Prepraring Small Game | Colin Matthes

from Printeresting.org, more images at link.

 Colin Matthes

Happy Birthday Julia!

Also, for those who didn't know yesterday was Julia Child's 100th birthday. I celebrated with lemon-plum cake.
Here is a sweet article about her and Paul's family vacation home in Maine.

Julia At Rest

Roasting

Dearest HotDishes, What can I say but I have missed you. Amongst the chaos of gardening season and summer shenanigans, you have been put aside but not forgotten. But tonight, after weeding and harvesting the tomatoes and slowly savoring a lemon plum cake and a Southern Tier UnEarthly IPA, I know it was time to return.

So here I am in August. One of the reasons I love August the best of all the summer months besides its more temperate temperatures is that my garden is in high productivity mode and eating is so much easier, fresher and cheaper! While these delicious veggies are great straight of the garden they are also wonderful ROASTED!! Last summer, I wrote about roasting peppers but the other night I discovered a new love roasted eggplant.

I had purchased some eggplant at the public market and promised Ron I would make him some eggplant parmesan (one of my most favorite summer dishes) but then I stumbled upon a recipe for roasted eggplant ratatouille in the fabulous book A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg (side note: please read this book. It is lovely, entertaining and has some fabulous recipes) and so I decided to roast these eggplants and create a casserolesque concoction with said eggplant and a pile of other assorted vegetables on my counter. And we still have to come to best part! I made this along with Tuesdays dinner to be eaten on Wednesday, covered it with foil, popped it in the fridge and when I came home late from work Wednesday Ron had popped it in the oven and dinner was a mere 15 minutes away!

Weeknight Summer Vegetable Casserole

Slice 2 eggplants and toss in 2 Tbl of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Flip and cook another 10-15 minutes.

Cover the bottom of a 13x9 baking pan with tomato sauce (I used homemade you could also just use fresh tomatoes, a little garlic and some basil). Layer eggplant, sliced summer squash and any other veggies you find appropriate. Spread some about ¾ cup of ricotta cheese over veggies. Add another layer of sauce (or self-created tomato mixture). Add another layer of eggplant and squash. I ended with some freshly sliced tomatoes, some fresh ground pepper and of course a layer of mozzarella.

Bake at 350 covered for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake another 15 or until brown and bubbly.

We enjoyed this with a bottle of Dr. Konstantin Frank’s Semi-Dry Riesling and a 1990’s Nicholas Cage film.

PS I am slow roasting some tomatoes right now and if they are worth speaking about I will pass on the info!

'it's getting hot in here,' or 'YOLO'

can we talk about the weather for a second here? I hate the summer. specifically july. I don't mind summer nights, swimming, or a nice breeze, but this 95-degree-no-wind-no-rain-for-500-years thing really bothers me. NOW, mind you, I do not complain about the weather in any other month other than july, so I'm allowed to complain about july, right?

but I digress. every year around this time, I just get so sick of the summer and start craving things like warm soups and cardigans and going to the mall just to feel the big, soft, knit blankets at pottery barn that come out in the fall (am I the only one who does that? once I sat on the couch and put one on me. it was awesome). I hate making my kitchen hot though, so I eat sandwiches. a girl can only eat so many sandwiches though, which brings me to the point of this post (yes, there is one). I came across a great vegetarian jambalaya recipe on pinterest about a month ago and even though I wanted to make it right then, I didn't -- because I hate summer and I hate july and I want to sit at pottery barn with blankets on!! jambalaya is hot, spicy, uses the stove, and dirties dishes -- 4 things my sandwich-eating-self couldn't mentally deal with in july.

so I just thought about it a lot. a LOT. and then I got sick of thinking and sick of letting july win, so I just made the f-ing jambalaya already. I was all like, "live every day like it's your last! carpe diem! fight fire with fire! YOLO!" (okay not the last one, I'm not that cool. I just heard that on the 'streets' the other day and knew that's what all the cool kids were saying. thought I'd incorporate that into a post about jambalaya. obviously.). anyways -- standing over my stove, sauteeing sausage and peppers in my 100 degree kitchen was not fun at the time, but the resulting pot of amazingness was worth it. it will be better in January after I get back from pottery barn though.

this recipe serves 6 and it's vegetarian -- I added meat though (this particular time, I added andouille sausage, bacon, ham, and shrimp).

1 medium onion, chopped

3 stalks of celery, chopped

1 pepper, in the color of your choice!, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tsp. olive oil

3 tomatoes, chopped

2 c. water

1 c. long grain rice

2 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

salt, paprika, cayenne, chili powder, pepper - to taste (I like it hot).

In a large skillet, saute the onion, celery, creen pepper, and garlic in oil until tender (add meat right ...NOW, if you want it in there). add the tomatoes, water, rice, soy sauce, parsley, and spices and stir and smile and sweat and love your jambalaya. this is a necessary step. once it's heated through, you can bring it to a boil and then bring it down to a simmer and cover it on the stove until all of the liquid is absorbed, OR transfer it to a baking dish and cover it and bake it for an hour at 350 degrees.

(*I apologize for the phone photo! my real camera died)

Also, pretending you're emeril lagasse while making jambalaya is absolutely a necessary part of this whole process, but I will let you use your own discretion with that. 

-Hannah

Dreams Really Do Come True

Last night, Tap and Mallet in Rochester, NY hosted a celebrity guest
near and dear to my heart.. the one, the only, Mr. Garrett Oliver.
Brewmaster at the Brooklyn Brewery. Author of The Brewmaster's Table.
Editor of The Oxford Companion to Beer. Yes, Garrett Oliver. The event
was a 5 course beer pairing dinner and it most certainly did not
disappoint. Let me preface this by saying that Mr. Oliver's book The
Brewmaster's Table has been a huge inspiration in my beer pairings and
the way he writes about food is my favorite form of poetry. When I
heard that Garret was coming to town and saw the menu for this dinner,
Allison and I immedietly rushed to buy tickets. For the next two
weeks, we read and reread the menu and the excitement mounted. On the
day of we spent an hour picking out an outfit classy enough for the
honor of dining with Garrett yet not too fancy to think that we were
stalkers. Finally, we arrived, found our place at the table, nervously
figeted until.. in walked the man, the myth, the legend. Dressed
impeccable in navy slacks, a white and blue striped button down, with
a navy Brooklyn blazer, Garrett strode in was handed a summer ale in a
tulip glass, tossed jokes about where he was seated and took his place
in the front of the room.



To start the evening the lovely crew at Tap and Mallet gave us a
veggie tray with some sort of phenomenal dip.. I believe it was an
aioli with a delightful lemon flavor and some herbyness.. I think it
was dill. This was paired with Brooklyn's Summer Ale, an English Style
Pale Ale. The whole experience was light and refreshing as was
listening to Garrett speak about some of his beer travels, some beer
history and the history of food becoming too over processed. He joked
about Kraft singles and Kenny G, holding the attention of the whole
room.



The first course was a Micro-Nicoise Salad with Cider-Dijon
Vinegarette. Now, I don't know about you, but I did not know what a
nicoise salad was until the plate arrived. On it was a few wedges of
iceberg lettuce arranged around and atop it were sliced potatoes,
green beans, hard boiled eggs, kalamata olives tomatoes, smoked salmon
and a spicy goat cheese all topped with a delicious vinegarette. The
combo of all these goodies was divine. I found myself pondering what
things would be best in the same bite.. salmon and potato, egg,
lettuce and tomato, goat cheese and green bean, egg and olive. Every
combo was a delight.. and the best part, The Beer: Sirachi Ace Saison.
Now, this past year I have been quickly developing a large piece of
heart and palatte for Belgian beers particularly saison and I will say
this is one of the better I have drank. The sirachi hops used to brew
this beer were apparently a fluke in hop breeding and were not totally
popular because they had a scent of lemongrass and dill. The smell and
taste of these flavors were present in this beer in just the perfect
amount to the point that I could sip it all the day long. With a nice
carbonation and refreshing flavor, this was the perfect match to the
salad. At this point in the evening Garrett introduced us to his new
word.. PreSad. He uses this to describe when you are sad before
something happens because you know the good state you are in is going
to end. For example, when they made Sirachi Ace as a specialty beer,
they were always PreSad just before it ran out, so they would make
more. Finally, they realized it was too good and they needed to make
it all the time. So, if you come across some, buy it, drink it, thank
me.



Next up, Pulled Pork and Kimchi Pierogies with a Spicy Chili Sauce
paired with Blast Double IPA. These were not what I expected but still
amazing. When I hear pulled pork, I always get excited. These did not
have the usually barbeque flavor of pulled pork in fact the pork
flavor was slightly masked by the Kimchi a Japanese cabbage salad, but
that was A-ok because the kimchi blended with the spicy sweet chili
sauce to give it this fabulous Asian flavor. As Garrett says, "some
people think that an IPA is not a good match for spicy food because it
accentuates the spice, but what's wrong with that" (loosely quoted). I
totally agree. This delightfully hoppy IPA brought out the great spice
and was a wonderful pairing.



The third course took us to lamb. Moroccan Lamb Chops with Mint Yogurt
Sauce paired with Mary's Maple Porter. Lamb is not my favorite meat
but this was cooked to perfection. It had a really nice spice to it
that was cooled by the mint sauce and I found myself gnawing the bone.
The Maple Porter was fermented with real maple syrup from the family
syrup farm in Syracuse of Mary (quality control girl at Brooklyn). I
would be proud to have this beer named after me. It was a really solid
porter with a subtle maple flavor but not a lot of sweetness. On their
own, the beer and food for this course were superb, however I can't
say they complimented each other. The coolness of the mint sauce was a
strange combo with the porter. The lamb with another sauce I think
could have matched well with the porter. If I may be so bold, I might
suggest scotch ale like we did at our beer dinner in the summer of
2011 with the lamb burgers with mint aioli.. but who am I.



Now.. The Jem. In every beer pairing dinner, I have experienced there
is always one pairing that wows everyone. Takes their breath away,
makes you think you could never eat that dish without the select beer
and vice versa. This was that pairing. Arancini with Tomato Gorgonzola
Cream Sauce paired with Wild Ale.

First, the food. Until I recieved the menu for this dinner I did not
know what arancini was, so I did what any person would do I googled it
and found it was risotto balls, breaded and fried. Immediately, I was
intrigued. This wonder grew when I was given some mushroom arancini at
the Wishing Well Restaurant in Saratoga last weekend (I may or may not
have pretended I was trying them for the first time 10x so I wouldn't
be judged). These were sausage arancini although that flavor was
masked by the little pocket of smoked mozarella in the center. Nothing
like a suprise pocket of cheese to win this girl's heart. The sauce
also added a divine flavor I can't even begin to describe. The beer is
a rare one of Brooklyn that is aged in whiskey barrels and fermented with Wild Yeast. It topped out at about 9% so it was
strong in both flavor and alcohol. The way it smoothly rolled across
your tongue was not something I will soon forget. The flavors of the
smoky arancini with the strong sweet ale played together so well that
I would be willing to arrange a play date for them at my table
everyday forever.
When we finally arrived at dessert, the Tap and Mallet chefs continued
to bring their A-game. Cheesecake Rangoons. Imagine little crispy
fried dough pockets filled with cinnamon cheesecake and smothered with
raspberry ganache. I literally had to lick my plate for this one.
Garrett paired this one with a Black Ops stout, a lovely smooth beer
that is bottle fermented with champagne yeast. After dinner, there was
a chance for autographs and photos with Garrett and then we all
floated home on a cloud and dreamed of the magic.

Gettin' Saucy

So I have been thinking a lot about ravioli lately and how I have a ravioli press and never use it. During this period of thinking, I came to the conclusion that chicken and olives would be a fab combo inside a little pasta pocket.. but what sauce to top it with?? So I pondered, googled, emailed my posse and came up with 3 very different yet interesting options. Then I shopped, chopped, simmered and taste-tested and here my friends are the results for any of you out there who also feel that the question of sauce is a pressing dilemma.

First of for the ravioli, I coated 2 chicken with the juice of 2 lemons and some pepper covered it in foil and baked it in the oven til tender and done. Then I carmelized 3 small onions and chopped 3/4 cup of green olives, chopped the chicken and combined the ingredients. For the pasta, I mixed 2 cups of flour, 5 egg yolks, 1 1/2 Tbl olive oil and 6 TBl of water into a nice little dough. Then rolled it out with my pasta maker. Unfortunatley my ravioli presser was too small to handle such a thick filling so I formed them by hand which was a little tricky. Then boiled them in salted water for 3-4 minutes.
Now for the sauce..

Lemon Caper SauceThis recipe was inspired by Hannah's Chicken Picatta Pasta posted a few months ago and all I can say is thank you Hannah for introducing me to the magic of capers.
Saute 3 cloves of garlic and 1 shallot in a Tbl of butter. Add 1 cup of white wine, juice of half a lemon, 1 Tbl capers. Simmer for 10 minutes or until reduced.

This was a very tasty and easy sauce to prepare, however with the ravioli it overwhelmed the flavor of the chicken and olive ravioli. Allison said it felt like the flavors were fighting in her mouth, battling to be noticed. We came to the decision that it would be really delicious over just regular pasta maybe with some shrimp or fish. It would also be delicious to just pour over fish to bake or cook.

Puttanesca Sauce
When I surveyed my cook friends about what sauce to make for these fab ravs, Allison promptly responded with Puttanesca which I never in a million years would have thought of but let me tell ya it was grand.
Cook 4 cloves of garlic in olive for a few minutes. Add some anchovies. I put in about 6 because I wanted to have that great flavor but I may have over done it.. so maybe less. Cook for 3 minutes. Add 1 and 1/2 large cans of whole tomatoes. I used the ones with garlic and basil for added flava flav. Add 2-3 Tbl of capers (cuz they're AMMAZING!!), 1 Tbl dried basil (fresh if you've got it), handful of fresh chopped parsley, and some pepper. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Add 1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives. Simmer some more.

Again this sauce was amazing but the flavors just overwhelmed and we felt this would be great with strictly pasta but it didn't compliment the ravioli the way we wanted it to.

Spiced Tomato-Date SauceThis sauce was also inspired by another hot dish favorite, Megan's Date Me a Chicken. Now I immediately thought of date when I thought Chicken and Olives because of this dish and because I'm obsessed with dates. . not as obsessed as I am with capers but close.. actually maybe the same but in different ways... and actually as I write this I realize I probably should have added bacon to the raviolis to make them pair better with dates... but that's another story and another day.

Start by simmering 2 shallots and 2 cloves of garlic in olive oil. Add 6 dates chopped up. Cook til dates are soften. Add half a can of chopped or crushed tomatoes. I put in a little chili de arbol because I had it but you could easily through in a pinch of cayenne for the spice to this sauce. Add 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp coriander, and 1 tsp cumin. Cook down until it has thickened a bit and smells like a dream.

What can I say, Winner winner chicken olive ravioli dinner! This sauce not only was more delcious than expected but it mingled and complimented the ravioli bringing out a myriad of flavors dancing on my tongue. Hands down when I went to top my last ravioli, I chose this for seconds.
So there you have it the sauce competition of a lifetime. Maybe I need a life or maybe I'm living everyone's dream life.

Spring Market Inspiration

Nothing inspires me more to get wild in the kitchen than a morning at the Rochester Public Market. After weeks away, I finally was able to get there last Saturday. Clad in my weekend jeans and flannel with my fabulous woven basket, I wove my way through the crowds of shoppers scooping out produce and bargains seeking cooking inspiration. I always attempt to create a list before heading out to avoid buying way more food than I can eat in a week, but all those delightful vegetables always manage to seduce me. Just as I was ready to return home with chilled hands and a basket of onions, asparagus, peppers, grapes and other goodies, I was reeled in by a leafy bunch of greens.. fresh spinach and next to it radishes. I have never made anything with radishes but recently in my obsessive food reading they have been springing up everywhere igniting a fond curiosity. So what other choice did I have then to have the woman throw in a bunch of radishes with my bundle of spinach.
Monday night in an energetic burst I set about cooking three meals at once: Chorizo Red Pepper Omelet (Monday Dinner), Sweet Potato-Black Bean Veggie burgers (intended for Tuesday dinner but Chinese food won.. gonna try for Thursday) and Radish-Inspired Salad (Tuesday lunch). Here follows a fabulous recipe for a really tasty, healthy, and filling salad perfect for lunch to sustain you through a pre-vacation healthy eating week.. until you get sucked in by Sesame Chicken and eggrolls but.. that's a story for another day.

Radish-Inspired Salad
Cook 1/2 cup of quinoa with 1 cup of water until water is absorbed. Chill.
Clean a few cups of spinach and chop into bite sized pieces (You can use any greens you want. I used spinach because I had it; it's delicious; it's healthy).
Thinly slice 2-3 radishes (This task made me put mandoline up towards the top of my list of Kitchen Tools I Really Want/Need)
Place quinoa atop spinach. Top with sliced radishes and chopped pecans.
Mix 2 Tbl real maple syrup, 3 Tbl balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbl olive oil to make a dressing. Drizzle atop.
This is so yummy you won't even realize how healthy it is and you will probably want to lick the left over dressing out of the bowl.. just sayin'