Corn Risotto Stuffed Poblanos

I took a trip to the farmer's market and bought the ingredients for this dish - specifically the poblanos, the cilantro, and the fresh sweet corn. (I am a fan of the Oxford comma.  How about you?)  A trip to Trader Joe's rounded out the supplies. 
This is a kind of two-part recipe.  You make the risotto, then you add some cheese and stuff it into the peppers.  Deb said that I didn't have to char and de-skin the peppers if I didn't want to, and I didn't want to.  I used hard cider instead of beer, since that's what I had on hand. 


The risotto took about 45 minutes from start to finish.  I wasn't crazy vigilant about stirring, just let it simmer and stirred when I added more broth.  It turned out well, great texture and not too soupy. 

You then stuff the risotto into the peppers sprinkle on a bit of cheese (I used feta) and then bake.  I had more risotto than would fit in the peppers, but that isn't really a problem.  I baked for about 20 minutes since I hadn't charred the peppers beforehand. Seemed to be about the right length of time. You then drizzle with a thinned sour cream and sprinkle on cilantro. 

So, how was it?  Good.  It was good.  The peppers have nice flavor and aren't too spicy.  The rice is nice.  Guilty confession: if I make this again, which I may, I'll add more cheese to the risotto.  Because dairy is my jam.  

Happy Labor Day!

Seared Halibut and Gazpacho Salsa with Tomato Vinaigrette (p. 159)

Sunday is fish for dinner night.  M picked out this recipe.  I halved the recipe and bought a little over 2/3rds of a pound of halibut for the two of us.  I used 1 tomato, 1 pepper (red, but yellow would have been prettier), 1/4 of the English cucumber and 1/4 of the sweet onion.  I did buy the Sherry vinegar for the dressing and I used grape tomatoes rather than 1 medium tomato.

Cooking the fish was straightforward.  I used a very large saute pan.  The fish had skin on one side, which I removed after it cooked.  I then briefly seared that side again. M and I both loved the halibut, but we thought that there was too much gazpacho salsa.  I think if I were to do it again, I would dice the vegetables more finely.   Not sure we'll make this again, but we'll definitely buy more halibut!

Wild Mushroom Tart (p.95)

Last Saturday we had company (relatives of M).  I decided to use our guests as guinea pigs and make this tart for the first time.  I find that tarts, like lasagnas, cannot be rushed and I usually leave at least 3 hours to make either.  I started this tart nice and early in the day.

 

The crust is a bit unusual.  First of all, there is a 1/4 cup of cornmeal.  Secondly, the author uses an egg to bind the crust, rather than the traditional 3-4 tbps of ice-cold water.  I made the crust in a food processor and as she suggests rolled out the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap (this has worked well in the past for other tarts that I make).  I was surprised that the dough went into the freezer (other recipes usually call for the frig).  I was also surprised that you were given the option of parbaking as this step is usually necessary to avoid a soggy crust.  I chose to parbake.  I did not have a round version of a removable-bottom tart pan, so I cooked and served it in my round ceramic quiche dish, which worked well.  I usually fold the extra crust back onto the rim, but next time I will do as she suggests and cut off the extra.  The crust is tasty, but a bit hard and not flaky, so making it thicker was not a good idea.

I used 1/2 pound each of cremini, shitake, and oyster mushrooms for the filling (Wegman's was out of chanterelles).  I picked the thyme from my neighbors yard.

I served the tart at room temperature.  The next day, I reheated it before having it for dinner and much preferred it warm.

Overall, I the tart is very tasty and I will certainly make it again, but I am holding back on my final judgement of the crust. 

Blueberry Cornmeal Butter Cake (p. 245)

Greetings from Minnesota. 

My sister makes a tasty dessert called Blueberry Dump Cake.  It's simple and delicious - basically, you use a cake mix, a stick of butter, and some blueberries.  This recipe is like a from scratch version of that.  And it was good!

The batter was gorgeous - so smooth and and thick and creamy and light.  Not sure if the picture does it justice.  I like that the recipe uses sour cream instead of buttermilk - whenever I buy buttermilk I use a half cup for whatever recipe I'm making and throw the rest away.  I did wait until the butter was room temp as suggested - I think that's quite important. 

You then make a quick little streusel topping to cover the batter.  I used convection to bake the cake, and ended up leaving it in for 45 minutes, which is 10 minutes longer than suggested.  I did not flip the cake out of the pan to cool - I'm not quite sure how that's supposed to work with the streusel topping.  But it was no problem to serve it right from the pan. 

 It was really good - great texture from the browned top and edges, and from the cornmeal.  And you can taste the tiny bit of lemon zest.  This would also work for a brunch.  I will be making this again!

zucchini ribbons with almond pesto (pg. 57)

Cooking for one - well, first I should explain that I am in Ohio at our lake house enjoying late-summer produce and early-school grandchild activities like soccer and cross-county and football - if a grand plays it, I watch it. Vaden is in VA at our house with Bruce & Kathy who are living there while their fabulous reno is going on. So - back to cooking for one...it's boring...and eating alone - worse. I wanted something small and uncomplicated and settled on this zucchini recipe since I picked up 3 zucchinis for a dollar at Hurley Farms - wonderful produce market here at the lake.

I assembled all the ingredients and got out the food processor. I don't normally use this manic device without Vaden in attendance. But - courageously I proceeded as the recipe directed: pulsing toasty almonds, Parmesan, garlic, red pepper and then adding the salt, lemon juice & evoo. Ummm - tasting - ummm more lemon juice - tasting - more salt...still too bland - bigger pinch of red pepper flakes - better. This was a little too thick to actually swirl in the bowl - meant to take a picture here but I forgot. OK - the dressing is in the bowl.

Now for the zucchini; making the ribbons is actually easy (I admit to having done it before) and I recommend going once all around the zucchini to shave off most of the skin. I used 3 medium zucs and produced enough ribbons with a lot of poor zuc remains.

With my hands (as Deb suggests) I tossed the dressing and the ribbons. Tasting - ummm - needs something more, added Parmesan flakes and a grinding of black pepper - better. But I'm here to tell you, dear friends, that I doubt I'll make this again. Just not enough there there for me.

PS - If you want to know what it's like at the lake...here's Vaden and me out for a row.

Tomato Scallion Shortcakes with Whipped Goat Cheese (p. 65)

For our second recipe, I made a recipe that caught M's eye.  Once again, it was delicious and I'm inclined to agree with Vaden that a thesaurus will soon be in order. 

I used a pastry blender rather than my fingers to cut in the butter (keeps the butter cooler).  This is a departure from my usual choice of a food processor, but given that the milk was going to need to be mixed in by hand, it seems like the wiser choice.

A pint glass was perfect for forming the biscuits.

I used my mixer to whip the cream, but I would suggest going with 1/4 cup of whipping cream rather than the 3 tbps given in the recipe as that is almost too little of an amount to whip.  Also, if you are going to serve more than two of you, I would recommend doubling the whipped goat's cheese topping, you don't want to skimp on it.  I served the shortcakes with a salad and it was a very satisfying dinner (although we did have two of them each).

Eggplant and Three Cheese Calzone (p. 111)

For our first recipe from the book, I choose to make the calzone.  M and I both loved it!  We nearly finished it off that night and it was gone by lunch the next day.

I used my mother's pizza dough recipe taken from Cuisine at Home (thanks mom!):

 Preheat 450

3/4 cup lukewarm water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups King Arthur unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 teaspoon baking powder

Mix and knead all of the ingredients to make a smooth, pliable dough. Cover the dough and let it rise at room temperature for 30 minutes, or in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight.

Roll the dough into a 12" circle. Transfer the crust to a piece of parchment (if you're baking on a stone), or a lightly oiled pizza pan, and let it rest for about 20 minutes.

Top the crust as desired, to avoid sogginess, saute any vegetables before using. Bake until the edges are crisp and the sauce or cheese is bubbling, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Over the years, I have modified the recipe as follows: I have been making a 2/3 version of the recipe: with 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 tsp of yeast, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 1/2 cups of flour and roughly 2/3rds of the olive oil and baking powder. I use my KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook and I almost always opt for the let it rest for 30 minutes. I also pull it into a 12" circle rather than rolling it.

I baked the eggplant as directed, but as I have a convection oven, I could have taken 5 minutes off of the 30 minutes suggested.  I baked the calzone using parchment paper on a pizza stone for 17 minutes. Again, I tend to set my oven about 25 degrees less than the 425 that was suggested.

 

I was unsure of what the author meant by "strained tomatoes," so I used a 14 oz can of RedPack diced tomatoes which I eventually blended with a stick-blender.  I used the clove of garlic that was suggested and both M and I found it garlicky (not bad, just you'll have garlic breath for awhile).  I also did not add the extra salt.

For dessert, I have been doing a very easy "pie" of crushed graham crackers, fresh fruit and whipped cream (yes, I bought a can of whipping cream).

Overall,  very delicious meal!

harvest roast chicken with grapes, olives, and rosemary (p.175)

Bruce decided to try our first dish from the cookbook tonight. It was a resounding success. Who would have thought that grapes and olives were a good combo? This was an absolutely spectacular dish. (Note: Vaden has indicated that we may need to consult a thesauraus so as to not use the same superlatives over and over....). 

Bruce browned the chicken in two separate skillets simultaneously, and added the olives, grapes and shallots and tossed them both into the oven for 20 min. After 20 minutes, these were transferred to the ceramic serving dish pictured above that could be put back in the oven while he was reducing the sauce. 

We were served the dish with green beans and twice-baked potatoes. Vaden decided that the perfect proportion was one grape to one-half olive; we agreed. The chicken was really juicy, and the sweet-salty combination of the grapes and olives was really good.

We all thought it was interesting how the shallots melted in to the dish, and that even more would have been fine. We discussed possibly manipulating this dish to work with a white fish. Bruce thinks one could use a meaty white fish, without browning it, toss it in the oven with the grapes/shallots/olives for 20 minutes. Stay tuned.

Welcome to our blog!  Our plan is to cook our way through The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook (2012) by Deborah Perelman.  The fall semester is about to start, so let's get cracking!