Roast Chicken

I am not a frequent poultry cooker, but chickens were on sale at the Wedge last weekend and I couldn't pass up the deal! Several years ago I spent many an evening watching "America's Test Kitchen" videos from the library, where they very persuasively urge that chickens be brined before cooking. This recipe comes from them, and I have to say, it is DELICIOUS. seriously.

One 3.5-4 lb chicken:

Brine = 1/2 c. salt in 1/2 gallon water. They suggest also adding 1/2 c. sugar, but I left that out. I would maybe try some apple cider in place of sugar and part of the water though.

Put chicken in brine for one hour, then pat dry. I brined mine for 2-3 hours, then took it out to dry on a tray in the fridge overnight.

Mix up compound butter (by hand in a bowl):
3-4 T butter (room temp)
1 clove garlic, mashed
1 T dijon mustard
1 t minced fresh thyme
ground black pepper

Cut out backbone so that chicken can be butterflied for cooking. I had no idea how to do this, but this very helpful Youtube video made it appear super easy. My only problem was getting the breastbone out - I got it, but only after breaking it in the middle and using a knife a bit.

With your fingers, loosen skin across breast and as far down drumsticks as you can, do not tear skin. Spoon butter under skin and work across as much of the chicken as possible. (This was easy, you can move it around under the skin and sort of see it. weird!) Rub 1.5 T olive oil over chicken.

The chicken cooks on top of potatoes (or sweet potatoes and onions in my case):
2.5 pounds roasting potatoes, russets or Yukon Golds
3/4 ts salt
ground black pepper
1 Tb olive oil

Slice potatoes 1/8" to 1/4" inch thickness. Salt and pepper lightly, toss with 1 Tb oil. Line bottom of grilling pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Spread potato slices across pan evenly.

Place grilling rack over potatoes. Arrange butterflied chicken on top, folding drumsticks inward so they cover part of the breast. (I did not get how to do this - so just left it as it was.) Roast at 500 degrees for 20 minutes, turn pan around, roast for another 20 minutes or until internal temperature in breast is 160. *Be sure to put your chicken towards the top of the oven. I had it lower, and it seemed to not get brown enough. I also didn't fully allow the oven to preheat before putting the chicken in, and would wait next time for the full high heat.

Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Cut chicken up and serve with potatoes, and make sure to spoon any delicious buttery broth over the top too.

Pizza (GF)

I happened upon this recipe for a gluten/grain free pizza crust in a book called "Breaking the Vicious Cycle: Intestinal Health Through Diet." I was curious about the book because I have a friend who was recently diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, and this diet is one of the lesser known "cures" of sorts. There are lots of recipes involving almond flour or nut flours, which I was excited about.

So - pizza! This crust was delicious and did not get soggy - I could eat a slice by holding it in my hand, which in my experience is near impossible for gluten-free crusts. And it stayed crispy/solid in leftover form too. woah!
It's also super simple - just a few minutes, and fast baking time. Be aware it is more filling because of the almond flour.

Makes one small/individual pizza
1/2 c. almond flour (add more as needed for a workable dough)
1 egg
1 t. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 t. salt
Italian spices such as oregano and basil to taste

In a bowl mix the above ingredients together and add more flour as needed to form a ball (I needed to add about another 1/4 cup of flour). Oil a pan with olive oil. Add the dough ball pressing down with hands to form the shape of a small pizza crust. The mixture will be pretty wet, and I pressed mine out to get an 8-10" pizza, which resulted in 1/4" crust or so. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and put the crust in the oven while preheating. After 5-10 minutes, the crust should be crisp and ready for toppings. Put your toppings on, and then bake another 10 minutes.

This one was bacon, sweet potato, and carmelized onions. So good!

Pumpkin pie (GF)

I've been eating a little more paleo-like these days, sort of as an experiment in sugar-free, grain-free, low lactose eating. I am not strict about it, but so far it feels really good. Also, it seems that more folks around me are eating this way - or some variation, which makes blog posting about it a little more fun.

So - I brought pumpkin pie to my family feast, making no promises that it would taste good (just in case). Pumpkin pie is just so quintessential. I mean, I have yet to have a vegan version that actually tastes good, and I was worried this could go down the same (dairy-free) route. But, no! This filling actually tops my list of pumpkin pies: honey = delish. It was thicker than other recipes, which I loved. The more non-traditional aspect of the pie was the crust: it was a nut crust (no flour), which was more like a cheesecake graham cracker crust consistency. The nuttiness was really good - and though not the flaky (glutinous) crust of pumpkin pie norms, it was super tasty.

I got the recipe from the website linked above. I used my own pumpkin (it was actually butternut squash, which I roasted for an hour, then cooled and pureed). I liked the fresh ginger a lot, and would maybe use a little more next time. I am also curious how this would turn out with a mix of almonds and pecans...

Crust:
* 1 cup pecans;
* 1/2 cup hazelnuts;
* 4 tbsp butter, ghee or coconut oil (room temperature);
* A pinch of sea salt;

Filling:
* 1 can fresh or canned pumpkin puree (about 1 3/4 cups);
* 2 eggs;
* 1/2 cup local raw honey;
* 1/2 cup coconut milk;
* 2 tsp cinnamon;
* 1/4 tsp ground cloves;
* 1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger;

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Process the nuts in a food processor to almost a flour consistency. Be careful not to process too much and get a butter instead.
3. In a bowl, mix the ground nuts with the butter or coconut oil and then spread the crust mixture in a pie pan and bake for 10 minutes. (See photo of crust after pre-baking.)
4. While the crust bakes, mix all the filling ingredients together in a bowl.
5. Add the filling evenly on the baked crust and bake for an additional 45 minutes.

Kolaches

Kolaches were a staple at my grandma's holiday table when I was a kid. Though she made them at one time, I mostly remember her buying them from the Czech bakery, thus I never witnessed the actual dough rising and forming of the kolache. I've tried a few recipes over time, and have settled on the one from the Schumacher cookbook. I have been working on perfecting this recipe for several holidays now: the right thickness to roll out the dough, the right pan and best amount of filling. I am getting closer!

Kolaches are a Czech roll - generally an egg-y yeast bread, filled with prune, poppy seed, or apricot filling (they vary depending on region, some are rolls, some are more open-faced). My family's filling of choice is prune - yum.

Makes 3-4 dozen
1 1/2 c. warm milk
3/4 c. warm water
1/4 c. shortening (butter works too)
7 T. sugar
3 egg yolks
2 T. yeast
5+ c. all-purpose flour
1 t. salt
1/2 c. butter

Heat milk, water and shortening in a saucepan until shortening is melted. (I've tried both grass-fed lard and butter, and I think the lard version is best. Also, I just learned that grass-fed lard has super high contents of vitamin D!) Cool until slightly warm. Add sugar, yolks, and yeast, stirring well. Place in a large bowl. Add salt, 2 c. flour, and stir well. Work in the rest of the flour to make a soft, but not sticky dough. Place on a lightly dusted board and let rest 5-10 minutes.

Knead well, until smooth and satiny (about 10 minutes). Work on a lightly floured surface (I end up adding in plenty of extra flour). Shape dough in a ball and place in a large, lightly greased bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 1 1/2 hours). Punch down and let rise again.


Grease muffin tins (or cookie sheet, but muffin tin gives a nicer shape). After dough's second rising, roll out dough to 1/4" thickness. (*I find this part tricky and hedge on the side of a little thicker rather than thinner. I also split the dough in two so that I can work with smaller quantities.) Cut the rolled dough into 3" squares and drop a teaspoon of your fave filling in the middle of each. (I use two spoons to do this, a la cookie making.) See prune filling recipe below.


Fold kolaches by bringing one corner to the center, than overlapping the opposite corner, then add the 3rd corner, and finally the 4th so that all 4 corners overlap in the middle. I like to leave tiny little gaps where you can see there might be something inside, but some people fold the dough with a lot of overlap so it is totally enclosed. Place each kolache in the muffin tin as you go. Brush with melted butter and let rise another 45 minutes.

Bake in a 350 degree over for 15-20 minutes until browned. Brush tops while still warm with a mixture of 1/4 c. powdered sugar and 1/4 c. whipping cream. (Sometimes I skip that step - but it does make a nice glaze when dry.) Cool on rack. (*Schumacher's original recipe says to bake at 375 for 25 minutes, but I have burned mine twice this way...which could be that my oven runs hot, but I don't think so.)

Prune filling:
2 c. pitted prunes
1 c. orange juice
1 c. water
2 T. sugar
3 t. grated orange rind

Chop the fruit up and mix with the OJ, water, and sugar in a saucepan over medium low heat until it becomes thick and the fruit has become more like a thick paste. Stir in the rind. *I have also had good results by replacing the sugar and rind with a teaspoon of cinnamon instead.

Creamy Tomato Soup

This recipe is the creamiest, sweetest tomato soup I have ever had. It is also super easy. The sweet taste might be due in part to my primary use of cherry tomatoes, which have been ripening on the counter for the past month. Do you have any left? I can't believe how late I am still eating fresh tomatoes. As winter sets in, I am guessing canned tomatoes will work just as well, though the seeds might be bigger.

*Based on the recipe from Fanny Farmer. The original uses 4 cups milk instead of stock and cream, 1/2 a bay leaf and a cup less tomatoes.

5 T butter
1/2 c. chopped onion
4 T. flour (GF works fine)
2 c. stock (homemade?!)
1 c. heavy cream
1 1/2 t. salt
1/2 t baking soda
4 c. tomatoes - blended

Melt butter in pot and add onions - cook until soft (not browned).
Sprinkle flour over butter mix, stir and cook 1-2 minutes.
Add stock and salt and continue to cook and stir until slightly thickened.
Add blended tomatoes and baking soda. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Blend it all one more time to make smooth.
Add the cream to the whole batch, or pour it in each bowl for some pretty plating.

Lemongrass tea

I love lemongrass, but had never grown it before, or quite figured out how to use it fresh (I bought a package of frozen stuff from United Noodle that lasted over a year). It turns out that the whole plant, leaves included, makes really delicious tea. The stem, which is thicker, can be used for curries or soups by separating off the dry outer layer and just using the super fragrant inside (minced up since it is kind of rough).

The plant grew pretty tall (a couple of feet), and the green and purple leaves are really rough. It also seems to be doing fine in this cool/frost weather, at least for a little longer. It seems that some people bring their plants inside to winter over in the basement or some such. I imagine you could try it as a big house plant too. (!)

There were several recipes I checked out online, and some of them recommended that you use ONLY the leaves for tea because the stem is too bitter. I did not find this at all. I just plucked some stems at the very base of the plant, removed any really dry or withered parts, and then chopped up the whole thing in 2-3" pieces.


I found that the amount of lemongrass can be pretty flexible, but I tend to go with 10 leaves (roughly three stalks) to 6 cups of water (enough for 4 cups of tea). Just put the leaves and water in a saucepan, bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to simmer for about 10 minutes. Strain out the leaves and drink!


I have to say, I LOVE this tea. I'd have it every day if I had a bigger plant. The tea is nice and lemony, but with a full flavor that is way beyond the citrus lemon. It is delicious with cream and honey, and also nice plain.

Roasted Carrot Ginger Soup

Carrots, carrots, and more carrots. I have this tendency to hoard my garden carrots over the summer, only to then not eat them at all because it snows and I never pull them up. Determined to actually consume their tastiness, I tried this recipe from the Seward Co-op. It involves roasting the carrots for a couple of hours, which made the kitchen smell amazing. The soup did not disappoint - I give it a 10!

2 lbs carrots, peeled and halved lengthwise (I only peeled some)
1 large onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
6 T olive oil
6 cups veggie broth, preferably homemade (I used chicken broth)
1 c. cream
salt to taste
1 t ground coriander
1/2 t ground cumin
pinch of cayenne (adjust to taste)
To garnish: creme fraiche, handful chopped cilantro, 2 T toasted caraway seeds.

Preheat oven to 350. Combine the carrots, garlic and ginger in a shallow roasting pan. Drizzle with 4 T olive oil. Pour 2 c. broth into pan, cover tightly with foil and bake until the vegetables are very tender (about 2 hours).

When veggies are about done, heat the last 2 T oil in a large soup pot and add onions. Cook until translucent, then add the coriander and cumin. Cook over low heat for about 6 minutes to allow slices to bloom (I have no idea what this means). Add the roasted veggies with broth to the onion and spices along with last 4 c. broth. Season to taste with salt and cayenne and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes (oops, i didn't simmer long enough).

Allow soup to cool, then puree until smooth, in blender or food processor or if you have one of those fancy burr whip hand blender things. Return soup to pot, adjust seasonings if needed, and add the cream. Serve each portion with creme fraiche (i didn't have any), sprinkled with cilantro and toasted caraway.