Author: lupower

Clay Pot Chicken ~ Sunday Dinner

Comfort Food at its Best: Baked Chicken ~ pair it with Mashed Potatoes
This succulent, tender Clay Pot Baked Chicken has become our traditional Sunday dinner, at least during our [admittedly mild] California winter. The scent of the chicken and spices, in concert with the clay pot itself, gives the house a wonderful aroma. I usually make mashed potatoes and either green beans or carrots to complete the comfort food experience.

The clay pot method is one of my favorites, because the moistness is maintained during the baking, and the heat in the clay pot is retained while serving. This technique has a long history, stretching back at least to ancient Roman times. I’ve included a lot of basic information about clay pot cooking at the end of this post. My clay pot is a Romertopf. I’ve had it at least 20 years, and it looks well used (because it is!).I encourage you to give this method a shot!

Clay Pot Baked Chicken
adapted from recipetips.com

Container: clay pot
Prep Time: 15-20 minutes
Cook Time: 1.5 hours

3 to 4-pound whole chicken
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
2 to 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 cup parsley, stems removed
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary or thyme (optional)
1 tablespoon butter or grape seed oil
Salt and pepper
Optional: Wildtree Rotisserie Chicken Spice Blend

Soak top and bottom of clay pot in cold water for 10-20 minutes, or follow soaking directions provided with the clay pot.

Do not preheat oven.

Rinse chicken in cold water, pat dry with paper towel. Lightly oil outside of chicken and sprinkle salt & pepper inside cavity and on the outside skin. Place chicken breast side up in clay pot and fill cavity of chicken with onion, carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, fresh rosemary or thyme, and oil. Put excess in the bottom of clay pot. Add about 1 cup of white wine or chicken stock to the clay pot (I “measure” it by “glugs”: about 3 “glugs” of white wine).

Cover and put in a cold oven.

Turn oven to 400º F. Bake 90 minutes. Remove the top during the last 10 minutes of baking to brown. (Internal temp should be 180°.)

Remove from oven and place on hot pads or a towel. Do not put on a cold surface. Serve directly from clay pot as it retains heat well.

Clay Cooker Tips and Hints

• Clean the clay dust from a new cooker with hot water and a stiff brush.

• Invest in a good pair of asbestos kitchen gloves to handle removal of the hot pot from the oven.

• Be sure to use a thermometer to test for doneness, and remove the pot from the oven about 5 to 10 minutes before it reaches optimum doneness as it will continue to cook. You will want to let it rest about 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

• For leaner meals, trim off all excess fat or you will end up with a fatty sauce.

• If you need to add a little liquid, use broth or wine (the alcohol will cook out but will give the sauce a nice flavor).

• If you add liquid, do it sparingly. Remember that the food will also release its own juices. You don’t want the claypot to bubble over.

• You should not need to use oil in a clay cooker recipe, but if so, use restraint.

• You will find most claypot recipes use a lot of salt. This is intentional. You can try lessening the amount if you need to, but the process relies upon extra salt.

• A parchment paper lining is sometimes recommended when cooking a strong-flavored food or to avoid stains. The parchment paper helps to keep the juices from soaking into the porous clay.

• Arrowroot is recommended for thickening sauces and gravies.

• Never place a hot claypot on a cold or wet surface. It will surely crack. Use a hotpad or wooden cutting board.

• Do not use your clay cooker on top of the stove. It is not designed for direct-contact heating purposes.

• Although today’s models are dishwasher-safe, I advise against putting your claypot in the dishwasher. The surface is porous and will absorb soap.

Clay-pot Cooking

There are many different clay cooker recipes to try. The Chicken With 40 Cloves of Garlic recipe is the one that completely hooked me on a clay cooker. It may sound like a lot of garlic, but cooked this way, the garlic flavor is extremely mild and the garlic nuggets have a nutty flavor rather than sharp and pungent.

Once you become proficient in using your clay cooker, you will be able to convert many of your old recipes for use in the claypot. Think of your claypot as a sort of pressure cooker that goes into the oven. Poultry, meats and vegetables work particularly well, but you can also bake bread in your clay cooker.

Let me know what you think of this chicken if you make it!

Lisa

Tuna Tartare

Tuna Tartare, Tuna Poke, call it whatever you like. I call it DELICIOUS!
Tuna Tartare is probably my favorite hors d’oeuvre, and based on the comments from our friends, it’s one of theirs as well. I just got an email from my friend Patty LeDonne, asking for the recipe. This is so easy to make, and it’s ALWAYS a hit. Just plan to freeze the chunk of tuna for at least an hour ahead of time. It makes it so much easier to cut.

When Mike and I were on the 20/20 program at the Pro Club in Bellevue, we were very strict in what we ate. We limited our protein choices to lean protein, and we had so much tuna it’s surprising that we still love it. I have the recipe for the Seared Ahi with Sesame-Peppercorn Crust from John Howie (formerly head chef at Palisade in Seattle, now chef-owner of Seastar in Bellevue & Seattle). We make the seared tuna quite often at home, and every time we’re “up north” we make it a point to go to one of the afore-mentioned restaurants for that particular signature dish.

Closer to our CA home, we love the Ahi Tuna appetizer at Salt Creek Grille here in El Segundo. We highly recommend it!! If you’re looking for something to make at home, though, this is the one recipe that I recommend. I’ve tried others, and this is my favorite. I serve it at our annual holiday party, being mindful to mix up batches at the last minute so that the tuna won’t be discolored. Get the freshest sushi-grade ahi tuna that you can. I order mine from GROW (ask for Josh) ahead of time, and I request “no dark tuna”. This way I can get a large piece and cut it the way that I want it.

Enjoy this delicious tuna with a glass of Champagne on a special occasion, or just to celebrate LIFE!!

Tuna Tartare
Recipe courtesy of étoile, Domaine Chandon’s restaurant (Napa)
Makes 12 individual servings or 24 appetizers.

Preparation time: Allow 40 minutes.

Ingredients
:
2 lbs. sushi-grade tuna, finely chopped*

2 scallions, finely chopped

4 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro (leaves and stems)

2 tbsp. minced fresh ginger

4 tsp. garlic-chili sauce (such as Sriracha)

2 tbsp. ponzu sauce (optional)

4 tsp. sesame oil

2 tbsp. soy sauce

Chopped fresh cilantro and plain, unsalted Japanese rice crackers 
for garnish

Instructions:
In a medium bowl, combine scallion, cilantro, ginger, garlic-chili sauce, ponzu, sesame oil and soy sauce. Chill 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut partially-frozen tuna into small cubes, and keep chilled until ready to serve.

To serve, combine sauce with tuna and place in chilled martini glasses. Garnish each serving with cilantro and place 2 rice crackers into the tuna at an angle. Or scoop 1 tablespoon mixture onto each of 12 spoons and arrange in a circle (handles pointing out) on a serving plate; garnish with cilantro.

*Chopping fresh tuna finely by hand is easier if you place it in the freezer for about an hour beforehand.

Suggested wine pairing: Chandon Blanc de Noirs

Insidertip: DO NOT make this way ahead of time. Tuna will turn gray-ish (will taste great, but won’t look so hot). You CAN make the sauce mixture a day ahead, but cube the tuna closer to the serving time. If I’m putting this out for a party, I place a bowl of the tuna tartare into a larger bowl of ice to keep it well chilled, and surround the bowls with unsalted rice crackers.

BON APPÉTIT!!

Lisa

Scallop & Mushroom Bisque with Watercress

Kids fishing from the jetty at Barnegat Light, NJ
Seattle friends will be surprised to hear that I haven’t featured the ever-popular Beef Burgundy Soup at ANY of our Soup Parties since 2004. The California Soupers haven’t tasted the soup that was voted #1 favorite at our Woodinville events. And do you want to know why? It’s because I spend [literally] MONTHS making stocks, carefully choosing a good mix of soup variations to accommodate people who do and do not eat meat, poultry, seafood, dairy and vegetables. At the party, everybody would immediately dash to the Beef Burgundy Soup, which is a VERY rich and filling soup, and go back for seconds (or thirds!) and then wouldn’t have enough room to taste any of the other 11 types of soups that I’d spent ~ did I mention? ~ MONTHS making. I simply don’t want to deprive our guests of a sensational tasting experience. So now I switch up the menu to provide new samplings every year. And the Beef Burgundy never seems to make it to the list….. Believe me? Ha!!

The reason that I mention the Beef Burgundy Soup in a post about Scallop and Mushroom Bisque is to make the point that everyone seems to have their favorites, and they look forward to having those every year. My #1 favorite used to be the Scallop and Mushroom Bisque. It’s still ONE of my top favorites, and when my friend Deloris Gantner called and asked for the recipe, I figured that I’d feature it today. It’s also one of the soups that people consistently request. Chances are that I’ll remove it from the menu from time to time and risk a riot like the one that occurred in Woodinville in 2005 when I decided not to make the Beef Burgundy Soup.

I made this Bisque for the first Thanksgiving in my cute little carriage house in Summit NJ in 1996. The recipe is from a cookbook that I picked up in Cape May, a lovely beach community at the southernmost point of the Jersey Shore. It’s from The Washington Inn (“350 Favorite Recipes from Cape May’s Premier Restaurant”). If you’re going to make this, I recommend using the large sea scallops and cutting them into fourths. They are more tender than the smaller bay scallops. My Mom gets fresh scallops right off the scallop boats in Barnegat Light, where my parents have a beach house close to the marina in High Bar Harbor. They bought the house more than 30 years ago, and our family has made many happy memories there. And Jersey Scallops are the BEST!!

This soup is neither low-fat nor dairy-free, and I recommend using butter. It is simply delicious!

Scallop & Mushroom Bisque with Watercress
from The Washington Inn Cooks for Friends
Serves 8

11 tablespoons butter (separated: 3 + 8 T)
1 teaspoon garlic, chopped
3 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 pounds fresh scallops, muscle removed and cleaned well
½ cup onions, diced
½ cup flour
1 cup dry white wine (I use an un-oaked Chardonnay or a Sauvignon Blanc)
4 cups seafood stock or clam juice (see *note that follows)
1 cup heavy cream
salt & pepper for seasoning
1 cup fresh watercress, chopped

1. Over medium heat, sauté garlic, mushrooms and scallops in 3 tablespoons butter. Cook for 10 minutes. Strain out the scallops and mushrooms and set aside. Set the broth aside separately.

2. In the same pan, sauté the onions in the remaining 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add the flour and stir well. Cook for a few minutes until a nice paste forms. It’s really thick at first, but be patient and the roux will get to the right texture.

3. To the roux, add the white wine, reserved strained broth, and seafood stock or clam juice. Whisk mixture until it is thick and smooth. Let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

4. Strain the thickened broth. Insidertip: If making ahead, store the broth covered in the refrigerator, and the cooked scallops and mushrooms in a separate container. Before continuing, reheat the broth to simmering before continuing.

5. Add the scallops and mushrooms back into the thickened broth. Add the heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper.

6. Add watercress, and serve.

* Note * Seafood Stock and a substitute:
To make your own seafood stock, in a large stock pot bring 3 Tablespoons oil (I recommend grape see oil), 4 cups rinsed and drained seafood shells (shrimp shells are fine), 3 onions, 3 carrots, 3 celery stalks, all chopped and 8 cups cold water to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes. Strain, pressing the shells to extract any remaining liquid. Let the stock cool, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Substitute for Homemade stock:
For this recipe, you can use bottled clam juice as a substitute for seafood stock. To enhance the flavor, cut in half with water, add some dry white wine or dry vermouth, then simmer with chopped onion and a bay leaf for a few minutes. Strain before using.

Insidertip: I recommend serving a California Chardonnay with this soup.

Enjoy the accolades that you are guaranteed to get when you serve this soup!!

Lisa

Chilled Cucumber Soup with Smoked Salmon & Dill

Perfect for Mother's Day
It seems that I’m on a chilled soup kick lately. I’m not sure why ~ it’s still in the high 60’s, low 70’s here at the beach. Maybe it’s because I’m still a little burnt out from the whole Soup Party prep and execution. This year’s event took the spit out of me for some reason!

I love this cold cucumber soup; it requires some cooking, but it’s really easy to prepare, and it’s delicious. I top it with a dollop of crème fraîche and flaked smoked salmon. It would be a great soup to make for Mother’s Day!

I happen to have some homemade chicken stock in the freezer, so I’ll use that. You could use “doctored up” canned broth (see Mushroom Soup recipe from a few weeks ago). If you’re going dairy-free, I suggest using the butter-flavored grape seed oil, and then use the smoked salmon without the crème fraîche.
Be sure to allow enough time for this soup to cool (I suggest overnight).

Chilled Cucumber Soup with Smoked Salmon & Dill

1 ½ tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onions
4 cucumbers, peeled, halved, seeded and cut crosswise into ½-inch-thick slices (about 5 cups)
1 8-ounce russet potato, peeled, cut into ½-inch dice
3 ½ cups low-salt chicken broth
3 large fresh dill sprigs plus 6 tablespoons minced fresh dill
1 teaspoon (or more) salt
1 cup crème fraîche or sour cream
3 ounces smoked salmon, flaked or cut into ½-inch pieces

Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until slightly softened, about 7 minutes. Add cucumbers and potato; stir 5 minutes. Add broth, dill sprigs, and 1 teaspoon salt. Increase heat and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until cucumbers and potato are tender, stirring occasionally, about 20-25 minutes. Working in batches, puree soup in processor until smooth. Return to pot. Cool 15 minutes. Whisk in ½ cup crème fraîche and 4 Tablespoons minced dill. Cover and chill until cold, about 4 hours. (Can be made 1-2 days ahead. Keep chilled.) Taste soup, adding more salt if desired. Ladle soup into bowls. Place dollop of crème fraîche in center of each bowl; sprinkle with smoked salmon and remaining minced dill.

Makes 6 servings
from Bon Appétit
August 2003

I’ll be away for the week-end, but I’ve gotten a few requests for clay pot roasted and grilled chicken recipes that I’ll have for you next week! Happy Cooking!

Lisa

Brazilian Fish Chowder

Growing up Catholic, we ate the craziest things for dinner on no-meat Fridays. Campbell’s Tomato Soup and either grilled cheese or scrambled eggs (my Dad used to put the eggs INTO his soup), Pancakes (mmm…. Breakfast for dinner!), Potato Pancakes (my Mom’s favorite: she’d smother them with butter and sour cream ~ so healthy!), Mrs. Paul’s Codfish cakes, topped with non-diluted tomato soup (Campbell’s), Tuna Casserole, Mac & Cheese. And my number 1 favorite: pizza.

Now that I’m all grown up and my palate has changed, the fish is spice-rubbed, plank-grilled salmon, the pasta is Puttanesca or Angel hair with shrimp, scallops, sundried tomatoes and snow peas, the eggs are crab and mushroom frittata or strata, and the tomato soup alternative is a tomato-based chowder. Pizza as always is still my number 1 favorite!

This Fish Chowder is a delicious option for a fish-based meal. I made it for my friends in NJ who kept Kosher, and it quickly became a huge Soup Party hit with all of my guests regardless of religious restrictions. It’s equally good reheated, but the fish falls apart. Tastes great but not quite as attractive the next day.

Brazilian Fish Chowder
from “Amy Vanderbilt’s Complete Cookbook” (1961)
6 or more servings

¼ cup minced onion
3 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed
2 Tbls. finely chopped green pepper
¼ cup flour
2 cups water
4 cups canned tomatoes, puréed
1 Tbls. tomato paste
2-3 tsp. salt, or to taste
¼ tsp. cayenne or chili powder
½ tsp. Beau Monde seasoning (or Old Bay Seasoning)
2 Tbls. olive oil
1 cup white wine
2 lbs. fillets whitefish, cleaned & cubed
1 lb. cod or haddock, cleaned & cubed
3 Tbls. finely cut parsley

Cook onion, garlic and green pepper in oil in heavy 3-quart pot or Dutch oven until onions are golden. Sprinkle with flour. Stir and cook 2-3 minutes. Whisk in water, tomatoes and paste, seasonings and wine. Whisk and bring to boiling point. Add fish. Lower heat and let simmer 1 hour until fish is done but still firm. Adjust seasonings. Serve in warmed chowder bowls, topped with parsley.

Garlic French bread goes well with this chowder.

Cook’s Notes: If you multiply the recipe, be careful of the salt and spices. Add a little at a time to ensure that the soup doesn’t get over-seasoned. I typically use sea bass and black cod, but you can ask for suggestions at the fish market or seafood counter at the supermarket. Also ask them to skin the fish for you – you’ll be happy that they did! They may also be willing to cube the fish for you: SO WORTH IT! And be sure to remove all of the bones; cut around them if needed.

You can find Old Bay Seasoning in any grocery store on the east coast; not quite as easy here in CA, but I did see it in Bristol Farms.

I don’t have any pictures of this chowder, but when I make it the next time I’ll be sure to take some and add them to this post!

Enjoy!

Lisa

My Favorite Cookbooks & Foodie Websites

This was where I kept my cookbooks 20 years ago

My Mom reads cookbooks and food magazines like most people read novels. I have to admit that I drop everything when my bi-monthly Cooks Illustrated arrives in the mail. And my favorite emails are the recipes that come via America’s Test Kitchen (associated with Cooks Illustrated). I have hundreds of cookbooks, and I subscribe to 7 cooking magazines. I save Williams-Sonoma catalogs because they include delicious recipes. And if you want to get Mr. B’s blood boiling, ask him about my recipe box…. it’s a rather large-sized Longaberger Basket that comfortably fits a layer cake, and it’s overflowing with recipes. I have a filing “plan” in mind; I just haven’t had time to execute the plan yet. (I’m too busy trying to find recipes in that pile!!)

Planning for each Soup Party begins immediately after I’ve recovered from the most recent event. That usually takes at least a month. Two years ago my Mom “informed” me that we were going to make Manhattan Clam Chowder, an anathema to chowder afficionados who believe that the only authentic chowder has to be dairy-based (i.e. New England Clam Chowdah). That began a search for the ultimate clam chowder recipe. I ended up using a variation of my Mom’s own recipe, which she based on the Cooks Illustrated Cookbook version.

Shortly after the Soup Party LAST year, Mike and 2 of his colleagues were in Budapest for a meeting. They tasted a Hungarian Goulash Soup on the first day, and loved it so much that they went back THREE TIMES to the same restaurant to have that soup!! The call came from Mike, saying, “we have a request for next year’s soup party”. That started what would be a hilarious journey down the Hungarian Goulash path.

I have a knack for judging recipes and how the end result will taste. I’ve had two “oops”s in my cooking career, and one wasn’t my fault (who keeps a container of salt that looks like sugar in their pantry?? I promise to share that story in a post someday). I try at least 2 new soup recipes at every Soup Party. This year the new ones were the Hungarian Goulash Soup, the Manhattan Clam Chowder, and a White Chicken Chili Soup. To be completely factual, I did make a test batch of the Goulash to ask the requestors if my version came close to what they tasted in Budapest. I made modifications based on their feedback. 30 years in Information Technology made me a fan of “proofs of concept”.

My favorite cookbooks are:
“The New Best Recipe” Cookbook (that’s its actual name) via Cooks Illustrated
Silver Palate Cookbook, by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins
Secrets From A Caterer’s Kitchen The Indispensable Guide For Planning A Party by Nicole Aloni

This is the book shelf that we had built for the "rest" of the cookbooks!

I also picked up a soup cookbook that is turning out to be invaluable. It’s by Clifford A. Wright, called “the best soups in the world”.

My favorite web sites are www.cooksillustrated.com and www.epicurious.com.

My favorite cooking magazine is, hands-down: Cooks Illustrated

I use many other cookbooks, and I usually try a few recipes from the magazines each month. If you’re looking for recipe advice, please ask me. I’ll try to point you to a few options that will work for you.

Thanks for your interest! And keep those comments coming!!

Lisa

Spanish Gazpacho, a Harmonious Orchestra of Flavors

Gazpacho: Salad in a Soup!
Gazpacho soup can be found everywhere in Spain. Mike and I were lucky enough to spend a whole month there in 2003, and we had some pretty fabulous Gazpacho. This is one of those soups that people argue about incessantly, based on how their mother or grandmother made it. Puree it or hand-chop? Spicy or “au natural”? With or without bread? But one thing that all variations have in common: it MUST be ice cold.

The home of the famous cold vegetable soup known as Gazpacho is Spain’s southern region of Andalusia; it is Andalusia’s best-known dish. It probably originated during the Middle Ages, when Spain was part of the Islamic world. Gazpacho is sometimes thought of as a liquid salad; indeed, it is served as a first course and is traditionally made with ripe tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, garlic and bread moistened with water that is blended with olive oil, vinegar, and ice water and served cold. I have eliminated the bread from my recipe to make it gluten-free.

If you’re ever going to visit Spain, I’d recommend one book that will take you to tucked-away places and give you the “flavor” of the many regions of this warm and welcoming country. It is Penelope Casas’ Discovering Spain. Penelope is a chef and cookbook author who married a Spaniard. I have a ton of notes in the book, and every time I page through it I long to go back.

Many of you know that my paternal grandmother was born in Spain, and I happily and proudly embrace my Spanish Basque roots. Mike and I visited the town where Bernardina Arano [Power] was born, a tiny village called Berriatua. I still have family there: passionate, energetic, hard-working and loving people who welcomed us with open arms. We started in Barcelona, made our way via Sos del Rey Católico to Hondarribia and San Sebastian (“Donostia” in Basque) on the coast, traveled to see my family, then drove to the northwest corner of the country to Santiago de Compostela, seeing Leon and Santillana del Mar along the way. After spending 2 week-ends with my family, we started down the center of the country toward Madrid, stopping in Segovia which has to be one of my favorite places. We took side trips to Avila and Salamanca before our last stop in Madrid. Our only foray to southern Spain was on the high speed train to Sevilla where it poured incessantly. But we did have some wonderful food there! Now you understand why we had to go on a weight-loss program!! Holy cow! But boy did we have fun!

This is my recipe, created by trial and error over the course of several summers in New Jersey. When the Jersey Tomatoes (the BEST in the world, trust me!) are ripe, it’s time to make the Gazpacho. One time when Mike and I hosted a BBQ at our house in Woodinville, WA for our AT&T Wireless colleagues, I had a bushel of Jersey tomatoes shipped out from Jersey, and I made homemade gazpacho, and I served sliced tomatoes with fresh basil and fresh mozzarella, topped with Balsamic Vinegar and a high quality Olive Oil.

You can top the Gazpacho with any number of garnishes, but I’d limit it to no more than 4 or 5. I serve croutons on the side. I’ve also served this with grilled shrimp, chopped green or black olives, toasted pine nuts, or finely chopped hard boiled egg. My version includes avocados, which are plentiful here in California. I’ve eliminated the olive oil, but adding about 1/4 cup will give the soup a little heft (plus it’s so healthy for you!).

Mama Luisa’s Gazpacho

4 to 6 cups V-8
1 Tbls. Worcestershire Sauce
¼ cup lemon juice

3-4 cucumbers (preferably English), peeled and seeded
1 large red bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 cups celery (6 stalks), diced
6 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
½ cup scallions, thinly sliced
1 jalapeño or Serrano chile, finely diced
**I recommend wearing rubber gloves to protect your hands from the chile!
½ cup red wine vinegar

4 avocados, cut into chunks
Sun-dried tomato / Basil croutons

Combine V-8, Worcestershire Sauce and Lemon Juice. Chop all vegetables except for avocado, and add to V-8 mixture. Chill overnight, then season with salt & pepper. Slice avocados, and cut into chunks. Add to Gazpacho at the end. Add some ice cubes to make sure that it’s REALLY COLD. Serve in bowls, and top with a few croutons. (You might want to top each bowl with avocado instead of mixing it in.) Put some Tabasco Sauce out for people who like it spicier.

Insidertips:
In the winter, I’ve used 1 can of good-quality tomatoes, blended and strained, in place of the fresh tomatoes. If you can’t get decent-tasting fresh tomatoes, don’t use fresh; canned is a better choice.

This takes about 2 hours (with Mike’s help) to chop, PLUS chilling time. This tastes even better chilled overnight. (Add avocado at the end.) Add more Worcestershire, or even a little Tabasco sauce if you want it a little spicier.

¡Buen Provecho!

Lisa
(Mama Luisa)

Lemon Bread for Easter or Mother’s Day

Spring in the Pacific Northwest: Primroses in bloom, Camano Island, WA
Easter is TODAY, and Mother’s Day is in TWO weeks. Whether you’re planning an Easter or Mother’s Day Brunch or a traditional dinner, the Lemon Bread that follows is a light ending to a great meal.

I learned how to bake at the elbow of my Grandma Kanzler, usually standing on a chair in her kitchen in Linden, NJ. You’ll see throughout this blog how influential she and my mother were in cultivating the passion that I have for all things food. Grandma told me a story about one of my early baking experiences. She was making pie crust for some holiday celebration; I’m guessing it was Thanksgiving. She gave me the scraps of dough, which my sisters and I loved to roll in melted butter and cinnamon and sugar, and then bake. We thought these made delicious cookies. But in this particular case, I went to the baking drawer where she kept all sorts of goodies, and I took out some coffee grinds. She asked me what I was doing, and I told her I was making a coffee cake!

Just writing about my Grandma’s kitchen brings back such powerful memories and emotions. I can actually recall the smell of that baking drawer, and see the counter where she kept a cookie jar filled with cookies, usually chocolate chip. But I digress….

I still love to bake, but I don’t do it nearly enough these days. I’ve learned that people like to contribute in some way to parties and holiday celebrations, and it’s easiest to ask them to bring some type of dessert. It wasn’t easy for me to give up the “control” of even that one portion of the menu, and it still makes me twitch a little, but I’m always grateful that I don’t have to worry about baking when I’m in the throes of sautéing, blending, simmering or roasting the main courses.

I mentioned in my FIRST blog entry that my friend Karen brought a delicious Lemon Bread to one of my soup parties in Summit, NJ. Debbie D’Aquino, who is a great friend here in CA, asked me to share the recipe. As I was going through my old recipe box, I came across so many hand-written recipes, some in my Grandma’s handwriting, others from when my son was little. The ink is faded, and in some cases I’ve had to add more detail to make the recipes more clear. But the memories, oh the memories…. Sweet.

I hope that you enjoy this Lemon Bread. It doesn’t take very long to make from scratch, and the time spent is well worth it!

Lemon Bread
courtesy of Karen Terlizzi

6 Tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
½ cup milk
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
pinch salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 lemon
1/3 cup sugar for glaze

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease loaf pan.

Sift Cream together flour, salt and baking powder. Grate rind of one lemon; set aside. Squeeze juice; set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time and beat well. Add milk alternately with sifted dry ingredients. Add grated lemon rind.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes. Cool 5-10 minutes in pan.

Mix together juice of 1 lemon and 1/3 cup sugar, and pour over bread. Let stand ½ hour then remove from pan. Cut into thin slices.

Happy Easter! And Bon Appètit!

Lisa

What’s up, Doc? Carrot & Orange Soup for Easter

Need a quick first-course soup for Easter? Here’s one that I LOVE! My friend Claudia Rowe Copus and I used to make this often when we lived a mile from each other in Summit, NJ. I always recommend using homemade chicken stock. If you don’t have the time, use the “doctored up” version in the post “Mushroom Soup: The No-Dairy Dilemma” from a few days ago.

It’s best with fresh-squeezed orange juice, but in a pinch you can use OJ from the grocery store. (This is also yummy with vegetable broth for the vegetarians in the crowd!)

Make sure to leave some extra carrots out for the Easter Bunny!!

These are pictures from Soup Party preparations. I use a LOT of carrots!! And I always have plenty of carrot sticks on hand to munch on with hummus while I’m cooking.

Carrot and Orange Soup
6 Servings

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter (OR Butter-flavored Grape Seed Oil for a dairy-free version)
2 cups finely chopped yellow onions
12 large carrots (1½ lbs.), peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
I cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
grated fresh orange zest, to taste

1. Melt butter or oil in a pot. Add the onions, cover, and cook over low heat until tender and lightly colored, about 25 minutes.

2. Add carrots and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes.

3. Pour the soup through a strainer, and transfer solids to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, or use a food mill fitted with a medium disc. Add 1 cup of the cooking stock and process until smooth.

4. Return purée to the pot and add the orange juice and stock. Stir to blend.

5. Season to taste with salt and pepper; add orange zest. Simmer until heated through. Serve immediately.

from Silver Palate Cookbook

Happy Easter! And Happy Birthday to some of my favorite people on EARTH: My sister Maureen (tomorrow), my niece Stacey (Sunday), and my baby boy (HA!), Michael, who turns 36 on Easter Sunday! Love you all!

Lisa

Chicken Stock, Grandma’s Cure-All?

June 2002 at Barnegat Light, NJ
Grandma Kanzler, my Mom, and my Sisters, June 2002
Chicken Soup. Think about that for a moment. Chicken Soup…. What comes to mind?

I have a little story to share. I work out at the Beach Cities Health District in Redondo Beach 3 times a week with a personal trainer, Brandon. (Some of you may know him…. More later….. back to thinking about Chicken Soup!) Anyway, the building also houses a Senior Living facility, so some of the people who work out in the gym make me feel youthful (yay!). It seems that every Monday must be Chicken Soup Day at this facility. My guess is that Sunday is Roast Chicken Day, and the cooking staff has their Monday soup routine. The smell reminds me of the “Old Folks Home” in NJ where we (as Girl Scouts) used to go at Christmastime to sing Christmas caroles. It always smelled like chicken! The people in the home were always so happy to see us. I remember their smiles and their hands. And the smell of chicken soup. I have to tell you, chicken soup smells a LOT better when you’re making it at home.

In American Jewish tradition, chicken soup is sometimes called the Jewish penicillin in recognition of the fact that it acts as a mother’s cure-all for everything from nasal congestion to broken hearts. (It’s TRUE!! And I’m not even Jewish!!)

Chicken Soup seems to be the “go-to” soup when we’re feeling under the weather, or in the cold dark days of winter. It’s one of the comfort foods that (besides the afore-mentioned Home) evokes (for me) happy days spent with my Grandma in her kitchen. Grandma Kanzler made the best chicken soup in my opinion. My Mom has said that she used chicken feet to make the thick gelatin-like stock. My Grandma always told us to “get the good of it” when making any food. Every time you roast a chicken, save everything that you’d typically throw out: the fat that you drain off to make the gravy, the bones, the giblets that you remove from the cavity before roasting. Add a cup of water to the roasting pan and bring to a boil to get any drippings left in there. Throw the carcass, the fat, and everything else that you can save, into a stock pot with some chopped up vegetables and 3-4 quarts of water, and simmer it for a few hours. Voila! Soup!

If your life is too crazy to roast a chicken, maybe you opt for a pre-roasted bird from the grocery store. In that case, you have the juices in the bottom of the plastic container and the carcass. Great! Use every bit and add 2 to 3 quarts of water and some veggies, and simmer for 2 hours. “Get the good of it.”

Making homemade soup is economical. You can stretch your food budget so much further when you pay for one meal and end up with two (or three). In these days of economic turmoil, soup is not only comforting, it’s a budget buster!

A good homemade chicken stock is the base for an infinite number of delicious soups. Occasionally I substitute a homemade vegetable broth for the Soup Party if the other ingredients do not include poultry or any other kind of meat. But using a flavorful chicken stock is the key for [almost] fool-proof soups that will make your family and guests come back for more.

I use Chicken Stock as the base for Potato Cheddar Soup, Scallop & Mushroom Bisque, Chorizo & Black Bean Soup, Cold Cucumber Soup with Crème Fraîche with Smoked Salmon, White Chicken Chili Soup, Pumpkin Bisque, Thai Chicken Coconut Soup, and so many others. Here’s one of the recipes that I use:

Chicken Stock

I prefer a rich chicken broth, so I roast the chicken and the vegetables. You can skip this step and place ALL of the ingredients into a large stock pot; bring to a boil over very high heat, and then reduce to a simmer. If you can get chicken feet from the meat department or your butcher, by all means use them as well.

8 lbs. meaty chicken bones (necks, backs, wings, etc.) and/or chicken parts
¼ cup olive or unflavored grape seed oil (skip if not roasting chicken)
2 large yellow onions, peeled and cut into eighths
2 leeks, white part only, well cleaned and sliced
2 cups chopped carrots (no need to peel)
3-4 celery stalks with leaves, sliced

Bouquet Garni* (see below) consisting of:
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh sage
12 black peppercorns
6 parsley sprigs

2 cups dry white wine
5 quarts COLD water
Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400º.

2. Pour olive oil into a large heavy roasting pan; place into oven until oil is hot (about 10 minutes). Pat chicken parts dry. Roast for 1½ hours, or until chicken is golden brown. Turn pieces occasionally.

3. When chicken is golden brown, add the onions, leeks, carrots and celery to the roasting pan. Lower heat to 350º and continue roasting until vegetables start to brown, about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Place chicken parts and vegetables into a large stock pot, along with the remaining ingredients.

5. Pour 1 cup water into the pan in which the chicken part were browned and set over high heat. Stir and scrape up any caramelized particles from the bottom and sides. Pour liquid into the pot. Add additional water to cover ingredients well, and set pot over medium heat. When the stock reaches a boil, skim, reduce heat so liquid simmers, partially cover, and simmer for 3-4 hours. Skim occasionally.

6. Pour the broth through a colander or large strainer and discard all of the bones, vegetables and Bouquet Garni. Pour the broth through a cheesecloth-lined strainer into a clean pot or bowl. Season to taste with salt & pepper, and chill, uncovered in the refrigerator overnight. Remove congealed fat by scraping it off with a spoon. If not using immediately, transfer into plastic containers or Zip-Loc bags and refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 6 months.

Makes 3 to 4 quarts

*A Bouquet Garni s a little bouquet of dried and fresh herbs (and sometimes spices) tied around the top with a long kitchen string or placed in a small cheesecloth bag so that when cooking is completed it is easily lifted out of the pot. For stock, the benefit of using this Bouquet Garni is that when skimming the foam that rises to the top, you won’t also skim the flavorful herbs and spices that infuse the stock as it simmers.

And if you’re curious about Mike’s and my personal trainer mentioned above, go ahead and Google Brandon Volz. He’s a great trainer; I highly recommend him! I’ll feature Brandon and another favorite trainer, Mandy Rhodes, in future posts.

In the meantime, stay healthy! Eat SOUP!

Lisa