Blue Scones

Here's an easy recipe that'll take you 25 minutes!

Blueberry Scones

Ingredients

2 cups flour
3 Tbsp sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top (optional: use raw/turbinado sugar instead for sprinkling)
3/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp baking powder
6 Tbsp cold butter, cubed
1 tsp lemon zest
1 pint fresh blueberries
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 eggs

Method

Preheat oven to 400F. Sift together first four ingredients in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a fork such that the butter are pea sized. Stir in blueberries and zest.

Lightly whisk cream and eggs in a measuring cup. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add cream and egg mixture. Using a fork, stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until the dough comes together. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly (not crushing berries) a few times to mix well.

Pat dough into a 6 inch square that is 1 1/4 inch thick. Cut the square into 4 3-inch squares. Cut each square diagonally to yield 8 triangles. Transfer triangles to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush tops with heavy cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20-22 minutes until tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool on a rack.

As Seen On TV...or as tasted

A couple of days ago, I was watching "America's Worst Cooks" on the Food Channel, and Anne Burrell's team was making her version of Chicken Cacciatore with squash. Just thinking about it made me want to make it for dinner. Plus, we were expecting close to 8" of snow Tuesday night, so it would be a great dinner to have for the cold weather.

This is a recipe from Saveur Magazine. It's called a Hunter's dish, because this dish was often made before a big hunt so that the hunter would be full of energy. The hunter's wife always made this dish, and so is named after her.

Pollo alla Cacciatora.
Serves 4

Ingredients

8 pieces of chicken (thighs and drums)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 28-oz can of peeled, whole tomatoes, chopped and juice reserved

1.5 cup white whine

1 tsp Italian dry herbs

1 bay leaf

1 cup Italian parsely, finely chopped, 1 tbsp reserved for garnish

0.5-1 cup chicken stock

Olive oil

Salt/Pepper to taste

Method

In a deep pan on medium high heat, saute onions until golden (~5-8 minutes). Add garlic and saute (3-4 minutes). Push the onions to one side and add the chicken and brown (4 min each side). Add wine and cook until liquid is gone (8-10 min).

Add tomatoes and juice, dried herbs, parsely, bay leaf and season to taste. As the tomato liquid reduces, add chicken stock to keep the pan moist. Simmer for 45 min uncovered.

Garnish with parsley. Serve with white rice or steamed potatoes.

Filipino Dishes

My wife's director was having a party at her house. My wife also mentioned to her that I was a good cook, so I felt that I needed to impress her with my skills. She is Filipino, so I made pork rib adobo and maja blanca. The pork rib adobo is very easy to make, and I've added some of my twists to shorten the time. The maja blanca is a traditional favorite among Filipino families, and I heard that it's not something people would make everyday; it's a special dessert.


Pork Rib Adobo

Ingredients
2-2.5 lb pork ribs, sawed in half and cut into individual ribs
1 C (8 oz can) unsweetened pineapple juice
2 bay leaves
1/4 C light soy sauce
6 peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp white vinegar
1 C water
2 tsp corn starch
1/4 C brown sugar
2 Tbsp ketchup
5 Tbsp dark soy sauce


Method

1. Fill a large pot with water, enough to cover the ribs. Bring to a boil then add the ribs. Bring to a boil again and then simmer 5 minutes. Remove the ribs, and clean out the pot.

2. Put ribs back into the pot. Add the garlic, pineapple juice, bay leaves, peppercorns, vinegar, and light soy sauce to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for about45 minutes. Make sure to stir the pot halfway through to make sure all the meat absorbs the flavor.

3. Remove the ribs from the pot, and turn up the heat to high to reduce the liquid. Mix the corn starch with 4 Tbsp water. When liquid is reduced by half, add the corn starch slurry, brown sugar, ketchup and dark soy sauce. Continue to stir until sauce has thickened. Taste and season. Put the ribs back into the sauce to coat, and then place onto serving dish.


Maja Blanca

Ingredients
1/2 C coconut milk
1 C rice flour
1 C sugar
1/2 C corn starch
3-4 Tbsp sweet corn kernels
4 C fresh coconut milk or water
1/4 diced young coconut meat (or grated coconut, optional)*
*1 young coconut will yeald 2 cups coconut water and 1/4 C coconut meat. If you use the coconut water, the dessert will be somewhat transluscent (see picture). If you use coconut milk, the dessert will be white.


Method
Prepare the Latik in advance
1. Pour coconut milk into a saucepan and bring to a boil for 1 hour. Wait until the oil separates and a brown precipitate forms. This brown precipitate is called Latik. Drain the Latik from the oil and set aside. (Optional: Spread Latik on parchment paper. Drizzle a little coconut oil over the Latik and sprinkle some sugar to sweeten it up a bit.)

2. Grease a 13-inch rectangular dish with the coconut oil (prepared above). Set aside.

3. In a medium-sized pot, blend rice flour, sugar, corn starch, sweet corn kernel, coconut meat, and coconut milk or water.

4. Start to boil over medium heat. When it starts to bubble, reduce heat to low and stir with a wooden spoon constantly to prevent lumps. Wait until mixture is clear to opaque after 5-7 minutes.

5. Pour the hot mixture into prepared dish and allow to set. Sprinkle Latik over the set mixture, and let it cool before serving.


Enjoy,

TH

Pork Skin J-E-L-L-O!

Every country has their own gelatin-based dish, whether it be sweet or savory. In the US, there's fruit flavored Jello, either on its own or mixed with fruit or salad. In Europe, there's head cheese, which is not really cheese per se, but a molded mass of head and/or foot meat and gelatin. And there's China with their pork skin gelatin. I'm not familiar with this dish, but my wife says it may originate from Northern China. It's a relatively simple dish to prepare and they say it's good for your skin, because of the collagen, and has very little fat.

Ingredients:

5 lbs pork skin

1 bunch scallions divided, half cut into 1 inch lengths and half chopped

2-3 slices of ginger

2-3 star anises

soy sauce

1/4 cup

4-5 Tbsp Chinese wine/mirin

1-2 Tbsp sugar

For serving:

Sesame oil

Black Vinegar

Cilantro

Dry chili paste (optional)

Method:

1. Bring a pot of water (enough to cover the pork skin) to a boil, and blanch the pork skin for 3-5 minutes. Remove the skin and dispose of the water. Clean pot.

2. Remove excess fat from the skin. Slice pork skin lengthwise 1/2 inch wide, then cut crosswise at 1 inch lengths.

3. In a pressure cooker, add scallions, ginger, pork skin, wine, soy sauce, star anise, sugar, and enough water to cover the skin. Put on lid and cook on high heat for about 20-25 minutes or until steam is ready.

3. Remove and discard scallions, ginger and star anise. Add the pork skin and liquid and chopped scallions to the bowls that will be used as molds. Stir to mix well. Refrigerate overnight.

4. Unmold and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Dress with sesame oil and black vinegar, and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Enjoy!

TH

Sssss...Snake Gourd

So last night, I went to Patel Brothers (http://www.patelbros.com/) to grab some ginger and garlic (they have very reasonable prices on produce!), and I usually like to browse the Indian vegetables. I came across a vegetable that looks similar to the Chinese okra (aka loufa), but is longer. It's called a Snake Gourd or Potlakaya.

As you can see from the pic, it's green with white streaks that run along its length. The vegetable ($1.99/lb) is somewhat light and has a smooth skin. At the store, I Googled for a recipe and found an Indian recipe called, Snake Gourd Curry. Obviously, I would do my own twist on this recipe (see recipe to follow).

There is not much flavor to the vegetable alone, but it does take on flavors pretty well. It is easy to cook as it releases moisture pretty easily, so you wouldn't need to add water. It is tender when cooked. Word of caution: don't eat the seeds!

Snake Gourd Curry (not really)

2 Snake gourds

1 Tbsp mustard seeds

1 Tbsp paprika

1 Tbsp turmeric

1 Medium onion, large dice

1/4 lb pork, thinly sliced

1/4 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut (optional)

Salt to taste

1. Wash gourd and peel the outer skin. Cut lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and slice crosswise.

2. Heat oil in pan and add mustard seeds. After the mustard seeds have stopped cracking and popping, add onions and saute until brown. Add paprika and turmeric.

3. Add pork and toss. When pork has turned pink, add the sliced gourd and salt. Cover and cook at medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add coconut and toss for a few minutes before serving.

You can definitely make this recipe better by adding cumin, coriander, garam masala, etc., except I have a picky eater at home, so i didn't add these ingredients.

TH

Tropical Sunrise

So, I made this drink today, because it was so damn hot. I call it a Tropical Sunrise. Sounds corny, I know, but it tastes really good. It's simple to make. Just a few simple ingredients in a tall Collins glass: ice, Bundaberg rum, mango drink/puree, sparkling water, and a few drips of grenadine. Give it a swirl and enjoy!

Cooking Club - French Theme

Last night, my friend started the first cooking club, where each guest would bring in a dish for the theme. Last night's theme was French food. There was a lot of good wine and food, especially two of his dishes, Coq au vin and Beef Bourguignon. Although his dishes were a blast, mine was loved by many as well. It is Julia Child's Chou Fleur a la Mornay Gratine (Cauliflower au gratin with cheese).

It turned out pretty good, especially it was the first time I've made bechamel. The recipe is pretty easy: boiled cauliflower, bechamel with cheese (Swiss and parmesan), and bread crumbs. I guess it was just a little time consuming with the bechamel sauce and trying to get it right. I should have cooked the cauliflower florets ahead of time, because things get messy when you try to do everything at once, like in Mrs. Doubtfire when she tries to make a gourmet meal and ends up setting her bossoms on fire. At least I still have my eye brows.

Also surprisingly, the recipe doesn't call for that much butter or heavy cream. I only used 3 tablespoons of butter, but I did double up on the cheese.

Here's a quick recipe for you:

Cauliflower (Chou Fleur)
1 8 inch head of Cauliflower, florets removed
6-7 Quarts water
2-3 Tsp salt
1/2 cup milk (Optional - to keep cauliflower white)

Boil salted water, add cauliflower and bring to boil. Continue to boil 9-12 minutes until cauliflower is fork tender. You can leave it as is if you plan to use it right away, or you can rinse it in ice water to stop it from cooking.

Mornay Sauce (Bechamel with cheese)
2 cups milk
2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
salt/pepper
nutmeg
1/2-1 cup cheese (Swiss and parmesan, mix it up if you like)

Add 1 tsp of salt to the milk and bring to a boil. In a sauce pan, melt butter on low heat until melted, add flour a little at a time while stirring. When flour is mixed in well, turn off heat and continue to stir until it stops bubbling. Add hot milk to the flour-butter mixture all at once, and whisk fiercely to get the lumps out. Add salt/pepper/nutmeg to your taste. Turn the heat back on, bring sauce to a boil for 1 minute. The sauce will get thick. Turn off heat and add cheese and stir.

Assembly of Chou Fleur a la Mornay
Spoon a third of the Mornay sauce into a baking dish. Add the florets and arrange them on the sauce. Salt and pepper the florets. Spoon the remaining sauce over the cauliflower. JC separates the bread crumbs from the butter. I lightly toasted the bread crumbs in the butter before sprinkling them over the cauliflower. Bake in a preheated oven (375F) for 30 minutes before serving.

Enjoy,
TH