I’m used to filling up on bread prior to my meal, then not having enough room left in my stomach to finish my plate.  Alex informed us that in France people eat baguette after their meal using it to wipe up the extra sauce and juices on their plate because the French never leave a morsel behind.  They also use the baguette in the cheese course which follows the main course.  After the baguette and cheese there is a dessert usually consisting of yogurt or fromage blanc.  My initial thought was that this routine was completely backwards but by midweek I began to really enjoy this style of eating, the dinner portions weren’t enormous and if you’re still hungry afterward there is always plenty of baguette and cheese to finish the job.

Even though I’m happy to be back in Boston there is a part of me that misses being in France.  Last night, with my jet lagged conquered, I decided to recreate a couple of dishes I enjoyed over there.  Neither of them are particularly “French” but that fact that I ate them there makes them french in my book.

Culinary treats I brought back, they confiscated my sauscisson at US Customs!

Roasted Chops with Apples & Red Cabbage and Carrot Slaw with Mustard Dressing
Preheat oven to 375.  Slice up an apple and onion, toss with olive oil, salt pepper and herbs (thyme or rosemary work well) and evenly distribute to the bottom of a baking dish.  Season the pork chops with olive oil, salt and pepper, then crush a couple of garlic cloves and run them over the meat.  Leave the garlic cloves and a sprig of herb on top of each chop and before baking add a splash of beer to the baking dish.  Cook for 30-45 mins (depending on the thickness of the cut) and let sit for another 5 minutes before serving with the roasted apples, onions, and drippings.

Pre-roasted chops

The slaw was a recipe that we enjoyed at the wedding dinner Alex’s parents had for he and Tara and I was very anxious to recreate this with the dijon I brought back to states.  This side is so simple and I ate it as a snack most of the work week.  Finely shred red cabbage and carrots and mix together in a bowl.  When you are ready to eat spoon some mustard vinaigrette on your potion and toss together.  For vinaigrette blend together 3 TBS french mustard, 2 TBS white wine vinegar or lemon juice, salt, pepper and enough olive oil until it reaches your desired consistency.

hot out of the oven

My man crow and I embarked on our first journey of homemade chicken pot pie.  Although we were both a little nervous the end product was a win for the books but we did experience the slight failure of forgetting to add the frozen peas.  Peas don’t make or break a pot pie but they do add a nice splash of green to drab colored winter veggies.  This will give me an excuse to make it the right way in the near future- hey maybe next weekend!

A while back (September 2009) VBar did a post on her Veggie “Crow” Pie creation that looked flavorful with the addition of tumeric and inviting for those who are weary of baking because it offered the option of a store bought crust.  I stuck closer to VBar’s rendition rather than the Contessa but of course still made some alterations.  First and foremost my pie contained chicken, this was a necessity for my MC.  I love fennel and asparagus but did not have any on hand, I did however have scarlet turnips which i was very excited to use, don’t they look like large beets!?  I blanched these along with diced regular and sweet potatoes and some cauliflower.  The remaining veggies added were the classic mire poix and some sliced crimini mushrooms.  All of those combined with some tumeric, paprika, herbs de provence (probably could have named it round the world pot pie) bay leaf, garlic, and white wine made this a meal for the senses.  I made a smaller version of this pie so I only used a half a stick of butter, 1/3 C of flour, and 2 Cups of veggie stock.

Once assembled I did the egg wash technique on the crust and added an extra sprinkling of sea salt, pepper and red pepper flakes on top and was sure to make some slits to give the bubbling contents a place to go.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 45 minutes and then let set at room temperature for an additional 15-20 minutes before diving in.  Friendly reminder to those who wish to re-create: Don’t Forget the Peas!

Baked Baba Ganoush
1 large eggplant
3 large cloves of garlic
1 tomato
1/2 C of bread crumbs
grated parmesan cheese
1 bunch of basil leaves
oregano, salt, pepper, & olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut eggplant in half and make about 3-4 slits in the flesh of each side.  Place garlic cloves on top and season generously with olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano.  Cover and bake for about 20 minutes, remove the garlic cloves and set aside, continue baking the eggplant for another 10 minutes or until the flesh is soft and can be easily scooped out of the skin.  Leave oven on while you mash the eggplant flesh and the peeled garlic cloves together in a bowl.  Spoon into a baking dish and top with sliced tomato, bread crumbs and grated parm.  Bake another 10-15 minutes or until the top begins to brown.  Sprinkle with freshly chopped basil and serve.  This makes a perfect side to a garden salad or it can be served with crusty bread as an appetizer.

The best part about this dish is that the oven does all the work, perfect after a week of labor intensive meals.  Pop it in the oven, sit back and sip some wine!

My roasted chicken saga goes as follows:all day at work I was talking about roasting a chicken when I got home.  I probably told everyone in my office vicinity at least twice as well as my man crow back at the apt.  I got on my bike, rode down to harvest to pick up the infamous chicken only to find that they were all sold out.  Why do I always get my hopes up that this neighborhood store will have the one item I am counting on!!??  It’s happened to me numerous times in the cheese department but this is the first at the meat counter.  I swallowed my hostility, purchased the overpriced breast, and rode home determined to do what crows do best: improvise.

colorful veggies pre-oven roast

Roasted Root Veggies w/ Shredded Chicken in Gravy
For the Veggies:
Chop up what ever root veggies and aromatics you have on hand into equal sizes.  I used onions, carrots, celery, fennel, parsnips, potatoes (blue and fingerling), and whole garlic cloves.  Toss the veggies in olive oil, salt, pepper and freshly chopped thyme and oregano.  Pour veggies in to a baking dish and add about 1/4 C of stock to the bottom.  Cover with tin foil and bake in a 425 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes; the perfect amount of time to sip on some wine and casually prepare the chicken.  Once the chicken is ready to go in the oven you can remove the tin foil from the veggies and let both dishes bake alongside for another 30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked and the veggies are tender.
For the Chicken:
Season the breasts with olive oil, salt, pepper, freshly chopped thyme and lemon zest.  Add some extra oil to the baking dish as well.  Place in the oven after the veggies have already gotten a 20-25 minute head start.  After about 30 minutes, transfer the breasts to a plate to let cool and place the baking dish on a medium low burner.  Add about a tablespoon of flour and whisk until the rawness is cooked off.  If you desire a little more richness in your gravy feel free to add a couple pads of butter.  Take the roasted garlic cloves (I used two) out of the veggie dish and squeeze the flesh into the gravy mixture and whisk to evenly distribute.  Pour in a splash of white wine to release all the browned bits on the bottom of the dish, then add enough stock till the gravy is at you’re desired thickness.  Let simmer on low while you shred the chicken breast with two forks.  Add the shredded chicken to the gravy and let mixture simmer on low for about 3-5 minutes.  Check for seasoning and serve with the roasted veggies.

When a roasting chicken is not available, this recipe can easily fill the void.

The Roslindale Farmers market is one of the best farmer’s markets I’ve ever been to. In terms of accessibility, affordability, and quality, I would say it is better than many of the larger and more famous markets (like Seattle’s Pikes place or San Francisco’s Ferry Building) in large cities. California has a long growing season, that’s not in question, but I really love being back in the great food culture of New England. I feel that quality goods are appreciated, and better tasting, when everyone knows there is such a short production period. This year, I am trying my best to overbuy from the market, and bring the ingredients home to preserve. So far, I’ve only had time to blanch & freeze. I hope to can by seasons end.

Last week I discovered the true gem of the Roslindale market at the Allendale Farm stand.  All of the stands have started producing some really quality heirloom tomatoes. My personal favorite is, I think, the Cherokee Purple. I love all of the tomatoes with dark green and purple skin, and thick red flesh with minimal seeds inside. Not so hidden on the back table of the Allendale stand are $5 bags of tomatoes. For the past several weeks I have assumed that these were the second rate duds, probably over ripe, ugly, or just plain boring vine or patio tomatoes. Boy was I wrong! What I found was a nearly 5 lb bag of beautiful Heirlooms, all at different stages of ripeness- perfect for planning my weekly meals. The second week I went to check out this deal, there were still heirlooms, although this week, a little too overripe for my needs.

After an awesome lunch of Wedged lettuce, sliced heirlooms, and homemade blue cheese dressing, I started brainstorming what I would do with the rest of the lot. On Sunday night, I made a tart. Next time I make this, I think I will either just bake the crust, and not the ‘maters, or roast the ‘maters before baking off the tart as a whole. I would also add the mozzarella for the last 20 minutes, rather than have it on there the whole time. Nobody likes dehydrated mozzarella. The basic ingredients are below.

Summer Tomato Tart

Crust
2 cups flour
2 T parmesean
1 t crushed black pepper
6T cold butter, in cubes
Ice water

Mix in the usual pastry crust manner. Refrigerate for 1/2 an hour.

Filling
Sliced heirlooms
red onion
Fresh Mozarella
Basil Leaves, whole
Salt & Pepper
Olive Oil

Slice everything to the same thickness, and arrange within the crust as a sprial.

Bake at 375 for 1 hour.

well this crow has been MIA for far too long! the past few months have been quite the roller coaster!  the boxes are almost gone and i FINALLY made my first meal in our new nest in Oakland, CA.  after a successful trip to COSTCO, our freezer is packed w/affordable organic chicken and turkey and the other night, i decided to give this recipe a whirl.

Turkey Meatloaf with feta and sun-dried tomatoes

ingredients:

• 1/2 C dried bread crumbs
• 1/3 C fresh flat leaf parsley leaves
• 1/4 C chopped oil packed sun dried tomatoes
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 1/4 C olive oil
• 1/2 C crumbled feta
• S&P
• 1 lb ground turkey

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, adding the turkey last and stirring gently so as not to over work the meat.  Carefully pack the meat mixture into a loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes.  I used a meat thermometer to test the internal temp and it took my loaf more like 55 minutes to finish.

from Giada De Laurentiis’s Giada At Home

Mac & Cheese w/ Manchego and Jalapenos
My strategy for making a bechamel or cheese sauce is simple: I wing it.  I follow the same technique but I never measure out quantities, sometimes it comes out perfect and other times it takes a little tweaking.  I start with a couple pads of butter and some olive oil and sautee finely diced onion and minced garlic until softened (for this batch I added some diced jalapenos to compliment the manchego).  Season with salt and pepper and stir in a couple Tablespoons of flour and cook for a minute or two.  Slowly add warmed milk or stock* and whisk to combine the mixture.  Stir in grated cheese and check for consistency.

If the mixture is too thick add additional liquid, you want this to be a little on the soupy side because it will be baking in a warm oven and some of the liquid will evaporate.  Once the cheese sauce is complete, stir in pasta and top with breadcrumbs and additional diced jalapeno.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until the top is crusty.

My cast iron was the perfect size to produce enough food for my man crow and I to eat a hefty portion and have a little leftover for lunch the following day.  Next time I make this version of mac and cheese I would like to add a pinch of cumin for some smokey flavor and top it with freshly chopped cilantro.

*to make this dish on the lighter side I use veggie stock for the liquid combined with a little cream.

Sausage, Roasted Red Pepper and Spinach Torta Rustica

Just like a fritatta this egg dish is very versatile.  The main ingredients are baguette, eggs and cheese so its up to the cook what other tasty veggies and meats they want to throw in.  Sausage would have been ideal but instead we went the vegetarian route with spinach, onions, garlic, green pepper, and tons of fresh orgegano.  I was too famished to waste time getting a decent picture, but our potatoes also came out delicious with a few minutes under the broiler at the end and some freshly chopped parsley.

This breakfast provided the starch and carbs we all needed to throw back some mimosas and move on to some whiskey gingers!

Here is a shout out to the two well behaved pups that entertained us all weekend.

Emma Bear & Moose

This is a recipe I used for my family thanksgiving, friend thanksgiving, and most recently for my mother’s birthday dinner.  If you are skeptical of brussels sprouts, please give this recipe a try, it has been known to convert taste buds!

Cider Braised B Sprouts
The preparation of the sprouts can be time consuming but really makes a difference in the texture of the dish.  I cut the sprout in half, then remove most of the tough core by making a triangular slit seen below.  This prep work can be done in advance, just put on some good kitchen tunes and place the prepared brussels sprout halves in a bowl of cold water until you are ready to make the dish.

Chop up to two slices of bacon (can substitute pancetta) and sautee with oil in a large pan until fat is rendered and the bacon is crispy.  Remove bacon, add brussels sprouts, salt, pepper and toss to coat in the hot oil.  Once coated add a dash of cider vinegar to deglaze any browned bacon bits.  Pour in enough apple cider to partially cover the sprouts and simmer covered for 5-10 minutes, then remove lid and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes until sprouts are tender and liquid has reduced.  Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle bacon bits on top.

Vegetarian Adaption:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Slice 1 shallot into rings and combine it with prepared brussels sprouts in a baking dish.  Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper, 2 TBS cider vinegar and 1/2 cup apple cider (add less cider if dish is narrow).  Roast for 20 minutes or until tender, make sure to stir mixture a couple of times during the roasting process.

These rammekins were perfect for the single serving pies.

I used the leftover veggies in my fridge for the filling and made my own crust using flour, salt and water. I used the stock to make a chicken, mushroom and barley soup (a similar recipe can be found here.) I also made a side salad with roasted beets, goat cheese and toasted walnuts.

Holly's beet tip: while they're still hot, toss them with a bit of apple cider vinegar.