So it's gardening season here at the house and the parents have been planting things all weekend. All kinds of herbs, vegetables, and flowers. My favorite thing that we're planting this year are my peppers. Serrano and Cayenne peppers to be specific. O they are so cute! I'll take some pics and post them soon but they are my precious little plants! And in about a month of so, I'll have my first crop of fresh chillies!
Okay so I've used chile and pepper to describe my plants. What's the difference? Is there a difference? Yes! There is. Chilies are traditionally from Asia. They are in the spice category and (in my opinion) are decidedly hotter than peppers. Peppers, on the other hand, are from Central and South America. Mostly larger than chilies and used as vegetables rather than just a spice.
So there you have it. The chile and pepper are a world apart but.. yea no witty sayings here tonight. That's it in a nutshell. No matter what you call it, it's gonna be good.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
Finally the SWEETS!
Every one and their brother knows about flan. If you don't, you haven't been here long. If the deep creamy mysteries of this south of the border treat escape you, read on and you'll find this rich dessert much easier than you might think.
Flan has it's roots way across the Atlantic Ocean in the country of Spain. It's easy to make and not sickly sweet, which made it perfect for just about everyone. There are many variations on the simple theme of eggs, milk, and sugar including: Cinnamon, almonds, apple, and pistachios. First brought over to the New World with Spanish colonists, flan was able to adapt to the vastly different climate and culture that soon spread as far south as Peru, and as far north as modern day California.
Cinnamon Caramel Flan
1 1/4 C Sugar
4 Eggs
3 Egg Yolks
a pinch of Salt
1 tsp Vanilla
4 C Milk
1/2 tsp Corn Starch
1 Tbs Cold Water
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 350F. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt 3/4 C Sugar until it starts to turn a rich amber color. Stir till all the sugar is dissolved then pour into a 9 inch souffle pan. Tilt to coat the bottom of the pan. In another pot bring to a boil the milk, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, and the remaining sugar then drop down to a simmer and let reduce by half. While this is going combine in a large bowl the eggs and egg yolks. Beat lightly. Mix the water and corn starch into a slurry then add into the eggs. When the milk is reduced SLOWLY add it into the eggs beating the whole time. Pour this into the souffle pan. Place the pan in another heat resistant pan and pour boiling water into this pan till it reaches halfway up the souffle pan. Bake this for 35-40 minutes or until you can insert a knife into the center and pull it out clean. Let this cool to room temperature then place in the fridge for at least 30 min. Overnight would be ideal. Invert onto a serving dish and serve cold.
There you go folks. A traditional Spanish dessert that's fairly easy to make and will satisfy any caramel craving.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Flan has it's roots way across the Atlantic Ocean in the country of Spain. It's easy to make and not sickly sweet, which made it perfect for just about everyone. There are many variations on the simple theme of eggs, milk, and sugar including: Cinnamon, almonds, apple, and pistachios. First brought over to the New World with Spanish colonists, flan was able to adapt to the vastly different climate and culture that soon spread as far south as Peru, and as far north as modern day California.
Cinnamon Caramel Flan
1 1/4 C Sugar
4 Eggs
3 Egg Yolks
a pinch of Salt
1 tsp Vanilla
4 C Milk
1/2 tsp Corn Starch
1 Tbs Cold Water
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 350F. In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt 3/4 C Sugar until it starts to turn a rich amber color. Stir till all the sugar is dissolved then pour into a 9 inch souffle pan. Tilt to coat the bottom of the pan. In another pot bring to a boil the milk, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, and the remaining sugar then drop down to a simmer and let reduce by half. While this is going combine in a large bowl the eggs and egg yolks. Beat lightly. Mix the water and corn starch into a slurry then add into the eggs. When the milk is reduced SLOWLY add it into the eggs beating the whole time. Pour this into the souffle pan. Place the pan in another heat resistant pan and pour boiling water into this pan till it reaches halfway up the souffle pan. Bake this for 35-40 minutes or until you can insert a knife into the center and pull it out clean. Let this cool to room temperature then place in the fridge for at least 30 min. Overnight would be ideal. Invert onto a serving dish and serve cold.
There you go folks. A traditional Spanish dessert that's fairly easy to make and will satisfy any caramel craving.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
It's a bird, it's a plane... No, it's a bird...
Flying rats, rats with wings, pigeon. All these names are accurate but the culinarilly correct word is: Squab. Yes you can eat them. No they don't carry diseases if they were raised properly in pigeon farms. And no, they don't taste like chicken.
Squab, (I'm using the more PC term for those of you with a squirmy stomach) has been raised as a meat source for hundreds if not thousands of years all over the world. Today (I'm sorry no pics) in class we made a Chinese version. Lots of ginger and garlic, parsley (Italian of course) and soy sauce. Marinated for half an hour then roasted for another half or until internal temp is at 165F. Serve on a bed of fresh mixed greens and there you go. Pigeon on a plate.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Squab, (I'm using the more PC term for those of you with a squirmy stomach) has been raised as a meat source for hundreds if not thousands of years all over the world. Today (I'm sorry no pics) in class we made a Chinese version. Lots of ginger and garlic, parsley (Italian of course) and soy sauce. Marinated for half an hour then roasted for another half or until internal temp is at 165F. Serve on a bed of fresh mixed greens and there you go. Pigeon on a plate.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tapa: Chicken Liver
Okay so I got out of class this morning with nothing to do the rest of the day. So I grabbed my boy Will and we went to Central Market.
Now for those of you who don't know, Central Market is my Disney World. All kinds of fresh produce, meats, wine, bread, cheese, and yummys. It took all I had not to go hog wild and buy every thing I saw... Including fresh Artichoke (on sale)
(Morel mushrooms $70/lb!!!!)
(Oyster mushrooms. Delicious!)
So Will and I explored the store till I realized I had my new cookbook in my bag.
I flipped through it until I found a quick easy recipe that we could do for lunch.
Now for a little background. Tapa in Spanish is "lid" which comes from the tradition of using a small plate of something to nibble on to cover a glass of wine to keep out creepy crawlies (and some of the flying variety). Tapas are now basically Spanish bar food. Go to a wine bar and order and glass of wine and, in Andalusia where the tradition of tapas started, you'll most likely get a small plate of olives with garlic and herbs, frittered shrimp, or pan fried chicken livers with sherry along with whatever wine you ordered.
So chicken livers with sherry sounded good and I had most of the ingredients at home already. I just had to get a few things. Parsley being one of them. Now there are two types available at the supermarkets here. Regular and Italian. Crinkly and flat. Now if you're thinking "O well the crinkly must be Italian because it's fancy." I'm sorry, you'd be wrong. Regular parsley is crinkled and wavy; Italian parsley is flat.
Next I needed chicken livers. Now this part was easy and crazy all at the same time so I don't have pics of the container but just know they come in smallish one pound tubs in the fresh meat section. Lastly at the store I needed a bottle of Sherry. I got a fino dry. You can go with dry or semi-dry. I think dry works best. I got a loaf of buttermilk sourdough bread from the bakery.
Also I needed olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper, but I had them at home. I know right, this is simple. So it took us three hours to get back to my house since we were using the bus system. By time we were home we were really hungry.
So how to make this yummy concoction of liver, garlic, and wine? I'll show you.
First off, warm a few swirls of olive oil in a nice sized pan. Throw one clove of garlic (or two if you like it) sliced thin into the pan and let that brown slightly. Rough chop the livers to about uniform 1/2 inch cubes-ish. Take out any green veins as those will leave a bitter taste in your mouth. Slide the livers into the pan.
(I had some onion in too just for kicks)
Stir that around until the outside of the liver is a pale brown/tan color and the juices are a oily gravy. Season with a pinch of salt and a few turns of a pepper grinder. When the edges start to turn darker, add in one glass of Sherry and a handful of chopped parsley (flat Italian remember) then stir until the alcohol smell is cooked out of the fumes.
Serve up how ever you like it. I put it in a bowl and topped with some sliced heirloom tomatoes with a slide of bread on the side.
After some good conversation and great food, the liver should be gone.
And thus starts my Spanish culinary adventure. ^_^
Cook to live; Live to cook, Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Now for those of you who don't know, Central Market is my Disney World. All kinds of fresh produce, meats, wine, bread, cheese, and yummys. It took all I had not to go hog wild and buy every thing I saw... Including fresh Artichoke (on sale)
(Morel mushrooms $70/lb!!!!)
(Oyster mushrooms. Delicious!)So Will and I explored the store till I realized I had my new cookbook in my bag.
I flipped through it until I found a quick easy recipe that we could do for lunch.
Now for a little background. Tapa in Spanish is "lid" which comes from the tradition of using a small plate of something to nibble on to cover a glass of wine to keep out creepy crawlies (and some of the flying variety). Tapas are now basically Spanish bar food. Go to a wine bar and order and glass of wine and, in Andalusia where the tradition of tapas started, you'll most likely get a small plate of olives with garlic and herbs, frittered shrimp, or pan fried chicken livers with sherry along with whatever wine you ordered.
So chicken livers with sherry sounded good and I had most of the ingredients at home already. I just had to get a few things. Parsley being one of them. Now there are two types available at the supermarkets here. Regular and Italian. Crinkly and flat. Now if you're thinking "O well the crinkly must be Italian because it's fancy." I'm sorry, you'd be wrong. Regular parsley is crinkled and wavy; Italian parsley is flat.
Next I needed chicken livers. Now this part was easy and crazy all at the same time so I don't have pics of the container but just know they come in smallish one pound tubs in the fresh meat section. Lastly at the store I needed a bottle of Sherry. I got a fino dry. You can go with dry or semi-dry. I think dry works best. I got a loaf of buttermilk sourdough bread from the bakery.
Also I needed olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper, but I had them at home. I know right, this is simple. So it took us three hours to get back to my house since we were using the bus system. By time we were home we were really hungry.
So how to make this yummy concoction of liver, garlic, and wine? I'll show you.
First off, warm a few swirls of olive oil in a nice sized pan. Throw one clove of garlic (or two if you like it) sliced thin into the pan and let that brown slightly. Rough chop the livers to about uniform 1/2 inch cubes-ish. Take out any green veins as those will leave a bitter taste in your mouth. Slide the livers into the pan.
(I had some onion in too just for kicks)Stir that around until the outside of the liver is a pale brown/tan color and the juices are a oily gravy. Season with a pinch of salt and a few turns of a pepper grinder. When the edges start to turn darker, add in one glass of Sherry and a handful of chopped parsley (flat Italian remember) then stir until the alcohol smell is cooked out of the fumes.
Serve up how ever you like it. I put it in a bowl and topped with some sliced heirloom tomatoes with a slide of bread on the side.
After some good conversation and great food, the liver should be gone.
And thus starts my Spanish culinary adventure. ^_^
Cook to live; Live to cook, Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Basil Ravioli
When you think of Ravioli, what comes to your mind? Small circular pillows filled with meat and cheese? Half-moon shaped pockets of deliciousness, carefully and individually crafted? Well, you'd be right. Ravioli have a great history of flavor that spans thousands of years and three continents. Here is my own flavorful twist on this timeless classic. Also, making this dish can be a fun family activity or even an intimate date.
For Pasta:
5 oz all-purpose flour
5 oz bread flour
3 eggs
1/2 oz olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbs basil
For filling:
5 purple fingerling potatoes
2 med or 1 large baking potato
1/2 large yellow onion
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz unsalted butter
salt to taste
First off you'll have to make the pasta. Combine the flours, salt, and chopped basil in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the eggs and olive oil. Mix it all together with your fingers. You're looking for a light elastic consistency. Once you're there, form into a ball with lightly floured hands and wrap in plastic wrap. Let this ball rest for about 30-45 min. Now, on to the filling!
Peel and cube your potatoes then boil them in lightly salted water. Cut your onion to a medium dice and saute in a pan with 2-3 oz of butter. Set them aside when they are nicely browned. When your potatoes are tender, about 15-20 min after the water boils, strain them then put them through a ricer. If you don't have a ricer, mash them really really well, or find something as close to a ricer as you can, like a small holed potato masher. Mix in the onions, cheddar cheese, remaining butter, and salt. If your feeling adventurous, add in a handful of chopped bacon bits.
Let the filling cool as you roll out the pasta. On a lightly floured board, cut the ball in fourths. Roll out each quarter to a long sheet about four (4) inches wide and as long as it takes for the pasta to be almost see through. So now we've got four (4) sheets. Take one sheet and lay it out. Starting an inch from the end place a ball of the filling every two (2) inches. Width wise you should have two (2) rows stretching down the length of the pasta. Place another of the sheets on top of this. With a two (2) inch cookie cutter cut through both layers of pasta. Remove the excess pasta and with a fork, push down on the edges of the ravioli. Do the same with the other two (2) sheets of pasta.
Now to cook these puppies. Boil water in a sauce pot. Only place 4-5 ravioli in the pot at a time. Don't over crowd the pot or the ravioli won't cook properly. Let each batch boil for about 3-4 min. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and place on a rack or in a colander to drain. Serve plain, with a drizzle of olive oil, or with some browned butter.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
For Pasta:
5 oz all-purpose flour
5 oz bread flour
3 eggs
1/2 oz olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbs basil
For filling:
5 purple fingerling potatoes
2 med or 1 large baking potato
1/2 large yellow onion
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz unsalted butter
salt to taste
First off you'll have to make the pasta. Combine the flours, salt, and chopped basil in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the eggs and olive oil. Mix it all together with your fingers. You're looking for a light elastic consistency. Once you're there, form into a ball with lightly floured hands and wrap in plastic wrap. Let this ball rest for about 30-45 min. Now, on to the filling!
Peel and cube your potatoes then boil them in lightly salted water. Cut your onion to a medium dice and saute in a pan with 2-3 oz of butter. Set them aside when they are nicely browned. When your potatoes are tender, about 15-20 min after the water boils, strain them then put them through a ricer. If you don't have a ricer, mash them really really well, or find something as close to a ricer as you can, like a small holed potato masher. Mix in the onions, cheddar cheese, remaining butter, and salt. If your feeling adventurous, add in a handful of chopped bacon bits.
Let the filling cool as you roll out the pasta. On a lightly floured board, cut the ball in fourths. Roll out each quarter to a long sheet about four (4) inches wide and as long as it takes for the pasta to be almost see through. So now we've got four (4) sheets. Take one sheet and lay it out. Starting an inch from the end place a ball of the filling every two (2) inches. Width wise you should have two (2) rows stretching down the length of the pasta. Place another of the sheets on top of this. With a two (2) inch cookie cutter cut through both layers of pasta. Remove the excess pasta and with a fork, push down on the edges of the ravioli. Do the same with the other two (2) sheets of pasta.
Now to cook these puppies. Boil water in a sauce pot. Only place 4-5 ravioli in the pot at a time. Don't over crowd the pot or the ravioli won't cook properly. Let each batch boil for about 3-4 min. Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and place on a rack or in a colander to drain. Serve plain, with a drizzle of olive oil, or with some browned butter.
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Let's start off with something light
So here I am. New to the blogging scene so forgive me if I don't do it right. But that's the whole point right? To talk and show yourself to people? And if I do it my way, it's... more me and more true so it's right. Right?
Anyways, let me introduce myself for you who don't know me. I'm Mark or Daniel or Gabryel or Belcher or Brother or Son or Sous or Biggun or Hey you! or Chef. What ever you call me I don't really care, as long as you don't call me late for dinner! Haha...
I love food. I love cooking food. I love cooking food for people. I love cooking food for people I care about. I love cooking great food for people I care for. That's the meaning of cooking for me. The soul if you will. All food, from street food to 5-star, should be soul food. I'm not talking about "Deep south country cookin'". No. I'm talking about a meal that when you eat it, you not only taste the garlic, salt, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, paprika, etc. You taste the love and care of the chef. The little bit of his Soul that he poured into the food that you're eating. All good food is soul food because of that.
My reasons for starting this blog are so I can share my passion with you. Food is said passion. Cooking food is my passion. I am planning on doing a culinary tour of Europe using cookbooks I can find that I feel capture the true sense of a country, cooking through them, and becoming better attuned to the flavors of said country and its regions. So stay tuned as a world of new and exciting food opens up. And that's *fade in Good Eats theme music*
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
Anyways, let me introduce myself for you who don't know me. I'm Mark or Daniel or Gabryel or Belcher or Brother or Son or Sous or Biggun or Hey you! or Chef. What ever you call me I don't really care, as long as you don't call me late for dinner! Haha...
I love food. I love cooking food. I love cooking food for people. I love cooking food for people I care about. I love cooking great food for people I care for. That's the meaning of cooking for me. The soul if you will. All food, from street food to 5-star, should be soul food. I'm not talking about "Deep south country cookin'". No. I'm talking about a meal that when you eat it, you not only taste the garlic, salt, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, paprika, etc. You taste the love and care of the chef. The little bit of his Soul that he poured into the food that you're eating. All good food is soul food because of that.
My reasons for starting this blog are so I can share my passion with you. Food is said passion. Cooking food is my passion. I am planning on doing a culinary tour of Europe using cookbooks I can find that I feel capture the true sense of a country, cooking through them, and becoming better attuned to the flavors of said country and its regions. So stay tuned as a world of new and exciting food opens up. And that's *fade in Good Eats theme music*
Cook to live; Live to cook; Glory to God in all,
Chef D.
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