Amazing Baked Beans: Summertime BBQ

My dear friend and fellow foodie Tim had a barbecue last night to celebrate his 33rd birthday.  Knowing that Tim, like myself and many of our friends, are food lovers, I had a hard time deciding what to bring.  After much contemplation, I decided to try, once again, a dish I have never had success with, and that is baked beans.  Now, you may be asking yourself why this would be a hard dish to make.  Trust me, I ask myself that a lot.  Perhaps it is that I've gotten used to the cloyingly sweet beans that are so readily available in a can.

I did some research and found a recipe that was made by Alton Brown.  I read the reviews, and made some simple adjustments, and honestly, these turned out amazingly well.  For this party, I made one pound of dried beans, but when I do it again, I'll double the recipe.  It all got eaten up so quickly!  Now, if you're not a pork eater, don't even bother with this recipe.  I mean it.  It needs the bacon.  Sorry, but it's true.  In fact, if you can get your hands on some slab bacon, all the better.  For this recipe, I used a very high quality, naturally hickory smoked, thick cut bacon that I trimmed of the huge hunks of fat.

How many will this serve?  Well, I don't know.  I think this is a good sized batch for a barbecue of 10-12.  Any more than that and I'd double it.




Baked Beans

      1 pound dried Great Northern beans

3/4 pound slab or thick cut bacon, chopped (remove sections that are solely fat)

1 large onion, chopped medium

2 jalapenos, serranoes, or Thai chiles, finely chopped

1 6 oz. can tomato paste

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup molasses

2 T. barley syrup (or, if you don't have it, additional molasses)

4 cups chicken broth

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons dried mustard

Directions

Heat oven to 250 degrees F.

Soak beans in a plastic container overnight in just enough cold water to submerge them completely.

Place a cast iron or enameled cast iron Dutch oven over medium heat and stir in the bacon, onion, and jalapenos until enough fat has rendered from the bacon to soften the onions, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, dark brown sugar, barley syrup and molasses.

Drain the beans. Add the drained beans to the Dutch oven. Add the chicken broth, salt, pepper, worcestershire, cayenne and dried mustard. Give them a stir and cover with the lid. Place the Dutch oven in the oven for 6 to 8 hours, or until the beans are tender, stirring occasionally. When the beans are tender, remove the lid and raise the oven temperature to 350.  Bake, stirring every 15 minutes, until the consistency is what you like (do this step if you don't want your beans to be soupy).  This may take up to an hour.  Taste for salt and add to your liking.  

Enjoy!

Moguli Chicken Curry (Moguli Murgh): A Graduation Feast

This weekend was graduation at the University.  Darren received his M.F.A. and his mother, two lovely sisters, and brother-in-law came to celebrate with him and proudly watch him walk across the stage. I was told his sister's liked Indian food, so I decided to make the chicken dish I grew up eating.  The benefit was two-fold for me.  I would get to eat a dish that would bring me back to my childhood table, which I am forever want to do, and, most importantly, I would have an excuse to engage my 81 year old father in a discussion about something other than his health.
Armed with his wisdom and years of memories, I set about making this delicious dish, only altering his recipe slightly.  One alteration I made was to use boneless chicken thighs rather than bone in, and the other was to add a small amount of red chile powder, to heat up the dish a bit, but not too much.  The Moguls were not fond of hot spice, and, as my father suggested, this heat was not available when recipes such as this were first made.
If you like Indian spices, but are afraid of the heat in Indian foods, this dish is for you.  It is relatively easy to make (if you can get the spices pre-made) and delicious.  I served this with basmati rice, saag paneer (spinach with cheese curds), tomato chutney, and naan.  This amount fed 6 with leftovers for two meals for 2, so I guess it would feed around 10.

Moguli Chicken Curry
3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut in half
6 cloves garlic
1 T. ginger
1 t. tumeric
1 t. red chile powder (cayenne will work)
1 T. vegetable oil
1/2 t. saffron threads
1/4 c. milk
vegetable oil (for frying the onions)
2-3 large onions (about 4 cups), very thinly sliced (use a mandoline, if you have one)
3 T. ghee (clarified browned butter, or just oil) Ghee directions follow this recipe
1 T. hot garam masala
2 t. sweet garam masala
2 t. salt (kosher or 1 t. table)
1 c. chicken broth
1 c. sour cream (low fat is ok)
1 c. yogurt (low fat is ok)
2 T. cilantro, chopped

Directions
Several hours before you are ready to cook, put the garlic and ginger in a mini food processor along with the 1 T. vegetable oil, tumeric and red chile powder, and process into a paste (this can be done by hand too).   Rub the chicken with the paste and refrigerate for at least 3 hours and up to overnight.

While the chicken marinades, deal with the onions.  Cut the onions in half and slice paper thin.  Place them on a clean tea towel or paper towels and place another on top and press it down to remove some of the water from the onions.  Let the onions sit for 1 hour on the towels.  After this rest, heat a large, heavy bottomed dutch oven to medium heat.  Add 1/2 inch of oil and heat.  Add the onions and slowly brown the onions to a medium brown crisp, stirring every few minutes.  Some of the onions will still have some white.  Do not bring to a dark brown.  Using a slotted spoon, put the onions onto several layers of paper towel and spread them out.  They will crisp up as they cool.   Heat the milk in a glass measuring cup for 30 seconds in the microwave and add the saffron.  Let this steep while you do the next step.

After marinating, scrape as much of the paste off of the chicken as possible, reserving the marinade.  Remove the oil from the pan you made the onions in.  You can reuse this oil for any other dish, it will have a wonderful onion flavor.  Heat your heavy bottomed dutch oven and add the ghee.  When hot, add as much chicken as will fit in one layer.  Brown the chicken on both sides.  Remove the chicken and repeat with remaining chicken.  When done, add the leftover marinade and saute for 1 minute (do not let it brown-  you may need to lower the temperature).  Add the masalas and saute for another minute.  Add the saffron milk and use this to help you scrape the fond from the bottom of the pan.  Add the chicken, 1/2 of the onions, salt, and the chicken broth.  Bring this to a simmer.  Cover and simmer this until the chicken is very tender (30 minutes to an hour depending on how tender you want the chicken).

Whip together the sour cream and yogurt until very smooth.  Turn off the heat of the pan and add the sour cream mixture.  Mix well.  Return to heat on low and keep this on a low simmer for 15 minutes.  Serve with cilantro and the rest of the onions on top.  Enjoy!

Ghee
Place one pound of unsalted butter in a heavy bottomed small pot.  Turn the heat onto medium low.  As the butter melts, you'll see it will begin to foam.  Skim the foam off the top of the butter.  Continue to cook the butter, skimming as needed, until you see brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Turn off the heat and strain into a jar.  To store your ghee, cover tightly and place in the refrigerator.  This clarified butter will not burn at high temperatures as butter does, and has a delicious, nutty flavor.

Sunday Red Gravy and Pasta: Marathoners Treat

When my friend Dan asked me to cook for his family who were to run the Champaign Marathon, I readily agreed.  Dinner for 8?  No problem, even for a Friday night.  Little did I know that dinner for 8 would morph into dinner for 20.  But what to cook?  What do you feed people the night before a 26 mile run?  Pasta.  Of course, pasta.  But pasta for 20 in a small kitchen?  So, I decided to go with something tried, true, healthy and delicious.  Red gravy, or red sauce, depending on who you are talking to.

Do you know red gravy?  That meat based red sauce so ubiquitous, so easy to do terribly.  I don't know about you, but red gravy is the bane of my restaurant existence.  Rarely is it anything but too sweet.  So my personal rule of thumb is to not order anything with a red sauce in an Italian restaurant.  But I love a good red gravy, like the one my former father-in-law taught me how to make some 20 years ago.

The recipe below is tried and true. It is rich, but not sweet.  The flavor of the sauce comes from the meat used, so the better quality sausages you can get, the better your sauce will be.  There is nothing here that should intimidate you.  Yes, it takes all day, but most of that time is completely hands off.  I used ground turkey and turkey sausages because I was feeding runners and wanted to keep the fat content of the food I made as low as possible.  You, of course, could substitute beef or a combination of beef and pork.  I hope you will make this recipe. It is simply delicious and goes beautifully with any number of pastas.  It can easily be frozen and saved for a later date.

Meatballs:
1 lb. ground turkey
2 slices white bread
1/4 c. buttermilk
1 onion, finely minced
4 cloves garlic
1/4 cup parsley
1 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. fennel seeds, bruised in a mortar and pestle
1 t. salt
1/4 t. crushed red chiles
1 egg
Directions:  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Pour the buttermilk over the bread and let sit while you make the rest of the meatballs.  Mix the onions, garlic, parsley, oregano, fennel, salt, red chiles and egg in a medium sized bowl.  Mush up the bread and add it along with any remaining buttermilk to the vegetable mix. Gently mix in the meat.  At this point, cook up a bit of the meat in a frying pan.  Taste it and adjust your seasonings as needed.

Roll your meatballs into golfball sized balls.  Place them on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 1/2 hour.

Sunday Red Gravy:
1-11/4 lbs. Italian sausage (sweet or hot depending on your preference)
1 T. olive oil
2 c. onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 c. green peppers, finely chopped
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 small can tomato paste (about 1/4 cup)
3 28 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed in a food processor or blender
1 bay leaf
salt to taste

Directions:  Heat olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed Dutch oven.  Add the sausage and brown on all sides.  Remove the sausages to a plate.  Add the onions, green peppers, and mushrooms.  Saute, scraping up the bits (fond) on the bottom of the pan as the vegetables sweat.  When the vegetables are all soft (about 10 minutes), add the garlic and cook for one minute.  Add the tomato paste and continue to stir and cook until the color of the paste becomes a rich, deeper red, about 7 minutes.  Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, bay leaf, sausage, and meatballs. Add 3 cups of water and stir.  Bring this to a simmer, and simmer for 4-6 hours, stirring every once in a while to prevent sticking.  Add salt as needed.

Serve your red gravy with fettucini, angel hair pasta, penne, cheese or meat ravioli, or lasagna.
Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce: Community Dinner Joy

Joy of joys!  The last Community Dinner ever so long ago was amazing!  30 adults all squished into my 850 square foot 1st floor, replete with about a half dozen children underfoot with blocks and marbles.  Disaster?  Not even close.  Instead, people of all ages and walks of life, some knowing each other, others, not, sat and talked (ok, some had to stand and talk).  Cooking pasta in this environment can be a challenge.  Gallons of boiling water and crowds don't really go so well together, but for this one night, they did. It was lovely.  To be honest, it was a bit overwhelming, but the food was a hit, as was the company.

I started the night before.  Actually, I made the food plan on Wednesday. Listing what exactly was on the menu, items to purchase, approximate cost, and serving utensils needed.  Friday at around 3, after my meetings were done and I could concentrate, I began making the ravioli.  I started by roasting the sweet potatoes, and while roasting, I made the pasta.  Now cooking ravioli for 30 is a big task. I will not lie to you. I had to start with some math.  I used Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Italian Cooking cookbook, which is a wonderful resource if you like authentic Italian food.  Her recipe for sweet potato ravioli says it feeds six. So I multiplied all of the ingredients by five.  I used 9.5 lbs. of sweet potatoes, and a total of 15 eggs for the pasta.  I refrigerated the pasta dough while I made the rest of the filling.

Because several of the attendees were either unknown to me, or known vegetarians, I left the procuitto out of out recipe. They were still amazing.  I also slightly altered the recipe by adding a bit more ameretti cookies (I added an additional 5, so one more than called for in the recipe.  Other than that, this recipe is not my doing, it is the mighty Hazan's.  In the end, this recipe made 240 ravioli, which was plenty for 30 hungry adults with 2 servings to have for another time.  So yes, an average person ate 8 of these ravioli.

Lucky for me, I had help in this endeavor.  By about 6, I had the pasta dough and filling made, had done a preliminary clean up, and had started the custard for a lovely egg nog tiramisu trifle (recipe adapted from Epicurious.com).  This is when help rushed in.  My dear friend Jan saved the day.  For the next 4 hours, we rolled out dough and stuffed the pasta.  One of us worked the roller, while the other, filled.

The question was, "how do we keep the ravioli from sticking?" I had had a disaster with this before, so was prepared.  Here's what I did.  I put parchment down on 2 large cookie sheets and prepared a place in my basement freezer large enough to hold them completely flat.  Upon the parchment, I placed a good amount of semolina flour.  We put one layer of ravioli on a cookie sheet and placed that sheet immediately in the freezer while working on filling the next sheet pan.  When the second pan was done, we would replace it with the first, put down more parchment and semolina, and make another layer.  By the time each layer was done, the one in the freezer was frozen enough not to smash with the weight of the new layer.  It worked out perfectly!  I was able to take them from the freezer just before cooking the next day.  Not one was smashed or stuck.  Brilliant! (not me, the idea.).

With the filling for the tiramisu done, and ravioli completed, the evening finally came to rest around 2 am.  Yes, that's 11 hours of work, 4 of which was done with another set of able hands.  But, most of the work was done, leaving only final work on the day of the party.  Knowing I had my friend Greg coming in, a presentation on campus to do, and a lunch with another friend, I knew I would not have a lot of time on Saturday, so in the morning, I finished the tiramisu (except the artistic flourish Peter would accomplish just before the party), made the salad dressing, browned the butter and sage, and finished prepping the bread (yes, the bread that failed).

For this dinner, I made what I call my "auspicious salad of five" (auspicious due to odd number of ingredients, 5, well, because it has five main ingredients). When I plate this salad, I do everything in fives.  For this crowd, I just made a huge bowl, using 1.5 lb. mixed baby greens, 2 c. toasted pecans, 4 thinly sliced red pears, 1/2 large red onion, sliced paper thin, and 1/2 lb. Italian Gorgonzola (which I actually kept on the side given the number of children present).  I tossed this salad with a simple lemon vinegrette, salt and pepper.  I also attempted, but failed to make ciabatta (don't quite know what happened, but it was just not right, so I sent a friend out to buy some bread--failures happen).  The dessert was a beautiful tiramisu topped with a gorgeous work of bittersweet chocolate art, thanks to my friend Peter.

All that was left was to finish the salad, put out appetizers (I made crostini with goat cheese and an orange-scented tapenade, and also had mahon (a lovely Spanish cheese) and served that along side a bowl of my red pepper habenero jelly), baked the bread (or failed to--it never rose nor browned), set the water (2 large canning pots) to boil, and warm the brown butter sage sauce.  You may not want to do this for 30, but for 6? Easy.  I encourage you to try it.  Everyone loved the dinner, and I think you will too.  The ravioli are delicate, slightly sweet, and definitely savory, with a hint of richness without being cloying.

Pasta Dough (enough for about 50 ravioli, serving approximately 6--but really, if you are going through all this trouble, at least double the recipe and make enough to freeze on a wax papered sheet pan before removing to a plastic zip top bag)

3 large eggs
1 T. milk
approximately 1 2/3 cups unbleached flour
Directions:
If using a stand mixer:  place the eggs and milk in the mixer with the paddle attachment.  Turn to #2 and mix to break eggs (may need to help by breaking yolks with a fork).  Add the flour little by little until you have a dough ball that does not stick to the sides or bottom of the bowl.  Replace the paddle with the dough hook.  Knead on #2 for about 2 minutes.  NOTE:  If you are multiplying this recipe it is important that you do so in batches.  Not even my stand mixer, which is the largest Kitchen Aid makes for home use, has the torque to pull off a larger batch without overworking your mixer.  I ruined my mother's 1960's Kitchen Aid by doing this, so trust me here.  Wrap your dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are ready to use it. If you are not going to use it within a few hours, expect that the dough will turn an ugly, but edible grey.

Filling:
1 3/4 pounds oranged fleshed sweet potatoes
3 amaretti cookies
1 egg yolk
3 T. prosciutto, finely chopped (optional)
1 1/2 cups freshly grated parmesano reggiano
3 T. parsley, chopped very finely
1/8-1/4 t. freshly ground nutmeg (please don't ever use the sawdust you buy pre-grated)
salt (to taste)
black pepper (to taste)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Pierce the potatoes a few times.  Bake them in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes.  Turn the oven down to 400 degrees and continue to cook until they are very tender when pierced.  Turn off the oven, remove the potatoes and split in half lengthwise.  Return the potatoes to the now off oven, cut side up leaving the door slightly ajar.  Remove after 10 minutes when the tops have slightly dried out.

Crush the amaretti cookies to a powder using a food processor, a bag and rolling pin, or a mortar and pestle.  Peel the potatoes and puree them with a food processor, food mill, or ricer.  Add the cookies, egg yolk, procuitto, parmesan, parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper.  Taste and adjust seasoning.

Directions for Ravioli:
If you have rollers for your stand mixer, as I fortunately do, use them here.  If you have a hand crank machine, you'll want a friend to help you crank as you feed the dough into the rollers.  Start the machine on the widest setting (this means the rollers are as far apart as they go).  For me, this is #1.  Make a pile of flour on your countertop for dipping your dough to keep it from sticking to the rollers.  Cut your dough into about 2 inch pieces (you should do this one at a time, not all at once so that the remaining dough does not dry out).  Flatten the piece of dough and push it into a bed of flour that you have on your countertop. (This is going to get messy, but that's half the fun.)  Feed your dough into the rollers with one hand while the machine is running.  Don't worry.....  Don't worry.  Catch it with your other hand as it exits the rollers.

Fold the pressed pasta sheet into thirds, like an envelope.  Rotate it so that the edge goes into the machine first.  Run it through again on #1 (or, the widest setting).  Do this until the dough is smooth.  If it gets sticky, dip it in the flour. If it tears, don't panic, just press it together, dip it in flour,  and start again.  It's forgiving, remember?

For me, and for this batch of dough, I did this 7 times for each piece.  Then, adjust your rollers to the next thinner setting (#2).  Flour the flattened but somewhat thick dough.  Run it through the machine once.  Do not fold.  Repeat this process for #3, 4, and finally 5.  I like my raviolis to not be too thick, so I go to #5 or 6.  Some recipes go even thinner, but I find that the filling part gets wrinkly when I do this.

This is Jan with a wonderful sheet of just rolled out pasta

Now, as you roll your dough more and more thinly, it will get longer and longer.  You'll need to just trust me.  Catch it as it exits the machine.

When you've run it through on #5 or 6 (depending on your thickness preference), place it on a well floured flat surface.  Now, here's the best part.  You'll need your filling, a teaspoon, a pastry brush, a bowl of water, and a pastry or pizza cutter.  Place large marble sized mounds of filling (about 3/4 t.) 3/4 inches from the edge of the pasta sheet that is facing you, running lenghwise, with 1/2 inches in between mounds.  Next, brush a line of water (you don't need much) above and below the filling mounds, almost touching them.  Then brush a bit of water in a line between each ravioli.  Next, carefully fold the dough over the mounds, matching edges to edges.  Now, here's the tricky part.  Don't fear it, just roll with it.  You'll get the hang of it, I promise.  Starting near the center of the sets of mounds, take your fingers and press down at the seam, then cup your hand around the mound, pressing out the air as you press the dough firmly down to make the sheets adhere to each other.

 Then move out from the center doing the same.  Try not to get any wrinkles, but honestly, they are inevitable, particularly at first.  Don't get discouraged if this happens.  They will still taste great.  Next use your pizza cutter to trim the bottom and to cut them apart from one another. 

Place on a cookie sheet that has been thoroughly covered with semolina or regular flour (semolina is duram wheat and is coarser than regular flour so it works well to keep the pasta from sticking to your pan, which is a disaster, trust me.  I've had that happen. And I cried.  But, I lived to make ravioli again and again.) Place the ravioli on the cookie sheet. Continue with the rest of the ravioli making in the same manner.
Now you have some options. You can stick those cookie sheets on a freezing cold porch to freeze them (which works well in a blizzard), or just into the freezer if yours is not packed like mine.  You can then put them into bags and you can have amazing ravioli anytime.  Or, you can cook them.  To cook them, boil a large pot of water.  When it comes ot the boil, add a lot of salt so that it tastes like sea water.  Go ahead, taste it.  This will bring the water off the full rolling boil, which is good.  Carefully add your ravioli (depending on the pot, I wouldn't do more than 30 at a time).  Reduce your heat if the water starts to boil rapidly.  Gently boil the ravioli,  (don't freak out if a few break--sometimes they do.) stirring every minute or so, until they are tender, about 5 minutes (taste one, or a corner, to see if they are done to al dente.)

Brown Butter Sage Sauce:
5 T. good quality unsalted butter
10-12 whole sage leaves
freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Directions:
Put the butter in a small skillet and turn to medium heat.  When the butter foam subsides, and the butter's color is a gold but not yet brown, add the sage leaves.  Cook for a few seconds, turning the leaves over once.  Cook until the butter is a rich golden brown on the bottom and the leaves are crisp.  Pour over your cooked ravioli and enjoy!  Serve with freshly grated cheese if desired (oh, trust me, you'll desire it!)

These are the frozen ravioli just prior to dropping into boiling water

Mushroom, Spinach, and Chèvre Quiche: A Morning Glory

Joy of joys, I got to spend a wonderful morning with my dear friend Jane.  I wanted to make something very special for her as it has been so long since we have had time to spend together.  I also knew I wanted to make a pie crust this week so that I could put it up on the blog as it is one of those things people (including myself) tend to get intimidated by.

I want you to trust me when I tell you that this is the absolutely easiest pie crust in the world to make.  I would say it is "foolproof", but I don't like that term.  Just trust me.  It works, 100% of the time.  This is not my recipe. It is the recipe of America's Test Kitchen. I have just slightly altered it (I reduced the sugar from 1 T. to 1 t.). The quiche recipe is my own, well, as "my own" as it can be, as I know I've read dozens of recipes.

Ok, pastry.....the thought puts fear in most.  It's crumbly, if not, it's hard.  It's difficult to work with...right?  There are chefs that won't touch the stuff--literally. There hands are too hot.  No, I'm not joking.  If you have hot hands, it's difficult to make pastry.  But let's face it, we're not striving to be pastry chefs.  I'm not going to be making my own phyllo dough (tried it once--a disaster), or my own puff pastry (well, I can't say, "never".)  This is pie dough!  You can do it.  There is a trick to this dough that makes it super easy to work with.  Sometimes, when you make a pie dough recipe, it is too crumbly to work with.  It falls apart as you put it in the pan, it cracks...it's a pain!  But not this dough.  It is extra moist so that it is easy to work with. Now, had we accomplished this with just the traditional ingredients of water, vinegar, or egg, our crust would turn out tough.  This crust has vodka in it.  That's right, vodka.  The additional liquid makes the dough workable, but, as it cooks, the alcohol evaporates, and voila!  A beautiful, flaky pie crust.  Every time.

This is one of those recipes that you can adapt.  The important part of this recipe is the custard. Stick with tha ratio of eggs, milk, cream, salt, pepper, and mustard.  You can add any variety of things, just keep the volume to about 1-1 1/2 cups.  Think about things like leeks, roasted broccoli, sauteed zucchini....You can also use 3 oz. of other cheese besides chevre.  Guyere is great.  Just line the bottom of the prebaked crust with it and your filling, and add the custard. Proceed as the recipe suggests with baking.

Now here's the thing about quiche.  It is hard to tell when it is done.  You don't want to overbake it, but you definately don't want to overbake it.  So to tell if your quiche is done, shake it gently.  The center should be set, but it will giggle a bit.  Then, when you take it out of the oven, it will continue to set.  You can also press on it to see that it is slightly firm.

This quiche will serve 6-8 people. 

Pie Crust

1 ¼ c. all purpose flour

½ t. table salt

1 t. sugar

6 T. butter, chilled and cut into ¼ inch pieces

4 T. shortening, frozen and broken into 4 pieces

2 T. water

2 T. vodka

ice

Directions

Place ¾ cups  of the flour in the work bowl of your food processor.  Add the salt and sugar.  Pulse 3 times to mix.  Add the butter and shortening.  Mix for 10 seconds until the mixture looks like sand.  Add the rest of the flour and pulse 6 times for 1 seconds each.  Add the vodka and water to a cup with ice.  Add the vodka and ice mixture to the flour.  Pulse the mixture 4 times for 1 second each.  Put the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap.  Press it out into a flat disk and wrap up in the leftover wrap.  Place in the refrigerator for ½ hour or up to 2 days (can also be frozen, just wrap it well). 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Remove the pie dough from the refrigerator and unwrap it.  Lift up the dough and sprinkle the plastic wrap with a little flour.  Put the dough on the flour, and sprinkle top with a bit more flour.  Roll out to about a 12 inch round, working only in one direction (spin the dough, don’t roll back and forth—it builds gluten).  Lift the whole thing, plastic and all and gently flip into a 9 inch pie pan (preferably glass).  Work the edges up under itself onto the lip of the pie plate.  Build up the sides about ½ inch above the lip of the pan.

Place the pan in the refrigerator for 15 minutes while the oven preheats.

Mushroom, Spinach and Chevre Quiche

2 shallots, sliced thinly

1 T. butter

6 oz. mushrooms, sliced

¼ c. frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry

3 large eggs

¾ c. whole milk

¾ c. cream

½ t. table salt

½ t. white pepper, freshly ground

½ t. dried mustard

1 t. fresh thyme, chopped

3  oz. chevre, broken into small pieces

2 oz. swiss cheese, grated

Directions

While the oven preheats, sauté the shallots in butter for 2 minutes until softened.  Add the mushrooms and sauté until the mushrooms are soft.  Add salt and pepper to taste, spinach, nutmeg and thyme.

In a separate bowl, make the custard with the eggs, salt, white pepper, dried mustard, milk, and cream.  Beat until smooth.  Add the goat cheese (chevre). 

You will be “blind baking” the crust before adding the custard.  To do this, you’ll need 2 things….  Aluminum foil and 1 lb. dried beans (which you will be sacrificing for a cause because you won’t ever be able to eat them, but you can keep them in a jar and use them for this purpose over and over.)  To bake your crust, line the pie crust with aluminum foil.  Pour in the pie weights (beans).  Put the pie pan on a cookie sheet and put it in the hot oven.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove the pie  from the oven and carefully lift out the beans by lifting up the aluminum foil.  Return the crust to the oven and bake until lightly browned, 10-15 minutes.  Remove the shell from the oven.  Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees. 

Sprinkle the little bit of swiss cheese on the bottom of the crust.  Top with vegetable mix and spread out.  Top with the custard and bake for 35 – 40 minutes until the custard is lightly set. It will firm up as it cools.  Serve at room temperature for best texture.  May be served hot.

Enjoy!

Chicken Tetrazinni Redux: Rethinking Comfort Food

It's a Friday afternoon--work done for the day.  It's cold.  Snow fell sideways all night long, leaving a clouded feeling of fogginess in my mind.  Yesterday, I had made chicken stock, which I love to have available.   To do this, I simmered a whole chicken in water with salt, pepper, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, onions, garlic, celery and carrots until the chicken was just done.  Then I removed the chicken from the bones and returned the skin and bones to the pot, reserving the chicken.  I simmered this overnight leaving me with a luscious stock.  With that, and all the other fixings in my overly stocked pantry and freezer, I decided to go ahead and make Bridget's family this dish of comfort.

In my childhood, my mother would make turkey tetrazinni. A cream based sauce, enveloping linguine, with leftover turkey and pimentos.  Topped lovingly with Parmesan cheese and almonds.  I remember loving it.
For Bridget, I like to mix things up a bit, and always try to make the dishes I make for her family as healthy as possible.  I've used a recipe by Emeril Lagasse for a tuna tetrazinni before, and her family has loved it.  So decided to use that recipe as a base for today's feast.

This makes a large portion, enough for 10-12.  It is a nice use for leftover chicken, but goes well with an equivalent amount of albacore tuna packed in oil as well.  I hope you enjoy it.

Chicken Tetrazinni

1 ½ c. onions, ¼ inch dice

1 red bell pepper, ¼ inch dice

6 T. Butter (or combination butter and chicken fat from stock)

1 T. garlic, minced

10 oz. mushrooms, sliced

1 ½ t. creole seasoning (such as Tony Carchere’s)

1 ½ t. thyme leaves

¼ c. flour

½ c. brandy (or dry white wine)

2 c. chicken broth

1 c. cream

14 oz. linguine (I used whole grain)

2 ½ c. cooked chicken, shredded

10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and pressed dry

1 T. fresh parsley leaves

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1/3 c. parmesan (don’t necessarily need the good stuff here)

1 ½ c. fresh breadcrumbs

¼ c. parmesan

3 T. olive oil

½ c. slivered almonds

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to the boil while you proceed with making the sauce.
Saute the onions and red pepper in the butter (or use some of the chicken fat from the skimmed stock plus butter to equal 6 T.) until they are starting to soften.  Add the garlic and cook for one minute.  Add the mushrooms and saute until the mushrooms are softened.  Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for two minutes.  Add the brandy and the stock a little at a time, stirring continuously to make a smooth sauce.  Add the whipping cream and simmer for approximately 20 minutes until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  

While the sauce is thickening, cook the pasta to al dente (do not cook all the way), drain it, and cool down with cold water.  Set aside.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  When the sauce is thickened, add the thyme, parsley, and Parmesan.  Season with salt and pepper.  Off heat, add the chicken and spinach.  Stir well.

Add the oil to a skillet.  Slowly toast the almonds in the olive oil until lightly golden brown.  Add the oil and almonds to breadcrumbs.  Stir in the remaining Parmesan cheese.

Add the pasta to the sauce and stir well to combine.  Pour pasta into a large baking dish that has been lightly oiled.  Top with breadcrumb mixture.  Bake, uncovered until browned and bubbly, about 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes: A Lovely and Delicious Side Dish

Last night, I decided to finally cook the sirloin steak I had been dry aging for a dinner last weekend for a friend who never came to visit.  I didn't really feel like making all the side dishes I had planned for as they just seemed like too much work for a meal just for me.  So, I set out to see what I had in my refrigerator, freezer, and pantry.  I made this recipe up on the spot, and it was the absolute best part of the meal.  That week long dry aged steak au poive was good, don't get me wrong, but it was clearly overshadowed by this tomato. 

The tang of the ricotta salata along with the bitterness of the spinach made for a lovely, complexly flavored dish.  In fact, I liked it so much, I made it again for lunch today, so I could write down the recipe.

Ricotta Salata may not be readily accessible, but don't be daunted.  Next time you go to an Italian market, or a place that sells specialty cheeses, just keep this recipe in mind and buy a big block of this cheese.  It freezes very well and makes for a wonderful cheese on a simple salad.  It also tops pasta.  This cheese is somewhat like a good feta, or mizrithra.  It does not melt, and has a salty bite.

I hope you will enjoy this recipe as much as I  do.  Vegetarians, delight, meat eaters, alike.

Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes

(serves 4)

4 baseball sized tomatoes

1 T. olive oil

½ t. crushed red chile flakes

½ cup onion, chopped into ¼ inch pieces

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 slices sourdough bread (about 2 cups), cut into ¼-1/2 inch pieces

¼ c. half and half (or milk, or, go crazy and use cream)

1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed fairly dry

2 t. fresh thyme

¼ cup plus 2 T. ricotta salata (this is dried ricotta cheese, not the kind in a container), crumbled

Salt and pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cut off the top ¼ inch of the tomatoes, and reserve.  Run a knife (preferably a serrated knife along the inside wall of the tomato, being careful not to break through the bottom.  Use a tablespoon to scoop out the filling of the tomato.  Remove the seeds from the center of the tomato you’ve just removed.  Cut this, along with meat from the tops into ¼ inch pieces.  Use a spoon or your fingers to remove the seeds leftover in the inside of the tomatoes.  Salt the insides of the empty tomatoes with a sprinkling of Kosher salt and place upside down on a plate while you prepare the filling. 

Heat oil in a non-stick pan.  Add red chile flakes.  Saute onions in 1 T. olive oil until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and reserved tomato pieces.  Cook 1 minute.    Add sourdough bread and sauté for one minute longer.  Add ½ and ½ as well as the thyme.  Cook for 1 minute.  Add the spinach and cook for one additional minute.  Remove from heat and add ¼ cup ricotta salata.  Fill each of the tomato cavities to over flowing.  Press tightly.  Place the stuffed tomatoes in a lightly oiled pie tin.  Top with a sprinkling of the remaining ricotta salata.

Bake at 375 for 20 minutes until the skin of the tomato slightly splits and the top is slightly browned.

Have a Food Question? Just Ask!

My friend Amanda just emailed me a food question  about chiles and olive oil (not connected).  I just loved that she did this.  It happens often, actually.  I have been cooking for many years, and am an avid follower of good cooking shows (Julia Childs is my favorite!), and soak in cooking tips like a sponge. 

To that end, I have decided to suggest that you, as readers, ask me questions you have about food and cooking if you have any.  I will do my best to answer them, or to point you to a place where you can find an answer to any food questions you have.  And if I don't know the answer?  Well, I'll let you know that too.  I'm no expert, but am happy to offer any advise that I have.

Hatch Green Chile Stew: Community Dinner Fiesta

For the last 15 years, I have been holding what I call, "Community Dinner".  It started out in my apartment, every Sunday. I would cook for whomever would come.  Sometimes that would be 8 people, others, 30.  I loved doing this, but weekly was a bit much.  Nowadays, being a student keeps me from doing these as much as I'd like. But, with the addition of a small cast iron pan, people now pitch in to help pay for food, which is really nice.

Here's how they work. Perhaps you'd like to start doing this too.  I started with a core of my friends.  I send out an invitation stating what the meal will be, and the deal, which is....come, bring a beverage for yourself, and bring a few bucks to help with food costs. Be prepared to meet new people.  If you like the experience, bring someone new the next time you come. You can imagine that over the years, I've met many new people this way, and have made many friends.  Old, young, graduate students, carpenters, house cleaners, artists, musicians.  Folks of all shapes, sizes, walks of life. It is wonderful.

Boone is often my co chef for these affairs.  Nowadays, I invite people to come cook with me if they want. This week was no exception.  With the help of Peter, Scotland, and Jan, Boone and I were able to make a feast for 20 on Saturday night.

We made the stuffed poblanos that are listed on this blog, a jicama salad, homemade corn as well as flour tortillas, and this lovely green chile stew.  I also made a pound cake with lime zest and candied ginger, which was delicious, but a disaster in some ways (it didn't cook evenly so when I unmolded it, part fell off....) I did a lot of searching for a recipe for this stew and found some variation.  Together, Boone and I decided to use as the base, the recipe from the Santa Fe School of cooking.  We adapted this a bit, and the result was lovely.

Now, I have to admit that what makes this simple stew so amazing is an ingredient that is difficult to come by. It is Hatch Green Chiles.  These are some amazing chiles with a flavor that cannot be replicated by "green chiles" in a can, or California (Anaheim) chiles.  The flavor of these Hatch chiles is something ethereal. They are a bit smoky, but not overwhelmingly.  My sister graciously sent me 10 pounds of the chiles this summer, which I happily roasted and froze in small batches of 8 chiles each.

The most difficult part of this stew is the chiles themselves.  With this batch, I just roasted, cooled and then froze them, seeds, stems and skins in tact.  This left Boone with the daunting and time consuming task of peeling and then deseeding the chiles (it is vital to deseed these, as they are HOT! even though these were the medium heat chiles.)  When you do this, do your skin and eyes (or other precious parts) a favor, and wear gloves.  If I get another batch this summer, I will split them after roasting, then deseed them while they are still warm. I will keep the skins on for protection in the freezer.

The recipe we used from the Santa Fe cooking school called for pork shoulder.  We opted not to use the shoulder for health reasons and opted to use a pork loin. I  know!  You would think it would be tough when stewed, but trust me, with the double cooking method described below, you will have pork so tender it will fall apart with the touch of a fork.  This recipe makes enough stew to feed about 15-20 hungry people.  I recommend serving it with warmed corn tortillas.

If you make this stew, or any of the recipes on this blog, for that matter, please comment upon them for others and for me too!  Perhaps you will do something that will make these ideas even better.

Hatch Green Chile Stew
5 lbs. pork loin (whole loin)
salt
pepper
olive oil
4 cups white onion, 1/4-1/2 inch dice
1 T. vegetable oil (I like to use Canola oil for my neutral oil)
3 T. garlic, crushed
8 cups chicken broth (preferably homemade)
3 lbs. russett potatoes, cut in 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 cup flour mixed with 1/2 cup water or broth
salt to taste
3 cups Hatch green chiles, peeled, seeded and chopped in 1/2 inch pieces (or more to taste)
1 red, yellow or orange bell pepper, 1/4 inch dice
cilantro (optional)

Directions
Turn oven to 300 degrees.  Rub the loin with the oil and season well with salt and pepper.  Tie the roast at 1 inch intervals to tighten up the roast so it will cook evenly.

Heat a roasting pan on the stove top.  Place the roast in the pan and sear on all sides for about 3 minutes per side until browned.  Place the pan in the oven and roast until a thermometer reads 140 degrees.  This will take approximately an hour. 

While the roast cooks, prepare the chiles.  Saute the onions in the vegetable oil until golden, about 8 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer.  Add the chicken broth.  Let this simmer on low until the roast has cooked and rested.  When the roast has rested for at least 20 minutes, remove the string and cut it into 1 inch cubes.  Put the pork in the broth.  Add the flour slurry and stir well.  Let this cook on a low simmer for 3 or more hours, adding broth if it gets too low. 

20 minutes before serving, add the potatoes and the chiles.  When the potatoes are nearly done (al dente), add the colored peppers and taste for salt and add more chiles if it is not hot enough for you.  Add cilantro if you choose (we left it out and had it on the side).  Serve when the potatoes are just cooked through.

Serve with queso fresco (Mexican fresh cheese), and sour cream.

Hot!

Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup): Packing in the flavor

I had the most lovely weekend. I was blessed with a catering gig with my professor and his wife, Bob and Bernadine on Sunday.  I was to prepare a brunch for Sunday for 15 people.  As there is nothing I love more than to spend time with my dear friends Bob and Bernadine, I did the cooking on Saturday at their house. I prepared four different quiches--Quiche Lorraine, Spinach and Chevre with Leeks, Wild Mushroom and shallots  with Gruyere, and Spinach and Mushroom with Gruyere.  I also made sharp cheddar, thyme and chive scones, a salad with homemade ranch dressing, and a fruit salad with a side dressing of homemade yogurt, lemon zest, ginger and honey.  A full day indeed.  The brunch was well received and appreciated.

Lucky for me, Saturday evening led to even more cooking.  My friend Peter, who is also a foodie like me, invited me over to make a meal for Chinese New Year.  He taught me how to make this amazing dish. It was kind of like a Chinese tamale.  Sticky rice cooked much like a risotto with pork, then rolled in eucalyptus leaves and steamed.  In turn taught Peter how to make pasta, so we had this interesting combination of homemade pasta with a ragu and these lovely Chinese rice bundles.  While enjoying our feast, we talked about Pho.  Peter is passionate about Pho.

Now, if you've never had Pho, I strongly encourage you to try it.  Now the thing about Pho is that it is all about the broth, so finding a good Pho can be a challenge. You may need to go to several Vietnamese restaurants before finding one that rocks your boat.  But be careful, once you find it, you'll want it often.  Pho is a lovely, complex beef or chicken based soup.

Since our conversation, I've not been able to get Pho off my mind.  So, I decided to make some this week.  My efforts began with an earnest internet search.  I found hundreds of recipes.  I did some comparing and found many similarities.  Bones, meat, star anise, cloves, ginger, fish sauce, and onions all at the base of the broth.  It is all about the broth.

As the idea of cooking up ten pounds of beef bones for a serving for four seemed a bit overzealous for a weeknight meal for one, I decided to make a chicken pho to start my learning process.  The following recipe is a compilation of several I found on the web.  It is amazingly rich and complex in flavor.

This recipe makes 4 quarts of broth.  The toppings are enough for 4-6 servings, which will leave you broth for another time.  It freezes well.  You may also just have more toppings (and more chicken breasts) available and serve a crowd of 10-12.
Pho Broth

4 lbs. skinless chicken thighs

2 chicken breasts, bone in, skinless
1 whole onion, peeled and cut in half
3-inch chunk of ginger, unpeeled

2 T. whole coriander seeds
4 whole cloves
3 whole star anise
2 T rock sugar (found at Asian markets)

3 T.  fish sauce

small hand full of cilantro stems

Directions

Place ginger and onion on a baking sheet. The top of the onion should be about 4″ from the oven’s heating element. Set to broil on high for 15 minutes. Turn the onion and ginger occasionally, to get an even char. The skin should get dark and the onion/ginger should get soft. Slice ginger into 1/4 inch thick slices.

Fill a large stock pot with water and boil. While the water is boiling, use a cleaver or heavy knife to break the bones of the thighs in at least 3 places (just give them a real good whack--but watch your fingers.  They should be nowhere near that chicken--yes, this is gross, but the more marrow you expose, the more rich your broth will be).

When the water boils,  boil the thighs on high for 5 minutes. You’ll see lots of foam come up to the surface. Drain, rinse your chicken of the scum and wash your pot thoroughly. Refill with 4 quarts of clean, cold water.

Add chicken, chicken breast, onion, ginger, cloves, anise, coriander, sugar, fish sauce and cilantro in the pot and cover. Turn heat to high – let it come to boil, then immediately turn heat to low. Prop lid up so that steam can escape. After 15 minutes, remove the chicken breasts, shred with your fingers when cooled and reserve for serving (you’ll serve shredded chicken breast with the finished soup). With a large spoon, skim the surface of any impurities in the broth. Skimming every once in a while ensures a clear broth. Simmer a total of 6-8 hours (yes, that long.  You can do it over night if you wish). Taste and adjust seasoning with more fish sauce and or sugar.

Strain the broth through cheesecloth and discard the solids (if you have a dog, he or she will love you for the meat from those thighs, but all the flavor has been sapped, so don't be tempted to eat it yourself--or do, but it won't taste too good.)

At this point, you can serve your soup, or you can cool the stock and remove any fat that coagulates on the surface.

Pho Soup
1 lb dried rice noodles (about 1/4″ wide)
2 cups bean sprouts, washed
cilantro tops
1/2 cup shaved red onions
1/2 lime, cut into 4 wedges

1/2 cup basil, chiffonade (sliced into thin strips by rolling up and slicing)

1/4 cup mint, chiffonade
Sriracha hot sauce
sliced Thai chilies

 Directions

Prepare noodles as per the directions on package (do not overcook). Reheat stock, if cooled.  Ladle broth into the bowls, add shredded chicken breast and soft noodles in each bowl. Have the rest of the ingredients at the table for people to add to their bowl as they wish. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

A- Traditional Spaghetti Carbonara: Lightening up dinner for a change

I love Spaghetti Carbonara.  I mean, love it.  Its richness, its texture.  It is actually my favorite thing to make with leftover pasta for breakfast.  The problem is is that I don't feel good about eating it.  I love good food.  At the same time, I struggle, because I want to eat healthy food, at least, most of the time.

Eating Spaghetti Carbonara seems wrong, somehow, to me.  So tonight, I decided to try to lighten it up, and to be honest, the product was successful, at least for me.  I have to be honest when I say that I usually don't like "light" recipes. I normally figure that if you are going to eat, you should eat.  But, sometimes I make exceptions.  I rarely eat beef, and will replace it with turkey without hesitation.  I use some low fat products such as mayonnaise, sour cream and milk, etc. And I rarely eat pasta that is not whole grain, except when I make it fresh.

Now to say that this is a "healthy" meal would be deceiving.  I'm sure it's not. But compared to it's counterpart, I feel fulfilled and don't feel badly about my dinner.  Traditional Carbonara is based on Pancetta (Italian Bacon), eggs, sometimes cream, and lots of cheese.  Carbonara is easy no matter what recipe you use.  The trick is not to curdle the eggs.  The way you do this is to mix it with cream (or in this case buttermilk) and to turn off the heat before adding it to the pasta.  I make sure to use fresh eggs for this (I like using free range organic eggs. I may be a student, but this is one of my few extravagant ingredients I will spend money on.  Well, this, and good Parmeggiano Reggiano--ok, there are others....)

This recipe as well as many others only take as much time as it takes to make pasta, so it is perfect for a busy day. Please try it and let me know what you think.

Shameem's Non-Traditional Spaghetti Carbonara
(serves one and I'm sure can be easily multiplied)

2 oz. whole grain spaghetti (I like Barilla whole grain, it doesn't taste too wheaty)
1 T. salt
2 quarts water

1/2 leek, cut in half, rinsed carefully in lots of water, and thinly sliced
4 Crimini mushrooms
1/2 t. olive oil
pinch salt
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup white wine
2 oz. Canadian bacon, roughly chopped

1 oz. Parmeggiano Reggiano, grated
1/2 oz. Pecorino Romano, grated
1 T. buttermilk
1 egg
1/4 t. black pepper, freshly ground, coarse
1 T. parsley

Directions
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot.  Once it is at a boil, add the salt.  Add your pasta.  Cook until just al dente (so that it still has a bit of a bite.)

While the water is coming to a boil, saute the leeks in olive oil with a pinch of salt for 3 minutes on medium heat.  Add the mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes more.  Add garlic and bacon and cook for one minute.  Add the wine and cook for one minute until the wine evaporates.

Mix the egg, buttermilk, pinch of salt, pepper and cheeses in a small bowl.

When the pasta is done, take the vegetables off of the heat.  Add the pasta using tongs.  Don't worry about a little extra water going into the pan.  Mix the pasta and the vegetables.  Add the eggs and cheese and mix well.  Top with parsley and extra pepper and serve immediately.

I hope you enjoy it!

Chicken, Caramelized Onion, and Arugula Sandwich: Beautiful to look at and eat

You may recall from reading my recipe for focaccia that I made that recipe just so I could try to replicate the amazing sandwich I had at Olympic Provisions in Portland, Oregon.  Remember, the place that literally made me cry?  There I had a sandwich that melted in my mouth.  It was fabulous.  Full of complex flavors.  It was a roasted pork loin sandwich made on homemade focaccia with homemade mayonnaise, escarole,and carmelized onions.  I made my version of this sandwich on Friday after my miserable excuse for a refrigerator (Amana, but I'll devote a whole blog to that disaster) exploded.  Well, the refrigerator didn't explode, but the glass shelf did, while in my hands.  Yes, you read that right.  I had removed the glass to clean it, and while walking to the sink, it literally exploded into tens of thousands of pieces while in my hands.  No, I didn't hit it on anything.  It scared the life out of me, and took two hours of my life away in cleaning time.

Anyways, I needed something to pick me up after that nightmare, so of course, I decided to cook. Unfortunately, I had no pork loin (not even in my freezer!), so I used chicken breast instead.  And as I did not have escarole, so I used arugula.  Now, don't be fooled.  This is no perfect recipe.  It is good, don't get me wrong. But the escarole had a textural integrity that the arugula did not, and the chicken breast was tasty, but was no roasted pork loin.  Worth trying?  Absolutely!  It comes in four parts. I know, a lot of work for a sandwich, but it not only is lovely, but tasty too.  Next time I'll give it a more accurate try and let you know how it turns out.

Focaccia
Rosemary Focaccia
2 1/2 cups (11.25 oz.) bread flour (I like King Arthur unbleached bread flour)
1 t. (.25 oz.) salt  (not kosher here, but rather fine grained salt)
1 t. instant yeast
3 T. (1.5 oz.) olive oil
1 cup (8 oz.) water, at room temperature
1/4 cup olive oil

Directions
Using the stand mixer, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast using the paddle attachment.  Add 3T. olive oil and water and stir until combined.  Change over to the dough hook.  Knead on medium low speed for 7 minutes or until you form a smooth, sticky dough that clears the sides of the bowl but sticks to the bottom.

Sprinkle a 6 inch square of flour on your counter.  Place your dough on the square.  Stretch it out to this size.  Lift each side and fold over in thirds, like an envelope.  Walk away for 5 minutes to let the gluten in the dough relax.  

Stretch the dough to be twice its size and fold over as before, in thirds.  Mist with spray oil, sprinkle with flour, cover with plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, repeat.

Let the dough ferment for one hour on your counter.  It should swell.  If your counters are stone, and it is winter, and if your house is cold like mine, this may take up to 3 or more hours depending on the temperature.  You will see pockets of bubbles on the surface of the dough when it is ready for the next step.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Drizzle with 2 T. olive oil. Lift the dough and place it on the parchment paper.  Put 2 T. olive oil on top of the rectangular dough.  Use your fingers to stretch it out until it is about 1/2 inch thickness.  Heavily dimple the surface with your fingers.  Sprinkle on the remaining 2 T. olive oil, 1 t. crushed dried rosemary, and 1/2 t. coarse sea salt.  Cover with plastic, or place in a plastic bag and let rest in the refrigerator (or on your cold porch) for at least 8 hours to retard the dough (this makes for a much more complexly flavored dough).  

3 hours before baking (or 6 if your kitchen is cold), redimple your dough and add more oil if desired.  Proof at room temperature for 3 hours or until about 1 inch thick.  Preheat your oven to 500 degrees with the oven in the middle position.  When the oven gets to temperature, put your focaccia in, lowering the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Turn the pan 180 degrees and continue to bake until browned, about 5 minutes.

Immediately transfer the dough to a cooling rack.  Allow to cool for 20 minutes before slicing or serving.

Mayonnaise
1 egg
2 t. lemon juice
1/2 t. salt
1 t. white wine vinegar
1 t. Dijon mustard
2 cups canola oil


Directions
For this recipe, you'll need either a food processor, blender, or bowl and whisk.  It is almost foolproof with a food processor, but I've had some difficulty with my mayonnaise breaking when using a blender. I made this last week with the food processor after failing with the blender. It was super easy!  Place your egg and lemon juice in the processor.  Process for 5 seconds.  Add the salt, vinegar and mustard.  Process 5 more seconds.  Next, fill a 2 cup glass measuring cup.  If you have a small hole in the bottom of your plunger mechanism of the food processor, start the processor and begin to pour in the oil into the plunger. It will stream in the oil at the perfect speed.  Do this until all of the oil has been emulsified.  To do this with  the blender or in a bowl, follow the first set of instructions up to when you add the oil.  Then, very slowly, in a very thin stream, whisk or blend in the oil until emulsified. Homemade mayonnaise is amazing.  There is no replacement, particularly in something simple like this sandwich.


Chicken

1 t. canola oil
2 t. Cajun seasoning (mix of thyme, onion and garlic powder, salt, pepper, and paprika)


Directions
Turn your broiler on to low if you can.  Else on to high.  Place your chicken breast, one at a time, between 2 pieces of plastic wrap.  Gently pound the breast to equal thickness.  It does not need to be very thin, just the thickness of the thinnest part of the breast.  Place the breasts onto a cookie sheet, spread with oil and seasonings.  Broil on low (or 8 inches from a high broiler) for about 7 minutes until lightly browned.  Flip and repeat.  Cook until the chicken feels firm to the touch.  Note:  the amount of time it will take to cook yor chicken breasts will be completely dependent on the amount of heat that is coming from your broiler.  Just keep and eye on them, checking every few minutes.  Do not overcook them.  As soon as they are firm to the touch, they are done.


Sandwich
2 medium onions, sliced to about 1/4 inch thick
1 t. olive oil
pinch of salt
Arugula
Mayonnaise
Focaccia


Directions
Slice your focaccia to be about the size of your chicken breasts. You'll need two pieces per sandwich if you made your focaccia 1 inch thick as was suggested.  If it is more thick, you can slice one piece in half through the middle to make two pieces.


Caramelize your onions in the olive oil with the salt on medium low heat until deeply golden brown.


When your chicken is cooked through, let it rest out of the oven for at least five minutes.  While the chicken is resting to redistribute the juices, lightly toast your focaccia on both sides in the broiler.


Spread mayonnaise on each slice of focaccia.  Top with caramelized onions, chicken breast, and arugula.  Sprinkle salt and pepper on the arugula and enjoy!