Autumn is here!

Well, it's been a busy week. I've worked overtime in the office, rushed around in the evenings, and also celebrated our 4-year wedding anniversary last night! There's been little time for cooking and so we've been surviving off of leftovers and of course, my go-to, chicken breasts over arugula with lemon juice. Yummy! Autumn is definitely upon us, with cooler days, much cooler nights, and evenings that become dark much earlier. With Autumn comes different vegetables in season and heartier, heart-warming meals!

from Flicker - by bluebird218

It's time for a new menu...I know, we never got to visit Germany on our little culinary world tour. I couldn't find veal cutlets anywhere, so the Weiner Schnitzel went out the window. Next time I see them at the store, I'll be all over them, and we'll revisit that one. This weekend, I will work on that new menu, as well as hopefully get to the store for a little grocery shopping. I'm looking forward to soups, stews, and the re-appearance of parsnips, turnips and celeriac as stars of the dinner table.

What do you look forward to in the Autumn months? What would you like to see on the next menu? Leave me a comment and let me know - I know my husband has made a request for another batch of delicious Bi Bim Bap this time around, so I'm already on the right track to a full, delicious and hearty menu! I hope you all have a good weekend, and to all....a good night!

North African Comfort Food

It was a long day at work today, and I'm not feeling fantastic this evening, but I had one last menu item to create, and today was as good a night as any. The fact that comfort food is actually in the title helped a little bit too! :) So this meal is another excerpt from A Platter of Figs and other recipes by David Tanis. Remember my New Mexico post? Yup, it's from the same book. This guy gets around. In the introduction to this, the twenty-fourth menu in his book, he discusses the meaning of comfort food, and how it is interpreted by different cultures. To us, hearty soups and stews, as well as warm, gooey dishes like macaroni and cheese conjure up those images of a "comfort food," and in North Africa, the thoughts of hearty stews isn't far off-base.

From Flickr - by bocavermelha

The entire menu consists of:

Carrot and Coriander Salad

Chicken Tagine with Pumpkin and Chickpeas

Walnut Cigars

I scrapped the thought of making the cigars, even though I had thawed my phyllo dough and everything. I just wasn't in the mood for another baking catastrophe this evening. I put the chickpeas on to boil since they had to cook for over an hour and then got to work on the rest of the ingredients. This dish was fairly easy to complete, as the recipe really went step by step, and there wasn't much multi-tasking involved. 

I cooked up some diced onions in butter and oil, until they were golden. These onions became the bottom layer of my casserole dish (since I don't have a tagine...yet!) After that, I laid large slices of seasoned butternut squash on top of the onions. I couldn't find pumpkin...I think it's a tad past the season for those, but the butternut squash worked out swimmingly. After that, I layered on my seasoned chicken thighs and drumsticks. Finally, I poured some of the liquid that the chickpeas were cooking in on top of this concoction and stuck it in the oven! 

From Flickr - by visiting-africa

While that was cooking, I prepared the Carrot and Coriander Salad, which, I have to say, was just eh. It was raw, and I probably didn't leave enough time for the acidity of the lemon juice to soften the carrots, but it was just okay. The flavors melded well with the main course but I'm not a huge fan of raw carrots to begin with. 

And back to the main event! The chicken skin browned nicely by the time it was time to take my casserole dish out of the oven, and the chickpeas had just finished cooking. I mixed those with some butter, parsley and cinnamon (I think that was my favorite part - SO GOOD!) and then it was time to plate! I put a chicken drum and thigh on each of our plates and then spooned on some onions and butternut squash which was cooked until it was so soft it was falling apart! I spooned a little of the liquid over it and then topped it all off with some of those delicious chickpeas! VOILA! 

Now that's what I call comfort food! It might not be what I thought of first but going forward, it will be!

Nuevo Mexico

A friend of mine gave me a cookbook entitled A Platter of Figs and other recipes, by David Tanis. He passed it along to me because he was never "inspired." I understand where he's coming from because when flipping through the pages, I can only feel daunted by the complicated menus before me. And that's what they are...menus. This book is divided into 24 menus, all with 3 or 4 courses, referencing points in the author's culinary career. For the past few months, all I've done is flip through the pages, while looking to plan my menus, glancing at his menus, thinking that the fare sounded good, but yet, complicated...it would take all day! Let me clarify, and say that I believe this is the point of these recipes. They are meant for entertaining...an impressive spread when the boss and his wife come over, or family night ensues.

New Mexico

I didn't have anything like that going on this weekend, but I decided it was time to give it a try. After flipping through all 24 recipes, I settled on Menu Twenty-One: Nuevo Mexico. This menu boasts Avocado Quesadillas, Spicy Pickled Vegetables, Green Chile Stew and for dessert, Bizcochitos. Each section starts with a short story about what this menu means to the author. This story stemmed from his time spent in New Mexico, and the local cuisine, based on Spanish fare, influenced by Mexican and Native American cultures. I don't normally cook this type of cuisine, so I was excited to get started. I began early in the afternoon because I was going to take my time putting this meal together, and I knew it would take awhile.

I started with the Spicy Pickled Vegetables, because the instructions said that they could be served at room temperature. Thinking that I could make this portion and leave them to cool was a strategic move. Once those had been cooked appropriately, I put them aside, and turned my attention to the Onion Relish, a pairing for the quesadilla. Having finished the relish, I set my sights on these so-called Bizcochitos. They are anise-flavored sugar cookies, and they are a New Mexican specialty. I enjoy messing with the quantities of ingredients, so baking does not come easily to me, but I was determined to make this entire menu, so I started to make the dough. Once the dough was made, it needed to set to a firm consistency in the refrigerator, so I turned to the stew, which needed to cook for about two hours. The Green Chile Stew has pork butt, onions, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes and of course, green chiles in it. Not to mention all the spices and chicken broth. I got that simmering on the stove, and boy, did it start to make the house smell good! What a perfect dish for a cold winter's night!



I didn't make the Avocado Quesadilla until the stew was done, since I know that quesadillas don't take very long to make. While we enjoyed our meal, the cookies baked, finishing just in time for dessert!

The Outcome: The Green Chile Stew is delicious. The pork just breaks apart with a fork, and I think that the broth will be even more flavorful tomorrow, when I eat it for lunch after my yoga class! The Avocado Quesadilla was my favorite part of this meal! The onion relish really added something to the flavor profile, and there was just a burst of flavor with each bite. I could have done without the Spicy Pickled Vegetables...they were just okay. As for the Bizcochitos, I think I need to try those again. My dough was a bit too crumbly, even after the refrigeration time, so a lot of it was wasted. The cookies that I did make aren't as flaky as the recipe boasted, but the good news is that I think I know what I did wrong! The dough should have been kneaded longer, so that there were no cracks inside. I made note of this in my cookbook, so that next time I try it, I know what I need to change in my process!

This was a very labor-intensive menu, but I'm glad I made the attempt. I learned a lot about a cuisine I've never really experienced, used some spices that I had never used (epazote, anise seeds, and Mexican oregano - remember my post about spices - this is where they ALL went!). I will definitely be making more of these menus in the future, because I really enjoyed putting this one together. And maybe we'll take a little trip to New Mexico sometime...to try out the local fare, first hand!

Parsnips: Touting the Unsung Hero of the Root Vegetables

Root vegetables hold a spotlight in winter cooking, but when we think of them...which ones come to mind? Potatoes, of course, and carrots...maybe even celery root and beets. But when you see parsnips in the grocery store, do you grab a bunch? I do, almost always, and I would like to help parsnips win your hearts! :)



Parsnips are related to carrots, hence the resemblance in shape, but they have a sweeter flavor, and get even sweeter once cooked. However, the parsnip is actually richer in vitamins and nutrients than the carrot, boasting 600 mg of potassium per 100 g. It is also a good source of dietary fiber, and 100g only contains 55 calories. (Thanks Wikipedia)

They make a great addition to stews because as parsnips cook, they get soft and partially melt into the cooking liquid, integrating its flavor throughout the dish. In Jamie Oliver's, Dark Sticky Stew, the grated parsnip lends a hand to thickening the base with its sweet and creamy texture. This recipe is a wonderful winter meal that makes for some delicious leftovers as well. They also make a lovely part of roasted root vegetables, a very simple and delicious addition to any meal in the winter months. (If you like Jamie's recipe, check out Jamie's Kitchen - it is one of my all-time favorite cookbooks!)



My favorite way to serve parsnips is parsnip purée! A bit like mashed potatoes, parsnips get extremely creamy as they are puréed, and they make a wonderful addition to a nice beef tenderloin, a chicken breast, or some lamb. For you vegetarians out there, parsnip purée would make a nice bed for a stuffed Portobello Mushroom cap, don't you think? :) Gordon Ramsey (my hero, seriously - he's my IDOL) loves to pair his main courses with parsnip purée, and his recipe for it is, decidedly, my favorite.

Gordon Ramsey's Parsnip Puree

100g butter

4 large parsnips, peeled and chopped

100ml heavy cream

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt the butter in a frying pan over a low heat and cook the parsnips until completely soft and falling apart (about 25 minutes). Add the cream and bring to the boil. Season, then liquidize to a smooth purée. Keep warm.

How delicious does that sound?! Now...go make it, and tell me how delicious it IS! :)

Also, as a side note, I received my copy of the Whole Foods Cookbook that I mentioned in an earlier post. After flipping through it, I'm even more excited to start making some of these recipes, and for all you vegetarians out there - this book is more than 50% vegetarian...PICK IT UP! :)