E's 3rd Birthday

I won't even apologize for a lack of posting.  Our lives have changed enough that posting isn't a priority anymore.  But, every so often, I get inspired to post; mainly to document something from our lives.

It's strange how one day you're announcing the birth of your firstborn...and then the next it's his/her 3rd (10th...20th..25th..) birthday.

1st Birthday

2nd Birthday

A few days ago, we celebrated E's 3rd birthday.

I finally got to use the cupcake cake form that Giz decided should live at my house.  I used Barefoot Contessa's Ultimate Chocolate Cake recipe.  I was worried that the batter was too liquidy and would fall apart once removed from the pan, but everything came out perfectly.

Actually, this was her second birthday cake, since we had an early birthday celebration in Toronto, with a Minion-themed family birthday party.

Our friends came over for dinner on her birthday and I tried out a new recipe, 20 Minute Skillet Chicken and Spinach Parmesan.  It was a yummy recipe that I would definitely use again.

Thai Red Curry Chicken

Do you believe that your sense of taste changes?  There was a time that spicy food for me was a recipe for an upset tummy.  I'm not sure where the changes happened but I'm drawn to food that has a kick to it.  Maybe it has something to do with familiarity and just having your stomach develop tolerances.  No idea.

This Thai Red Curry Chicken dish started as an experiment and was a no brainer in preparation.  The end result was a big hit.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp canola oil
3 boneless chicken breasts, cubed
1 medium onion, sliced thin
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced in strips
1/2 yellow pepper, sliced in strips
1 Tbsp red curry paste
1 tin light coconut milk
1 Tbsp cornstarch

Directions

1.  Heat oil on medium in a large skillet.  Add chicken and cook until chicken is no longer pink (approximately 5 minutes)

2.  Add onion and peppers to start the cooking process.  Add red curry paste stirring to coat and infuse the flavour.
3.  Mix the cornstarch with the coconut milk and add to skillet stirring to combine.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer until the sauce thickens.

NOTE:  I added vegetables that I felt like having but there are really no vegetable boundries.

Chicken Pot Pie

My mother has always been concerned about what she eats.  The fear of putting on weight is as strong as the obsession about food.  I know, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense... unless you know my mother.  A fridge full of food ensures that she'll always be able to feed others.

Mom is also a very fussy eater.  She's not able to cook for herself anymore so keeping her stocked with meals can be a head scratcher.  Today, I chose a recipe from All Recipes and made her a chicken pot pie; with a side of kale salad, she's good.

 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cubed

1 cup sliced carrots

1 cup frozen green peas

1/2 cup sliced celery

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon celery seed

1 3/4 cups chicken broth

2/3 cup milk

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts

	Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
	In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
	In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
	Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
	Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Filipino Chicken Adobo

Toronto winter for my mom (also known as baba, lola and nona) is very isolating.  Her mobility

has deteriorated and needs to have 24/7 personal care.  We're very lucky to have a couple of caregiverswho take such good care of her and keep her totally on track with both her medical and nutritional care.   

Over the past several years we've made it possible for her to spend the extreme months in warmer climates.  We took her primary caregiver, Emma, with us to Palm Springs, CA.  Seriously, I have no idea how we would manage without her.  Emma is from the Phillipines and has made many sacrifices to come to Canada under the caregiver program to work towards creating a better life for herself and her family.  While away in California this winter, we decided to create theme dinners and one of them was designed to honour our Emma and prepare one of her favourite dishes - chicken adobo.  

I'd never made chicken adobo before and when I saw the ingredients I somehow didn't see the ingredients complimenting one another.  Boy, was I wrong!  Everybody loved it.  Most importantly, Emma loved it and said it reminded her of home.

Ingredients

4 -5 lbs. chicken thighs
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce (I used light)
12 cloves garlic, crushed
3 bay leaves
Pepper to taste

Directions

In a large dutch oven, add vinegar, soy sauce, crushed garlic, bay leaves and pepper

Add chicken thighs.  Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer with lid on.

Half way through cooking - approximately 1 hr, turn chicken to immerse second side of thighs to sauce.

Braise until chicken is tender, another hour.  Drain chicken, retaining sauce.  Return sauce to pot cooking for another 10 minutes.  Add the chicken back to the pot.

Serve with rice and pour sauce over the top.  Enjoy!

Parmesan Chicken with Garlic and Herbs

I find myself often surfing the internet and most often Pinterest for new ideas for preparing chicken. In the process, I've created an impressive collection of recipes in many different categories.  Admittedly, my love of cookbooks isn't going away any time soon.  There's something very special about flipping through a cookbook, feeling the paper and looking through pictures when the book has them.  Love of cookbooks has become an obsession of sorts and I have to do alot of self talk when in a bookstore.  I'm out of space and sadly Psychgrad doesn't want to collect any more than she already has.

One blogger who not only never fails me but always inspires me to create a healthier version of foods I love is  Kalyn's Kitchen.  Kalyn is responsible for this recipe that was lower on the fat index and coupled with my favourite baby kale salad made for a happy dinner.

This recipe serves 4 and takes only minutes to prepare with no frying or eggs.  The hit of garlic is pronounced so if you're not a big garlic fan, reduce it.  The parmesan is the star and the cooking time is perfect for a juicy and flavourful chicken dish.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

2 tsp. crushed garlic (garlic puree from a jar is perfect here)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/4 cup whole wheat Panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Combine crushed garlic, olive oil, and poultry seasoning in small pan and heat 1 minute, until just warm.

Trim all visible fat and membranes from chicken breasts, then make small crosswise slits about 1/2 inch apart down the length of each chicken breast, being careful not to cut too far into the chicken. (This helps the garlic and herb flavor penetrate the chicken more.) Put chicken into zip loc bag, pour heated oil over, and marinate all day in refrigerator.

To cook, take chicken out of refrigerator and let it come to room temperature for a few minutes while you preheat oven to 425.

Mix bread crumbs and parmesan (pulse a few times in food processor if the mixture isn't fine enough.) Place cheese/breadcrumb mixture in flat dish and dip each chicken breast into it, pressing on as much of the coating as you can.

Place each chicken piece in casserole dish which has been sprayed with nonstick spray. or olive oil. Bake until chicken is firm and cooked through, about 25 minutes, then put under the broiler to brown more if desired. (Original directions said to bake 30-40 minutes, but I wouldn't cook it that long. Actual cooking time will depend on the thickness of your chicken breasts, but chicken should feel firm but not hard when it's cooked.)

Batch Cooking

I've never been organized enough to have a weekly menu planned out.  At most, we come up with four meals that we're going to make throughout the week, when we create our grocery list.  The rest of the meals are either leftovers, something from the freezer or something simple like breakfast for dinner or grilled cheese.  But, realistically, this plan doesn't always pan out well.  Often, I am okay with R's meal idea, in theory, and we buy groceries for it. But, when R wants to make it for tonight's supper, I don't actually want to have another random lentil dish.  

When a friend mentioned having a batch cooking day, I was eager to join in.  My freezer has been a bit barren lately.  I think it's because it has been so cold here and most of the foods that I freeze are cold weather foods.  So, they're getting eaten up pretty quickly.  

Three of us got together.  Since we all have kids around the same age, we knew we couldn't do a marathon session, so we kept it moderate and made triple recipes of four dishes (took about 3.5 hours): lasagne, taco soup, slow cooker ribs and butter chicken.  

The lasagna was made according to how my friend usually makes it.  I won't write out the recipe, but want to make note of the differences so that I can remember it down the line if we end up really liking this approach.  She uses a very thick meat sauce.  She also only puts cheeses on the top layer.  Then she  uses a full container of cottage cheese and adds two eggs to the cottage cheese for a creamier consistency. 

I also need to remember to cook the ribs at 400 for 15 minutes on each side before putting the slow cooker on low for 6 hours.  I can also put the ribs back in the oven after slow cooking if I want things to be more caramelized.



Here's some of the math. It total, we spent $174 on the food.  From that, we got:

9 - 8X8 lasagna (estimated three meals/tray since the tray isn't very deep) = 27 portions

6 - slow cooker ribs (estimated three meals -- one rack per bag) = 18 portions

various container of butter chicken (6 portions given to each person) = 18 portions

various containers of taco soup (6 portions per person) = 18 portions

Total = 81 portions (27 each)

Overall cost/person = $54

Overall Cost/portion = $2.15

I think that's a pretty decent cost considering that each portion has meat.  The taco soup was particularly cheap.  I got all of the ingredients for $25 (already had the spices) -- so about $1.40/portion.



Chicken Breast with Eggplant and Fontina Cheese & Giveaway

R and I bit the bullet and made the drive to Toronto. A five hour drive (longer with a baby) can be pretty daunting with a baby that has a bit of a sleep/hate relationship with her car seat.  But, I really wanted to introduce Ms. E to my Baba (now known as: Super Baba) and get some pictures of the two of them together.  

On our last night in Toronto, we had the family over for dinner.  Giz already told you about some of the dishes we made here.  In addition to those vegetarian recipes, we wanted to have one dish for the meat eaters.  Right away, I knew I wanted to made a dish from my most recently acquired cookbook:  Lidia's Favorite Recipes: 100 Foolproof Italian Dishes, from Basic Sauces to Irresistible Entrees 

As the title suggests, this cookbook contains a collection of Lidia's favorite and most accessible recipes. Also check out Lidia's website, which has lots of recipes. videos, and other content, here.

Would you like a copy of this cookbook?  

One of our readers will receive a free copy of this cookbook.  All you have to do is comment on this post before Sunday, November 25th 11:59pm (EST).

Share this on Twitter, if you want a second entry:  Enter to win a copy of Lidia Bastianich's newest cookbook: Lidia's Favorite Recipes @equaloppkitchen http://bit.ly/U7jsqo

This giveaway is open to readers in Canada and the United States only. 

After tagging all of the recipes that I was interested in trying (a process the becomes futile when almost every page is tagged), I decided I wanted to make the Chicken Breast with Eggplant and Fontina Cheese.  

Chicken Breast with Eggplant and Fontina Cheese

1 medium eggplant (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Salt

6 tbsp of EVOO

Six 6-ounce boneless skinless chicken breasts

Fresh ground black pepper

6 slices of prosciutto cut in half (I didn't really half them)

5 tbsp unsalted butter

All-purpose flour for dredging

6 cloves of garlic, peeled (I minced them as well)

1/2 cup drive white wine

About 1 cup of hot chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano) seeded and chopped

12 fresh basil leaves, plus more (optional for decorating the plates)

6 ounces of Italian Fontina cheese, cut into thin slices

2 tbsp Tomato Sauce or liquid from the canned tomatoes

Trim the stem from the eggplant.  Remove the strips of peel about 1 inch wide, leaving about half the peel intact, and cut the eggplant into 1-inch crosswise slices.  Sprinkle a baking sheet with salt, arrange the slices over the salt and sprinkle with more salt.  Let them stand until both sides are wet, about 30 minutes.  Rinse the eggplant under cool running water, drain thoroughly, and pat dry.  Preheat the oven to 400 degree F.  Wipe the baking sheet clean, and oil it generously, using about half the oil.  Arrange the eggplant on the baking sheet, and turn to coat the slices with oil.  

Roast until tender and well-brouned, turning them and rotating them in the pan as necessary, about 20 minutes.  Remove and cool.  Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.  

Cut each chicken breast in half on a bias, and lightly pound it.  Season the chicken very lightly with salt (We omitted) and pepper (the prosciutto will give the dish plenty of salt as is), and layer each piece of chicken with half a slice of the prosciutto tapping the prosciutto with the back of the knife so it adheres to the meat.  

Heat 2 tbsp of the remaining olive oil and 2 tbsp of the butter in a heavy, wide skilled over medium heat.  Dredge the chicken in flour to coat both sides lightly, tapping off excess flour, and add as many to the skillet, prosciutto side down, as will fit without overlapping.  Cook just until the prosciutto is light golden, about 2 minutes.  Turn and cook until the second side is browned, about 2 minutes.  Remove, and drain on paper towels.  Repeat with the remaining chicken, adding more oil if necessary. 

After removing the last piece of chicken from the skillet, pour in the remaining oil, and scatter the garlic in the skillet.  Cook, turning, until golden brown, about 3 minutes (Lower the heat, if necessary, so the bits of flour that stick to the pan don't burn while the garlic is browning).  Pour the wine into the skillet, bring to a boil, and boil until it's almost completely evaporated.  Pour in the stock, and drop in the remaining 3 tbsps of butter.  Bring to a boil, stir in the chopped tomatoes, and boil until the sauce is lightly reduces and glossy about 4 minutes.  

Meanwhile, arrange the scaloppine side by side in a baking dish.  Cover them with the eggplant, coating or tearing the slices as necessary to cover all the scaloppine more or less evenly, and top each with a leaf of basil.  

Dividing the Fontina slices evenly over the eggplant, doting the Fontina slices with a dab of tomato sauce.  Pour the pan sauce around the chicken and bake until the cheese is melted and lightly browned in place and the sauce is lightly thickened, about 10 minutes.  

Transfer the bubbly chicken to serving plates, placing two on each (we didn't serve the chicken this way).  Spoon the sauce -- through a strained if you like -- around the plates.  Decorate the plates with additional basil leaves if desired.

Verdict: Let me start by saying that this dish was so tasty!  I think it was both Giz's and my favourite dish of the night!  But I learned a lesson with this dish.  I need to spend more time reading and visualizing the steps of an recipe before I start it.  I tend to start things and believe that I'll just figure it out as I go.  This approach can work, but when you've got a recipe with several components and steps, along with several other dishes on the go, it can be a bit chaotic.  Having already made the recipe once, it'll be easier to make it again in the future.  But, I found myself re-reading the recipe as I had my hands covered in ingredients and things burning on the stove.  I also now know that you can pretty much complete the recipe to the point just before putting it in the oven (i.e., the part where you "bake until the cheese is melted and lightly browned in place and the sauce is lightly thickened, about 10 minutes").  You just want to be mindful of the chicken, which won't be fully cooked through yet if you've only cooked each side for two minutes.

Some of the other recipes I'm looking forward to making include: Arancini di Riso (rice balls...but it sounds so much better in Italian), Minestrone Soup, Tagliatelle with Wild Mushroom Sauce, Ziti with Roasted Eggplant and Ricotta Cheese, and Marinated Winter Squash.

Disclaimer: A free review copy of this cookbook was sent to me.

Rotisserie Cooking

During the month of July we were asked to promote the  Ronco 5500 Rotisserie Oven . We make it a habit of not promoting a product we haven't tried and before too long I had rotisserie delivered to my home.   We missed the whole promotional period which was in July.  Ronco gave away a rotisserie for each day in July.  I certainly didn't expect to receive anything from them but was eager to try it out when I did.   I was planning a weekend at the cottage and decided that would be a great place to have some  time to give it a whirl.   

It's looking like a pretty cloudy weekend and calling for rain so I doubt there'll be much outdoor activity going on this weekend.  I was right.

We settled in, took everything out of the box and sat down to watch the instructional DVD that came with it.  I'd seen the rotisserie advertised on T.V. several times but really didn't realize how versatile it could be or that it was designed for its ease of operation and healthier eating cooking style.  I really didn't think it would be that easy.  

I took 2 raw chickens, gave them both an ample amount of seasoning, put them on the rotisserie spit.  I put some tin foil on the catch pan but not on the pan that goes above it.  There's also a warning not to use sprays in the oven.  Fit it into the oven and turn it on for 15 minutes a pound.  It has what's called a perfect preset temperature with a precision rotating speed that makes sure that the cooking is even.  It juices itself and gets rid of fat.  What I appreciate is that it uses only 1/3 the power of a regular stove.

After approximately 1 1/4 hours we had gorgeous looking chicken with the skin perfectly browned and the inside properly cooked and very moist.  The manufacturer recommends that you check the internal temperature with a thermometer.

Yes the chicken was delicious.  The next trip to the cottage we'll try a roast or some fish or maybe even some spare ribs.  There's a wealth of possibilities.  There are other accessories you'd need and can purchase them off the Ronco website.

The Ronco Rotisserie oven is fantastic for the cottage.  Do I want it in my condo?  I'd love it but space is an issue.  If you have easy storage for a large counter top oven, you'd use it and probably often.  Clean up should be really soon after cooking.  We cleaned it right away and found it reasonably quick.  

I'm looking forward to putting a roast in the oven and experimenting with different rubs and marinades.  

Pimenton

A chef is a most interesting breed indeed.  You simply engage a chef in a conversation and you get an outpouring of passion that's unmistakable.  This shot of Chef Jose Arato has passion written all over it - it's unmistakable.  Chef Jose is the driving force of Pimenton (the name is Spanish paprika), a gourmet and specialty Spanish and Mediterranean food store.  Also offered are classes in one of Jose's specialties - Spanish Paella.


I'd been wanting to take this class for quite a while and finally all the stars were aligned and I attended a class in the Art of Making Spanish Paella.  This dish is not so intuitive; there's a process to making an incredible paella.  


I expected to learn something.  That was my only expectation.  What I got was a full package.  When I arrived, I was greeted by a very warm and hospitable man in a green and red chef's garb.  At first I thought - Oh..it's Santa Clause, but then I figured out that the colours are a theme of the colours of peppers.    Jose (as he's preferred to be called; as opposed to Chef) had a full table of appetizers ready for us;

We learned about the different sizes of paella pans; the configuration and the importance of having even heat when cooking your paella.

Ingredients:

2 cloves garlic, peeled
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped coarsely
Pinch saffron, infused
4 chicken breasts cut up
2 squid, cleaned, cut into rings
16 small clams, soaked to remove sand
16 shrimp, shelled and deveined
Spanish Oil as needed
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
Sofrito * see recipe below
3 cups Bomba rice
6 1/2 cup Chicken or Fish broth, hot
1 tablespoon salt (or more as needed)
1/2 cup green beans
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 lemon
2 sweet roasted red peppers
2 dozen mussels, steamed
Lemon wedges for garnish

Directions:

1. Place 1/2 cup of stock in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, and add the saffron and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside. This step is only necessary if your saffron is not dried enough.

2. In a mortar and pestle or small food processor, mash the garlic, parsley and some course salt to a paste. Set aside

3. Heat 6 tablespoons of oil in a paella pan and add the shrimp. Cook briefly and then add the clams and squid. Remove from paella pan. Add more oil if necessary, as dry paella can result if there isn't enough oil. Add the onions, pepper and when these are soft but not brown. It’s time to add the sofrito, and the garlic/parsley & saffron mixtures. Add enough stock to come up the rivets of the paella pan. Bring to a boil. Squeeze the lemon and season the paella at this point.

I asked about the rice used for paella and was quickly met with the answer "Bomba rice is the ONLY rice for good paella".  The reason - this rice, grown without pesticides absorbs 30% more of the broth while having a lower starch content.

Just before adding the rice, chef seasoned the paella with a goodly amount of salt.  It's what makes the flavour pop.  This is probably the one area we didn't agree on.  The amount of sodium can be a killer and my preference would be to use a whole lot less salt.  I found the flavour as rich before the addition of salt.

Add the rice in one line and then stir to mix with the stock. Allow to boil hard for 8 minutes.

Boil overs are part of cooking, right?  Jose seems totally unaffected and takes it all in good humour.

4. After 8 minutes, add the green beans, peas and nestle the shrimp on top. DO NOT STIR, as this releases the starch in the rice. Continue cooking at a high roll for another 2-3 minutes or until the rice is no longer soupy but enough liquid remains to continue to cook the rice. Now, turn the heat to low. Place the mussels on the top of the rice and arrange strips of roasted red peppers on top of paella. If your paella bottom does not fit properly on the stove burner, continue cooking in a pre-heated 350F oven for another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven when the rice still looks a bit wet. Cover with foil and let the paella rest for 5 minutes. Garnish with lemon wedges and parsley and serve from paella pan.

Sofrito (an aromatic tomato based sauce that forms the base of many Spanish dishes)

1 onion
1 garlic clove
1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
Olive oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt

1. In a saucepan, heat the oil; add the chopped onion and garlic. Fry gently until fragrant, about 6 minutes.

2. Add crushed tomatoes, sugar and salt. Cook at medium heat until some of the liquids has evaporated. Blend with a hand blender. Freezes well.

The sofrito base, along with the infused saffron and lemon take this dish to a whole new level of taste.

How Gorgeous is This???

   

and lets not forget about this delicious gluten free almond cake.  The dessert was for sure above and beyond but absolutely appreciated.  Chef Jose began his culinary journey as a pastry chef and he certainly keeps himself in shape.  This was the second pastry I've tasted from Pimenton.  So good and I wouldn't think about picking up one of his cakes or pies, particularly for those with special food needs.

When not running Pimenton, you can find Jose cooking at Evergreen Brick Works Farmer's Market , catering large and small events and participating in community events.  You can see the joy of feeding people on his face.  This has to be a labour of love; why else would you get up at the crack of dawn, cook and bake in the shop all day, teach a class at night until 10 or 11 p.m. and then cater  and attend events on weekends.  Only a labour of love could motivate one to work so many hours and still keep that warmth and humour alive.

If you're in the Toronto area and are looking for fine specialty foods, a good caterer or a really fun Paella cooking class - give Chef Jose a call.  You'll walk away having learned something new and feeling like you got your money's worth.