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Posts Tagged ‘comfort food’

How to Perfectly Roast a Chicken

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , on March 2, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Roasted chicken is one recipe that should be in everyone’s repitoire. It’s simple, it’s classic, and most of all, it’s nourishing.  Few meals feel as comforting, homey and right as a well-roasted whole chicken on a bed of rustic seasonable vegetables. You can dress this up, or down, but the method stays pretty much the same.

In culinary school, we spent one class just learning how to perfectly roast different types of meats. In addition to pork loins and racks of lamb, this instruction included roasting some fifteen Cornish hens, loaded with aromatics and garlic, similar to the recipe below. Before this class, I’d always assumed roasting was as simple as cooking some meat in a preheated oven at one constant temperature – and sure, it can be. But, there is a trick of the trade that applies particularly to roasting birds, and that is to cook it for the first fifteen minutes at a slightly higher temperature. This achieves the equivalent of searing meat before roasting it (while allowing you to avoid the unwieldy task of searing a five-pound chicken in a skillet) – it gives ensures the exterior skin is crispy and well-browned, while locking moisture into the meat. The result? A perfectly cooked, brown and crispy bird.

Here, quite simply, is how to roast a perfect chicken.

Roasted Chicken with Seasonal Vegetables - Serves 4

Adapted from Ina Garten’s Perfect Roast Chicken

Ingredients

  • 1 medium (5 to 6 pound) chicken
  • 2 medium yellow onions, cubed
  • 6 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 2 bulbs of fennel, tops and bottoms removed, cut into wedges
  • 2 medium sweet potatoes, washed and cubed
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 40 sprigs of fresh thyme, divided
  • 1 lemon, quartered
  • 1 head of garlic, cut in half crosswise
  • 2 tbsp melted butter
  • Kosher salt
  • Fresh cracked black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 450.

2. Start by cleaning the chicken – remove any giblets, rinse it well inside and out, and pat very dry. Trim any excess fat around the neck or bottom cavity. Salt the cavity of the chicken very well; then, put the lemon, garlic, and half of the thyme inside the cavity. Tie the chicken legs together. If you don’t have kitchen twine, cross the legs, cut a small hole in the excess skin at the bottom of each chicken, and slip the leg bones through the holes to  hold in place.

3. In a large roasting pan or pot, add the cubed vegetables, olive oil and remaining thyme. Season liberally with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, and brush the chicken skin with the melted butter. Seasons skin well with salt and pepper.

4. Roast the chicken for 15 minutes at 450 degrees – this will dry out the skin and create greater crispness. Lower the temperature to 425 and continue roasting for another hour and 15 minutes. You can check for doneness by twisting the bone in the chicken leg; if it turns easily, the chicken is done. Alternately, you can cut between the leg and thigh; juices should run clear.

5. Remove from oven and allow chicken to rest, covered, for 15 minutes. Slice the chicken and arrange on a platter or plates with the roasted vegetables. Top with excess juices from roasting pan, if desired.

Enjoy!

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Homemade Chili Mac-and-Cheese

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , on November 14, 2011 | 3 Comments »

Anyone ever have Hamburger Helper when they were a kid?

I may be part of a minority of Americans whose childhood was not, at the very least, punctuated by the presence of this warm, hearty genre of meals. Along with a myriad of other pre-packaged foods, Hamburger Helper was on my parents mental black list of food that would rarely, if ever, see the inside of our cabinets, and in exchange my brother and I were treated to a variety of delicious home-cooked meals each night, made usually from scratch (although Kraft Macaroni and Cheese was, thankfully, an exception).

Despite the fact that, growing up, I rarely wanted for anything more delicious than what my parents put in front of me nightly (except for on Fish Fry nights, I truly hated that flounder), I wonder if I was perhaps missing out on a quintessential childhood experience of a small box of Hamburger Helper transforming ground meat into a delightful family experience and delicious meal. Every time I saw those commercials, a little part of me would wonder…

Until now! On Friday, one of my favorite food bloggers, Kristen at IowaGirlEats, posted her traditional list of Friday Favorites, and among it was this recipe for Homemade Chili Mac from Babble. Although it was well before lunch time when I perused her post, I immediately began drooling over the picture for this recipe, and filed it away in my inbox while making a mental note to prepare this over the weekend.

During a stroll around town on Saturday afternoon, my craving and curiosity still hadn’t waned, so I hopped into the local grocery store and picked up the onions, peppers, ground meat and cheese necessary to create this self-proclaimed Hamburger Helper remake. But as I walked around Gristedes, grabbing items from the shelves, I had a clear sense of satisfaction in that not a single ingredient I picked up came in a colorful box labeled with indecipherable ingredients. This would be Hamburger Helper 2.0 – a cleaner, fresher, though not quite healthier version.

I’m starting to sound like a broken record in saying that “I can’t believe how easy this was to make,” but it’s true! Honestly, it’s fool proof – the trickiest part of this recipe, perhaps, is over cooking the meat, but since it’s simmered in beef stock while the elbow macaroni cooks, it’s nearly impossible to achieve anything but juicy, tender hamburger meat. And while the meaty base may taste a bit flat, even with the savory meat and added spices, that mild cheddar cheese provides just the right amount of tang and thickness to bring the whole dish together.

Needless to say myself, my roommate, and my boyfriend all went back for more of this. As in seconds. And thirds. We even compared it to these, which is probably one of the more delicious creations to come out of my kitchen. Moral of the story? If you’re a home cook who prefers to cook “au natural” and avoid pre-packaged meals, you can capture the rich, home-style flavors of a hamburger classic all on your own. And, if you are a lover of Hamburger Helper, why not give this homegrown version a whirl? You might be pleasantly surprised with what you whip up on your own :)

Homemade Chili Macaroni and Cheese

(Adapted from Babble.com)

Ingredients

  • 1 lb lean ground hamburger
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 medium bell pepper, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ tablespoon of hot sauce, like Chili-Garlic sauce (or less, to taste)
  • chili powder to taste (optional)
  • 4 ounces of tomato paste
  • 1 – 15 oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 4 cups beef stock
  • 2 cups elbow macaroni
  • 2 cups mild cheddar shredded cheese
  • 1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes
  • Canola oil 

Method

 Preheat a large skillet or pot. Drizzle with canola oil. Add ground beef, onions, bell peppers and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is browned and vegetables are tender.

 Add cumin, paprika, and oregano to ground beef. Add hot sauce (or chili powder) at this step if you want a spicier dish. Add tomato paste, kidney beans, diced or canned tomatoes and beef stock. Bring to a boil and add macaroni.

 Turn to a simmer and cover. Cook until macaroni is tender, about 10 minutes. Add cheese and mix until blended. Serve immediately.

Want to lighten this up? Substitute lean ground turkey or chicken for the ground hamburger meat, whole wheat elbows for the pasta, and use low fat cheddar cheese instead of the full fat version.

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Practically Take-Out Chicken and String Beans

Posted in Healthy Meal, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , on November 3, 2011 | 1 Comment »

I’ve been on an Asian food kick lately.

Okay, fine, I’m always on an Asian food kick. But can you blame me? One castaway thought of thick, chewy Chow Fun noodles, or a memory of the sweet tangy sauce of Pad Thai, and the cravings for a warm, comforting bowl of something foreign set in, relentless until they are relieved. Luckily, there’s a dumpling shop downstairs from my boyfriend’s apartment that sells Pork and Chive potstickers (the only flavor worth having) four for a dollar, so this craving is usually quashed easily.

But then there was last night. I opened my fridge, and staring me back in the face were rows of bottles left over from this adventure in Thai Cooking this summer. These bottles were filled with every variety of thick, dark, aromatic fermented seasonings; umami that goes by the name of extra dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, chili oil, sesame oil. Though I’m sure it will take me many months to work my way through all of these flavorants, last night seemed as good a time as any to make a dent.

This was certainly a meal thrown together with things I had on hand, but it wound up being so good that a) I felt compelled to blog about it and share the recipe, and b) I’m confident saying this recipe is so good, it’s worth going out and getting the ingredients for it. Yep, it’s a recipe worth going out of your way for. That’s really saying something!

I’ve mentioned this in the past, but one of my biggest frustrations with cooking Asian food at home is that it just never turns out quite like the stuff you get in a big plastic container from your neighborhood take-out joint, and since Chinese food is generally pretty cheap, what’s the point? I’ll be honest, usually I cave and just order in. But after seeing how quickly and easily this Chicken with String Beans in Brown Sauce came together last night, and how fresh and vibrant the flavors were, unweighed down by the greasy aftertaste of a well-used wok, it might be time to turn over a new leaf. Come with me, won’t you?

Chinese Chicken and String Beans in Brown Sauce - Serves 3-4

Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients

  • 1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1″ cubes
  • 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 Tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp light soy sauce
  • 3 Tbsp dark brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups of low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 1/2 cups of frozen green beans, defrosted (you could also sub in snap peas or broccoli)
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
If you don’t, like me, have cornstarch*  (a standard ingredient in Chinese cooking) on hand, you can make a quick roux to thicken up your brown sauce. In a small pan or pot, melt the butter. Then, add the flour and stir into the flour until a smooth paste forms. The roux is ready once it is the color and consistency of wet sand. Reserve in a small bowl.
 
Heat a large skillet and add the vegetable oil. Season the cubed chicken with salt and pepper. Once the skillet is hot, add the chicken and brown on both sides. Though the chicken won’t be cooked through, remove it and reserve.
 
To the same skillet, add the garlic, dark and regular soy sauce, brown sugar and chicken broth. Stir to combine and dissolve the sugar. Add the chicken back in and cook at a gentle simmer for another 2 minutes. Add the green beans and cook for another minute  or until the chicken is cooked through.
 
At this point, remove the chicken and green beans from the sauce and place on serving dish. Bring sauce
to a boil and boil for about five minutes, or until sauce has reduced. Depending on how thick you want the sauce, you can add some or all of the roux and whisk it into the sauce, over low heat, to thicken it. Once sauce has reached desired consistency, add chicken and green beans back in and toss to coat.
 
Serve immediately on a bed of fluffy Jasmine rice.
 

*Note – 1 Tbsp of cornstarch can be substituted for the roux – just reserve 1/2 cup of the chicken broth initially, and mix that with the cornstarch. Add this mixture to sauce after chicken and string beans have been removed, and cook until thickened.

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Soft Ginger Cookies for Fall

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , on September 2, 2011 | 11 Comments »

A few weeks ago, a debate was struck up between myself and a friend on a highly sensitive topic. Cookies. That’s right.

I had perhaps crossed a line in making the bold statement: “It was the best cookie I’ve ever had.” I find cookies to be one of those things that people are very loyal about. Whether your favorite is a gooey chocolate chip, a Girl Scout Samoa, or a crisp shortbread, you’re likely to defend that cookie to any and all naysayers, while guarding the last few cookies in a secret stash for late night consumption. Doesn’t everyone do this?

It’s no secret that cookies have a special place in my heart. For years, cookie baking has been the quintessential mother-daughter bonding experience in my family (shopping holds a close second, obviously); cookies symbolize Christmas and Thanksgiving; a sweet edible way to dry my childhood tears and the most straightforward sign to show someone that you care. Given all that, I’ve baked a lot of cookies in my lifetime. A lot of really great, moist, crumbly, sweet, melt-in-your-mouth epic cookies that would disappear at family parties while my back was turned, or be the topic of conversation in mid-november, when the holiday season’s cookie plates were on the horizon. Yes, I’ve made raspberry bars, gingerbread men, chocolate chocolate chip and cherry, mint chip, candy cane toffee bars, rum balls, maple nut cups, roll-up cookies, and rugelach. And I thought I knew my favorite of them all – the sugary, doughy, just barely citrusy Lemon Drop cookies.

So when this cookie walked into my life one day and changed everything, it was something I had to talk about.

Don’t let the just-okay photo, which I hastily snapped with my iPhone as soon as I realized what a “big deal” this was, fool you. This Ginger Snap cookie from Ground Support in SoHo, which I stumbled across on a mid-afternoon coffee break one summer day, was so soft, so moist, so earthy and rich with mystical hints of clove and ginger, that I had no choice. It was, and is, the best cookie I’ve ever had.

This statement shocked and appalled my cookie-loving friend. He had grown up on the classic chocolate chip ooey-gooey cookies, and in his mind, nothing could top the sweet sugary dough encasing melting milk-chocolate morsels. The idea of a “Ginger Snap” cookie (though I explained that it didn’t really have much “snap” to it) being the best cookie anyone had ever eaten was so farfetched, it was outrageous.

But I wasn’t deterred. And a few days later, when I headed to Long Island for a brief staycation, I entered my mother’s kitchen – the cookie-baking-kitchen of my youth – on a mission to recreate the Ground Support Ginger cookie. Or rather, twenty four of them.

One sticky battle with a jar of molasses later, and they were done. I took the first bite, and was instantly disappointed. They just weren’t the same – they lacked something of the pillowy, slightly underdone moistness of the inspiration cookie I’d been so desperately craving. But then, I took another bite, because how can you not?

And then I saw things clearly – how the cloves broke through the sugar and cinnamon to give a suggestion of Autumn, of richness, that just-can’t-put-your-finger-on-it quality that bakers strive for. The molasses took a traditional ginger snap, and made it chewy and soft and unique, providing a slightly more elevated flavor profile than your Grandmother’s ginger cookie. And when the cookies were taste tested by a jury of other cookie experts (i.e., my family), they were frankly blow away, throwing out statements equally strong as my original claim, like “best cookie you’ve ever made,” and “if we sold these, we’d be rich!”

But because I know how important these cookies are, despite their chocolate chip free make-up, I thought it best to share them rather than sell them. Plus, what better way to celebrate the start of the fall season than with a cookie that celebrates the flavors of Autumn.

Soft Ginger Cookies

Makes 24 – Adapted from All-Recipes.com

Ingredients

  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1/4 cup robust molasses
  • 2 tablespoons white sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

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