Classic Chicken Salad

With hurricane Sandy in town, I've been thinking about different meals I could make that we could have already available, no cooking necessary, in case we lose our power. And chicken salad is one of those meals I could eat all year round; it's delicious no matter the season. I know most people probably already have their own favorite version of chicken salad, but this recipe is so good, it's worth posting.

Since apples are available now, I made this version with honeycrisp apples. But if I make it in the spring, I usually use sliced green grapes and celery instead. Chopped walnuts and almonds also make nice additions to chicken salad, really you can make a million variations and they {almost}always turn out delicious. This recipe is adapted from the one in Cooks Illustrated May & June 2012 and makes the perfect classic chicken salad.

Classic Chicken Salad
serves 4-6
salt and pepper (I use seasoning salt too)
4 (6-8 ounce), skinless chicken breasts, no more than 1 inch thick
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 honeycrisp apple, chopped (depending on the season, I'll use 1 cup of green grapes, sliced in half, instead of the apples and add in 2 ribs of celery to add some crunch)
2 green onions, sliced
salad greens

1.) Dissolve 2 tablespoons salt in 6 cups cold water in a Dutch oven and submerge the chicken in water. Heat pot over medium heat until water registers 170 degrees. Turn off heat, cover pot, and let stand until chicken registers 165 degrees, 15-17 minutes.

2.) Transfer chicken to paper towel lined plate and refrigerate until cool, about 30 minutes. While chicken cools, whisk mayo, lemon juice, mustard, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl.

3.) Pat chicken dry and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. Transfer chicken to bowl with mayo mixture. Add apple, green onion and anything else you like in your salad and toss to combine. Season with pepper and seasoning salt and serve on a bed of your favorite salad greens. Salad can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. 

Picadillo Pie: My Quest to Invent a Starch Free Casserole

 
I consider this the first recipe that I ever invented, so I'm kind of (really) proud of it.  Casseroles are classic comfort foods and they're always good as leftovers, when you don't have time to cook dinner every day. But looking through the recipes for casseroles I know and love, all of them had one thing in common: multiple starchy ingredients. So I set out to create one that would work with the diet, and this layered casserole is what I came up with. It's based on Cuban flavors, with an American-style casserole twist.

Picadillo is a pretty generic name for a beef hash containing tomatoes, and many Latin cultures have their own version of the dish. The picadillo recipe I use is adapted from the recipe from Memories of a Cuban Kitchen.

Picadillo Pie
makes one 9x13 casserole

for the Picadillo:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped (sometimes I add in green onions too, it depends on what I have around)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound lean ground beef, turkey or bison (the example pictures are made with bison-it's local and free range!)
1/4 cup dry sherry or dry white wine
1.5-2 pounds fresh tomatoes (about 4-5 medium sized tomatoes), chopped
salt and pepper (~1 tablespoon salt and pepper to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
1/2 cup pimento stuffed green olives, roughly chopped

1.) In a heavy skillet, heat the oil over low heat until fragrant, then add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 8-10 minutes. Add the ground meat and cook, stirring, until browned, 10-15 minutes. I usually also add some of the salt, pepper, cumin and oregano at this point as well.  Use a wooden spoon to break up any large chunks of meat.
2.) Add the sherry, tomatoes and salt, and stir, and cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Add the olives to the mix, adjust the seasonings to taste and continue cooking until most of the liquid is absorbed, 10-15 minutes.

to make the Casserole:
1 small head of cauliflower (or 2/3 of a large head)
5 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups grated Muenster cheese

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Steam/boil cauliflower in a covered pot with 2 cups of water until soft, about 6 minutes. Drain and let cool for a few minutes. Then use a blender or food processor to process the cauliflower until it resembles mushy grains of rice.
2.) Put the cauliflower in a medium sized bowl. Mix in the eggs and 1/2 cup of the cheese with the cauliflower.
3.) Spread about 3/4 cup of the picadillo over the bottom of the pan in a thin layer, just to cover it. Spread half of the egg/cheese/cauliflower mixture over that, then top that layer with half of the rest of the picadillo. Add the rest of the egg and cauliflower mixture on that layer, then add the rest of the picadillo on top of that. Cover the top of the casserole with an even layer of the remaining 1 cup of cheese.
4.) Bake in the oven, uncovered, until the casserole is bubbling and the cheese is starting to brown, 40-45 minutes.

{onions and garlic + green onions + ground bison}

{after adding in the tomatoes}

{I know this looks weird-it's because the farmers market cauliflower was green!}

{before the oven}

{after the oven}

Enjoy!

Mojo Pork Kebabs

 In our apartment complex, you're not allowed to grill anything within 20 feet of the building. But I'm not really a fan of grilling in the middle of a parking lot, so it's lucky that my husband had the foresight to own a George Foreman, as tiny as it is. Actually, I think that must have been all he cooked on before we moved in together, because I know he didn't own any pots or pans.

Anyway, I picked up this summer issue of Everyday Food at CVS when we were waiting for Roi's Rx's one day, and it gave me the urge to grill. Cuban-inspired flavors are always perfect summer recipes. These kebabs are adapted from this recipe.



MOJO PORK KEBABS
serves 2-3 

Ingredients:

1/4-1/3 cup olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

juice from 2 limes (~3 tablespoons)

1/4 cup orange juice

1 orange, cut into 16 pieces

1 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1 zucchini, cut into 1-inch rounds

cumin

salt and pepper

 Directions:

 1. In a small pot, combine oil and garlic and heat over medium-low. Cook until garlic is soft, 5-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Make sure your garlic doesn't burn, or your mojo just won't taste the same!) Remove from heat, stir in lime and orange juices and let cool for 15 minutes. Stir in some cumin (about 1/4 tsp), salt and pepper.

2. In a ziplock bag, toss the pork with half of the marinade and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 12 hours) and refrigerate the remaining marinade.

3. Heat a grill, grill pan, or George Foreman to medium-high, making sure that the grill is clean before you start. Thread pork, orange and zucchini onto skewers. Season with a couple of shakes of cumin, salt and pepper. Grill kebabs 4-5 minutes per side for medium-well, and at least until they have the tell-tale grill marks. Brush with your reserved marinade and serve.

These tasted really excellent with a light summer salad. I tossed romaine lettuce with sliced fresh cucumber (peeled) and a chopped fresh peach. I paired the salad with a honey balsamic dressing and it was perfect: sweet and refreshing. For the dressing, combine 1 part honey, 1 part balsamic vinegar, and 3 parts olive oil. I usually heat the honey with the balsamic in the microwave for about 15 seconds so that all the ingredients mix together in the dressing. Toss and serve!

French Onion Soup

Okay, I know what you're thinking. Summer just hit and soup is the last thing you want to make, that all it will do is heat up your kitchen and make you feel miserable. Maybe. But French onion soup isn't just any soup, and this isn't just any recipe for onion soup. I've made at least 4 different versions of French onion soup so far in my life, and this one is by far the best. (You get a little obsessed with finding the perfect recipe for French onion soup when you've been to France and had the perfect French onion soup.) And once you make it, you'll want to eat 3 bowls in a row, it's that flavorful.

French Onion Soup (Soupe à l’Oignon)
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen, in turn adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking
1 1/2 pounds (24 ounces or about 5 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon table salt, plus additional to taste
3 tablespoons almond meal
2 quarts (8 cups) chicken or beef broth (make sure when buying broth that it doesn't have pureed carrots or tomato paste in it, because those are both starchy, making your own is the best way to go)
1/2 cup dry white wine
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Melt the butter and oil together in the bottom of a 4-5 quart saucepan or Dutch oven over moderately low heat. Add the onions, toss to coat them in oil and cover the pot. Reduce the heat to real low and let them slowly steep for 15 minutes. They don’t need your attention for this part.

2. After 15 minutes, uncover the pot, raise the heat slightly and stir in the salt. Cook onions, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes until they have turned an even, deep golden brown. You want them to be browned, but not super caramelized, because caramelizing them makes the onions starchy. This step will build the complex and intense flavor base that will carry the rest of the soup, so don't cut it too short.


{browning the onions}

3. After the onions are browned, sprinkle them with almond meal and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the wine in full, then stock, a little at a time, stirring between additions. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer partially covered for 30 to 40 more minutes, skimming if needed. Correct seasonings if needed.

{finished soup--I know it's not much to look at, but it tastes amazing}


4. Preheat oven to 325. Arrange six ovenproof soup bowls or crocks on a large, foil-lined baking sheet. Bring the soup back to a boil and divide among six bowls. To each bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon grated raw onion and a tablespoon of grated cheese. Stir to combine. Dab your bread with a tiny bit of butter and float a few on top of your soup bowls, attempting to cover it. Mound grated cheese on top of it; how much you use will be up to you,but if you love cheese, you could use as much as 1/4 cup per bowl.

{in the oven}


5. Bake soups on tray for 10 minutes, then preheat broiler. Finish for a minute or two under the broiler to brown the top lightly. Make sure that you use pot holders (because those bowls are going to be scalding) and serve immediately

{finished!}


French Onion Soup (Soupe à l’Oignon)
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen, in turn adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking
1 1/2 pounds (24 ounces or about 5 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon table salt, plus additional to taste
3 tablespoons almond meal
2 quarts (8 cups) chicken or beef broth (make sure when buying broth that it doesn't have pureed carrots or tomato paste in it, because those are both starchy, making your own is the best way to go)
1/2 cup dry white wine
Freshly ground black pepper
Gratinée (Optional)
1 tablespoon grated raw onion/raw green onion
1 to 2 cups (to taste) grated Swiss, or a mixture of Swiss and Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon butter, melted
12 to 16 1-inch thick slices of starch free pumpernickel bread (see this post), toasted

1. Melt the butter and oil together in the bottom of a 4-5 quart saucepan or Dutch oven over moderately low heat. Add the onions, toss to coat them in oil and cover the pot. Reduce the heat to real low and let them slowly steep for 15 minutes. They don’t need your attention for this part.
2. After 15 minutes, uncover the pot, raise the heat slightly and stir in the salt. Cook onions, stirring frequently, for 30 minutes until they have turned an even, deep golden brown. You want them to be browned, but not super caramelized, because caramelizing them makes the onions starchy. This step will build the complex and intense flavor base that will carry the rest of the soup, so don't cut it too short.
3. After the onions are browned, sprinkle them with almond meal and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes. Add the wine in full, then stock, a little at a time, stirring between additions. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer partially covered for 30 to 40 more minutes, skimming if needed. Correct seasonings if needed. 

The soup is so good on it's own , it's not necessary to do the graitinéed top. But sometimes it's nice to be fancy.
4. Preheat oven to 325. Arrange six ovenproof soup bowls or crocks on a large, foil-lined baking sheet. Bring the soup back to a boil and divide among six bowls. To each bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon grated raw onion and a tablespoon of grated cheese. Stir to combine. Dab your bread with a tiny bit of butter and float a few on top of your soup bowls, attempting to cover it. Mound grated cheese on top of it; how much you use will be up to you,but if you love cheese, you could use as much as 1/4 cup per bowl.
5. Bake soups on tray for 10 minutes, then preheat broiler. Finish for a minute or two under the broiler to brown the top lightly. Make sure that you use pot holders (because those bowls are going to be scalding) and serve immediately

Vaca Frita (Cuban Stir-Fried Beef)

{vaca frita + roasted cauliflower}

Vaca frita is a standard Cuban dish, and one of the first that I learned to make. It's a dish that you have to plan ahead for, but it's worth it, and it's really tasty as leftovers. It's really good served with seasoned cauliflower, whether it be roasted, in "rice" form, or mashed. This recipe came from Memories of a Cuban Kitchen, a really great collection of Cuban recipes.

{boiling the meat}

{shredded beef, pre-stir frying}

{stir-frying}

Vaca Frita
makes 4-6 servings
one 2 1/2 lb. flank steak, cut into 1/3s
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, minced
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 cup olive oil
1 large onion, cut in 1/2 and each 1/2 thinly sliced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro

1. Put the beef and bay leaf in a large saucepan, cover with salted water, and cook over low heat, covered, until the meat is tender, 1-1 1/2 hours. Then remove the meat from the stock and allow to cool at room temperature. When the meat is cool, cut it into 2-inch chunks, shred it using your fingers, and place in a large nonreactive bowl. Add the citrus juices, garlic, salt, and pepper, cover, and refrigerate at least 1 hour, or overnight.

2. Remove the meat from the marinade and squeeze out the excess liquid. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until fragrant and cook the onions, stirring, 5-6 minutes. Add the beef shreds and cook, stirring, 10 minutes more, until the beef is crisp. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Sometimes, depending on what I have around, I'll also add in a little orange juice or sherry when I'm stir-frying, they both add really nice flavor to the dish.

Zucchini Lasagna

Have you had enough zucchini pasta yet? Zucchini lasagna has become one of our household staples. It tastes great as leftovers and since it makes at least 6 large servings, that means I don't have to cook dinner every single night. Zucchini makes an awesome substitute for pasta in general, not just for lasagna noodles. (See here for zucchini spaghetti & meatballs.)
 
In an effort to eat less red meat and no pink slime, I don't usually use beef in this recipe (the lasagna in the photo was made using ground turkey). If I can get it, I'll use free-range bison (they sell it at our local farmer's market) or turkey and it tastes great. Bison and turkey are leaner than ground beef too. This lasagna won't be as tomato-y as you're used to because you have to use fresh tomatoes, but it still tastes amazing. And I use a lot of mozzarella cheese. 

Zucchini Lasagna
serves 6-8
olive oil
1 cup onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb ground turkey or bison
1 teaspoon ground thyme
1 teaspoon ground oregano
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
5-6 fresh tomatoes (for the tomato puree, you'll need about 1 cup)
1/2 cup fresh tomatoes, chopped
2 medium zucchinis
6 ounces mozzarella cheese (I use mozz. that comes in a whole block and cut in into thin slices that will spread as they melt in the oven)
2 ounces parmesan cheese (I use the fancier parmesan that comes in blocks that I can shred myself, because parm. that comes pre-grated has anti-sticking starches in it)

1. For the tomato puree: Core and roughly chop 5-6 medium tomatoes. Put them in a food processor/blender and mix until completely processed. Place a mesh sieve over a medium sized bowl. Pour the tomato puree over the sieve, so that the juice drains into the bowl. You'll use the tomatoes that remain in the sieve for your sauce. I usually end up pouring in about 1/2 cup of the juice into the sauce, but not all of it. (If you just chop up the tomatoes and add them to the meat, your sauce will be too watery.)

{making the sauce}

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and prepare a 9x13 inch glass baking dish. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and cook until tender.  Add the meat and sauté until browned all over. Add all of the spices, salt and pepper. Stir and pour in the tomato puree and chopped tomatoes. Simmer on medium heat about 30 minutes -- until the sauce has thickened.

{zucchini strips}

3. Slice the zucchinis lengthwise into thin slices. Pour a small amount of the sauce to cover the bottom of the baking dish. Add a layer of zucchini slices, pour half the sauce onto the zucchini layer, and top with half of the mozzarella slices. Add another layer of zucchini and top with the last of the meat sauce, the rest of the mozzarella and all of the parmesan.

4. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown. Remove from the oven and serve immediately. And you will want more.

Zucchini Spaghetti with Homemade Tomato Sauce & Meatballs

This is a pretty time consuming meal (compared to pasta out of a box and tomato sauce out of a jar) mostly because of all of the parts that you have to make. But let me assure you, it's well worth the work and the wait.

The sauce you can make ahead of time and use for multiple dishes and you can cut the zucchini spaghetti strips ahead of time as well. I like to bake our meatballs, rather than cooking them on the stove; when you're cooking the sauce and the zucchini, you don't have much stove space leftover anyway. Zucchini makes an awesome substitute for other kinds of pasta dishes, too. I'll have a zucchini lasagna recipe post coming up soon.

{my tomatoes, ready to go}

{tomato sauce, cooking}

For the Tomato Sauce:
adapted from the Smitten Kitchen recipe and serves 4
10 medium-large ripe fresh tomatoes
5 tablespoons (70 grams) unsalted butter
1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
Salt to taste

1. Bring a big pot of water to a boil (it should have enough water to cover all of the tomatoes). Once boiling, immerse the the tomatoes in the water for 1 minute, then pour the water and tomatoes in a strainer and rinse the tomatoes with cold water. You should be able to slip the peels off of the tomatoes easily. Peel and core the tomatoes.

2. Put the tomatoes, onion and butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste and keep warm while you prepare your pasta.

For the Meatballs:
serves 5-6
1 lb. ground turkey or ground bison (ground beef = pink slime)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (from a block--not pre-grated, that's starchy!)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 large egg, lightly beaten
salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine meat, garlic, almond meal, cheese, basil, eggs, 2 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper in a bowl. Mix together with your hands (I suppose you could use a pastry cutter, I just find this to be the easiest way) until completely mixed. Roll into 1-inch balls, and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.

2. Bake for 16-20 minutes, until meatballs are cooked through, but juicy.

For the Zucchini Spaghetti: 
1 medium zucchini per person (I used 3 so there would be extra)

1. Cut the zucchini into thin slices, then slice into thin strips (unless you have a magical machine that will do this for you, which I don't).

2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, put in the zucchini and cook for 30 seconds, then pour into a strainer. It's important not to overcook these, or they won't have the right pasta-like consistency.

3. Put everything together, sprinkle some basil and shredded parmesan and have a delicious meal!

Camarones en Crema con Cilantro (shrimp in a creamy cilantro sauce)

Despite the fact that at least half of the meals I cook at home are Cuban in origin, I haven't shared many of those meals on the blog yet. Maybe it's because we tend to eat those meals so quickly I don't get a descent photo of them before they're gone. Needless to say, there will be many starch-free versions of Cuban recipes in the future.

This is a really simple and delicious recipe to make, and can be a quick dinner if you don't have much time to spend cooking. I used a version adapted from this book.

Camarones en Crema con Cilantro
6-8 servings
3 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 large, ripe tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (I usually put in a lot, because we love cilantro)
1/4 cup dry sherry
2 1/2 lbs large raw shrimp, shelled and deveined

for the sauce:
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup fish stock, chicken stock or clam juice (I used chicken stock, because I had that on hand)
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
few dashes of Tabasco sauce, optional

1. In a large skillet over low heat, melt the first amount of butter. When it begins to foam, add the garlic, tomatoes, cilantro, sherry, and shrimp, and cook, stirring, 4-5 minutes.

2. To prepare the sauce, in a saucepan over low heat, melt the second amount of butter. When it begins to foam, raise the heat to medium and whisk in the stock, milk and cream and cook, whisking, until the mixture comes to a boil. Add the salt, pepper, Tabasco and Worcestershire.

3. Add the sauce to the shrimp, stir to blend, and cook over low heat 3-4 minutes. I like to serve this with either cauliflower "rice" or mashed cauliflower (as in the photo).

Basic Starch Free Stew

This stew is a household staple and is really good as leftovers. The recipe is adapted from Jamie's Food Revolution cookbook. He gives four basic combinations: beef and ale, chicken and white wine, pork and cider or lamb and red wine. The one I usually make is pork and cider, but any of these combinations would be tasty (and starch free!) and they're provided at the end of the post. I changed a few of the amounts and left out a couple of ingredients that were starchy.

Basic Stew Recipe
serves 4-6
3-4 stalks celery, trimmed of ends and chopped
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
3-4 large tomatoes, diced
olive oil
salt and pepper
3 sprigs fresh sage or 1-2 teaspoons ground sage
1 pound diced stewing pork
2 cups medium dry hard cider

Put a Dutch oven on the stove on medium heat. Put all the vegetables and the sage into the pan with about 3 tablespoons olive oil and fry for 10 minutes. Add the pork, then pour in the cider and tomatoes. Give it a good stir, then season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, put the lid on and simmer slowly for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid for the final 1/2 hour of simmering and add a little water if it's looking dry. When done, the meat should be really tender. Remove the herb stalks before serving and add salt and pepper to taste. I like to add a little sour cream when serving, to make it creamier and cool it down.

Beef and ale: 2 hours simmering
3 fresh or dried bay leaves
1 lb. diced stewing beef
2 cups brown ale, Guinness or stout

Chicken and white wine: 1 hour simmering
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 lb. diced, boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 cups white wine

Lamb and red wine: 2 hours simmering
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 lb. diced stewing lamb
2 cups red wine