Another Chicken Dinner

Note: I don't know what is going on with some of the fonts and font sizes in this post - I can't fix them!

A lovely dinner for 4 or fewer: Lemon Chicken with Croutons, Spinach in Puff Pastry, and Plum Cake Tatin. All three recipes are from Ina Garten's book Barefoot in Paris. I can pick up any of her books and make a million combinations for an awesome meal.

This is a very complete meal, with the bread in the chicken dish and the vegetable as either the first course or the side dish. You can add any extra vegetables or potatoes in with the chicken to roast; I added quartered button mushrooms. If I'd had carrots I definitely would have tossed them in too.
Next time I make this - and I most definitely will - I'll not put all the croutons on the platter under the chicken with all the juices like the recipe instructs. I'll put some around the chicken, whole or cut into pieces, on the platter, and try not to let them get completely soaked because they end up very quickly (big surprise:) just soggy. The best part of having croutons is the crunch! I might make a gravy out of the juices too, or reduce it a little, or add a squeeze of fresh lemon to the juices right before pouring them over the chicken next time. But without taking those extra steps it was still really great! Lemon zest over top on the plate was a perfect final touch for me because I love lots of lemon flavor with chicken.
A perfect bite! Chicken, mushroom, caramelized onion, crouton, with pepper and lemon zest:
Lemon Chicken with Croutons
Ina Garten, Barefoot in Paris

• 1 (4 to 5-pound) roasting chicken
• 1 large yellow onion, sliced
• Good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 lemons, quartered
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 6 cups (3/4-inch) bread cubes (1 baguette or round boule)
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Take the giblets out of the chicken and wash it inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers. Toss the onion with a little olive oil in a small roasting pan. Place the chicken on top and sprinkle the inside of the cavity with salt and pepper. Place the lemons inside the chicken. Pat the outside of the chicken dry with paper towels, brush it with the melted butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.

Roast for 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and the thigh. Cover with foil and allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. (The onions may burn, but the flavor is good.)

Meanwhile, heat a large saute pan with 2 tablespoons of olive oil until very hot. Lower the heat to medium-low and saute the bread cubes, tossing frequently, until nicely browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add more olive oil, as needed, and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place the croutons on a serving platter. Slice the chicken and place it, plus all the pan juices, over the croutons. Sprinkle with salt and serve warm.

I made a lot of tiny changes to this spinach in puff pastry recipe, so I'll note them within the recipe below.

Spinach in Puff Pastry
Ina Garten, Barefoot in Paris

• 4 T. (half a stick) unsalted butter
  
• 2 cups chopped onions (about 2 onions)
• 1 T. chopped garlic (3 cloves)
• 2 - 10 ounce - boxes frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
  
• 1/3 cup chopped scallions (2 scallions)
• 1 cup grated Gruyere cheese (I used small cubes of Swiss - flavor is perfect and it's cheaper!)
• 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 4 extra-large eggs, beaten (I only had 2 large eggs to use, and it turned out just fine. More eggs would have made the filling firmer, but I didn't mind because I was serving this on a plate with a fork anyway.)
  
• 1 T. dry bread crumbs, plain or seasoned
• 2 t. kosher salt (do use this full amount - it seemed like a lot to me so I didn't, but then it needed to be salted later)
  
• 3/4 t. pepper
• 1/2 t. ground nutmeg (I left this out)
  
• 1/4 cup toasted pignoli (pine) nuts (Left these out too)
• 2 sheets (one box) frozen puff pastry, defrosted overnight in the refrigerator (Without fail I forget to do this or don't plan ahead. Leave the frozen puff pastry on the counter near a hot stove for a little while and it will be fine. Just make sure it doesn't get too warm or it will get sticky.)
  
• 1 extra-large egg beaten with 1 T. water, for egg wash (so I ran out of eggs, right? So I used melted butter in place of egg wash, no problemo.)
  

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Heat the butter in a saute pan and cook the onions over med-low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until tender. Add garlic and cook for one more minute. Meanwhile, squeeze most of the water out of the spinach and place it in a bowl. Add the onions and garlic, scallions, both cheeses, eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and pignolis. Mix well.

Unfold one sheet of puff pastry and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread the spinach mixture in the middle of the pastry, leaving a one inch border. Brush the border with egg wash. Roll out the second piece of puff pastry on a floured board until it's an inch larger in each direction. Place the second sheet of pastry over the spinach and seal the edges, crimping them with a fork. Brush the top with egg wash but don't let it drip down the sides or the pastry won't rise. (At this point I used a sharp knife and trimmed all four sides.) Make three small slits in the pastry top, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake for 30-40 minutes, until the pastry is lightly browned. Transfer to a cutting board and serve hot.

And, dessert! Hot, sweet, fruity, cakey, delicious! There are some interesting steps to this dish, but it's fun to make and can be made mostly ahead of time and then baked while you're eating dinner. I thought it looked so cool too, like an upside down cake. The red color is from the plums alone, darkened from the caramel. Andrew, my 2 year old, called it "jelly cake" because it did look like red jelly.

The intimidating part of this recipe is the sugar syrup. You have to cook water and sugar in a saucepan over high heat until it turns "a warm amber color, about 360 degrees." I think that a digital thermometer is an ESSENTIAL piece of kitchen equipment, but if you don't have one, still do make this recipe!! Cook the syrup until it turns brown - take it a little farther than you're probably comfortable with, but keep a close eye on it the entire time it's on the heat because it will burn fast once it's beyond it's perfect stage. However the syrup looks, because you will be skeptical, just continue with the recipe and it will turn out just fine.

Plum Cake Tatin
Ina Garten, Barefoot in Paris

nocoupons

• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing the dish
• 10 to 12 purple "prune" plums, cut in half and pitted (I just chose the purple ones over the orange/purple ones; they weren't labeled "prune." It took 5 and a half of them.)
  
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature (I used large because that's what I had.)
  
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Confectioners' sugar (optional - I think unnecessary)
  

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 9-inch glass pie dish and arrange the plums in the dish, cut side down.

Combine 1 cup of the granulated sugar and 1/3 cup water in a small saucepan and cook over high heat until it turns a warm amber color, about 360 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Swirl the pan but don't stir. Pour evenly over the plums.

Meanwhile, cream the 6 tablespoons of butter and the remaining 3/4 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, until light and fluffy. Lower the speed and beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the sour cream, zest, and vanilla and mix until combined. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and, with the mixer on low speed, add it to the butter mixture. Mix only until combined.

Pour the cake batter evenly over the plums and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes, then invert the cake onto a flat plate. If a plum sticks, ease it out and replace it in the design on top of the cake. Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with confectioners' sugar.

Steamed Artichokes

As soon as the weather starts to get warmer, one of the first things Erol and I look forward to eating is steamed artichokes! Other foods that say "summer" to me are panzanella salad - already made twice so far since winter! - and gazpacho, which I'll wait for real summer to hit before enjoying.

There's really nothing I love more than sitting on the sofa with Erol late in the evening, watching tv or movies, and eating a huge artichoke dipped in melted butter, fresh lemon juice, and crunchy kosher salt. We'll do this every couple of weeks, at least, until fall!

Have you ever eaten a steamed artichoke? They are so much fun to eat. Plus they're like popcorn or mashed potatoes in that they're an ideal vehicle for butter and salt. Add some lemon and you're pretty much in heaven. Here's how to do it TONIGHT:

Steamed Artichoke
1. Buy the largest artichoke you can find that has no major blemishes and has fairly tight leaves. Some have leaves that are closed in and some, like the ones we had yesterday, are sticking out a little, but they're still tight and not loose.

2. Place a saucepan on the stove (one pan for each artichoke), and fill it with about an inch of water. Use ether large rings of raw onion or a piece of foil crumpled and formed into a ring shape, and place this in the saucepan for the artichoke to sit on. You can also add to the water a clove of garlic, but it doesn't need many extra flavorings.

3. Wash the artichoke, then cut the stem leaving as much as an inch. Peel off the last row or two of leaves from the stem end, and use a small paring knife to trim away the outside skin of the stem. Cut the top 1/4 off using a serrated knife. With scissors cut the tips off of the remaining leaves to remove the spikes.

4. Immediately after prepping the artichoke squeeze lemon over the whole thing generously for flavor and also to prevent it from turning brown.

5. Place the artichoke upside down in the center of the pan on the ring of onion or foil. Throw the spent lemon wedges in the pan too. Cover the pan with the lid if it fits, or tightly with foil if it doesn't (it probably won't unless you use your biggest pot). Turn the heat onto medium and let 'er rip for about an hour. If the water gets low add some more.

6. Check for doneness by poking a skewer or dry piece of spaghetti straight down into the stem. A toothpick won't be long enough for this job. If it goes straight through the artichoke pretty easily, it's cooked!

7. Take out the artichoke using tongs and let it drain for a minute on a paper towel.

Erol ate his with just lemon and salt, but you know me, I gotsta have the butta.

Eating artichokes is similar to eating blue crabs in that you have to work for it, and it's not going to fill you up. We had a small dinner and then later ate artichokes, like popcorn.

My rule is pretty much if it's soft, it's good eats. Start peeling the leaves off from the bottom, dip in your poison, and scrape the inside of the leaf on your bottom teeth. For first few rows you're not getting much artichoke because they're generally tough. But soon you'll get little nibbles of soft artichoke at the ends of the leaves, and later, half of the actual leaves will be soft and yellow and you can eat that part, like you can see below. Those are the best ones.

Now when you're done with the leaves it gets even more interactive. You get to the choke, which is inedible, and you have to scrape it out with a spoon. This part is spikey little blades, but they're easily removed.

When the choke is gone, you have the artichoke heart. Break it apart and eat the middle and any part that's soft, all the way down the center of the stem.

Onion Rings

This is a very common sight in my messy kitchen: several cookbooks open, often all Barefoot Contessa's, flags and notes all over the place.
Oh and the butter, too, isn't a rare sight.

This isn't a rare sight either, come to think of it. This is a nice (and cheap!) bottle of Pino Noir from the Russian River Valley. And very cool Candlewick glasses from Auntie Carroll; I spotted the very same shaped glasses in a scene in Benjamin Button!
So to the onion rings.... Last week Erol was craving steaks with blue cheese, and I thought this was the perfect time to make these onion rings.
They turned out perfectly - light and crispy with great flavor. I planned on concocting a spicy mayo-based sauce (ala Outback) but they didn't need it. Unlike with a beer batter, you won't take a bite and end up wrestling with the entire piece of onion that comes out of the batter; each bite comes off cleanly, which is not a huge deal, it's just kinda satisfying.

I will make these again, but next time I will use my Dutch oven (super heavy cast iron, enamel coated pan) rather than my regular stock pot. The oil temp did not reman steady in this pot, which was frustrating. For this meal my main focus was on these onion rings and I wanted to serve them right away, so unfortunately my steaks suffered a bit and became a little overcooked. I won't make that mistake again because these onion rings hold up longer than the recipe indicates, and they stay crunchy for a long time, so I'll do them first next time and then concentrate on the steak.
Cornmeal Fried Onion Rings
Ina Garten

2 large Spanish onions (or 3 yellow onions)
2 cups buttermilk
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (medium) yellow cornmeal
1 quart vegetable oil

Peel the onions, slice them 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick, and separate them into rings. Combine the buttermilk, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Add the onion rings, toss well, and allow to marinate for at least 15 minutes. (The onion rings can sit in the buttermilk for a few hours.) In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

When you're ready to fry the onion rings, preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

Heat the oil to 350 degrees F in a large pot or Dutch oven. (A candy thermometer attached to the side of the pot will help you maintain the proper temperature.) Working in batches, lift some onions out of the buttermilk and dredge them in the flour mixture. Drop into the hot oil and fry for 2 minutes, until golden brown, turning them once with tongs. Don't crowd them! Place the finished onion rings on the baking sheet, sprinkle liberally with salt, and keep them warm in the oven while you fry the next batch. Continue frying the onion rings and placing them in the warm oven until all the onions are fried. They will remain crisp in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Glazed Carrots

During college, I was in a car accident and the air bag went off in my face. The hard contact lens in my eye busted and scratched my cornea. My optometrist thought that it would not ever heal completely, but it thankfully did. I know it's ridiculous, but ever since then, carrots have been a little specialer to me.

Hahaha - that IS a true story and I don't think I've ever revealed that to anyone before!

I used to make this recipe about once a week with baby carrots, but it is better with whole big ones. I like it because it's so simple and in addition to carrots all you need probably on your countertop right now. I don't mess with ginger, orange juice, or any of that when I cook my carrots because they have such a good flavor, and cooking them this way brings out the best the carrot has to offer, and we don't want to cover that up.
Glazed Carrots
1 lb regular or baby carrots
2 T. olive oil
2 T. butter
salt & pepper
1 T. sugar

If you get baby carrots, leave them whole; if you get regular carrots, peel them and cut the ends off. Cut the first piece on a diagonal, your knife parallel to the cutting board. Roll the carrot a quarter of the way, and cut the second piece using the same motion. Continue to cut the whole carrot into these funny little chunks. (Please leave a comment if I didn't state this clearly and I can post a video, it's hard to explain.)

Heat a large sautee pan over high heat and add the olive oil and butter. Toss in the carrots and sprinkle with salt and pepper, and reduce the heat to medium. Stir around to coat, and then stir and flip occasionally for a few minutes; you want to give them a chance to get nice and browned on most sides (the picture above is in the beginning/middle stage of cooking). When they are about halfway browned and starting to get soft, add the sugar. You may need to adjust the heat level between medium and high throughout cooking so they cook pretty quickly, but don't burn.

I like them when they're still a bit firm on the inside, but if you like them completely soft, once they are browned add 1/2 cup of water to the pan and cover for 5 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking until the water has evaporated.

Green Bean Casserole

On real Thanksgiving my mom always makes Broccoli Bake, the kind using the Campbell's soup, and it's nearly everyone's favorite. Simply to be different for Fakesgiving, we made green bean casserole from scratch. This recipe is a keeper too, but by no means will it be a replacement! It can be easily halved.
Green Bean Casserole
Cooks Illustrated magazine, Nov & Dec 2006

Topping
4 slices white sandwich bread, each torn into quarters
2 T unsalted butter, softened
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
3 cups (about 6oz) canned French fried onions

Beans and Sauce
Table salt
2lbs green beans, ends trimmed and halved
3 T. unsalted butter
1lb white mushrooms, stems trimmed, wiped clean, and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (we used crimini mushrooms, or baby bellas, and it gave the dish a stronger mushroom flavor)
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
Pepper
3 T. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

For the topping: Pulse bread, butter, salt, and pepper in a food processor until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 10 1-second pulses. Transfer to a large bowl and toss with onions and set aside.

For the beans and sauce: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot, then add 2 T. of salt and the beans. Cook 6 minutes, then drain beans in a colander and plunge immediately into the bowl of ice water. Spread the beans out on paper towels to dry off.

In the now empty large pot, add the butter and melt over med-high heat. Add mushrooms, garlic, 3/4 t. salt, and 1/8 t. pepper, and cook 6 minutes. Add flour and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in broth and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Add cream, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until sauce is thickened, about 12 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add green beans to the sauce and stir to coat. Pour into a 3 quart (or 13x9 inch) baking dish. Add the topping, and bake until top is golden brown and sauce is bubbling around the edges, about 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

Make ahead tip: Combine the beans with the cooled sauce in the baking dish, cover, and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Store the bread-crumb topping in the fridge and combine with the onions just before cooking. To bake, heat the beans and sauce at 425 for 10 minutes, then add the topping and bake for another 15 minutes.

Brussels Sprouts

Finally, the recipe you've been waiting for!!

OK, I know that's not true... but try these, and if you don't like them you are allowed to say truthfully that you don't like Brussels sprouts, because they are the best you'll ever have. The recipe will serve 8-10 people, but if you can get that many people to eat them, more power to you! Cut the recipe according to your crowd, but don't be surprised if you turn more than one into a Brussels sprout lover, so I do suggest making a few more than you think you need.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

recipe from Ruth Reichl's book Garlic and Sapphires

2lbs small Brussels sprouts, trimmed (peel off the outermost layers, and trim the stem)

3 T. olive oil

salt and pepper

4 slices thickly cut bacon, diced (I just cut it into strips with scissors)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. But the Brussels sprouts on a baking sheet, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper, and toss so that each sprout is coated. Spread them out in a single layer, and top with the diced bacon. Cook, turning the sprouts once, for about 20 minutes or until they are very dark and crisp. Serve at once.

Manicotti and Roasted Vegetables, and shortcuts

I had a cooking marathon last night, and one of the dishes I made was manicotti. I split the recipe between two dishes so we had some for dinner tonight and the second half is nestled in the freezer for another day. Later I'll post pics and recipes for the other things I made: a huge pot of soup and a pear and apple crisp. Those recipes make a ton of food, and we shared them with a family with a brand new baby.

On shortcuts: I am not 100% comfortable with taking shortcuts, but I'm trying to get used to it. What I'm talking about is that I want to make everything possible from scratch, and I don't like using a lot of store-bought products. It's not how my momma raised me, and now especially that I have a boy I'm reading labels and thinking Andy doesn't need to eat highfructosemonoglucosisreddye#12andwhoknowswhat!! But, it's life and there's really no avoiding it. Sometimes I struggle with just getting dinner on the table each night of the week because I make such a huge production of cooking, and it's not possible to do that every day. So I need to take help from the store sometimes and rely on shortcuts. I still try to get products that are closest to nature, or at least with less salt and sugar. And I do NOT EVER buy diet or non-fat versions of products that should have fat in them (like cheese - what is in non-fat cheese? I do not want to know!), or have the fat replaced by a huge amount of sugar, or the sugar replaced by some unnatural ingredient.

Wow that was really a rant, sorry! See I have some strong feelings about food! I could go on.......

But about my manicotti shortcut: I didn't make the sauce. It is very simple to make, but compare A) shopping for and heaving around, along with your one-year-old, a heavy bag of cans, produce, herbs, and spices (after looking to see what you already have in the cupboard), getting out the big pot, chopping the onions, etc, etc, etc, until you have sauce, OR B) buying one jar and opening the jar. Whenever I can help it, A does win, but B is pretty hard to resist sometimes when just cooking for the family!

I also took a shortcut, rather a convenience-cut, with the garlic bread - it's frozen. Tons of bad, unpronounceable ingredients, I know, but we didn't give the boy any! OK, finally, the recipes!
Manicotti
based on an America's Test Kitchen recipe (which, of course, does not use jarred sauce!)

3 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 cups), divided
8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (about 2 cups)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry, and chopped fine (optional)
Table salt and ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
16 no-boil lasagna noodles
1 1/2 jars spaghetti sauce

Combine ricotta, 1 cup Parmesan, mozzarella, eggs, spinach, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and basil in medium bowl; set aside.

Pour 1 inch boiling water into 13 by 9-inch broiler safe baking dish, then add noodles one at a time. Let noodles soak until pliable, about 5 minutes, separating noodles with tip of sharp knife to prevent sticking (don't skip this part!). Remove noodles from water and place in single layer on clean kitchen towels; discard water in baking dish and dry baking dish.

Spread bottom of baking dish evenly with 1 1/2 cups sauce. Using soup spoon, spread generous 1/4 cup cheese-spinach mixture evenly onto bottom three-quarters of each noodle (with short side facing you), leaving top quarter of noodle exposed. Roll into tube shape and arrange in baking dish seam side down. Top evenly with remaining sauce, making certain that pasta is completely covered.

Cover manicotti with aluminum foil. Bake until bubbling, about 40 minutes, then remove foil. Remove baking dish, adjust oven rack to uppermost position (about 6 inches from heating element), and heat broiler. Sprinkle manicotti evenly with remaining 1 cup Parmesan. Broil until cheese is spotty brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Cool 15 minutes, then serve.

Roasted Vegetables
This is my all time favorite way to cook most vegetables, and I think they are even more nutritious this way than steaming them because nothing gets lost in the water.

Use (any combo of) broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onions, squash, zucchini, green beans, Brussels sprouts, cherry tomatoes, corn kernels, asparagus, or whatever you like!

Crank up the oven to the hottest temp, or turn on the broiler. Toss the vegetables on a sheet pan with some olive oil, salt and pepper, and throw them in the oven to roast for a few minutes. Especially if they are under the broiler they will burn fast, so don't walk away! Roasting should only take a few minutes, you'll just have to check to see when they're browned on the edges and tender on the inside (poke them with a knife to check). If you want to add spices, herbs, cheese, or garlic, add it close to the end or after cooking because it will burn.