Chicken, Quinoa, and Kale Soup

Consider this my offering to the weather gods! If the air cools and I don't feel ridiculous, impractical, and feverish wearing boots and scarves, I will make this again and again.

Should my wish not be granted...oh, heck, I'll just set the A.C. to 68 and slurp up a bowl anyway.

The glory of brewing up a soup or stew exists in the ability to crane your neck over the pot, steam whispering at your earlobes, and inhale your crafted aromas.

I haven't cooked much with kale before, but I look forward to using it more! I hear a rumor it's good for you...

The combination of vegetables, plus a few choice spices (cumin, oregano, thyme, bay leaf, crushed red pepper), a parmesan cheese rind, and a garnishing squeeze of lime juice lent the broth a full, zesty flavor.

But let's move onto pictures and the recipe, so you can whip up your own possibly healthy soup!

Chicken, Quinoa, and Kale Soup (adapted from Iowa Girl Eats)
Serves 4.

1/2 lb. boneless chicken thighs
1 carrot, diced
1 celery rib, diced 
1/2 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt
Pepper
3 cups kale, torn
3 cloves minced garlic
1 zucchini, halved then thinly sliced
7 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon dried chives
1 bay leaf
2 cups chopped fingerling potatoes
2/3 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
Parmesan cheese rind
1/4 grated parmigiano-reggiano (or parmesan)
One lime (to squeeze juice into each bowl)
Tortilla chips

1. In a large soup pot, heat up olive oil over medium-high. Add celery, carrots, and onions, season with salt and pepper, and sauté until tender (about ten minutes.)
2. Stir in kale and garlic. Season again with salt and pepper and sauté for two more minutes.
3. Now add 6 cups of chicken broth, zucchini, spices, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and add in chicken thighs. Cook for 10 minutes, until no longer pink in the center. Remove chicken breasts and set aside.
4. Stir in quinoa, potatoes, and rind. Cover the pot and lower heat to medium. Cook for another ten to twelve minutes, until potatoes and quinoa are tender. Meanwhile, shred cooked chicken by tearing it apart with two forks.
5. Remove rind and bayleaf. Return shredded chicken to the pot. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
6. Take pot off heat and serve, topping each bowl with grated cheese, lime juice, and two tortilla chips.

You Can Have Bagels Any Time

I've been rather neglectful of my blog lately, but I have been cooking! Sometimes I just let a little too much time pass before I sit down to chronicle a new recipe/technique, and then I continue to put it off until it's just a vague memory.

But I have to talk about bagels.

This little culinary adventure was borne not out of a lack of breakfast foods at my house, but a very specific craving for bagels, and the realization that I could just make them myself.

And now you can too!

NOTES:
1. When you go to boil the unbaked bagels, the dough may become disconnected. No worries--it's still malleable enough to reconnect before you pop them in the oven. But for better footing, make sure to twist the dough at the connecting point to give it a stronger link.
2. It is possible to sprinkle the baking sheet with cornmeal before you cook, so the bagels are less likely to become stuck. Simply greasing the sheet should be fine, though.
3. Toppings are fun! I worked with what I had: sesame seeds, fenugreek (an Eastern-European spice that has a somewhat Christmasy aroma, in my opinion), oregano, and a seasoning mix called Big & Bold, with rosemary, onion powder, paprika, and garlic, among other things.
4. Next time I'd love to experiment with different flavors in the dough itself. Cinnamon raisin swirl, blueberry, mmmm.

Homemade Bagels (adapted from Food Network)
Makes 12.

2 cups warm water, about 110 degrees F
2 (1/4-ounce) packets active dry yeast
3 tablespoons granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
5 to 6 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Desired toppings (ex. sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried herbs.)

1. In the bowl of a standing mixer, proof water, yeast, and 3 tablespoons of sugar for about five minutes, until properly foam. Gradually stir in (using dough hook) four cups of flour.

2. Once mixture has come together, add remaining cup or two (as needed), half a cup at a time, until a stiff dough is formed--use a wooden spoon or hands to bring dough together.

3. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface, kneading for five minutes. Add flour as needed, until heavy, smooth dough ball is formed.

4. Place in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm area for 45 minutes - 1 hour, until doubled. (I heated my oven to 200, then turned it off before placing dough inside.

5. Once doubled, remove dough from bowl and punch down. Separate dough into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then use hands to shape the balls into 4–6 in. logs. Connect the ends of logs to form theoretical bagels. Twist at connecting point to secure.

6. Place bagels on lightly floured surface. Cover loosely with clean towels and let rise for another twenty to thirty minutes.

7. In a large heavy pot, bring 12 cups of water and one tablespoon sugar to a boil. One at a time, use tongs to place bagels into the boiling water--thirty seconds to a minute on each side. Place desired toppings in shallow bowls. Dip one side of bagel into toppings, then place--topping side up--on a large greased baking sheet.

8. Preheat oven to 375. Once all bagels have been boiled and topped, place baking sheet in oven and let cook for 30 minutes, until tops are golden.

9. Cool bagels on a wire rack until room temperature. Slice, slather in cream cheese (or don't), and enjoy!

Instead of Kraft, Get Crafty: Skillet Baked Mac with Spinach and Turkey Bacon

You know, I stepped into my kitchen last night just intending to make a sandwich. We indulged in gourmet hot dogs for lunch (duck sausage, yessir) and I wasn't exactly starving.

But a craving that had been bubbling in the back of my head for quite a while now finally boiled over. I needed macaroni and cheese.

I'm fairly proud of the fact that I composed this solely of items I already had on hand. We were running low on milk and I didn't want to complete deplete the supply before morning, so I supplemented the meager milk dose with a 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt, which gave the bechamel sauce a thick, creamy texture.

Once I had my mise en place, the cooking process extended at a lovely, leisurely place. The light over my stove. My cast-iron ably sizzling. Bam, turkey bacon! Bam, onions! Whisky-whisky, lil' bechamel sauce. I love this way too much.

Enough chatter. Here lie pictures.

 

Skillet Baked Mac with Spinach and Turkey Bacon
Serves 4.

8 oz. hollow pasta
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup milk
1/4 plain Greek yogurt
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
4 oz. fresh mozzarella, roughly chopped or torn
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 slices turkey bacon, sliced thinly crosswise
1/4 cup of thinly sliced red onion
2 green onions, thinly sliced (reserve some for garnish)
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 oz. spinach
1 tablespoon dried dillweed
Breadcrumbs
Smoked paprika

1. Cook pasta, taking a minute or two off of package directions. Drain and run under cold water. Set aside.
2. Melt butter in medium saucepan. Add flour, whisking till smooth. Slowly drizzle in milk, still whisking constantly. Add Greek yogurt and continue to whisk. Once roux is smooth--with milk and yogurt fully incorporated--whisk in Parmesan and 3 oz. mozzarella. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Take off heat and set aside.
3. Place your trusty cast-iron (if you do not have a cast-iron skillet, you can substitute with...oh come on! you need cast-iron! But I guess a normal skillet will do for now...for now) over medium-high heat. Add bacon slices, pressing down as they cook to render fat. Once bacon is crisped (and smelling heavenly), remove from skillet and set aside.
4. Preheat oven to 350. Add red and green onions and garlic to skillet, shaking the pan as they cook so they don't stick. Drizzle in a little olive oil, then add spinach and dill. Cook until spinach is wilted down, adding more as you go.
5. Once all spinach is wilted, stir in sauce and cooked pasta. Top with remaining 1 oz. of mozzarella, then sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Bake in oven for 30 minutes, until golden and bubbling. Let cool for ten minutes, then sprinkle with smoked paprika and green onions and serve.

Polenta Torta with Grilled Zucchini and Corn

I've been reading Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food, and I'm just enamored of her take on cooking. The use of fresh, quality ingredients. The careful handling and technique. The love of aromas, flavors, and even aesthetics. It's joyful and I love it.

I took Waters' recipe for the polenta torta, a layered dish of polenta, tomato sauce, and cheese, and added grilled summer vegetables and a salsa verde.

Salsa verde is so simple: chopped parsley, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper--allowed to sit and meld for a few hours to really strengthen the overall flavor. You can also add capers, anchovies, vinegar, etc., but I kept it simple (with the lemon zest providing the acidity that the vinegar would have.)

Then I made a flash-sauteed fresh cherry tomato sauce with basil and a kick of jalapeno.

The tart, garlicky taste of the salsa verde balanced well with the mellow basil and low heat of the cherry tomato sauce.

Then I just had to make the polenta and grill the vegetables.

Then I shucked the corn and stirred the vegetables into the polenta. After that, it was a simple matter of layering the polenta, sauces, and cheeses. I let the polenta set for at least thirty minutes (preferably longer, as mine wasn't quite as firm as I wanted when removed from the oven), then baked it for 30 minutes at 350, until it was hot and bubbling.

So there you have a summer dish packed with flavors and fresh vegetables! I served it alongside snapper en papillote and a salad of fresh red and green leaf lettuce with a red wine vinaigrette.

Polenta Torta with Grilled Zucchini and Corn
Serves 4 - 6.

Salsa Verde
Flash-Sauteed Fresh Cherry Tomato Sauce
4 cups water
1 cup yellow corn meal
2 ears corn
1 large zucchini, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup grated parmesan (or parmigiano-reggiano)
4 oz. fresh mozzarella, sliced

Salsa Verde
1/3 cup parsley, coarsely chopped
Zest from one lemon
1 clove garlic, minced
2 - 3 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Flash-Sauteed Fresh Cherry Tomato Sauce
2 1/2 cups cherry tomatos, halved
2 tablespoons jalapenos, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 oz. basil chiffonade
1 tablespoons garlic powder

1. Combine salsa verde ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour.
2. For tomato sauce, heat up 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet. Add jalapeno and sautee, shaking the pan so the jalapeno doesn't stick, for 2 - 3 minutes, until tender and fragrant. Add tomatoes and garlic powder and continue to cook for 5 - 6 minutes until tomatoes burst and release juices. Take off heat and stir in basil chiffonade.
3. In a medium saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to boil. Stir in 1 cup yellow cornmeal and lower to a simmer. Continue to stir for 2 - 3 minutes until cornmeal remains suspended. Let cook, stirring occasionally, for approximately one hour. Polenta will be done after 20 - 30 minutes, but the additional time allows the flavor to strengthen.
4. In a grill pan, cook corn and zucchini slices until browned and tender. Stir grilled vegetables into polenta.
5. Grease a large earthenware baking dish. First add a third of the polenta and vegetable mixture.
6. Combine salsa verde and cherry tomato sauce and spread half over the polenta. Top with half the cheese. Add another third of the polenta mixture. Repeat layers of sauce and cheese. Finish off with the last of the polenta.
7. Let the polenta set for another 30 minutes--preferably in the fridge. Preheat oven to 350.
8. Cook polenta for 30 - 40 minutes, until hot and bubbling.

 

 

No Place Like Home for the Challah Days

I was in the mood for a good bread today--the whole afternoon lay before me and I imagined it filled with delicious aromas and flour to my elbows.

Ultimately, this panned out (heh, heh, sorry.) Breadmaking takes a bit more time than your average recipe, even if you don't go the cold fermentation route. It can be extremely taxing on the heart to begin a bread recipe one day and be stalled by the directive: "Refrigerate overnight." Oof! I could not do that to myself. Not on a Sunday. So instead I opted for warm proofing.

But I'm getting ahead of myself!

Challah. An eggy bread similar to brioche. The baking process called for lots of waiting periods as the dough inched its way skyward, and I filled with time with pacing and Veronica Mars episodes.

The complications begin after the dough completes its first couple of rises. Then you must perform the braiding, which isn't that difficult once you have the steps down! I've seen a few methods on the internet, but here is the most straightforward and easiest. Thank you so much, fellow baker!

Simply separate the dough into six balls, then form those balls into strands about 12 inches long and 1 - 1 1/2 inches wide.

Place the strands parallel to each other and pinch them at the top to hold together.

Then braid!

Once both loaves are made, I brushed them generously with eggwash (using my brush to paint with the direction of each braid section), then let them rise for another hour before another eggwashing, followed by a sesame-seed-sprinkling.

Finally time to bake!

And enjoy!

Six-Strand Challah (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes 2 loaves.

1 3/4 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 tablespoon, plus 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup olive oil, plus more for greasing bowl and pan
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon table salt
8 cups flour
Sesame seeds for sprinkling

1. In a large bowl (or bowl to stand mixer if using), dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in water.
2. Whisk in olive oil, then beat in 4 eggs (one at a time) before adding 1/2 cup sugar and salt.
3. Slowly add in flour, whisking as you go along. Once all the flour is added, use dough hook attachment of mixer, operating on the lowest speed, for about three minutes until smooth. Turn dough out onto floured surface and form into ball.
4. Clean out mixing bowl, grease the inside with olive oil, then return dough to bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and proof for one hour in a warm area, until dough has doubled in size. (I heated my oven to 150 and then turned it off before placing bowl inside to proof.)
5. Uncover dough, punch down, then rewrap. Return to warm area for thirty minutes.
6. Uncover dough again. Divide dough in half. Starting with first half, form into six balls. Form each ball into a "rope" about 12 inches long and 1 - 1 1/2 inches long. Set strands parallel to one another, then pinch together at the top.
7. Begin to braid the strands. Take the rightmost strand and pull it over two strands, under one strand, then over the last two. Begin again with new rightmost strand. Over two, under one, over two. Continue--using rightmost strand each time--until dough is fully braided. Repeat process with second half of dough.
8. Place both loaves on a greased cookie sheet, at least two inches apart. Beat remaining egg and brush loaves generally with eggwash.
9. Let rise again for another hour. Then brush again with eggwash before sprinkling sesame seeds.
10. Preheat oven to 375. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes, until bread is deeply golden. Let cool on wire rack.

Stuffed Artichokes in a Summer Supper

I'm still getting acquainted with artichokes, but I think I might love them. I might even love them so much that I'll stop saying, "Okey dokey, artichokey!" Because that would be taking the magnificent artichoke's name in vain (not because it is...hokey.)

My previous relationship with these creatures--and when I say creature, I think of when I was in the reptile house at the zoo with my boyfriend and I said, "Oh, what is this creature?!" and it turned out to be a cactus in the terrarium--consisted mainly of spinach and artichoke dip or other inclusions where they weren't quite masked but did not present their full strange beauty.

During the preparation, I didn't actively feel like a gardener, but looking back--I really wish I had been wearing a sunhat and overalls. (I wish this on many occasions.) Lopping off the stem, yanking off the outer leaves, trimming the tips. Next thing you know, I'll be art(ichoke)fully arranging them around my house. Just wait!

The lemon is rubbed on the cut edges of the artichoke to prevent discoloration while cooking. I think my mistake was using a not-so-fresh lemon, as I did not get as much juice out of it. Therefore, the outside browned a bit, but the inside remained lovely! So here's my advice: juicy, juicy lemons.

Stuffing was fairly simple. Once I pulled the 'choke apart with my thumbs, I sprinkled the stuffing mixture (breadcrumbs, freshly grated Parmesan, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper) inside, shaking it to make sure the sprinkles reached deep.

See? Already with that discoloration. Lesson learned!

While the artichokes--covered in greased foil--baked, I carried on with the rest of dinner: chicken marinated in a lemon thyme and white wine vinaigrette and green beans simmered with tomato and garlic.

And then the artichokes came out!

And--after shutting up the hungrier, more inquisitive cat--we ate!

Stuffed Artichokes
Serves 2.

2 large artichokes
3/4 cup bread crumbs
3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons garlic powder
Salt
Pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1. Chop off the stem from each artichoke so that it will sit flat. Remove tough outer leaves and trim tips from remaining ones. Spread apart the leaves with your thumbs.
2. Preheat the oven to 425. In a medium bowl, combine breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan, parsley, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Holding an artichoke over the bowl, sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over it, shaking to ensure the mixture reaches deep down into the artichoke.
3. Put the artichokes into a shallow baking dish. Rub a tablespoon of olive oil over the top of each one. Take a sheet of foil and rub the remaining tablespoon of oil on one side. Cover the baking dish with the foil, oil-side down.
4. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove dish from oven, uncover, and sprinkle remaining cheese on top of each artichoke. Switch oven to broiler and return dish to oven for three minutes.
5. Serve!

Fish in Crazy Water (Pesce all'Acqua Pazza)

Those Italians. Beautifully vivid with their recipe names. You can almost picture a cartoon mustachioed chef with steam rocketing out of his ears, elevating his quaking leather boots from the ground as he tests out this so-called crazy water.

Truth be told, it is a little zany.

A few lessons learned from this recipe:

1. A little crushed red pepper goes a loooong way. I guess that's effect produced by the long-simmer. The flavors meld and spotlight the spice.
2. My new kitchen smokes up right quickly. Thankfully there's a powerful vent, but the noise and air did detract somewhat from my inhaling of the aromatics.
3. Speaking of aromatics! The Italian term for a bundle of lovely smells sauteed in olive oil (here I used oregano and parsley) is soffritto. I imagine it's somewhat related to the French mirepoix, which refers to the usual suspects (onions, carrots, celery, what have you) used in making a stock.
4. Must work quickly with a gas stove and thinly sliced garlic. When initially sauteeing the garlic, I had to shake the pan a lot to keep the garlic from sticking. Using a wooden spoon would have caused it to clump.
5. The combination of grilled corn and pesto is more of a winner than the Dillon Panthers.

I used pollock for the fish here, mainly because I was looking for something not-too-pricey that didn't bring a strong flavor (here's looking at you, salmon) along with it. Pollock did a great job at absorbing the flavor of the tomato and spices while still bringing along its own pleasant fishiness.

To complement the hydrating psychosis, I chose a couple of other summer standards with a bit of Italian flair. I cannot get enough of tomatoes and corn right now. Grilling them? Even better. The additions of a balsamic-based marinade (for the tomatoes) and a heaping dose of pesto ladled over the ear of corn and I was practically mopping my plate to ensure nothing fell by the wayside.

Fish in Crazy Water (Pesce all'Acqua Pazza) [adapted from Cooks Illustrated]
Serves 2 - 3.

4 fillets pollock (the kind I purchased were very narrow)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes
1 small red onion, halved and sliced thinly
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
4 stems parsley and 2 sprigs fresh oregano, tied together with kitchen twine (soffritto)
1 cup chicken stock (or dry white wine, which I would have preferred to use but forgot to purchase)
2 cups water
Juice from one lemon

2 ears corn
1/4 cup pesto

2 large Creole tomatoes, cored and halved
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
Salt
Pepper

1. In a 9x13 baking dish, whisk together balsamic, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper. Placed tomatoes face down in dish and let marinate at room-temperature for 15 - 20 minutes.
2. In a 12-inch skillet, heat up olive oil over medium-high. Add garlic and red pepper flakes. Shake the pan to keep garlic from sticking. Cook until pale golden.
3. Add in red onion slices, stirring constantly, until onion is translucent and beginning to brown.
4. Pour in chicken stock, water, cherry tomatoes, and the soffritto. Lower heat to medium and let simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile heat grill pan to medium-high, drizzling it with a bit more olive oil. Add tomatoes (hollow-side down) and ears of corn. Grill tomatoes for two minutes before flipping. Remove after another five to six minutes, as tomato starts to caramelize. Grill corn, turning frequently and brushing with oil, until browned on all sides.
5. Carefully slide fish fillets into broth mixture. Reduce heat to low, cover pan, and let cook for another 10 minutes.
6. Serve by halving fish fillets, placing them in a bowl, then ladling the broth (along with onions and tomatoes) over the fish. Squeeze lemon juice and sprinkle parsley over each bowl.
7. Ladle pesto over corn.
8. Enjoy!