what i eat.

turkey chili sweet potato shepard's pie.

Okay.  So I heart-with-a-slash-thru-it Halloween.  I really don't like it.  Pretty much hate costume parties.  Try to avoid them actually.  And when it comes to Halloween-themed food, I hate all that stuff even more.  You know what I mean, right?  You can't turn on the Food Network or the morning news right now without watching someone try to turn meatballs into googly eyes, or hot dogs into bloody fingers.  Please explain to me what part of you wants to eat something that resembles blood or an eyeball?  C'mon, some of you might say, have a sense of humor.  Okay, okay, I'm open to that feedback.  I'll think about it.  But in the mean time, here's my nod to Halloween.  A version of shepard's pie that's um, orange.  See.  I do know how to have fun.

I think I caught the tail end of a Rachel Ray (more on my feelings about her later) show where she made a version of this and I thought it sounded interesting.  It's basically your best turkey chili recipe with some smashed sweet potatoes on top with a little cheddar cheese.  Here are some loose guidelines but feel free to tweak this however you see fit.  It was over-the-top satisfying.

Turkey Chili-Sweet Potato Shepard's Pie
--serves 4

Chili:
1 lb. ground turkey
1 good sized onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup beef or chicken stock (I used chicken, worked great)
1 big can chili beans
1 small can diced tomatoes, drained
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Potatoes:
3 good sized orange fleshed sweet potatoes
1/4 cup sour cream (I used plain Greek yogurt, worked great)
pat of butter
some orange zest if you have an orange hanging around--I skipped it.
cheddar cheese
salt and pepper

Heat oven to 400.  Bake sweet potatoes until done, 40-60 min. Meanwhile, brown the meat and then add the chopped onion.  Cook until onion is translucent, a few minutes.  Add the garlic, cook for about a minute.  Add the stock and scrape up any brown bits.  Add the tomato paste, beans, tomatoes, and spices.  Simmer for 10-20 minutes.

When the potatoes are done and cooled, scoop all the pulp into a bowl and mix in the sour cream, zest, butter, salt and pepper.  Pour the chili into a casserole and top with sweet potato mixture.  Top with cheese and stick into the oven until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.

 

lunch is the new breakfast.

I was inspired lately, while in the beautiful city of San Francisco, to eat what I truly love.  All day long.  No more scrambled eggs in the morning (gag) because they are high in protein and they'll get you through to lunch, blah, blah, blah.  Instead I've been nibbling on a hunk of bread and some good cheese. 

I've been choking down breakfast foods with my coffee most mornings for years and I'm not sure why.

We had this salad at the Ferry Building at a place that bases their menu on what the local farms have to offer.  The food was de.lish.ous. And simple, which is so freaking satisfying it made me want to hug our waiter.  There are 3 ingredients in this salad plus a vinaigrette that takes 2 seconds to throw together.  I've been eating it for breakfast since I've been home.

Ferry Building Salad, SF

couple handfuls arugula
half of a nectarine, sliced
handful of roasted almonds, roughly chopped
light drizzle of vinaigrette (recipe follows)

vinaigrette:
couple glugs good olive oil
few splashes white wine vinegar
squeeze of a fresh lemon
sprinkle of salt

no joke.

A blind professor, a lactation specialist and a computer department manager all get on a bus.

 

Sounds like the beginning of a joke, right?  Well, it's not.  My husband, the computer guy--not the lactation specialist--often rides the bus to work and has made a few friends who have the same commute.  I'm told they talk about lots of things.  Global warming, the Middle East, homeschooling, ya know, that type of stuff.  Oh, and cinnamon roll recipes.

 

This peaked my interest.  When my husband came home one day talking about cinnamon rolls, and how the lactation specialist never proofs her dough in the oven and the blind professor sometimes mixes whole wheat flour in with regular flour, I listened.  I think I even nodded alittle.  Really, though, I was nervous.  My experience of baking with yeast has been super hit and miss, especially when it comes to the cinnamon roll-sticky bun family. A few months ago I thought I would surprise my husband with a homemade batch, but failed majorly.  Twice.  In.One.Day.

So yesterday, when he said, "Come on, we'll make them together, I'll be your sous chef, " I got all caught up in the moment and said yes.  A cooking project on a Sunday does happen to be my FAVORITE thing to do so I couldn't resist.

 

We decided to ditch most of the bus-friends' advice and laid our fears at the feet of my Baking Illustrated cookbook following it's cinnamon roll recipe to a T.  We even let 'em rise in a sunny corner of the living room, peeking every so often like the pan was a sleeping newborn.  We were very proud.  Overall it was an excellent day--and one that I'm sure was discussed on the bus this morning on the way into town.

Glazed Cinnamon Rolls
from Baking Illustrated
--makes 12.

Dough:
1/2 cup milk
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup warm water (about 110 degrees)
1 envelope (about 2 1/4 teaspoons) instant yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg plus 2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4-4 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting work surface

Icing:
8 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons corn syrup
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch salt

Filling:
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt

For the dough:
Heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan or in the microwave until the butter melts.  remove from heat and set aside until the mixture is lukewarm (about 100 degrees).  In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle, mix together the water, yeast, sugar, egg, and yolks at low speed until well mixed.  Add the salt, warm milk mixture, and 2 cups of the flour and mix at medium speed (adding more flour as needed) until the dough is smooth and freely clears the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.  Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface.  Shape the dough into a round, place it in a very lightly oiled large bowl, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Leave in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

For the icing:
While the dough rises, combine all the icing ingredients in the bowl of the a standing mixer and blend together at low speed until roughly combined, about 1 minute.  Increase speed to high and mix until the icing is uniformly smooth and free of cream cheese lumps, about 2 minutes.  Transfer the icing to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate.

To roll and fill the dough:
After the dough has doubled, press it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface.  Using a rolling pin, shape the dough into a 16 X 12 inch rectangle, with a long side facing you.  Mix together the filling ingredients in a small bowl and sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border at the far edge.  Roll the dough, beginning with the long edge closest to you and using both hands to pinch the dough with your fingertips as you roll.  Lightly dust the roll with flour and press the ends to make a uniform 16-inch cylinder.  Grease a 13 X 9 inch baking dish.  Cut the roll into 12 equal pieces using dental floss and place the rolls, cut-side up in prepared baking dish.  cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

To bake the rolls:
When the rolls are almost fully risen, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350.  Bake the rolls until golden brown 25-30 minutes.  Invert the rolls onto a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes.  Turn the rolls upright on a large serving plate and use a rubber spatula to spread the icing on them.  Serve right away.

 

lemon-vodka cream pops.

It's been hot here so I made these.

 

lemon-vodka cream pops (from Fine Cooking magazine) :
yields 8 pops

3 or 4 lemons
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/2 granulated sugar
1/8 t. salt
2 Tbs. citron vodka (You can skip this but I'm not sure why you would.)

Using a vegetable peeler, remove all the zest from 3 of the lemons in 3-to-4-inch-long strips.  Set lemons aside.  Combine the lemon zest, cream, milk, sugar and salt in a saucepan.  Bring to simmer for 5 min until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Let steep, stirring occasionally, for 20 min.

Squeeze 2/3 cup juice from reserved lemons.  Stirring constantly, pour lemon juice into cream mixture in a slow stream.  Stir in vodka.  Strain mixture to remove solids and then divide among 3 oz. pop molds (I used tiny glasses.)  Freeze until barely set, 5 to 6 hours.  Insert sticks and freeze until completely set, about 2 hours more.

I just lost a decent chunk of time in blog-ville--you know when you click from one blog to another to another until your about 62 clicks in looking at someone's life who lives in a different country.  This just happened to me which doesn't sound all that bad i realize, except that at LEAST the last 5 blogs I looked at all had these unbelievably torturous pictures of what appeared to be the most perfect summer experiences imaginable.  Let me give you a "for example."  The last photo I looked at was of a perfectly lit beach-day, I think the sun was setting.  There were several little kids off playing in the distance and a stylish woman wearing a stylish beach outfit sitting on a beautiful homemade quilt, next to her sleeping baby while she knit something gorgeous.  On the blanket next to her (and her sleeping baby) was the most amazing well-thought-out-sand-free lunch/dinner in cute little jars and bundles.  Not kidding, nothing was sandy.  I panicked for a minute but then I shook it off.

It's okay though because over here at What I Eat we've had a great time of our own this summer.  Just a really great time.  Here's what we've been up to:  walks almost daily on the beach, homemade hamburger buns, potty training, Sea World, camping, 4th of July fireworks from our front porch, grapefruit martini-buzzes, a new beach town, swim lessons, a kick-ass garden that has exploded with the most satisfying stuff, farmer's markets whenever possible,a ton of wine tasting, anniversary planning, the local candy store, family visits, tons of cousins, West Wing season 7, So You Think You Can Dance and Top Chef Masters.  And lots of sand in our ears. And sometimes our teeth.

 

It goes without saying that there was a lot of food eaten over here this summer too.  So keep checking back for some of my favorite recipes because I still have a lot to tell you.

Can you believe that bowl of lettuce?

nectarine & avocado salsa.

It's totally my fault.  I've been blogging for how many months now and I haven't let you in on my fruit salsa obsession?  Geesh, how rude of me.  And while this is really old news-- because unless you've been living under some huge rock you've all had some kind of mango salsa over the last few years at every other restaurant you've gone to--I really, really, really want you to try it with some other fruit and then I really, really want you to put it on EVERYTHING.

 

My current fave is when it's paired with a pork tenderloin straight from the BBQ, but then there's also the on top of the poached salmon route, or the chicken, enchilada, or skirt steak topper.  There's also the plain with a good tortilla chip while you're watching TV with nowhere to be fantasy, as well as the fish taco relish that I also can't get enough of.  See what I mean?

Here's some more good news: there are lots of different fruit options that work here.  Nectarines, peaches, white peaches, cantaloupe--hec, I've even done mandarin oranges.  Get creative.  Did I mention you could put this salsa on any kind of taco and your life will be changed forever?

summer salsa:
2 ripe nectarines, cut into cubes
1 ripe avocado, cut into cubes
3 green onions, chopped
handful of chopped cilantro (the more the better in my opinion)
salt and pepper
fresh juice from 1 lime or lemon

mix everything in a bowl and let sit for a few minutes.  If you want some heat add one chopped fresh jalapeno pepper.

meatballs in the middle of summer.

I know, I know it's the middle of summer and here I am eating a huge, hot bowl of spaghetti and meatballs.  But sometimes it's just the right thing to do.  Especially when you have the Barefoot Contessa on your team.  I use all turkey instead of the 62 kinds of meat she uses and I still come away with a super juicy, tasty meatball.  Cause who wants to eat a dried-out chunk of meat in their spaghetti?

 

Barefoot Contessa's Meatballs w. Spaghetti, tweaked:

for the meatballs:
1 lb. ground turkey
1/2 cup fresh white bread crumbs (2 slices, crusts removed)
1 Tbl. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1 teas. salt
1/2 teas. pepper
1 large egg, beaten

for the sauce:
olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 teas. minced garlic
1/2 c. good red wine
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped
1 Tbl. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teas. salt
1/2 teas. pepper
olive oil

Place ground turkey, breadcrumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, egg and a 1/4 c. warm water in a bowl.  Combine very lightly with a fork and then form mixture into even sized 2-inch balls.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Carefully in batches brown meatballs in oil on all sides over medium heat.  Don't crowd the meatballs.  Remove the meatballs onto a plate lined with a paper towel.  Discard the oil but don't clean the pan.

For the sauce, in the same pan heat more olive oil.  Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 min.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 more min.  Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits from the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 min.  Stir in tomatoes, parsley, salt and pepper.

Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 min, until the meatballs are cooked through.  Serve hot on cooked spaghetti with grated Parmesan cheese.

nervous buns.

Although I would definitely consider myself an extremely nervous bread maker--or, more specifically, a nervous maker of anything with yeast in it--I was inspired once again over here, and burger night was fast approaching, so I went for it.

 

I'm so glad I did!  And yes, there are hours involved because it's homemade bread and the stuff has to rise.  But it's so easy peasy people, and so worth it.  It will be hard for me to buy these in the store from here on out because really, what are in those super market buns that make them last so long?  I don't even want to know.  It's pretty inconvenient (and kinda trendy, huh?) to be anti-super market but the more I think about it, the less food-like all that food in there is because of how far it has to travel and how long it has to sit and wait to be bought.  Kinda gross. I know that's old news, but I'm still thinking about it.

Anyway, back to these beautiful buns.  Please try them.  We ate them warm out of the oven with our burgers and I was close to weeping.  I'm probably not going to start grinding my own flour or anything, don't worry.  But I will make these again and my yeast confidence went up a notch too.

Brioche Buns:
Makes 8 4 to 5-inch burger buns

3 tablespoons warm milk
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups bread flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Sesame seeds (optional)

1. In a glass measuring cup, combine one cup warm water, the milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about five minutes. Meanwhile, beat one egg.

2. In a large bowl, whisk flours with salt. Add butter and rub into flour between your fingers, making crumbs. Using a dough scraper, stir in yeast mixture and beaten egg until a dough forms. Scrape dough onto clean, well-floured counter and knead, scooping dough up, slapping it on counter and turning it, until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. The dough will be on the sticky side so it can be a bit messy, but keep in mind that the more flour you knead in, the tougher the buns will get. Try to leave them tackier than you would a round loaf.

3. Shape dough into a ball and return it to bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, one to two hours.

4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using dough scraper (or a big sharp knife,) divide dough into 8 equal parts. Gently roll each into a ball and arrange two to three inches apart on baking sheet. Cover loosely with a piece of plastic wrap lightly coated in nonstick spray and let buns rise in a warm place for one to two hours.

5. Set a large shallow pan of water on oven floor. Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in center. Beat remaining egg with one tablespoon water and brush some on top of buns. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using. Bake, turning sheet halfway through baking, until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

fajitas, as promised.

I'm sure by now you're all hamburger-potato salad-corn on the cobbed-out.  I know I am so it's time to switch gears.  This recipe wins the "oh my gosh I didn't in a million years expect this chicken to taste THIS good" award.  Seriously, I was shocked.  And, the ingredient list here is super short--you might even have everything you need in your kitchen right now.  Go check.

 

I highly recommend the easy guac (recipe below) with these as well as a tiny bit of shredded cheddar cheese and a flour tortilla.  Don't skip the secret sauce!  You'll be so sad.  These fajitas go from a C- to an A+ with that sauce.

Chicken Fajitas w. Mojo de ajo
--Martha Stewart

For the Mojo de ajo:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic (4 to 6 cloves)
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)
1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

For the fajitas:
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 large white onion, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices (I think I used a whole onion and it was great)
1 large green bell pepper (i suggest any color here--the two times I've made these I used red once and orange once. Both tasted great so use your favorite or whatevers in your fridge)
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced into strips
8 small flour tortillas

For the guacamole:
makes 1 cup
2 firm, ripe avocados
1/2 lime
1/2 teaspoon salt

Here's what you do:
Make the mojo de ajo: Cook oil and garlic in small saucepan over low heat until garlic is soft and fragrant, about 8 min.  Remove from heat, and stir in lime juice, red-pepper flakes and salt.

Make fajitas: Heat a large skillet (preferably cast-iron) over high heat.  Add oil and gently swirl to coat.  Add onion and pepper, and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt.  Cook, stirring frequently, until onion is browned and pepper has softened and skin is blistered in spots, about 5 min.  Add chicken and i teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until chicken is browned and cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes.  Add mojo de ajo, and stir to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately with warmed tortillas, guacamole, and cheddar cheese.

roasted garlic & grilled lemon chicken.

I don't know where to start.  There has been a lot of really great food over here lately.  Like fajitas so good you'll want to wear a shirt after that says "Fajitas changed my life."  Or something like that.  I'm serious, look for the fajita post later this week--it's coming.  But for now I'm here to tell you the shirt I've been wearing in my mind lately says "I HATE CHICKEN."  Or, "I HATE ORGANIC CHICKEN."  Just to make people mad b/c misery loves company I suppose.

I had been miserably bored with chicken for quite some time (except when it's in my favorite salad, but that doesn't count for some reason.)  The thought of BBQing some sad piece of chicken only then to have to come up with some chicken-redeeming sauce or marinade to make it worth my while seemed exhausting.  I found myself in a chicken rut.  A slump.  The chicken was not doing it's part in this relationship and it started to feel unacceptable. 

 

Just when I was about to break-up with the bird a few really, really good recipes landed in my lap.  Now it's chicken all the time over here.  There was this that you already know about, and of course this.  And this lemon chicken I found in one of my Tyler books that's so good it will make you want to date chicken again too.  Once the chicken is gone you'll seriously start grabbing things in close proximity to soak up the extra sauce on your plate.

Stay tuned cause like I said, there's more chicken on the way.  There's those fajitas I mentioned, an Almond crusted chicken that makes my mouth water, and this other reeeeeally good chicken and sweet potato thing that I'll have to explain more later.  For now start with this, and, by the way, I don't really hate organic chicken--it's really the only kind of chicken we eat around here:

• 2 heads garlic, cut in 1/2 horizontally
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 whole fresh thyme sprigs, plus leaves from 6 sprigs
• 2 lemons, juiced, plus 2 lemons, halved
• About 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, leaves chopped (I didn't have this so I skipped it.)
• 1 (4 to 4 1/2-pound) organic chicken, cut into 10 pieces (I used about a pound and a half of boneless skinless breasts and it worked great.)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 heads radicchio, preferably Treviso, cut into quarters (didn't have this but wished I did.  Will totally do this next time.)
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cut a piece of aluminum foil about 12 inches long.

Put the garlic on 1/2 of the foil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, drizzle in some olive oil, and add 2 sprigs of thyme. Fold the foil enclosing the garlic, making a pouch, and add a couple teaspoons of water. Fold the foil over the garlic to enclose and fold in the edges 2 or 3 times to seal. Put the package in the oven and roast for 30 minutes, or longer, until the garlic is soft. Open the package and let the garlic cool a bit, then squeeze out the cloves into a food processor or blender. Add 1/2 cup olive oil, the lemon juice, parsley, and thyme leaves and puree to make a thick vinaigrette.

Preheat an outdoor gas or charcoal grill to medium heat.

Rinse the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Put the pieces in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil; toss to coat with the seasonings and then refrigerate while you get everything else together.

Put the radicchio in another bowl, drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss; set aside.

When you're ready to cook, take a few paper towels and fold them several times to make a thick square. Blot a small amount of oil on the paper towel and carefully and quickly wipe the hot grates of the grill to make a nonstick surface.

Season with salt and pepper and place the radicchio quarters on the preheated grill. Cook the radicchio for about 2 minutes per side until it has a nice char; pull it off the grill, place into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to steam and finish cooking.

Then put the chicken on the grill, skin side down, and grill. Grill the chicken for about 20 minutes, turning once, then baste with about half of the vinaigrette and keep cooking until an instant-read thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the thigh reads 160 degrees F and the chicken is nice and caramelized all over, 15 to 20 more minutes. During the last few minutes, throw the lemon halves on the grill, cut sides down, and cook until just marked and smoky.

To serve, separate the radicchio into individual leaves in a big bowl. Add the chicken and the rest of the dressing and toss well. Serve with grilled lemon halves, squeeze the lemon over the chicken, and top with reserved dressing.