Easy Fajita Chicken with Vegetables, Beans and Rice

Black beans and vegetables:

Slice:
1 green bell pepper (make sure to take out the seeds and white parts)
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 yellow onion

Use:
1 can black beans (you can cook your own beans, but I do not have the time).

Saute in a large pan in 1 tbs. olive oil on medium for about ten minutes, tossing lightly. Add a teaspoon of salt and teaspoon of pepper. Drain the black beans and rinse them in a colander. Add them to the hot pan and stir vigorously. Cook until the veggies are slightly soft and the moisture in the pan is almost gone.

Marinade recipe:

1 tbs vegetable oil

2 tablespoons lime juice 

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 tsp cumin

1 tsp kosher salt

Use 1.5-2 lbs thin cut chicken breasts. Marinate in a plastic bag about 30 minutes. Grill at about 450-500F for 6 minutes per side.  Make sure it's around 160 degrees F inside using a meat thermometer. Let it rest for 10 minutes wrapped in aluminum foil.

For the rice, I used a rice cooker. If you do not have a rice cooker, here's what you need: 

1 cup rice
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 tbs butter

Bring the water and salt to a boil. Add the butter (optional--it adds flavor, but it's not necessary). Add the rice and cook for approximately 20 minutes. 

After you fluff the cooked rice, put the bean veggie mix on top. Slice the chicken and put it on top of the beans and veggies. There you have it: a healthy meal that is pretty affordable (and a staple of our house).

Mole Negro in the Slow Cooker

My fiance wanted chicken mole--typically I make it over the stove, but today we were busy and I thought it would be cool to try it in the slow cooker, and it turned out great!

Ingredients:

2 lbs chicken thighs deboned

1 medium yellow onion, rough dice
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
3 tbs. olive oil
1 tbs sesame seeds
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (or almonds, but I used pumpkin seeds)
2 chipotle peppers in adobe sauce
1 dried ancho deseeded and stem cut out
1 tbs brown sugar
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp coriander
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

Place the chicken in the crockpot on high and let sit while you get the sauce ready. Chop the chocolate and place in blender with the shelled pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, raisins and other ingredients. Seriously, just put them all together, they'll be okay. If your blender is small, you can blend in two batches. Blend well and, if you like, strain the sauce (I strained mine through a sieve because I think it is a better presentation). Pour the sauce over the chicken and cook for 2 hours on high followed by 4 hours on low. Chicken should fall apart when poked with a fork.

Laksa!

shrimp laksa topped with cilantro, coriander

radish sprouts and crispy shallots

Tonight I made laksa, because I was craving it. It has a lot of ingredients, but it is a fairly easy dish to make--a spicy noodle soup (usually found in Malaysia and Indonesia). This version uses items that should be fairly easy to find. I simplified things while trying to still get that delicious sour/spicy/savory laksa flavor.

You will need:

1.5 tbs red curry paste (or preferably laksa paste, if you can find it at the market)
2 tsp tamarind paste
2 tsp vegetable oil
3 cups vegetable stock
10 oz. coconut milk (you can use lowfat if you want to cut the calories)
1 tbs chopped fresh ginger
1/4 cup diced onion
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
1 jalapeno, sliced
1 bunch each of fresh coriander and fresh cilantro
radish or bean sprouts

8 oz dried flat wide rice noodles

1 pound raw medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (Note: you can leave the tails on or take them off--I like to leave them on because it adds extra flavor, but you can remove the tails beforehand to make things easier on your diners). 

I also added mushrooms because I like them-- I used shimeji or Beach mushrooms. 

Optional: fish balls, puffed tofu, or any other product you'd like to add.

Saute the onion, jalapeno and ginger in the vegetable oil until slightly soft. Add the garlic and the curry paste and reduce the heat, cooking for about 3 minutes more. Add the tamarind paste. Add the coconut milk slowly, and then add the stock, fish sauce, sugar and soy sauce. Whisk together and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms to the broth at this point if you want to add mushrooms. While it is simmering, soak your rice noodles in boiling water for about 7 minutes. Drain the noodles and shock them in cold water, then set them aside. Add the shrimp to the broth (and add fishballs if you are choosing to use them) and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes. To serve, put the noodles in a bowl and spoon the soup over it. Top with the sprouts, cilantro and coriander leaves, and a spritz of lime juice if you want a little extra acid.

Roast Chicken

I was looking for something simple to make for us tonight, so I decided on roast chicken. I picked a 4-pound free range chicken from our local grocery store.

Rinse the chicken (inside and out) in cold water and pat it dry. If it comes with innards, pull them out and, if you like, save them for a sauce. Put the chicken on an oiled roasting rack in a basic roasting pan. I rubbed it with two tbs. butter (cutting little slits at the top to rub a bit of the butter under the skin). I stuffed the cavity with two lemon halves and two onion quarters, and a bunch of tied up sage, thyme and rosemary. I covered the outside with sea salt, lemon pepper, a pinch of cayenne pepper, and a pinch of oregano.

Roast it on the rack for 20 minutes per pound at 400 degrees F. If it starts to get too brown on top, tent it with foil for the last 10-15 minutes. Check it with a meat thermometer, and make sure that the thigh temperature is at least 160 degrees. Let it rest for 15 minutes while you prepare your sides.

Fresh Rigatoni

 I made rigatoni today with an extruder attached to my Kitchen Aid:

For the dough, I used:
3 cups flour 4 large eggs 1 tsp olive oil 1/2 tsp salt
Knead dough well until it comes together. Let it rest for 1-2 hours, then take it out and knead it again. If it is sticky at all, knead in a handful of flour and work it until it is no longer sticky. Put in an extruder (I use a kitchen aid) and allow to dry in a floured tray for 45 minutes. Boil for 6-7 minutes, and finish in sauce of your choice.

I made a meat sauce:

For this, I used:

1 pound lean ground beef (95%)
1 tbs olive oil
1 shallot, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 handful fresh basil
1 tsp salt
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 jar pasta sauce
4 strips of bacon, crisped

Cook the beef at medium-high heat in a sturdy saute pan until it is no longer pink. In another pan, saute the shallot in the oil until soft, then stir in the garlic and cook on low heat. Add the crushed tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in the cooked beef and simmer until it starts to thicken, then add the pasta sauce and simmer for another 10 minutes. I chopped some of the basil and added it in to the sauce and used the rest for garnish. Towards the end of the simmering, add the crumbled bacon and stir well. The sauce should have a nice shine but should not have any grease sitting on top. Stir in the cooked pasta and let sit for a few minutes before serving. Garnish with basil. 

Old Fashioned Ginger Bread

1 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
4 tbs butter
1.25 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
1 egg
2 tbs buttermilk
1 cup hot water

1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cloves (if you like them)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the egg, and mix in the molasses. In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and cloves. Blend into the creamed mixture. Stir in the hot water. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes in a standard loaf pan until the knife comes out clean with a moist crumb.

Weeknight Meal: Grilled Pork with Asparagus and Polenta

I got home a little early today, so I went to the store and got pork chops, asparagus, corn meal and beef broth. For $16, I created a very nice meal:



It's really easy--so easy, you don't even need a recipe. Here's what you need:

Pork chops
Asparagus
Corn meal
Beef broth
olive oil
apple cider vinegar
brown sugar
your preferred spices

Take the pork and marinate it in a plastic bag with olive oil, apple cider vinegar, an ounce of brown sugar and some ground ginger (you could also use cloves or ground mustard or fennel...use your preference!). Leave it sitting for about 45 minutes in the fridge. Put the asparagus on some foil, and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. When the pork is ready, put it on the grill on medium (and put the asparagus, still on the foil, on the upper rack of the grill). Grill the pork for 6-7 minutes on each side. The asparagus needs about 10 minutes. While it's cooking, make the polenta.
Boil 2 cups of broth and one cup water. Add 1 cup corn meal and 1 tsp salt. Boil slightly and stir constantly. After five minutes, take off heat and keep stirring. Beat in a tbs of butter.

Take the pork and asparagus off the grill (make sure the pork is at least 145 degrees F in the center). Let the pork rest 8 minutes. While you're letting it rest, plate the asparagus and the polenta. Adjust the salt and pepper levels of the polenta, or add some garlic powder, onion powder, basil, whatever you want! Eat in the living room while watching dumb television (that's what we did!)

They See Me Grillin'...

I made burgers on the grill. To go with them, I roasted some mild chiles on the grill and then paired them with roasted orange peppers and onions for a burger topping. I also grilled enough chicken to feed us all week, since I've been spending so much time on campus.

I cut the chiles down the middle and washed out the seeds (which I planted out back--here's hoping they take!). I then lightly brushed them with olive oil and set them on medium on the grill for 10-15 minutes (about 7 minutes a side, or until the skin starts to blacken). Here's the key: don't worry if they looked burned, just taken them off the grill after 15 minutes and put them in a bowl. Cover the top of the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let them steam for 10 minutes. Then you should be able to peel off that black skin and have perfect, soft, smoky pepper flesh. Boy, that sounds almost dirty...

The rest of the veg I cooked in foil on the grill. I combined them all to make a tasty burger topping:

I marinated the chicken in rice wine vinegar, vegetable oil, Lea & Perrins, 

lemon pepper and 4 chopped fresh garlic cloves. Let it sit in there for 2 hours. I never like to give cooking times with these recipes, because grills vary, chicken breasts vary, etc. I had normal, hormone-free chicken to work with, and I grilled it for 9 minutes on each side and let it rest for 10 minutes wrapped in foil. This time it was 9 minutes, but you never know. Use a meat thermometer! I don't take the chicken off the grill until it's 160 degrees F. A lot of recipes will say 165 F, but the chicken continues to cook as it rests. You'll find you get juicier chicken if you pull it out at 160 F. 

For the burgers, I use a combo of 80% and 93% ground beef. I add an egg yolk to 2 pounds of meat, along with some Lipton's onion soup mix, 1 tbs of soy sauce, and lots of pepper. I always make a well in the middle of the burger before I cook it, so it doesn't swell in the middle. 

We ate them with sesame seed buns, romaine lettuce, fresh tomatoes, the grilled pepper-onion mixture, and lots of spicy mustard. Delicious!

Onsen Eggs!

Today I'm working with onsen eggs. That means eggs slow-cooked in the shell. Originally, the term "onsen" refers to a hot spring--eggs that are cooked in natural hot springs until they are poached to perfection.

I made a pho for my eggs! Here is what I used:

3 cups beef stock
3 cups chicken stock
1 tbs grated fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 cup diced yellow onion
2 cups shredded carrot
3 tbs vegetable oil
2 cups button mushrooms
1 cup shitake mushrooms
2 tbs fish sauce
2 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs rice wine vinegar
2 tsp sugar
30-40 fresh medium sized shrimp
eggs

fresh cilantro
fresh mint
fresh green onions

Sweat onion and half the carrots in vegetable oil for 10 minutes on low-medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add stock, fish sauce, sugar and soy sauce. Bring to a simmer. Soak the noodles in very hot water for 5 minutes. Shock in cold water and let sit.

For the onsen eggs:
Place eggs in a well-insulated pot or thermal cooler. Pour over enough very hot water to cover them completely (water should be about 170-180 degrees F). Cover and let sit 15 minutes.

Add noodles to soup, return to a simmer and add shrimp. Cook only until shrimp is barely pink (5 minutes). After it is taken off the heat, add the vinegar. Taste it and add salt if necessary. You can also add some chili sauce if you want it to be spicy.

Serve soup in bowls and crack an onsen egg over each one--you should be able to crack the shell and pour the poached egg out in one easy go. If it doesn't come out, it is probably overcooked. Garnish soup with the remaining carrots, cilantro, green onions and mint.

Challah

Challah is a great bread to make for the holidays, or for any special dinner party, brunch or family gathering. It is a traditional Jewish bread that is eaten on the Sabbath and during certain holidays. It has egg in it, so it has a nice, rich texture. There are lots of semi-sweet egg breads out there, such as Portuguese sweet bread and brioche and Hawaiian bread, but I think challah is one of the most versatile egg breads out there. Also, it is braided and finished with an egg wash, so it is a very beautiful baked good that you can make for a dinner for minimal cost and effort.

Here is what you will need:

1.25 cups warm water (I don't like to go over 100 degrees, just to be safe, as yeast can be finicky and hot water can kill them)
2.5 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup honey
1 tbs. sugar
2 teaspoons salt
5 cups flour (I used bread flour, but all purpose is great, too)
2 eggs
1/3 cup olive oil

First, mix the honey with the warm water to dissolve. Stir in the sugar and the yeast. Let sit 10 minutes until there is a bunch of foam on the top (this tells you that the yeast is alive and ready to make delicious bread). I like to do this in my Kitchen Aid mixing bowl because it can go straight to the mixer once you are ready to fold in the flour.

Whisk the eggs, oil and salt briefly and stir it into the yeast mixture.

Mix in flour, one cup at a time, incorporating as you go. If you have a standing mixer, use a dough hook (it is so much easier) and let it go for about 8-10 minutes or until the dough is shiny and forms a tight ball. If you are doing it by hand and have experience, give it 10-12 minutes and make sure it is elastic, supple and forms a nice ball. I like to pinch it a bit to make sure it has good texture. It will look a bit like this:

Now you are ready to let it rise. Oil a bowl lightly and put the dough in it. Put a damp cloth over the bowl and put it in a dark, dry place, such as a turned off oven or a pantry. It helps if it's a little warm, so if you want best results and you don't have an incubator, turn your oven on for a few minutes, then turn it off and put the bowl in when it's just barely warm. Let it rise for 90 minutes. 

Punch it down and divide it into two sections. Each will make a loaf. Cut each section into three pieces and roll them by hand into tubes. Now we start the braid. Pinch the three tubes together at one end and form a braid like so:

Keep braiding until you reach the end. Then pinch the ends together and fold them under the loaf. Don't worry if they look a bit rough, because you are going to let the loaves rise again before you bake them.

Let the loaves rise for another 45-60 minutes. Preheat your oven to 350. Beat an egg with a few tablespoons of milk and brush the loaves with the mixture. Bake them for 30-35 minutes.  They should be golden brown (and depending on your egg wash, may get very dark on top).

This recipe makes two loaves. I used more wash on one loaf than the other, so you can see the difference!

Suggestions for Challah (beyond simply eating it with dinner):
*toasted with butter next to a hot cup of soup
*served with hummus before dinner
*made into French toast on a cold morning
*added to a bread pudding
*grilled cheese with brie, apples and a little sharp cheddar