Pretending it's Warm Out

Grilled Shrimp with Chilled Couscous Salad

This week my East Coast Affiliates in VT, RI, and NY (/my mom, dad and sister) have reported temperatures in the 80's-90's. I thought maybe I could will it to be as warm in Chicago by cooking a light, summery meal.

I picked up a box of whole wheat couscous at Trader Joe's, along with some mini grape tomatoes, flat leaf parsley, green onion, and a can of chickpeas. I cooked 1 1/4 cup of the couscous in 1/2 cup hot water, adding about 1/2 cup of lemon juice, about a teaspoon of cumin, and several good drizzles of olive oil. I then added some chopped parsley, about a cup of chopped green onion, halved tomatoes, and the can of chickpeas (rinsed & drained). I seasoned with salt and pepper, gave it a good stir, and let the salad sit in the fridge so that the flavors could come together.

Trevor picked up 1/2 a pound of great looking shrimp at Dirk's Fish, which I peeled and de-veined and tossed with some olive oil, S&P, and paprika, and "grilled" on the stove.

We don't often eat seafood in Chicago (the good stuff tends to be expensive, and it's not always that good), but these shrimp were definitely worth the $10/half pound. The salad was fresh and healthful, and would work with any number of ingredients or fresh herbs. Though it's not yet warm out, this dinner was a little reprieve from the cold and rainy weather.

Lemon Chicken and Pasta

This was an easy 1-pot meal, well except for the pasta.

1 TBS Cumin

1 TBS Dry Thyme

2 TBS Capers

3 Garlic Cloves

Lemongrass

1 Lemon

1/4 Yellow Onion

Chicken Stock

1/4 Cup White Wine

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts- chopped into bigger then bite sized pieces

I softened the garlic and onions then added the chicken, lemon, white wine, lemongrass, cumin, thyme, capers and chicken stock until it was about 1 inch over the top. I covered and let simmer on low for 20 minutes. Then I took off the cover and removed the lemons and lemongrass. I did this because sometimes lemon if overcooked can turn bitter. Then I added a dollop of sour cream in order to make the sauce a bit creamy and simmered uncovered for another 20-30 minutes until the sauce had reduced down. I served with thin spaghetti. Even though this dish was very simple, it got rave BF reviews. The chicken was really tender and the sauce was very balanced.

Frenched Lamb Chops with Boursin Mashed Potatoes and Sweet Green Peas.

I purchased these beautiful Frenched lamb chops from our local butcher, Ottomanelli's. I've been sitting on them because I was a little nervous about ruining something so pretty! But last night I decided to take the plunge. This menu required few ingredients and zero prep.

Frenched Lamb Chops with Boursin Mashed Potatoes and Sweet Green Peas

Served with a Bib Lettuce Salad with Radishes and Blue Cheese

4 French Ribbed Lamb Chops

2 Scallions

Frozen Peas

Small Red Potatoes

Boursin Cheese

Butter

S&P, Dried Rosemary I started out by prepping my ingredients- chopping potatoes to boiling size, chopping scallion into 3 inch long stems for garnish. I quick threw together a salad by halving the mini Bibb lettuce and adding thinly sliced red/purple radishes, diced red onion, blue cheese and a sprinkle of lemon juice and olive oil. I boiled the potatoes for apx 10 minutes. While the potatoes were boiling I seasoned the lamb chops with S&P, dried rosemary and a bit of olive oil then seared in a hot pan for 4 mins per side. The recipe I followed said 2-3 per side but when I did that they came out almost fully raw. Also, a note of caution. These have a lot of fat on them so they will sizzle sizzle SPLATTER. When the lamb had finished cooking I removed and tented with foil to let the juices redistribute. I dropped the scallions in for a quick char and then drained on a paper towel. At this point my potatoes were done boiling and I mashed with 1/4 cup of Boursin and a a tbs of butter. I defrosted the peas in the microwave and added a bit of butter. The lamb chops developed this delicious crisp on the outside due to all of the fat on them. By the end we were nibbling on them like ribs to get all of the meat off the bone. This meal was delicious, easy and looked beautiful on a plate. Definitely going to be a repeat! Prep: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Michigan Weekend

This weekend we went to Michigan for a little R&R. Normally we'd be out and about, walking on the beach and sitting on the deck. Unfortunately, it was POURING rain from the moment we arrived. Fortunately, we brought along some groceries and a 1,000 piece puzzle to keep ourselves occupied.

At Whole Foods I picked up a package of frozen DuFour Puff Pastry, a block of gruyere, and some asparagus, along with a small fryer (chicken), a bulb of fennel, onion, garlic and some lemons. We made a decadent tart with the asparagus and gruyere, and then had some roast chicken a la Deirdre and Molly O'C's delicious recipe. We seasoned the chicken well with salt and pepper, and then stuffed some minced garlic and butter in pockets under the skin. We stuffed the cavity with chopped fennel and 1/2 a lemon, and then put more fennel and onion around the chicken and let it roast in a 375 oven for a little over an hour. This chicken smells divine, and always comes out so moist and flavorful.

We didn't finish the puzzle, but we did relax and really enjoy our time being in such a peaceful, beautiful place.

Out & About: NYC

This weekend I did a lot of eating out, which meant no cooking- but I thought I would share some of the fun places I checked out for the first time.

Thursday: Peking Duck House, 28 Mott Street, Chinatown NYC

On Thursday my friends and I went to the Peking Duck House. It has a reputation for being a true foodie experience, and it delivered. We arrived with no reservations and our party of four was seated within 20 minutes. For $27 per person we got 1 Peking duck, 2 entrees and an assortment of 3 appetizers. This was absolutely more food then we could handle! The added bonus is that the restaurant is BYOB which made for an inexpensive evening. Shout out to Lauren for coordinating the adventure! If you aren't familiar with Peking Duck, it is most notable because of the crispy skin that accompanies the juicy roasted meat. Wikipedia has a history of how Peking ducks are bred and prepared to get this result. Basically they pump air between the skin and the fat which allows it to crisp up when cooking. The full duck is brought to the table so guests can "ooo and ahh" then the chef expertly slices it table-side. It's served with pancakes, scallions, cucumbers and hoisin sauce. We also enjoyed the General Tso's Chicken and the Scallion Pork entrees. If I go back I would be a little adventurous and test out the jelly fish appetizer. A note of caution- Make sure you drink a lot of water after this meal because I woke up with a WICKED salt hangover.

Saturday: Picnic, Sheep's Meadow- Central Park, NYC

I woke up bright and early and prepared a picnic for our first Saturday at the park. I would have included pictures but I, of course, left my camera at home. For the side dishes I prepared roasted brussel sprouts and a simple potato salad with a dressing of mayo, mustard, green onion, red onion, lemon and cumin. For our sandwiches I sliced up precooked chicken sausages lengthwise and quick pan seared them. I served them on a baguette spread with Boursin cheese and added tomatoes and arugula.

Saturday Night: Keens Steakhouse, NYC

This was the highlight of the weekend's eating. Keens Steakhouse was established in 1885 and is famous for their Mutton Chop, ambiance and high profile clientele. Keens theatre district location led it to become a hot spot for actors, playwrights and famous guests associated with the local theatre community. The famous guests of years past left their mark by leaving behind their smoking pipes. As was tradition, guests would leave their pipes at the restaurant as the pipes were too fragile to carry around. Most notably you can see the pipes of Teddy Roosevelt, Babe Ruth, Albert Einstein, George M. Cohan, J.P. Morgan, General Douglas MacArthur and Buffalo Bill.

(picture care of http://www.flickr.com/photos/keenssteakhouse/)

This restaurant gets HUGE points in my book for the perfectly prepared food, albeit expensive, and the kind of service you rarely see in NYC- friendly, speedy and gracious. Keens is famous for their Mutton Chop but I went with the T-Bone and barely got through one quarter- so make sure you arrive HUNGRY! I also recommend the seafood platter which comes with lobster, crab, oysters, muscles, clams. More bonus points for serving crudite on the table at the start- it's a great substitute to filling up on bread. After such a fun weekend I was really unhappy about going to back to work. But as the perfect culmination of a foodie weekend, this morning I walked past Chef Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin, walking his daughter to school. What a TREAT!

Lemon Asparagus Pasta with Middle Eastern Beef Patties

Thank you to Caitlin for filling in while I was working in Boston for the marathon. Luckily it wasn't all work- I had a few fantastic meals, but enjoying a Monster Dog from our Green Monster seats at Fenway took the cake! Or pork as it were.... This recipe was born from the strange array of ingredients I had in my fridge after a week of no grocery shopping. I was looking for a light, refreshing and springy meal!

Lemon Asparagus Pasta

• Zest of 2 Lemons
• Olive Oil
• 1 Bundle Asparagus
• S&P
• 2 Chives- chopped

Middle Eastern Beef Patties

• 1 Cup Frozen Peas (defrosted)
• 2 Tabelspoons Za'atar
• 1 TBS Cumin
• 1 TSP Chili Powder
• 1 TBS Freshly Grated Ginger
• 3/4 Cup Minced Onions (about 1/3 onion)
• 3 Garlic Cloves Minced
• Large handful Parsley- Chopped
• 1 Tomato- quickly sauteed to condense the juices
• 1 TBS Sour Cream
• 2 egg yolks

Lemon Asparagus Sauce This was SUPER easy. I chopped the asparagus into 1 inch bites and dropped in boiling water for 3 minutes. I removed the asparagus from the boiling water with a slatted spoon in order to reserve the liquid for cooking the pasta. I quick ran it under cold water to stop the cooking process and blended in my Cuisinart with the zest of 2 lemons and the juice of one lemon. I then added about 1/4 cup olive oil, and S&P to taste. DONE in under 10 mins. Next I began the mix for the beef patties. The inspiration for this portion of the meal was Indian samosas. Samosas are a fried triangle pastry shell commonly filled with meat, potatoes and peas. In order to make sure the patties were properly seasoned I decided to mix all of the ingredients except for the meat & two egg yokes first. I blended all of the ingredients except for one handful of peas, I wanted to add this in later for texture. Once blended I stirred in the last handful of peas and taste tested. This mix would be a great sauce for almost anything- really light and had a beautiful color. I folded the mix into the meat and 2 egg yokes (binding purposes) and let rest. I shaped the meat mixture into small patties and grilled about 2-3 minutes per side until browned. For this pasta I chose a Campanelle because it really holds sauce well. After boiling I tossed the pasta with the asparagus lemon mix, the chopped chives and a handful of Parmesan. I topped the pasta with the patties, a dollop of sour cream and a sprig of parsley for accent purposes. Both of the dish's elements were delicious and tasted good together. However, next time I might serve the patties with other ingredients that had more of a Middle Eastern flair- cous cous, gyro, greek salad etc... As far as the pasta it was fresh and delicious and would pair wonderfully a spicy grilled shrimp.

Middle East Feast

Pistachio and Dill Basmati Rice with Lamb Rosettes and Grilled Zucchini

If you haven't already guessed, Chicago's Paulina Meat Market is one of my favorite grocery destinations. They have an amazing butcher shop along with many hard-to-find gourmet food items. I found these beautiful skewered lamb "rosettes" last weekend, and decided to incorporate them into a Middle Eastern inspired meal. The meat was lean and very tender, and 3 skewers (at around $10) was more than enough for the two of us. If you can't find lamb rosettes, regular lamb kabobs will work just fine. I started out by seasoning the skewers with cumin, salt and pepper, and then marinating them in a mixture of minced garlic, olive oil, and lemon juice. I set the skewers aside and started on the rice, which is a Persian recipe that I found on epicurious.com. I boiled a little over a cup of basmati rice for about ten minutes in lightly salted water, and then drained the rice. I wiped out the pot (my heavy lidded Le Creuset) and put a big pat of butter in the bottom and swirled it around over low heat. I then spooned in a layer of rice, followed by a layer of chopped dill and raw pistachios, another layer of rice, more dill and pistachios, and a final top layer of rice. Using the handle of a wooden spoon I made five holes in the rice, covered the rice with a tea towel, and then put the lid on and left to cook for about 35 minutes over medium-low heat. While the rice was cooking I grilled some zucchini spears (olive oil, S&P, and a splash of lemon juice), and then grilled my lamb for approximately ten minutes, rotating the skewers so that each side of the rosettes had a nice sear. The lamb was delicious and perfectly seasoned, but the surprise star of this meal was the rice. I have never been a huge fan of dill, and even Trevor commented that he wasn't sure if this was going to be a workable combination. The flavor of the dill, pistachios and the buttery, crunchy crust that formed on the bottom of the rice (called Tah-dig, see above photo), made for an almost dessert-like side dish-- it was so good! I think this rice would also be wonderful with fish, and I will definitely make it again!

Flat Iron Steaks with Herb Butter, and Sour Cream & Dill Potato Salad

A few weeks ago Trevor and I came across a very informative article in Saveur magazine about the Flat Iron steak. I am not a steak connoisseur, but apparently the Flat Iron is the second most tender cut next to the filet, and is far less expensive. I picked up some Flat Iron steaks at the Paulina Meat market for Sunday's dinner, and set to work planning the rest of the menu. For a side dish, Trevor suggested a potato salad with sour cream. I don't know why I've never thought to put sour cream in my potato salad, because I love the combination of sour cream with baked potatoes or with potato chips. Adding sour cream makes a really fluffy, creamy dressing, and I'm glad I discovered this little secret because I think this is the best potato salad I've ever made. For the potato salad I boiled about two pounds of red skin potatoes. When the potatoes were cooked through I ran them under some cold water, diced them, put them in a large bowl, and mixed in one tablespoon of distilled white vinegar and about 1 1/2 tbsps of lemon juice. For the dressing I whisked together equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise, about a tablespoon of mustard, a few tablespoons of fresh chopped dill, and salt and pepper. I dressed the potatoes, adding sliced celery and white onion, and put the salad in the fridge.

Next I got to work on an herb butter for the steak, combining one small chopped shallot, parsley, chives, and fresh ground pepper with a big hunk of butter in my food processor. When everything was well blended, I put the butter in a dish in the fridge to firm up. Trevor seasoned the steaks with salt and pepper and cooked them in grapeseed oil in a hot hot cast iron skillet, about 5 minutes per side. The herb butter. I have to say I am a huge fan of the Flat Iron steak. The meat was tender yet slightly chewy, very flavorful, and at about $5/steak a very affordable cut of meat. The potato salad was soft and creamy, brightened by the fresh taste of dill and the crunch of raw celery. The only shortfall of the meal was the herb butter. It was beautiful to look at, but the raw shallots gave the butter a pronounced raw onion flavor (and smell!) that overpowered the rest of the herbs and the flavor of the meat. If I made herb butter again I would saute the shallots first, let them cool, and then blend with the rest of the ingredients.

Cheesy Rice Pie

I have seen a few variations of a cheesy rice casserole in the blogosphere, and thought I'd give it a try. This casserole was super easy and super tasty, and a nice alternative to a baked pasta dish. We had it as our entree, but I think it would be an excellent side dish for a roast chicken or pork dish. Anything really! I started out by cooking one cup of long grain white rice. While the rice was cooking I sliced and sauteed some cremini mushrooms (probably four cups uncooked), one shallot and one clove of minced garlic in a mixture of butter and olive oil. I seasoned the mushrooms with a bit of marjoram and crushed red pepper, and when they were browned I removed them from the pan and put them in a large bowl. I then added some chopped rainbow chard to the pan and let that wilt down before adding to the bowl with the mushrooms. When my rice was cooked I put that in the bowl with the mushrooms and chard. In a smaller bowl I beat together one egg, about 1/2 a small container of sour cream (it was all we had left!), about a cup of milk, a big handful of grated gruyere cheese, and salt and pepper. I mixed the cream mixture in with the rice, chard, and mushrooms, and then put it in a round pie/cake pan. You could use any casserole dish or even a cast iron skillet. I topped off the "pie" with a generous grating of gruyere, and put it in a 375 oven for twenty minutes or so. The cheese on top melted and formed a wonderful crust. The rice underneath was creamy and delicious, the tang of sour cream and gruyere complementing the earthiness of the mushrooms and slight bitterness of the chard. Along with a simple salad, this was a perfect (vegetarian!) weeknight meal.

I Want More Tofu!

After I heard about Caitlin's difficulty with the tofu challenge I started to panic about how I was going to put together something edible. Based on our conversations it seemed that using Asian inspired flavors was the most popular and suggested way to treat tofu other then a straight marinade and grill. After a HUGE amount of online research I put together this menu. I was totally psyched when Ryan said "I want more tofu!" at the end of this meal. Thai Fried Tofu with Roasted Summer Squash

Appetizer of Tuna Sashimi Tofu: 1 Pack Extra Firm Tofu, Peanut Oil for Frying, Cornstarch/Flour for dredging. Lemongrass Tofu Marinade:

• 4-6 Stalks Lemon Grass
• Zest of 1 Lemon
• 3 Garlic Cloves
• 1 1/2 Shallots
• 2 Tsp Honey
• 3 TBS Fish Sauce
• 3 TBS Lime Juice
• 1 TSP Chili Oil

Squash:

• 5 Patty Pan Squash
• 5 Mini Green Squash
• 1 Packet Prepared Butternut Squash (pre skinned and chopped)

Squash Marinade:

• Olive Oil
• Honey
• Fresh Grated Ginger
• Salt

Soy-Ginger Dressing

• Soy Sauce
• Fresh Grated Ginger
• Pinch of White Pepper
• Peanut Oil

The first step was to get the Tofu marinated as it takes 1-2 hrs. I marinated for apx 90 minutes. The Lemongrass Tofu marinade had the most ingredients of all of the sauces. Luckily, I have a Cuisinart so I tossed everything in whole and blended. While it came out a little thicker then I thought a marinade should be, it really worked out in the end. While the tofu marinated I mixed the other sauces. The squash marinade was very light, I wanted it to be an Asian version of the standard olive oil, S&P dressing that goes on vegetables. I preheated the oven to 375 degrees and roasted the vegetables for about 45 minutes, flipping halfway through to avoid burning. When there was about 30 minutes left on the vegetables I served sushi grade Tuna sashimi (about $5 worth) with a few drops of the Soy-Ginger Dressing. On the side I served Purple Watercress tossed in the leftover Lemongrass Tofu marinade. The sweetness of the dressing softened out the bitterness of the greens. When the vegetables had 15 minutes left to roast I heated up my wok with peanut oil. I wasn't sure how much to put in, but to avoid burning myself I started with about 1 inch in the bottom of the pan. While the oil heated up I removed my tofu from the marinade and dredged it in a mix of cornstarch and flour. Because the Tofu was so laden with the marinade I dredged it twice in the flour/cornstarch mix to ensure it had enough of a coating to fry. Once the oil heated up to 350 degrees I slowly dropped in the Tofu slices. You don't want to add too many at once otherwise it cools the oil down and slows the frying process. I cooked them until they were golden brown and placed on paper towels to drain. The Roasted Squash was tossed with the Soy-Ginger Dressing and chopped Chives. I added watercress under the tofu to lift up the dish and drizzled the plate with a bit of the Soy-Ginger Dressing. The tofu was crispy and salty and sweet and went really well with the squash. Squeezing a bit of lime over the whole dish brightened it right up! I think the key with the tofu is to marinate it and then do what you can to camouflage it as something else- this kind of reminded me of fried fish. Tofu isn't one of those ingredients where less is more, otherwise it would be as popular as filet.

Tof-eeeuw Challenge: Caitlin

A new segment that we are introducing to our blog is the "Food Challenge," where we pick an ingredient and each see what we can do with it. For the first Challenge, we decided to use tofu.

In the past year Trevor and I have made several really delicious curries: a Chicken Yogurt Curry, a Lamb Curry (Jacques Pepin), and a Vegetable Curry with just about everything that I could find at the Wicker Park Farmer's Market. For this Challenge, I thought I would try to make a tofu curry. I have worked with tofu before: generally marinating small steaks in a teriyaki or another sauce before pan frying or grilling. I found a recipe for Panang Tofu Curry on epicurious.com, and used that as my basis for this curry.

I sauteed (apx 3 tbsp) grated ginger, 2 cloves garlic, 2 small chopped shallots and one small chopped onion in olive oil, before adding my spices (2 parts turmeric to one part cumin and one part coriander) to toast. Then I added two heaping tablespoons of chili-garlic sauce (we like a little heat!) a cup of water, a can of unsweetened coconut milk, and a nice glob of peanut butter. I whisked everything together and brought the mixture to a boil, then added my carrot and red bell pepper and a big squeeze of lime juice. I had to play around with the curry a little bit, and per other epicurious recipe reviewer suggestions I added Thai fish sauce. I agree with the review that the lime juice was out of place in this curry. It just added a sour, bitter flavor that didn't work with the creamy coconut and peanut flavors.

My main problem with this curry was the tofu. I bought a package of Whole Foods 365 brand extra-firm tofu, pressed it to remove excess liquid, and seared it in olive oil before adding to the curry. Despite the richness and intense flavors of the curry sauce, the tofu tasted totally blah. I'm not sure if the problem was with this particular brand of tofu, or whether the tofu may have just benefited from a marinade. I personally don't love the taste or texture of plain tofu. It's one of those ingredients that you really have to doctor up in order to make it palatable. This recipe did not accomplish that. If I were to make it again, I would either marinate the tofu or make the curry a few days in advance, so that the flavors had time to meld together. Or I would just use chicken ;)

Lime, Red Bell Pepper, Carrots The tofu being "pressed" under a bottle of olive oil (to remove excess liquid). The final dish.

Healthy Start- Frittata

Caitlin and I must be on the same wavelength because I woke up Saturday morning and all I wanted was something healthy, light and fresh! Must be the warm weather moving in....finally!

Ingredients

• 1 Small Red Potato- Cubed
• 1 Lg Tbs Yellow Onion- Chopped
• 5 Cherry Tomatoes- Quartered
• 1 Piece Deli Chicken- Chopped
• 3 Eggs
• 1 Tbs Tzatziki
• Garlic (pre chopped)
• Parmesan

Preheated Boiler

I sauteed the Garlic, Potatoes and Onions for approximately 5 minutes then added in the Chicken, Spinach & Tomatoes. I seasoned with S&P and let cook until the spinach was wilted. I removed this from the pan and gave it a quick spray with PAM in preparation for the eggs.

Since I had neither milk nor cheese in my fridge I needed some sort of dairy substitute to help fluff up the eggs and add a little creamy flavor to the dish. I had Tzatziki leftover from takeout the night before and decided that the mediterranean flavors would be a simple and yum addition. I whisked together the Eggs and Tzatziki and added to the pan.

I let the eggs cook up a bit so the topping didn't sink to the bottom then added the toppings, a sprinkle of parmesan and popped it under the broiler. Keep an eye on this but it should only take a few minutes. Out came a fluffy and delicious fritatta for two.