Monthly Archives: February 2009

Fat Tuesday, Fish Wednesday

Posted on February 26, 2009 by | Leave a comment
buffalo chicken

pes•ca•tar•i•an (pe-skə-ˈter-ē-ən) n.: a vegetarian whose diet includes fish

That’s me.  At least, for the forty days of Lent it is.  My yearly ritual is to give up meat, but not fish.  There is a label for this diet.  Merriam-Webster officially added the word pescatarian last year. It joins the ranks of other not-quite vegetarian labels, including flexitarian ( noun 1. a vegetarian who occasionally eats meat 2. an omnivore).

Even though I’m not what you would consider a raging carnivore, my sacrifice gets harder every year. So Fat Tuesday is when I really go all out on meat eating. My choice of food is usually buffalo chicken, simply because it’s the one thing I need a really good reason to eat. After all, this is an equal-parts butter and Tabasco sauce we’re talking about.  And it’s incredibly difficult to eat buffalo sauce with any dignity. In fact, my hot wing eating demeanor is best described as furtive—trying impossibly to hide that fact that I am gnawing on a deep-fried bone slathered in sauce.

But on Fat Tuesday, who cares? I made my own buffalo chicken this year. To give the sauce an extra kick, I added horseradish and Worcestershire sauce, kind of like a Bloody Mary.  I also used panko breadcrumbs on the chicken so it would absorb the sauce more, making the chicken less messy.  And as for the eternal bleu cheese or ranch question? You decide.

- Catherine M.

Bloody Mary Buffalo Chicken Strips

buffalochicken2

Ingredients:
-4 chicken breasts
-1 cup flour
-2 eggs, beaten
-3 cups panko breadcrumbs
-2 tbsp olive oil
-1 stick butter
-1/2 cup hot sauce
-1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- ½ tbsp horseradish
-1 clove minced garlic
-Aalt and pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven for 400 degrees. Cut the chicken breasts into 1- to 1 ½ – inch strips. Season them with salt and pepper. Place the flour and breadcrumbs on separate plates. Coat the chicken strips with flour and then dip in beaten eggs. Shake off excess egg before dredging the strips in the panko breadcrumbs. Drizzle the olive oil over a rimmed baking sheet and place the breaded chicken strips on the baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a saucepan, melt the stick of butter with the hot sauce, Worcestershire, horseradish, and garlic. Pour the sauce over the chicken, using tongs to coat each piece evenly. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes.

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Homemade Granola

Posted on February 21, 2009 by | Leave a comment

wooden spoon

Getting my granola fix is easier said than done.

I have issues with store-bought versions.  Sometimes they have too many ingredients, including strange, unidentifiable twig-like pieces.  Other times the granola is too soft or too clumped together.  But the worst offense is the artificial vanilla or banana or cinnamon flavoring.

Continue reading →

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Button Mushrooms, Lemon, Feta

Posted on February 17, 2009 by | 2 Comments

I feel a strange tenderness for mushrooms.

When I was a little girl, I was fascinated to learn that fungi had their very own taxonomic kingdom, being neither plant nor animal.  In fact, they are considered biologically closer to animals because they do not create their own food, as plants do, but feed off surrounding detritus, like vultures.  Food for thought. 

Despite their scavenging qualities, I think they’re charming little alien creatures. I have never been much of a forager for wild mushrooms, afraid as I am of the secret death lurking inside some of them. This is lucky, because I’ve never met a mushroom I didn’t want to eat. Continue reading →

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Blood, Navel, Red Wine, Honey, Allspice

Posted on February 15, 2009 by | Leave a comment


Confession time.

I don’t want any dessert. Thank you, but no. I have just never been a fan of sweets. My father used to joke, “Angela, you can’t have your broccoli until you’ve finished your chocolate.”

I’ll pass on the marshmallows, the cookies, the cakes, and yes, the chocolate. That souffle I made last week? More of a crowd-pleaser than a personal indulgence.

But here is a dessert I will never pass on. Orange segments in red wine is sweet but never saccharine. It has a deep, seductive, earthy flavor similar to German gluvine. Equal parts syrupy, tart, and bitter, this simple dessert is the perfect note on which to end a sophisticated meal.

- Angela M.

Blood and Navel Oranges with Red Wine, Honey and Allspice


Serves: 4

Ingredients:
- 2 large navel oranges
- 2 blood oranges
- 2 tbsp clover honey
- 2 cups cheap red wine
- 1 tsp allspice

Directions:
Supreme (segment) 2 navel oranges and 2 blood oranges into a large bowl, making sure to remove all the bitter pith. Squeeze the remaining pulp to release the juices. Divide the orange segments between 4 stemless wine glasses. Drizzle each with 1/2 tbsp of clover honey. Pour 1/2 cup red wine over oranges. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp ground allspice.

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Japanese Ceviche

Posted on February 14, 2009 by | 1 Comment


My favorite restaurant is Kabuki Sushi near my home in Northridge, CA.

It’s a San Fernando Valley classic: a family-run strip-mall sushi bar with a dedicated base of regulars. One of their most popular menu items is Japanese ceviche: tomatoes, red onions, cilantro and tuna, yellowtail, halibut, and salmon sashimi doused generously ponzu dressing. Here is my take on their specialty. I use yellowfin tuna here, but you can use any high-grade or sushi-grade fish. You should not let the fish sit in the marinade too long, or it will begin to discolor and toughen. It is best served super-fresh. I like it with a bowl of steamed white rice and a sprinkle of toasted black sesame seeds

- Angela M.

Japanese Ceviche:

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
- ½ lb. high-grade cubed Yellowfin or Bluefin tuna
- 1 large handful coarsly chopped cilantro
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1 seedless cucumber, julienned
- 4 firm Roma tomatoes, seeded and sliced
- Toasted black sesame seeds (optional)
- 6 tbsp ponzo sauce
- 1.5 tbsp clover honey
- 1.5 tbsp sesame oil
- Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
Whisk ponzu sauce, honey, sesame oil and lemon juice together until well combined. Pour over chopped tomatoes, onion, and cilantro in a large bowl. Let sit for 20 minutes. Mix in cubed tuna. Garnish with red pepper flakes and toasted black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

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Chocolate Sauce Three Ways for Valentine’s Day

Posted on February 11, 2009 by | 1 Comment


For Valentine’s Day, we wanted to show you a simple chocolate sauce that goes great with anything sweet.

Dip fruit or shortbread cookies in it, pour it over cake as a ganache, cool it to form a chocolate spread, or drizzle it warm over brownies or souffle. You can make it in advance, refrigerate or freeze it, and heat it up when you need it again. This stuff will keep for more than a week in the fridge.

Quick And Easy Chocolate Sauce


Ingredients:

- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp raspberry, orange, or coffee liquor (optional)

Directions:

Heat 1 cup of heavy cream on the stove. Cut heat just before it starts to bubble. Pour 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips into cream until completely combined, stirring constantly. Add 1 tbsp cocoa powder and fruit or coffee liquor. Stir to combine.

Chocolate Souffle

Ingredients:

- 4 large egg whites
- 3 large egg yolks
- 8 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup plus 3 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 stick melted butter
- Quick and Easy Chocolate Sauce
- Whipped cream (optional)
- Fresh seasonal berries (optional)


Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With a pastry brush, brush the inside of five 6-oz. souffle ramekins with melted butter, being sure to get it up the side. Roll sugar around each ramekin, being sure to get it at least 3/4 of the way up the ramekin.

Melt 8 oz chocolate chips over a pot of simmering water. Stir occasionally and remove from heat once completely melted and allow to cool. Spoon some of the hot melted chocolate into a bowl with 3 egg yolks. Combine thoroughly. Pour egg yolk mixture slowly into melted chocolate, stirring constantly until combined.

Meanwhile, beat 4 egg whites with 1/4 cup of sugar with an electric mixture set on high for about 2 minutes until a stiff meringue is formed. Take 1/4 of the meringue and stir into the egg yolk and chocolate mixture. Gently fold the remaining meringue into the chocolate in fourths. Spoon the mixture into ramekins. Bake for 20-25 minutes until souffles are fluffy and cracks form over the surface. Garnish with Quick and Easy Chocolate Sauce, fresh berries, and whipped cream.

Blackberry Ice Cream Cake

For me, two holidays happen on February 14th: Valentine’s Day and my boyfriend’s birthday. While the latter certainly trumps the former, I’ve found that there are few different ways to reconcile these concurrent events. For example, card companies actually make a Valentine’s Day Birthday card. This year I thought of making a birthday cake that still had some romantic appeal. Drawing on my boyfriend’s love of blackberries and Graham crackers, my ice cream cake was born.

Ingredients:

Blackberry Ice Cream:
- 1 pint blackberries
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Crust:
- 4 cups chocolate Teddy Grahams
- Quick and Easy Chocolate Sauce

Directions:

In a bowl, dissolve the sugar into the whole milk. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the heavy whipping cream and vanilla extract. Whisk all ingredients together. Then follow the manufacturer’s instructions for operating your ice cream maker. While the ice cream is thickening, mash the blackberries, reserving some for a garnish. Add the blackberries to the ice cream once it begins to thicken. Pour the ice cream in a cake pan lined with wax paper and put it in the freezer.

Begin the crust by crushing the Teddy Grahams into fine crumbs. Stir 3 tablespoons of melted butter into the crumbs until the mixture is moistened. Place crumbs on a baking sheet and back for 10 minutes at 450 degrees. Once the crumbs are cooled, ladle chocolate sauce onto the surface of the ice cream and spread to coat in a thin layer. Pour crumbs on the ice cream and press down. Cover with saran wrap and a weight and return to the freezer. Let the cake freeze overnight.

Remove the cake from the cake pan and place on a flat surface. Cover the cake completely with the chocolate sauce. Return the cake to the freezer for a few hours in order for the chocolate to cool and harden.

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Oysters on the Half Shell Three Ways for Valentine’s Day

Posted on February 11, 2009 by | 1 Comment



“As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans.”

- Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

Before we set to work preparing these guys, Alan was in our dining room shucking 20 blue point oysters with a flat edged screwdriver. His hands were cut and red and the floor and his sweater were littered impossibly with oyster shell shavings.

But then our apartment was filled with the smell of the sea, which he said he loved. From floor to ceiling the atmosphere was all salt water, sand, tide pool, sea anemone. Oysters. There is no smell like it in the world.

To me it smells like memory, like watching the gray backs of dolphins peep out from beneath the white caps at Zuma beach. I can’t think of a more romantic food in the world.

When buying oysters, ask your fish monger when they were harvested. If they have been out of the water for less than a week, you’re good to go. And as for the flat-edged screwdriver, it’s a great tool for shucking oysters if you don’t have a shucking knife. Just be sure to hold the oyster with a kitchen towel to protect your hands from small cuts.

The best way to eat oysters is plain. A squeeze of lemon juice and you’re golden. But for Valentine’s Day, these three oysters are a nice departure from the norm and a fancier take on a food I love.

- Angela M.

Oysters with Lemon Chive Cream and Caviar


Ingredients:
- 6 blue point oysters
- 3 tsp sour cream
- 6 tsp American black caviar
- Chives cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1 lemon

Directions:
Top each oyster with 1/2 tsp of sour cream and 1 tsp of American black caviar. Place 2 1/2 inch chive slices over the sour cream and caviar. Squeeze fresh lemon juice onto each.

Oysters with Summery Watermelon Relish

Ingredients:
- 1/2 dozen blue point oysters, shucked
- 6 tbsp diced salted watermelon
- 1 tbsp julienned mint
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1 lemon
Directions:
Place 1 tbsp diced salted watermelon onto each oyster, along with a small dab each of julienned mint and minced ginger. Finish it off with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Japanese Style Oysters

Ingredients:
- 1/2 dozen blue point oysters
- 3 tbsp smelt roe
- 1 tbsp thinly sliced scallions
- 6 tsp ponzu sauce
- 1 lemon

Directions:
Place 1/2 tbsp of smelt roe on each oyster along with a pinch of thinly sliced scallions. Top each with a tsp of ponzu sauce and a squeeze of lemon juice.

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Superbowl Chili Throwdown

Posted on February 3, 2009 by | Leave a comment

When my father told me he was putting a turkey chili up against our chicken one, I became concerned about the legitimacy of our competition.

Some would argue that a recipe without beef can scarcely be labeled as chili. This debate is immaterial to me, but I do have some advice for the poultry-chili-is-chili camp: give it up.

Why would a delicious chicken, turkey, or bean stew want to call itself chili? Chili is the most bastardized stew there is. It is routinely reduced to a mere condiment—spooned in all its greasy ignominy atop fries, hotdogs, nachos, and even pasta. Its near relatives include the sloppy joe and beef macaroni. More often than not, home cooks season it from a pouch.

Don’t get me wrong, beef chili done right is delicious. But sometimes the specter of chili’s various permutations makes even the best bowl hard to handle.

Our chicken concoction is flavorful, healthy and satisfying. It won’t go well with fries or hot dogs, but pair it with a baking soda biscuit and you’ll be sitting pretty.

-Catherine M.

Holy Mole Chicken Chili

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. chicken breast
- 2 cans great northern beans, drained (not rinsed)
- 1 can black beans, drained (not rinsed)
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 14 oz. mild or medium salsa
- 1 bottle beer
- 1 onion
- 2 poblano peppers
- 1 tbsp. minced garlic (4-8 cloves)
- 1 tbsp. tomato paste
- 2 tbsp. dried oregano
- 1 tbsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp. ground cumin
- 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- Salt and pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:
Poach chicken breasts for 15-20 minutes in salted water. Shred chicken into bite-size pieces, set aside. Sauté onions and peppers in extra virgin olive oil until tender. Stir in tomato paste until combined. Add chicken, garlic, oregano, cayenne pepper, ground cumin, cocoa powder, and ground cinnamon. Cook for 5-10 minutes, until flavors are well combined. Add 3 cans beans, diced tomatoes, salsa, and beer. Simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until chili thickens. Salt and pepper to taste.

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