God Bless Julia Childs and Augratin Potatoes Thursday, Oct 21 2010

I love old cook books. Much has been made about Julia Childs recently…even a movie about blogging about her. So, I am not going that route. What I will say is that there are few recipes as simple and delicious as her basic recipe for Augratin Potatoes (or Gratin Dauphinois as they are called in her cookbook). So, I thought I would blog about how I take time-honored and tested recipes like this and make them work with my life and my kitchen tools.

So, let me say, for the most part, I stick to the basics of the recipe. The ratios of cheese, butter, potatoes, and milk/cream are really well-balanced in the original recipe. Why mess with a good thing. I do though find it hard to pull out the mandoline on a school night, slice a couple of pounds of potatoes, and get dinner on the table in time. So, I buy the Simply Potatoes presliced potatoes from the refrigerated section of the store. They may not be as pretty as ones that I would slice myself, but I am not sure they taste any different. One bag will do it for the recipe.

Another thing I change is the baking dish. I forgo the butter of a pretty ceramic baking dish and make the dish in my Demarle Round Mold. Absolutely nothing gets stuck  and baked on. So, there is no need to soak the pan. As you can see from the pictures, the is no baked on cheese ring when you spoon the potatoes out. If you need to put a pretty serving dish on the table, simply pull down the side of the mold and slide the potatoes over to a serving dish.

Scalloped Potatoes
based on Julia Child’s recipe, but made a little easier

Ingredients:

1 bag of Simply Potatoes pre-sliced potatoes (or, of course you could get out the mandoline and go crazy on some potatoes)

1 tsp garlic powder (could replace with fresh, but this is easier)

4 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 cup (4 ounces) grated Swiss cheese (I used Sargento)

3/4 cup boiling milk plus

1/4 cup boiling heavy cream (boil the two together)

1) Preheat oven to 425F.

2) If you are not using a Demarle mold, then you will need to butter your dish.

3) Spread half of them in the bottom of the dish. Divide over them half the salt, pepper, cheese, and butter.

4) Arrange the remaining potatoes over the first layer and season. Spread on the rest of the cheese and divide the butter over it. Pour on the boiling milk.

5) Bake the potatoes for 20 to 30 minutes until the top is brown and the potatoes are tender.

Leave a Response »

 

Demarle Product Demonstration Time! Wednesday, Oct 20 2010

I am hosting a Demarle demonstration at my house this weekend with a “Southern Saturday Tailgating” theme.

Come see how your Silpat and other Demarle products can be your “Most Valuable Player”!

RSVP deta.adams@gmail.com

Leave a Response »

 

Microwave Peanut Brittle! I feel so 80′s! Friday, Oct 15 2010

Remember when your family got their first microwave ? When we headed to the TG&Y to buy our first microwave, I was a wee child riding in the seat in the shopping cart. I vividly remember the salesman in the store cooking us a baked potato while he talked to my dad about the mircle of the technology. I must say, it left a huge impression on me….maybe it is why I went on the study all forms of electromagnetic radiation in college…..maybe not. Maybe I have just always been an enginerd, and well, having a salesman cook you a “baked” potato in the middle of TG&Y is one of those things not easily forgotten.

We bought a microwave that night and even sprung for one with a heat element so you could “brown” things that you cooked. I remember my mom making pineapple upside down cake and using the “browning” feature. It was tasty, but it was soon clear that the oven still reigned supreme in cake baking. The microwave came with a cookbook with recipes to cook lots of different foods in the microwave. Man, I wish I had that cookbook now.

I was taken back to that time tonight when I attempted a recipe that I got through my Demarle network. It is for Microwave Peanut Brittle. It was touted as foul proof and done in 10 minutes. Plus the silicone mold that it cooks and cools in leave the brick in the shape of a flower. What is not to love about that?

It was just as easy as advertised and there was not a whole lot of room for error. I think the most important thing is not to burn the sugar or burn yourself with sticky molten sugar while stirring. I have taken photos of my creation. I haven’t tried it in a regular glass bowl, but the Demarle Silicone Flower Mold worked like a champ!

Microwave Peanut Brittle

1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup Light corn syrup
1 1/2 cup Spanish Peanuts
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine the sugar, syrup, and peanuts in the mold and stir to combine. Make sure that the mold is on a microwave safe plate of glass insert in the microwave. Microwave for 8 to 10 minutes until the sugar is browned stirring every 3 minutes. Be careful not to touch the molten sugar. When the microwaving is finished add the butter, baking soda, and vanilla and stir carefully. Let cool in the Demarle Mold. In two hours, remove from the mold and wrap with plastic wrap.

Makes a cool gift when you use plastic wrap to “shrink wrap” it and decorate with a bow.

Leave a Response »

 

Chicken Pesto Pizza Thursday, Oct 14 2010

The chicken pesto pizza is a treat in my house.  It came about as a frantic way to get rid of some left over diced cooked chicken and some pesto. That night it was love at first sight for my husband who really loved the fact that I made the crust a little too thick and it ended up kinda being a chicken pesto foccacia. He folded the left overs over the next day in a sandwich fashion and called it a “wonderful sandwich”.

For the next year, he begged me to make it again for him. But alas, I was pregnant and grumpy, and nauseous (for eight long months), so he had to wait for his birthday dinner before I was over the morning sickness and happy to be back in the kitchen. After that dinner, we have had it several times since. It is an easy dinner, especially if you use Pillsbury’s pizza crust from a can (I normally make my own, but you know how I am). The pesto is the key. I have already told you how that I make that.

Chicken Pesto Pizza

Pizza Crust (store bought or make your own)
3/4 cup pesto
1 cup diced, cooked chicken
1 to 2 cups of Italian blend finely shredded cheese

Spread out your pizza dough on a Silpat. If the dough is too elastic, let it rest for a few minutes and then stretch it out more. Once the dough reaches out to the corners of the Silpat, cover the dough with pesto evenly leaving a 1 inch crust line around the outside of the pizza. Sprinkle the dough with diced chicken. Top with the shredded cheese.

Bake on the Silpat at 450F for 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted.

My dough on the Silpat

Waiting for the Cheese….

Leave a Response »

 

Charleston Chutney Wednesday, Oct 13 2010

There are many many chutney recipes in the world. So, when I read the recipe for Chicken Salad from the Charleston Junior League Cookbook, I was puzzled to see “Chutney” as one of the ingredients with no further explanation. I looked further into the cookbook and could find no definitive recipe for just “chutney”. I would find one version that called itself, “Cranberry Orange Chutney” or “Hot Pear Chutney”, but none that were considered, “chutney”. I was worried that these more specific chutneys would lend too much of their featured flavors and overpower the chicken salad.  So, I looked to another Charleston source to get the best answer I could. The 82 Queen restaurant in Charleston self-published a cookbook a few years ago. In the back of the cookbook there was a recipe for just “chutney”. It was a blend of cinnamon, vinegar, and diced pears and apples. It seemed like the perfect blend of flavors to compliment a chicken salad adding layers of flavor to the freshness of the salad.

So, here we are at the end of apple and pear season. If you find yourself with a bumper crop of apples (sour ones work really well) or pears, then dice them up finely and put together a large pot of chutney. We canned ours so we could add it by the cupfuls to chicken salad throughout the year. It is also great when poured over pork chops before baking or as a spread on a chicken panini.

Charleston Chutney
adapted from the 82 Queen Anniversary Cookbook

10 apples, peeled, cored, and diced finely
10 pears, peeled, cored, and diced finely
1/2 pound golden raisins
3 cups water
3 cups sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp salt
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp minced garlic

Put all ingredients in a large pot with a heavy bottom. Simmer slowly for one hour. Remove cinnamon sticks. Yields 2 quarts of chutney.

Everything in the pot and ready for the slow simmer

After simmering for an hour, all of the flavors have melded

Leave a Response »

 

Meatballs…THAT’S Amore! Wednesday, Oct 13 2010

My dear friend Julia may kill me for this. She shared her secret family recipe for meatballs with me. These melt in your mouth with buttery, cheesy, garlicy, love and tenderness flavor. Most meatballs are just not flavorful and seasoned enough for me, or some others are too salty and tough. Some are gritty and greasy leading me to believe they are made from low quality meat. The biggest difference with Julia’s meatballs, I think, is that they do not contain eggs. Which thrills me since Izzy has an egg allergy. These get their liquid binder from milk and creaminess from cheese.

I bake the meatballs instead of pan frying them. I use a Silpat to make sure they are not soggy on the bottom (and they won’t stick!) I took some pictures along the way while making them to show off the cooking technique. I can whip these up as quick as meatloaf so there is no reason to wait for a special occasion.

Julia Olafson’s Delicious Meatballs

1 cup Bread Crumbs (I use Progresso Italian Breadcrumbs)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion salt
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 pound extra lean ground beef
3/4 cup milk (whole is best)

Mix all of the ingredients by hand until mix through. Make into consistently sized balls. I make them 1 to 1 1/2 inch in diameter. Place on a Silpat (or a sheet pan lined with parchment or foil) a couple of inches apart. Bake at 325F for 10 minutes. Flip the meatballs over and bake an additional 10 minutes. Test one ball to make sure it is cooked through. (Eat this one hot with no sauce….you won’t be sorry).

You can add these to a simmering tomato sauce of you can cover them with a cream sauce like I did after these photos were taken.

Here they are before cooking….ready for the oven!

Here they are coming out of the oven!

Notice how nice and evenly browned they are!

One happy customer….Thanks Julia!

Nothing sticks to a Silpat! This Silpat took exactly 30 seconds to wash and get completely clean in hot soapy water.

Leave a Response »

 

My Favorite Cookies: Amaretti Monday, Sep 6 2010

Ever since our first trip to Italy, Chris and I have been in search of the perfect almond cookie recipe. Ones just like we found in bakeries that pepper the streets there. There are the traditional hard amaretti that traditionally dipped in a dessert wine like a biscotti, and then there is the soft amaretti that melts in your mouth. This is our favorite.

This recipe is as close as I have found. You kinda have to be a fan of almonds to like the cookie, but it’s flavor is so unique that it takes me immediately back to Italy.

Soft chewy and lovely. The only detractor is that the recipe is pretty expensive to make. Especially with Grand Mariner as the flavor enhancement.

Grand Mariner Amaretti Cookies

1 large egg white
2 cans of Odense Almond Paste
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted, plus some for coating
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon Grand Mariner
1/2 teaspoon salt

Use an electric mixer to combine the ingredient above until consistently mixed. Make 1 inch balls of dough and roll each ball of dough in powered sugar. Place the balls on a Silpat (or regular ol’ cookie sheet lined with parchment paper) two inches apart.

Bake at 350 F for around 15 minutes.

Italians enjoy these with a sweet dessert wine. I think that they go great with your favorite coffee.

Leave a Response »

 

Cooking with Heirlooms… And we ain’t talking tomatoes! Sunday, Aug 29 2010

Today’s cooking has a lot of nostalgia attached to it. Today Chris made corn bread fingers in my Granny’s cast iron “corn cob” pan. It makes cute little fingers in the shape of ears of corn on the cob.

I love the way that the butter goes on just like it would a real ear of corn. I also love that it is one of the few things that Granny passed on to me because she knew how much I love to cook.

I miss her so much, but I don’t have to look far to see her in my children and in my kitchen.

One Response »

 

Making Your Own Red Pepper Flakes Saturday, Aug 28 2010

This is the time of the year when vendors at the farmer’s market practically beg you to take their hot peppers. So I asked one vendor to describe to me how to make them into red pepper flakes. I am excited to have a new way to preserve a bumper crop for use in warming winter stews.

The first step is to wash your peppers. I buy from an organic local grower, so I know they are free of chemicals, but all gardens are full of dirt.

Thread a sewing needle with a clean cotton thread. Pull the thread through until you have two to three feet from the needle to where the two ends meet. Tie the ends together. Take a safety pin and tie it two the end where the ends are knotted together. This will keep your peppers in place.

Now start stringing! Just insert the needle in one side of the pepper and out the other side. Keep adding peppers until you have about 9 inches left of thread.

Cut the thread at the needle and tie another small safety pin on the end. You can put the pin on a nail to Jung the string somewhere to dry the peppers.

Now comes the waiting. But really, there is a lot to watch going on while you wait. In the case of my cayennes, they go from deep green to bright red and then to deeper colors as they dry.

Once dry, I will crumble them into flakes and vacuum pack them to keep them fresh.

3 Responses »

 

Mellow Mushroom – Chattanooga Saturday, Aug 14 2010

I recently spent a girls night out in downtown Chattanooga. We stated within walking distance of the Mellow Mushroom, so it was an easy choice for dinner. I love the place for pizza and have visited various locations over the course of the past 15 years. We were starving by the time that we made it to our table, so we quickly placed an appetizer order for hummus with pitas. I had never order anything that was not bread or pizza related at Mellow Mushroom, so this was new for me. We also order a half order of the garlic parmesan pretzels. For my entrée, I ordered my old stand by: the House Calzone. I have loved this since my first visit to Mellow. It blends fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, and spinach with mozzarella cheese.

The hummus and pitas arrived first. The plating looked really fresh and beautiful. It consisted of about a cup of hummus, some warm pitas, and a garnish of a mix of chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, and olives. This was nicely seasoned and the cucumbers were such a nice addition. We shamelessly cleaned the plate angling for the last bites.

Next came the pretzels. The half order includes three but they are really big and three were plenty for the four of us.

By the time I got the calzone, I was starting to wonder if I was too full of appetizers, to conquer the size of it, but when it arrived, it was an easy sell. The House Calzone is a beautiful blend of fresh spinach, tomatoes, and mushrooms with nicely melted cheese. All wrapped in a very chewy yet crisp calzone bread. It is even better during the summer when tomatoes are in season.

We were way too stuffed for dessert, so we waddled back to the hotel.

Scores out of 10:
Food: 9
Service: 8
Price: 8
Overall: 9

Mellow Mushroom
205 Broad Street
Chattanooga, TN

2 Responses »