1/2 c white or red wine
4 c chicken or beef stock
salt, pepper, 1 T italian seasonings, 3-5 cloves garlic
olive oil, butter
block parmesean cheese - about 1 cup shredded
1 box Trader Joe's risotto arborio rice
1 onion
1 small can tomato paste
Bring 4 c stock to a boil, or microwave bullion cube in pyrex measuring cup. Fry 2 italian sausages, cut into pieces and set aside. Drain the excess pork fat, but leave the little brown sausage bits. In olive oil or butter, sautee some onions till just transparent. Optional: Keep on medium heat and add a whole package of risotto/arborio rice; add a bit of olive oil if needed to coat the grains just till they glisten. Stir frequently during 2-3 minutes, do not brown the rice. Pour in 1/2 c of wine (normally I use white, but since we're adding tomato paste, you can go red) stir vigorously; you'll see the risotto sauce start to thicken & get creamy. Turn down the heat to a simmer & add stock immediately, just enough to make some sauce. Keep adding stock when it looks thirsty. Add one small can of tomato paste, salt, pepper, 3 cloves of minced garlic (or more, yum!) & italian herbs: rosemary, thyme, oregano, throw in some parsley if you fancy. Simmer for about 30-40 mins, risotto is ready when al dente. While pouring the wine for dinner, turn off the heat, stir in 1/2 c or more of freshly grated parmesean cheese (off the block, don't cheat on this step) and a couple of T of butter (I use olive oil to reduce the cholesterol) and the italian sausage. You can also add a final 1/4 to 1/2 cup of stock, as risotto will thicken upon standing. Buen provecho!
A few hints:
Don't cover the risotto, or the sauce won't form correctly. Don't let the risotto dry out or simmer too fast, you'll get a stuck on mess at the bottom of the pan. A flat wooden spatula works pretty well to scrape the bottom often to avoid stick-age.
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Coq au Vin
My husband tells me I've done it well due to the nice ruddy sauce
< 2 lbs rooster or chicken
1 bottle red wine
1/4 c cognac
dried mushrooms, like porcini
boquet garni, salt, pepper
chicken stock
butter & flour
In a cocotte, sear the chicken/rooster (less than 2lbs) on high heat, then brown for 5 minutes on each side, with lid on. To flambee with cognac, pour 1/4 cup in with the bird, stand back and light! Shake the pan till flames subside. Add one bottle of wine, add stock to completely cover the bird. Add salt, pepper, dried mushrooms, like porcinis, and boquet garnis (parsley, thyme, bay leaves), simmer for 45 mins. Remove the bird from the sauce, cut off the fillet, legs & wings, set somewhere warm. Reduce the sauce by 1/3 (?) by boiling vigorously, take off the heat. When no longer boiling, add the beurre maniere (3 T of flour + 3 T butter mixed to a paste), whisk vigorously and bring sauce to a boil. Serve with boiled potatoes and parsley.
Make browned onions in another pan when you start the bird. Peel small boiling onions, brown them in 1 T oil + 1 T butter. Roll continuously to brown all sides. Add stock or wine, or mix to cover them, plus boquet garni. Simmer till liquid evaporates. They turn out caramelized, sweet and oh so flavorful by soaking up all of that sauce.
< 2 lbs rooster or chicken
1 bottle red wine
1/4 c cognac
dried mushrooms, like porcini
boquet garni, salt, pepper
chicken stock
butter & flour
In a cocotte, sear the chicken/rooster (less than 2lbs) on high heat, then brown for 5 minutes on each side, with lid on. To flambee with cognac, pour 1/4 cup in with the bird, stand back and light! Shake the pan till flames subside. Add one bottle of wine, add stock to completely cover the bird. Add salt, pepper, dried mushrooms, like porcinis, and boquet garnis (parsley, thyme, bay leaves), simmer for 45 mins. Remove the bird from the sauce, cut off the fillet, legs & wings, set somewhere warm. Reduce the sauce by 1/3 (?) by boiling vigorously, take off the heat. When no longer boiling, add the beurre maniere (3 T of flour + 3 T butter mixed to a paste), whisk vigorously and bring sauce to a boil. Serve with boiled potatoes and parsley.
Make browned onions in another pan when you start the bird. Peel small boiling onions, brown them in 1 T oil + 1 T butter. Roll continuously to brown all sides. Add stock or wine, or mix to cover them, plus boquet garni. Simmer till liquid evaporates. They turn out caramelized, sweet and oh so flavorful by soaking up all of that sauce.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Quiche lorraine -lite but tasty
Ingredients:
one pre-made pie crust
6 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup greek yogurt 2% (or sour cream, low fat if you like)
nutmeg, salt, pepper
an onion
canadian bacon (smoked) or lardons*
shredded cheese (swiss, cheddar or, your preference)
*A note on lardons--basically, French smoked pork belly (bacon) with an awesome flavor that's used so ubiquitously in French cooking that if you've ever eaten a real French dish, they've probably been a flavor component. Generally the fat is rendered from lardons to cook other ingredients in.
Pre-bake the pie crust in a tart pan or pie plate; following the instructions on the box for time and temp. Note: make sure the crust stretches up the sides to the top of the plate, b/c it shrinks during cooking. Oh, and don't forget to prick the crust with a fork or it'll puff up in the oven.
Slice the onions and cook them till they caramelize while the crust is cooking. If you're using real lardons, put those in with the onions to extract the yummy flavor.
Scald 1/2 c. milk in microwave, add 1/2 c.greek yogurt & mix.
Scramble 6 eggs, then mix in liquid, 1/4 + t. nutmeg, 1 t. salt, and pepper as desired.
Pour into baked pie crust. Layer in onions, bacon & cheese.
Bake 30 mins at 375 deg. F. till it gets a bit golden on top or knife comes out clean when you stick it in the center.
Serving suggestions:
Eat lukewarm; it's especially good with a big green salad with vinaigrette dressing!
The original recipe is adapted from Julia Child's The Art of French Cooking and from Oui Chef.
one pre-made pie crust
6 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup greek yogurt 2% (or sour cream, low fat if you like)
nutmeg, salt, pepper
an onion
canadian bacon (smoked) or lardons*
shredded cheese (swiss, cheddar or, your preference)
*A note on lardons--basically, French smoked pork belly (bacon) with an awesome flavor that's used so ubiquitously in French cooking that if you've ever eaten a real French dish, they've probably been a flavor component. Generally the fat is rendered from lardons to cook other ingredients in.
Pre-bake the pie crust in a tart pan or pie plate; following the instructions on the box for time and temp. Note: make sure the crust stretches up the sides to the top of the plate, b/c it shrinks during cooking. Oh, and don't forget to prick the crust with a fork or it'll puff up in the oven.
Slice the onions and cook them till they caramelize while the crust is cooking. If you're using real lardons, put those in with the onions to extract the yummy flavor.
Scald 1/2 c. milk in microwave, add 1/2 c.greek yogurt & mix.
Scramble 6 eggs, then mix in liquid, 1/4 + t. nutmeg, 1 t. salt, and pepper as desired.
Pour into baked pie crust. Layer in onions, bacon & cheese.
Bake 30 mins at 375 deg. F. till it gets a bit golden on top or knife comes out clean when you stick it in the center.
Serving suggestions:
Eat lukewarm; it's especially good with a big green salad with vinaigrette dressing!
The original recipe is adapted from Julia Child's The Art of French Cooking and from Oui Chef.
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Thanks Mr. 2 buck!
The hardwood floor rippled slightly under my feet as I lurched to the bathroom for my way too early Monday morning shower. Or was that merely the effect of too much two-buck Chuck from Trader Joe’s downed while consuming the best meal of the weekend? The smell of wine-soaked game hen still permeated the bedroom—not too surprising as the bed is in the open room right next to the kitchen (less street noise here than the actual bedroom) and I wished I could eat some more bird for breakfast.
I’d been looking for a good bird to cook since I roasted my first duck for New Year’s this year. I took cues from my French in-laws and used the rendered goose fat to slow cook some thinly sliced potato rounds just till golden brown and slightly crispy. Sure fat gives food great flavor, but duck fat is phenomenal! The potatoes were divine—rich and not too salty. A few years ago I had the best brussel sprouts of my life (American children’s most hated veggie), learning only after having eaten half a plate-full of the tender salty-sweet browned balls that they had been cooked in the canary yellow goose fat garnered from the fresh foie gras that I tried oh-so-hard not to eat too much of. After that, it was really too late to worry about cholesterol for the rest of the meal.
We found some Rock Cornish game hens at our local Russian bodega, of all places. The Joy of Cooking describes them as having a mild, but pleasant gamey flavor even though they’re practically all white meat (Joy, while very practical, is no Julia Child). I was too hungry to wait the hour-and-a-half that the wild rice needed to cook before I could stuff it in the birds, so I kept a component of the rice stuffing—the green olives—and put them in some sage-flavored stuffing mix from the pantry and into the tiny birds’ cavities. The roasting pan I used was our IKEA cocotte (French style porcelain coated cast-iron pan) so I didn’t even bother trussing the birds, as they only had enough room to shimmy in the pan side-by-side and the stuffing stayed in just fine. After the pan was good and hot, say after 15 minutes at 350˚F, I poured about a glass of the aforementioned two-buck Pinot Grigio in the pan, and at least two in me. I mentioned being hungry, n’est ce pas? After 30 mins more, I basted the birds and turned them up to 400˚F, and basted myself with some more wine, while surveying the caramelizing carrots & onions. Thankfully the rice was handled by my hubby, because I might’ve burned it.
Fifteen more minutes and it was time to tuck into those cute little birds. What could be cuter than single-serving sized fowl? And what could be more delicious? I honestly don’t know, because after being steeped in wine (me and the hens) this meal was off-the charts good. When you and your guests are making yummy noises after every single bite, I know I’ve hit recipe perfection—with a nod to Mr. Two-buck for his help.
I’d been looking for a good bird to cook since I roasted my first duck for New Year’s this year. I took cues from my French in-laws and used the rendered goose fat to slow cook some thinly sliced potato rounds just till golden brown and slightly crispy. Sure fat gives food great flavor, but duck fat is phenomenal! The potatoes were divine—rich and not too salty. A few years ago I had the best brussel sprouts of my life (American children’s most hated veggie), learning only after having eaten half a plate-full of the tender salty-sweet browned balls that they had been cooked in the canary yellow goose fat garnered from the fresh foie gras that I tried oh-so-hard not to eat too much of. After that, it was really too late to worry about cholesterol for the rest of the meal.
We found some Rock Cornish game hens at our local Russian bodega, of all places. The Joy of Cooking describes them as having a mild, but pleasant gamey flavor even though they’re practically all white meat (Joy, while very practical, is no Julia Child). I was too hungry to wait the hour-and-a-half that the wild rice needed to cook before I could stuff it in the birds, so I kept a component of the rice stuffing—the green olives—and put them in some sage-flavored stuffing mix from the pantry and into the tiny birds’ cavities. The roasting pan I used was our IKEA cocotte (French style porcelain coated cast-iron pan) so I didn’t even bother trussing the birds, as they only had enough room to shimmy in the pan side-by-side and the stuffing stayed in just fine. After the pan was good and hot, say after 15 minutes at 350˚F, I poured about a glass of the aforementioned two-buck Pinot Grigio in the pan, and at least two in me. I mentioned being hungry, n’est ce pas? After 30 mins more, I basted the birds and turned them up to 400˚F, and basted myself with some more wine, while surveying the caramelizing carrots & onions. Thankfully the rice was handled by my hubby, because I might’ve burned it.
Fifteen more minutes and it was time to tuck into those cute little birds. What could be cuter than single-serving sized fowl? And what could be more delicious? I honestly don’t know, because after being steeped in wine (me and the hens) this meal was off-the charts good. When you and your guests are making yummy noises after every single bite, I know I’ve hit recipe perfection—with a nod to Mr. Two-buck for his help.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Cote de Ventoux, guacamole and some artichoke dip
Now that I've returned from the 5th shopping trip in 2 days, I finally have a phone, 100+channels of english-speaking TV, and... (drum roll please), an internet connection. I thought I had it all figured out. Even before I left, I planned, researched, ordered things online, made calls. I was sure I could pull off this move without a hitch. I forget about entropy. No matter how much planning you do, something unexpected happens. Like planning a wedding (so I imagine after having participated in many of my friends' weddings), you can't account for everything--there's always a monkey wrench that gets thrown in at that last minute.
Yesterday, I went to IKEA and got a bed; to Target and got other various essentials for the house--all of this after a a brief nite's respite and with a major dose of jetlag. A quick tour at Whole Foods for some yummy edibles, and back to the house to unload all of the purchases. Whew. The bed box was so heavy I had to unpack it at the foot of the stairs to take it up piece by piece. But I managed to unload most everything and find a parking spot for the rental car.
Alright, now I just need to find that mattress that comes with the bed and enjoy a long night's well-deserved rest. Wait a minute. Hang on just a cotton-picking minute! Where the hell is the mattress? No. It's a cruel joke. It's 8:30pm and IKEA closes at 10--too far to make a return trip before they close. Right. Well I bought some carpets and blankets and, oh yes, towels. Let's make a big pile of them and maybe add... yes, my big fluffy robe- that'll do it. Surprisingly, it wasn't too uncomfortable for a makeshift mattress in the end. Aside from turning in the night and ending up in the bathroom, that is.
Today, tour 2 of IKEA. Amazingly, I manged to buy some more crap that I was too tired to bother with the day before. Ah, evil genius that is the design of the IKEA showroom, I salute you. I used a Zipcar (car sharing/rental) for the 1st time, and successfully avoided crashing into kamikazi Bostonian drivers who thought that the fastest moving car had the right-of-way at intersections where the traffic lights weren't working due to a power outage. (For the record, this is not true- one should stop at each light as if it's a stop sign, even in Boston). I even made it back to the house on time for my cable/TV/phone appointment, basically my savior at this moment in life. Nice guy comes and sets me up, but tells me that I need another plug so that I can connect the cable box and my phone at the same time. "Don't you have a power strip?" he asks. No, I didn't think of that. Don't have a single thing with an US-standard plug, actually-0ther than the lamp I bought at IKEA yesterday. AGGHH. Well, no matter. At least I have internet. Who needs a stupid phone anyway, I have Skype. One small problem, the installation program doesn't work. I need some stupid account # that the guy didn't give me. But he did said that i could call if I had any problems. Great. NO phone, because I can't plug it in without a power strip. Ha. Ha. Ha.
Right. So I need a power strip. I have no car today, one day rental only. So... I can't go back to Target. Where can i find one here? Let's try the super-duper grocery store. Happily they had not only my power strip, but also some tools that I realized I was missing when I tried to assemble my foldy-IKEA bed. Now I'm all set. Opened the Cote de Ventoux, made some American artichoke dip and guacamole with blue corn tortilla chips. Minor dramas solved, and I'm now reconnected to the world. Bienvenue, Bienvenido, Welcome!
Yesterday, I went to IKEA and got a bed; to Target and got other various essentials for the house--all of this after a a brief nite's respite and with a major dose of jetlag. A quick tour at Whole Foods for some yummy edibles, and back to the house to unload all of the purchases. Whew. The bed box was so heavy I had to unpack it at the foot of the stairs to take it up piece by piece. But I managed to unload most everything and find a parking spot for the rental car.
Alright, now I just need to find that mattress that comes with the bed and enjoy a long night's well-deserved rest. Wait a minute. Hang on just a cotton-picking minute! Where the hell is the mattress? No. It's a cruel joke. It's 8:30pm and IKEA closes at 10--too far to make a return trip before they close. Right. Well I bought some carpets and blankets and, oh yes, towels. Let's make a big pile of them and maybe add... yes, my big fluffy robe- that'll do it. Surprisingly, it wasn't too uncomfortable for a makeshift mattress in the end. Aside from turning in the night and ending up in the bathroom, that is.
Today, tour 2 of IKEA. Amazingly, I manged to buy some more crap that I was too tired to bother with the day before. Ah, evil genius that is the design of the IKEA showroom, I salute you. I used a Zipcar (car sharing/rental) for the 1st time, and successfully avoided crashing into kamikazi Bostonian drivers who thought that the fastest moving car had the right-of-way at intersections where the traffic lights weren't working due to a power outage. (For the record, this is not true- one should stop at each light as if it's a stop sign, even in Boston). I even made it back to the house on time for my cable/TV/phone appointment, basically my savior at this moment in life. Nice guy comes and sets me up, but tells me that I need another plug so that I can connect the cable box and my phone at the same time. "Don't you have a power strip?" he asks. No, I didn't think of that. Don't have a single thing with an US-standard plug, actually-0ther than the lamp I bought at IKEA yesterday. AGGHH. Well, no matter. At least I have internet. Who needs a stupid phone anyway, I have Skype. One small problem, the installation program doesn't work. I need some stupid account # that the guy didn't give me. But he did said that i could call if I had any problems. Great. NO phone, because I can't plug it in without a power strip. Ha. Ha. Ha.
Right. So I need a power strip. I have no car today, one day rental only. So... I can't go back to Target. Where can i find one here? Let's try the super-duper grocery store. Happily they had not only my power strip, but also some tools that I realized I was missing when I tried to assemble my foldy-IKEA bed. Now I'm all set. Opened the Cote de Ventoux, made some American artichoke dip and guacamole with blue corn tortilla chips. Minor dramas solved, and I'm now reconnected to the world. Bienvenue, Bienvenido, Welcome!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)