Cooking with Corey: August 2006 Archives

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August 30, 2006

Roasted Chicken with Green Beans, Potatoes and Olives

This is an adaptation of the previous dish (Roasted Cod with Potatoes and Olives). I made this tonight with Chicken and it was even better! Hazah!

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart's Everyday Foods

2 pounds red new potatoes, scrubbed and quartered

6 garlic cloves, halved lengthwise

1/2 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil

Coarse salt and ground pepper to taste

3 chicken breasts (skinless) - Cut in half and trimmed of fat (make sure they are not too thick)

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, whole or halved

1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives

1 pound Green Beans (trimmed)

1 egg

flour (1/2 cup - or thereabouts)

Parmesan cheese (1/4 cup - or thereabouts)

1. Preheat oven to 450°. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss potatoes with garlic, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Arrange potatoes in a single layer, cut side down. Bake about 15 minutes.

2. Stir in the Green Beans and cook 10 more minutes until potatoes are browned.

3. Mix flour, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Beat the egg in a bowl and place the chicken in the bowl to coat. Coat in the flour mix.

4. Cook chicken in pan over medium high heat until browned on both sides (around 4 minutes per side).

5. Remove baking sheet from oven. Add tomatoes and olives to potatoes and green beans; stir to combine. Push vegetable mixture to one side; place cooked chicken in the middle flat on baking sheet, next to vegetables. Return to oven, and roast until chicken is fully cooked through and potatoes are brown and tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to serving platter. Serve immediately.

Posted by cseeman at 08:04 PM | Comments (0)

August 27, 2006

Roasted Cod with Potatoes and Olives

I made this tonight and it was fantastic. I am going to make this again, but add green beans at the halfway mark of roasting the potatoes. I am the only one here who likes tomatoes, but they help make a nice sauce. I also overdid the fish, so I want to keep it to 15 minutes.

Recipe from Martha Stewart's Everyday Foods

2 pounds red new potatoes, scrubbed and quartered

4 garlic cloves, halved lengthwise

1/2 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil

Coarse salt and ground pepper to taste

4 cod fillets (6 to 8 ounces each)

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, whole or halved

1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives

Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 450°. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss potatoes with garlic, rosemary, and 1 tablespoon oil; season generously with salt and pepper. Arrange potatoes in a single layer, cut side down. Bake, tossing potatoes once, until beginning to brown, about 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, rub fillets with remaining teaspoon oil; season all sides with salt and pepper.

3. Remove baking sheet from oven. Add tomatoes and olives to potatoes; stir to combine. Push vegetable mixture to one side; place fillets flat on baking sheet, next to vegetables. Return to oven, and roast until fish is cooked through and potatoes are brown and tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer fish and vegetables to serving platter. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges if desired.

Posted by cseeman at 08:59 PM | Comments (0)

Our Family's Meatloaf

(Originally I typed Family Meatloaf...but that sounds really gross).

Kinda simple, kinda easy...but 75% of the family loves it. Ah...sweet Chris...maybe someday you will like this as well...

Ingredients (adjust according to the amount of ground beef):
1 lb of ground beef (we almost always use Ground Sirloin...you can use ground turkey, I am sure)
1 egg (add another egg is you end up with around 1.5 lbs of beef)
1 cup bread crumbs
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup warm water
1 package onion soup mix (Lipton or others...any variety).
1 tbs dried minced onion (if desired).

1. Preheat oven at 350 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients in a bowl (do not try to mix in the loaf pan...it will not work...trust me on this one).
3. Bake for around one hour. Check the loaf before serving. If you end up with more beef, it could need a few extra minutes.

Enjoy with potatoes and a green vegetable.

Posted by cseeman at 10:18 AM | Comments (0)

August 18, 2006

Pammy's Special

I made this dish tonight. Nothing fancy, but it came out OK and was a bit like something more interesting that you could get at a chinese restaurant (as opposed to the traditional stir fry fare that I have been doing lately).

I will flesh this out later:

1 Chicken Breast, cut into thin strips, no more than 1 inch square and 1/4" thick.
1/4-1/2 pound of medium or large shrimp (peeled and deveined)
1 carrot - thinly sliced
1/2 pound mushrooms (white or baby bella's) - sliced
1 bunch of Asparagus - top 4 inches only
1 can of sliced water chestnuts
1-2 cloves of garlic or teaspoons of minced garlic
3+ tablespoons of olive oil
1 onion (medium), thinly sliced.
1-2 tablespoon of oyster sauce

heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in high heat.
Add 1-2 cloves of garlic
Add Chicken and cook until browned (4-5 minutes). Remove from heat and place in plate.
heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in high heat.
Add Onions (and more garlic if you want), cook for 2 minutes
Add water chestnuts, carrots & Asparagus, cook for around 4 minutes
Add mushrooms and cook for around 4 minutes
Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink (around 2 minutes). Mix with all the contents.
Add cooked chicken back to the pan and add oyster sauce.

Serves around 3-4. I will work on this! It was great with thin Asparagus.

Posted by cseeman at 09:09 PM | Comments (0)

August 06, 2006

Shrimp and Sausage with Saffron Rice

Shrimp and Sausage with Saffron Rice
From REAL SIMPLE MAGAZINE (August 2006)

NOTE: THIS IS EXCELLENT! I made this with kielbasa (healthy choice) and it was great. I bought saffron at a small mediterranean grocery store in Ann Arbor. This was much less expensive than the larger grocery stores.

2 teaspoons olive oil
8 ounces andouille sausage (or kielbasa), sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white wine
1 14.5-ounce can low-sodium chicken broth
12 saffron threads, crumbled
1 cup long-grain white rice
3/4 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup frozen peas
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 sprigs fresh cilantro (optional)

Heat the oil in a wok or large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and brown on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Reduce heat to medium and add the onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Spoon off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of the fat. Add the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the broth, saffron, and rice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir the shrimp and peas into the rice, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Season with the salt and pepper. Spoon onto plates and add the cilantro (if using).

Yield: Makes 4 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 437(43% from fat); FAT 21g (sat 8g); SUGAR 4g; PROTEIN 29g; CHOLESTEROL 169mg; SODIUM 1,052mg; FIBER 1g; CARBOHYDRATE 29g

Kate Merker
Real Simple, AUGUST 2006

Posted by cseeman at 09:29 PM | Comments (0)

August 03, 2006

Pam's Grandma's Polish Chicken Soup

NOTE: As the recipe clearly points out, this is my wife's Grandmother's recipe. Pam and I make this more than Pam's two sisters and love it. Great for clearing the head on a cold day. Adjust the ingredients to taste. My older son once called it the soup without taste...but we think he is all wrong on this one!

Ingredients:
-Chicken (pick of the Chix or 4 chicken breasts)
-Parsley (1 bunch, leaves finely chopped)
-Carrots (2-3 lbs either baby carrots or chopped regular carrots)
-Allspice, whole (to taste -- around 2 tablespoons)
-Allspice, ground (to taste -- around 1/2 teaspoon)
-Salt (to taste -- around 1 teaspoon)
-Egg Noodles (cooked as per package...we use No Yolk types)

Steps
1. Take chicken and rinse off. Leave on skin. Cover chicken in a large pot with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes (skim off fat off top).

2. When all skimmed, lower heat and add parsley, whole allspice, ground allspice, and salt.

3. Cover pot and let simmer for about an hour.

4. Add carrots and simmer for another 45 minutes to an hour (meat should be falling off the bone).

5. Remove chicken from pot. This does not go into the soup, but can be used for salads, etc. (Try the chicken in Shepardess Pie or Cherry Almond Chicken Salad).

6. Serve the soup with cooked egg noodles (they should be stored separately so they do not get soggy).

Posted by cseeman at 07:10 AM | Comments (0)

Tortilla Espanola (also Tortilla Espagnola or Tortilla de patatas)

NOTE: This is one of my favorite things to make. Once you get the hang of this dish, it will be very easy to make and something that will be welcome for any meal! This dish is basically a Spanish potato omelette. I have heard that the word "Tortilla" in this dish comes from its circular shape, but it could also come from the fact that it will end up "cake" like. If you called this "Fred", it would still taste great.

SECOND NOTE: If you have access to one of the slicers like a mandolin, use it on the thinnest setting. It makes it much easier to make and the tastes blend nicely.

Ingredients:

-4-5 medium white potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

-1 medium onion (yellow or vidalia), thinly sliced

-6 eggs

-3 tablespoons olive oil

-Kosher Salt and Pepper to taste

1. In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Add potatoes and onions and stir every few minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. The potatoes should cook for around 15 minutes. If you have larger potatoes, you might need to take a bit longer. The potatoes and onion should not burn, but they might brown a bit.

2. In a large bowl, beat 6 eggs and add salt and pepper to taste. When potato and onion mixture is finished, add to the bowl with the eggs. Mix Thoroughly.

3. Add one tablespoon oil to a skillet over medium heat(it can be the same used in step number 1. The ideal skillet for this step will have curved sides). Let heat up and then add the potato/onion/egg mixture spread evenly into the skillet.

4. Cook over medium heat for around 6 minutes until firm on the top (you do not want to burn the bottom).

5. Take a large plate and place it over the top of the skillet. Make sure the smooth side of the plate is next to the food. Flip the skillet onto the plate. (If it falls apart, you did not cook it long enough.) Then slide it back into the skillet to cook the other side of the tortilla. Cook for an additional 4 minutes or so.

6. Remove from heat and serve. Slice with a pizza cutter and enjoy.

Posted by cseeman at 06:26 AM | Comments (0)

Pasta with Shrimp and Broccoli

• Heat 6 tbs of olive oil over low heat. Add 3 cloves of garlic and cook for about 2 minutes
• Add Broccoli (around 10 oz of florets) and cook until tender – about 5 minutes
• Raise heat and add shrimp (about 18 large shrimp) and sauté for about 2 minutes.
• Add ½ cup dry white wine and salt & Pepper and cook for 2 minutes.
• Serve with pasta. I think (somehow I cannot remember) that I added the pasta at the very end in the pan. I will try this again and write it down for sure!

Posted by cseeman at 06:25 AM | Comments (0)

Egg Salad

NOTE: OK...this is kinda silly, such a simple recipe. But this is an updated version of what my grandmother (Meta Beer) made. I loved her egg salad, but I hate what I get elsewhere because it is so-mayo-nasiey (is that even a word). Not much, but it is very good.

Mix these ingredients fully
• 5 Hard Boiled Eggs (diced small – twice in a standard egg slicer)
• 1 cup Celery (diced small)
• ¼ + pinch (to taste) teaspoon Paprika
• ¼ teaspoon Ground mustard powder
• 1/3 cup light mayonnaise or Miracle Whip

Posted by cseeman at 06:23 AM | Comments (0)

Sautéed Shrimps with Parsley Sauce

Sautéed Shrimps with Parsley Sauce (Langostinos a la Plancha)
(Adapted from http://www.cocinacasera.com/Recipes/sauteedprawns.html)

2+ tablespoons dried parsley
3 garlic cloves, chopped
¼+ cup Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon Oregano or Italian Spices
1 lb. large shrimp (31/40 count or higher) - shelled
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Thoroughly mix parsley, garlic, lemon juice, water, salt and Oregano.

2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add shrimp; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes or until they turn pink. Gradually stir in parsley mix (Step 1) and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.

3. Serve with rice or over pasta.

3 to 4 servings

Posted by cseeman at 06:22 AM | Comments (0)

Corey’s Chocolate & Almond Biscotti

(Adapted from the Williams Sonoma Kitchen Library Recipe --
Kidd, Kristine. Cookies and Biscotti. Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library, 1994. p20.)

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (plus some for topping)
1/8 teaspoon salt

½ cup unsalted butter or margarine (room temperature)
½ cup light brown sugar (packed firmly)
½ cup sugar (plus some for topping)
2 tablespoons instant coffee
2 eggs
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

Directions

Preheat over to 325 degrees.

Combine dry ingredients (flour through salt) and set aside.

Combine in a mixer or mixing bowl butter or margarine, brown sugar, sugar and instant coffee. Mix on medium (then high) until light and fluffy (about 1-2 minutes). Mix in the eggs, one at a time and wait a few seconds between each one. When the batter is fluffy (you will know), lower the speed on the mixer and add the almonds and chocolate chips. Then add the dry ingredients slowly until blended and stop mixing when the ingredients are all together in the batter.

You will make two logs from this batter. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet (or grease with butter or a cooking spray) and prepare a place to work on the batter (wax paper with flour will work fine). Form each half of the batter into a log about 3 inches wide and about ¾�? to 1�? high. (NOTE: If your hands have flour on them, it will be easier to mold). When you have two logs (do not worry about a bit of flour on them), lightly sprinkle the tops with cinnamon and sugar.

Bake at 325 for 35 minutes (test with a toothpick that it comes out clean).

Let cool on the baking sheet for about ten minutes (leaving the oven on).

Using a spatula, transfer the logs to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife (bread knives work well), cut on the diagonal into ½�? slices (be as consistent as possible). Cutting on a diagonal gives you longer pieces. Place sliced pieces back onto the cookie sheet with a small gap between the cut slices (this will allow the biscotti to be baked again on the sides). Put back in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

Store in an airtight container and enjoy!

Posted by cseeman at 06:20 AM | Comments (0)