Brussels Sprouts

I really love brussels sprouts as long as they aren't boiled and mushy which makes them smell like stinky feet. I decided to buy a bag at Costco and used Barefoot Contessa's Roasted Brussels Sprouts recipe twice with the contents. The first time, I realized that the brussels sprouts were smaller than what she used because they ended up burning slightly (still ended up tasty), so I had to adjust the time when I made them again.



Roasted Brussels Sprouts from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

serves 6

1 1/2 lbs Brussels sprouts

2 Tbs good olive oil

3/4 teas kosher salt

1/2 teas freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut off the ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Turn them out on a baking sheet and roast for 35 to 40 minutes (Note from Grace: the time will need to be adjusted if you have smaller sprouts by about 15-20 minutes. check them from time to time to make sure that they aren't browning too quickly), until crisp outside and tender inside. Shake the pan, from time to time, to brown the Brussel sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt and serve.

Herb Baked Eggs

I was a little surprised that I hadn't tried out this recipe yet because I usually buy herbs for a specific recipe and then have to scramble to figure out what to do with the rest of them. We always have farm-fresh eggs on hand thanks to CSA subscription. I did cut the recipe in half and only used two eggs per dish instead of the three that she used. I would suggest cutting your cooking time a bit if you decide to do the same because the eggs cooked faster with only two eggs in the dish, resulting in a non-runny yolk (I like them runny, if you don't then cook away). They were still delicious cooked most of the way and the herbs added a wonderful kick to the eggs. But whatever you do, be sure that your baking dishes that you use are broiler safe and I suggest that you make sure that your baking sheet is too (I skipped using the baking sheet) or it will have a tendency to warp!

This recipe comes from Barefoot Contessa's Barefoot in Paris cookbook.

Herb-Baked Eggs

Hummus

This is what I made for last night's Christmas party that we went to.

Hummus from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

2 cups canned chickpeas, drained, liquid reserved
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup tahini (sesame paste)
6 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
2 tbs liquid from the chickpeas
8 dashes Tabasco sauce

Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until the hummus is coarsely pureed. Taste for seasoning and serve chilled or at room temperature.

Curried Chicken Salad

I was really glad that Nathaniel ended up liking this because the recipe makes a lot of chicken salad. It's a Barefoot Contessa recipe and you can adjust it to your taste by making it spicier with more curry powder or sweeter with more chutney. If you want to omit the raisins or cashews, you can (I omit both because I don't like raisins in my savory foods and Chris doesn't usually like nuts).

Curried Chicken Salad from Barefoot Contessa's Family Style cookbook
serves 6

3 whole (6 split) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on (you'll want the skin on to keep the juices in, but get rid of it before putting it in the salad)
olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good mayonnaise (DON'T use Miracle Whip--whatever you do, don't do it!)
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup Major Grey's chutney
3 tbs curry powder
1 cup medium-diced celery (about 2 large stalks)
1/4 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions)
1/4 cup raisins
1 cup whole roasted, salted cashews

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub the skin with olive oil. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones, discard the skin, and dice the chicken in large bite-size pieces.

For the dressing, combine the mayonnaise, wine, chutney, curry powder, and 1 1/2 teas salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Process until smooth.

Combine the chicken with enough dressing to moisten well. Add the celery, scallions and raisins, and mix well. Refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend. Add the cashews and serve at room temperature.

Apple Turnovers

I am a HUGE fan of Ina Garten (aka Barefoot Contessa) for her mouthwatering, sophisticated recipes. I have yet to be disappointed in one of her recipes and she continues to make my family's stomachs happy. But I believe that she has outdone herself with her new cookbook Back to Basics. Everything in the cookbook looks so tasty and I am ready to make all the recipes soon!

Last night, I made her Apple Turnovers. OMG! I love this recipe because it uses frozen puff pastry, which is something that I always have on hand. I only made half this recipe since I didn't think that we would eat all eight of them and I figured that these are best served hot. Since the oranges at the grocery store looked sad, I used lemon instead (worked perfectly) and I skipped the dried cherries (since I didn't have any). Make this soon!!!

Apple Dried Cherry Turnovers adapted from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics cookbook

1 teaspoon grated orange zest (I substituted lemon)
3 tbs freshly squeezed orange juice (again lemon)
1 1/4 lbs tart apples (I used Golden Delicious)
3 tbs dried cherries (I omitted them this time. I am sure dried cranberries would be good too)
3 tbs sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1 tbs all-purpose flour
1/4 teas ground cinnamon
1/8 teas ground nutmeg
pinch of kosher salt
1 pkg frozen puff pastry (2 sheets), defrosted
1 egg beaten with a 1 tbs water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine zest and juice in a medium bowl. Peel, quarter and core the apples, then cut into 3/4-inch dice. Immediately toss the apples with zest and juice to prevent them from turning brown. Add the cherries, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

Flour a board and lightly roll each sheet of puff pastry to a 12 x 12 square. Cut each sheet into 4 (6 x 6 inch) squares and keep chilled until ready to use.

Brush the edges of each square with the egg wash and neatly place about 1/3 cup of the apple mixture on half of the square. Fold the pastry diagonally over the apple mixture and seal by pressing the edges of the pastry with the tines of a fork. Transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, and make 2 small slits in each turnover. Bake for 20 minutes, until puffed and browned. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Chicken and Biscuits

This is one of my favorite dishes that I make and the boys are fans too (always a plus). It's a time consuming recipe, but totally worth the work. I made this for our unexpected guests (which I loved because we rarely have people staying the night). Dave, Danielle & baby Aila-come back soon and I'll make you something else yummy!

Chicken Stew With Biscuits from Barefoot Contessa Family Style cookbook

serves 8

Stew:

3 whole chicken breasts, bone in skin on

3 tbs olive oil

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

5 cups chicken stock

2 chicken bouillon cubes

12 tbs unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)

2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)

3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups medium-diced carrots (about 4 carrots), blanched for 2 minutes

1 10-oz package of frozen peas

1 1/2 cups frozen small onions (I omitted this because it's a little too much onion for my tastes)

1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbs baking powder

1 teas kosher salt

1 teas sugar

1 stick cold unsalted butter, diced

3/4 cup half & half

1/2 cup chopped parsley (I didn't have enough, so I omitted this too)

1 egg mixed with 1 tbs water, for egg wash

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.

In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the stock. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat, until translucent. Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken stock to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring until thick. Add 2 teas salt, 1/2 teas pepper and the heavy cream. Then add chicken, carrots, peas, small onions and parsley. Mix well. Place the stew in a huge oval or rectangular baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the biscuits. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas. Add the half & half and combine on low speed. Mix in the parsley.

Dump the dough out on a well-floured board and with a rolling pin, roll out to 3/8 inch thick. Cut out twelve circles with a 2 1/2-inch round cutter.

Remove stew from oven and arrange biscuits on top of the stew. Brush them with egg wash and return the dish to the oven. Bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the biscuits are brown and the stew is bubbly.

Cupcakes, Yummy, Yummy Cupcakes!

Friends were coming over for dinner this weekend, so I needed to make some delicious dessert for them. I decided to make some Peanut Butter Chocolate Cupcakes from Barefoot Contessa's cookbook Barefoot Contessa at Home. They were a big hit with the kiddo, who decided that he needed to eat 4 of them as soon as I finished frosting them (to make sure that they were safe for everyone to eat, of course)! These aren't super sweet (which I loved) and they made more than the recipe said.

I am lucky enough that the recipe is online at Food Network right now, so that I don't have to retype it. But if you do decide to use the recipe, you might want to print it out because (usually) her recipes are copyrighted and only posted for a short time online! Happy Baking!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chocolate-cupcakes-and-peanut-butter-icing-recipe