Chocolate Caramel Bars

For the last month I’ve been interning at a French place called JoJo during my weekends from 9 AM till 5 PM. I was initially so excited about getting the internship…. But I always knew that I’d have to start on the bottom (on the job chain) and I’m learning what that actually entails. From 9-5 on Saturdays and Sundays, I am working in the prep kitchen either peeling potatoes, shucking corn, prepping string beans, cutting onions, making dressings, frying chips… and the list goes on. I am learning how to do lots of new things and how to be quick quick quick cause you know time is money (even though I am most definitely not getting paid). Anyways, today was a weird day, I woke up at 3 AM in a horror I had forgotten my knives in my locker at school! Chefs do not share knives… it’s like a musician without a guitar or a photographer without a camera…. This morning I woke up an hour earlier than my planned wake up time and hauled my ass downtown to school (about a 35 min subway ride) and got my knives…. But then I realized I had FORGOTTEN my chef pants! Ah! I guess it’s like a nurse trying to wear jeans to work if that makes the comparison more understandable…. I cursed myself once again. I tried to get an administrator at my school to sell me a pair of pants and he told me I had to wait for the receptionist who wouldn’t be there till 9 AM and my internship started at 9! Then my tears started coming… my internship was about a 15 minute subway ride away… but golly the normal me wouldn’t care and I’d be like hmm okay sooo I’ll be a few minutes late. But the tears worked the administrator (a man) ran and found someone (a woman) who was able to figure out how to charge pants onto my student account. Finally! I thought I got the worse out of the way, then at about 11 AM I was chopping onions and I cut myself and made a bloody mess and again the tears came. I cut and burn myself almost everyday at school, but today for some reason I was Mrs.Waterworks and I had to step outside of the restaurant and contain myself. I’m wondering if school and work every day of the week is finally getting to me… don’t get me wrong I love almost every moment. Tomorrow I don’t have to go into Jojo until 2PM and I’m making myself go to Central Park in the morning and walk around and enjoy the quiet and not being in a kitchen the first thing in the morning.

At school, I am mostly cooking something savory so I have been craving to bake. A few days ago on the phone my friend Jen told me that her boyfriend Kellan wanted me to send him some cookies. His birthday was yesterday… but perfect I decided I was going to bake him a belated birthday treat to fulfill his wish. Kellan was my neighbor in college and I brought him baked goods from time to time and he got pretty spoiled. Now everytime he sees me or hears his girlfriend on the phone with me it’s always, “Ooooh where are my cookies!” I love a boy who will eat my baking; he does have a special place in my heart… These are made with a chef’s worse enemy…. Cake mix… and store bought caramels… I can just see everyone cringing… I saw this recipe and I don’t know why I didn’t turn away when I saw cake mix listed as an ingredient. I still made them and they are pretty damn good. I need to send these bars out pronto buut I hope it passes the mail test meaning that it doesn’t get melty and fall apart. Since I can’t send the ENTIRE thing to Kellan (I mean that’d be spoiling him too much) so the winner for the other half goes to my dear old grandparents! This dessert would be great if you needed something quick and easy to throw together. To me this dessert is like a really fudgy dark brownie with decadent oozy caramel and crunchy pecans. Here is the recipe http://www.bakeorbreak.com/recipes/2009/12/23/chocolate-caramel-bars/

Indonesian Ginger Chicken

I am sitting outside on my balcony with a glass of wine as I am writing this because it’s rainy and slightly cool for the first time in a long while. It’s nice not to feel that wave of mist rush over me as soon as I step outside. I feel like New York is way more humid than North Carolina? I could be wrong… maybe its because I am used to getting around in a car with air conditioning and here I walk everywhere…but I am looking forward to experiencing the New York four seasons (the frigid winters maybe not so much).

I apologize I am doing chicken once again. We all had to quarter a chicken in class but did not cook them all so I volunteered to bring home a quartered chicken which meant free dinner times three (including leftovers). I have been craving Thai and asain foods lately maybe its because in class we do all sorts of French cooking which means lots of cream, butter, and SALT (thank goodness I walk a lot). I put salt in caps because I feel like we salt our food by the handful instead of using a typical pinch, and the chef instructors will still say it tastes undersalted still at times. It’s like WHAAT now I can’t help but have a heavy hand with salt. Perhaps that’s why I feel puffy sometimes? Anyways so asian is typically light, spicy, and fresh which is much more appropriate for the summer time.

This chicken recipe is a winner and the sauce makes it. I got this recipe from Ina Garten on the Food Network. I made the marinade before school in the morning and threw it in fridge and it was ready to bake when I got home later that night. Sorry for the boring pictures; I had a sweet potato on the side but it was microwaved and a bit shriveled up so it didn’t make it into the photos. But the sweet potato did go really well dipped in the yummy sauce.

Indonesian Ginger Chicken

Ingredients:
1 cup honey
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup minced garlic (8 to 12 cloves)
1/2 cup peeled and grated fresh ginger root
2 (3 1/2 pound) chickens, quartered, with backs removed

Directions:
Cook the honey, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger root in a small saucepan over low heat until the honey is melted. Arrange the chicken in 1 layer in a shallow baking pan, skin side down, and pour on the sauce. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator. **(Michelle’s Note: If I were you I’d use half the sauce for marinating and save about half of the sauce and use it for dipping)**

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover the pan, turn the chicken skin side up, and raise the temperature to 375 degrees F. Continue baking for 30 minutes or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh and the sauce is a rich, dark brown.

Homemade Mole

I went back home to Raleigh this past weekend and had an amazing time with family and friends. When I was picked up from the airport and on the way to the house I realized I’ve missed seeing green aka trees and grass. New York City is glamorous and so fun but definitely lacking in the nature department and consists of the colors light gray concrete and dark gray buildings. After spending time at home and riding in cars (not in subways) and lounging around the house I felt slightly refreshed when I got back to NYC.

Today I finally did what I’ve wanted to do for a long time and that was to make homemade mole! For a class assignment we all had to come up with a menu, and my menu theme was a progressive Mexican/Latin menu. I am going to include the menu because I would love some ideas and feedback if anyone has any other ideas to include in the menu… I have to cook some of the things on my menu and do food costing and take photos so this was the perfect excuse to make mole. I trekked to a Mexican grocery store after class and bought the dried chilies and chocolate. I pretty much simplified the recipe meaning I took less time to soak the chilies and sauté things… the whole thing probably took me about 45 minutes to make and I have enough mole to make multiple dishes of mole enchiladas. But that’s perfect because that’s what freezers and tupperwares are for.

Mole Negro
· 3 cups low-salt chicken broth
· 1 cup orange juice (I used two fresh oranges)
· 1 large onion sliced
· 1/2 cup sliced almonds
· 6 large garlic cloves, sliced
· 4 teaspoons cumin seeds
· 4 teaspoons coriander seeds
· 3 ounces dried pasilla chiles

· 2 ounce dried negro chiles

· 1/4 cup raisins
· 1 3.1-ounce disk Mexican chocolate (I used Ibarra brand)

First, toast the dried chilies in a saucepan (no oil) for about 3 minutes until the peppers start to puff up. Transfer the peppers into a bowl and pour in boiling water (until the peppers are covered) to rehydrate them for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and sauté until golden brown, about 18 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add almonds, garlic, cumin, and coriander. Sauté until nuts and garlic begin to color, about 2 minutes. Add chiles and stir until beginning to soften, about 2 minutes.

Put this chicken broth in a large pan and bring to a simmer and add the orange juice. Add the raisins to the broth. Transfer the chili mixture to the broth and simmer until chilies are very soft, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; add chocolate. Let stand until chocolate melts. Working in small batches, transfer sauce mixture to blender and puree until smooth; return to reserved pot. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.

I used the leftover chicken I brought home from class and made myself some enchiladas. I microwaved the chicken and corn tortillas and just slathered them with the mole sauce and it was yuuum!!

Here is the menu that I made for class, some of these dishes are the Mexican dishes that I grew up with and others are ideas that came to my head.

Appetizer

Cream of Poblano Soup
Topped with a fried cornbread crouton and shredded Monterey jack cheese

Seasonal Ensalada
Crunchy cabbage, julienned mango, avocado, candied walnuts, lime vinaigrette

Corn and Black Bean cakes
Topped with creamy queso, green onions, and fried cilantro and served with red pepper jalapeno salsa

Beef Empanadas
Made with masa dough, filled with chorizo, raisins, and olives

Seafood Entrées

Fish Tacos
Grilled Flounder with pickled red onions, fried avocados, and a roasted red pepper remoulade

Snapper
Breaded with dehydrated squash blossoms and served atop pepper jack mashed sweet potatoes

Mexican Style Mussels
Tequila, lime, and jalapeno

Scallops
Seared corn meal crusted scallops served with a honey habanero sauce

Meat Entrées

Mole Enchiladas
House made corn tortillas filled with shredded chicken and

generously topped with mole sauce

Stuffed Chicken
Chicken Breast stuffed with mashed plantains, bacon, and leeks

Pork Tenderloin
Made with orange marmalade and chipotle glaze

Chiles Rellenos
Poblanos stuffed with pork cheek, three cheeses, and served with a smoky tomato cream sauce

Sides (choice of two per entrée)

Spicy Macaroni and cheese
Serrano chilies, cayenne béchamel sauce, and Gruyere

Julienned Carrots
Paper thin carrots sautéed in a cilantro garlic dressing

Corn Pudding
Vanilla bean, chives, Manchego cheese

Jicama Salad
Julienned Jicama, red peppers, apples, cucumber, citrus vinaigrette

Desserts

Chocolate cinnamon profiteroles with a warm Kahlua sauce

Pineapple Brown sugar crisp served with a Mexican vanilla Ice cream

Coconut Flan with spiced pepita seed brittle

Chocolate Cherry Torte with Pistachio Ice cream drizzled with a bittersweet chocolate sauce

I hope everyone is doing well and is having a great summer!

Maple Cayenne Glazed Chicken and Sweet Potato Hash

Before school started I ate egg whites, boneless skinless chicken, and low fat mayo… but today a chef came in and talked to us about nutrition. I learned about the French Paradox, which is basically how do the French eat so much more salt, butter, cream, and drink and smoke a hell lot more than Americans but manage to have a MUCH lower amount of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and colon cancer. Boy, I thought I knew a lot about nutrition, but I did learn a few things.

• First, I learned that Americans have been brainwashed about good vs. bad fats. I already knew that butter is better for you than margarine. I also learned that chicken skin is considered to be a monosaturated fat (olive oil and avocados are other sources of monostaurated fats)… so chicken skin is good for you? The chef “nutritionist” said that the chicken skin is actually good for us and gave us a homework assignment to buy a rotisserie chicken and just eat the skin (that was just a joke of course). So I have spent years eating bland boneless skinless chicken breasts, well no more.
• I learned about the business of salmon. Wild Atlantic salmon is apparently all gone and if we want wild salmon, we have to resort to Alaskan wild salmon which is outrageously expensive (like $25/pound). But often the only reason I eat salmon is because I’m thinking I need some Omega 3s. But guess freaking what, farm raised salmon almost has NO omega 3s because they are fed corn and soy products instead of other fish and coral like they are supposed to eat. And the pink color from farm raised salmon comes from beets. Are salmon supposed to eat beets?? I don’t think so but at least it’s not artificial color…
• Salmon being fed corn and soy products brings me to another point. We are not what we eat, but we are what we eat eats. That is kind of a depressing thought, because almost everything we eat is fed corn and soy (think cows and chickens), so that’s why our meat is so far inferior compared to other cultures. Apparently, in Japan, the chicken is raised just right and they can eat it raw if they wanted because their chicken has virtually no salmonella! I learned that in America, our chicken is disgusting and full of salmonella. In class, when we prepared chicken that was the only meat we had to all wear gloves (we have cooked steak, venison, rabbit, duck, etc). Chicken is the most common meat produced in the U.S. so it makes sense that our chicken is just awful because people want to go to Wal-mart and buy the cheapest chicken which is probably chock-full of salmonella. Now I will not ever try to complain about paying 5.99 a pound for chicken.

Anyhow, I don’t want to scare you from eating chicken because that is my recipe for today. All in all I learned that I may need to pay more for better quality food (Duh, everyone knows that but now I might actually be willing to after learning all this information) and to finally indulge in chicken skin.

I made cayenne maple chicken : Food Network and Sweet Potato, Bacon and Apple Hash Recipe : Anne Burrell : Food Network. I made the recipes exactly as they are stated and they are both delicious. It took me until after I cooked all this to realize this would be perfect for the fall oops but it was still very good.

Zucchini Crusted Pizza

For the past two weeks at school we have been cooking meat, meat, meat and more meat. Today we did eggs, finally something other than meat thank god. I could definitely go vegetarian for the next few weeks until I start craving meat again. Yesterday was our organ meat day….. let me tell you I was a bit nervous about the day. I made beef liver with caramelized onions, lamb tongue with a fingerling potato salad (yes and it still looked just like a tongue), sweetbreads with a brown butter caper sauce, and sautéed kidneys. I had to try everything I made because the chef instructors were watching all the ladies in my class to make sure we were trying it, because “How can you know how to cook it properly, if you don’t know what it is supposed to taste like.” Valid point they made, so I tried everything. Liver wasn’t bad, but of course you can top a shoe with caramelized onions and I’d probably eat it. The sweetbreads were breaded and fried up and had slightly sweet flavor and had a chickeny texture... I’d eat it again. The tongue was served cold and it was interesting to eat because I kept thinking that a tongue was touching my tongue so that had a bit of an ick factor; but if I hadn’t known it was tongue, I might mistake it for beef possibly. The kidneys were my least favorite of the bunch; they looked like quartered mushrooms, but they had a crunch almost like a grape. But glad I got organ meat day out of the way.

I hope everyone had a happy 4th of July. My friend who came to visit and I decided to venture over to the west side by the Hudson River and watch the big Macy Fireworks show. Can I say people, people, and mooooooooooore people. It was recommended to get there about 2 hours ahead of time so we set down our blanket thinking we could sit or lay down. People pushed forward till we were laying down in the middle of the mob. Before the fireworks started, we decided to pack up the blanket and stand like everyone else. But it was a spetacualr show, so I guess standing in the middle of a crowded crowd was worth it. I tried to capture a few photos, but of course it does no justice.

I have been coming home and having very light dinners after cooking all of those stick to your ribs dishes at school. I found this recipe in The Moosewood Cookbook, which is a well known vegetarian cookbook. This recipe stuck out because I love the flavor of pizza, but I didn’t want that heavy bready crust.

Zucchini-Crusted Pizza

olive oil & flour for the pan

2 cups (packed) grated zucchini (about 2 7" zucchini) SQUEEZE all the moisture out

2 eggs beaten

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup grated mozarella

1/2 cup grated fresh parmesan
1-2 finely chopped garlic cloves

¼ cup chopped basil

TOPPING SUGGESTIONS:

Any of your favorite pizza toppings. I topped the zucchini crust with a tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil.

1. Preheat oven to 400. Generously oil a 10" pie pan or 8 by 13’ baking pan.

2. Grate the zucchini and salt with about 2 tsp of salt. Let sit for 15 minutes. Put zucchini in a kitchen towel and squeeze as much liquid out.

3. Combine zucchini, eggs, flour, mozzarella, parmesan, garlic, basil and 1 TBS olive oil in a bowl & mix well.

4. Spread into the prepared pan & bake for about 35 minutes, or until golden brown. . Remove from oven.

5. Top with your favorite pizza items and bake at 400 until heated through (about 10 min.)

Wine and Cheese Night

This week has been intense week in the kitchen… this week I dealt with filleting fish, killing a lobster the hard way, learning how to quarter a duck. I think the lobster story is the best one so I’ll share that one. The live lobster that was placed on my cutting board was crawling around and I had to lift the thing back to the center of my board so I could hack it before it crawled away again. I killed the lobster wrong I know because after I chopped the tail off, the lobster tail curled into a ball and the claws kept flailing. I felt like I did a terrible magic trick because the lobster tail and torso were a good 4 inches apart and everything was still flailing wildly. Ah poor lobster. Then as I had watched the chef do during his demo, I started to quarter the lobster… but the lobster would not stay still for me. Then the sous chef walked to my table and goes “Hmm… you should cut the head off first so it dies straightaway.” Ohh oops then I proceeded to chop off the head after I tortured the poor lobster. Then I cooked it and ate it. The End.

After classes this week, I brought home leftover such as chicken, duck, and whatever we had cooked up that day. So, needless to say, I have had a lot of tacos this week with my leftover meat… but tonight my leftover supply ran out so I threw a little something together. I made a Honey, Gorgonzola and Walnut Open Faced Sandwich. This dish is mainly just about using good ingredients. I bought the Gorgonzola from a cheese shop. The nice thing about these cheese shops is that you can get a relatively small amount and I could get a ¼ pound of cheese so I didn’t have to have a big hunk of cheese hanging out in the fridge. I bought a nice mini walnut loaf of bread from a bread bakery in the city. It’s so nice to live in a big city, because anything you possibly can want is out there. This was the perfect light supper with a glass (or two) of wine. I loved the combined flavor of the strong cheese, crunchy walnuts, hearty bread, all topped with a bit of sweet honey.

Honey, Gorgonzola, and Walnut Open Faced Sandwiches

Ingredients:
-Loaf of hearty bread
-Gorgonzola Dolce cheese
-Honey
-Cayenne Spiced Candied Walnuts (recipe below)

Toast the bread on a grill or in an oven until golden. Spread some gorgonzola on the toasted bread. Drizzle a small amount of honey on top of the gorgonzola. Top with the candied walnuts.

Cayenne Spiced Candied Walnuts

Set aside a well greased piece of foil or parchment paper. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine ½ cup sugar with ¼ cup water. Add a couple sprinkles of cayenne. Let the sugar get slightly golden (may take 4-5 min), add about a cup of walnuts. Toss the walnuts in the sugar and make sure the nuts are well covered. Pour out onto the greased foil. When cool cut into pieces.

Oh and I can’t forgot about the most important recipe of them all. Granddad thought my previous hamburger recipe looked a bit too complicated so he decided to help me out and send me his own recipe (and I included his message too cause I thought it was delightful)

I am really enjoying your blog. I notice that most of your recipes are pretty fancy. My theory is that perhaps you should get recipes for simple, everyday things. Here is my recipe for hamburgers:

Good quality ground beef
Add about 20% fairly loose mashed potatoes
Add ranch dressing style mix ( just a small amount)
Make patties fairly thin-1/2 to 2/3 inch thick
Cook medium well done. Delicious!

Always put patties in toasted buns with mayonnaise, onions,
yellow mustard, tomatoes and lettuce.

Thanks Granddad! And HAPPY FATHER’S DAY TO YOU! Thanks for being the BEST Granddad EVER! (And I’m sorry if I posted yet another fancy recipe, I will work on going simpler).

Goat Cheese Burgers with Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Date Sauce

This week has flown by in such a blur! Earlier this week in class we learned preservation methods (think duck confit, salt cod, pickling vegetables, gavlox, preserved lemons). On Thursday in class we spent the day on potatoes, and I learned how to make pomme frites (I had never fried French fries before!) and gratins, and various other delicious potato preparations. Needless to say, everyone was too full from class to eat dinner that night. However, the most exciting day of the week was Friday, I got to fillet fish! I had never fillets fish before, I was always too intimidated or afraid I’d screw up royally. Anyone going on a fishing trip soon??

After class there are often many fun events the school offers. On Tuesday after class there was a beer and cheese tasting (what… beer and cheese?!) But I had a blast, I got to taste six different beers (or should I say I sipped each of the beers, I’m still not a beer girl) with six different cheeses that paired well with each beer. I learned that beers are graded by their bitterness levels and alcoholic levels… I could be completely off base… but that is what I gathered from the lecture. Some beers were incredibly bitter and the taste lasted for minutes in my mouth, I’ve never experienced such a thing before. Needless to say, I dislike most mainstream beers and these beers were much nicer (and more expensive).

After class on Tuesday, there was a demonstration by a chef from Arizona that worked at the Ritz Carlton and he made two dishes for us. The first dish was raw tuna topped with watermelon pop rocks (yes, I typed that right) mixed with ancho chili powder and picked radish. The second dish was steak with a spicy chile maple glaze with a poblano sauce and fried avocado wedges on the side. They were both amazingly delicious and fun dishes to try. On Thursday, there was a hotdog eating contest along with a condiment and beverage contest. I decided to join the condiment contest at the last minute with a Spicy Red Pepper and Date Sauce (somewhat similar to the sauce 2 blogs ago). I won second place!! I had never experienced the feeling of that adrenaline rush, when you are with the other contestant with the hopes you will win… but I wasn’t disappointed that I didn’t win. My classmates and chef instructor gave me wonderful support and all congratulated me so that was a great feeling.

I haven't gotten to cook too much this week at home so I will go ahead and post my second place condiment recipe.

Spicy Red Pepper Date Sauce

10 dried dates, pitted, cut into chunks

2 roasted bell peppers (jarred roasted peppers don’t do this justice)

7 oz pickled chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

1 big clove garlic

1/4 cup honey
¼ cup water (or as much is needed to blend)
½ cup Greek yogurt (I used the Fage brand)
1/3 cups mint, minced

1 tsp. course sea salt

First, roast the red bell peppers on the gas stove until the skin is blackened (or broiled in oven till skin is blackened). Put in plastic bag for 5 minutes. Under cold water, peel the skin off the peppers. Take the seeds and stem out of the peppers. Pat dry the peppers with layers of paper towels.

In a blender or processor, combine the first 6 ingredients and blend until it makes a thick paste. Once the pepper puree is smooth add the yogurt and blend. Add the minced mint to the sauce. Add a generous sprinkle of salt. Taste to see if needs more salt.

For this recipe, this tastes great on a gourmet hotdog (this was a condiment for the hotdog contest), but hamburgers or chicken would all work equally as well. This would be a great condiment for the grilled meats this summer. For the burgers, I used lean beef and made a well in the patty and stuffed it with goat cheese (season the goat cheese!) and then covered it up with the meat. Cook or grill as normal and when you eat your burger you will have a goat cheese suprise in the middle!