I've been so busy with my travels that I have not had time to update this blog or think of pithy ways to represent my culinary adventures, however I still have had the time to experiment (somewhat) with recipes. Below are two recent and straightforward ones - both were served at girlfriend brunches that I hosted in my apartment in the past weeks. Enjoy!
Puffy Baked Pancake With Cinnamon-Maple Syrup
from the Tasting Table Mother's Day Brunch guide
Serves 4
Ingredients
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 5 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Confectioners’ sugar, for serving
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Place the butter in a 9-inch round pie
plate and heat in the oven until just melted, about 5 minutes.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla extract
until smooth. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and
granulated sugar. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and
whisk until incorporated (the batter will be slightly lumpy).
3. Pour the batter into the pie plate over the melted butter. Bake for
15 to 18 minutes, until the pancake edges are puffed and golden-
brown.
4. Meanwhile, whisk the syrup and cinnamon together in a small
saucepan. Cook the mixture over medium-low heat until small
bubbles form on the surface and the syrup has thinned, about 7 to
10 minutes. Keep warm until the pancake is ready, whisking just
before serving.
5. Cut the pancake into quarters, dust with the confectioners’ sugar
and drizzle with some of the syrup. Serve immediately with the
remaining syrup on the remaining syrup on the side.
Lucid Food Tortilla Espanola & Sautéed Leafy Greens
Serves 4Prep time: 20 minutesTotal time: 35 minutes
Original Recipe on NoTakeOut.com
Shopping List
- 1-1/2 pounds potatoes
- 4 scallions
- 1 bunch leafy greens such as Swiss chard, collards, kale, spinach
- 1 lemon
- 6 eggs
- 1/4 pound Havarti or other mild cheese
Pantry Items
- Black pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Garlic
- Red pepper flakes
- Sea salt
Game Plan:
- When you walk in the door
- Preheat the oven to 400F
- Get out Pantry Items
- Get out Tools
- Assemble the ingredients
- Open the wine
- Prep
- Peel and quarter the potatoes, cut the quarters into slices 1/4 inch thick.
- Trim the root end any damaged leaves from the scallions, thinly slice them.
- Trim the stems from the greens. Coarsely chop the greens and clean them thoroughly (Submerge the greens in cold water. Swish them around with your hands to remove any dirt, then transfer to a colander. Repeat if still gritty).
- Peel and mince 2 cloves garlic.
- Break the eggs into a medium bowl. Lightly beat them.
- Finely dice the cheese.
- Squeeze half a lemon through your fingers into a small bowl. Measure 1 tbsp. juice – use any remaining juice for another purpose.
- Cut the other half of the lemon into wedges.
- Get someone to set the table – you won’t have time!
- Start Cooking
- Heat a large oven proof skillet over high heat and add 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the potato slices and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
- Decrease the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until a fork sinks into the potato slices easily. Remove the potatoes from the pan and set aside.
- Return the pan to medium heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the scallions and sauté until tender and lightly caramelized.
- Decrease the heat and add the potatoes. Season with salt. Spread the vegetables evenly across the pan and pour the eggs over the vegetables. Sprinkle evenly with the cheese and bake for 15 minutes.
- While the tortilla is baking, cook the leafy greens. Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat and add 2 tbsps. olive oil. Add half of the greens, sauté them for 30 seconds until they’ve shrunk a little, then add the remaining greens. Sauté until the leaves are tender but still bright green, about 3 minutes, adding a dash of salt as you cook.
- Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute more. Turn off the heat and stir in the red pepper flakes if you’re using them. Drizzle the 1 tbsp. lemon juice over the greens and season with freshly ground black pepper.
- Check the tortilla. The surface should be firm and springy – if it is, remove it from the oven. Loosen the edges from the pan with a knife and flip the tortilla onto a plate to serve. (You can also let it cool and flip it – it is good hot or at room temperature). Slice into wedges and sprinkle with pepper.
- Arrange the greens on one side of a platter, the tortilla wedges on another. Garnish the greens with the lemon wedges and take it to the table. Don’t forget the wine!
I was recently introduced to a website called NoTakeOut. It is perfect for too-busy hipsters and yuppies who are just learning to cook. NoTakeOut sends an email every day with the featured recipe, which spells out every ingredient you need to purchase, as well as outlines the "game plan" for prepping and cooking. However, I realized three things while I was experimenting with this recipe:
1) I am a little more advanced than the average beginner
2) The recipe's proportions were somewhat incorrect
3) I don't understand how to follow "game plans"
... so I did it my way.
Braised Manhattan Studio Chicken over Couscous
my take on braised farmhouse chicken, served with a crisp mixed salad
Original recipe on NoTakeOut
INGREDIENTS
Shopping List
- 2 yellow onions, diced
- 1 fennel bulb, diced
- 1 bag mixed lettuces from Dole (it was on sale)
- 3 cubes frozen cilantro from Trader Joe's (I love their frozen herbs!)
- 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed
- 6 chicken thighs
- 1 cup couscous
Pantry Items
- Balsamic vinegar, 1 - 2 tbsps
- Black pepper, a sprinkle
- Chicken broth, 3 1-cup serving boxes from Pacific Natural (a real pantry must have!)
- Extra-virgin olive oil for vinagrette
- Canola oil for browning
- 4 garlic cloves, minced/diced/crushed
- Ground cumin, 1 1/2 tbsps first, more later
- Ground ginger, 1/2 tsps
- Red pepper flakes, a pinch
- Sea salt, a sprinkle
INSTRUCTIONS
Turn on computer. Visit NoTakeOut. Read recipe in its entirety. Get annoyed that a website that targets super busy people would list ingredients without measurements and educate folks to prep everything first, then cook - as if we have the time to do things separately. Decide to go against the grain.
- Rinse chicken and pat dry. Heat canola oil in frying pan. Place chicken skin-side down and begin to brown. The chicken should make a sizzling sound once it touches the pan. If it does not, remove and count to 10, then try again. Brown about 5 - 6 minutes on each side and just listen to it snap, crackle, pop.
- While chicken is browning, dice onions and garlic. Dodge the crazy bits of oil jumping out of the pan. Realize that canola oil heats at a higher temp than olive oil and it hella stings when it hits your skin. Curse the chickens and their mothers. Move chopping board farther away from frying pan.
- Once chicken thighs are crispy and golden on both sides, remove from pan and place on plate, season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Add to the pan diced onion, garlic and spices. Stir and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 to 6 minutes. Wonder if you've added enough cumin, as the color seems light. Note that you did not use the a precise measuring spoon and sometimes eyeballing it isn't always accurate. Decide to think about it later.
- Add 4 chicken thighs back to the pan. Wonder if braising in a clay pot would bring about a different result and place two thighs in there. In both pots, cover with chicken broth (about 3 cups, instead of the 4 that the recipe recommends) and add chickpeas. Simmer for 30 minutes. Begin to watch the premiere of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution.
- During commercial breaks, prep salad: open bag, rinse salad and place into large bowl. Make vinaigrette: Whisk together 1 tbsp. vinegar, the minced garlic and salt and pepper in a bowl. Slowly whisk in 1/4 cup olive oil. Taste and want it to be more vinegar-y, add another 1/2 tbsp. Dice the fennel and stir into the vinaigrette. Toss into salad with fun giraffe utensils that mom got from South Africa.
- Check on the chicken. Notice that it looks too watery. Taste chicken sauce and notice that is really bland. Panic. Add more cumin to both until it is a golden brown color. Remove Trader Joe's cilantro cubes from freezer and mix in bowl with 1 clove garlic. Microwave to melt cubes and stir together. Add cilantro/garlic to both pots. Partially uncover and return to watching Food Revolution. Cross fingers and hope that the spices create their own revolution.
- At next commercial break, prepare couscous by bringing to boil one 1-cup serving of chicken broth in a small pot. Add a bit more water and couscous. Set aside 5 minutes and fluff with fork. Briefly remember the couscous in Morocco. YUM.
- After sauce has thickened, taste once more and marvel at the ability for a dish to make a complete comeback due to an extra 10 minutes of simmering. Decide the meal is ready to be served. Place on plates with couscous. Serve with a perfectly tossed salad.
Optional step: Do a blind taste test with your dinner guest. You may notice that the clay pot version is more flavorful and sauce is thicker, but the chicken is a little tougher. On the other hand, the flavors in the pan version are a more subtle, although the chicken is more tender and juicy. Learn that guest prefers the pan version, eats a second helping and even offers to do the dishes. Feel happy that everything turned out okay.
