Almost Summer grilled chicken skewers

I have looked at the cover on the outdoor grill all Winter long, I know it was not much of a Winter but I still had it covered. Anyway the cover is off and let the grilling begin. Over the weekend my Daughter and I bought some nice organic chicken from the local store and we discussed what we were going to make. I then remembered the long bamboo skewers in the kitchen drawer and I idea was born. We cut large cubes of the chicken and threaded on wet skewers. (so they won't burn) Then a quick marinate of fresh chopped rosemary, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice. We then placed the skewers on the hot clean preheated grill and turned every few minutes until done. We served one skewer per person along with red skinned mashed potatoes.

Curried yellow split peas with rock snapper

This was a fast one pan dinner of garlic, onion, curry paste simmered with yellow split peas, then when tender rock snapper fillets were quickly poached in the peas. A note when buying fish, check the label after purchase, I didn't and was charged $22 for 8 ounces of the wrong fish, was it worth it the price? yes!

shellfish risotto

I had family in town from Maui, Hawaii recently and it was a opportunity to do my verison of some of my favorite local flavors. First I started with Acme crusty sourdough bread and with cowgirl creamery Red hawk cheese, then a classic Caesar salad with home made croutons and dressing, for the main course it was prawn, mussel, clam and dungeness crab "cioppino style" risotto. They loved it and vowed to make back home in Maui, I hope to be there when that happens.

Chicken Enchilada

Enchiladas are true South of the border comfort food, a rich stuffed rolled corn tortilla covered in red or green sauce with a layer of cheese melted on top. These were made with cooked shredded chicken from a roast I made the night before, then its just a five second fry in oil for the corn tortillas so they are soft for stuffing and rolling, next the chicken goes on top of a tortilla with grated cheese, roll it up and place in pan, cover with red or green sauce, grate more cheese on top and put in a 350F oven for about 20-30 minutes till hot and bubbly. Try it with spicy red chili sauce or the tart green tomatillo based sauce then break out the hot sauce and chopped cilantro!

Salmon, wild or farmed?

Fresh Salmon is one of the most popular fish eaten today, but there is a cloud of controversy surrounding Salmon now. Most Salmon available is farm raised from Northern countries like Canada and Norway. I was surprised to learn that the feed for the fish gives the farmed Salmon its trademark red-orange color, normally what the Salmon feeds on gives the fish its color naturally. Wild Salmon is only available for a short season and that changes every year depending on the fish population and the price is high. Every once in a while I get a craving for Salmon and I will get a New Zealand organic farmed fish fillet, its not the same as Wild but its a change from Halibut or Snapper. To cook all it needs is a dash of kosher salt and fresh pepper place into a hot cast iron pan then into a 375F oven for about ten minutes, it will develop a golden crisp crust that just needs a squeeze of lemon.

Chicken and dumplings

My youngest daughter is now helping dreaming up ideas of dishes to try to make and she wanted to do the classic chicken and dumplings. She had the idea to make it a few days ago when it was cold and rainy. Today its warm like the first day of spring, but the chicken went into the pot as planned. First I started by deboning chicken legs and making a stock with the bones, as the stock was simmering I diced onion, carrot and celery and sauteed the vegetables with a little olive oil, then I added the chicken meat and the stock which was strained, then bring the soup to a simmer and cook till the meat and vegetables are tender. The dumpling dough is made with flour, water, baking powder, salt, chopped parsley and believe it or not a little dollop of mayonnaise. Spoon small teaspoon size dollops of dough into the simmering soup. after 15 minutes its done, check for seasonings and serve in bowls with crusty rustic bread.

Chicken gumbo

This is a old favorite of mine that is true comfort food with many layers of flavor. I met Chef Paul Prudhomme once at a restaurant I was working at and was very impressed by his attitude and style of cooking, he is known as the godfather of Cajun style cooking and there is a little bit of his style in every bowl I make. My Gumbo is made up of a combination of flavors, the southern "trinity" of onion, celery and green bell pepper cooked till soft and caramelized, smoked spicy sausage, shredded chicken meat and nutty brown roux added at the end to thicken. Slow simmered then ladled over a mound of simple steamed rice. Maybe garnish with chopped green onions and for me a healthy splash of Louisiana crystal hot sauce!

Note: Okra can be used but a lot of people don't like it, so its optional if you want to use it.

Local Farmer's Markets

The local farmer's market can be found in most city's now and getting more popular as people are taking the time to learn and appreciate how and where their food comes from. Its almost like being a rebel against the big supermarkets with mass produced foods from the other side of the world. We are lucky here in the bay area to have a market somewhere everyday of the week, with the big one in Marin County on Sunday. You will find everyone from Marin county foodies, local chefs and lot of families, its a year round, rain or shine operation. Besides vegetables, seafood and meat, there are also local food stands selling Indian, Mexican and organic cooked foods. I have been coming here for the last 12 years and I love it, nothing like buying from the farmer who grew the food and picked it that morning and it goes into my saute pan that night!

Chicken cordon blue

Doing another version of chicken tonight and came up with this, no its not my idea, but new to the kids and they love it. Crispy panko breaded chicken stuffed with ham and melted swiss cheese oozing out. Start by butterflying and pounding flat a chicken breast, add a slice of ham and a slice of cheese, fold over and secure with toothpicks, flour, eggwash and panko breadcrub, put in hot saute pan with olive oil for a few minutes, then flip over and put in 350F oven for 20-25 minutes or till done.

"Try different variations like prosciutto and mozzarella or sun dried tomato, basil and jack cheese"

Slow food

Allot of people are becoming more concerned about unhealthy mass produced fast foods that are being spreading around the world in the form of franchise food chains. A non-profit organization called slow food originating in Italy in 1989, with the idea of holding on to food traditions and the simple cooking of fresh local foods before the days of microwaves and mass processing. I am all for it, I was never really into fast foods and now I stay away completely. My kids haven't been to Mc Donald's in years and have no desire to eat frozen processed foods. I love the fact that my kids are now learning to cook from scratch using fresh local organic foods, often from the local farmers market. Only a occasional can of tomatoes might be used in the winter and only because winter tomatoes are poor quality and have traveled across a few time zones.

Farmer's market strawberries and puff pastry for dessert

This last weekend I made a trip to the local farmers market and between rain showers I found a lot of nice fruits and vegetables. There were beautiful strawberries, 10 for a dollar kiwi and blood oranges at a dollar a pound, on and on. The strawberries I bought with the idea of dessert for the kids tonight. To start I thawed some puff pastry that I always keep in my freezer (you should too) and cut a square design, then a little egg wash and into a hot oven to cook while the kids finished eating, when the pastry is done I let it cool and fill with sliced organic strawberries, top with a dollop of whip cream and the kids are promising to clean there rooms and help around the house.

Crab Feed!

Northern California Dungeness crab with chili and garlic
pesto

Around the world people celebrate local foods and here in Northern California there are many seasonal foods that are enjoyed, but when its crab season, watch out, fresh cooked and cracked dungeness crab, sourdough french bread and a great Napa Chardonnay is all you need! Local organizations will hold fund raisers by having all you can eat crab and pasta dinners. I went to a fund raiser for my kids school last night and it was amazing!. San Francisco restaurants donating wines, salads, antipasto, fresh pesto pasta, local crabs done two ways and Italian desserts. It was a food lovers paradise.

Chicken posole soup

Its been a very mild and dry winter so far this year, but when it rains hot chicken soup sounds like a good idea. This is basic chicken soup with a little help from Mexico. The key ingredient is Hominy which is corn with the outer skin of the kernel removed, very common ingredient in southern states and Mexico. Start with diced yellow onions, garlic, carrot, celery and pasilla chili pepper, saute till soft then add hominy, chicken leg meat, oregano, water or chicken stock and chili powder. Bring to a simmer for a hour, check for proper seasoning then finish with a squeeze of lime.

Super bowl chili

Here is a basic coarse ground beef and red bean chili that I make often for my friends that like chili. Other ingredients can be added to make different variation's, options are endless using different beans, meats and seasonings. Great to make in a huge quantity for a crowd and to freeze for future meals.





Ingredients:
1 pound bulk country sausage
1 pound bulk chili grind beef
2 T cumin
3 T red chili powder
1 T smoked Spanish paprika
1 fresh diced pasila chili pepper
3 diced yellow onion
1 bulb diced garlic
2 cans organic diced tomato
1 small can tomato paste
3 quarts water
2 pounds dry red beans
salt/pepper

1. Saute all the vegetables in vegetable oil.
2. Add meat and brown.
3. Add the beans and cover with water, bring to a simmer and cook till beans are tender, about 2-3 hours, Check seasoning before serving.

Note: Garnish with your choice of grated cheese, diced onion, chopped cilantro, hot sauce, sour cream, etc.

Apple pastry dessert

This is a quick make ahead dessert using store bought frozen puff pastry sheets and a filling of apples and raisins. Start by thawing the pastry sheets, during this time make the filling by peeling and cutting the apples into half inch cubes, the tart Gravenstein apple are great for cooking.

Cook these in a saute pan with a little butter, raisins, brown sugar and Cinnamon till tender, Let cool to room temperature. Cut puff pastry into 6x4 inch rectangles, spoon filling onto half of the square and fold over, crimp the edges and cut slits on the top to allow steam to escape while baking. Brush with a beaten egg and sprinkle coarse raw brown sugar on top. Bake on sheet pan in a preheated 375F oven and bake for around 15-20 minutes or untill golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream while its still hot. Note any kind of fruit can be used in the filling.