The Cookbook Junkies

Frenchie by Greg Marchand

May 26, 2014 by Jenny Hartin 4 Comments

At first glance, I thought this book was not for me. My initial thought was it is too sophisticated – I wouldn’t take the time to make these recipes for just us – and then I realized I am WRONG.

Greg Marchand who worked for Jamie Oliver who gave him the nickname Frenchie said, “I didn’t write this book to show you what I could do. I wanted to show you what you can do.” I love that. Why shouldn’t I make incredible gourmet meals for just my small family? I do make new recipes all the time – but sometimes life’s busyness gets in the way and I resort to what can I put on the table relatively quickly and inexpensively. I do cook and make wonderful dishes for those times when we have company – but why should I think like that? Why just for company? We all deserve to make and eat wonderfully crafted and delicious tasting meals every day.

This book is approachable but sophisticated as well. It is divided into seasons with a few dessert recipes in each season.

There is foie gras with cherry chutney. I am not a fan of foie gras but I did make the cherry chutney and served it along side roasted chicken and pork. It was delicious. There are recipes for wild garlic broth with fresh crabmeat. Again, my husband is not a seafood fan so I made the broth to make a chicken style soup and that was delicious as well. I don’t look at books the same way some folks do – “oh there are a lot of “this type” of recipe – so I can’t use it” – of course you can – adapt.

Some of my favorite recipes from the book are crispy pollock and asparagus with Vin Jaune sauce and walnut pesto, watermelon, ricotta salata, mint and pine nut salad, bittersweet chocolate and wild strawberry tart, Spanish ham, corn, bell peppers and Kaffir lime, butternut squash risotto with amaretti, pork braised in milk with marinated fennel (pork braised in milk is incredible), and the Brillat-Savarin cheesecake with mango, passion fruit -all jump off the page with gorgeous photographs and brilliant details.

Don’t judge a book quickly – savor it – try some recipes, adapt. You might find yourself surprised at “what you can do”.

Roasted Chicken with Chorizo

May 6, 2014 by Jenny Hartin 1 Comment

Yesterday was Cinco de Mayo and like any good Irish Catholic girl – I wanted to make something with a little spice. Truth be told – I wanted a cold vat of margaritas and an IV but the men like to eat.

I had a chicken to roast – and picked up some chorizo at the market. I had some fajita seasoning from my Hamptons Lane Southwestern Fiesta box so I was ready to go.

I served this chicken with a side of rice with lime zest and black beans — seasoned with cumin…I also made a pull apart type of bread – stuffed with chorizo and cheese – it was a hit. I sprinkled a little cilantro on the bread when it was pulled from the oven.

Roast Chicken with Chorizo

1 chicken – I take my chicken out of the fridge about 15 to 20 minutes before I put it into the oven (no one has died yet)
roughly 12 oz. of pork chorizo
1/2 stick of butter
Liberal amount of spices – I used a fajita seasoning mix (garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, cumin)

Preheat oven to 400.

Fry up chorizo until brown and cooked through. After it is cooked I added a 1/2 stick of butter into the chorizo mix. This butter and chorizo bastes the bird while it’s cooking and gives you tasty juices to serve over your meat or rice.

Clean the chicken and pat it dry. I seasoned liberally with the fajita seasoning mix – if you don’t have a special blend – mix up some salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and cumin (or whatever spices you like). I sprinkled the blend into the cavity, on the outside of the skin and under the skin as well.

I let the chorizo butter mixture cool a bit and then I loosened the skin around the breast of the chicken and packed the chorizo mix under the skin – you can use your hand on top of the skin to spread the mixture out without breaking or tearing the skin. I stuffed chorizo mix wherever I could get it (into thigh cavity etc.)

I roasted the bird about 60 minutes total. Every ten minutes I kept checking it and basting it with the juices that ran from the bird. After the bird has reached temperature – let it rest 15 minutes or more before slicing.

It was incredibly flavorful and moist.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Macaroni and Cheese

April 23, 2014 by Jenny Hartin 4 Comments

I had this idea to use up some leftover ham. I was so proud of myself – a new recipe! I googled after I made it – many a blogger had beat me to it – mine is a little different and “Three Servings Andrew” gave it two thumbs up and a fist bump.

Original recipes – I don’t think they exist anymore — maybe on Chopped because no one has made anything with some of those weird combinations of ingredients. Twenty something years ago when Bryan was a little boy – I put an Oreo into a cookie, into brownies, I topped brownies with chocolate chip cookie dough or peanut butter cookie dough -all these folks ranting and screaming about their “content” – nothing is new – we’ve all made it before. I do think we should link back to recipes we find on blogs (original or not) – and NEVER edit, copy or post a recipe into a Facebook post – but we all need to get over ourselves. Changing an ingredient – does not a new recipe make.

That being said — I do have respect for some of these beautiful blogs. The pictures are gorgeous and everything is just perfect. Newsflash – nothing is perfect in this house. We eat the food that I make. I seldom have time for a half-assed picture let alone – staging a photo – a light box….that’s a lamp in our house. I do not have time to post once a day – and I don’t have time to read blogs that post more than once a week – I’m lucky if I get to some of my friends once a week. I guess there is a market out there for people looking to kill time – my time is dead already. Dead and buried. I love my blogger friends and I do try to get to their posts – it’s all about support – but this blog is entitled Mad Rantings -and occasionally that is what I do.

So here it is – my not so original Chicken Cordon Bleu Macaroni and Cheese…or Three Servings Pasta.

Ingredients:

1 pound box of farfalle pasta – cook and rinse – I only cooked my pasta in salted water for 7 minutes (the box said 11 – the pasta cooks in the sauce and in the oven – so trust me – 7 minutes and rinse thoroughly). Reserve one cup of the cooking liquid.

½ pound of diced ham (or more to your liking)

homemade chicken cutlets or nuggets – two cutlets – or about 12 good size HOMEMADE nuggets, diced about the same size as the ham (if you want to pick up two cutlets from the deli – go ahead or two orders of chick-fil-a nuggets – I won’t tell anyone – but please please please don’t put “Mc” anything into this pasta.

4 tablespoons of butter

4 tablespoons of flour

Salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon of Dijon, a sprinkling of fresh grated nutmeg

Two gloves of diced garlic

½ pound of grated Italian fontina

1 quart of whole milk

Topping: ½ cup of panko, olive oil and parsley for the topping

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook farfalle or pasta of your choice as directed above (RESERVE one cup of cooking liquid).

Melt butter and sauté garlic until fragrant, add flour – cook a few minutes – add milk, dijon, nutmeg, salt, ground pepper – to your tastes. I used about a tsp of salt, ground pepper and about a ¼ of a tsp of nutmeg). Note: Diced onion would be wonderful in this as well — since I don’t want to watch my husband dissect a dish which would bring about my inner need to strangle…I don’t put diced onion into anything — I do put onion into the food processor and hide it that way but I didn’t yesterday.

I let this cook about five to ten minutes – add the cheese. Let the cheese melt into sauce.

Add the pasta, chicken and ham into sauce and then add ½ to ¾ cups of reserved pasta cooking liquid – it loosens up the sauce without making it too rich and globby. Globby is a word. My word.

Top with a little shredded fontina and bake in 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

Remove from oven – up oven temp to broil.

In a small bowl – add panko, olive oil and parsley and then sprinkle on top of pasta – and place under broiler for a minute or two – KEEP AN EYE ON IT. If the smoke alarm goes off — it’s over done.

Enjoy.