Fifty-seventh Post ~ Balsamic Chicken and Mushrooms with Stilton Cream Sauce

Yes - it's as you suspected. I've got all this stilton left over from yesterday's Blueberry Chambourcin Port Fest and I'm just itching to cook with it. That and I want to have a meal worthy of the final glass of port!

Here's what you'll need to make tonight's 10-minute meal:

~ Chicken tenderloin

~ Mushrooms

~ Garlic (jarred or fresh)

~ Balsamic vinegar

~ Sea salt

~ Olive oil

~ Pasta of your choice

~ Stilton (or similar blue)

~ Cream

~ Fresh (or dried) thyme

Start a pot of water boiling. Slice up some mushrooms and start them sautéing with some garlic, salt and olive oil. Add a dash of balsamic vinegar. At this point your water should be boiling, so add your pasta and start watching the clock.

Cut the tenderloins into bite-sized pieces. Your mushrooms should be moving right along at this point, so add the chicken, another dash of salt, olive oil and balsamic. As soon as the chicken and mushrooms are cooked through, set them to the side in a prep bowl.

In the same pan (d0n't worry about rinsing) add about a tablespoon of stilton and some cream. You don't need too much of this sauce. What I made for my meal was enough to just coat the bottom of my stick-free skillet. So not much.

Once the sauce is nicely melded and your pasta is done, drain the pasta and put it on a plate. Top with the chicken and mushrooms from the prep bowl. Top that with a bit of fresh thyme.

The food paired beautifully with the blueberry chambourcin port and the meal itself came together nicely, too. The flavors held their own - the chicken and mushrooms were flavorful in their own right, but also were accented by the bit of stilton. The thyme added a nice fresh note to it, and it has become my all-time (all-thyme?) favorite herb to keep on hand!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-sixth Post ~ Wine Feature: Blueberry Chambourcin Port Dinner

I arrived home on Sunday travel-weary (yet brimming with memories!) from our 16-day Alaskan adventure. Marked on my calendar, where it had been firmly planted for three months, were the words "PORT FEST".

I had gotten my hands on a unique vintage - a bottle of blueberry chambourcin port - from Vetter Vineyards about a year ago. Fellow foodie and wine connoisseur Meg and I decided that if we were going to do justice to a bottle (or even part of a bottle!) of port, we'd have to plan this right. So plan we did. Here's the menu:

BEVERAGES

~ Blueberry Chambourcin Port

~ Ice water

APPETIZER

~ Hickory-smoked almonds (Wegmans - way cheaper than Blue Diamond, and just as yummy!)

~ Imported French chocolate (via Japan and my friend Nozomi!)

~ Stilton (a classic, right?)

ENTRÉE

~ Pork medallions ladened with blueberry chutney (home-made by Meg's awesome mom!)

~ Steamed broccoli florets (what, we can't be healthy about this?)

DESSERT

~ Meg's outstanding blueberry cobbler

Here's how to pull it all together so that you can enjoy many hours of dining, dishing and drinking!

Make sure the port has had at least 24 hours out of the wine rack standing upright to allow sediments to, well, settle. Chill for about 15 minutes before pouring.

Have the cheese, almonds, chocolate and water ready on the table.

Know your limitations: Meg handled the baking. Period. Although she did assure me that this was a user-friendly recipe, I gladly stepped aside and readied the entrée while she handled getting dessert in the oven:

Put either stick-free foil on the pan or a little olive oil. Slice pork into inch-thick medallions. We had two each. Spoon some blueberry chutney (or another fruit chutney or even jam) over the pork. Pop in a 350-degree oven/toaster oven for about fifteen minutes.

This chutney was sweet and had a little zip, either from cardamom or chili powder, or possibly both. Meg's mom - care to weigh in? In any case, this chutney stood alone without any need for additional spices. If you're using jam, consider grating a little nutmeg over the top or adding a spring of a fresh herb like rosemary or thyme and a hint of black pepper.

While the pork is cooking and the cobbler is baking, sit and enjoy the appetizer and your first tasting of port. Vetter's port went wonderfully with the appetizer - the chocolate brought out the velvety texture of the wine, and the stilton and smoked almonds highlighted its intense berry tones. The wine is intense without being too heady - the bouquet is as delicious as the flavor, and it warms you at the first sip without that dizzying effect one can experience with too bold a drink. At 18%, it's also slightly lighter than most other ports I've encountered, which, in my opinion, makes it a more enjoyable beverage. A fine start!

During the last few minutes your pork is in, steam the broccoli in the microwave for three minutes or until desired doneness. The easiest method is to put the broccoli in a bowl with a tablespoon of water and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Try very hard not to burn yourself on the escaping steam when it's done.

Serve the pork with lightly buttered and salted broccoli. The port complemented the pork beautifully! Even though port is typically reserved as an after-dinner drink, this ruby port was fruity and approachable with bright characteristics. This made it a wonderful mirror to the entrée.

Enjoy some photos, some girl talk, nibble on some more chocolate, and then enjoy the cobbler. Here is a link to this recipe that Meg found (and masterfully executed, I might add)! The blueberry-stained copy she gave me will reside in my cookbook forever! The cobbler's sweetness gave the port a bit of a refreshing snap to it - but it wasn't at all clashing. It was a perfect dessert for this (typically) dessert wine!

A fine meal, fine wine, and the best ingredient of all, fine companionship!

Yours in the love of good food, wine and camaraderie,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-fifth Post ~ Honey Balsamic Glazed Duck with Mushrooms

I searched online for a bit today to find some new ideas for duck. I have used fruit and wine reductions a number of times and wanted to try something different... I read many ideas, and blended this and that into the recipe that was tonight's dinner.

Here's what you'll need:

~ 1 duck breast

~ Balsamic vinegar

~ Honey

~ Olive oil

~ Coarse ground sea salt

~ Nutmeg

~ one or two cloves

~ Fresh thyme

~ Fresh rosemary

~ Small amount minced onion

~ Pre-washed, pre-sliced mushrooms

In a stick-free pan, start a small amount of olive oil sizzling. Mince the onion. Prep the duck.

:: PAUSE ::

Now, I'm not passing judgement here, but the duck is one... shall we say insulated bird. I am normally clueless about what to do with the cushion of fat on a duck breast. Why does duck a l'orange come with such a lovely crispy skin? The trick, I've learned, is in scoring the fat. With a really sharp knife, cut a crisscross pattern in the fat (which, all these years, I thought was decorative, but actually serves a purpose). The slices allow the fat to melt as it's cooked, rendering a nice crispy skin. I've yet to completely master this art, but I've come the closest this time than ever before to a nice crispy duck breast. Practice makes perfect, I say!

:: UNPAUSE ::

So score the duck and place it skin-side down in the oil. Jump back and nurse your teensie little oil burns. One never learns.

Let the duck sit like that for a few minutes while you toss in the onion and mushrooms. Grind on some salt, and splash a healthy amount of balsamic vinegar over the whole deal. Add the fresh thyme and a small amount (you don't want this to be the predominant flavor) of rosemary.

Now, the fun part. Pour on the honey. Don't be shy. The consistency of the pan's contents will instantly change. It seems that everything gets slower; the sizzling is less intense, the oil gently simmers, and everything melds into a lovely, dark, sweet, caramelized sauce. It was at this point that I was inspired to toss a clove into the mix and grind on some nutmeg with my neat little grinder that I picked up when I was in the West Indies along with these dark, lovely, rich little seeds.

Flip the duck breast and continue simmering everything together. At some point, you may wish to remove the sauce and mushrooms from the pan, place them in a prep bowl, and continue cooking the duck until it's fully done (when the juices run clear).

Serve with the mushrooms and sauce poured over the top. Given that this meal was obviously inspired by a mad sweet tooth, I decided to go with the "compliment" method of wine pairing tonight and enjoyed the duck with a white catawba that Meg and I picked up in Ferrera vineyards in Ohio. It added a nice fruity note to the meal, without being too sweet but not tart, either.

All in all, a satisfying meal!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-fourth Post ~ Easy Sirloin Steak with Mushrooms and Fingerling Potatoes

Maybe it's the fact that I'm halfway through the week. Maybe it's the sunshine. Whatever the reason, today just feels like a day that should be celebrated. And I like to celebrate with a good dinner.

I ran to Wegmans after class and picked up two organic sirloin steaks, a bag of fingerlings, and a package of pre-washed and sliced baby bellas mushrooms, for a change of pace from the buttons.

Home I went. Given that it was already pushing 10:30, I needed to get this dinner in order and on the table post haste. Here's what you'll need to make tonight's dinner, and here's how you can get it all on the table within a half hour or under:

~ One small sirloin steak (I've never bought organic steak before, but these were mismarked, I think, and therefore within the realm of what I like to pay for a small steak: $3 a pop)

~ Ground salt

~ Herb of choice for use on the whole meal (I relied heavily on thyme, 'cause that's what I have a bag of in my fridge, but I also had a little rosemary left, so I used some of that, too)

~ White wine

~ One clove garlic

~ Olive oil

~ Mushrooms

~ Fingerling potatoes

As soon as you walk in the door (after greeting a puppy, if applicable) start your toaster oven on conventional bake 350. Wash and pierce the fingerlings. Rub some olive oil on them and place them on a piece of foil on the same pan you plan to cook the steak on later on. Scatter some thyme and grind ample salt over them. Pop 'em in the oven.

In a pan, start some olive oil and white wine simmering. Add the mushrooms as soon as you get the package open, grind some sea salt over them, crush a clove of garlic into the mix, and add some thyme (assuming that's the fresh herb you're using) and add more wine and oil as it boils down.

As soon as the mushrooms are going, salt the steak and add some olive oil over the top. Place a sprig of rosemary on the top of it and place it next to the potatoes in your toaster oven. I usually go by the rule of 5 minutes on one side, 8 on the other. This was a bit smaller of a steak, so I went less.

Serve the steak topped with the mushrooms alongside your yummy fingerling potatoes (after about 30 minutes, they're perfect!). I enjoyed tonight's mid-week celebration meal with my last glass of Sangre de Toro Tempranillo. I cannot say enough good things about this wine. I think it will be one of those wines that I'll just always plan on having in my wine rack. Besides being really affordable, it's smooth and earthy with bright overtones of cherry and blackberry that deepen over time. It's a perfect match for a dinner like this!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,
AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-third Post ~ Savory Dill and White Wine Pork and Mushrooms

Tonight I left my night class with a sinking thought - a thought that would only occur in the mind of a grad student: "When exactly was that pizza from?" Because when you're in grad school, it's perfectly normal to walk into a classroom five minutes late, see a box of pizza on the conference table and flip the box open and start noshing a slice without ever entertaining the notion that perhaps that pizza was from last night's night class...

But I digress.

My point is that I came home tonight slightly full yet slightly hungry. So I finished up my stats homework and decided to cook something on the smallish yet still fulfilling side.

I had in my freezer three medallions that I had sliced from a small pork tenderloin that I had cooked last week. I thawed them out and assessed what else I had in my fridge. I had some button mushrooms and some fresh dill. I also had onion and garlic, and about two inches of a wonderful sweet white wine. We can work with this. Here's what you'll need for tonight's appetizer-sized meal:

~ Pork tenderloin cut into medallions

~ Button mushrooms

~ White wine (for sautéing, I prefer sweet NY whites as they have a lot of residual sugar which prevents the mushrooms from tasting tart)

~ Fresh dill (haven't had a lot of experience with this herb yet, but I really am warming to it!)

~ Garlic (one clove)

~ Small amount of onion

~ Coarse ground sea salt

~ Olive oil

~ A dash of balsamic vinegar

~ A quick squeeze of lemon

With one cutting board and one chef's knife (keep this simple - it's late) mince up the garlic and onion. Add it to the dash of olive oil and balsamic in your pan and a quick squeeze of lemon. Add some sweet wine. Take a taste for yourself. Add the mushrooms and start everything a-sizzlin'. Grind some salt over the whole thing and then add some dill (about one small sprig's worth).

Let this sauté for a bit until the mushrooms are almost done. Scootch the mushrooms to the center of the pan and place the pork medallions into the sauce on top of some of the garlic, onion and dill. Turn a few times until they are done. You may want to move them toward the center of the pan and the mushrooms out a bit.

The next time I make this meal, I think I would add a little fruit to the mix (perhaps some diced apple or dried apricot) to add a touch more sugar to the acidity of the sauce. I thought it was really tasty, but I thought it would be exceptional with just the slightest bit more sweetness.

I enjoyed this supper with a glass of Mastroberardino Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio. It's a 2005 and needed to be consumed... that, and it's a really enjoyable white wine, with crisp acidity that complemented the fresh lightness of the dill and citrus.

Yours in the love of good food and wine (regardless of the time of day!)

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-second Post ~ "Nest Egg" à la Accidental Chef

I got my Food Network magazine in the mail yesterday, and was thrilled to see that it features 50 recipes for eggs. Eggs are pretty much my mainstay for one of those middle-of-the-day "I need to wolf something down quickly before I leave" kinds of meals. So I was psyched.

On the cover is something called a "nest egg" and it looked yummy and easy enough to do - toast a piece of bread, cut out a hole, crack an egg into the hole, cover and cook - but I was wondering... where's the punched out hole? And couldn't we add SOMETHING else for a little flavor?

So I offer you the Nest Egg à la Accidental Chef - well, actually, two of them...

Here's what you'll need for this afternoon's pre-class snack.

~ One piece of bread

~ Butter

~ One egg

~ Fresh thyme (I imagine many other fresh herbs would be just as yummy, but thyme is my favorite for this kind of thing - fresh, lovely taste, no chopping...)

~ Coarse-ground salt

~ Persistence

After I made this the first time, I was surprised at how much resistance the spatula gave me as I tried to get it out of the pan. Then I finally succeeded in lifting it up, only to see that the underside was black. No scraping in the WORLD would have saved it. It was black half-way up the bread. I'm lucky I didn't burn down my kitchen.

Well, not really, but you can indulge me in my fears.

So I took another stab at it, and was successful, although the bread was still a bit crisp on the bottom. The method I thought of half-way through probably would have been best implemented earlier on...

Butter both sides of a piece of bread (potato bread for me, naturally). Get everything ready: prep the thyme (1-2 sprigs) and crack the egg into a prep bowl.

Start the bread grilling in a stick-free pan. Watch it like a hawk. Only grill it so that it is JUST starting to look golden. Take it off the pan and use a cookie cutter to cut a pretty hole out of the middle. I used a flower. It's actually the only cookie cutter I own, so that's the reason for that.

Set the flower aside and put the bread back into the pan. Carefully drop the egg right into the hole. Scatter the thyme over it and grind on some salt. Cover. Wait until the egg sets. And wait. And wait. And pray your bread doesn't burn.

:: PAUSE ::

When I was little, my mom had this neat technique for making bagels so that they were crispy yet not dry. She would slice and butter them, grill them on a griddle, then just as they were nearly done, she'd drop about a tablespoon or two of water into the griddle and slap on a lid. It would hiss like crazy, and it always intimidated me a little. But the steam would cook the bagels while the grilled side remained crispy and perfect. It was a neat little technique, and the hissing pan made me remember it. So I dropped in a little water and slapped the cover back on.

:: UNPAUSE ::

Eureka! The steam set the egg in seconds, and the toast remained unburnt. As I said, I'd go ahead and do that right off the bat before putting the lid on.

Third time's the charm, right?

I had this with my mandatory pre-class cup of coffee.

Here's to the love of good food and learning new (and recalling old!) techniques!

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fifty-first Post ~ A Cold Remedy: The Hot Toddy.

This post is a sort of culinary sequel, if you will, to Post #32 on Chicken Soup. I've been hit by one of those awful spring colds, and after making myself a pot of chicken soup today (and eating three bowls of it) I was faced with the "bedtime" question... what to do about all those brutal cold symptoms that keep you up at night? Cold medicine renders me a zombie the next day... so the answer, my friends, lies in the Hot Toddy.

Now some of my friends have mocked me a bit for liking hot toddies when I'm sick. Personally, I say: don't mock until you've had one. Here's what you'll need for a classic (and dare I say elegant) hot toddy:

~ Herbal tea (Good herbal tea - I got these by Mighty Leaf at Wegmans and just had to include a picture - they're like little works of art! This one is chamomile and citrus)

~ Lemon (a slice is best, but lemon juice works as well!)

~ A cinnamon stick

~ Honey (be generous - it helps your throat!)

~ Brandy or whiskey (tonight's is made with a Kentucky bourbon infused with honey.

Muddle the lemon and honey together. Add the cinnamon and tea. Steep according to the directions. Add the spirit of your choice. I only add a "pony shot" (1 oz.) but this can certainly be altered to fit your desires!

Sit back, inhale deeply, sip this soothing concoction and let all the cold tension melt away!

Yours in the love of food and the healing power of just the right recipe,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Fiftieth Post ~!! ~ Quick and Light Insalata Caprese

Today the girls invited me out to lunch for sushi. You all know how much I love sushi AND girl-talk, so this was one painful invite to turn down. Today needs to be spent focused on the books.

...But a girl's still gotta eat, right?

...And it's got to be packed with goodness to create a day of massive productivity...

...And it's gotta be darn quick.

So, in keeping with the theme of summery goodness, here's what you'll need for this ingredients-to-tableside in less than 5 minutes Insalata Caprese:

~ Prewashed grape tomatoes

~ Fresh basil

~ Mini mozzarella balls

~ Lemon

~ Balsamic vinegar (see August's post on Insalata Caprese before you jump to conclusions on this one!)

~ Ground sea salt

In a bowl, combine your mozzarella and grape tomatoes (sliced if that's your thing). Squeeze the juice of less than half of a lemon over the whole thing. Snip up some fresh basil, add a dash of balsamic, ample salt, and toss.

Enjoy!

Yours in the love of tasty, quick lunches,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Forty-ninth Post ~ Citrus Salmon with Sugar Snap Peas

This post is very similar to the Salmon en Papillote from a few months ago; however, it is a simplified version inasmuch as it is all about the fresh salmon and bright green veggies! No potatoes in this parcel!

I got a salmon fillet from Wegmans, and, after looking in my cart, realized I must be craving some serious Vitamin C - a lemon, a lime, grape tomatoes and a basil plant all graced my basket screaming out to me with the warmth of sunnier places!

Here's what you'll need for tonight's dinner:

~ One salmon fillet

~ Veggie of your choice

~ Lime slices and juice of half

~ Dried or fresh parsley

~ Dried or fresh tarragon

~ Dried or fresh basil

~ Course-ground salt

~ White wine (I didn't add any to this papillote package and it really could have used a little sweetness to balance out the pucker-power of the lime. It was still tasty, but could have benefited from a little vino!)

Place your salmon fillet on one half of your parchment heart. Add salt and herbs. Cut two slices of the lime and juice the other half. Place the slices over the salmon, add your veggie, and crimp the edges, pouring the lime juice and wine (about two tablespoons total) into the spout at the point of the heart.

Bake on 350 for about 12-15 minutes. I enjoyed tonight's meal with some light and sweet Vetter Vineyards Cracker Ridge Rose - a sauvignon blanc would probably also be great with it! The sweet rose actually helped offset a bit of the tartness from the lime, making it an enjoyably balanced meal.

All in all, a fresh, healthy, quick dinner!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,
AL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Forty-eighth Post ~ Almond-encrusted Pork Tenderloin Medallions topped with Apricot and Rosemary Glaze

Happy February 14! Whether you're celebrating Valentine's Day or Single's Awareness Day, it's a perfectly wonderful excuse for cooking something completely over-the-top! Which is exactly how this meal turned out - topped with minced sweet onion, apricot preserves, sea salt, rosemary, and grated vintage gouda, this was one of those meals where my only recipe guide was a spirit of "Why the Heck Not?"

Here's what you'll need for tonight's dinner - whether you're cooking for one or for two!

~ Pork tenderloin

~ Sweet onion

~ Apricot preserves

~ Fresh rosemary

~ Grated vintage gouda (optional, but does add a nice salty, caramelly kick!)

~ Balsamic vinegar

If you're roasting fingerling potatoes to go with this meal, start them in the oven while you get the rest of the meal put together. I pierced them, brushed them on all sides with olive oil and generously ground sea salt over them.

Slice the pork tenderloin into medallions (this isn't altogether necessary; I was just hungry and wanted it to cook faster; plus, the flattened shape allowed me to pile all the more goodness on top)...

Crush some almonds (I had some Marcona Spanish almonds in this week's cheese flight from Wegmans, so I crushed them up with a wooden spoon) and roll the edges of each medallion in it. Lay each round out on a piece of tin foil.

Finely mince some sweet onion. Add a scant amount to the top of each piece of pork. Next, top each with a hefty spoonful of apricot preserves. Add a bit of fresh rosemary to each and grind some salt over the top of the whole pan. Add just a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and then grate some vintage gouda over the whole thing. Pop it in the oven next to your potatoes and let it bake on 350 for about 20-30 minutes (provided it's cut into medallions). Enjoy the aromas of onion, rosemary and balsamic vinegar melding and baking into this tender meat!

Pour yourself a glass of chardonnay and enjoy some of the gouda with it. I am in love with vintage aged gouda from Wegmans - it's not cheap, but one slice lasts for a REALLY long time wrapped and sealed in a ziplock bag in your fridge. It's salty, caramelly, and oh-so rich! Nibble on a bit with a nice, oaky chard while you finish up your night's work.

When the timer goes off, let the meat sit for a few minutes so the juices have a chance to settle. I enjoyed tonight's meal with a bottle of chard that Megan and I found in this adorable winery that had taken up residence in an old church: South River Vineyard from Ohio's fabulous Grand River Valley wine region. It's just fruity enough, with hints of apple and citrus, with an oaky finish that's not at all contrived. All in all, a nice pairing!

Yours in the love of good food and wine and celebrating life,

AL