Homemade Herbes de Provence

I've always dreamed of visiting the southeastern region of France, specifically Provence, and love the cuisine of the area.  When I cook Provencal inspired cuisine I feel like I'm getting a tiny piece of Provence in my own little kitchen.  As well, there's something so quaint and cosy to me about having a little jar of Herbes de Provence and sprinkling some on a chicken to be roasted in the oven, on a steak to be grilled or to roll a log of goat cheese in

This year I decided to dry bunches of Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary, Sage and Lavender and make my own homemade blend of Herbes de Provence.  Since I have a decent sized perennial herb garden and toward the end of summer and early fall, I end up with more herbs than I know what to do with, this was a perfect solution!  Also, it makes a wonderful gift with a really special homemade touch.

Air drying herbs is a lot more simple than people assume, all you need is some string, a few twist ties and a dry place to hang them.  I decided to hang my herbs out in my detached garage since it's a very dry, clean area without dust and out of the way.  I left my herbs out there for a few weeks to make sure they were really good and dried.  Once fully dried, remove all the leaves from the stems, combine and chop up in a food processor to make a fine ground mixture.

Herbes de Provence is really just a mixture of herbs that are readily available in the south of France. Different families and areas add different types of herbs to their own blends, but it typically contains Savory, Marjoram. Rosemary, Thyme and Oregano.  However, I don't have Savory or Marjoram in my garden so I used what I have at hand.  As well, contrary to popular opinion. Lavender is not traditionally included to the blend, but has become very common since Herbes de Provence has been commercially produced by spice wholesalers.  However, I have Lavender in my garden and while it doesn't add much in the way of additional flavour (that I notice at least), it really contributes a lovely aroma to the blend of herbs.

Here's the specifics/recipe:

Large bunches of fresh Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary, Sage and Lavender (or any combination of herbs you like or have available)
String for hanging herbs
Twist ties

Cut the fresh herbs from the plant when the weather is dry, since this will kick start the drying process (as opposed to cutting them when it's raining or dewy) and discard any brown leaves or stalks.  There's no need to wash the herbs if they're grown in your own garden, unless you use some form of chemical pesticide.  Secure the end which was closest to the roots with a twist tie.  This will allow you to easily tighten things up as the herbs dry and shrink, preventing wastage of loose herbs falling.  Loop the string around the bundle of herbs and attach to a wall or anything which you can hang the herbs from with good air circulation.  Leave to air dry for a few weeks to ensure the herbs are fully dried out.

After a few weeks when the herbs have completely dried out, remove the leaves from the stalks and combine together.  At this points you could jar the leaves just as they are or further chop them up to a fine grind in a food processor.  If you choose to process the leaves further, it's very important the leaves are completely dry, otherwise the leaves could start turning into a paste as they are chopped in the food processor.

Once processed to your liking, store in airtight spice jars or plastic food storage bags.  The dried herbs will keep for a year, maybe even longer since they're quite potent when homemade.

Bon appetit!

White Chocolate Peppermint Bark

As a part of my usual Christmas baking routine, I always make White Chocolate Peppermint Bark and send it to my best friend.  We both love the combination of peppermint and white chocolate and it's become one of my favourite parts of the Christmas season.

Since my friend lives far away in another province, I send my Christmas presents for her and her family through the mail.  Therefore, it can be difficult to find recipes that transport well - not an issue with my chocolate bark recipe.

As with most recipes that call for white chocolate, I find using better quality chocolate really makes a huge difference to the end result of the bark.  I like to use Lindt white chocolate in my baking because the quality and flavour is very good.  I find lesser quality white chocolate doesn't melt very well and tends to have a strange aftertaste that is un-pleasant on the palette.  I also do not recommend using white chocolate chips as they usually contain vegetable oil and soy lecithin to help the chips keep their shape when baked in cookies.  However, these additives cause the chocolate not to set very firm after melting which isn't ideal for chocolate bark.

The peppermint component of the bark comes in the form of peppermint candy canes.  I use regular peppermint candy canes for this recipe, but avoid the small individually wrapped brands.  I find over time, they lose crunch and become soft and sticky, which doesn't work well for this recipe.

Once the chocolate bark is made and broken apart, it stores very well in a Christmas cookie tin or any food storage container.  I love using decorative cookie tins this time of year since they look lovely and festive.  As well, when I sent my bark to my best friend, I shipped it to her in a decorative tin which works really well.

Here's the recipe:

5 Lindt white chocolate bars (broken into pieces)
Few drops of vanilla bean paste
6 standard sized peppermint candy canes

Cover a baking tray with aluminium foil and set aside.

Put the candy canes into a large Ziploc bag or food storage bag and using a rolling pin, bash the candy canes in the bag until nicely ground up - some larger bits and some powdery.  Separate the larger pieces of candy cane from the powdery stuff and set aside.

In a heat proof bowl set over a pot of gently simmering water, add all but a handful of the white chocolate setting aside the excess.  Let the chocolate sit in the bowl gently melting until almost fully melted.  Then using a rubber spatula, stir the chocolate a little to aid in fully melting.  Once the chocolate is completely melted, add the remaining white chocolate stirring to melt.  This tempers the chocolate helping to stabilise the chocolate and preventing it from seizing.  Not to mention, tempering the chocolate this way provides an ultra smooth texture to the finished bark.  Add the vanilla bean paste and the candy cane powder to the melted chocolate and stir to combine.

Pour the chocolate onto the prepared baking tray and spread out evenly with a spatula.  Sprinkle the larger pieces of candy cane evenly over the chocolate and set the baking tray in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours to set up.  Once set, break the bark into pieces and store in the container of your choice.

Merry Christmas and bon appetit!

Holiday Crispy Treats

Let me just say that while I don't consider myself a food snob, I don't normally go for the type of holiday treat that involves using sweetened condensed milk, Rice Krispies and marshmallows. However, these festive treats are so seductively delicious that I simply can't resist.

My good friend Michelle made these for me a number of years ago and I was instantly hooked.  Her recipe involved melting sweetened condensed milk and McIntosh toffee bars together to make a caramel.  Then you dip a marshmallow into the caramel and roll the whole thing in the holiday Rice Krispies.  In the years since I was first introduced to this recipe, it's become very hard to find McIntosh toffee bars, so I've adapted the recipe a little.  Instead, I caramelize brown sugar and butter together and then add a can of sweetened condensed milk.

I find these treats don't have a long shelf life (not that they need it since they get eaten up quickly) because the Rice Krispies tend to go stale if they sit out at room temperature.  Thus, I recommend making them and freezing immediately.  When you're ready to eat them, take out only what you'll need preventing wastage.  Not to mention, the treats taste extra delicious when they're nice and cold.

Here's the recipe:

1/4 cup of butter
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
Pinch of salt
Few drops of vanilla extract
Bag of large marshmallows
Holiday Rice Kripies

Preparation:
Pour about 5 cups of Rice Krispies into a medium sized mixing bowl and set aside  Cover two jelly roll tins or small baking trays with aluminium foil.  Finally, have a few toothpicks or bamboo skewers ready to go (to use for dipping the marshmallows into the caramel).

In a medium sized heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar on medium low heat. Add the can of sweetened condensed milk and stir (the mixture will most likely start to bubble up a bit, but stirring constantly will help settle things down).  Continue to stir the mixture with a wooden spoon or spatula (on medium low heat) until it's a nice golden caramel colour.  Add a pinch of salt and a few drops of vanilla and stir to incorporate.

Bring the pot of caramel over to your bowl of Rice Krispies and prepared baking sheets.  Using a tooth pick or bamboo skewer, stab a marshmallow on one end so that you can dip the whole thing into the hot caramel.  Once dipped in caramel, roll it in the Rice Krispies and then place on the baking tray, spacing the treats apart from one another.  Keep doing this with the marshmallows until you've used up all your caramel sauce. You may need to periodically heat up the caramel sauce if it starts to harden (making it difficult to dip the marshmallows).

Once you've finished dipping and rolling, place your trays in the freezer.  Once all the treats are frozen through, you can place them all together in a freezer storage bag.  Freezing them first on the trays prevents them from all clumping and sticking together.

Happy Holidays!

Butternut Squash Coconut Curry Soup

Many experienced chefs will tell you the true test of a good chef is how well they make soup. Personally I find a lot of soup recipes a little low on flavour, not great texture and kind of boring. However, this is not a problem with my Butternut Squash Coconut Curry soup.  I use a variety of herbs and spices making the soup bold in flavour, while the butternut squash adds a smooth texture.

While I wouldn't claim to be an expert on Indian cuisine, I really love experimenting with the spices and flavour profiles.  I'm not sure how traditional Butternut Squash is to Indian cooking, but as with most squash, it's mild flavour compliments many different cuisines.  The spices I've chosen are common in a lot of curry recipes and work well in this soup, but you could use any spices you like. Alternatively, you could substitute a couple tablespoons of curry powder which usually contains a lot of the same spices I've used.

I start out by sauteing the onion and garlic with all the spices, this toasts all the spices and develops a lot of flavour in a short amount of time.  Something I first learnt to do when I was in culinary school and we cooked a large Indian buffet.  However, I've since learnt this is a very traditional way to cook spices in Indian cooking.  This technique translates to other types of cuisine and dishes too, for example I toast my spices when making chili or a Bolognese sauce.

I like to puree the soup with an immersion blender which gives the finished soup a velvety smooth texture.  However, to add a little bite, I add some cooked Basmati or Jasmine rice just before serving. I wouldn't recommend adding raw rice to cook in the soup, it tends to absorb too much liquid and cause the soup to over thicken.  If you didn't want to add rice to the soup, some vegetables or lentils would work great.  Of course, the soup served on it's own is really nice too.

Here's the recipe:

1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 large garlic cloves crushed or chopped
1 teaspoon of turmeric
1 teaspoon of  oregano
1 teaspoon of cumin
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
Seeds from 2 pods of cardamom (discard the shells) or a 1/4 teaspoon of ground cardamom
Pinch of Cayenne Pepper, or to taste
1 butternut squash, peeled de-seeded and chopped
Chicken stock - enough to just submerge the squash
1 can of coconut milk
1/2 cup of cooked Jasmine or Basmati rice (optional)

Add chopped onion and garlic to a dutch oven or pot and saute on medium heat for a minute or two until starting to soften.  Add a pinch of salt and then start adding all the herbs and spices stirring often.  Let the spices cook and toast in the pan with the onions for about five minutes (continuing to stir) or until the mixture is fragrant and the onions and garlic are softened.

Add the chopped butternut squash and toss in the onion, garlic, spice mixture cooking until slightly softened.  Then add chicken stock to the pan; enough to cover the butternut squash.  Give the whole mixture a stir and then cover with a tight fitting lid and turn the heat down to low and let gently simmer away for 20 to 30 minutes or until the butternut squash is cooked through.

Using an immersion blender, puree the mixture until smooth ensuring there are no large chunks of butternut squash left.

Then stir in the whole can of coconut milk, which should be just enough additional liquid to give the soup the perfect texture.

However, if after adding the coconut milk your soup is still too thick, add some more chicken stock or water.  Taste to see if the soup needs salt or pepper and then add vegetables or lentils as desired.  If using rice, add a little bit of cooked rice to the middle of your soup bowl and then pour soup around the rice to make an attractive presentation.

Rice Recipe

1/2 cup of Jasmine or Basmati rice
1 cup of water or chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

Add rice and liquid in a small saucepan and place on medium high heat.  Bring the mixture to a simmer while stirring often.  Cover with a tight fitting lid and turn heat down to lowest setting and leave for 15 minutes until rice is cooked through.  Season with salt and pepper and stir rice with a fork to make fluffy.

Bon Appetit!

Raspberry Pecan Linzer Cookies

I love holiday baking at Christmas time and enjoy getting into the festive spirit.  Although, during the month of December it can be hard to find the time and energy to get much baking done.  However, my Raspberry Pecan Linzer cookies are worth making as they're truly delicious and look impressive on a holiday cookie platter. While they take a little effort to make and assemble (rolling out the dough and using cookie cutters to shape each cookie), I have some time saving tips to make the process easier.

If you aren't familiar with Linzer cookies, they're cookies sandwiched with jam or preserves and the cookie dough always contains nuts, usually ground almonds (I use pecans).  I like to toast the pecans before grinding them up to ensure the pecan flavour really comes through in the finished cookie.  Not to mention, they add a subtle savoury element which offsets the sweetness of the raspberry jam.

To simplify things a little, I find that making the cookie dough ahead of time and storing it in the fridge is a good idea.  Since the dough takes all of 10 minutes to make, I do this a few days before I want to actually bake the cookies, that way the dough is all ready to go and makes things seem and feel easier on the day of baking.  Additionally, once you've rolled out the dough and shaped all the cookies, you could store your cookie trays in the fridge or freezer for a day or two before baking.  At which time, all you'd need to do is pop the trays in the oven and assemble the cookies.

While I love to make and can my own jam in the summer time, using a store bought jam to sandwich between the cookies makes life a lot easier.  I recommend using raspberry jam, but blackberry, blueberry, currant, strawberry or any other flavour of jam would work just fine too.  If you want to try making your own preserves, I've included my recipe for cardamom raspberry jam below. However, I'd recommend using frozen raspberries this time of year because the imported fresh berries can be a little pricey and less flavourful.

Here's the cookie dough recipe:

1/2 cup of pecans, toasted in the oven and crushed
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
zest of 1/2 a lemon
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 cup of all purpose flour sifted
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of salt
Icing sugar to dust on the tops of each cookie
Raspberry jam for sandwiching between the cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line three baking sheets with parchment paper.  On one of the cookies sheets add the pecans and toast in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes while making the cookie dough.  Let the toasted pecans sit for a few minutes to cool before crushing.  Using a mortar and pestle, grind the pecans into a coarse meal.  Alternatively, you could grind the toasted pecans in a food processor or place the nuts in a large Ziploc bag and bash with a rolling pin until nicely ground up.  However, if you use a food processor, you may need to add a teaspoon of icing sugar to prevent the nuts from grinding up into a paste.

In a medium or large mixing bowl, add the butter, lemon zest, sugar and beat until incorporated. Then add the egg yolk and vanilla and mix again.  Sift the flour cinnamon and salt into the butter mixture and mix until the dough comes together.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or to use at a later time.

Un-wrap the cookie dough and cut in half.  On a heavily floured work surface, roll out the first half of dough to a 1/4 inch thickness.  Using a round cookie cutter, shape out each bottom of sandwich cookies and place on the baking tray (I use a thin metal spatula for transferring to the tray to prevent breaking or tearing the un-baked cookies).  Then do the same with the other half of dough, with the exception of using a smaller cookie cutter to cut out a star shape from the top cookie.  This gives the cookies a nice decorative finish and allows the jam to be visible.  All in all, I usually get about 10 finished cookies out the the dough, but as long as you have matching pairs of tops and bottoms it doesn't really matter how many cookies you end up with.  Place the cookie trays in the fridge for a hour before baking (or the freezer for 30 minutes) to ensure the cookies keep their shape while baking in the oven.

Bake in a 350 F oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.  Let the cookies cool on the tray before assembling.  Dust the cooled top cookies with some icing sugar while still on the tray.  Then smother raspberry jam on the bottom of each cookie before placing the top cookie onto it.

Cardamom Raspberry Jam recipe:

1.2 kg or 2 pounds of fresh or frozen raspberries
4 cups of granulate sugar
zest of 1 lemon
1 cup of fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons of ground cardamon
pinch of salt

Place all the ingredients in a large saucepan and let simmer away for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Once the mixture has darkened, reduced and thickened a little, decant to sterilised jam jars or freezer jam jars.  The jam can be directly stored in the fridge for about 1 month or process the jam jars in a boiling water canner if you want to store in your pantry for a later use.  However, I recommend checking out a site such as the one I've attached below for more information about safely processing and canning jam.  http://www.bernardin.ca/pages/step_by_step___your_guide_to_home_canning/32.php  

Happy Holidays & Bon appetit!

Colourful white chocolate shortbread cookies.

On my list of Christmas baking; shortbread cookies are one of my absolute favourite.  I cannot imagine Christmas without the buttery richness and slightly sandy texture shortbread offers.  When I was growing up, my mom would make lovely whipped shortbread cookies always topped with a candied red or green cherry.  I remember nibbling away at the outside of the cookie until I had nothing left but the cherry which I refused to eat!

My version of shortbread is very different - slightly denser in texture and no cherries in sight.  Instead, I like to dip each cookie in colourful sanding sugar and fill with a small square of white chocolate before baking in the oven.  Using sanding sugar in a variety of festive colours make the cookies look irresistibly beautiful and impressive.  The addition of white chocolate is pleasantly surprising and adds a nice boost of vanilla flavour without being over-powering.  I recommend buying a good quality white chocolate for this recipe, and would not advise using white chocolate chips.  I love white chocolate, but lesser quality varieties have a strange after taste that I just can't get past.  If you don't like white chocolate, you could certainly leave it out or substitute with another type of chocolate.  However, I've tried making this recipe with dark or milk chocolate and found it completely over-powered the shortbread flavour.

Here's my recipe:

1 1/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1/3 cup icing sugar
1/4 cup corn starch
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 bars of good quality white chocolate, broken or cut into squares.  I use Lindt chocolate http://www.lindt.ca/swf/eng/products/bars/white-chocolate/.

Preheat oven to 350 F and line a couple of cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium mixing bowl, add the butter and stir a bit before incorporating the icing sugar (this helps prevent the icing sugar from going everywhere when you start stirring it with the butter.  Then sift the icing sugar over the butter and mix to combine.  Sift in the corn starch, all purpose flour and mix slightly.  Then add the salt and vanilla and continue to stir until the dough comes together with no bits of flour left at the bottom of the bowl.  The dough should be pliable and have the consistency of very soft pie crust dough.

Pull off a generous tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball,  Press one square of white chocolate into the ball of cookie dough and roll again between your palms to ensure the chocolate is encapsulated in the dough.  Dip the ball into decorative sanding sugar (whatever colour(s) you like).  Place on a baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough spacing each cookie about 2 inches apart, ending up with about 2 dozen.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the cookies are slightly golden around the edges.  Let cool on the cookie sheet before moving the cookies to a tin or container.  They are quite delicate and will fall apart if handled when still warm.

Merry Christmas!

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies!

I feel quite often in life, simple pleasures are the most divine.  Chocolate chip cookies in my opinion embody such a statement perfectly.  Like so many of us, I have wonderful childhood memories of making chocolate chip cookies.  I can remember standing on a chair so I could "help" my Mom stir or pour ingredients into the bowl.  Thinking of those memories brings a smile to my face and makes me want to get in the kitchen and whip up a batch of cookies!

There's something so temptingly delicious about a well made (from scratch) chocolate chip cookie that's had me obsessed with finding the perfect recipe for years.  My mom sadly passed away a number of years ago and many of her recipes were committed to memory, leaving me to experiment trying to find the right fit.  What I'm looking for is a buttery, thin cookie that has a slight crunch on the edges and a chewy texture in the middle. I can honestly say that I've baked thousands of chocolate chip cookies over the years, this recipe is the closest I've come to my ideal cookie.

I find the ratio of butter to sugar and flour in this recipe results in the aforementioned thinness I prefer.  As well, the addition of toasted then crushed slivered almonds seems to intensify the chocolate flavour and adds a nice bit of crunch.  Sprinkling some Turbinado sugar on the top of each cookie before going in the oven adds a lovely caramel flavour and slight snap of crunch on the edges. I often use Turbinado sugar in baking for decoration or garnish because it doesn't tend to melt down as much as traditional granulated sugar does.  I've tried making these cookies without it and found the cookies came out softer, doughier and less chewy in the middle than I would like.  However, if you like a somewhat soft chocolate chip cookie, or can't find Turbinado sugar, feel free to leave it off.  I've found that most grocery stores now carry this type of sugar (sometimes labelled as "raw" sugar) but if it's not available where you live, you could use some regular white granulated sugar instead.

One thing I like to do is make the full recipe, but only bake up a quarter or half of the dough I've made. I then wrap the remaining dough in plastic cling film and store in the fridge for up to a one week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.  This way, I always have the wherewithal to whip up a delicious batch of chocolate chip cookies should the need (or craving) arise.

Here's the recipe:

4.5 ounces (about 1/2 cup) of unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup almond slivers toasted and roughly ground (I do this in a mortar and pestle)
1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips (I like a mixture of semi sweet and milk chocolate)
2 to 3 tablespoons of turbinado sugar (http://wholesomesweeteners.com/Products/product-detail/PId/5/Organic-Turbinado)

Preheat your oven to 350 F and line a couple of cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Sprinkle the almonds onto one of the prepared cookie sheets and toast in the oven until golden and fragrant (you can do this while you make the cookie dough).  Then grind up to a coarse meal in a mortar and pestle, set aside.

Combine the butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl and using a spatula mix well until completely incorporated.  Then add in the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

Mix in the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and salt then followed by the almonds and chocolate chips.

Drop tablespoons of the dough on the cookie sheets and using your fingers or the palm of your hand, flatten the dough onto the sheet.  This will help the cookies bake up nice and thin with a slightly crispy edge and a chewy texture in the middle.  If you prefer a taller cookie with a doughy texture than skip this step and leave the dough in mounds.

Sprinkle each unbaked cookie with some turbinado sugar to add a slight crunch and caramelization. Bake in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until each cookie is golden brown.

Bon Appetit!

Coq au Riesling

I recently posted a recipe for Bouef Bourguignon that I love to cook on cold winter days.  I think it's really great to have a good arsenal of cold-weather recipes to bring out this time of year. However, as most of us have a rotation of recipes we rely on, the time inevitably comes you start to tire of slow cooked, beef-heavy recipes and long for something a little brighter and quicker. My Coq au Vin recipe ticks all of these boxes for me, yet still gives the warmth and comfort I love while it cooks away on the stove filling the house with mouth watering aromas.

Most people are familiar with the traditional Coq au Vin recipe which braises chicken in wine (traditionally red).  While I like the classic version of this dish, I've given it a bit of a make-over by using white wine, mustard and finishing with cream.  My wine of choice is a nice dry Riesling which adds a wonderful depth of wine flavour without overpowering the other ingredients.  In the past, most Riesling I've come across here in Canada was often sweet and fruity making it a poor choice for savoury recipes. However, dry Riesling varietals are becoming more and more popular and readily accessible in most places.  Thus, I've started cooking a lot with this wine and find it very versatile and an overall great choice.  Of course, you could use any dry white wine you like it doesn't have to be Riesling.

I prefer to cook this recipe in a shallow braiser, dutch oven or a skillet (with a lid) as opposed to a deep dutch oven.  This way, less of the chicken skin is submerged in the liquid preventing it from becoming loose and flabby.  As well, I find using a shallow braiser helps the sauce to reduce faster lowering the cooking time.  There are lots of reasons to make this recipe, but tops for me is that it doesn't take a particularly long time to cook, while still having the flavour of a slow roasted recipe.

The finished product has a creamy luscious quality that's balanced nicely by the tang of Dijon mustard.  It pairs beautifully with the same Riesling wine it was braised in and can be served alongside some lightly buttered noodles or steamed potatoes.  Overall, I think this zhooshed up version of Cog au Vin is a great recipe to brighten up the winter recipe repertoire.

Here's the recipe:

1 whole chicken broken down into 8 pieces (or 10 pieces if the breasts are quite large and you wish to cut them in half) or any individual chicken pieces of your choice
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of butter or bacon grease
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 pound of crimini mushrooms quartered (or cut into chunks)
1 medium yellow onion finely diced
2 cloves of garlic minced
1/4 to 1/2 cup of wine for deglazing
1 sprig of fresh Rosemary
3 to 4 sprigs of fresh Thyme
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
1 to 2 cups more wine, to simmer the chicken in
1 cup of whipping cream
1 tablespoon of butter
More salt and pepper to taste for finishing
Parsley roughly chopped for garnish

Break down the chicken by using a sharp thin bladed knife, such as a boning or fillet knife.  If you do not have either of these use a regular chef's knife in conjunction with a paring knife to get into the small areas.  Cut off both legs first, slicing between the joints to separate.  Then remove the wish bone (using the paring knife if you don't have a boning or fillet knife) to make removing the breasts much easier.  Then slice each breast off the bone trying to keep as close to the bone as possible to avoid leaving a lot of breast meat attached to the body.  Then cut around the thigh and slicing between the joints to remove.  Pat all the pieces down with some paper towel and season with salt and pepper.  If you're not comfortable breaking down a whole chicken, go ahead and use any chicken pieces you like, boneless skinless chicken thighs are usually available in most grocery stores and work well.  Whatever chicken meat you use, I would still advice patting it down with paper towel before seasoning.  This will help ensure the meat browns nicely when searing it later.

In the shallow braiser or pan, heat the butter and oil (or bacon grease) until melted.  Add a few pieces of the chicken to the pan searing on all sides until browned all over.  Depending on the size of your pan, this may need to be done in two batches to avoid crowding.  Otherwise the chicken will steam instead of searing, which results in flabby chicken skin.  I want the chicken to be golden brown and the skin crispy to develop a lot of flavour in short amount of time.  Once all the chicken pieces are nicely seared and crisp, remove to a plate or bowl and set aside.

Add the chopped mushrooms to the pan and saute on medium high heat, until they are golden brown at which time add the onions, garlic, herbs, a pinch of salt and lower the heat down to medium low.  Let the mushroom and onion mixture cook until the onion and garlic has softened.  Then deglaze the pan with some of the white wine and stir to bring up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook on medium to medium low heat until the wine has reduced a little.

Then add the Dijon mustard and stir into the mixture and add the chicken back into the pan.  Pour more wine into the pan until the liquid comes halfway up the chicken pieces.

Cover with a lid, slightly ajar to release steam and let simmer on low heat for 30 to 40 minutes or until the chicken is completely cooked through and the sauce is thickened slightly.

Pour the cream into the pan, trying to avoid pouring directly over the chicken pieces (so the crispy skin doesn't soften) and continue to simmer with the lid off until the sauce is nicely thick. Add the butter to finish and add glossiness to the sauce and sprinkle with the parsley.  Serve, eat and enjoy!

Bon appetit!

Bouef Bourguignon my way.

This time of year, when the weather is cool and rainy (in my part of the world at least), I'm drawn to food that is warm and comforting.  Subsequently, recipes which fall into the category of stews, soups and braises are what I'm itching to make.  After a summer of avoiding the use of my oven (in an effort to keep my house cool), I can't wait to start using it regularly again and enjoying the gentle warmth it adds to my home.

Bouef Bourguigon is beef stew cooked in wine from the Burgundy region of France. There are many variations of this recipe, but most of the time the beef is braised in the aforementioned wine with garlic, pearl onions, herbs, and mushrooms.  It's usually served on top or alongside a starch of some sort like buttered noodles or steamed potatoes.

My version is slightly different by which I use regular cooking onion (since I couldn't find any pearl onions), carrots, celery, herbs, bacon and finally leaving out the mushrooms.  I added in carrots because I quite like the balance and slight sweetness they add and while I often add mushrooms to this recipe, I prefer this dish cooked without them.  I find in order for the mushrooms to have the right texture in the stew, I have to saute them separately and add them in at the end.  Since the mushroom flavour won't make or break the stew (for my palette), I left them out.  Also, my decision to add bacon is not very traditional, but the subtle smoky and salty quality it adds is quite pleasant. I like to serve this with lightly buttered cavatapi noodles; they're definitely not a traditional accompaniment, but my family loves them so I always have a supply on hand.  However, you could certainly choose a different pasta of your liking, or some potatoes and failing that; nothing at all, just the lovely stew.

In my opinion, this recipe can be made with any full bodied red wine that appeals to you.  It's not absolutely imperative the wine come from Burgundy or even from France for that matter.  I used a nice, full flavoured and reasonably priced red wine from the Okanagan to cook the beef in.  I wouldn't recommend using an expensive wine for this recipe, since the stew will braise for a few hours and the wines flavour will end up much less pronounced.

Recipe:

2 lbs of beef stewing meet, I used chuck
3/4 cup of all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
Few pinches of freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup of red wine (plus some more for later to top up stew)
4 strips of bacon chopped
2 carrots chopped into batons or a rough dice
2 or three ribs of celery coarsely chopped
1 medium yellow or red onion coarsely chopped
2 cloves of garlic finely grated or chopped
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
2 or three sprigs of fresh rosemary and thyme
1 cup of beef or chicken stock


Preheat your oven to 275 F, pour the flour and salt into a shallow dish and add a dash of freshly ground pepper.

Pat the beef stewing meat dry with a piece of paper towel and heat a large dutch oven or pot on medium high heat.  In batches, dredge the beef in the flour, and then saute in olive oil turning the beef as it sears to brown on all sides.  While sauteing the beef, ensure that your pot doesn't get too hot causing the bits (that stick the bottom) to burn.  Remove the seared beef to a bowl and set aside, leaving your pot on the heat.

Deglaze the pot with the cup of red wine; making sure to stir and lift up all the bits of beef left at the bottom of the pan.  Allow to gently simmer for a minute or so, letting the wine reduce slightly. Then pour the wine into the dish with the beef, set aside while you continue.

To the same pan still on medium heat, add the chopped bacon and saute until the fat is rendered and the bacon is browned.  Remove the bacon to a paper towel to drain and set aside (leaving any bacon fat in the pan).  Add the carrots, celery, onion and garlic to the pan and saute in the bacon fat until softened.  Add the tomato paste to the vegetables stirring until the paste has combined and spread around in the vegetable mixture.  Then add the beef and bacon back into the pot; add in the herbs and top up with beef stock as well as some more wine.

Put a lid on the dutch oven or pot, leaving it a little ajar to let steam out.  Place the pot in the oven and check on the stew every 45 minutes or so to ensure the sauce isn't over-reducing (if it is, turn down the oven by 25 degrees).  Leave the stew to braise for 3 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender and the sauce is nicely thickened and glossy. Serve and enjoy!

Bon appetit!

    

Chicken therapy

Roasting a chicken has got to be one of my favourite kitchen tasks.  The entire process is so wonderfully comforting with a final product that's exquisitely flavourful, succulent, and juicy. Despite this, a lot of people are a little intimidated by the idea of roasting a chicken (or any meat for that matter), yet it's blissfully simple and easy to do.  I find recipes that take a long time to cook are often confused with being complicated or difficult to make.  However, the oven does the majority of the work - all that is required of the cook is to prepare it for going into the oven.  In fact, I would go as far as to say that making a stir fry (with all the chopping and sauteing) is more work than roasting a chicken.

I think most of the intimidation factor of making roast chicken lies in knowing when the chicken is fully cooked.  The stress of serving under-cooked chicken is enough to stop some people from attempting it in the first place.  However, I've got some really helpful and easy tips (below) that simplify the entire process. 

Roast Chicken Recipe:

1 whole raw chicken, patted dry with paper towel

A few sprigs of thyme, rosemary and sage (leaves stripped from the stalks)

3 cloves of garlic

juice and zest of 1 lemon

1/4 cup of olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place the chicken in a roasting pan or a large cast iron skillet (any oven proof dish big enough to fit the entire chicken will do).

In a mortar and pestle, grind the herbs, 1 clove or garlic, lemon juice and zest, salt and pepper - until nicely ground up.  Then slowly add the olive oil to the mortar while continuing to grind everything up with the pestle.  Then pour this mixture onto the chicken and massage into the skin, coating the breasts, legs and wings as evenly as possible.  Take the remaining garlic cloves, lemon and any left over herbs and stuff them in the chicken's cavity.  Sprinkle some freshly ground black pepper over the chicken and place in the oven to roast for approximately two hours.

The cooking time for a chicken to roast isn't an exact science in my opinion.  There are so many factors that come into play such as the size of your chicken and the fact that every oven cooks a little differently - it's really hard to state an exact cooking time.  I prefer to rely on checking the chicken for doneness as opposed to cooking it for a specified amount of time.

Probing the chicken with a meat thermometer is a very common method to check if the chicken is cooked through.  However, I feel this ends up adding more confusion and makes the whole process un-necessarily complicated.  In my experience, the thermometer has to be inserted in just the right location or you can end up with an incorrect reading.  Not to mention, I've found in order to get an accurate reading, I have to insert the thermometer into a few different areas of the chicken. Alternatively, I have a few tried and true methods to test a chicken for doneness, none of which require a meat thermometer and all of which are easy.  

-The first thing I do is press down on the breasts to feel if the meat is firm or squishy.  If the meat feels firm, that's an indication the chicken is most likely done.  

-The second thing I do is to move or wiggle the legs a bit; if there's little resistance and they move quite easily the chicken is cooked through.  

-The third thing I do is take two forks (or two meat forks if you have them) and lift the whole chicken up off the roasting pan and let the juices drip from the chicken.  If the juices are very pinkish or red, the chicken is not yet done. However, if the juices are clear or golden hued and not showing any traces of redness, the chicken is done.  

-Lastly, you could also take a knife and pierce the skin between the leg and the thigh and look to see if the juices are still pink or red.  However, lifting the chicken up and letting the juices run out is effectively the same thing without having to break the skin.

Now the chicken is ready to be cut up and happily eaten.  When I carve the chicken, I remove both legs first and then cut off the breasts (either whole or bit by bit - whatever you prefer).  I love having left over's to be enjoyed in a sandwich with dijon mustard, some gruyere cheese, lettuce and tomato - absolute heaven...

Bon appetit!

Small New York Style Cheesecake

Classic New York style cheesecake may not be the most original or trendy of recipe ideas. However, I really like having a top notch version of this classic dish in my arsenal.  Not to mention, you never know when it'll come in handy to have a simple yet incredible dessert recipe to rely on.

I find baking a cheesecake to be relatively straight forward and easy work yet the result is such a beautifully creamy, tangy and elegant dessert.  I usually use a 9 inch spring form pan (which tends to be the standard size for most cheesecake recipes I've come across) but find that to be a little big. Since it's such a rich and decadent dish, most people can only eat a small piece usually leaving a lot of leftovers.  Therefore, I decided to invest in a smaller sized spring form pan and come up with a recipe to fit into it.

I've chosen to make my version with a graham cracker crust that goes all the way up the sides of the pan. If you were to ask a New Yorker, they'd most definitely tell you that graham cracker crust is inauthentic.  However, I crave the bit of crunch and buttery flavour it adds and find a cheesecake without a crust to be slightly cloying and overly rich for my liking.

Here's the recipe:

Preparation:
-Grease a 7.75 inch spring form pan with butter, then line the bottom with parchment paper and smear more butter over top of the parchment.
-Wrap aluminum foil around the outside of the spring form pan (this will protect the pan from water leaking while baking in the water bath later).  You may need to use a few layers of foil to ensure that you have a fully water proof seal.
-Make sure to have an oven proof roasting dish or pot big enough to fit the spring form pan into with plenty of free space surrounding it for the bain marie (water bath) later.
-Put a kettle of water on to boil while making the cheesecake so that it's ready to go when needed for the water bath.

Crust:
1 1/2 cups Graham Cracker crumbs
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup of toasted almond slivers crushed in a mortar and pestle
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter melted

Add the almond slivers to a large skillet and toast on medium heat.  Then transfer to a mortar and pestle and crush the nuts to a coarse textured crumble.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, cinnamon, kosher salt and almonds.  Then add the melted butter to the mixture and combine.  Tumble the graham cracker mixture into the prepared spring form pan and flatten it on the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Then bake in 350 F oven for 8 to 10 minutes or slightly golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool while you make the filling.

Filling:
2 bricks of cream cheese at room temperature
3/4's cup of white sugar
3 eggs at room temperature
zest of half a lemon
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of sour cream at room temperature
1 tablespoon of Birds Custard Powder (available in most Canadian grocery stores of online)

Add the cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a large mixing bowl and a handheld mixer).  Mix on low to medium speed for a minute or two to break up the cream cheese before adding sugar.  Once the cream cheese is smooth, add the sugar and continue to mix until incorporated.  Add the eggs one at a time, still mixing on low to medium speed until incorporated.  Add the lemon zest, vanilla extract, custard powder and then finally the sour cream mixing until combined and smooth.  Remove the bowl from the mixer and, using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides and bottom of bowl (to incorporate any bits the mixer may have missed) making sure most lumps are gone. Pour the filling into the prepared spring form pan and then place in the oven proof roasting dish, or pot (whatever you've chosen to use).  Bring the whole thing over to your oven and place on the open oven door.  Carefully, pour water (from the recently boiled kettle mentioned in the preparation section) into the roasting pan so that it comes halfway up the aluminum foil wrapped pan.

Bake in a 350 F oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until the centre of the cheesecake is slightly wobbly. Turn the oven off and leave the cheesecake inside for another 15 to 20 minutes - by which time the centre of the cheesecake should be solid.  The reason I recommend leaving it in the oven, is because cheesecake tends to crack if there are any sudden temperature changes.  Then take the cheesecake out of the oven and gently remove the spring form pan from the aluminum foil and let sit out until room temperature.  Remove the outer part of the spring form pan and put the the room temperature cheesecake in the fridge to chill overnight or at least 4 hours.

The enjoy...

To make a classic berry compote to go with this cheesecake:

Add 1 cup of blueberries and 1/2 cup of raspberries to a small saucepan.  Then add 1/2 cup of white granulate sugar, a bit of lemon zest and a 2 tablespoons of water.  Bring to a simmer and let bubble away until thick and glossy.  Pour the compote into a heat proof container or bowl and chill in the fridge until cold.  Serve on top or alongside the cheesecake.

Pumpkin Pie please!

This past weekend my family and I celebrated Thanksgiving here in Canada.  We had a wonderful turkey dinner complete with all the trimmings; including pumpkin pie.  It seems to me that pumpkin pie is one of those polarising desserts which people either love or completely hate.  I happen to fall into the love category and feel it's non-negotiable to have a pumpkin pie on my Thanksgiving table.

I've tried a lot of different recipes for pie filling and pastry over the years; trying to replicate the flavour of the best pumpkin pie I've had in the past.  I want my recipe to have the perfect balance of spices, strong pumpkin flavour, creamy with a velvety texture; all tied together with a rich, tender and flaky pastry.  For me, the perfect balance comes from a custard style pumpkin filling and a pate brisée (pie dough) recipe by Michel Roux from his book "Pastry" that simply cannot be beat.

I usually do a classic crimped edge on my most of my pie crusts by using my fingers to press together little bits of the dough, all around the edge.  However, this year I decided to make a slightly more elaborate edge to my pastry by layering round cut outs of pastry around the edge and sprinkling with turbinado sugar.  It's very simple and easy to do, but gives the pie a very elegant appearance.

Here's the recipe for the pastry and pumpkin filling:
(I recommend making the pastry first, while it's resting in the refrigerator, start on the pie filling.)

Pate Brisée:

1 1/4 cups of all purpose flour
2/3 cup (150 grams or 5 ounces) of unsalted butter cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon of salt
Pinch of sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon of cold milk

Heap the flour on a counter and make a well.  Put the butter, salt, sugar and egg into the well and using your fingers mix and cream these ingredients together.  Add the milk and continue to mix until a cohesive dough starts to form.  Then kneed the dough until it forms into smooth ball, then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface to about a 1/4 of an inch thickness.  Then place in pie plate.

Trim excess dough from the edges (and reserve), then either crimp the edge with your fingers, or cut out small rounds from the excess dough to line the edge.  If you decide to cut out rounds of dough, I recommend re-rolling out the excess dough very thinly.  This way you should have enough dough to make rounds of pastry to line the entire edge.  Also, you could double the pate brisée recipe to ensure you have enough excess dough for the decoration and freeze any extra pastry for another use.  As well, I find it works really well to use the non-tip end of a large metal piping tip, for cutting out the dough rounds.

Then using a pastry brush, dab some water or egg wash around the edge of the pie crust and line the edge with the pie dough rounds, overlapping each round slightly.

Dab more water or egg wash on the finished edge and sprinkle with some turbinado sugar.  Dock the bottom of the pastry with the tines of a fork and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes before filling (this ensures the pastry holds it's shape and doesn't shrink while baking).

Pumpkin Filling:

1 1/4 cups of pumpkin puree (either from a can by baking pie pumpkins and pureeing)
3/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (or 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg)
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon Chinese five spice
Freshly ground pepper (a few grinds from a pepper mill)
Pinch of salt
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups of whipping cream
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, maple syrup, the spices, pepper and salt.  Then add the eggs, whipping cream and vanilla whisking until well combined and the mixture is smooth.

Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust and bake for 40 to 60 minutes (depending on your oven) or until the crust is golden brown and the centre of the filling has a slight wobble when the pie plate is jiggled.  Cool the entire pie to room temperature and store in the fridge until ready to serve.  I recommend whipping some cream, adding some powdered sugar and vanilla to it and putting a dollop of this on each serving of pie.  If you want to gild the lily, a little sprinkle of cinnamon on each piece of pie is beautiful and tastes lovely.