The thing about beginning again

I feel like we've broken up. Yes - me and you. It was by accident that my 10 month hiatus happened from this collection of linguistically deep and culinary rich articles written with love. But, let's be honest - I just got distracted.

So let me catch you up on the past 10 months of my life...

I lived in Italy for the summer...

Signed with a modeling agency... (what?!?!)

Went to The Vegas for my 21st Birthday and discovered my passion for things served in tiny cups...

 (that me and my sister at the Grand Canyon. Isn't she the cutest?)

Went on a road trip to Austin, TX for SXSW

And then most recently, landed an amazing internship with ClearChannel radio on 94.1ZBQ in Tuscaloosa for the summer.

So now that I've been honest and confessed my blogging-sins, can we begin again? Recently I have discovered a gift from God himself. A blessing straight from The Man Upstairs to me and you... the Tuscaloosa River Market. There is nothing I love more than experimenting with fresh ingredients produced and sold locally - so that's where I got my inspiration this morning. As I was enjoying this beautiful Saturday walking along the River Market I thought, "Self, don't you just wish you could buy EVERYTHING in here??" - and that's when I realized, what better way to revitalize my dying blog while basking in the agricultural richness that West Alabama has to offer than by buying local and then learning how to cook "in season." 


And lucky for you, my purchase today was a vegetable I love in the depths of my soul - Swiss Chard. 

And don't forget the carrots

The cooking and recipe making shall re-commence tonight and YOU can go ahead and be looking forward to reading about what I am able to make of this lovely leafy veggie. 


And thanks for taking me back..

Apple and Apricot Tart

I have an insatiable sweet tooth- truly. But don't go lumping me in with all of the self-proclaimed "chocoholics" out there because that's not me. Good chocolate is phenomenal but I believe it is one of the things that should be left alone. In its purest form, you just can't get better than a single piece of good quality chocolate or a simple brownie- not this disgusting excuse for chocolate that is made out of corn syrup and more than 16 different kinds of chemicals... that would be why American's are fat.

Here's my theory- if we all could just learn that its about quality rather than quantity, we would be much better off. That's how the French do it. Have you ever wondered why you go to Europe and there isn't a single obese person there yet every meal is accompanied by a glass of wine and dessert? It is because these people have it right- they don't even attempt to satiate their craving for something sweet with highly-processed artificial sweeteners and preservatives; they go right to the source.

In a world where I am constantly bombarded with Twix and Oreo McFlurry advertisements, my dessert craving lies in something totally different- fruit. And summer is the perfect time to experiment with all that nature's natural sweetener has to offer. 

So here is my recipe for an Apple and Apricot Tart. I find that in the sweltering heat of summer, tarts are the perfect dessert: they can be served hot, cold, or room temperature, and when made with fruit, they don't feel as heavy as eating a piece of chocolate cake would. *I have to be honest, when doing my research for this post, I came across Paula Deen's recipe and was inspired. She uses sour cream in her pie crust and custard filling and surprisingly, it works perfectly. So thanks Paula for the idea, you a complete genius when it comes to taking something healthy, adding a stick of butter, and making it dangerously delicious.

I would also like to thank Susan and Mitchell James for giving me my very first tart dish which allowed me to make this recipe. I couldn't be more thankful for such wonderful friends.

Apple and Apricot Tart:

The Players:

The Crust:

1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour

1 stick of room-temperature butter

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 egg

Filling:

5 apples, peeled cored and cut into 1/2 inch slices

4 egg yolks

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup apricot preserves

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Glaze:

1/2 cup apricot preserves

2 T rum or orange juice

Game Time:

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

In a food processor, carefully blend together the sour cream, butter, and the egg. Add the flour and pulse until a dough has formed. 

With lightly floured hands, carefully remove the dough from the food processor and press into the bottom of an ungreased tart dish. Press the dough so that it is even across the bottom and rises up slightly along the sides. 

Bake pie crust for 20 minutes or until slightly golden. Lower oven temperature to 350. Allow the crust to cool before filling.

Layer in circles the apple slices allowing them to mound slightly in the center. 

Combine the sour cream, sugar, apricot preserves, egg yolks, and flour in a bowl. Pour mixture over the apples and bake for one hour. If apples begin to get too dark, tent the dish with aluminum foil.

For the glaze, wisk together the preserves and the rum. While the tart is still hot, carefully brush the glaze over the apples. 

Not your Mama's Oatmeal Cookies

I believe that the Ancient Romans had everything right. After spending a month in Italy learning all about the art, culture, and food, there is something I now believe in... soul mates.

The concept of soul mates dates back almost 3000 years to the times of the Ancient Romans where tales of the Olympian Gods and Goddesses influenced the lives of people all over the Mediterranean. According to ancient mythology (my incredibly abbreviated version that is), our ancestors had 2 heads and 4 arms- I know, crazy right? In typical human fashion, we screwed things up and as our punishment the Gods split us each in half to forever search for the other piece that makes us whole. 

I heard this story for the first time about two years ago and fell in love with it instantly. Not so much because it is about something that promises a future full of happiness and love- but because it is a story of completeness. About a pair, a team, a duo.

Some duo's should never be separated: Adam and Eve, Mickey and Minnie, milk and cookies, green eggs and ham...

But then there are some that are just begging for something new. Exhibit A? Oatmeal and raisins. Who in the world came up this over-rated combination that has infiltrated our epicurean culture in not only breakfast foods but now in lunch, dinner, and dessert as well?! Yes, a hot oatmeal raisin cookie is excellent with a glass of cold milk, but can you really ask for anything more boring???? No, and considering my motto is "go big or go home," I need some excitement in my cookie.

So that's what I've done- taken my favorite part of every cookie I've ever had and put it all into ONE cookie extravaganza.

My Aunt Liz was, is, and always will be my baking hero and inspiration. After having one of the most delicious cookies I've ever had this past weekend right after she took them out of the oven, I knew I needed something new. 

So here it is- your out of the ordinary cookie experience: 

Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chip, and Oatmeal Cookies (*with a "secret" ingredient just to make it a little more fun)

The Players: (bear with me, but it is SO worth it)

2 sticks of butter, room temperature

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups oats (don't even think about trying to use instant oatmeal. Get the real stuff)

3/4 cup chocolate chips

1 cup walnuts, chopped

SECRET INGREDIENT- 2 T instant coffee

Game Time:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter with the brown and white sugar.

Beat in the egg and vanilla.

Put the flour, baking soda, and salt into a sifter and sift into the creamed mixture. Carefully mix to combine- do not over mix dough because it can become tough.

Stir in oats. Fold in chocolate chips, walnuts and coffee.

Form dough into a log. Slice into 1inch cookies. Bake for 10 minutes (They may seem gooey, but that is exactly how they should be. Even after they cool, they will still be perfectly chewy.)

Remember Who You Are and Where You Come From- Orange Crusted Chicken Breast

There is something you should know about me - I don't believe in excuses. Ever. I know that sounds harsh but it is true.

But there is one thing I do believe in. In all cases, at all times, I believe in honesty. And honestly, over the past 5 months, there is almost nothing in my life that has stayed the same. From the people I was closest to, to the plans I had for my future, everything changed and for the first time, I had to really figure things out for myself and coincidentally was given the beautiful gift of freedom to plan my own life. I don't want to think of this change as a "life hands you lemons" type of situation because after realizing that I had been freed of the only thing holding me back, I grabbed life by the horns and am finally doing what makes me happy.

There are a couple people who I will never be able to thank enough for picking me back up and putting me where I really belong. They are the kind of friends that not only pick you up when you are down, but that crank up the music so you can dance your way back to the top. The kind that slept for 7 days in a tiny dorm room with me during the aftermath of the Tuscaloosa tornadoes. The kind that always remembers my love of "Chicks, Ducks, and Bunnies" at Easter. The kind that sings Destiny's Child's "Say My Name" to me over Skype while I'm all the way over in Italy (also the kind that refuses to make me beef stir fry). 

Well, this recipe is for you. The weeks following the April 27th tornadoes in Tuscaloosa were exhausting- physically and emotionally. After long days of working in the city clearing debris, giving aid to survivors, or helping the students at the University of Alabama find a safe way to get home, we all needed a way to get our minds off of the weight that Mother Nature had placed upon our shoulders.

I made this dish one night during that week and from now on, it will always be the dish I crave when I need comfort... comfort with a little pizazz.

When thinking about all the happened over these past few months, there is something that my Dad has told me my entire life that rings truer than ever: "Remember who you are and where you come from." Even though you may lose friends, make new ones, lose the building you once called home, or finally realize that its the people that make a house a home, there is something constant: family. And fortunately for me, I have a handful of friends close enough to call family as well. Its these people that come together to make my "home" and to make me "strong enough." I don't need someone to tell me I have do things on my own, because I know I'll never have to.

Orange Crusted Chicken Breast with Browned Butter and Sherry Sauce

The Players:

2 Chicken Breasts, cut horizontally (parallel to the cutting board- will make 4 pieces) *tenderize with a meat mallet if desired

Bread Crumb (Dry Dredge): (Mix ingredients well)

• 3/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs 
• All the zest from 1 large orange
• 1 large shallot, minced
• Black pepper to taste

Wet Mixture: (whisk everything together)

• 2 T Dijon Mustard
• 2 T Orange Juice
• 1/4 cup Sherry
• Salt to taste

Sauce:

• 1 Orange
• 1/2 stick of butter
• 3 T sherry

Game Time:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together ingredients to create the dry mixture. Whisk together the ingredients to form the wet mixture.

Coat each chicken breast in the wet mixture and then dredge in the dry mixture. If there is excess dry mixture, feel free to top the chicken breast with it.

Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Place chicken on the tray and then roast until done (approximately 35 minutes but will vary according to the size and thickness of the chicken breast). If you just happen to have extra butter lying around like I always do, feel free to "dot" the top of the chicken with small pieces of butter to add a richer flavor and golden color.

While chicken is baking, segment your orange. Begin by removing the peel by using a knife to cut  around the exterior of the orange.

 (please excuse the funny looking orange. I use the same orange for the zest as well as for the segments)

Very carefully, cut along each of the segments leaving the membrane but allowing the flesh of the orange to maintain it's structure.

Melt the butter on medium heat in a non-stick pan.

Once melted, stir slowly allowing the butter to slightly brown. Add the sherry and simmer until the alcohol has been cooked out, approximately 6 minutes.


Add the orange segements and reduce heat to low. Simmer until the chicken is done.

Remove the chicken from the oven and top each breast with a nice, tasty, heaping spoonful of the orange sauce.

Rekindling this blogging flame with a stick of dynamite

Okay, So I'm a tad embarrassed. I made you a promise and then have neglected to post another article in over a month. Shameful, I know. In the past month, a lot has changed for me though and I think I needed this break to help me realize what I really want.

I've worked so hard to be at the top of my class in Restaurant Management but I realized that I wasn't happy anymore. I love to cook and discover all of the fantastic flavors and aromas that ingredients can provide to us but I realized that once I had someone telling me what to cook, how to cook, and when to cook, it took the enjoyment out of something that has given me so much fulfillment over the years. It practically broke my heart when I realized that something I had thought was right for me for so long just... wasn't.

There is an immense gray area between a hobby and a potential career. After thinking about this a while, I also realized that I don't just have a love or passion for cooking, I have an obsession- and an obsession is never a good thing in the business world. Maybe I'm not meant to be a restaurant manager but I know I'm meant to share my love of food in a different way... so, I guess here we are, me and you, taking the first step together.

 (I don't care how old you are, everyone needs a little prime rib every now and then)

Today, I'm going to talk about the first thing my mom ever let me make with her. When people think of cooking, people often have an unsolicited sense of nostalgia that accompanies it. When thinking about her Hello Dollies, I always remember my mom making multiple batches of them to take to bake sales at the school, give as thank you gifts to my teachers, or to serve for dessert at her bunco parties. Its odd how I have been eating this delectable dessert for all my life in a million different places with a million different people, but all I can see when I think about this simple treat is my mom.

I think her limitless love is what made this recipe as good as it is. My mother is one of those people that will give you everything she has just to see you smile.

 (This is me and my mom from this past November. It was the day before our show choir performance and none of our dresses fit. She drove to Tuscaloosa and sewed for hours until every dress fit all 20 girls flawlessly for the show)

I guess I should also credit the creation of this blog to her. Even before I could write an entire paragraph on my own, my mama has always encouraged me to keep a journal- to write down the day's occurrences, to write about my successes and failures. Even when I didn't know how to write the alphabet, she would sit and transcribe my journal in the terms of love letters I would send a lucky boy in my preschool class. She has always encouraged my passion for food and I thank her for combining my love of all things culinary in collaboration with the formation of simple sentences and paragraphs to inspire me to create this blog.

(Mama and granny in the kitchen- 1989)

I owe my success to her- and on days when I sit and chose not to make an entry, I'm not showing off this gift of hers that she so freely passed on to me. She is an artist and always has been. With paint, with words, and with the love she has for the world. Mama, thank you for showing me over a million ways to love the art God has decorated the world with.

To the woman rebellious enough to check me out of school to go the zoo, who is brave enough to bite straight into an ice cream sandwich, who is creative enough to be able to have an entire conversation with the dog, and who is wise enough to tell me to always listen to my heart, this is for you.

Hello Dollies:

The Players:
8x8 glass dish
1 stick of butter, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 egg
2 Tbs dark brown sugar

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate)
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/2 cup heath bar pieces
1/2 cup peanut butter chips

*Feel free to add, remove, change, or alter and of the above ingredients to your liking.  If you don't like one of them, feel free to add another kind of baking chip. I do suggest though to always keep the butterscotch... that make this dessert as good as it is.

1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup sweetened coconut


Game Time:

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Use some non-stick spray to fully coat all sides of your baking dish.

Combine your graham cracker crumbs, egg, melted butter, and brown sugar. Using a fork, stir to combine until and evenly moist crumble has formed.

Evenly pour the graham cracker mixture into the bottom of the glass dish. Using a drinking glass, apply pressure to the graham crackers to condense mixture and form a crust.

Being layering your baking chips by adding 1 cup of the chocolate chips evenly across the crust- followed by the butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips, heath bar pieces, and the finishing with the last 1/2 cup of chocolate chips.

Cover the top of the baking chips with the coconut. Make sure to distribute the coconut evenly.

Slowly drizzle your condensed milk across the top of the coconut until all of the baking chips and coconut have been completely covered.

Bake in the oven for 35 minutes, or until coconut and topping has become browned.

Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.

This dessert is very rich and filling. If I was more mature I would suggest cutting smaller bars. But me being who I am... I just say skip dinner and then eat as much of the good stuff as your heart desires.


My secret... I don't wait for it to cool- I just stick the pan on a hot pad and go to town with a fork and a glass of milk while its still all melty inside. Enjoy!

A Peace of Chicken

So I'm at a slight mid-collegiate crisis. Since I was 14, I have been telling everyone that I want to "grow-up and become a chef." For the past two years I have been working my buns off in Restaurant Management courses, dreaming of becoming the next big thing in the culinary world- but what if this isn't what I really want to do? What if this whole chef thing is just supposed to be a very serious hobby for me instead of an actual career? I mean, do I really want to spend the next 40 years of my life sweating to death in the back of a dirty kitchen??! ... but none of this changes that fact that cooking is what I love to do.

I love combining the flavors and textures of different ingredients, knowing that if I do it just right, I will have made something beautiful, exciting, fantastic, unique, memorable, filling, but most of all delicious. I love to cook and experiment with the beautiful gift of fruits, vegetables, proteins, herbs, and spices that God has granted us.

So help me find a job. A job where I can create beautiful gastronomical masterpieces, but where I can also sit and enjoy them with the people I love. A job where I can travel the world learning what each and every one of you have to teach me about the things you love. A job where I know that every morning I will wake up and be excited about the that work I do. A job where I know that I have made someone's day more special by sharing with them a love of good food.

Yes, I know its a tall order but I don't believe that in life anyone should settle for mediocre. We have one shot at this, don't we? One chance to do it right and make the most of it. And why should I be content in a place where I know that I have talents that can be better expressed else where.

So today's dish is my heart and my soul. This dish is my very first original recipe and feels a little bit like an extension of myself, a piece of home.

A few years back I couldn't even cook a peanut butter and jelly sandwich if I wanted to. I couldn't dice an onion, grind pepper, or even open up a jar of spaghetti sauce. But did my failures in the kitchen inhibit my drive to create original dinners for my parents and sister on a daily basis? No, and in their opinion, unfortunately no. For months I had fed my family terrible culinary creations that I usually came up with at 11pm the previous night while laying in bed. For months these mismatched combinations caused my dad to lose a few pounds while my mom retreated to the ever constant bowl of Cherrios.

Finally I had an epiphany. Just because you like two foods separately, that does not mean you will like them together. This one simple philosophy completely altered my culinary muse. I now began thinking of foods with base flavors combined with accents; meals that have a variety of textures, colors, and flavors. My second epiphany (inspired by my dear mama) is simple. So simple that many of us make this mistake every day; "Like words, you can always add more spice, but you can never take it back."

So here it is: originally crafted in 2006, my Roasted Greek Chicken.

So here's a toast from my personal experience: "To the days when you don't have the answers to life's questions, when you don't want to take the high road, and when you don't want to turn your lemons into lemonade, don't lose faith in your abilities; because after enough tries all your missteps might just come together into something more powerful than you ever thought you were capable of: a roasted chicken."


Roasted Greek Chicken:

Ingredients:
1 whole 4-5 pound chicken (if a larger chicken is desired, just alter the proportions of ingredients to fit appropriate size and adapt cooking time). (If frozen, allow time to fully thaw)
5 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons dried oregano
salt and pepper
2 lemons
2/3 cup olive oil
1 large onion

Game-Time:

• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees
• Clean the chicken by removing any "chicken pieces" reserved in the inner cavity, rinse well with cool water 
• Place in a deep, greased pan BREAST SIDE UP to allow to come to room temperature (about 3 inch sides)(make sure the pan is large enough to hold the entire chicken)
• Wash and zest your lemons and place zest in a small mixing bowl.
• Juice one of your lemons and add to the lemon zest.
• Add to the mix your olive oil, oregano and garlic.
• Use your fingers to gently separate the skin from the chicken breast. Make sure skin is still attached along the spine but allow for a little space between the skin and the meat
• Use your olive oil mixture to fully coat all of the chicken. Make sure to start by seasoning under the skin to get the most flavor on the part that will be eaten. Use the remaining to season all the skin and thigh areas. If there is excess oil in the bottom of the pan that is okay
• Slice your remaining lemon into 1/4 inch slices to make circular rounds of lemon
• Cut your onion into quarters
• Stuff the inner cavity of your chicken with the onion and all lemon except two of the slices
• Use the remaining two lemon slices to stick under the skin of the chicken breast next to the legs to add addition flavor.
• Sprinkle with some salt and pepper to taste.
• Bake in the oven for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until internal temperature has reached 165 degrees (remember that meat will continue to cook after it has been removed from the oven. So if desired, remove 5 degrees early to prevent dryness)
• if the chicken begins to brown unevenly, don't hesitate to rotate the pan. Also, if it becomes too brown before the internal temperature has reached 165, cover with a piece of aluminum foil.

Pasta Perfection

 
So the Christmas holidays are coming to a close. My sister and I move back to school tomorrow and launch ourselves right into a new semester. Although it isn't always pleasant, it is often a fact of life that as a family grows older, it often grows apart. Luckily for me, I have two wonderful parents who have dedicated their lives to holding our family together. In my opinion, as Sarah and I have grown older, we haven't grown apart from our family, just simply more independent. It's a fact of life- children grow up and there is nothing we can do about it. Since the early parts of childhood, my family has always found time to bring us together at least once a day over the dinner table. This single fact is probably what has given me the love of good food and family that I have. No matter how hard or busy our day was, we always found time to sit around the dinner table as a family- not on TV trays in the living room, not microwave dinners on our own.

The breakdown of the family in today's society is something that saddens me. There is something wrong to see to many families that seem to have it all (a house with a dog, a highly paying job, etc.), yet can't grasp the concept of reading a bedtime story or a marriage without a pre-nup. I think there is something amazing about bringing a family together nightly at the dinner table, that creates a bond like no other.

Get involved in the kitchen and find something for everyone to help out with. Before I was old enough to actually help out with dinner, my mom had a basket under the sink of old muffin tins and measuring cups for me to play with while she worked. All of us were always there- chopping, cleaning, setting the table, whatever was needed. It gave us a time to relax and forget about what all had happened that day- the things that made us cry or become stressed out; but it also gave us a time to share the wonderful things- an A in science class or getting a part in the school play.

Pasta is something that has been uniting families since 5000BC. Originating in China, pasta has spread across the globe, now existing in approximately 600 different varieties. There is a deep love in my heart for this Italian family staple.

Although it may take a little extra time, homemade tomato sauce is worth the extra "love" put into it. This sauce recipe is inspired by the recipe my Aunt Liz has used for years and has proved to be the family favorite. For those of you who like my father believe this to be a "faux" sauce because it doesn't comes out of a jar with absolutely no texture, please think about the anatomy of a sauce: it is made from real live vegetables. Fresh vegetables and herbs aren't naturally silky and paste-like; an extreme amount of processing, preservatives, and thickeners go into these types of sauces to make them into what we Americans call "spaghetti sauce." Please don't be offended. When time is of the essence, a good jarred tomato sauce can go a long way on some hot pasta; but when you have a little extra time to dedicate to this wholesome family favorite, I guarantee you'll love it.

Classic Tomato Sauce


Ingredients:

5 cans of diced tomatoes (unseasoned)
1 large onion
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 c red wine
4 cloves of garlic, minced
salt and pepper
3 tablespoons sugar
5 springs of rosemary
2 stems of basil (or approximately 10 leaves)
*chicken stock (only if needed)

Game Time:

Begin by heating approximately 3 tablespoons olive oil in the the bottom of a large skillet. Dice the onion and sauteé until caramelized. Add the 2 tablespoons of butter and continue to cook until melted (adds additional flavor to the sauce). Sauteé the minced garlic. Sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste.

Strain 2 of the 5 cans of tomatoes. Add all 5 cans of tomatoes to the onions and garlic (2 strained, 3 with juices). Add wine.
Bring to a slow boil and add the springs of rosemary and basil (do not remove herbs from their stems because you will remove them in the end: feel free to use an herb sachet if available).

Simmer on low for 45 minutes to 1 hour in order to thicken and soften vegetables. If sauce begins to become too dry add chicken stock in 1/4 cup increments.

Remove herbs and discard. Sprinkle in sugar and 1/4 cup olive oil. Stir and use spatula to break up larger pieces of tomato if desired.

Remove from heat and serve over your favorite pasta (I recommend angel hair).

Hope you all have a wonderful time creating and eating this dish with your loved ones this holiday season as much as I have.