lush and delicious twist on apple pie

Jim is a big fan of apple pie, which is not my favorite, but I do love caramel apples, so I decided to try my hand at creating a caramel apple pie.  Well -- not a pie per se -- I have taken to creating rustic tarts rather than pies.  They are so simple to form, and in my opinion, more interesting to look at.  On top of that, there is no question that they are home made...

Earlier in the week, I made the caramel sauce.  It was an interesting and fun experiment, with excellent results, but if you don't want to fuss with making caramel, you could certainly use any good quality caramel sauce on the market.  The process of caramelizing sugar is a matter of zen-like patience followed by quick and decisive action.

sugar, just beginning to color

To two and half cups of sugar in a deep sauce pan, add a couple of tablespoons of white corn syrup, and a quarter cup of water.  The corn syrup isn't absolutely necessary, but from what I read, it will prevent the sugar from "seizing", which is when the melted sugar instantly turns into a crystalline mass, and you must toss it out and start over.  From what I read on the net, this is an all too common problem, so in went the corn syrup, and I had no problems. 

Beware, caramelizing sugar is a lava-like substance, capable of trip-to-the-hospital, disfiguring burns.  Hence, the deep pot, and great care to keep the handle on the pan turned away from the edge of the stove.  While the sugar dissolves and begins to heat up and boil, you really need to do very little, besides give the pan a gentle little swirl on occasion, to be sure the sugar is melting evenly.  Patience is rewarded.  My sugar stayed utterly clear, with no signs of caramelizing until it was over 300 degrees.  Once it started to brown, it darkened very quickly.

for deep caramel flavor, the trick is to take the sugar

to a deep shade of brown, and get it off the heat

before it goes from dark brown to burnt

Now comes the fun part.  With the sugar off of the heat, pour a generous cup of cream down the side of the pan, and watch the action.

the sugar boils violently with the addition of the cream,

but no worries -- all that action stays

in the bottom of the pot

Once the cream mixture has calmed down a bit, put it back on low heat, and stir gently, until the sugar and cream have fully integrated into a soft sauce.

swirling in a couple of tablespoons of butter

adds richness and gloss

Butter is optional, but just a couple of tablespoons really does add to the caramel.  Same goes with a generous pinch of salt, which adds balance to all that sweetness.  Once it has cooled completely, it is simple to incorporate into an apple pie.  Or just to simply dip into with some crunchy apple slices, for that matter...

For the pie, I used a couple of granny smiths, along with a honeycrisp, for a little flavor variation.  I used a mandoline to slice them very thin, spritzed them with a bit of lemon juice, and coated them with the caramel, and a couple of tablespoons of tapioca flour that I found in the international foods at whole foods -- it makes a great thickener for fruit pies.

 caramel and apples -- one of those perfect marriages

The apples exuded quite a bit of water, which watered down the caramel a bit.  If I make this pie again, I will strain the excess sauce off of the apple slices, and boil it down to a syrup before adding it back to the apples.  I suppose you could precook the apples in the syrup, but I don't care for the very soft texture that lends the apples in the baked pie.  At any rate, the free form tart turned lovely and luscious, served with a little extra caramel drizzle on top.

savory bread pudding for Thanksgiving

When I cook a turkey, I usually stuff it with herbs and a few chunks of citrus, rather than a bread or rice mixture.  I know, though, that a good dressing is an essential part of the Thanksgiving table, and my favorite part of a stuffing, or dressing, is the crispy part.  Baking it in a pan yields more crispy crust than stuffing it into the bird, and it is also safer, since it will reach a safe temperature independent of the bird.  So I consider the dressing a side dish, and cook it on its own.  This recipe is an especially rich and savory version of traditional dressing, which is lovely served with simple reduced gravy, made with the defatted pan drippings, a dollop of wine, and a bit of corn or potato starch to thicken. 

Toasting pecan pieces is as simple as putting the chopped pecans into a dry skillet over medium heat, and stirring them until they begin to brown and give off a warm fragrance.  They will go from toasted to burned in a few seconds, so as soon as they are toasty and fragrant, take them off of the heat and toss them into a cool bowl.  I like to toast more pecans than I need, toss the remainder in a bag, and put them in the freezer.  Then you will have toasted pecans on hand to add to dressings, salads, and desserts.  Don't think toasting makes a difference?  Taste an untoasted pecan, then a toasted one.  The flavor really develops with toasting.

If you have whole pecans, toast before chopping --

that way you have less chance of burning the pieces

Serves 8:

1 loaf challah Bread, very lightly toasted and cubed

5 TBLS butter

3 shallots, roughly chopped, or one small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup Madeira or Brandy

1 cup mixed wild mushrooms, hydrated if dried, then drained and squeezed dry.

4 cups half and half

4 eggs

1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

2 TBS fresh thyme, or 1 TBS dried

2 TBS chopped chives, optional

6 leaves fresh sage, chopped, or 1 TBS dried

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix herbs, bread cubes, and pecan pieces in a bowl and set aside

Place two TBS butter in a sauté pan over low heat.  When butter foams, add shallots and, cook, stirring, until they are golden.  Add garlic, and continue cooking, until garlic is softened.  Add mushrooms, and sauté until tender.  Add Madeira or brandy, and increase the heat, cooking until liquid is reduced to syrup.  Turn off heat, add remaining butter, and swirl to melt.  While vegetables are sautéing, break the eggs into a bowl and whisk to combine.  Add half and half, salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and whisk to combine.  Add the vegetable mixture to bread cubes, and toss to combine.  Pour in the egg mixture, and stir thoroughly.  Refrigerate for about two hours, until bread has absorbed all of the liquid mixture.  Place in a well buttered casserole to bake.

 the dressing is a rich, crispy, creamy addition to

the holiday table

The dressing can be made a day ahead, and refrigerated, covered with foil.  Bake, covered with foil, for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil, and bake for another 15 minutes or so, until the top is brown and crispy.  The oven temp is not terribly important.  Use the temperature recommended for whatever else you have in the oven at the same time.  Anything between about 325 and 425 will work.  Just adjust your cooking times a little for ovens at higher temperatures.

easy entertaining

Lasagna is a great dish to entertain with.  It can be assembled a day or two ahead, and while it bakes you can toss together a salad and make some garlic bread, and you have a clean kitchen, and plenty of time to relax with your guests.

The tomato sauce is a great place to add in

a variety of veggies

For the base sauce, I sauteed a couple of links of hot Italian sausage, and a couple of links of sweet Italian sausage, then drained away the fat, to prevent a greasy sauce.  I then add back just a tablespoon of the fat, and sauteed a variety of vegetables.  This time I used a leek, cut into julienne, a couple of shallots, sliced mushrooms, and julienned sweet red peppers.  Once the veggies were soft, and had given up most of their moisture, I added a cup of white wine, and cooked that until it had reduced by half.  Then I added a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste, two cans of whole fire roasted tomatoes crushed up, and the cooked sausage.  That mixture can simmer as little as 20 minutes.  In the mean time, I combined a large container of ricotta cheese, two cups of shredded parmesan (with an extra cup reserved for assembly),  a couple of teaspoons of freshly grated nutmeg, and two cups of fresh basil.

the ricotta mixture can be made in a food processor,

or simply combined by hand, cutting the basil into a chiffonade

Taste both the sauce and the ricotta, and adjust to your taste for both salt and pepper.  Grate a large ball of mozzarella cheese, and get ready for assembly.

Barilla's "no boil" lasagna sheets can go straight in the pan,

and cook up with a texture and appearance very

similar to home made pasta

Assembly is easy.  A couple of ladles of  the sauce go into the bottom of the pan, then a layer of noodles, a layer of ricotta, and a layer of mozzeralla.  Repeat twice, ending with a final layer of sauce, mozzarella, and the reserved parmesan.

just cover the finished lasagna with foil, 

and store it in the fridge

The lasagna takes about an hour to bake in a 350 oven, with the foil removed for the final 20 minutes.  It is done when the edges are bubbling, and the cheese is light golden brown.  Paired with a salad and crusty garlic bread, it makes a satisfying and hardy meal that is both easy and impressive.

the layers of savory sauce, noodles, and creamy cheese

make a delicious and simple meal with a minimum of clean up

before your guests arrive

grown up sides for Turkey day

Are you tired of the canned cranberry stuff?  Well, I have been for years, but some traditions are sacred, and that means my T-day table will always be graced by a few slices of the jiggly stuff for those who must have it.  But there will also be a bracing little bowl of cranberry relish.   A food processor is required for this recipe -- I suppose you could chop all of this stuff by hand, but that would make a 10 minute recipe a 3 hour endeavor.   This relish has a sweet-tart flavor, with just a tiny bit of heat from some candied ginger.  Make it a day or two ahead, and it will turn a gorgeous shade of ruby red.

1 bag fresh cranberries

1 orange

1 apple, such as fuji or gala

6 pieces candied ginger

2 TBS honey

everything gets chunked up, and tossed in the food processor;

I am using a blood orange here, because I had one on hand --

a regular orange works just fine

The original recipe, cadged from I know not where, simply quartered the orange and tossed it in, peel and all.  I find that the rind, especially if it is a bit thick, can be bitter, as can the seeds.  I take the two minutes required, and use a vegetable peeler to take the zest off of the orange, then peel away the rind, seed the segments, and toss everything in.  Process the candied ginger first, to grind it up a bit.  Don't worry if it sticks to the blade.  It will come loose and chop into smaller pieces when you add the fruit.

  the ginger adds a little sweet heat to the mix

After chopping the ginger up a little, everything else goes in the pool.  Quarter the apple and remove the core, but it is fine to leave the peel on.  Then, just chop the bejeezus out of everything and store it in the fridge until the big day.  I made this a bit early, for a newspaper article on Thanksgiving that will run next week.  So, I am going to experiment, and see if it will freeze, so I don't have to make it again.  I can't imagine why it wouldn't, but I'll report back at Thanksgiving.

relish with just enough bite to cut through

the traditional rich dishes of the day

Another favorite side dish, which I saw in the Wall Street Journal a few years ago, is a sweet potato dish made with coconut milk.  It has a subtle flavor, and a more grown up taste than the marshmallow thingy.  I haven't made it yet, so no pictures.

Preparation: 5 minutes
Cooking: 65 to 80 minutes

8 medium sweet potatoes
2 cups coconut milk, approximately
1 cinnamon stick
Salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Poke a few holes in the sweet potatoes, set them on a cookie sheet, and bake for 45 minutes to an hour.  They are done when they can be easily pierced with a fork all the way through their thickest part.  Let them cool, and then peel.  Either pass them through a food mill or a ricer, or mash with a fork or potato masher.

Bring the coconut milk to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes with the cinnamon stick  Remove the cinnamon stick,  and whisk into the sweet potato purée.   Add the coconut milk a cup at a time until you get the consistency you like.  I use the whole amount, which yields a light purée.

Add salt and pepper to taste.  Cover and reheat just before serving.

cooking scallops

Haven't made scallops for ages, and I'm not sure why.  May be remnants of memories of water injected scallops.  Yuck!  But these days, more often than not, even plain old grocery store scallops are dry, which means they will sear, and taste sweet and tender, not waterlogged and tough.  The trick to good scallops is to be sure and not overcook them.  In fact, I slightly undercook them, take them off the heat, and let the carryover heat finish the job.

it takes just a couple of minutes to get a sear

on scallops -- patting them dry with a paper towel helps

scallops, cooked just until they are golden brown

I was hankering for some Asian flavors last night, so I decided to serve the scallops over rice, with a coconut curry sauce.  I kept things simple.  I grated a bit of ginger and lemongrass, minced some serrano pepper and scallions, and chopped a bit of cilantro.  I contemplated grating some garlic, but decided that the flavor might overwhelm the delicate scallops.

left to right: minced serrano chiles, sliced scallion, 

chopperd cilantro, and grated ginger and lemongrass

everything but the cilantro gets a quick saute in 

the scallop pan in just a dollop of peanut oil

Then in goes a can of coconut milk.  Try the Thai Kitchen brand.  It is especially thick and creamy.  That gets simmered for just a few minutes with the aromatics.  At the last minute, toss in cilantro, adjust for salt and pepper, and pour the sauce over good basmati rice.  Dot on the golden scallops, and dinner is served.

the sauce can be a little runny -- no matter --

the rice just soaks up all that coconut goodness

where's the beef?

One way that I try to eat a little healthier, and stretch the grocery budget a bit, is to prepare a vegetarian meal once or twice a week.  Jim has a great appetite, and what I prepare needs to taste and look good, as well as be fairly hardy.  My go to?  Pasta, of course.  And I like using ingredients that can add a meaty flavor and texture to a good pasta sauce.  Mushrooms do a great job of that, as does eggplant.

Today, I'm focused on mushrooms.   I use crimini mushrooms for just about everything I make with mushrooms, because they are only slightly more expensive than white button mushrooms, and I think they have a lot more flavor.  When I want them to bring some texture to a recipe, I slice them in little wedges, rather than slices, but pre-sliced mushrooms would work just fine, and will save some time.

As usual, I am fixated on slicing my garlic wafer thin, about four cloves, but a tablespoon of chopped garlic will work just fine.  One thing I do when I slice garlic, is toss the little ends that I hang on to while slicing into a few tablespoons of olive oil, to infuse the oil with garlic.  That makes a simple and delicious garlic bread.  Just toast slices of crusty bread, and brush them with the infused oil. 

For a quick, tasty marinara sauce, simply heat a couple of tablespoons of oil over medium heat, and toss in your garlic.

you want the garlic soft and fragrant,

but you don't want it to brown much

Add a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste to the oil as well, and cook, stirring for about 3 minutes.  Add 8 ounces of cut mushrooms, and cook with the garlic mixture, until the mushrooms begin to color.

with this kind of flavor and texture,

who misses the meat?

Once the mushrooms have colored a bit, add about a cup of wine and a tablespoon of dried onion flakes, and simmer for about five minutes, to reduce the liquid a bit.  Now it the time to introduce tomatoes to the party.  I've used whole canned tomatoes, as well as diced tomatoes.  If you are using a 28 ounce can of whole tomatoes, get in there and squish them up with your fingers before adding them to the pan.   I really love Muir Glen's fire roasted tomatoes with no added salt, and my store does not carry them as whole tomatoes, so I used two smaller cans of diced tomatoes.

I like the roasted flavor of these tomatoes,

as well as the fact that I can control the salt content

Once the tomatoes are in, I simply let the sauce simmer, while I bring a pot of salted water to the boil for the spaghetti.  

the sauce is full of texture and flavor,

and only needs to simmer for about 20 minutes

By the time I have cooked the noodles the sauce has reduced a bit, and the flavors have mellowed.  If it gets a bit too thick, I simply thin it with a bit of water.  Just before tossing it with the drained noodles, I throw in a little handful of minced parsley, which adds color, and a bright green flavor.  Topped with a bit of grated Parmesan, and served with some crunchy garlic bread and a salad, who needs meat?

 I like the noodles gently coated with the sauce,

rather than drowning in a big pile of sauce

I like to up the ante a little by using noodles that are a little higher in fiber and lower in carbohydrates, but I am not a fan of the brown color and weird texture of whole wheat pasta.  So I was really glad when pasta companies started coming out with pasta that looks and tastes like the old standby, but has fewer carbs, whole grains, and more fiber.  My favorite is pasta made by Dreamfields, but Barilla's Plus, and Ronzoni's Healthy Harvest are quite good, too.

okay, let's try that one more time

My last attempt at crab cakes was certainly tasty, but a disaster on a plate, unless you enjoy free form crab cakes.  The best crab cakes I have ever eaten were in Seattle, at a great restaurant across from the art museum, called The Brooklyn.  I have no idea if the restaurant is still there, but their crab cakes live in my memory.  They were thin, crispy, lacy little morsels, and at some point I will try to recreate them.  But last night wasn't the night.  First I wanted to conquer a more traditional style of crab cake.  Generous, round patties bursting with big pieces of sweet crab meat.

I started with the Jumbo Lump crab meat from Whole Foods.  It is a little pricey, but not out of line.  One eight ounce container will make three very generous cakes for 12 bucks, which, with a salad, is plenty for two people.  Good luck having big fat crab cakes for two in any restaurant that price.

I wanted to keep them simple, and focused on the crab.  So the ingredient list is short.

chopped chives, minced parsley, and minced green onion

made the short list on vegetation

I added the green stuff, along with a single egg, a little salt, some ground white pepper, and a bit of Old Bay seasoning to the crab meat, and stirred gently, to keep from breaking up the nice lump meat.  

the jumbo lump meat was gorgeous, 

and deserved some gentle treatment

I had a part of a nice loaf of sour dough sitting on the counter, and I contemplated making some fresh bread crumbs.  But I also had some panko bread crumbs in the pantry.  They were already ground, would integrate quietly into the mixture, and offer a crispy exterior to the cakes.  Panko wins.  I added just enough panko to have a mixture that would hold together, a little less than a cup in this case.  Then I sprinkled some extra panko on a plate, to set the cakes on once they were formed.

a few hours rest in the fridge will provide

a little insurance that the cakes will hold

together in the pan

Shellfish and butter go together really well, so I decided to cook these fairly gently in a little butter.  Just a couple of tablespoons was enough to fry all three cakes.  I pressed just a little extra panko on the outside to assure a crisp exterior.

I wanted an interesting, but simple, sauce to go with the cakes.  I had a carton of mixed baby tomatoes, so I tossed those, naked, into a pan and roasted them for about 30 minutes in a 375 oven.  A roasted red pepper sauce, made virtually the same way, but with peppers, would be lovely as well.

once the tomatoes have cooled a little,

you can simply pluck off the skins

I have long been opposed to seeding tomatoes, because I truly believed there is a tremendous amount of flavor in the gel that suspends the seeds.  A little bit of research led me to vindication.

Harold McGee, a renowned food researcher, and a food columnist for the New York Times, wrote an article talking about scientific testing that proved that the most intense flavor in a tomato is indeed in the gel.  Do what you want, but I leave the seeds, and that precious gel.

The sauce I made couldn't be more simple.  The tomato flesh goes into a blender, along with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, a couple of teaspoons of good sherry vinegar, salt, pepper, and half a teaspoon of sugar to bring out that bright tomato flavor.  The whole gets blended into an emulsion, and adjusted for seasoning.

The emulsified sauce comes together 

in the time it takes to saute one side 

of the crab cakes

I had some arugula left over, which I simply tossed with a bit of the sauce, piled in the middle of the plate, and arranged the golden brown crab cakes on top.  I added a bit of sauce on the side.  I tried to do the modern chef "smudge" of sauce, but, um, I seem to need a little practice.  Jim suggested that I get a bottle of ketchup and a plate, and do it a couple of hundred times.  Not a bad idea.

just for a little salt and interest

I pulled some curls of aged gouda over

the salad and cakes -- totally optional

The crab cakes were delicious.

an evening in a French bistro

I had to take Jim to an eye appointment (the dreaded dilation  drops) that took forever, and I wound up whiling away the time perusing a Saveur magazine that had a feature on French bistros.  The more I read, the hungrier I got, and I was on a mission in the grocery store this afternoon.  French Bistro food.  But it was getting late, so I didn't have time for a slow braise so common in many bistro foods.  Steak frites?  That was a possibility, but I really didn't want to make French fries, and besides, I had no idea how to find duck fat, which is what make real frites so amazing.  Then, at the seafood counter in Whole Foods, I saw them.   Mussels.  For just $2.99 a pound.  And the seafood guy told me they were in fresh today.  A bistro classic -- mussels in white wine.  And oh so simple.  Just a a bit of garlic, shallot, parsley, and red pepper flake.  Some white wine and a butter finish.  Hello, dinner in about a half an hour.

a very simple mise en place -- chopped parsley,

red pepper flakes, chopped garlic, minced shallot

and some good butter and white wine

So, what to eat with the mussels.  A crunchy, rustic bread was a must.  And a salad.  I have figs and walnuts in the freezer, and some fresh goat cheese, so I bought some arugula.  Figs, goat cheese, and walnuts make a wonderful sweet/salty/sour salad combination, and they are especially nice with the spicy bite of arugula.  When figs are fresh in the fall, I like to slice them in half and grill them just until they caramelize a bit, and nestle them on top of the salad.  But, once they are frozen, they get pretty soft.  So I decided to incorporate them into the salad dressing, along with a bit of walnut oil, shallot, salt, pepper, and white wine vinegar.  The skin peels right off of the flesh once they have thawed.

the dressing ready to be emulsified -- the result

was a surprisingly pink and thick dressing

all of the red in the fig flesh made a

vinaigrette that was a pretty shade of pink, 

almost like a raspberry vinaigrette

with the dressing made, and the walnuts toasted, I was ready to cook the mussels.  Just a bit of butter and oil in the pan, and I could sweat the shallots, garlic, and red pepper flakes.

the vegetables are sweated until soft and 

just slightly brown

Then about a cup of white wine is added, and brought up to a low boil.  Toss in the mussels, clap on the lid, and they are fully steamed in about six minutes.

Shaking the pan a few times while the mussels steam will make sure they heat evenly.  And it's fun rattling them around a bit in the pan.  Once they are fully open, place the mussels in bowls for serving, lifting them out of the pot with tongs or a slotted spoon.  Return the wine mixture to the heat, and bring to a rolling boil, to reduce by a half to two thirds.  While the sauce reduces, toss the arugula with the toasted walnuts, some crumbled goat cheese, and the fig vinaigrette.

Remove the sauce from the heat, and whisk in about three tablespoons of cold butter and a couple of tablespoons of finely chopped parsley.   The butter will emulsify the sauce a bit, and give it some body.  Pour the sauce over the mussels, and serve, with a little extra sprinkling of parsley for a little extra color and brightness.

the mussel sauce is lovely sopped up

with the crusty slices of bread

Next time I might even grill the bread, for an even more rustic flavor, and sturdier crunch.

With mussels that good and cheap, don't be surprised if you see a Thai mussel dish make an appearance here soon.  Mussels are wonderful steamed in coconut milk, Thai chiles, and cilantro.

back to the braise

Anyone who has read much of this blog already knows that I have a soft spot in my heart for one pot meals, low and slow cooking, and meltingly tender meat.  And that really kicks in for me on chilly, rainy days, which is exactly what we are having here today.  I wanted something a little different, that would be good served over rice, aromatic, and healthy.

I had some chicken thighs in the freezer, which adapt very well to braising (breast meat can very easily dry out if cooked too long), onions, mushrooms, garlic, and sweet red peppers in the fridge, and some canned San Marzano tomatoes in the pantry.  I love the flavor of tomatoes and garlic cooked together, but I didn't want the usual Italian flavors, so I settled on a middle eastern sort of flair, with cumin, red pepper flakes, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and grated ginger.

these are sweet red peppers I keep on hand regularly

I have never seen them anywhere but Costco,

but if you spy them, give them a try

One little kitchen tip that I have used for years is to buy a hand of ginger, use what I need, and toss the rest, whole, into the freezer in a plastic bag.  It will keep forever, and you don't have to thaw it out to grate it.  Just run the frozen ginger over a microplane grater, and you'll have a nice little pile of ginger snow.

Mise en place for the dish is fairly simple.

clockwise, starting in the upper left hand corner:

whole cumin and red pepper flakes, grated ginger,

sweeet red pepper, onion, tomatoes, mushrooms,

sliced garlic, cinnamon, and bay leaves

Season the chicken with salt, on both sides.  If you are using skinless thighs, heat a couple of tablespoons of oil over medium heat.  If the skin is still one the meat, just start it skin side down in a non stick pan over medium heat.  It will make it's own fat.

once the chicken is brown, remove it from the pan,

and add the spices to the fat for a quick toast

When you can smell the fragrance of the toasting spices, add in the onions, and sweat them until they begin to lose some of their moisture.

once the onion base is wilted, 

add in the mushrooms and peppers

Cook the vegetables for a few minutes, then add the garlic (jarred will work just fine) and ginger, cinnamon, and bay leaf.  Add in the canned tomatoes.  If you are using whole tomatoes, smash them up a bit with a wooden spoon.  Add the chicken back in and simmer the whole mixture until the chicken is cooked through.  About 30-40 minutes.  If the sauce gets too thick, just add a bit of water.

removing the skin would make this a very low fat meal,

but Jim loves the skin, so I leave it on

This is a very easy stove top recipe, redolent with ginger and spice, but it does take about an hour to complete.  I suspect that it would be an easy crockpot meal -- just dump all the ingredients in the crock pot, and set it on low, though I would recommend removing the chicken skin and fat from the thighs for that method.  At any rate, at the end of the work day, you'd have an aromatic, healthy, fragrant stew waiting for you.  Nothing to do but cook up a little rice, pour a glass of wine, and enjoy!

a simple braise, loaded with flavor

a different take on chili

A few weeks ago, I spotted some fresh Hatch chiles in Whole Foods, chiles from a specific area in New Mexico that produce a distinct flavor that shows up in some of the best New Mexican foods.  I didn't know what I wanted to do with them, so I brought them home, roasted and peeled them, and stuck them in the freezer.

Well, fall has finally come to Greenville, and that puts me in the mood for all kinds of chilies and stews.  With those Hatch chiles in the freezer, along with some frozen white corn and a couple of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, dinner started to come together.  I really didn't want to go to the grocery store, and I had dried white beans in the pantry, along with onions, garlic, a yellow pepper, and some mushrooms.  That spells chicken chili, and since I was using dried beans, I decided to try the pressure cooker.

 mise en place for chicken chili, clockwise from 12 o'clock:

minced serrano chiles, diced onion, chopped Hatch chiles,

quartered mushrooms, diced yellow sweet pepper, 

and minced garlic in the center

If you don't have a yellow sweet pepper, use sweet red or green pepper.  No Hatch chiles lurking in the freezer?  Use a couple of little cans of green chiles, drained, which can be found in the international food section of any grocery store.  I just ran about five cloves of garlic through the garlic press, but jarred minced garlic would work just fine.   The minced peppers and onion start off in a tablespoon of oil, and are sauteed just until soft.

once the veggies are soft, a tablespoon each of 

ground coriander and ground cumin are added,

along with the minced garlic

Once the garlic and spices are fragrant, dump in a cup and a half of dried beans, along with four cups of chicken broth, and a cup of water or white wine.  Ach!  I thought I had homemade chicken broth in the freezer.  And no canned broth in the pantry.  But I did have a wonderful demiglace concentrate.  These stock concentrates come in chicken, veal, seafood, lamb, and mushroom varieties, keep forever, are very low in sodium compared with canned broths, and are a great way to enrich gravies and sauces.   They are available in higher-end grocery stores, as well as online.

this concentrate makes a very rich, low sodium, flavorful stock -- 

they are not cheap, but I think they are worth the cost, 

since a little goes along way

If you are up for a leisurely simmer, or you are using a pressure cooker, dump in a cup and a half of dried white beans.

love this adjustable measuring cup, for both

wet and dry ingredients

In a pressure cooker, the beans take 20 minutes on high pressure to become tender.  On top of the stove, follow the timing recommended on the package.  Or, simply add a couple of 14 ounce cans of canned white beans.  Cannellini beans are nice.  Don't rinse them -- you want all of that bean starch to thicken the chili.  Once the beans are tender, take out a generous cup of the beans and broth, and put it in a blender to liquefy.  Once the beans are creamy, return them to the pot to thicken things up a bit.  Slip the mushrooms and two boneless, skinless chicken breast halves into the pot.   If you are using a pressure cooker, return the pot to high pressure for just 5 minutes.  Allow the pressure to drop for 5 minutes off the heat, release the pressure, and remove the breasts to a plate.  In a pot on the stove, simmer the breasts for about 15 minutes, and remove them to a plate.  Cover the breasts.  Taking the chicken out of the pot as soon as it is cooked is important, because the breast meat is so easy to overcook and dry out.  If you need the dish to be a little more forgiving, simply substitute boneless skinless chicken thighs, which are much harder to overcook.

 add 1-2 cups of frozen corn to the pot --

I prefer white corn, but any will do

once the chicken is cool, shred it, and add to the chili

just a few minutes before serving, just to reheat

Once the chicken has reheated, now is the time to taste the chili and adjust for salt and pepper.  Mine tonight took a couple of teaspoons of salt, as well as a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Serve the chili topped with a little grated sharp cheddar, and a pinch of chopped green onions, or offer a whole assortment of toppings.  A little sour cream would be nice, as would chopped cilantro, minced chives, crumbled Fritos, or grated pepperjack cheese.

Chili with sharp cheddar and minced scallion,

with a warm, buttered corn muffin

With a piece of warm corn bread on the side, this is a light, but still filling meal for a cool fall or winter evening. It is also economical because about 10 bucks worth of ingredients will feed 4-6 people.  It is also a great recipe to keep in mind for the inevitable left over turkey destined to show up in the fridge later this month.