Tag Archives: baking

Sunday Morning Bacon and Swiss Quiche

Posted on January 5, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Quiche bacon-swiss

Prospects are grim for getting breakfast in this house, any day of the week. That’s the reality when the cook of the house is not a breakfast eater, made more difficult when the cook does not really care for the taste of eggs. My poor husband subsists on nuts, berries, and yogurt most of the time, biding his time for lunch to come around. One happy compromise we sometimes make is to go eat at a diner, where he can eat omelets to his hearts content and I can have a pork chop and a salad.

If the spirit moves me, I’ll try to cook something on the weekend with eggs. Fried eggs, poached eggs, scrambled eggs, eggs over easy, and omelets – I take a couple of bites and that is plenty. Quiche, however, is tolerable. Good quiche is nothing more than a custard tart, and I like custard. The addition of cream transforms those eggs into something silky and, well, not so eggy. I don’t always have good luck with quiche recipes. Sometimes they are eggy, or end up dense, flat and soggy. Yuck. This one turned out billowy, like a golden cloud coming out of the oven. It’s a keeper!

This is a back to the basics recipe, modified from Betty Crocker. I think it turned out pretty well – I ate a large piece of it and that is a statement to its goodness. If you want to make your own pie crust, you’re going to have to look elsewhere for a recipe because my pie crust comes pre-made.

Ingredients:

  • One pie crust (of your choice) for a standard 9-inch, 1 1/2 inch deep pie plate
  • 8 slices bacon, crisply cooked and crumbled
  • 1 tablespoon bacon fat
  • 1/3 cup finely chopped shallots
  • 6 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded (I used cave-aged Emmenthaler)
  • 4 large eggs (preferably from pasture-raised chickens)
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated pepper
  • dash of cayenne pepper, dash of nutmeg

Pre-bake the pie crust: Preheat oven to 425F. Place the (thawed) crust in the oven and bake until it just begins to brown (10-15 minutes). If it bubbles up, push the bubbles back in place with a spoon. You may want to put a strip of aluminum foil around the edge of the crust for part of the cook time to prevent over-browning .

When the crust is done, reduce the oven temperature to 325F.

Prepare the filling: Using about 1 tablespoon of reserved bacon fat, saute the shallots for a couple of minutes to soften (do not brown). Set aside.

In a medium bowl, slightly beat the eggs together. Mix in the cream, salt, pepper, cayenne, and nutmeg. Beat until well-combined.

Sprinkle about half the bacon in the bottom of the baked crust. Add the cheese, then the remaining bacon and cooked shallots. Pour the egg and cream mixture over the bacon and cheese. Bake at 325F for 45-50 minutes, until knife inserted into center of quiche comes out clean. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

haloI love eggs! There, I said it! And I love these records, too…first up, an older, subtle gem of a record. From the former leader of The Bongos, Richard Barone’s Cool Blue Halo . Released 25 years ago, this live album is a masterpiece of pop, with Barone’s well-crafted songs brought to life in concert with the magical Jane Scarpantoni on cello. Includes a version of Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold The World” that seemingly Kurt stole intact for the “Nirvana Unplugged” session. A truly beautiful and haunting record.

Now for something new, one of 2012′s most lauded releases, Boys & Girls by asAlabama Shakes. Raw, Muscle Shoals/Stax sound wrapped around the incredible vocals of Brittany Howard. What a debut!

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Gluten-free Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

Posted on September 10, 2012 by | 7 Comments

We had a JAWS (Blu-Ray) viewing party over the weekend, so I made these tiny carrot cakes.  I can’t think of a thing to tie these events together, so I guess I fail at theme parties.

Incredible taste aside, my favorite thing about carrot cake is the interesting texture.  The recipe is so forgiving, you can throw about anything in there and it just works.  This version has pineapple, chopped dates, coconut flakes, and walnuts – which, with the grated carrot, add up to a lot of different textures and flavors bursting out with each bite.  Coconut oil keeps it all moist, and the not-too-sweet buttery frosting is…well, they don’t call it the icing on the cake for nothing!

Ingredients (12 cupcakes):

  • 1 cup almond flour (or 1/2 cup almond flour, 1/2 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour)
  • 1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 large carrot, grated (about 1 cup)
  • 8 ounces crushed pineapple (without the juice)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted (walnut or almond oil also good)
  • 1/4 cup chopped dates or raisins
  • ~1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a muffin pan with silicone baking cups (or greased paper baking cups).

In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients (first 7 ingredients).  Add the grated carrot and toss to coat.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the pineapple, eggs, maple syrup, and coconut oil; mix to blend.  Add the dry ingredients to the mixer bowl and mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl, until ingredients are well blended.  Stir in the nuts and chopped dates.

Divide the batter among the 12 baking cups.  Bake at 350F for 18-22 minutes, until lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted into the cupcake comes out clean.  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Frosting Ingredients:

  • 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 4 tablespoons butter (preferably from grass-fed cows)
  • 1/4 cup amber maple syrup

Mix ingredients using an electric mixer until well-blended and creamy.

Movie night! And what a flick indeed! If you haven’t seen Jaws recently, definitely pick it up on Bluray. It looks and sounds incredible, and seeing it again will terrify you all over again. Fun!

Bob Dylan’s newest album- his 35th, releasing tomorrow is 50 years since his recording debut. Amazing, he’s been creating great art as long as I’ve been alive! His latest, Tempest is getting good reviews. We’ll give it a spin and let you know!

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Fudgy Chipotle Brownies (Grain-free, Gluten-free)

Posted on July 17, 2012 by | 7 Comments

Most nights, we treat ourselves to a small square of dark chocolate for dessert.  It is not too guilty of  a pleasure, since dark chocolate is packed with cell-protecting antioxidants, known to reduce the risk of heart disease and cancer.  Of course, that is  exactly what I’m thinking about as I savor my portion and wash it down with the last of the red wine in my glass.  Ha!  My brain, likely high on the released endorphins, is screaming “OMG Chocolate is AWESOME and I feel GREAT!”

As an extra special treat, I whipped up some dark chocolate brownies and made us even more health conscious.  (That’s what my brain is telling me, and who’s to argue?)  We love the warm, smoky spice of chipotle peppers with chocolate, and capsaicin, the substance that makes chile peppers hot, also is overflowing with health benefits.  Don’t you want brownies that fight cancer, inflammation and heart disease, provide pain relief, burn fat, reduce cholesterol, boost immunity, and relieve congestion?  Of course you do!  There is only 1 teaspoon of ground chipotle in the recipe, which produces a subtle warmth.  I recommend using more, or supplementing it with one chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, to make a spicier brownie.

This recipe is modified from Elana’s Pantry (Espresso Fudge Brownie), and is gluten-free, grain-free, and depending on your chocolate source, dairy-free.  Use high-quality dark chocolate, at least 70% cacao, to make the most decadent, rich, gooey, delicious healthy brownies.  Remember, these are purely medicinal!

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon ground chipotle, or to taste
  • Optional: one chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, finely minced
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
  • 2 tablespoons coconut flour
  • additional coconut oil for greasing baking dish

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a 8×8-inch baking dish.

In a double boiler, melt the chocolate and coconut oil, stirring occasionally, until completely melted and silky smooth.  (I use a stainless steel bowl over a saucepan with simmering water.)  Remove from heat and stir in the ground chipotle and/or chipotle pepper.

In the mixing bowl of an electric mixer, combine the eggs, palm sugar, and vanilla.  Beat together, and let it sit for a few minutes to allow the sugar to break down (it will blend in easier when hydrated).  Pour in the chocolate mixture, a small amount at a time, beating well in between pouring.  Stir in the almond and coconut flours and salt.  Beat until well combined, then pour into the buttered 8×8-inch baking dish.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool for at least 1 hour.  Enjoy, to your health!

But it’s medicinal! And yummy! Now, for something to listen to while you “take your medicine” we have a pair of ladies to croon. First up, ex-Atlanta native Kelly Hogan with I Like to Keep Myself in Pain. Hogan called out among her musical friends for songs “you’d like me to sing” and folks like M. Ward, Jon Langford of the Mekons and Andrew Bird, among others, responded. The resulting album is a masterpiece of southern soul, with a crack band (including Booker T. on organ!). One of my favorites of the year.

When she’s not doing her own album, Hogan performs with the sublime Neko Case, as on 2009′s Middle Cyclone. Case exists in a place all her own, each album further solidifying her unique brand of country/rock/folk stylings and of course, that jaw-dropping voice. So, have a medicinal brownie and listen to the ladies!

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BBQ Chicken, Bacon, and Pineapple Pizza (gluten free)

Posted on January 15, 2012 by | 5 Comments

Santa brought me several bags of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free, Dairy Free Pizza Crust mix this past Christmas.  Evidently Santa not only knows when you’ve been bad or good, but he also is aware when you have been suffering a serious craving for pizza!  Since I haven’t experimented with making my own gluten-free crust from scratch, I cannot compare this mix to the many recipes out there.  However I can tell you that I appreciated the convenience of having a pizza mix (instead of buying 5 or 6 kinds of flour), and we really, REALLY enjoyed having a slice of pizza that you could pick up and eat properly with your hands!  Thanks, Santa!

For our first pizza, we decided on one of our old favorites – barbeque chicken with bacon, pineapple, and mozzarella!  Since the last post on the blog was Oven Barbequed Chicken, I think you can follow the trail of leftovers leading to this choice.  In truth, there were not enough chicken leftovers, so I ended up making more barbequed chicken using boneless, skinless thighs baked in Bone Suckin’ Sauce.  The method was the same, except I didn’t brown the chicken since there was no need to crisp the skin, and I baked it for an hour until the chicken was tender enough to shred with a fork.

So, how did this pizza stack up to “real” pizza?  If you’re expecting chewy dough with some “pull” to it, you’re not going to find it here.  I’m not sure there is a gluten-free crust out there that has the same texture and consistency of a gluten-containing crust.  Gluten, unfortunately, is what gives bread that stretchy quality.  The crust of this pizza is crispy, and is more reminiscent of biscuit dough.  Is that bad?  Not in our opinion; we gobbled this down as if we had not eaten in years, stopping only to exclaim “mmm” or to grunt “pizza good, pizza good”.

When the weather warms up, I can’t wait to try this on the Big Green Egg!  There’s nothing like the taste of a wood-fired pizza!

Let’s get started building this pizza!

Note:  The pizza mix makes 2 12-inch pizzas.  The dough can be prepared ahead and stored in the refrigerator for several days.

Ingredients (for one pizza):

  • 1 package Bob’s Gluten-Free Pizza Crust Mix
  • Yeast packet (included with pizza mix)
  • 1 1/2 cups warm water
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil + more to coat pan and to handle the dough
  • Sea salt
  • Barbequed chicken thighs, shredded (~2 thighs/pizza)
  • 6 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, coarsely chopped
  • 3-4 slices pineapple, chopped into small pieces
  • Barbeque sauce
  • Fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into bits

Other handy items:  Electric mixer, 2 bowls, clean kitchen towel, silicone spatula, 12-inch pizza pan, pizza stone

Pizza dough rising...

Arrange one rack in the center of the oven, and another rack at the bottom.  Place a pizza stone (if you have one) on the bottom rack.  Preheat oven to 425F.

In a large bowl, combine the warm water and yeast, and allow to stand a few minutes to activate the yeast.  Whisk in eggs and olive oil.  Add the pizza crust mix; blend with electric mixer at medium speed for around 1 minute, or until well combined and dough is coming together.

Gather the dough together in a ball using a silicone spatula, and split it in half.  Place the second half in a separate bowl.  It helps to handle the dough with wet hands – it is sticky.  Cover both bowls with a clean kitchen towel, and place in a warm place to rise for at least 20-30 minutes.  (Near a warm oven is good enough, or you could put the bowls in lukewarm water if the room is cold.  Also, I left the dough out for several hours before using it, and it was okay.  If you are planning on making only one pizza, after the dough has risen, wrap it in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.  When ready to bake, allow to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.)

Ready for the oven!

Grease a 12-inch pizza pan with olive oil.  Rub your hands with olive oil, and place dough in the pizza pan.  Spread the dough out to cover the pizza pan, with more dough at the edges to contain the sauce.  You will notice here that the dough does not stretch – you just have to smush it in place.  Sprinkle the dough with sea salt and place on the center rack of the oven.  Bake the crust without toppings for 7-9 minutes.

Toppings added - it's starting to look like pizza!

Remove from oven.  Spread a thin layer of barbeque sauce over the surface of the pizza (just a few tablespoons).  Distribute the desired amount of shredded chicken, chopped bacon, pineapple, and mozzarella cheese over the crust.  Slide the pizza from the pizza pan onto the hot pizza stone, and bake for 15-20 minutes until crust and cheese are browned and topping is bubbling hot.  If you aren’t using a pizza stone, you could bake the pizza in the pan, or for a crisper crust, bake directly on the oven rack.

Cut the pizza into slices and serve.  Don’t be like me and burn the roof of your mouth – let it cool some before shoveling it in!

Bellissimo!

Pizza is back! My goodness I’ve missed it! Thank you Santa…! The soundtrack today features a pair of rock’s most “out there” performers. First, the wild-eyed Texan Roky Erickson and the 13th Floor Elevators with Easter Everywhere, the bands masterpiece. Loaded on acid and freaking out in Texas in the 1960s, the Elevators somehow created a cult record while Erickson lost his mind. But when it worked- as on “She Lives (In a Time of her Own)” or their version of Dylan’s “Baby Blue”, this is a seminal record, and a look back at a time when hippies walked the earth.

Long before they did The Wall or Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd was as psychedelic as they came, in large part due to their founder, Syd Barrett. Their 1967 debut, The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn is Syd’s finest moment, containing “Astronomy Domine” and “Lucifer Sam” among others, and is a trippy headrush of an album. The band went on of course to become megastars, but their “Crazy Diamond” leader wasn’t along for the ride, releasing a handful of singles and this grand album. It’s groovy, man.

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Oven Barbequed Chicken

Posted on January 13, 2012 by | 5 Comments

…and a product review for Bone Suckin’ Sauce!

I love bbq chicken on the grill – especially the bits of crispy skin with sauce, blackened with caramelized sugar from the flames.  However some days grilling outdoors just isn’t going to happen, for instance when the cold winter wind is blowing rain.  Brrr!  Thankfully,  pretty-fine barbeque chicken can be produced inside.

As the jar says, "We're Talkin' Serious"!

This isn’t so much a recipe as it is a product review, since I didn’t make my own barbeque sauce.  I have one recipe for barbeque sauce here, but if you don’t want to take the time, it is possible to find a great sauce with no high fructose corn syrup, no MSG, no gluten, no preservatives, and no fat (if you care about fats in your sauce; I do not).  My new favorite sauce out there is Bone Suckin’ Sauce, produced for Ford’s Foods in Raleigh, NC.  The best thing about this sauce, aside from the taste and the name, is it is made using REAL ingredients.  It is sweetened with honey and molasses, spiced up with horseradish, garlic and peppers, and has a really nice balance of tomato vs. vinegar.  This might sound insignificant, but I also love the color of this sauce – a nice rich, vibrant red, not the dull, tired looking colors of other sauces on the grocery shelf.

Oh, beautiful sauce...

If you can’t find Bone Suckin’ Sauce at your grocer’s, you can pick from a lot of styles (thicker, hotter) and flavors (original, mustard), here.

Back to the chicken… the goal was to bake the chicken in the sauce until it was fork tender.  I used chicken thighs, skin-on.  No one likes pale, flabby skin, so before these thighs went into the sauce, I browned them well on both sides in a skillet.  Not only did this avoid the flabby skin problem, but browning the chicken also adds another dimension to the taste, as well as renders out some of the chicken fat that would otherwise end up as a greasy layer on top of the barbeque sauce after baking.

Look, the sauce has a recipe right on the side of the jar!

Ingredients:

  • 6-8 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
  • Kosher salt and pepper (or bbq seasoning)
  • extra-virgin olive oil, or fat of choice for browning chicken
  • Bone Suckin’ Sauce, or bbq sauce of choice

Preheat oven to 350F.  Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.  In a large skillet, working in batches, brown the chicken thighs well on both sides (about 4 minutes/side). Do not crowd the skillet.  Transfer the browned chicken to a baking dish that will hold the chicken in a single layer.

Cover the chicken with barbeque sauce.  Cover the baking dish with foil, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.  Pour off any excess grease.  Increase the oven temperature to 400F and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes, uncovered, to thicken up the sauce and “recrisp” the chicken.  Serve it hot!

Boy howdy that’s good bbq! And so is the soundtrack. First, the official house music for SCHC’s Santa Fe headquarters is John Prine- something about his wry worldview and a fire is how we spend most evenings. His new one, The Singing Mailman Delivers will be a favorite, I’m sure. Drawn from recordings made before his first album, this is classic Prine. Illegal smile, indeed!

Guy Clark is a legend among songwriters- “LA Freeway”, “The Randall Knife” and more are well-loved. His new live album, Songs & Stories is a glimpse behind the songwriting process with Clark and a great band.

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Sausage Cheese Balls (gluten-free)

Posted on December 24, 2011 by | 12 Comments

One of my favorite holiday food memories is from spending the night at my cousin LuAnn’s house every year.  Her mother, Norma, always had plenty of delicious, homemade treats in the house around Christmas, and we thought we were so clever sneaking into the kitchen in the middle of the night to gorge on fudge, chex mix, candy and sausage balls – and we probably washed it down with Pepsi.  I’m sure no one ever noticed two giggling girls tiptoeing around at 1 am, or the missing layer of fudge the next morning.  Amazingly, this did not make us sick, although I doubt we got much sleep all hyped up on sugar!

This year I decided we needed sausage balls to help get us in the spirit of the season.  This is the basic “Bisquick” recipe, without the Bisquick.  There is a gluten-free version of Bisquick available, but if you check out the ingredients, you’ll find sugar as the 2nd listed ingredient, as well as leavening that contains aluminum phosphate.  I think I will avoid using that!

Recently I bought some fancy pants, gluten-free flour that was developed by Chef Thomas Keller for Williams Sonoma (Cup4Cup).  It is highly acclaimed as an excellent flour, and I am anxious to try it out soon to make a real dough for bread or pizza.  However, at $20 for 3 pounds of it, I want to be careful what I use it for.  Making substitute Bisquick is probably not the intended use for this flour, but hey, it’s Christmas.  To stretch it out as much as possible, I mixed it in with blanched almond flour.  Since these sausage balls were already off to a highfalutin start, I decided to use locally made bulk sausage from Whole Foods, and a mixture of 3 cheeses.

If you, understandably, do not want to use fancy pants gluten-free flour for your sausage balls, you can substitute another brand (such as Bob’s Red Mill) or other type of gluten-free flour, such as rice flour.

Making sausage balls is a bit messy-  you have to get your hands in it and it takes some hard kneading to get it well mixed, but I think it is worth it!  They make nice snacks, and great memories.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup gluten-free all purpose flour
  • 1 cup blanched almond flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
  • 1 pound raw breakfast sausage
  • 10 ounces grated cheese (I used a mixture of sharp cheddar, monterey jack, and mild hoop cheddar)

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a large bowl, mix together the flours, salt, and baking powder.  Add the cheese and toss well to coat the cheese with the flour.  Add the sausage, and using your hands, work it into the cheese and flour mixture by breaking up the sausage and kneading it all together to form a ball.  It may help to put the bowl on a low surface, such as a chair, so that you can “lean into it” while kneading.  If the mixture seems too dry to stick together, add a small amount of milk or cream.  (This can vary due to differing moisture content of the cheese and sausage used.)

Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet.  Break off bits of the sausage mixture and roll in your hands to make balls that are approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter.  Place them on the baking sheet at least 1 inch apart.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until lightly browned.  Be careful not to overcook, or they will become tough when they cool off.

Transfer the sausage balls to paper towels to cool slightly before eating.  They are best served warm or at room temperature.  Happy Holidays!

Now you know I have some Christmas classics to share! First off, the one, the only John Fahey with The New Possibility.  One of many holiday albums he did, but this is my favorite. His sparse arrangements and beautiful technique changed the way we heard six string guitar music, and this is a stellar example.

What would Christmas be without the The Charlie Byrd Christmas Album? It just wouldn’t be Christmas to my ears! Byrd’s lovely nylon string guitar captures the holiday classics on this album, now with extra cuts. Enjoy!

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Chicken with Mushrooms and Grapes

Posted on December 18, 2011 by | 5 Comments

Chicken in a casserole dish doesn't photograph well, but you get the idea...

Suddenly it is almost dinner time, and I haven’t the faintest idea of what I’m going to cook.  This is an opportunity to take inventory of what is in the refrigerator, then google it and see what you come up with.  It is food roulette  – there are hardly any ingredients that someone hasn’t thought to combine and pass off as a new and exciting dish.  Some of those combinations are misguided. There is also a jungle of recipe sites out there loaded with the “can of cream of mushroom soup” casseroles – they’re not all bad recipes – they just need some updating with fresh ingredients instead of thickeners, preservatives, and artificial flavor enhancers.

I was vaguely looking for chicken baked in a mushroom sauce, with some sort of fruit added to perk it up – and I found a few recipes that had grapes.  Hmmm….I like chicken salad with grapes, so this seemed to be a promising idea.  The recipes I found seemed to be rather bland, however, and one included the unfortunate choice of red wine in the sauce, which reviewers reported caused the color of the chicken to be unnaturally purple.  Yum?  We can fix those problems!

This recipe fit nicely in the tagine, but would work equally well in any baking dish.  We enjoyed the saucy chicken with roasted vegetables; it could be served over noodles or rice as well.  The grapes are only heated until warmed throughout, so they add a fresh burst of clean flavor that contrasts well with the rich mushroom cream sauce.

Ingredients:

  • 8 chicken thighs, skin-on, bone-in
  • Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper or pepper blend
  • 2 tablespoons grass-fed butter
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 1 cup cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons arrowroot flour (optional, for thickening)
  • 1 cup seedless red grapes, cut in half (I threw in a few green grapes too – they were fine)

Preheat oven to 375F.  Season the chicken thighs on both sides with salt and pepper.

Heat butter and olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Brown the chicken thighs, on both sides, in batches, so not to crowd the skillet.  Place the browned chicken in a casserole large enough to hold the chicken in a single layer.

Pour off all but 2-3 tablespoons of the hot oil in the skillet.  Saute shallot, stirring, for 1-2 minutes, then add the mushrooms to the pan.  Continue to saute, until the mushrooms are getting soft and have started to release their liquid.  (You can tell when this happens pretty easily – the mushroom initially adsorb all the oil in the pan, but after a while you will see liquid in the pan again.)  Reduce the heat to medium; stir in the wine and deglaze the pan by scraping up the browned bits from the bottom surface.  Add the broth and simmer for ~ 5 minutes, uncovered, allowing the liquid to reduce by half.  Stir in cream and herbs.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

If you would like to thicken the sauce up a little, use a measuring cup to scoop up a few tablespoons of the sauce.  Whisk the arrowroot flour into the measuring cup with a fork to make a slurry.  Add the slurry back to the skillet, stirring constantly to blend it in.  Cook over medium heat until thickened to desired consistency.  (It will be less thick after baking with the chicken, since the chicken will add more liquid as it is cooked.)

Pour the mushroom sauce over the chicken in the casserole dish.  Cover loosely with foil, and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover, and cook for 15-20 minutes longer.  Stir in grapes, and bake until grapes are heated throughout (about 5 minutes).  Serve hot!

Two incredible albums today. Little Feat founder Lowell George only made one solo album, Thanks I’ll Eat It Here before his untimely death in 1979, but its a honey. From his take on “I Can’t Stand The Rain” to his “20 Million Things”, this is a romping exercise in soul.

One of the greatest blues albums ever, the late-50s release Two Steps From The Blues from Bobby “Blue” Bland is simply untoppable. Not as guitar oriented as his stuff with BB King, this is mellow soul blues from the master.

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Crustless Mini Pecan Pies (grain-free)

Posted on November 29, 2011 by | 19 Comments

Pie filling recipe adapted from Cooks Illustrated (membership required to view link)

This recipe may have been born out of my inability to concoct a gluten-free pie crust that meets my satisfaction, but that doesn’t mean these crust-less gems give up anything that you expect in a pecan pie.  They are every bit as gooey and sinfully sweet as you’d expect, and have a nice toasty flavor from the toasted pecans instead of the traditional crust.  The hint of bourbon is nice too!

I’ve made plenty of crustless quiches and muffins in the Le Creuset Silicone Baking Cups , but I didn’t know how they would handle this sticky mess.  Turns out they worked perfectly.  The silicone cups do not require any oil or non-stick spray, and easily peel off the pies after baking.  They also wash up easily, although I recommend hand-washing them.

We enjoyed these pies for Thanksgiving, but they make wonderful individual servings for any gathering.  Top with whipped cream, ice cream, or nothing at all!

Ingredients (makes 12 muffin-sized pecan pies):

  • 1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) whole pecans
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (grass-fed), for toasting pecans
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (grass-fed), for pie filling
  • 1/2 cup Coconut Palm Sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 large eggs (free-range)
  • 1 cup maple syrup, pure, preferably Grade B or Grade A dark amber
  • 1 tablespoon bourbon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter and add pecans.  Cook, tossing frequently, until pecans are lightly toasted and fragrant.  Remove from pan immediately to prevent burning the pecans, and allow to cool.  Chop into small pieces.

Preheat oven to 325F.  Line a muffin pan with silicone baking cups, or well-greased paper baking cups.  Distribute the chopped pecans equally into the baking cups.  Set aside.

Using a large heat-proof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (or a double boiler), melt the 4 tablespoons butter.  Remove the bowl from the heat; stir in sugar and salt with a wooden spoon until the butter is adsorbed.  Beat in the eggs, then the maple syrup.  Return the bowl over the simmering water; stir until the mixture is shiny, smooth, and warm to the touch.  Remove from heat and stir in bourbon and vanilla.

Pour the pie filling into the baking cups over the pecans, distributing equally.  Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the pie filling is set, but still soft to the touch, and the tops are lightly browned.  Remove from oven and allow to cool completely, at least 4 hours.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  Yum!

Yum indeed! And our musical selection is yummy too, Joe Henry’s 12th album, Reverie. Acoustic and rowdy, they call his music “lounge noir”, but whatever it is, it’s mesmerizing. Armed with a poet’s touch and a innate sense of musicality, this is a another winner from Henry.

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Cornbread Pudding

Posted on November 27, 2011 by | 4 Comments

Modified from Tom Douglas’ Seattle Kitchen

Cornbread pudding is one of our perennial favorites for any holiday meal.  Not only is it melt-in-your-mouth good with a creamy custard base, savory herbs and dry aged cheese, and a touch of natural sweetness from corn and caramelized onions…mmmm…what was I saying?  I seemed to drift off there with the memory of the best side dish ever!  Oh – it’s all that – and it makes an elegant presentation with anything from turkey to a simple steak to a standing rib roast.

This year is the first time I have attempted to make this completely gluten-free, and I’m happy to say this version is every bit as good as the original recipe.  I won’t lie to you – some things I haven’t been able to duplicate.  Try as I may, gluten-free cornbread dressing is in no way equal to what my grandmother used to make.  I’m still waiting for a gluten-free pizza crust that will knock my socks off.  However this cornbread pudding is the real deal!

Ingredients:

  • 2 2/3 cups of gluten-free cornbread, cut into ~1-inch cubes (link to cornbread recipe here)
  • 2 tablespoons butter (grass-fed)
  • 1 Vidalia onion (or other sweet onion), thinly sliced
  • 3/4 cup grated dry Jack cheese or Parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
  • 2 1/4 cups heavy cream
  • 4 large eggs (free-range)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cornbread cubes with cheese and herbs

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Put the cornbread cubes in a buttered 8-inch square baking dish or medium-sized soufflé dish.  Set aside.

In a heavy-bottomed skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat and cook the onions until they are soft.  Lower the heat to low, and continue to cook the onions until they are deep, golden brown and caramelized – at least 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.

Caramelizing onions...getting there, but not done yet!

Scatter the grated cheese, herbs, and caramelized onions over the cornbread cubes.

Whisk together the heavy cream and eggs with salt and pepper in  mixing bowl or large measuring cup.  Pour over the cornbread cubes and allow to sit for ten minutes so that the cornbread adsorbs some of the custard.  Bake until set and browned on top, around 40 minutes.  Serve hot.

Pair of jazz releases today, one well-known, the other not so much. We Three, featuring Paul Chambers on bass, Roy Haynes on drums and the great, but not frequently recorded Phineas Newborn on piano. One of the best piano jazz albums you’ll hear, low-key with a bluesy touch.

1958′s Somethin’ Else features an incredible lineup- Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Hank Jones, Cannonball Adderley and bassist Sam Jones. It sounds like a companion to Davis’ Kind Of Blue, but with the hard bop drumming of Blakey. One of the greatest Blue Note releases, Davis and Adderley define cool.

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Paleo Magic Cookie Bars

Posted on October 28, 2011 by | 19 Comments

Grain-free and “dairy-optional”

Remember Magic Cookie Bars?  Those gooey clusters of graham cracker crumbs covered with milk chocolate chips, nuts, sweet coconut flakes and drenched with sweetened condensed milk.  Neither do I….ha!  I’ve been in major denial of this particular obsession, but no longer.  Today we have Paleo-friendly, Magic Cookie Bars with no grains, no processed sugar, and no dairy (if you use coconut butter instead of pastured butter).  I’m not saying these bars are “lite” by any means – plenty of richness here with dark chocolate, nuts, and coconut oils – but they are far better for you than the original cookie bar recipe.

These are a great “treat” for Halloween!

Ingredients:

Crust

  • 1/2 cup (heaping) ground almonds or almond meal
  • 1/2 cup (heaping) ground walnuts
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3 tablespoons pastured butter or coconut butter, melted

Toppings

  • 6 ounces dark chocolate chips
  • 3 ounces unsweetened coconut flakes, lightly pulsed in food processor
  • 4 ounces coarsely chopped pecans or almonds
  • 1 15.5 ounce can coconut milk (full-fat)
  • 1/2 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 2 tablespoons coconut butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sweetened Coconut Milk

Preheat oven to 350F.  In a heavy saucepan, heat the coconut milk and sugar over medium heat, stirring often, until coconut milk begins to boil.  Lower heat to simmer and reduce by 1/3 to 1/2, stirring often to prevent the sugar from scorching.  (If thicker, caramelized sugar begins to form on sides or bottom, use a whisk to reincorporate it.)  When it reaches the desired consistency, in around 30 minutes, add 2 tablespoons coconut butter and vanilla.  Stir well and remove from heat.  You should end up with a little over a cup of caramel-colored, sweetened coconut milk.

To make the crust, melt the butter/coconut butter in an 8×8 baking dish.  In a small bowl, mix together the ground almonds, ground walnuts, and cinnamon.  Sprinkle nut mixture over the melted butter and  stir until the butter is evenly mixed with the nuts.  Using your fingers, press the mixture down in an even layer, covering the bottom of the baking dish.

Ready for the oven!

Sprinkle the chocolate chips, chopped nuts, and coconut flakes evenly over the crust.  Pour the sweetened coconut milk over everything.  Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned.

Here’s the hard part:  Do not eat it now!  Allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours so the cookie bars will set.  Otherwise they will be a mess coming out of the pan – cookie crumbles are much less festive.

Cut into bars and serve!  Feel decadent!

Celebration day here at SCHC, for a new Tom Waits record has arrived! His first studio record in seven years, Bad As Me is great, and full of the musical stew that only Tom can make. Featuring an all star group of musicians including Keith Richards, Flea and Marc Ribot, this is primo Waits.

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