Coaching Cooking

The other night I was trying to make use of some items before they went bad and ended up with a new, fun salad. (I often find those are some of my best and most creative meals.) For the dressing, I squeezed the juice of half a lime into a bowl, then added a pinch of thyme and one of sugar–to temper the tart acidity. With the whisk (and my left arm) working hard, I drizzled in about two and a half times extra virgin olive oil and continued whisking until it was emulsified. The romaine lettuce, already clean and cut, was simply waiting to be dressed.

While the flavors were soaking in, I took an ear of corn and rana knife down each side to cut the kernels off, sauteeing them for a few minutes in a small pat of butter and a pinch of salt. I also cut an avocado half into small chunks. Topping the salad with the corn, avocado, and a handful of cherry tomatoes made for a tasty side dish. I also added crumbled goat cheese, but ended up pushing most of it to the side because the flavors weren’t quite melding.

As it wasn’t the main dish, I didn’t pair a wine, although it would have gone nicely with a crisp sauvignon blanc or unoaked chardonnay.

You could also grill some shrimp, maybe after a dip in a tequila-lime marinade, and do the tomatoes the same way, while you’re at it, making this a nice lunch or a light supper.

Here’s a great recipe to add to your repertoire. This is one of my absolute favorite salads that I make all the time. It’s quick and easy and oh-so-delicious.
Necessary ingredients
half a head of lettuce
6-8 oz. lump crabmeat (previously frozen is fine)
ruby red grapefruit: half sliced and a quarter juiced
4 oz. goat cheese
1 T dry white wine or champagne
extra virgin olive oil
half an avocado, sliced thin
pinch of thyme, salt, & pepper
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If you use items and concoctions from the previous post, this next meal will be super quick, great for a lunch to take to work. Now that you’ve got basil pesto already made, you need something to put it on. Boil water for the penne from yesterday’s list of ingedients. While that cooks, assemble the mixed greens with the balsamic vinaigrette that also doubled as a marinade, along with the goat cheese and sliced red onions, optional. Pull out and reheat the 2-4 portabellas you previously grilled or baked and chop into small pieces. When the penne is done, drain all but a little of the starchy water, then stir in as much of the basil pesto as it takes to coat the noodles, and toss in the mushrooms as well.

Even though some of the ingredients aren’t cheap (portabellas, goat cheese, pine nuts)…when you consider that these two meals can each feed two or three people, it works out to be quite cost efficient.

basil pesto

I love to find quick and easy meals that serve dual purpose. For instance, the other night I made portabella sandwiches with pesto and goat cheese along with caprese salad, which turned into penne with pesto the next day for lunch, with possibilities for variation.

Ingredients to make sure you have on hand:
8 baby portabella mushrooms
balsamic vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
garlic
Italian seasoning, ground mustard
ciabatta bread or rolls
a tub of basil
pine nuts or walnuts
parmesan cheese
tomatoes
fresh mozzarella
mixed greens
penne
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portabella sandwich, caprese salad

The other night I wasn’t sure what to have for dinner, but I had a feeling it would involve the bag of shrimp in the freezer. Other than that, I had a few items that needed to get used before they went bad. Sometimes I find that these thrown-together, clean-out-the-fridge meals turn out to be some of my favorites….

The shrimp
While thawing the shrimp (a third of the large bag) under running water for ten minutes, I microwaved a few pieces of bacon until crispy. Then I chopped the bacon into small pieces along with two green onions, including the leaves and some of the white part. When the shrimp are defrosted, get a skillet over medium-high heat, with a turn of olive oil. Add shrimp and then a turn of bourbon. Or two. Then toss in bacon and onions and cook until shrimp turn peachy-pink. This doesn’t take long. Then remove from heat and crumble a bit of blue cheese over the mix.
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thrown-together, clean-out-the-fridge meal

Using the leftover chicken from the white chop chicken recipe, you can make a refreshing Chinese chicken salad. This is my favorite way to use leftover roasted or steamed chicken. It makes a great weekend lunch or light dinner. Mandarin oranges aren’t authentic, but then again the salad itself is more American than Chinese. So, I present my Chinese-American chicken salad.

Jenny’s Chinese Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup of shredded chicken
3 cups of washed salad greens (use romaine or butter lettuce for best results)
2 green onions (the white part and some of the green tops), thinly sliced
1 small can of mandarin oranges, drained
1/3 cup of toasted almond slivers
optional: 2 teaspoons of sesame seeds and 1/3 cup of cilantro leaves
salad dressing (recipe to follow) ingredients:
1 tablespoons of light sesame oil
2 tablespoon of soy sauce
2 tablespoons of canola oil or salad oil
salt and pepper to taste

**Note**: This salad is definitely open to interpretation. I suggest also adding thinly sliced carrot rounds or cucumber rounds. You can also add wonton strips or those (in my opinion) horrific chow mein “noodles” that come in a can (okay, they taste good too). I’ve also had Chinese chicken salad with uncooked, crumbled ramen noodles on top. Experiment with the ingredients that you like to eat. And of course it’s more fun if you make this salad your own.

Directions:

Shred the chicken into thin, small pieces. Combine all of the salad dressing ingredients in a small jar by shaking a few times until everything is combined. In a large bowl, mix together all of the salad ingredients except for the mandarin oranges. Add the salad dressing and carefully toss all of the ingredients together. Sprinkle the salad with sesame seeds and cilantro leaves and then top with the mandarin oranges. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

My Asian sistah, Monique, always devises these fabulous dishes that are so creative and delicious. This week she came up with a fabulous carrot salad. This salad is really versatile and it is SO good! Thanks to Momo for being my partner in crime and for inspiring me to make food that kicks ass!

Momo’s Carrot Salad

Ingredients:

4 cups of shredded carrot (about 8-10 large carrots)
1/2 cup of raisins
2 cups of fresh or frozen corn (see instructions below for the difference in prep)
4 tablespoons of honey mustard salad dressing
2 tablespoons of garlic ranch salad dressing
salt and pepper to taste
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of yellow mustard

Optional:
Add one or more of the following to this recipe:

4 tablespoons of toasted pine nuts
4 tablespoons of toasted, slivered almonds
2-3 green onions, white parts and some of the green tops sliced

Directions:

If you’re using fresh corn, remove all the corn silk and cut all the corn kernels off the cob.

If you’re using frozen corn, blanch the corn in a medium sauce pan of boiling water with some salt for 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Shred the carrots using a hand grater or the grater attachment to your Cuisinart. Place the shredded carrots in a large bowl and stir in the rest of the ingredients. This salad can be chilled before serving for at least an hour or it can be made the day before.

Momo’s carrot salad is great with barbecued meats and great as a vegetarian side for a picnic or as part of a light supper.

We ate that salad with a gorgeous 2004 Nuits Saint George, but I also recommend a white wine such as a Sauvignon Blanc or even a red wine such as a Syrah. My sense of wine pairing is that you can pretty much drink what you like with food that you enjoy and it all works out in the end.

Bonne Sante!

As I was re-reading “My Life in Franceâ€? by Julia Child (with Alex Prud’homme), her words of wisdom struck me as particularly charming on a night after I had cooked a quick pasta dinner. We live in such busy times and it is often tempting to eat out or to pick up a quick meal at the grocery store. And hey, sometimes that’s all you need. But Julia is the quintessential hedonist because she loves fresh, delicious food prepared with a caring hand. In fact, as she states at the end of “My Life in Franceâ€?:

In Paris in the 1950s, I had the supreme good fortune to study with a remarkably able group of chefs. From them I learned why good French food is an art, and why it makes such sublime eating: nothing is too much trouble if it turns out the way it should. Good results require that one take time and care.

And I truly believe Julia. Fast food is always tempting and available and it does satisfy a need and a hunger for those on the go. Great cuisine, and even just a simple, good meal, takes time and care and the desire to elevate a meal beyond a tally of calories.

The recipe below calls for frozen shrimp because it is easy and saves time. And I often believe in splitting the difference during the week and using fresh ingredients or mostly fresh ingredients with taste results. Of course, you can also buy fresh shrimp and cook it in seasoned water and savor the delight of eating seafood at the peak of deliciousness. The choice is entirely up to you. Either way, I think you’ll enjoy the following simple salad (and eat it with someone you love, why doncha?).

Quick Shrimp Salad for Two

Ingredients:

16 frozen shrimp (use the kind that is raw frozen and peeled with only the tails)
2 heaping tablespoons of Greektown “Billygoat” seasoning from The Spice House (or a seasoning that you like)
1 head of butter lettuce
¼ of a red onion, sliced into thin strips
4 cherry tomatoes, quartered
4-5 tablespoons of Brianna’s Poppyseed or Chipotle Cheddar Dressing (you have to try these sometime, they are fabulous!)

optional toppings: boiled egg sliced into thin rounds, shredded carrot, thin slices of cucumber, chopped green onion or chives, bean sprouts, kidney beans, or whatever you like!

Directions:

Cook the shrimp in boiling water according to the package directions (for about 2-3 minutes). You can add seasoning to the water before you add the shrimp. I tried adding Greek seasoning from The Spice House with great results, but you can also add garlic powder, parsley, cumin powder, Italian seasoning or any flavors that you enjoy.

While the shrimp is boiling, prepare a large bowl with 4-6 ice cubes and 4 cups of cold water. Remove the boiled shrimp from the burner after it is done cooking and drain quickly then drop all of the shrimp into the ice water bowl. Let the shrimp sit in the ice water for about 2 minutes until the shrimp is cooled. Drain the shrimp again and set aside.

Clean the butter lettuce and tear into bite-size pieces. Divide the lettuce among the two dinner plates. Top with the onion, the cherry tomatoes, the optional toppings and ring each plate with 8 shrimp. Drizzle the salad dressing on top. You can also serve this salad with a wedge of lemon.

This salad is a great starter to a spring or summer meal. Serve it with a chilled white wine such as Chardonnay or vinho verde (one of my favorite summer wines). I highly recommend looking for vinho verde as the weather warms up. It is such a crisp, refreshing summer wine and it pairs well with summer fare including salads, grilled meats, pasta, appetizers of all kinds and vegetable dishes.

Bon Appetit!

Julia Child, words of wisdom, shrimp, shrimp salad, vinho verde, summer salad, Brianna’s salad dressing