Chicken Rolls with Manchego & Peppers

Our kitchen feels small. Smaller than I remembered. I guess it is small, but I still like it. Nate & Carrie's kitchen was big. Like, really big. Cooking in there the past week was great (thanks guys). Now that they're back from their honeymoon & we're back in California things have snapped back to reality. Back to the tiny kitchen. With rainbows (thanks to a couple of crystals in my stocking.)

Chicken Rolls with Manchego & Peppers, for 2
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded flat
1/2 red bell pepper (or 2 very small peppers)
1/2 yellow bell pepper (or 2 very small peppers)
3/4 c. - 1 c. grated Manchego cheese
1 yellow onion
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt to taste
pepper to taste
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cilantro

Wrap the chicken in saran wrap & pound it flat with the back of a skillet or mallet if you have it. Once flat, slice in half. You should have 4 smallish, flat strips of chicken. Set the chicken aside.

Heat a glug of olive oil in an oven safe skillet. Slice the onions & peppers in strips. Toss in the oil, add the salt, pepper, cumin & cilantro & sauté until soft & golden. Set aside.

Salt & pepper each chicken strip, then sprinkle with cheese & a few strips of pepper & onions. Roll up (like a burrito) & secure with toothpicks.

Turn the oven up to 400 & re-heat the skillet with a bit more oil. Brown the chicken rolls all over, about 5 - 7 minutes then pop in the oven until cooked through, about 15 minutes. If you have any cheese left over, sprinkle it over the top & serve with a green salad.

Croissants

Another cool California morning with coffee & croissants. After weeks of migas, chorizo, huevos monteleños, hot cakes, tacos & all things dense in Texas it's about all I can handle. I've yet to attempt a batch of home-made croissants but I've been eyeing Tartine & Julia Child's recipes. For now though, I'll stick to easy eggs.

Balsamic Truffles & Gianduja Bars

I was scraping the bottom of the bowl with my fingertips shamelessly hunting down the last smudge of batter. Raw eggs be damned. I plopped a messy bowl in Ray's lap & generously offered him a lick or two. He accepted.

Balsamic Truffles, makes about 12 - 16
2 tbsp. good balsamic vinegar
8 oz. good dark chocolate
1/4 c. heavy cream
1/4 c. coco powder

Melt the chocolate with the cream over a double boiler (or in a microwave in short bursts). Add the vinegar & stir in. Let the mixture cool in the fridge for 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Using a tablespoon (or any other spoon) scoop out a little bit & roll it into balls in the palms of your hands. You will get messy, promise. Roll the balls in coco powder.


Gianduja Bars, make 12
12 brownies (homemade, box mix or store bought will work)
1/4 c. nutella
1/4 c. toasted hazelnuts
1/4 c. chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375F. Spread the brownies with nutella. Tops with hazelnuts & chocolate chips. Bake for 5 minutes or until the chips melt a tad. Refrigerate until the nutella topping hardens.

Sesame Snapper with Caper Remoulade & Dijon Green Beans

We're sitting on top of a messy shag run. Surrounded by books. Really too many books for such a tiny place. But I guess you can't expect much else when you're in the fog of grad school. Mess or not, we're saddled up to the coffee table sitting Indian style on the floor making the most of it. Eating crunchy fish, cheesy eggs, eggplant stir-fry, delivery pizza, lots of pizza, salads with capers, chili.

This has been the last two months. Many meals seemed unremarkable, so I kept them to myself. Well, myself & Ray, but he's a good sport. In the thick of it a nice dinner or two eked out. Things like: Parmesan Polenta with Egg & Roasted Mushrooms or Lamb Chops with Salsa Verde & Sauteed Eggplant. The Vanilla Bean & Butternut Squash Risotto was particularly good. Right now though, it's Sesame Snapper with Dijon Green Beans. These green beans, man, they're something.


Sesame Snapper with Caper Remoulade & Dijon Green Beans, for two
2 skinless red snapper fillets
1/4 c. toasted sesame seeds
1/4 c. seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 c. mayonaise
2 tbsp. spicy brown mustard
2 tsp. rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp. capers
1/4 lbs. green beans
1 shallot minced
3 tbsp. dijon mustard
3 tbsp. olive oil, devided
1 tsp. rice wine vinegar
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat & give the sesame seeds a swirl or two to toast them, about 3 minutes. Set the sesame seeds aside then, add a glug of olive oil & let it warm. Meanwhile, salt & pepper the fish. Toss the bread crumbs & sesame seeds together with a little more salt & pepper. Press the mixture frimly into the fish. Add the fish to the pan & brown, about 4 minutes on each side.


Meanwhile, blanche the green beans in boiling water, about 3 minutes. Drain & set aside. While the fish finishes cooking & the green beans cool, make the dressings. For the caper remoulade, combine the mayo, brown mustard, rice wine vinegar, capers, salt & pepper. For the dijon sauce (for the green beans), combine the dijon, remaining olive oil, shallot, rice wine vinegar, salt & pepper.

Toss the green beans in the dijon dressing & spoon a bit of the caper remoulade over the fish (or serve it on the side, your call).

A quick programing note...

I haven't run off and abandoned you, dear readers. I have however been a terrible delinquent when it comes to the kitchen. In the past month I have moved, taken on a new job, was re-hired at my old job and adopted a dog. Sure, it's nothing like opening your own restaurant or having a baby, but it's overwhelming none the less. I've fallen back on my staples of quick pastas, soups and beloved take out Chinese. Don't fret though - I believe I'm telling myself this more than you - I will be back. Busy schedule be damned. More soon...promise.

Tomato-Bacon Soup with Gouda Chive "Biscuits"

I adore rainy days. In East Texas we had plenty of them. I spent many of them on a damp gray front porch tossing every blanket I could capture over white rocking chairs lined back to back. My favorite was a bright red, yellow, blue and green buffalo plaid with little tassels. I think that one's still tossed over a chair on the front porch. If my little brother was lucky, I would invite him into my makeshift shelter to watch the storm roll in over the sprawling valley my grandparents porch loomed over. He usually brought along his tattered striped blanket - white with thin primary red, yellow, blue and green stripes - it was practically thread bare, but he loved it. Usually after the rainy chill had fully set in my grandma would stick her head out the door and call us in for lunch. Grilled cheese, casseroles, and hot dogs were common. We loved everything she fed us. She was a master at "kid food," cheese toast and honey toast (just what the sound like) were, respectively, my all time favorites. Tomato soup wasn't in common rotation to my recollection, but I imagine that if she'd had this recipe she would have brought us mugs of this sharp, salty soup with a gooey slice of cheese toast.

Tomato-Bacon Soup, for 8
4 slices bacon slices, diced
2 15 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 dzn. sweet grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. fresh basil, minced
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
1 c. chicken stock (homemade if you can!)
1/4 c. red wine
splash bourbon
1/2 c. cream
1/4 tsp. pimenton (smoked paprika)
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
pinch sugar
salt to taste
pepper to taste

In a deep dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat, fry the bacon. Once crisp, remove it from the pan to a paper towel to drain. In the fat, saute the onions, garlic, cherry tomatoes and herbs. Once soft, about 3 - 4 minutes, add the stock, bourbon, wine and tomato sauce. Then add the smoked paprika, red pepper, salt, pepper and sugar.

Bring up to a simmer. At this point you can either simmer for some time to let the flavors more fully combine, or you can go ahead and add the remaining ingredients. Regardless, prior to serving, stir in the cream and bacon. Top with a bit more basil if you like.

Gouda Chive "Biscuits," makes 12
1 tube prepared croissant dough
2 tbsp. chives, minced
2 tbsp. gouda, grated

Preheat the oven according to package directions. Contrary to package directions, cut the dough into 1/2" rounds and top with gouda and chives. Bake about 15 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the "biscuits" are golden.

Goodbye Gourmet

As I'm sure you all know by now, the incomparable Gourmet is ceasing publication. It will be tough to imagine a world without such a culinary keystone. I remember flipping through my step-grandmother's stacks of back issues as a little girl - all those glossy pages filled with impeccable dinners, words I couldn't yet digest, and that fantastic winding title script (I'm a sucker for a nice font)! I'm sure her infamous hollandaise sauce and creamy cheese cake came from between those pages. My grandfather's steak that always went alongside the two prior dishes, that's another story...

"Gourmet showed us the real possibilities of food: It wasn't just to nourish the body or excite the palate, but to engage the mind and imagination, to magnify our experience, bringing us more fully into our senses, allowing us to be more completely alive."


Goodbye, Gourmet.

Images, top to bottom: Seriously Wine and Gourmet Magazine
Quote: Diana Abu-Jaber for NPR