The Cooking Adventures of Chef Paz: November 2006

Turkey Chili

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Almost a week after Thanksgiving and would you believe we STILL have leftover turkey? Yikes!

With the exception of its wings, I don't really care for turkey. I mean, I'll eat it but I'm not crazy about it. I do love the wings, though. Yeah, I already said that...

Normally, I hate turkey leftovers. Simply Recipes posted a Turkey Chili recipe (and other Turkey leftover recipes). What's a gal named Paz, whose looking for cooking adventures expected to do? Attempt to make it, of course!

This Turkey Chili was a winner for me. As recommended in the recipes, I served the Turkey Chili on a bed of rice, topped with red onions, cheedar cheese and sour cream. Let's all say, "Delicious!" I especially loved the crunch of the chopped red onions and the combinatoin of the cheese and cream with the chili.

For once, eating leftover turkey a couple of days in a row, hasn't bothered me at all. The Turkey Chili was basically easy to make and even more tasty as the days passed (Just like my Chili with Sirloin). Thanks, Elise! Your recipe made the leftover turkey go down much easier. ;-)

Paz

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Turkey Chili
Simply Recipes

2 cups chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, chopped fine
1 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
2 (35 oz) cans stewed tomatoes, crushed
2 (15 oz) cans kidney beans, drained
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock
2 Tbsp chili powder (or up to 4 Tbsp if you like it really hot)
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp dried hot red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 Tbsp salt, plus more if desired to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 to 4 cups of shredded, cooked turkey meat
Sugar

Shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onion, sour cream for optional garnish.

1 In a large, 8-quart, thick-bottom pot, cook the onion and green pepper over medium high heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for a minute or two more. Add a bit more olive oil if needed.

2 Add tomatoes, tomato paste, stock. beans, oregano, salt, pepper, and cooked turkey meat. Bring mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for an hour.

3 Salt to taste. Add 1 to 3 teaspoons of sugar to take the edge of the acidity of the tomatoes if desired.

The chili may be made in advance and chilled for 2 days, or frozen for 2 months.

Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onion, and or sour cream. Serve alone, over rice, or with corn bread.

Makes about 12 cups. Serves 8.

New York Monday # 51: Final Changing Colors

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Some time ago, I mentioned that I'd post a follow up of the changing colors of scenery posted here and here. The leaves have finally turned colors and fallen off the trees.

Have a good week, everyone!

Paz

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Onion Day (November 27, 2006) -- Invitation to Participate!

According to Zorra of Kochtopf, "In Berne (Switzerland) the annual Zibelemärit (onion market) is be held on the fourth Monday in November. This year it will take place on Monday, 27th November. More than 50 tons of onions - in artistically woven plaits - are offered on this day on more then 300 market stalls."

On November 27, Zorra invites all bloggers to prepare an onion dish and blog about it. Here are the rules:

How to participate:

Prepare an "onion dish", take pictures (if possible) and blog about it on Monday, 27th November or Tuesday, 28th November 2006

Send an email to kochtopf(at)gmail(dot)com including
- your name
- your blog's name and your blog's URL
- the recipe name and the post's URL
- your hometown/region and country

If you would like to use technorati tag, please use this code:

If you have any suggestions or questions let me know.

Technorati tag: zwiebeltag/onion day

Zorra, thank for putting this event together!

Paz

World Bread Day '06 - After Hours Party Invitation

Last month, we celebrated World Bread Day '06. There were 113 entries. You can find the roundup here.

Zorra has put together an After Hours (World Bread Day '06) party. You are invited to choose a bread recipe from the entries, bake and blog about it. You can find the invitation here.
( http://kochtopf.twoday.net/stories/2829763/ )

Let the bread baking continue!

Paz

Aubergine Salad

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Aubergine… Eggplant… Eggplant… Aubergine. Until recently, I didn’t know that eggplants were called aubergines elsewhere. Aubergine. It has a nice melodic sound to it. I like the word.

I’ve discovered I like Aubergine salad – a recipe from Domestic Cat. I’ve made it three times this month. Each time, I’ve been too hungry and tired to take out my camera for a photo for my blog. Instead, I’d gobble up the food very quickly. Until now. This time, I was able to spare a few seconds to take a picture.

In addition to the aubergines, the salad includes onions, green peppers, garlic, parsley, and tomatoes. Very simple, don’t you think? The third time I made this salad, I made a less sophisticated version of the recipe but it still tasted really good.

The recipe calls for grilling the vegetables, but I simply put them in the oven after covering them with a little olive oil. The recipe also calls for peeling the vegetables after they’ve been grilled and scooping out the eggplant flesh. I left the skin on and I left the vegetables alone. Also, I included feta cheese – an idea I got from another Domestic Cat recipe called Aubergine Gondolas. I added extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. Delicious! I was in heaven! Thanks, Tülin!

To those celebrating Thanksgiving, I wish you a happy holiday!

Paz

Ed. Note: This gets better and better! More names for eggplant/aubergines: Brinjal, Badanekai, Mullugai. Thanks for the info. I love to learn something new everyday!

Aubergine Salad
Domestic Cat

Another classic dish, which can be found under different names across Mediterranean. Some versions includes tahini while excluding tomatoes and other colourful ingredients. Some gives the priority to onion and garlic, and some consists only aubergines, olive oil and salt. Even the most primitive version is delicious. The recipe you will find below is how we make it in our family.

For four persons:
3 medium aubergines
1 medium onion (sliced in rounds, thinly)
3-4 green peppers
1-2 cloves garlic (mashed)
2 ripe tomatoes (peeled and diced)
Half a bunch of parsley (chopped)
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt, freshly ground black pepper
1-2 tbsp wine vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice

The amount of the ingredients are subject to change according to your preferences. You can omit garlic or the vinegar. But I should say that these are giving the real taste. Start by washing and drying all the vegetables. If you have an outdoor grill, or a stove-top one, that would be best for the smoked flavour. In case you do not have either one, just lay parchment paper on a baking sheet and cook the vegetables under broiler, starting with the aubergines. You can use a preheated oven at 200 C but be careful with peppers, if they get charred too deeply, it will be pretty difficult to peel them. Place grilled vegetables in a container with a tight lid, while they are still hot. Wait 10 minutes. This will make it much easier to peel them. Peel aubergines or cut them lengthwise and scoop out the flesh. Immediately drizzle with lemon juice to prevent browning. Mash them well with a fork. Peel peppers and slice them thinly on a cutting board. Add garlic, parsley and tomatoes. Drizzle with vinegar, sprinkle with salt and blackpepper. Generously drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Serve warm or cold with a crusty bread. Keep leftovers in the fridge, in tightly closed containers. Enjoy!

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New York Monday # 50: New York Sunset

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Riding on the bus, on my way home, a mesmerizing sunset caught my attention. Despite the cacophony of the highway traffic and passengers talking on the bus, the atmosphere felt incredibly peaceful.

Have a wonderful week, everyone!

Paz

Thanks, Nancy!

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Chicken and Sausage Gumbo

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My first gumbo! I made my first gumbo dish! And boy, did it turn out really well! Even the pickiest eater in my family asked for seconds and thirds and ate the leftovers the next day. ;-)))))))))

Until I made my gumbo, I'd never tasted it before. The opportunity to eat it never came up. When I started cooking, for some reason, I always thought gumbo was a very complicated dish to prepare. After seeing the recipe on Melissa’s blog, The Traveler’s Lunchbox, I became inspired to make it. It didn’t seem too hard to make.

I already had most of the ingredients, except for the sausage. When I went food shopping, I couldn’t find the andouille sausage, which was the first time I’d heard of it. However, I did find Kielbasa sausage (another type of sausage new to me). Melissa’s advice about what to do if you don’t use the andouille sausage (add cayenne, garlic powder, and dried thyme) helped a lot.

Another ingredient I couldn’t find was the filé powder. My search took me to three stores with no luck. I wonder how much different my gumbo would have tasted with the filé powder. However the end product was delicious.

One of my favorite parts of making the gumbo was making the roux. I had fun mixing the flour and oil and seeing it thicken and actually turn into the color of peanut butter. Peanut butter! Yeah, I know: It takes very little to get me excited. The roux really did bring out the "nutty flavor" that Melissa describes in her blog post.

Served with rice, the Chicken and Sausage Gumbo was very reminiscent of some West African cuisine. Perhaps that’s why that picky family member gobbled it up. My favorite part of the gumbo was ~~the okra~~ everything -- the okra, chicken, and sausage...

I’m sure gumbo is great to eat at anytime, but this hearty and tasty dish was especially perfect to eat on a cold rainy day, which is when we had it. I know I’ll be making more during the winter.

Melissa, thanks for the recipe!

Paz

Ed. Note: Filé powder is made from ground sassafras leaves that was used to give root beer its distinctive flavor before artificial flavorings replaced it. Southerners add filé to their gumbos to thicken and flavor them. The powder gets stringy when it's heated, so add it only after you've removed the gumbo from the heat source. Filé also doesn't reheat well, so add only to the gumbo that you are planning to serve. ~ Lowfat Lifestyle.com

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Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
In a Cajun Kitchen by Terri Pischoff Wuerthner

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (she admits that bone-in, skin-on dark meat chicken pieces, such as legs, thighs and wings are more traditional as well as flavorful in Cajun cooking, so that's what I used - a much better idea, in my opinion)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup corn oil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
2 quarts warm chicken stock
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce, or to taste
1 pound andouille sausage, sliced 1 inch thick (or other spicy smoked sausage, such as Kielbasa, though my advice is to add the following if you don't use andouille: another 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
1 1/2 pounds fresh okra or 20 ounces frozen okra, defrosted, sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons filé powder (I left this out, as I couldn't find any locally)
chopped fresh parsley, to garnish cooked rice, to serve

Season the chicken cubes (or pieces) with the salt, paprika and cayenne pepper; set aside. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the flour and cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring constantly, until the flour has turned a medium-brown, like peanut butter. Add the onions, celery, and bell pepper and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the seasoned chicken and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly (and reducing the heat, if necessary, to prevent burning).

Add the stock and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the hot sauce and sausage; reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Add the okra and simmer for 30 more minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the filé powder just before dishing it up. Serve in soup bowls with a mound of rice in the center of each portion.

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New York Monday #49: Carpet of Leaves

I love the Fall season, its colors, and the fallen leaves everywhere.

Have a good week, everyone!

Paz

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Chili with Sirloin

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A few years ago, my sister was hosptialized. Among other things, her iron levels were dangerously low. She would asked me to run across the street to Wendy's and buy her a cup of chili. I would do this every time for lunch.

The chili was nutritious and helpful to her because beans contain protien that her body badly needed. In addition, beef is high in iron and protein. The combination of the beans and meat helped increase the iron levels in the body. Soon, her lab values for her iron test got better and better.

It's been quite some time since we've eaten chili but after finding this recipe on Cream Puffs in Venice, I was anxious to make my very own homemade chili. I really liked the way mine turned out. Delicious! Okay... Well, I may have put in a tad bit too much chilli pepper (my sister complained) but I like my food hot and spicy, so I didn't mind. It still tasted GOOD!

Also, I was able to have the leftovers for lunch the next day. Mmmm... Mmmm...Good! CreamPuff was right -- hours later, the chili tastes even better! I was in heaven! I love when something I make comes out just right! CreamPuff, thanks for bringing this hearty and delicious recipe to my attention.

Paz

Chili with Sirloin
Adapted from www.epicurious.com. For the original recipe, click here.

3 tablespoons, olive oil
1 large onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 carrots, sliced thinly
1-1/2 pounds, ground sirloin
1-1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano (or 2 or 3 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano)
1-1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
16 ounces, tomato puree
1 cup beef broth (you can use water if you don't have beef broth)
1 to 2 tablespoons cider vinegar (depending on taste)
1 19-ounce can red kidney beans
1 bell pepper, roughly chopped
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, heat the olive oil and add the onions. Saute for about 5 minutes over medium heat, being careful not to burn them.

Add the garlic and carrots and cook for two minutes.

Add the ground sirloin and cook until the meat is completely browned. There should be no pink visible in the meat anywhere. This should take about 10 minutes.

Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano and red pepper flakes and cook for two minutes, stirring often.

Add the tomato puree and the beef broth or water. Bring to a boil, stir the mixture and lower the heat to simmer.

Let the chili simmer over low heat for an hour, or until much of the liquid has evaporated and you're left with a thick mixture. If it gets too thick, add some more water.

Add the kidney beans and the chopped bell pepper and cook for an additional 20 minutes. Taste the chili and adjust the seasoning, adding as much salt as necessary. Depending on how spicy you like your chili ... and this one is spicy ... you may not want to add any pepper.

Spoon the chili into serving bowls and garnish with sour cream, aged cheddar and avocado.

Enjoy!

Note: I think this chili actually tastes better after it sits for a few hours so I like to make it in advance and reheat before serving. This chili will easily serve 6 to 8.

New York Monday #48: Lighthouse

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A lighthouse no longer in use. Have a great week, everyone!

Paz

Steamed Chicken and Rice with Cilantro Pesto

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I got this delectable chicken recipe from Is It EDible. At first glance, it looked so simple and delicious that I knew I would be making it.

The ingredients were easy to find and purchase and the recipe was easy to make. I must say that I boiled the chicken more than steamed it, but it still turned out well. I was also very proud and happy with my very first cilantro pesto. Oh, how I love cilantro!

I liked how the recipe calls for adding some of the chicken broth into the rice (Jasmine rice, which I love). That certainly gave it more flavor. Rice, chicken, cilantro pesto -- the combination made an enjoyable meal. Thanks, Ed, for the recipe!

Paz

Steamed Chicken and Rice with Cilantro Pesto
Is it EDible

For the Cilantro Pesto

1 bunch cilantro , washed and patted dry

3 cloves garlic

1 inch of ginger

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons oil

For the Steamed Chicken & Rice

3 lbs of chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on (about 10 pieces)

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 cups of rice, uncooked

1) In a food processor, pulse the cilantro, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and black pepper. Gradually add in the oil until to form a thick emulsion.

2) Fill a large pot with about 2 inches of water. Place the pasta insert inside. Cover and bring to a boil.

3) When the water is rapidly boiling, reduce to medium high heat. Place the chicken pieces skin side down in the pasta insert. It's ok for the pieces to be stacked on top of each other.

4) Cover and let steam for 45 minutes or until chicken is done. Sprinkle salt over the chicken pieces.

5) Meanwhile, cook 3 cups of rice according to directions on package.

6) When rice is cooked, fluff the rice. Take 3/4 cup of the broth (including chicken fat that has drained down) from the stockpot and pour over the cooked rice. Fluff the rice again.

7) To serve, place 1/2 cup of rice on a plate with 2 chicken thighs. Spoon 1 tablespoon of cilantro pesto on top of each chicken thigh.Makes about 5 servings.

Ed's 1st Note: I like to use jasmine rice because it is so fragrant. Do not use instant rice, converted rice, or Rice-a-Roni (even if it is the San Francisco treat). They are not starchy enough for this dish.

Ed's 2nd Note: You can also serve this with sliced raw cucumbers as edible garnish.