Recipes

Mustard Tarragon Grilled Chicken

Ingredients
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
3-4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into cutlets or not, as desired

Instructions
1. Toss chicken with tarragon and mustard. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

2. Using a grill, griddle, or grill pan cook for 5-10 minutes a side, depending on thickness of meat.  

Comments
This recipe is from the 10th Anniversary Edition of Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything.  Nice, simple, quick and flavorful.  The tarragon and mustard go very well together.  

Shown here with Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte with Parmesan.

How to Cook Everything (10th Anniversary)

Muffins Two Ways

Ingredients
12 ¹⁄₂ ounces cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
Heavy pinch salt
1 cup sugar
¹⁄₂ cup vegetable oil (I used canola since I happened to have some on hand)
1 egg
1 cup yogurt
1 ¹⁄₂ cups fresh blueberries OR 1 ¹⁄₂ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375*F.

2. In a large bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and set aside.

3. In another large bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, egg and yogurt. Add the dry ingredients reserving 1 tablespoon of the dry ingredients and toss with the blueberries OR chocolate chips. Stir mixture for a count of 10. Add 1 cup blueberries OR 1 ¹⁄₂ cups chocolate chips to mixture and stir 3 more times. Reserve the ¹⁄₂ cup of blueberries.

4. Using an ice cream scoop or spoon, add the mixture to greased muffin pans. If making blueberry muffins, sprinkle the remaining ¹⁄₂ cup of berries on top of muffins and press down lightly. Place into the oven. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Remove from oven and turn out, upside down on tea towel to cool completely. Serve immediately or store in airtight container for 2 to 3 days.

Comments
This recipe comes from Alton Brown, and I’ve tweaked it only slightly to account for the fact that chocolate chip muffins are fantastic too.  The recipe above yields 12 muffins and is easy enough to double with a bit extra stirring.  The yogurt adds a great tang and these aren’t super sweet.  

In the picture, the chocolate chip muffins are on the top left and the blueberry muffins are on the bottom right.  The white powder on the blueberries is from the tossing in the dry ingredients.  If you want to avoid that, reserve 36-48 berries in step 3 and only toss the berries being added into the actual mix with the dry ingredients.

Internet - Alton Brown

Grilled Flank Steak with Shallot and Red Wine Sauce

Ingredients
4 shallots, sliced in thin rings
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 flank steak (1 ¹⁄₂ pound)
1 tablespoon butter, cold

Instructions
1. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, sauté the shallots in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until lightly caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Raise the heat to high and add the red wine and reduce by half. Add the broth and reduce by half. Check for seasoning, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Keep warm on low heat.

2. Meanwhile, brush the flank steak on both sides with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the center of grill (or griddle) and sear 5 to 8 minutes per side for rare to medium rare.  Remove from the grill (or griddle) and allow to rest, loosely covered with aluminum foil, 5 to 10 minutes. Slice the flank steak on the diagonal and place on a serving plate.

3. Finish the sauce by swirling in the chunks of cold butter, then top the steak with some of the sauce and serve the rest on the side.

Comments
I have no idea where I found this recipe, but it’s the one I used the first time I ever made flank steak.  A year later I’m still making it because it’s fantastic.  The shallot pan sauce is delicious and flank steak is an extremely flavorful cut of meat.  The only problem I have with cooking this is the smoke detector… flank steak combined with a griddle on high heat makes for quite a bit of smoke in the house.  

Shown here with Okra Cornmeal Fritters.

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Okra Cornmeal Fritters

Ingredients
4 bacon slices, thinly sliced
1 small sweet onion, chopped
¹⁄₂ pound fresh okra, trimmed and chopped
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup cornmeal (preferably stone-ground)
1 teaspoon sugar
¹⁄₄ teaspoon cayenne
Oil for frying

Instructions
1. Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Drain bacon on paper towels, reserving fat in skillet. Add onion and okra to fat in skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring, until beginning to soften, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in bacon.

2. Whisk egg in a medium bowl, then whisk in buttermilk, cornmeal, sugar, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon salt until smooth. Stir in okra mixture.

3. Wipe skillet clean. Add enough oil to skillet to measure ¹⁄₄ inch and heat over medium heat until it shimmers. Cook rounded tablespoons of batter (6 to 7 fritters per batch), turning once, until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per batch. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Serve immediately.

Comments
Having never had okra before, I turned to Epicurious.com for inspiration.  I notice I have a habit of frying foods I’m unsure of.  I found these fritters to be delicious.  The okra tastes sort of like a bell pepper, but not quite.  I could definitely taste them in the fritter and enjoyed them quite a bit.  We did have quite a bit of debate regarding whether this should be filed as a Vegetable or a Bread and Grain.  Breads and Grains won. 

Shown here with Grilled Flank Steak with Shallot and Red Wine Sauce.

Internet - Epicurious

Fresh Tomato Corn Salsa

Ingredients
6-8 large ripe tomatoes, preferably good, meaty tomatoes
2 bunches green onions, cut into 3-4 inch lengths
1 bunch cilantro, stems trimmed and leaves washed thoroughly
2 tablespoons fresh oregano
4-6 cloves garlic
Jalapeño pepper, to taste (I am not a pepper head.  I tend to omit the pepper all together but this time I used half of a small one, scrapped and seeded)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Zest of 2 limes
Juice of 2 limes
3 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cobs (uncooked)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and remove the seeds with your finger.  Using a food processor process until desired consistency.  I like a chunky salsa so I don’t puree them into oblivion.  Place processed tomatoes in large bowl.  

2. Add the green onion, cilantro leaves, oregano, garlic, pepper, olive oil, zest, and lime juice to the food processor and process until the desired consistency is reached.   You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your food processor.  Add the onion mixture to the bowl with tomatoes.  

3. Stir corn kernels into the bowl contents and season with salt and pepper to taste.  

4. Cover salsa and chill in refrigerator for a few hours to allow flavors to meld well.  Eat soon.

Note:  If you do not have a food processor you can chop and mince all ingredients by hand, then mix in a large bowl.

Comments
This is a modified version of the Fresh Tomato Salsa recipe from The New Basics Cookbook.  I’ve been tweaking the original recipe for years now and it varies in colour from green to red depending on my current whims regarding cilantro to tomato ratio.  For this batch I used a combination of red and yellow tomatoes, plenty of green stuff, and delicious fresh corn.  I have never added corn to fresh salsa before and it’s pretty fantastic.  I heartily recommend it!

This salsa is highly flexible.  I recommend that you make it with a small bowl of “tasting chips” next to you.  This will be especially helpful for adjusting the salt.  I find that I omit it more often than not due to the amount of salt on most tortilla chips.

New Basics Cookbook

Orzo with Garbanzo Beans, Goat Cheese, and Oregano

Ingredients
1 ¹⁄₂ cups orzo (about 9 ounces)
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1 lemon
1 clove garlic, minced
1 15- to 15 ¹⁄₂-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed, drained (Feel free to use a larger size can if you are a lover of chickpeas)
2 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
5 ounces soft fresh goat cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup)

Instructions
1. Cook orzo in large saucepan of boiling salted water until just tender, stirring occasionally. Drain orzo.

2. Whisk olive oil, fresh lemon zest and juice, and minced garlic to blend in large serving bowl. Add drained garbanzo beans, cooked orzo, and chopped fresh oregano; toss salad to coat. Season salad to taste with salt and pepper. Gently stir in crumbled goat cheese. Serve orzo salad warm or at room temperature.

Comments
This recipe is adapted from Epicurious.com.  The original recipe calls for 15 ounces of goat cheese which I’m pretty sure is a typo for “one five-ounce” log of goat cheese.  Quite a difference between 5 and 15 ounces!  I really enjoyed this dish and I’d happily make it again in the future.  The flavor was great and all the flavors came together wonderfully.  

Shown here with Roast Lamb.

Internet - Epicurious

Roast Lamb

Ingredients
Boneless leg of lamb
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350*F.

2. Rub leg of lamb all over with olive oil and then season well with salt and pepper.

3. Roast until an instant read thermometer reads 135*F.  

4. Cover with foil and let rest for 10-15 minutes.  Slice and serve.  

Comments
This is just a pretty basic method for roasting lamb.  It took a bit less than two hours for the lamb to roast.  I have come to the conclusion that lamb is going to be a restaurant-only sort of food in the future, unless it’s ground.  I seem to be the only lamb fan in the house!

Shown here with Orzo with Garbanzo Beans, Goat Cheese, and Oregano.

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Turkey (or Chicken) Tetrazzini

Ingredients
1 pound cut spaghetti, or other short pasta, or spaghetti broken into thirds
1 tablespoon olive oil
24 ounces mushrooms, sliced
¹⁄₂ cup butter
¹⁄₂ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups half and half
¹⁄₄ cup dry sherry
4 cups chicken (or turkey), cooked and cubed
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Cook pasta for 1 minutes less than directed by packaging and drain.

2. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.  Saute mushrooms until they release their liquid and brown. 

3. Melt butter in Dutch oven over low heat. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly until smooth and bubbly.

4. Stir in broth and half and half, heat until just boiling. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in sherry, spaghetti, chicken (or turkey) and mushrooms.

5. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake uncovered 30 minutes or until bubbly in the center.

Comments
I’ve been making this recipe for years; I believe it originally came from one of those checkout-aisle grocery store cookbook things.  This is some of my ultimate comfort food and it’s what I look forward to every time I cook a whole bird in some manner.  This time, I used leftover chicken from Slow Cooker Honey Roasted Chicken with Rosemary and Dijon but it’s just as tasty with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving.  Once in a while, I even cook up some chicken breasts just to be able to make tetrazzini.  

This has been a family favorite since I was a kid and I’m sure it will continue to be so for many more years to come!

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Zuccanoes v1.0

Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef, browned and drained
¹⁄₂ pound orzo pasta, cooked al dente and drained
3 large zucchini (The ones I used were the size of clubs)
3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 ¹⁄₂ cup tomato sauce, more to taste

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 475*F.

2. Prepare ground beef and orzo, set both aside.  

3. Cut the ends off each zucchini, cut in half and microwave the halves, cut side down, until tender.  (I was using large zucchini; this took about 15-20 minutes per zucchini.)  

4. Scoop out the insides of the zucchini, being careful not to burn yourself, leaving about ¹⁄₄-¹⁄₂ inch of shell.  Place the insides in a sieve to drain some of the excess water.  

5. Once drained, roughly chop the scooped out zucchini.  Mix with ground beef, orzo, and tomato sauce.  Season well with salt and pepper.  

6. Place zucchini shells into 9x13-inch baking pans and then spoon the filling on top of them.  Top each zuccanoe with ¹⁄₂ cup of shredded cheese.  

7. Bake until cheese is melted.  

Comments
Sadly I didn’t have much appetite when dinner was finished, but Lance and Art both assured me that these were delicious.  And huge.  We found that one zuccanoe was plenty to serve two people which means this recipe serves 12.  Yikes.  They did turn out very well and the only change I’d make is to use more sauce the next time.

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Snickerdoodle Bundt Cake

Ingredients Topping
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup white sugar

Cake
2 ¹⁄₂ cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¹⁄₂ teaspoon baking soda
¹⁄₂ teaspoon Kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
**
Instructions**
1. Preheat oven to 325*F.

2. Combine topping ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  Grease a bundt pan very well with cooking spray, including the center tube.  Put ¹⁄₄ cup of the topping mixture into the bundt pan and carefully rotate and shake the pan so that all the nooks and crannies are coated with the cinnamon and sugar.  Save the remaining mixture for later use.  

3. Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

4. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter on medium speed for one full minute. Add the white sugar and mix for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and blade and add the brown sugar.  Beat for 2 minutes until the mixture looks light brown and uniform in color. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each for 1 full minute. Add in the vanilla and beat 30 seconds until incorporated.

5. Add the flour mixture alternately with the sour cream; beat well.

6. Spread one third of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with ¹⁄₄ cup of the topping mixture.  Repeat this process two more times until all of the batter has been spread into the pan.  Sprinkle any remaining topping over the last layer.   

7. Bake in the preheated oven for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Note: When the cake is done baking, if you notice a lot of loose sugar on the bottom of it, turn your broiler on and leave the cake underneath the broiler for a few minutes to melt the sugar, sort of like you would for a crème brûlée.  

Comments
I have no idea where I found this recipe, but it’s been in my files of “untried sweets” for quite some time.  This could very well be named “Cinnamon Spice Bundt Cake” instead of Snickerdoodle Bundt Cake but, with any name, it’s delicious.  The cake is spicy, dense, and moist.  It would probably make a fantastic breakfast coffee cake as well as a dessert.

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