It didn't take me long to figure out which recipe I was going to try first from this month's holiday themed Cooking Light Magazine, because this one was right on the cover! I'm sure its not the first cover recipe I've cooked, but I must say I don't seem to do it very often for some reason. I guess I tend to be drawn to the little worker bee recipes buried deep in the mag, not the flamboyant queen on the cover.
Archives for October 2013
Quick Chicken Cacciatore
This recipe is a twist on one I saw recently in Fine Cooking for a Veal Cacciatore. I'm not one who has a problem eating veal from a philosophical stand point, but in this particular dish chicken makes an easy and cheap substitute with hardly any impact on the flavor of the final meal.
While this is a one pan meal, it is cooked in stages so that each component can be done to perfection, then combined and reheated at the last minute. This dish is super easy, and just loaded with flavor, especially if you take the time to extract every little bit of moisture from the mushrooms, and caramelize them to a rich brown like you see in the photo above.
Amiable Bars
I've struggled for a while with what to call these little nuggets of goodness.
At first I called them…… Kind of "Kind" Bars
Then …..Sort of "Kind" Bars
Then I became concerned that the fine folks who make Kind Bars might take offense at my using their trademarked name in ANY way, so I thought of a synonym for "Kind" instead.
Et voila….Amiable Bars were born!
Corn Cookies
For the most part my wife and I generally agree on the quality of a restaurant experience we share. One may have enjoyed the meal slightly more or less than the other, but on a thumbs up – thumbs down basis, it is rare that we disagree. In fact, if memory serves there have only been two restaurants that we've visited where one of us (me) really loved the place, and the other (she) didn't.
The Farm Bill and SNAP
The Farm Bill, yet another victim of our government shut-down.
On October 1st, the day when our do-little Congress decided to hijack the federal government and shut a chunk of it down like a kid throwing a tantrum, the Farm Bill also expired. Sadly, the bill's expiration garnered hardly any press as there were more exciting stories to cover, like watching Senator Ted Cruz reciting Dr. Seuss' "Green Eggs and Ham" ad naseum in front of an empty Senate chamber.
Homemade Fig Newtons
I love a good cookie….really, I do.
I love making them, eating them, discovering new ones, and returning time and again to old favorites.
Since I was a kid, my favorite mass produced cookie has been the Fig Newton, hands down. Their fruity-cakey goodness easily beat the competitors of the day, the lowly Oreo and Chips-Ahoy. I have found over time though, that my love of the Newton is not universally shared. It is hard to find someone who doesn't love a good chocolate chip cookie, but when asked about Newtons I find that nearly half the people I ask can't stand them (not that I've spent a great deal of time trying to discern people's love/hate of Newtons, but I'm just sayin'). I don't understand these Newton haters.
Classic Meatballs on Cheesy Polenta
I arrived a little early to a Share Our Strength benefit a few weeks back, and having missed lunch that day, was starving. Luckily the event was being held at the fabulous Lincoln Tavern and Restaurant in South Boston so there was plenty of good food on offer. I grabbed a seat at the bar, ordered an IPA and one of their more popular bar appetizers, meatballs over creamy polenta.
In short order I was a very happy guy.
Baked Shrimp with Fennel and Feta
I know I've said it before, but I'm going to say it again….I could kiss Molly Stevens. Queen of one-pot cooking (her cookbook All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking is a must own), this nearly one-pot meal is another of hers that I fell in-love with by just reading the recipe.
