Alyssa preferred to make tonight.  But a few days ago she made Marcella Hazan Meatballs with milk-soaked bread and ground chuck only.  Bobby Flay's recipe is made with dry bread crumbs and 3 types of meat.  Those are the biggest differences.

Alyssa and Jill prefer these meatballs but I'm torn between the two.  Jill said they taste like LaRosa's, which is a compliment coming from Jill.  She loves LaRosa's meatballs.  Their firmness makes it easier to move around and transfer, pick up, etc.  But I don't like the denser texture to eat.  I prefer the melt in your mouth meatballs.   But I do like that these have more parsley in them.  Sounds like, for me anyway, I need to tweak a recipe that comes somewhere in between.

Bobby Flay's Meatballs
Compliments of JennaDish

MAKES A LOT OF MEATBALLS, too many for family of 4, but then leftovers are excellent next day!

1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground beef
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped and Sauteed
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup pure olive oil

Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl, except olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat the oil in large saute pan over medium-high heat. Roll the mixture into 1 1/2-inch balls and fry until golden brown. 

(If using prepared spaghetti sauce, cook meatballs completely, then add to sauce.  If making homemade sauce which needs to simmer 30 minutes or so, can brown meatballs but not cook all the way through, then transfer to sauce and let meat finish cooking while sauce simmers.)

Roast Chicken with Two Lemons

Happy New Year! 

This holiday season I was off work December 23rd to January 2nd.  Alyssa and Jill and Allen were also all home, and we did a lot of cooking.  On New Year's Eve Alyssa made meatballs and spaghetti (1st time Marcella Hazan, 2nd time Bobby Flay recipe), then she and Jill left for separate parties.  On New Year's Day (today) Alyssa made Buffalo Wings and I made Cuban Black Bean Soup.  Other dishes we made over the break were this chicken, baby back ribs, pork barbecue, pot stickers, crepes with Nutella and banana, and I made and froze some Asian meatballs for a future meal.  All recipes are either posted or forthcoming.

Hardly any sweets! Unbelievable.

I'm pretty sure this Marcella Hazan recipe will be my go-to recipe for roast chicken from now on.  It's easy and straightforward.  Just like I think it's supposed to be.  No brine, no rubbing herbs under the skin, no onions tossed hither and fro, no broth or butter or oil or peppercorns for Pete's sake.  No basting, no fancy trussing, no fussing.

Just salt and pepper all over, stick a lemon or two in the cavity, truss with toothpicks, tie legs loosely in their natural position.  Plop in a dry pan breast side down, turn it breast side up 30 minutes later, and that's about it.

As Ms. Hazan's recipe foreword describes it, "After you put the chicken in the oven you turn it just once.  The bird, its two lemons, and the oven do all the rest."  That's absolutely true. 

I don't like cutting a bird at the table.  Very unattractive.  So in the future I'll cut it in the kitchen and serve it on a platter.  Also, Nigella Lawson says her mother used to roast two chickens at a time, one to serve that day and one to keep in the fridge to pick at through the week, or use in another recipe.  Good idea. 

UPDATE:  I purchased a Granite Wear roasting pan (photo below) from Walmart for $13 that works great and cleans up perfectly.  Many years ago, I refused to go into Walmart because I think they are one of the reasons small businesses can't make it and American manufacturing is being outsourced.  But with the economy I can't try to save the world by myself.  We need to change bigger things in this country than where Jenna shops.  But at least this pan is American made, so that helps.  Same pan with Martha Stewart's name on it at Macy's is $20. 

I know I know.  This is the weirdest bird I've even bought, a separate one from the top photos.  Broken wing, skin slightly strange in places, not perfectly de-feathered.  But oh well. It's an Amish chicken so it was a very nice quality otherwise.  Mainly I wanted to show the pan and how much liquid comes from the chicken, with no oil or buttered added.

Roast Chicken with Lemons
Compliments of JennaDish

from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

A 3- to 4-pound chicken
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
2 small lemons (or 1 large)

PREHEAT oven to 350^o.

WASH the chicken thoroughly in cold water, both inside and out.  Remove all the bits of fat hanging loose.  Let the bird sit about 10 minutes on a slightly tilted plate to let all the water drain out of it.  Pat it thoroughly dry all over with cloth or paper towels.

SPRINKLE a generous amount of salt and black pepper on the chicken, rubbing it with your fingers over all its body and into its cavity.

WASH the lemons in cold water and dry them with a towel.  Soften each lemon by placing it on a counter and rolling it back and forth as you put firm downward pressure on it with the palm of your hand.  Puncture the lemons in at least 20 places each, using a sturdy round toothpick or similar implement.

PLACE both lemons in the bird's cavity

CLOSE up the opening with toothpicks or with trussing needle and string.  Close it well, but don't make an absolutely airtight job of it because the chicken may burst.  Run kitchen string from one leg to the other, tying it at both knuckle ends.  Leave the legs in their natural position without pulling them tight.  If the skin is unbroken, the chicken will puff up as it cooks, and the string serves only to keep the thighs from spreading apart and splitting the skin.

PUT the chicken into a roasting pan, breast facing down.  Do not add cooking fat of any kind. This bird is self-basting, and will not stick to the pan (I can attest to this).  Place it in the upper third of the preheated oven.  After 30 minutes, turn the chicken over to have the breast face up.  When turning it, try not to puncture the skin. 

COOK for another 30 to 35 minutes, then turn the oven thermostat up to 400^o.  and cook for an additional 20 minutes.  Calculate between 20 and 25 minutes' total cooking time for each pound.  There is no need to turn the chicken again.

You can leave the lemons in while carving and spoon the juice over the sliced chicken.

Barbecue Baby Back Ribs

Meat is definitely Alyssa's specialty.  She has been making these ribs for a couple of years now.  

She gets her ribs at Findlay Market at Mackie Quality Meats

When it was decided that Alyssa would be in charge of Thanksgiving dinner last year, her Grandpa Joe requested Barbecue Ribs.  That's pretty funny because Grandma had just told everyone we were having a traditional Thanksgiving.  I guess Grandpa got smart and went straight to the chef.

That was random, I know.  But a nice a memory.

We use Montgomery Inn Barbecue Sauce.  It's yum.  

Oven Baked Barbecue Ribs

Compliments of JennaDish

Adapted from a recipe on Allrecipes.com 

2 slabs baby back ribs
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 cups of your favorite barbecue sauce (we use Montgomery Inn Barbecue Sauce)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Peel off tough membrane covering bony side of the ribs, if necessary.   Mix sugar and spices to make the rub, apply rub to ribs on all sides.  Lay ribs on two layers of foil, meaty side down.  Lay two layers of foil on top of ribs and seal tightly all around.  Place on baking sheet and bake for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until meat is starting to shrink away from the ends of the bone.  Remove from oven and heat broiler.  Arrange on broiler pan, bone side up.  Brush on sauce and broil for 1 or 2 minutes until sauce is cooked on and starting to bubble.  Turn ribs over and repeat on other side. 

 

Japanese Pork and Shrimp Pot Stickers

I wanted to take on the project of learning how to make Pot Stickers the old fashioned way.  No store-bought wrappers.  Went to the library and borrowed Asian Dumplings by Andrea Nguyen.  Since I'm a total newbie at this, it took a total of about 2 1/2 hours with constantly reading the cookbook and checking myself, so in the future the time should be cut way down.  Overall, I didn't mind spending the time on this project - it was actually fun.  

I made the filling first, then made the dough.  In the future, I will do the opposite.  If you make the dough first, it can sit in a bag softening while you make the filling.  The recipe says to let the filling sit out for 30 minutes at room temperature to allow the flavors to meld, but believe me, it will sit out and meld as you make the wrappers. 

The following photo captions won't make much sense until you read through the recipe.  But if you try the recipe, looking back at these photos may help to make sense of the instructions.  

After water was drawn out of this Napa cabbage, squeezed by hand and then with a clean cotton cloth.

If you are thinking of leaving out the shrimp, that's fine, but don't even think about leaving out the pork. It's fat is necessary for the method of cooking it requires.



My dough is probably a little on the dry side, probably because I used King Arthur's flour which oftentimes requires a bit more liquid than other flours would need.  But it still worked out fine...

Although I was concerned about my dough being dry, the recipe author explains that the dough should bounce back slowly when you press it with your finger, which it did.  

And what I didn't realize was that because the dough is made with hot water, when you leave it in the bag with the air expelled, it softens from the moisture and becomes easy to work with.

I cut the top off a zip-top bag and put a little flour in it or otherwise the dough sticks.  Then I put the little dough ball in the bag and used a saucepan to flatten the disk as flat as I could, about 1/8".  

Then you take each wrapper and, leaving a thicker "belly" in the center, roll the edges toward you while rotating the circle around 1/4 turn.  

Mine turned out to be somewhat irregular circles but it worked out just fine, especially for a beginner.  Pot stickers don't have to be pretty, nor perfect, to taste good.  The smaller disk in the back of this photo is one that hasn't been rolled out yet.  This shows the size difference you can expect.


The flavors of this filling were awesome.  Bought many of my Asian ingredients at Jungle Jim's over the weekend.

Not as beautiful as some, but certainly tasty.

Japanese Pork and Shrimp Pot Stickers
Compliments of JennaDish

from Asian Dumplings by Andrea Nguyen

MAKES 32 DUMPLINGS (4 as main course, 6-8 as appetizer)

FILLING
2 cups lightly packed, finely chopped napa cabbage, cut from whole leaves (about 7 ounces or 3 leaves)
1/2 teaspoon plus 1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cloves garlic, minced and crushed into a paste (I minced only)
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 Tablespoons chopped Chinese chives or scallions (white and green parts)
6 ounces ground pork, fattier kind preferred, coarsely chopped to loosen
1/3 pound medium shrimp, shelled, deveined, and chopped (4 1/2 ounces net weight)
 Scant 1/4 teaspoon sugar
Generous 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 Tablespoons Japanese soy sauce or light (regular) soy sauce
1 Tablespoon sake (I used Sherry)
1 teaspoon sesame oil

BASIC DUMPLING DOUGH
10 ounces (2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
About 3/4 cup boiling water 

Canola oil or sesame oil or a combination of both, for panfrying

DIPPING SAUCE
5 Tablespoons Japanese soy sauce or light (regular) soy sauce
2 1/2 Tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon chile oil (optional)

Japanese hot mustard, Chinese hot mustard, or Colman's English mustard for dipping (optional)

TO MAKE THE FILLING
In a large bowl, toss the cabbage with the 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Set aside for about 15 minutes to draw excess moisture from the cabbage.  Drain n a fine-mesh strainder, rinse with water, and drain again.  To remove more moisture, squeeze the cabbage in your hands over the sink, or put into a cotton (not terry cloth) kitchen towel and wring out the moisture over the sink.  You sould have about 1/2 cup firmly packed cabbage.

TRANSFER THE CABBAGE to a bowl and add the garlic, ginger, Chinese chives, pork, and shrimp.  Stir and lightly mash the ingredients so that they start coming together.

IN A SMALL BOWL, stir together the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, the sugar, pepper, soy sauce, sake, and sesame oil.  Pour these seasonings over the meat and cabbage mixture, and then stir and fold the ingredients together.  Once you have broken up the large chunks of pork so none are visible, briskly stir to blend the ingredients into a chohesive, thick mixture.  To develop the flavors, cover with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.  You should have about 2 cups of filling.  (Can prepare filling 1 day ahead - bring to room temperature before assembling the dumplings.)

MEANWHILE, form 16 wrappers from 1/2 the dough.  Aim for wrappers that are about 3 1/4 inches in diameter.  (This is where I found a glitch in this recipe.  It never mentions again to make another 16 wrappers with the remaining dough - but you WILL need to do this to use up all dough and filling.  When using only half the dough in the beginning, place the other half back in the plastic bag and remove all air, letting sit until needed.)

BEFORE ASSEMBLING the dumplings, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  (If you plan to refrigerate the dumplings for several hours, or freeze them, lightly dust the paper with flour to avoid sticking.)  For each dumpling, hold a wrapper in a slightly cupped hand. My simplified instructions: Scoop up about 1 tablespoon of filling and place in the center leaving just enough edge to pinch together - no fancy pattern.  I chose to make 24 fat dumplings so I put at least 1 tablespoon in each 3 1/4" diameter wrapper, and even when the filling oozed to the edge, the dough still pinched together just fine.

When finished with the first half, cover with a dry kitchen towel while making the other 16 (or 8) wrappers and filling.

ONCE ALL The dumplings are assembled, they can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for several hours; they can be cooked straight from the refrigerator.  For longer storage, freeze them on their tray until hard (about 1 hour), transfer them to a zip-top freezer bag, seal well, and keep them frozen for up to 1 month; partially thaw, usingyour finger to smooth over any cracks that may have formed during freezing, before cooking.

TO PANFRY the dumplings, use a medium or large nonstick skillet (using skillets or pan with fitted lids work best), if both sizes are handy, cook two batches at the same time.  Heat the skillet over medium-high heat and put 1 1/2 - 2 Tablespoons oil (canola or 2 parts canola to 1 part sesame oil) in each pan.  Add the dumplings one at a time, placing them sealed edges up in a widing circle pattern or straight rows.  The dumplings may touch.  Fry 1-2 minutes until they're golden brown on the bottom.

HOLDING THE LID over the skillet (ready to protect yourself from the steam that is to come) add about 1/3 hot water to each skillet.  It will boil and sputter dramatically.  Put the lid on each skillet and lower the heat to medium and let the water bubble away until it si mostly gone, 8 to 10 minutes.  After 6-8 minutes, move the lid or foil so that is is slightly ajar to allow the steam to shoot out from underneath. This lessens the drama of condensation dripping down onto the hot oil when you remove the lid.

WHILE THE DUMPLINGS cook, combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and hile oil in a small bowl to create a dipping sauce.  Taste and make any flavor adjustments.

WHEN THE BUBBLING noise in the skillet turns into a gently frying sound (a sign that most of the water is gone), remove the lid.  Allow the dumplings to fry for another 1 to 2 minutes, or until the bottoms are brwon and crisp.  Turn off the heat and wait until the sizzling stops before transferring the dumplings to a serving plate, using a spatula to lift up a few of them at a time.  Display them with thebottomsup so that they remain crisp.

SERVE IMMEDIATELY with dipping sauce in a communal bowl or divided up among individual rice bowls or dipping bowls.  If serving hot mustard, use a separate bowl for this.

**********************************************************************

TO MAKE THE DOUGH (with food processor)

Put the 10 ounces (or 2 cups) flour in the work bowl of the food processor.  With the machine running, add 3/4 cup of water just-boiled water in a steady stream through the feed tube.  As soon as all the water has been added, stop the machine and check the dough.  It should look rough and feel soft but firm enough to hold its shape when pinched.  If necessary, add water by the teaspoon or flour by the tablespoon.  When satisfied, run the machine for another 5 to 10 seconds to further knead and form a ball around the blade.  Avoid overworking the dough.

Transfer the dough and any bits to a work surface; flour your work surface only if necessary, and then sparingly.  Knead the dough with the heel of your hand for about 30 seconds.  The result should be nearly smooth and somewhat elastic; press on the dough; it should slowly bounce back, with a light impression of your finger remaining. Place the dough in a zip-top bag and seal tightly closed, expelling excess air.  Set aside to rest at room temperture for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.  The dough will steam up the plastic bag and become earlobe soft, making wrappers easy to work with.

After resting, the dough can be used right away to form the wrappers.  Or, refrigerate it overnight and return to room temperature before using.

When the dough is ready, take out, cut in half and work with the first half while the 2nd half goes back in the bag to keep soft.  Roll the dough you are starting to work with into a 1" log as even as possible.  Cut into 16 even pieces, shaping the dough into somewhat of a ball.  One by one, put the ball of dough between two pieces of wax paper or in a freezer bag dusted with a little flour, place on table and find a flat item such as a saucepan to flatten into a circle 1/8" thick.  Lay aside each round on non-stick paper until all are finished. 

Going back to each round, take a small rolling pin or dowel and, keeping away from the very center (leaving a nickel or quarter size area of thickness in the center), roll the wrapper from near center toward you, spin 1/4 turn, do the same all the way around until it's about 3 1/4" in diameter with a slightly thicker "belly" than the rest of the circle.

Marcella Hazan Meatballs

 Happy Birthday Alyssa!

Thank you for making Italian Meatballs from the famed cookbook Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan on your birthday.

Meatballs
Compliments of JennaDish

from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

SERVES 4

A slice of good-quality white bread (used Italian bread)
1/3 cup milk
1 pound ground beef, preferably ground chuck
1 Tablespoon onion, chopped very fine
1 Tablespoon chopped parsley
1 egg
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 Tablespoons freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Whole nutmeg (I used ground nutmeg)
Salt
Black pepper, freshly ground
Fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs, spread on a plate (processed about 3-4 large Italian bread slices)
Vegetable oil

1. Trim away the bread crust, put the milk and bread in a small saucepan and turn on the heat to low.  When the bread has soaked up all the milk, mash it to a pulp with a fork.  Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.

2. Into a bowl put the chopped meat, onion, parsley, the egg, the tablespoon of olive oil, the grated Parmesan, a tiny grating of nutmeg - about 1/8 teaspoon - the bread and milk mush, salt, and several grindings of black pepper.  Gently knead the mixture with your hands without squeezing it.  When all the ingredients are evenly combined, shape it gently and without squeezing into balls about 1 inch in diameter.  Roll the balls lightly in the bread crumbs.

3. Choose a saute pan that can subsequently accommodate all the meatballs in a single layer.  (or cook them in two batches) Pour in enough vegetable oil to come 1/4 inch up the sides.  Turn on the heat to medium high and when the oil is hot, slip in the meatballs.  Sliding them in with a spatula will avoid splashing hot oil out of the pan.  Brown the meatballs on all sides, turning them carefully so they won't break up.

This is a partial recipe of Marcella Hazan's Meatballs and Tomatoes recipe.  I just preferred to use Muir Glen Organic Pasta Sauce in place of cooking plain tomatoes.

Southern-Style Deep Fried Chicken

Happy Election Day !!!

When you have a food blog, and the food you take pictures of is other people's dinner, sometimes if you're not quick enough, those people start chewing on your subject matter. 

I was darn lucky to grab this lone chicken leg left on the serving plate in time to get a shot for this post.

Or else I'd be describing a fried chicken leg.

I can't believe I'm posting a recipe for fried chicken.  It's not like I've been successful.  I don't even fix fried chicken for dinner.  I think the last time was in the 90's sometime.  And that is obvious by the grease splatters on my novice hands and arms.  However it did give me the opportunity to discuss my war wounds at the office.  "Look at my burn I got from making fried chicken!" I bragged as they looked at me with a worried smile.  I can't help it. My personality profile explains that I "become enthralled by flora and fawna" or something to that effect.

Well, blah blah blah, let's get on with the point of my post.  This is the best fried chicken I've ever cooked.  Which isn't saying much.  So in addition I will say it may be the best I've ever eaten.

I've heard that soaking chicken in buttermilk was the answer, in the past, but that didn't work great for me.  However I had never heard of nor tried this method ...

... cooking the chicken in boiling milk.

Hmmmm.

Then when it's time to fry it, you are only crisping it up rather than worrying about it cooking all the way through. You put flour and a touch of cayenne pepper in a bag, coat the chicken, roll the pieces in egg, coat a second time and fry.

I got this recipe from Nigella Lawson on the Food Network website.  I've been reading through her most recent cookbook, Nigella Kitchen, and she does have a bit of a spin on the usual recipes.  So I was anxious to try this new method out.

(Now watch me start seeing this same method popping up everywhere suddenly.  Making me feel like I've been living in the back woods for decades. Hate it when that happens.)

Needless to say, it worked brilliantly.  Used chicken legs and thighs.  I guess the milk makes it tender.  I could get my science book out and try to explain why the milk makes it tender, like some people do on their blogs, or I could school you on the origins of cooking meat in milk.  Or the history of the chicken.  Or maybe the first person to eat one?  Or I could just be truthful and say I don't know, and I don't care and if you care that much, I'm not sure I like you anymore. 

Southern-Style Deep Fried Chicken
Compliments of JennaDish

from Nigella Lawson, Food Network

2 chicken drumsticks, skin on
2 chicken thighs, skin on, bone in
3 to 4 cups milk
2 1/4 cups solid vegetable shortening, for frying
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 egg, beaten

In a medium pan, place chicken and cover with milk. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours to overnight. This helps tenderize the meat, but is optional

In a large saucepan over a medium-high heat, using tongs, transfer chicken into pot, then pour in the milk. Bring milk to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low allowing to simmer until the chicken is cooked through entirely, about 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the milk, and place on a rack to cool. Allow them to sit until warm about 15 minutes, and then pat dry using a kitchen towel.

Heat vegetable shortening in a Dutch oven over high heat just until it's nearly at the smoking point around 325 degrees F.

In a large zip-lock bag, add salt, flour, cayenne pepper, shake to combine.

In a medium bowl, beat 1 egg.

Place each piece of chicken, 1 at a time, in the bag and shake to coat the chicken. Then dip chicken into the egg to coat. Place the chicken back into the flour to coat for a second time. Repeat this method on remaining 3 pieces of chicken.

Gently drop each piece of chicken into hot oil, allowing the skin to crisp and turn golden brown in color, about 1 minute per side. Remove from the oil and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Serve immediately.

Baked Pork Chops with Swiss Chard

Dear Jillian

All the freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese on these chops was supposed to have gone in the risotto I was going to make as a side dish.  But you were asking me questions about what to put on your resume, which requires thinking about things like, when did you paint the mural in Obryonville? 2008? 2009?  When did you join the National Honor Society?  What would you call your role in the Arts Ensemble at school? An apprenticeship? Aaaahhhh!

I'm not experienced enough to read a recipe and stir risotto and build a resume all at one time.

So the cheese went in the chops and we had frozen corn as a side ...with a little saffron melted in a bit of chicken broth.  It made the corn pretty special, actually.  But I didn't take a picture of the corn. Because that would be lame.

Love Mom

*******

Dear Alyssa

You are so lucky!  You just found out your first official month-long project with Americorp will be rebuilding and repairing parts of the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado.  

You also get to volunteer at the Humane Society, a horse rescue, the Ronald McDonald House, and do a "Night at the Museum."   I'm sorry you missed out on the chain saw sign-up.  Maybe that's for the best.  You never know what you were saved from (like going home with 9 toes and 1 knee cap).

Love Mom

Now about the food.  These chops were delicious.  Bought them from Avril Bleh's Meat Shop downtown.  1" thick.  Juicy, tender.  Next time I will add more swiss chard and will make sure I have the fontina cheese on hand as the recipe calls for.  But the Parm-Regg was super.

Baked Pork Chops with Swiss Chard
Compliments of JennaDish

from Food & Wine's Quick from Scratch Italian

1 pound Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves washed and cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Fresh-ground black pepper
4 pork chops, about 1 inch thick (about 2 pounds in all)
1 1/2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
2 ounces grated fontina (about 1/2 cup)

Heat the oven to 450°. Oil a 7 1/2-by-11 1/2-inch baking dish. In a medium bowl, toss the Swiss chard with 1 tablespoon of the oil, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Put the chard in the baking dish.

Rub the pork chops with 1 tablespoon of the oil, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Put the pork chops on top of the Swiss chard. Drizzle the remaining tablespoon oil over the chard, around the pork chops. Sprinkle the Parmesan and fontina over the chard, around the chops. Bake until the chops are just done, about 18 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

NOTES Swiss Chard You can use either green or red Swiss chard for this dish. You'll want to rinse the leaves thoroughly before cooking, but don't dry them. The moisture will help keep the chard from drying out during cooking.

 

Happy Anniversary JennaDish!

 

This year of cooking has been fun... here's hoping year 2 is even better.

 

Grilled Margherita Pizza

Been dying to make our own grilled pizza.  But it's been very, very hot and humid so didn't want to make it totally from scratch.  So Alyssa bought a ball of whole wheat pizza dough at Whole Foods and we used jarred sauce.  Other than that it's fresh.

Used our own basil...

Alyssa rolled out the dough about 1/4" thick...

Grilled it a few minutes on each side ...


Sorry - too much light but it was blazing hot and I was in a hurry.  Poke a small hole if it puffs up.

Add toppings and put back on grill on a lower heat, and allow cheese to melt.

Add basil just before eating.  Otherwise it will just wilt and look gross. 

Then as always...eat.

Glazed Roasted Salmon

The above photo is a rendition of Cook This Not That's Chili-Glazed Salmon.  I only had Asian Chili Garlic sauce which is much hotter than sweet chili sauce.  So I left out the very hot sriracha sauce.  Unless you like extremely spicy foods, the amount of chili sauce on the fish pictured is way too much unless you serve it with rice and mix it together, which is what I did.  Next time, if I used Chili Garlic sauce again, I'd just use about 1/3 less than what is called for in the recipe.  However if you use the proper ingredients, I'm sure it would be wonderful.

Chili-Glazed Salmon is 330 calories and $3.83 per serving compared to Applebee's Orange Glazed Salmon at 790 calories and $13.49.

The following are 4 different glaze options to go with the roasted salmon recipe.

Chili Glaze
1/4 cup Asian-style sweet chili sauce
2 Tblsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tblsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp sriracha or other spicy chili sauce
4 salmon fillets (4-6 oz ea)

Hoisin Glaze
2 Tbsp hoisin
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp orange juice
4 salmon fillets (4-6 oz ea)

Honey Dijon Glaze
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp honey
1/2 Tbsp chili powder
4 salmon fillets (4-6 oz ea)

Chipotle Lime Glaze
2 Tbsp softened butter
1 Tbsp canned chipotle pepper
juice of 1 lime
shaved Parmesan
4 salmon fillets (4-6 oz ea)

Preheat oven to 425^o.  Combine the sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, ginger, and sriracha in a mixing bowl.  Place the salmon fillets on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Use a brush or a spoon to lacquer the salmon with the glaze. 

Bake the salmon until the glaze has begun to lightly caramelize and the salmon flakes with gentle pressure, about 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish.

White Bean Chicken Andouille Chili

Aw dwee yuh.  Way too French.  I prefer New Orleans' Americanized pronunciation:

Ann Dewey.  Andouille.  Ann Dewey.  Andouille.

Exactly.

White Bean Chicken Andouille Chili
Compliments of JennaDish

1 Tblsp olive oil
1-2 yellow onions, chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
2 links chicken adouille sausage, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can (7 oz) roasted green chiles or 1/3 cup Fontova Tomatillo Salsa
4 cups chicken stock, low sodium preferred
1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans
salt and pepper to taste
Shredded cheese, diced onion, sour cream, fresh cilantro for serving

Hea tthe oil in a Dutch oven or similar pan over medium heat.  Add onion, cook 3 minutes, add garlic cook another 2 minutes.  Add chicken sausage and cook until almost done, about 5 minutes.  Add the stock, beans and chiles or salsa.  Simmer uncovered on low heat 20-30 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve with your favorite combination of accompaniments such as sour cream and cheese.

Crockpot Pork Barbecue

I could eat this delicious barbecue ALL. DAY. LONG.  Or as I commonly say about really great tasting stuff:  "I could take a bath in it." 

I know.  That doesn't really make sense.  But neither does "Deader than a doornail."

Let's do this.

If you live in Cincinnati, head on down (or over) to Findlay Market to Kroeger & Sons Meats and get a pretty pink pork butt when it's on sale for $2.29/pound.  You'll need about 4 pounds. 

Salt and pepper your butt and place in a crockpot on a bed of a sliced yellow onion and 4 peeled whole garlic cloves.  Turn on high and cook for 4 hours. 

Remove meat and discard onions and garlic.  Shred meat and return to crockpot.  Stir in a full bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce.  Our favorite is Montgomery Inn Barbecue Sauce.  Cook on low for 5-7 hours, stirring 1-2 times. 

That's it.  Oh.  You can freeze this in portions for later.  Let cool completely first, then refrigerate, then freeze. 

Crockpot Pork Barbecue
Compliments of JennaDish

4-5 pounds pork butt
4 whole cloves garlic, peeled
2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp pepper
1 medium to large yellow onion
1 bottle (about 28 oz) barbecue sauce

Cut onions in thick slices and lay on bottom of crockpot with whole peeled garlic cloves.  Turn crockpot on high, salt and pepper your butt, place in crockpot and cook for 4 hours.  Remove meat and discard onions and garlic.  Shred meat and return to crockpot.  Stir in full bottle of barbecue sauce.  Cook on low for 5-7 hours, stirring once or twice.  Serve on buns with coleslaw.

Chicken Curry Hot Pot

My first Japanest Hot Pot.  East meets West.  This should be interesting.

I chose a recipe that I thought the fam would tolerate - Chicken Curry.  I did well.

And here it goes...

Cook chicken and onion...

add curry ...

add a brew of chicken broth, sake, soy sauce, and a smidge of sugar...

add potatoes, celery, carrots, negi (or Spring onions or leeks), cabbage, garlic and fresh ginger...

Cook until tender (and add some ramen in case you're concerned your teenager will snub her nose at all the veggies - at least I know she'll eat the noodles)...

dish it up in an authentic bowl from Japan brought to you as a gift by your teenage Japanese guest from last May (that's a very specific instruction, isn't it?)...

here it is without the broth to show off the chicken and such.

The verdict?  Everyone really liked it.  The picky sisters didn't pick anything out.  Will definitely make again. 

And the actual pot.  Love it.  Doesn't stick, keeps things hot, and cleans up very easily. 

Chicken Curry Hot Pot or Kare Nabe
Compliments of JennaDish

from Japanese Hot Pots by Tadashi Ono & Harris Salat

1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup sake
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts ( 1 to 1.5 pounds), cut into 1/4" thick slices
1 medium Spanish onion (about 3/4 pound), cut crosswide into 1/2" thick slices
1/4 cup curry powder
1/4 small head green cabbage (about 1/2 pound), cut into bite-size pieces
2 stalks celery (about 1/2 pound), sliced on an angle into 3" long pieces, 1/4 " thick
1 medium carrot (about 1/4 pound), peeled and sliced on an angle into 3" long pieces, 1/4" thick
1 medium Idaho potato (about 1/2 pound), peeled and cut into 1/4" thick slices
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
1 negi (Japanese onion) (or 2 spring onions)

Prepare the broth by combining the chicken stock, sake, soy sauce, and sugar in a bowl. Set aside.

Add the oil to a hot pot and place over medium heat.  When the oil is hot, add the chicken, stirring and cooking until the chicken turns golden, about 2 minutes.  Add the onion, stirring and cooking for 2 minutes.  Add the curry powder, stirring and cooking for 1 minute more to caramelize.  Add the reserved broth. 

Pile the remaining ingredients in the pot.  Cover and bring to a boil over high heat.  Decrease heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes.  Simmer until the veggies are cooked to your liking.

Transfer the hot pot to the dining table.  Serve in bowls.  Suggested side dish: Individual bowls of steamed rice.

 

Zucchini Carbonara

I've never made carbonara.  Not sure why - it's pretty simple and very tasty.

A carbonara is a pasta sauce made with eggs, bacon or ham, and cheese.

Got this from one of my favorite cookbooks:  Cook This Not That

This one costs $1.72 per serving, 370 calories, 8 g fat, 960 mg sodium.

Personal Note: All family members loved this.  That doesn't happen often.  About as often as Leap Day.

Zucchini Carbonara
Compliments of JennaDish

10-12 oz. spaghetti
6 strips bacon, cut into 1/2" pieces
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 large zucchini, sliced into thin ribbons
2 cloves garlic, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs
Pecorino or Parmesan for grating
1 handful chopped fresh parsley

Start boiling pasta to al dente.  While pasta cooks heat a large saute pan over medium heat.  Add the bacon and cook until crispy about 5 minutes.  Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels.  Discard all but a thin film of the fat from the pan.  Add the onion, zucchini, and garlic and cook for 5-7 minutes, until soft and lightly browned.  Stir back in the bacon and season with a bit of salt and plenty of coarse black pepper.

Drain the pasta, reserving a cup of the pasta water.  Add the pasta directly to the saute pan and toss coat. Stir in enough of the pasta water so that a thin layer of moisture clings to the noodles.  Remove from the heat and crack the two eggs directly into the pasta, using tongs or two forks to toss for even distribution.  Divide the pasta among four warm bowls or plates and top with grated cheese and parsley.

Best Turkey Burger Ever

Be patient.  The days are getting longer and the sun will be out longer for better dinner time photos very soon.  I'm also feeling apologetic about my cheap bun.  But excuses aside...

Last night Alyssa made the Best Turkey Burger I've ever had.  The secret is using top quality ground turkey.  Alyssa bought free range, "Kind to Animals" brand from Fresh Market, which isn't cheap.  $9 for 1.5 lbs.  But it's worth it to not have rubbery burgers.

I realize that it would be even kinder not to kill and eat the animals, but I'm still working on that.  I just need to be more convinced.  I reserved the book, "Eating Animals" that I'll be picking up soon from the library.  If I read something that motivates me, then so be it.

I will give credit to Allrecipes for the recipe, but truthfully, again, it's not so much the recipe but the quality of the main ingredient -turkey. 

Another tip:  use or make your own spicy or flavorful sauce.  I mixed olive oil mayonnaise with adobo sauce which was extremely tasty on this burger. 

Seasoned Turkey Burgers
Compliments of JennaDish

1 ½ lbs ground turkey (free range)
1 oz pkg dry onion soup mix
½ t pepper
1 ½ T soy sauce
big pinch garlic powder (optional - it’s already in soup mix)
1 egg lightly beaten

Mix, refrigerate 10 minutes, cook on medium low.  Be aware quality lean turkey, just like lean beef, is dry and cooking on high heat is not recommended.

Katie's Chili Spaghetti

UPDATE: Dr. Goldstein won the People's Choice Award (most money raised for the arts) with his Texas Chili.  He was laying down some serious chili smack talk at the hospital.  "Real chili doesn't have beans.  Real chili doesn't have spaghetti.  I'm the Texas Chili expert.  You need to buy special ingredients.  Blah Blah Blah"  What's your name again?  Bubba Goldstein?  I'm just sayin'.

(I'm kidding.  Everyone loves Dr. Goldstein and is happy he won.  'Cause we'd have to live with the consequences for an entire year.)

And Dr. Megan won the Best Tasting by a panel of judges.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

What?  No heart-shaped cookies?  No chocolate-dipped strawberries?  Why Chili?

Well, today is the 1st Annual Nephrology Chili Cookoff Fundraiser.  And this is my offering (not for judging, but for selling).

Growing up in Indiana, seeing spaghetti or macaroni in chili is common.  But evidently people from other states, you know, foreigners, get freaked out about it.  Get over it and try some.  It's good, and filling!

I had this chili when I was around 18 or so and asked the cook (Katie) for the recipe.  I think - no, I know - I love this because it's a little sweet.  Nothing fancy here...just hamburger, onions, spaghetti, packaged chili mix, tomato juice, spicy chili beans and a little sugar.  I was so tempted to put some of my homemade chili powder in it but resisted.

Side Note:  Bought a Martha Stewart Dutch Oven over the weekend regular price $109 paid $44 at Macy's.  Some of the display pieces had chips so I'm guessing people don't like that.  Hence the sale.


Love it already.

Side Note: don't use anywhere near a whole package of spaghetti - you will be pulling it out of your ears.

Katie's Chili
Compliments of JennaDish

This dish will also do well in the crockpot.  After cooking ground beef and onions, cook all ingredients on low for for 3-4 hours. 

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
Medium onion, chopped
Large can tomato juice plus 1/2 the can of water
30 oz can Joan of Arc Spicy Chili Beans with liquid (or similar product)
1 1/2 pkgs McCormick Original Chili Seasoning Mix
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 package or little less of cooked spaghetti

Brown ground beef and onion, drain. Place in 5 quart Dutch Oven on medium heat.  Add all remaining ingredients except spaghetti and heat and stir until for about 20-30 minutes.  Meanwhile, cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Drain and add to chili and stir well.  Simmer another 10 minutes and serve.