Lemon my chicken!

Italian roasted potato

Lemon chicken

 Tonight I am making lemon chicken with Italian fried potatoes and carrots for dinner. It is a quick and simple dinner using my favorite saute and bake formula. I begin the carrots quickly bringing them to a boil and turn off the heat to finish, as they are a vegetable that will not get soggy or loose flavor. Then I slice an Idaho potato into circles and brown in olive oil seasoning with pepper, garlic salt and oregano. When they are nice and brown on one side I flip and adjust the seasoning. I then place them in a 350@ oven to finish cooking. Now it is time to cook the chicken. I lightly flour my chicken breast and saute in butter in my antique copper saute skillet. When it has browned on one side I flip, turn off the heat and douse with the juice of a whole fresh lemon. Then I place the chicken in the oven to finish cooking with the potatoes. Voila, dinner is ready!
     The best part is that I have the remnants of the fresh lemon which I use to shine my kitchen faucet and sink. This is a powerful friend in the department of home beautiful. Lemon juice will remove nasty stains and lime buildup. And this lemons job is still not done. Instead of throwing it into the trash  grind it in your garbage disposal for a refreshing cleansing and sweet smell.

Going green!

     I wish it could be as simple for me.  I have watched thousands of people eat their dinner salad at our restaurant with tons of dressing to smother the taste of the fresh vegetables. But for me, like any other food, my salad has to be an adventure. From the beginning it has to be a delicious work of art or not worth consuming. This is one of my summer favorites, tossed salad with tuna. Accompaniments to a salad depend upon what is in the fridge or cupboard, but the basic premise is nice fresh mixed greens, chopped hard boiled egg and any other fresh vegetables that are in house. I am never without fresh garlic to mince for all my favorite recipes. I always toss the salad with olive oil, red wine vinegar, ground pepper, garlic salt, oregano and  Parmesan cheese. If I have fresh baby spinach it is a wonderful addition. Above all, this is a light meal that is easy, healthy and delicious for lunch or dinner. Most  salads that I make are for a meal not a side. I find that if I eat a salad before a meal it fills me up too much to enjoy the main course.  At restaurants I order my salad served with my meal .

     Some salads are memorable. When I visited my brother in California my sister-in-law made a dinner salad that has become one of my favorite lite dinner fare. The ingredients are simple but the palate punch is awesome. Of course, when tomatoes are bursting with flavor from the summer garden this salad is even more delightful. But any time of year it is a gourmet treat. Slice a firm tomato into wheels, top with chunks of Gorgonzola cheese, capers and smother with balsamic vinegar. That's it, Really! I like to serve it with some warm Italian crusty bread. My mouth is watering I think I will have this for dinner. But truly, salads are an excellent meal choice if you do not smother them in dressing.
     Leftover chicken is another perfect topping for salad. I have a passion for not throwing food away, if possible, there are too many people around the world who go hungry.  Chicken Cesar salad is a very popular menu item in restaurant today. I remember the day of the true Cesar salad prepared at fine restaurants. The server would approach the table with all the ingredients on their cart and prepare the salad table side. The ingredients included raw eggs and anchovies, romaine lettuce and Parmesan cheese, olive oil and red wine vinegar, plus spices.  The the anchovies were mulled the eggs whisked in the bowl  and the other ingredients tossed together. It was absolutely delicious and obviously bad for us as raw eggs in any dish now are a no-no.
     Speaking of leftovers an excellent side salad for a meal is leftover cauliflower or broccoli. Soaked with red wine vinegar seasoned with ground pepper and garlic salt, chilled and succulent it is the perfect addition to any dinner. Step out of the box and make salad a treat instead of a dinner side dish.
  

Fritta me

     It is a warm summer evening and begs for a lite meal. I have some leftover spinach from last night and a fresh garden tomato begging to be consumed. I decide on a fritatta. It is a very easy meal cooked in one of my favorite cast iron skillet. I begin with some onion minced and sauteed in butter. I set the oven to 350@. Then I chop some ham and tomato and cut up the spinach. I whisk six eggs and season with salt and ground pepper. As soon as the onions are clarified I toss in the ham and tomatoes to warm and then whisk in the eggs. You can use any cheese in this dish but I opt for grated cheddar which I quickly whisk into the eggs and then remove the dish from the stove and place in the oven.

     As it bakes I prepare my sides which for tonight are a toasted bagel and salsa enhanced with some of the garden fresh tomatoes. I test if the fritatta is done the same way I test if a cake is ready. I press lightly on the center of the eggs and if they are firm I know it is done. I cut into pie shape and plate along with the salsa and bagel. Making this meal even better is the company of my daughter Amy. She is preparing for a Wisconsin River canoe trip with friends and has some time to kill. And she killed it with me in the company of food!

Pool side meals, summer fun

     I know what everyone is thinking brats, burgers and hot dogs cooked on the grill plenty of sides and some cool drinks. And truly many of those meals fill my summer fare but when I bring dinner it has to be a bit more fun and hopefully, healthy. My brother-in-law does a nice job of keeping the pool in good shape for all the family so once in awhile I make dinner and bring it over when I swim. Tonight I am making chicken salad stuffed tomatoes and potato salad. The secret to good potato salad is cooking the potatoes a day ahead. Refrigerate so the potatoes are nice and cold when you begin.The one thing I am always asked is how I keep my potatoes so nice and firm. A lot of people make the potato salad all at one time and the warm potatoes have a tendency to mush when the ingredients are added. The chilling process avoids this from happening. Before I begin the dish I hard boil some eggs. While they are cooking I cut my potato into chunks. I season with celery salt and ground pepper and cover the potatoes with yellow mustard. The eggs are cooked and rinsed in cold water. I chop up same fresh celery and peel and dice the eggs and add to my potatoes. Now it is time to toss everything together with mayonnaise to the desired moisture. A quick taste to adjust the seasoning and refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

     Now to the chicken salad. I also use fresh celery in this dish so I dice some more before I clean up from the potato salad. I admittedly cheat a bit on the chicken as I love those roasted chickens you can get at the supermarket. With one chicken I have one nice meal with vegetable and potato the first evening and then I get creative with the rest of the chicken. Saving the bones for soup I remove the rest of the meat and dice it up for my chicken salad. Combining it in a mixing bowl with the celery I season with ground pepper and celery salt. Adding some capers I toss with mayonnaise and taste to adjust the seasoning. Refrigerating this until I am ready to serve I prepare my tomato for stuffing. Summer is the perfect time to eat stuffed tomatoes because the tomatoes are fresh and flavorful. I begin with a nice garden fresh tomato and cut  it into eighths opening it into a star shape.  I scoop the chicken salad into the middle of the tomato. A generous scoop of potato salad finishes the plate and the meal is ready to serve poolside. Summer fun in the company of food.

Inovation

     How we view food can be cyclical. And that is for sure the is the mind set of food companies, I have learned. Each year when I go to the pre-school food shows new products to entice the appetite abound. Some years they focus on cooking techniques geared to the latest health trends. As I remember last year was all about no deep frying and many products were introduced that purported baking instead of deep frying. Also there was a big trend towards smaller servings of surgery beverages. Many times I just meander from booth to booth tasting a cache of similar tastes marketed differently. So what stood out this year.
     For someone, like me, that does this every year it becomes more of a game of discounts and gifts. I am given a sample bag as I enter the food show and a discount book that if I use correctly will afford me a nice discount on products that I would buy anyway. But then there are always the surprises that make the trip worthwhile. Last year my faves were a company that marketed fresh fruit for buffets that were delicious and labor friendly. When I catered I yearned for this convenience and quality. Very nicely done; but the shelf life prohibited it for my current application. And then another company popped out; they manufactured packaged corned beef  that was tender, delicious and the perfect portion for a Reuben. Good job! But my favorite new product application was the pot roast! Amply sliced portions of beef seasoned to perfection that melded with gravy and accompanied  mashed potatoes and vegetable flawlessly.  You go foodies I'm loving it!
     This years first show was a bit less memorable. The only memorable items were the frozen fruit bars imported from Mexico. The coconut was my favorite with chunks of fresh coconut in every bite. Delicious!
     

The pleasure of sharing food

     Tonight I am stuffing large garden fresh zucchini. There is no way on God's earth that I could consume His bounty myself so I prepare to share. But first I must prepare. The zucchini were blanched last evening. Cutting into the zucchini to form the shape of a canoe I then scoop out all the seeds and reserve the tops for the stuffing.
     I begin by mincing fresh garlic. I also mince white onions because this is what I have in the house, most onions would do for this dish. I have some leftover breaded pork cutlets that I chop into very small pieces, and a half of tomato that will just go to waste if I don't use.  I chop the leftover zucchini tops and I look into the fridge and see if anything else will work. Carrots!

Stuffed zucchini ready for baking.

     OK, ingredients ready!
     I combine the chopped pork with breadcrumbs and the seasoning into a large mixing bowl. For this dish I am using crushed pepper, garlic salt, oregano and parsley. I preheat the oven to 350@. and heat my cast iron skillet. My Mama told me, "Never put your oil in before your skillet is hot otherwise the oil will burn. Oil heats really quickly so add it the same time as the garlic." I add olive oil and the garlic first to season the oil. This process only takes a minute; then I add the onions. I also add the carrots at this time as they are a hard vegetable that requires some cooking time. I mince the tomato and add it to the mixing bowl and toss in a bit of Parmesan and mozzarella cheese to pop the flavor. Slowly the onions and carrots simmer and when the carrots become soft and the onions clear I add them to the mixing bowl. I crack in some farm fresh eggs to gather the ingredients.  Then I place the hollowed zucchini into a baking pan and fill the cavities with the stuffing mixture. I cover the stuffed zucchini with a can of Contadina tomato sauce with Italian herbs and bake for an hour or until the stuffing is firm to the touch.
     Everyone who ate this wanted the recipe. But as you can see there is none. Delectable culinary delights are just fingertips away when creativity abounds in the company of food.

Garden gifts

Broccoli

 It is the end of July and the gift's of the garden are exploding. Tomatoes are ripening, zucchini is blasting into everyone's kitchens and summer's harvest is begging to be consumed. I received my first harvest gift today. Zucchini large enough to let you know they were hiding in the foliage, cucumbers fresh and crisp, green peppers small enough that they had to be thinned so their brothers and sisters had nutrients to grow and broccoli that is to hot for comfort and spiking in disapproval. I must make this gift bountiful! First off, some creamy broccoli soup. I am not prepared for my bounty and do not have any fresh celery in house so decide to substitute the mushroom stems saved from my stuffed mushrooms the other evening. I mince some onion and coarsely chop the mushroom stems, they will add a nice flavor. I blanch the broccoli and with slotted spoon ladle it into a colander reserving the liquid.  In a saute pan I melt some butter and stir the onions until they are clear then add the mushrooms for just a minute to soften. I thicken with flour and add some of the reserved broccoli liquid to thin. Then I add the blanched broccoli and stir adding more liquid to the soup. I spice with ground pepper and choose celery salt instead of sea salt to get some of that celery taste and finish with thyme. Then I let this simmer until it is getting thick. As it cooks the broccoli breaks into a magic paste of flavor. I give the soup a taste and add a bit of sea salt to make it pop. I add a bit more flour because I am not pleased with the thickness. I stir vigorously to avoid lumps! Perfect. I have a thick rich broccoli mushroom soup simmering in my kitchen. I thin again, this time with milk to add creaminess. Now the final stage as the flavors meld I taste and  season to my own palate. Turning off the burner I let the soup cool to infuse the flavors. The soup will be a delicious starter for dinner tomorrow night.