Strawberry Time!

I love strawberries. I had heard the rumor that the Farmer's Market had some while we were gone in Spain, but they sold out quickly (ten minutes) as soon as the market started last weekend. The lady told me that she would have more during the Tues/Thurs markets, so I ended up scoring a couple of baskets during the week. They were tender and juicy, but since they weren't treated with chemicals like some of the berries that you would buy in a grocery store, they got soft quicker than store bought ones. Since they were just soft and not rotten, I could still use them in a cooked recipe with no problem. I was reading my twitter feed list and found this great recipe from Gourmet magazine. It's basically like strawberry shortcake without all the work!

STRAWBERRY DUMPLING recipe from Ruth Cousineau at Gourmet Magazine

The dumpling after cooking.

1 qt strawberries, trimmed and thickly sliced (about 4 cups)
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2/3 cup whole milk (I used 2% because that's all I had)


Accompaniment:
heavy cream (didn't have any, but I am sure that it would be divine)


Stir together strawberries and sugar in a 4-qt heavy saucepan and let stand, stirring occasionally, until juicy, about 15 minutes. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Blend in butter using a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Stir in milk until just blended, then add mixture to boiling berries and stir once or twice. Tightly cover saucepan and reduce heat to low. Cook, undisturbed, until dumpling looks dry on top, 15 to 18 minutes. Let stand off heat, uncovered, 5 minutes before serving.

Healthy Chicken Salad

Sorry for not posting much since I have been back. This week has been crazy, but it will finally calm down on Friday so I hope to get caught back up on everything! I am still in process of getting some posts up about our food in Spain and I am behind on some new recipes posts too. Hopefully soon life will be back to normal and I'll get my posts caught up. Life has been so crazy that I actually forgot that I had a cooking class last night and missed it! I didn't realize it till it was an hour after the class! Bummer!

I found this super easy and delicious (plus healthy) chicken salad recipe. I decided to put it in a croissant since we had some and it was so good that we had it two lunches in a row. There isn't any mayo like typical chicken salad, but it's a little bit like guacamole with chicken. The second day that I made it, I added some cucumbers and used a lemon instead of lime (since I didn't have a lime). I am sure that some red onion would be great and you can mess with the recipe, so that it fits your needs.

Avocado and Chicken Salad from Serious Eats

- serves 4 - Adapted from Cooking Light and Mrs. Micah

Ingredients
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, filleted

Kosher salt and fresh black pepper

1 Hass avocado, chopped

1 large beefsteak or slicing tomato, seeded and chopped

1/2 bunch scallions, chopped

2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

1 lime

Procedure
1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high. While oil is heating, salt and pepper both sides of the chicken. Add chicken to pan and sear 4 or 5 minutes per side, until browned and just cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and let sit for 10 minutes.

2. While chicken is cooling, combine avocado, tomato, scallions, and cilantro in a bowl. Then cut the lime into approximate halves, with one slightly bigger than the other. Squeeze larger half over ingredients in bowl. Stir to combine.

3. Once fairly cooled, chop chicken into 1/2-inch chunks. Squeeze remaining lime over chunks and add to avocado mixture. Stir until combined. (Avocado should cover everything, but shouldn’t itself be annihilated.) Salt and pepper to taste.

Farmer's Market

I am finally back from my Spain trip and I have been CRAVING vegetables since I got back. The Spanish food was amazing, but it's hard to find vegetables at restaurants especially green ones (potatoes are very common). So yesterday's visit to the Co-op grocery store consisted of buying only vegetables and milk. Today's trip to the farmer's market resulted in buying tomatoes, leeks, radishes, green onions, spinach, salad mix, basil, thyme, eggs, shittake mushrooms and a piece of aged goat cheese from Landeria Farmstead (read their story here). The goat cheese cost $8.50 for a 4.5 oz piece, but I figured it wasn't much more than some of the foreign cheeses that I buy. It's not like the goat cheese that you would typically think of, but more like a Gouda. He also had a swiss goat cheese, but I am not a huge fan of swiss cheese.

I'll post some Spain pics soon. I will also be cooking a lot since I haven't done any in almost 2 weeks, so hopefully I'll have some recipes to post. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

La Bodega Kansas City April 2009

It's funny that my husband and I aren't very adventurous with our dining choices in Kansas City considering we'll eat just about anything. We usually eat at Blue Koi, a noodles and dumplings place by the Med Center, because it's our one of our favorite places to eat period. It was also because every time that we did eat somewhere new, we were disappointed in the food and wondered why we didn't eat at Blue Koi. But we have decided to try to branch out in our Kansas City restaurant picks and try to only eat at Blue Koi like every fifth time (haha).

We were going to go to the Chris Cornell concert with our friend, Dustin, so the men decided on going to the tapas place, La Bodega, for happy hour before heading to the show. Happy hour includes half price beer & sangria plus a selection of half price tapas. We had heard a lot about this place, but just hadn't had a chance to try it. The happy hour is such a great deal and we ended up stuffing ourselves for around $40 (plus 2 sangrias and a beer). The food was excellent and the sangria was one of the best that I have ever had in a restaurant (not overly sweet or with a thick layer of sugar at the bottom of the glass).


Pintxos de Higo-- Roasted red peppers, goat cheese and a fig coulis on grilled bread. A suggestion of the waitress and one of my favorite ones.

Champiñones a la Plancha-- Roasted mushrooms with garlic & white wine- parsley sauce.

Calamares a la Plancha--Sautéed squid in olive oil, garlic and lemon sauce.

Pincho de Pollo y Chorizo-Skewered chicken and chorizo with garlic cumin aïoli.

Albóndigas Caseras Meatballs in a spicy garlic cream sauce. One of our favorites. We actually ordered another one at the end of our meal. YUMMY!

Patatas Bravas-- Potatoes in a spicy tomato sauce. Probably Chris' favorite since he loves potatoes.

Queso de Cabra al Horno--Goat cheese baked in tomato sauce and garlic bread. This one was my least favorite which was disappointing because I love goat cheese. The tomato sauce was a bit bland. Probably won't get this one again.

A pic of our outside table with my sangria in the middle. What a great little meal!

One of the biggest reasons that Chris wanted to eat here is by the time that I have this scheduled to post, we'll be enjoying the real deal in Spain on our belated honeymoon!

Beef, Barley and Vegetable Soup

The interesting thing about getting a CSA meat subscription is that sometimes we'll get something that I have no idea what to do with. I am still trying to get through meat from January (I write the date on the labels so that I know when I got it) and slowly, we are going through it. We'll sign up for another one later in the summer when the meat finally dwindles down, but we'll go for a smaller monthly package because we'll be trying out some of the other meats from the farmer's market (elk, lamb, bison, etc).



When I received a shank bone, I didn't know what to do with it. After some research online, I came across this soup recipe that was perfect for all the gloomy, rainy days that we have had lately. I really loved the flavor of this soup and the stew meat (also something that I had in the freezer from Amy's Meats), but I found the shank meat a little tougher than I liked. The meat bone did bring out more complexity to the broth, so I think that omitting it would be a problem.
But I loved the hot pepper sauce in this soup and ended up adding more to my own bowl. Great idea!


Beef, Barley and Vegetable Soup from Bon Appetit magazine February 2001
serves 8



2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound beef stew meat
1 pound meaty beef bones (such as beef shank bones)
3 celery stalks, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup pearl barley
4 cups water
2 14 1/2-ounce cans beef broth
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
1 10-ounce package frozen corn kernels
2 cups frozen sliced okra
2 small bay leaves
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce



Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add stew meat and bones; sauté until beef is dark brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer beef and bones to plate. Add celery, onion, and barley to pot. Sauté until onion is golden, about 15 minutes. Add 4 cups water, beef broth, tomatoes with juices, corn, okra, bay leaves, and garlic powder. Return beef and bones to pot and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered until beef is almost tender, about 1 hour.
Add peas and 1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce to soup. Cover and simmer until beef is tender, about 30 minutes longer. Season with salt, pepper, and more hot pepper sauce, if desired.

Crust- Chicago

When I told Katie that I was coming up to Chicago and wanted to go out to eat with her, she came up with a couple of pizza restaurants that we not the standard deep dish affair (which I do love, but can't stomach all the time). We decided on Crust, an organic eatery on W Division Street, which serves wood-burning oven pizzas.

Kim's Italian sausage pizza-- Italian sausage, pesto, provolone & shaved fennel (Kim really wanted to be on my blog--haha!). She liked it, but couldn't figure out what the white stuff was on top of the pizza. I recently looked up the menu online and told her fennel, but she said it was very mild.

Annie's Margherita pizza--organic tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, ricotta, olive oil & fresh basil. We traded a couple of slices with each other and I am not a big fan of ricotta on pizza. A little bland for my tastes, but the ingredients were

Katie's Basilico pizza-- tomato sauce, béchamel, buffalo mozzarella, & fresh basil. Looked yummy.

My 'shroom pizza--woodland mushrooms, spinach, béchamel, wild herbs, goat cheese & parmigiano-reggiano. Oh my goodness. What a great pizza. Everything was delightful and the combination of flavors was incredible. I'll have to try to recreate this one at home because it was so tasty.

The sad thing is that there are so many places to eat in Chicago and we don't visit enough, that I'll probably never get a chance to eat here again. But I might have to next time just to eat that mushroom pizza again! DELICIOUS!

Mity Nice Grill--Chicago April 09

I spent a weekend by myself in Chicago staying with a good friend of mine that I hadn't seen since 2007, so we had a lot to catch up on when I finally saw Annie. We had wanted to check out the famous Hot Doug's for the famous foie gras hot dog and duck fat fries, but we had chatted so much as soon as we saw each other that we lost track of time and Hot Doug's is only opened till 4.

So we decided to hit up a place that we have frequented many times Mity Nice Grill which located in the food court (a very fancy one) on the basement floor of the Water Tower. It was a beautiful day, so we were able to walk from her apartment to downtown (about a 15-20 minute walk).

The Mity Nice Grill is part of the Lettuce Entertain You restaurant group. If you are a reader of Gourmet magazine, there is a nice article in the February 2009 issue about the owner of the group, Rich Melman. Great comfort food for when you are shopping.

Annie decided on mini cheeseburgers and a cranberry mojito. Yummy!

And I decided on the Thanksgiving feast, which made Annie laugh at my appetite (she remembers that I am an eater). I love Thanksgiving meals, so this was a great choice! No complaining about having turkey in gravy in April and not having to clean up the mess! For a drink, I had an orange creamsicle---it wasn't that great because the liquors started to separate and made it unappealing. But the yummy food more than made up for it. Another wonderful meal at the Mity Nice Grill even if our waiter was slower than a snail!

New Orleans Part 5--NOLA restaurant (last and final part)

The only thing that our friends who went on the trip with us said that they wanted to do was eat at one of Emeril's restaurants. Unfortunately we couldn't get a reservation at the original restaurant, which is probably a bit more "New Orleans cuisine" than the other two restaurants of his. So NOLA for Sunday lunch, it was. There is what we ate (descriptions of the dishes from the NOLA menu):

Appetizers
Duck Confit and Fried Egg Pizza with Parmesan Cheese, Truffle Oil and Baby Arugula

This was actually an entree, but I couldn't pass it up because I love duck confit and fried eggs! It was AMAZING. I didn't eat the whole thing, but shared with my hubby. But I would have eaten it all.

Jeff's appetizer:

Pan Roasted Crab Cake with Smokey Eggplant Purée, Feta Cheese, Kalamata Olives, Crispy Spinach and Citrus Butter

My entree:
“Shrimp & Grits” Sautéed Gulf Shrimp, Grilled Green Onions, Smoked Cheddar Grits, Apple Smoked Bacon, Crimini Mushrooms, Creole Tomato Glaze and Red Chili-Abita Butter Sauce

I love shrimp and grits, so I was excited when I saw this on the menu before our trip. It was good, but not great. There was almost too much going on in this dish to make it a great dish in my opinion. The sauce was too sweet and overpowering for the cheddar grits & shrimp. They could have left it out and still had a great dish.

Chris' dish:

Seared Rare Yellowfin Tuna with Avocado, Wonton Crisps, Cucumber, Wasabi Aioli and Ponzu Vinaigrette

A good, light lunch. Not really what you would think of when you think of Emeril.

April's lunch:

Parma Ham-Goat Cheese and Basil Panini with Tomato Soup and Crème Fraîche

She said that it was the best tomato soup she had ever had and she liked the panini too.

Jeff's lunch:

Hickory Roasted Beef Brisket & Ribs with Orecchiette Pasta-Brie Cream “Mac & Cheese” and Honey Baked White Beans

He got talked into the ribs by the waiter as a last minute upcharge when ordering. I am pretty sure that Jeff enjoyed his lunch since I don't think he said much while he was devouring it!

April's dessert:

NOLA Buzz Bomb: Flourless Chocolate Torte with Bittersweet Chocolate Mousse and Brandied Apricots wrapped in Chocolate Ganache

She said it was great. Jeff and I had the guava sorbet (very tasty, but would make for a boring picture) while Chris just had a cup of coffee.

Chris and I are in agreement that we'll have to try the original restaurant next time. NOLA is good, but most of the food that we have seen in other restaurants during our travels. We would have liked to see more New Orleans influenced food on the menu, so we'll just have to remember to make our reservations for Emeril's way in advance.

As a whole, New Orleans was great. Loved the people, the food, the sights, the culture, etc, etc. There is still so much to eat that we missed out on; muffelettas, gumbo, the original Emeril's, and the list goes on. We can't wait to get back there!

April Cooking Classes

In April, I took two cooking classes at the Merc: "Still More Mexican" with Chef Nancy and "French Tarts--Savory and Sweet" with Chef Paige.

For Nancy's class, the menu was Fresh Flour Tortillas from scratch. Queso Fundido. Tortilla Soup with Crispy Tortilla Strips. Red Chili Enchiladas with Chicken. Mexican Chocolate Flan. The main reason that I took this class was for the flour tortillas as I am not a huge fan of corn tortillas which are in the soup and enchiladas. I am also not a fan of chocolate (gasp!), even though I am a lover of flan. It wasn't my favorite class that I have taken of hers, but I was glad to learn the flour tortilla process and will be making them in the future. The soup was good, but I wasn't a fan of the crispy tortilla strips or it could have been the fact that the soup wasn't piping hot (the only way that I think hot soups should be served). Enchiladas were decent, but like I said corn tortillas aren't my favorite. As for the chocolate flan, the Mexican chocolate was an interesting touch with the cinnamon. I think that if I was to make it for a dinner party, I would make chocolate and regular flan, so that guests can try both.

If you know me at all, you know that I am obsessed with all things French. I took French as my language (I speak it poorly, but can read French decently) in both high school and college. I studied lots of French art for my art history major plus have read French history just for fun. Paris is one of my most favorite vacations spot in the world. I just love French things. So when I saw the French tarts class open up, I was thrilled when Jackie and Kelly said that they were taking it too. They included a silver removable bottom tart pan in the $25 class fee. This was an amazing deal considering the pan was made in France (not that I needed another one since I have quite a collection of tart pans that I rarely use).

Paige's class was great and informative. She is a fun chef with a great sense of humor and knowledge of why certain things work and don't work in cooking (she'll pull out info from food science books and stuff like that), but it had been awhile since I had been to one of her classes. Her French tart class was great. The menu--Mushroom & Leek Tart. Classic Savory Quiche. Amandine (a divine dried fruit and almond frangipane tart). Tarte Citron (a classic lemon tart). Fresh Raspberry & Custard Tart. My favorites were the Mushroom & Leek (I have already made this. Expect a post later) and the Raspberry & Custard. This class made me want to experiment with tarts, so look forward to some tart recipes in the near future!

Mee Ga-Ti Rice Noodles with Coconut-Bean Sauce

This recipe comes from my cooking class that I took last month where we received a cookbook along with the class fee. When I first heard that Chef Nancy was making this, I have to admit that I was leery. Afraid that the sauce would be too sweet because of the coconut milk, I was pleasantly surprised by the complexity of the dish and it ended up being my favorite dish that she demonstrated that night.

Mee Ga-Ti Rice Noodles with Coconut-Bean Sauce from Real Vegetarian Thai by Nancie McDermott

8 oz dried rice noodles, either wire-think or about the width of linguine or fettuccine (I used the wider ones)
1 tbs vegetable oil
2 eggs, beaten
3 cups unsweetened coconut milk (MAKE SURE THAT IT'S UNSWEETENED!)
1/2 cup minced shallots
1/3 cup Asian bean sauce (you will need to go to an Asian grocery store for this)
8 oz firm tofu, cut into slender 1-inch long rods
2 zucchinis, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin half-moons, or cut into slender 2 inch long rods
2 tbs Tamarind Liquid or freshly squeezed lime juice (I used my Tamarind paste--about 1 tbs)
2 tbs Vegetable stock
2 tbs sugar
1 teas salt
1 teas freshly ground pepper
1 teas red chili pepper flakes
A handful of fresh garlic chives, cut into 2-inch lengths, or 3 green onions, white part thinly sliced crosswise and green part cut into 2 inch lengths
2 cups bean sprouts
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime, cut lengthwise into 6 wedges

Put the dried rice noodles in a bowl, add warm water to cover, and let stand until limp and liable, 15 to 20 minutes. Put a large pot of water on to boil.

Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of egg added to the pan sizzles at once, about 1 minute. Add only enough of the eggs to coat the pan, swirling to make a thin sheet. Cook until the egg sets, about 30 seconds. Flip it to warm the other side, and then turn it out onto a cutting board to cool. Repeat with the remaining egg, When the egg sheets are cool, shred them into fine strips and set aside.

Drain the noodles and add them to the boiling water. Cook until tender but still firm, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

Pour the coconut milk into a medium skillet, place over medium heat and bring to a gentle boil. Adjust the heat to maintain an active simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until it gives off a sweet aroma and thickens a little, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the shallots, bean sauce, tofu and zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Add the tamarind or lime juice, vegetable stock, sugar, salt, pepper, and chili flakes. Stir well and cook for 2 minutes more.

Add the noodles, the garlic chives or green onions, and most of the bean sprouts, reserving a handful for garnish. Toss well to coat everything with the sauce. Transfer to a serving platter and sprinkle with the cilantro. Garnish with the reserved bean sprouts and the lime wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 4.