I am not the greatest recipe pre-reader.  Today I was all set to make Grilled Chicken with Cucumber, Radish, and Cherry Tomato Relish (from the bounty of summer-y recipes in August’s Martha Stewart Living) and reread “grilled.”  Realistically, grilling was not happening.  How to quickly cook the boneless skinless to make it moist and yummy?  How To Cook Like Your Grandmother’s Pan Fried Chicken in Butter was a revelation: pound the chicken thin, lightly flour it, and pan fry it in butter.

The result was perfect.  Moist and chicken-y all the way through paired perfectly with the fresh summer-y flavors and crunch of the cucumber, radish, cherry tomato “relish” (Martha-Stewart-ese for a salad on top of your chicken).  If you crave a summer salad atop chicken, this is what you are looking for.

Recipe and notes after the jump.

Pan Fried Chicken in Butter

I cannot compete with How To Cook Like Your Grandmother’s Pan Fried Chicken in Butter explanation, so click through.  It has pictures!  My only change was to use leftover seasoned flour.  And whether the chicken is done when there is no more pink showing around the edge seems to depend on how consistent and thin you’ve pounded the chicken.  I’m not an expert yet so I had to check for done-ness directly.

Replaces the chicken in….

Grilled Chicken with Cucumber, Radish, and Cherry Tomato Relish

From Martha Stewart Living, recipe not on site yet

Serves 6

1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon sugar
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1 small jalapeño chile, stem, ribs, and seeds removed (optional), quartered
coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 English cucumber (12 ounces), peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/4-inch dice
5 radishes, very thinly sliced
8 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved, or quartered if large
1 small red onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (2 pounds)
vegetable oil, for grill
1 cup fresh mint, torn into 1/2-inch pieces, plus sprigs for garnish

1. Bring vinegar, water, sugar, garlic, jalapeño, and 3/4 teaspoon salt to a boil in a small saucepan.  Remove from heat, and let stand for 15 minutes.  Strain through a fine sieve; discard solids.  Let cool completely.
2. Combine cucumber, radishes, tomatoes, and onion in a medium bowl.  Pour in vinegar mixture, and toss to coat.
3. Preheat grill to medium-high. Season chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper.  Lightly oil the grill grate.  Working in batches, grill chicken until cooked through 6 to 7 minutes per side.  Transfer to a platter, and let stand for 10 minutes.  Stir mint into relish.  Season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with vinegar if desired.  Spoon relish on top of chicken, and garnish with mint sprigs.

During my senior year of high school I used to have pad thai and Reed’s Ginger Brew at Saffron once a week.  I was craving the combo on Tuesday and disappointed to see that at some point Ginger Brew was replaced with a homemade Ginger Ale.  The Ginger Ale was refreshing (a tiny bit flat to be honest), but just didn’t pack the same gingery punch.  So when later that day I saw a recipe for homemade Ginger Ale in Dan’s away message, I was off to 99 Ranch Market for the ingredients.

Like the Amateur Gourmet, I am now sure I’ll be drinking this all summer.  The recipe below makes a nearly a syrup which you add to sparkling water.  I used the lemongrass and one deseeded Serrano, which gives it a great kick.  Half a Serrano is probably plenty though.  And sounds like some yeast derived carbonation would only make this better…

Recipe from Jean-Georges Vongerichten via the Amateur Gourmet:

(Yay Comic Life.)

Homemade Ginger Ale
recipe by Jean-Georges Vongerichten
from “Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef”

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh ginger, unpeeled and cut into small dice [I didn't dice because of the food processor]
2 stalks lemongrass, trimmed and roughly chopped
2 small fresh chiles, stems removed [recommendation: 1/2 to 1 deseeded Serrano]
1 1/2 cups sugar
Soda water
Lime wedges

1. Combine the ginger, lemongrass and chiles in food processor and process until minced, stopping the machine periodically and scraping down the sides.

2. Place the puree in a saucepan with the sugar and 1 quart water (that’s four cups). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat. Cool, then strain and chill. [I strained once in a colander, squeezed the mush through a cheesecloth, and then ran it all through the cheesecloth.]

3. To serve, place 1/4 cup of the syrup in a glass full of ice. Fill with soda water, taste and add more syrup if you like. Garnish with a lime wedge, then serve.

Off to make a Dark and Stormy!

So no pictures, see original recipe.  But normally, this is really easy, yummy, and cheap recipe.  Even in the midst of a clumsy streak, it’s still the second two.

Paprika-Braised Chicken with Salt Pork and Spinach

- makes 2 servings -

Ingredients

4 skin-on chicken pieces (thighs and/or drumsticks)
Seasoned flour for dredging [I approximated from this recipe and made extra a couple months ago]
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 oz salt pork, rind removed and finely diced
1 medium carrot, finely diced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 14.5-oz can chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon paprika, preferably smoked
5 oz (1/2 block) frozen chopped spinach, thawed [can sub fresh, though frozen seems to help with the thickening]
2 tablespoons corn starch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water [mix mix mix for no clumps!]
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Procedure

1. Pat chicken dry and dredge in seasoned flour, dusting off excess. Heat vegetable oil in a large, heavy saucepan over moderate heat, until hot but not smoking. Place chicken pieces skin-side down in hot oil and sear 6-8 minutes, transferring to a plate once skin is golden brown.

2. Discard left-over oil and reduce heat to low. In the same saucepan, cook salt pork until crispy, about 4 minutes. Add carrots and onions, stirring to coat in rendered pork fat, and cook until onion is translucent.

3. Add chicken broth and paprika and deglaze pan by boiling and scraping up any brown bits, 1 minute. Return chicken to pan, skin-side up, along with any juices that have accumulated on plate. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

4. Add chopped spinach and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Pour in cornstarch-water mixture, stirring to distribute, and cook until sauce is thickened, about 1 minute. Season to taste.

Chickpea Puree with Crispy Shallots

- makes 2 servings -

Chickpeas aren’t just for hummus. Here’s a 5-minute, 99-cent side dish that’s luscious and unexpected.

Ingredients

For the crispy shallots
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
Vegetable oil for deep-frying

For the puree
1 15.5-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Procedure

1. Make the crispy shallots: Place the shallots in a small saucepan and cover with vegetable oil. On low heat, bring oil to a simmer. Maintain a low, steady heat until shallots are golden brown, then remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to paper towels to drain.  [Start this early and be patient.  Which is difficult with hot oil.  I am still working on getting consistent golden browning.]

2. Make the puree: Place the chickpeas, water, olive oil and ground cumin in a food processor or blender. Blend until texture is creamy and uniform, adding more water if necessary, 1 tablespoon at a time. Transfer to a saucepan over a low flame and heat through. Season to taste.  [Seasoning to taste may include adding other spices and/or lemon.  It's a bit bland.]

3. Serve puree sprinkled with crispy shallots. If desired, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.

Camera phone pictures clearly demonstrate that though beet cake batter is pepto-bismol purple/pink (!) and beet cake is not red.

Batter is purple/pink:

Baked cakes are brown:

All iced up:

Recipe review, via Gchat:

5:59 PM me: were the muffins yummy?
6:16 PM Sarah: fine–i prefer carrot cake, though.

Unfortunately, when I turned to the internet, I learned that’s not the case.  According to this recipe from Cooking Light, beet cake can indeed be made just like carrot cake and the batter is bright red but the cake bakes up to a golden brown:

From Cooking Light

This is really disappointing.  Shredding that many beets would be way too messy to justify a golden brown cake.

Like Caponata, fennel and garlic confit is a regular on my recipe rotation.  It’s flexible with what I have in the kitchen (garlic can be replaced or supplemented with shallots or onions) and can be made more or less healthy or vegan by modifying the butter and oil quantities.   And once I’ve got some in the fridge, with some toasted pita it’s the perfect satisfying snack or part of dinner.

Since I have been making it, I have modified it slightly from the original recipe from The Kitchn.  (If you look at the original recipe, the fennel fronds burnt and the thin lemon slices resulted in a bitter confit so I dropped them.)

Recipe and pictures after the jump…

Fennel and Garlic Confit (slightly modified from The Kitchn)
about 4 cups

1 large bulb of fennel, with stalks only
6 large cloves of garlic (and/or some quantity of onions and/or shallots)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
Black pepper
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt

Wash the fennel well. Chop the fennel stalks into 3-4 inch pieces.  Sliver the garlic.

Melt the olive oil and butter in a heavy, flat-bottomed saute pan over medium heat. Add the fennel and garlic (and onions and shallots if using). Shake a little black pepper over top and stir in the salt and red pepper flakes. Cover tightly and cook on low heat for about 45 minutes, or until soft and tender.

Let cool, then blend in a food processor until chunky. Store in the fridge – this will keep for at least a week – probably up to two.

Pictures

After 20 minutes or so:

Cooling for the blender:

My formative cooking years included a vegetarian coop and an Armenian roommate.  From the two, one basic cooking strategy I have developed is: buy fresh vegetables, chop them up, saute them with whatever you have around, add canned tomatoes.  Caponata falls into this strategy and having a recipe taught me to add red wine vinegar and put the tomatoes in later than I would have otherwise.  The result is very tasty.

The recipe is really easy and can be modified to your heart’s/taste’s desire.  I only faltered at toasting pine nuts.  I am a terrible toaster.  If anyone has any no-fail toasting tips, send them along.  To quote a Food Network chef, “toasting takes as long as it takes you to forget that you’re toasting.”   Which is exactly my experience both in the oven and on the stove.

Pictures and recipe after the jump…

Classic Caponata from Epicurious/Bon Appetite

Ingredients

5 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2-pound eggplant, unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium onion, cubed
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings in juice
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons drained capers
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
Toasted pine nuts

Preparation

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add eggplant, onion, and garlic cloves. sauté until eggplant is soft and brown, about 15 minutes. Add diced tomatoes with juice, then red wine vinegar and drained capers. Cover and simmer until eggplant and onion are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Season caponata to taste with salt and pepper. Mix in fresh basil. Transfer caponata to serving bowl. Sprinkle with toasted pine nuts. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold. (Caponata can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.)

Pictures

Starting sauteing:

10 minutes later:

Tomatoes added:

Greek Panzanella Salad

My mom and I made this tasty bread salad from House Beautiful’s Ask the Barefoot Contessa column last night.  (The recipe itself is not on House Beautiful’s website yet.)

Review = Yum.  I love bread salad, specifically, all the different textures and how the flavors soak into the bread.  This Greek version had a nice balance of crunch (cucumbers and bread), sweet (tomatoes, bell peppers), salty (olives), and tangy (onions, dressing).  Also it assuaged my guilt for not finishing really good Ciabatta from Bread and Cie.

Even with the simplest of recipes I often mess something up and this was no exception.  I usually toast in the oven and perfecting toasting on the stovetop is going to take me some time.  Though the oil was hot when I put the bread in, I felt the bread was soaking, not toasting.  Added a bit more heat and in the end had unevenly browned bread cube faces, including some charred faces.  Removed or salvaged charred cubes before making the salad.

Greek Panzanella Salad

Serves 6 [we halved it]

Good olive oil
6 cups (1-inch cubes) French or Italian bread, fresh or day old
1 hothouse cucumber (unpeeled)
1 red pepper, large-diced
1 yellow pepper, large-diced
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 small red onion, sliced in half-rounds
1/2 pound feta cheese, cubed
1/2 cup Calamata olives, pitted

Vinaigrette

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup good red wine vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan.  Add the bread and sprinkle with salt, cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently for 5 to 10 minutes, until nicely browned.

Meanwhile, cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a small spoon.  Discard the seeds and slice the cucumber 1/4 inch thick and place in a large bowl.  Add the red pepper, yellow pepper, tomatoes, and red onion.

Next, make the vinaigrette: Place the garliv, oregano, mustard, and vinegar in a small bowl and whisk together.  Whisking constantly, slowly add the olive oil to make an emulsion.  Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the pepper and taste for seasoning.

Add the feta, olives, and cooked bread cubes to the bowl with the salad and add the vinaigrette and toss lightly. Set aside for 30 minutes for the flavors to blend.  Serve at room temperature.

TIp:

Freeze stale bread.  I just use a huge Ziploc and toss in scraps when I have them.  Then you have the basis of bread salad (just cube and toast the bread, toss in whatevervegis you have around, add dressing = meal) or bread pudding (flavor and heat some milk/cream, add cubed bread, add egg or not, let marinade for a while, bake, my fav savory version).  Depending on the staleness/defrostedness, the bread may require some sawing in order to cube.

Also, if you’re going to try the skillet toasting route, defrost first.  When I’m toasting in the oven though I don’t worry about it.