The Flu
I have recently come down with H1N1, so no more posts until I can actually eat again. :)
Read more...
I have recently come down with H1N1, so no more posts until I can actually eat again. :)
Read more...
I have not been making apple pie very long, but I have learned a lot in the time I have been baking it. In fact, next week will probably break my record of "most pie made in one time" by a long shot. Em and I are traveling back to Connecticut to have Thanksgiving with her parents, a somewhat annual tradition. This means a lot of pie. Apple, first and foremost. John (Em's dad) makes some of the best apple pie this world has ever seen, and I'm willing to put money on that. He makes pie for pretty much any occasion, because, hey, who doesn’t like pie?
Apple pie is really to separate entities, the crust and the filling. For the crust, I have become a huge fan of the Cook's Illustrated "add vodka" pie crust. As a scientist this greatly appeals to me. Water in crust causes gluten formation, which leads to a chewy and not pleasant crust. Well, vodka is only 40% water, so by adding this in addition to water you are under-hydrating the dough, allowing for an easier roll out. When the pie bakes (for quite some time), about 95-98% of the alcohol will burn off, leaving you with a wonderfully flaky crust. Also, as I previously stated in a post, using lard or shortening is important. Its fat structure allows for a better crust, where butter brings mostly flavor. Don't be afraid! I did back down a little on the fat because I feel it makes the pie slightly greasy, but not much.
For the filling, make sure to acquire a good type of apple. Granny Smith, Northern Spy, or Golden Delicious are all very good pie apples. Try to cut them into uniform slices to allow for even baking. And eat some of it. This will tell you how much sugar you will need to add (I have learned that making apple pie is really more of an art than a recipe). John and I differ slightly in our method of preparing the filling. I like to mix the apples with the sugar mixture before placing them in the crust (I feel it makes the pie more evenly distributed), he prefers to layer the apples and sprinkle the sugar mixture as he goes. Either way is good.
Crust
2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
½ cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch slices
2/3 cup cold lard or vegetable shortening, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup cold vodka
1/4 cup cold water
Add 1 1/2 cups flour, salt, and sugar in food processor until combined, about 2 one-second pulses. Add butter and shortening and process until homogeneous dough just starts to collect in uneven clumps, 15 seconds. Scrape bowl with rubber spatula and redistribute dough evenly around processor blade. Add remaining cup flour and pulse until mixture is evenly distributed around bowl and mass of dough has been broken up, 4 to 6 quick pulses. Empty mixture into medium bowl.
Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. Using a spatula to mix, fold dough by pressing down on dough until slightly tacky and sticks together. Divide dough into two roughly even balls and flatten each into 4-inch disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 45 minutes or up to 2 days.
Filling
6-8 apples (Northern Spy, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, or a mix), approximately 3-4 pounds
2/3-2/4 cup sugar (depending on sweetness of apples)
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon allspice
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons cream or milk
Additional sugar or cinnamon sugar for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 425°F and arrange rack to lower part of the oven.
Peel and core apples. Slice into even slices approximately ¼ inch thick. Place apples in a large bowl with enough water to cover and about 2 tablespoons lemon juice (prevents browning). In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, salt, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. Drain apples well (I recommend patting them dry with a kitchen towel) and transfer to a large bowl. Add sugar mixture and coat apples well.
Roll out one pie crust disk on a lightly floured surface and arrange in a 9 inch pie dish. Arrange apples in circular layers, mounding slightly more in the middle. (Alternatively, layer apples with the sugar mixture if you don’t want to mix it ahead of time.)
Dot the butter on the top of the apples. Roll out the other crust, making it slightly larger than the first (you want a little bit of overhang). Brush the edges of the bottom crust with milk (helps adhesion). Fold the top crust in half and make two small cuts for vents. Arrange top crust over pie. Using a paring knife, cut the excess crust so that about ½-1 inch is left hanging below the lip of the pie. Using your thumb, pinch together the edges of the dough, sealing the bottom and top crust. Tuck the crimped edges back underneath the crust (essentially rolling it into itself so it is even with the pan edge) and flute with fingers or fork. This gives you that pretty pie crust look.
Brush the top with milk or cream (I find egg causes too much browning, but you can use egg white). Sprinkle sugar or cinnamon sugar over top
Bake for 50 minutes or until the pie is deep golden brown and the apples are bubbling (might have to go a few extra minutes). Let cool for 3-4 hours before slicing.
Did I alter the title of a dish just to put another picture of my dog on my blog? You betcha. This has become Em's new favorite dish, causing me to refine the recipe rather quickly as well as get my cooking time for an hour total.
Tamale's are something I have a deep, deep fondness for. I remember getting from people selling out of their car on the weekends. I would bring home tamales, tortillas, make some beans, and that would be dinner. For anyone who would find this odd, I never got sick, and they were always delicious. Think of it this way, if the guy who sold me that food did make people sick, no one would buy his wares and he would not be selling (word travels fast). I miss food opportunities like this, I feel our society frowns upon the homemade and homegrown unless strictly regulated.
Back to tamales. I do not have time to make tamales themselves, but I can make a pie. With tamale ingredients. I tested out the Cook's Illustrated version, and made some improvements (in my eyes). It’s a great dish to feed a crowd, and works nicely with turkey or vegetarian (just add rice or more beans).
Tamale Pie
1 pound lean ground beef
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 jalapenos, minced
2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon cumin
1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup corn, frozen or fresh
1 15oz can diced tomatoes, with juice
4 ounces cheese (Colby jack or Monterey jack)
¾ cup coarse corn meal
2 1/2 cups water
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 375°F.
In a large skillet over medium heat, add beef, breaking up and cooking until browned. Add the onion and some salt, cooking until the onion is softened. Add the jalapeno and garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add the chile powder, oregano, cumin, beans, corn, and tomatoes into the skillet. Cook until most of the juices from the tomatoes have evaporated and the mixture is slightly thickened. Season and remove from heat.
Meanwhile, heat water in a pot until boiling. Stir in cornmeal, reduce heat to low, and whisk until thickened, about 1 minute. Stir in oil and paprika, season with salt and pepper.
Stir cheese into meat mixture. Transfer to a 9x13 baking pan or similar vessel. Top with cornmeal mixture, spreading to the edges to seal. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and turn on broiler to high. Continue cooking until cornmeal is set and slightly browned. Let cool for 10 minutes. Serve.
After the success of my banana pancakes, I decided to twist it a little bit by incorporating my favorite banana accompaniment, peanut butter. Honestly, if scientists could make a banana with a slight peanut butter flavor, I'm thinking it would solve 95% of potassium deficiency in the world. Well, I can dream, right?
Same process pretty much as before. Since I was adding peanut butter, I removed some of the butter to compensate for that. I also found out I could probably eat my weight in these.
Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes
The showdown is upon me! Or rather, it was. The chili cookoff went down at work today. It was lots of fun and I ate way too much.
My chili recipe went through a few more iterations before I settled on a final version. I now have both a quick and easy version, as well as a deep delicious flavor version. For whatever reason, the grocery stores have apparently heard my plea and now carry Anaheim/Hatch chiles in the produce section. Nice!
When shopping for a lot of the ingredients in this dish, I paid a bit of attention to the price when shopping. I bought most of this stuff at a Mexican grocer, and then compared that to what my local meg-mart had to offer. As I thought, a grocer that specializes in a region is WAY cheaper than what the big store are offering, and the quality is much better. Case in point: tomatillos are 99 cents a pound at a Mexican grocery, they are usually $3 per pound at the store. So shop smart (shop S-Mart!!)
In the end, my chili came out much to my (and my coworkers) liking. I placed second, raising $84 in my jar for charity. Which is awesome! The organizer of the event placed first, so yeah, maybe I'm a little competative. That's ok. I hope you enjoy the recipe.
Southwestern White Chili
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground turkey (at least 90/10, I like 95/5)
1 onion, diced fine
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 chipotle peppers in their adobo sauce, diced
8 oz green chiles, stems removed
1 10oz can green enchilada sauce
1 pound fresh tomatillos, husks and stems removed
1 jalapeno
1/4 cup cilantro
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup dry pearled barley
4 cups chicken stock
1 15oz. can cannellini bean beans, rinsed
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder (go for the Ancho kind, its smokey)
Salt
Pepper
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Sour cream
Heat broiler to high. Arrange tomatillos (stem side down) on a foil lined baking sheet along with jalapeno and green chiles. Place in middle of oven, roast for 5 minutes or until slightly charred. Flip and continue to roast until charred on other side. Remove from oven can cool slightly. Peel and seed jalapeno and chiles, remove stem part from tomatillo. Place tomatillos, chiles, jalapeno, cilantro, sugar, green enchilada sauce, and some salt in pepper in a food processor. Pulse until mostly smooth.
Heat about olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add onion and cook until slightly wilted, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook one minute longer. Add turkey, breaking it apart and cooking until it has lost its pink color. Add the chipotles, cumin, chili powder, and some salt and pepper. Stir and cook for about 1 minute. Add the tomatillo mixture, cook for 5 minutes, then add the pearled barley, followed by chicken stock. Stir, bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add beans and cook 10 more minutes, or until barley becomes only slightly chewy. Remove lid, stir in cornmeal and tomato paste, and cook for about 5 more minutes. Serve topped with a bit of sour cream.
-To simplify the recipe, replace the tomatillos, jalapeno, cilantro, sugar, and green chiles with-
2 4 oz. cans diced green chiles
1 can tomatillos, chopped up with juices
Add these ingredients, along with the enchilada sauce, directly to the chili. The depth of flavor will lessen, but it really speeds up the prep time.

I discovered this recipe while searching for a good putanesca recipe. I'm not extremely versed in French cooking, but this preparation is actually pretty simple. You can mix and match certain parts (like more olives) to match your tastes.
Chicken Provencal (adapted from Cook's Illustrated)My workplace decided this week to have a chili cook-off. We had a pie baking contest a few months ago and I was a judge, a fantastic honor that ended with a lot of good pie and a serious sugar rush. Thankfully our chili cook-off will include complementary Tums. Now, competition cooking is not something I usually do, mainly because as a home cook I still have a somewhat fragile ego (as I'm sure we all do when it comes to cooking new things). But the only way to grow is to try new things, right? I'm giving this a shot, hopefully with good results.
I have been making a white chili since before I started this blog, and I'm pretty proud of it. I'm going to put it up against the others in hopes of actually placing, which is hard since most people prefer a traditional red chili. My biggest problem though is my love of spice. I eat fiery food. I used to eat habanero salsa when I worked a Mexican restaurant, if that says anything. Needless to say, a lot of people do not really share my "slow burn on the lips" philosophy. Which just means I get to make test batches.
The first batch was made pretty much following my original recipe. I swapped out fresh tomatillos for the canned ones (I found a great local Mexican market for them) as well as added a fresh jalapeno. However, WHY ARE THERE NO FRESH GREEN CHILES? I know, I know, I'm spoiled growing up in the Southwest. But I recently watched a travel show talking about how the Hatch chile supply is decreasing due to lack of sales. I guarantee if they put some fresh ones next to the poblanos in the store this would help the problem. In fact, they can replace the poblanos if that makes it better. With the surge of Mexican food going on in the States, it makes sense to stock something that is very unique to us. But back to the chili.
I brought my batch into work for some taste testing on calm and unbiased tongues. Mostly positive reviews, though some thought it was a bit thick and maybe the fresh tomatillos were a bit tart. It does need a bit of tweaking, so I think I'm going to make another batch next week. I'm a bachelor this weekend, so I'm thinking a nice pumpkin beer and a pot of chili will make this horrible Indiana weather a bit more bearable.
What about the food world out there, do you make white chili?
I apologize for no pictures with this post. The camera is in California at the moment :)
White Chili
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground turkey (at least 90/10, I like 95/5)
1 onion, diced fine
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 chipotle peppers in their adobo sauce, diced
2 4 oz. cans diced green chiles
1 10oz can green enchilada sauce
1 pound fresh tomatillos, husks and stems removed
1 jalapeno
1/4 cup cilantro
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup dry pearled barley
32oz . cans chicken stock
1 15oz. can cannellini bean beans, rinsed
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder (go for the Ancho kind, its smokey)
Salt
Pepper
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Sour cream
Heat broiler to high. Arrange tomatillos (stem side down) on a foil lined baking sheet along with jalapeno. Place in middle of oven, roast for 5 minutes or until slightly charred. Flip and continue to roast until charred on other side. Remove from oven can cool slightly. Peel and seed jalapeno, remove stem part from tomatillo. Place tomatillos, jalapeno, cilantro, sugar, green enchilada sauce, and some salt in pepper in a food processor. Pulse until mostly smooth.
Heat about olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add onion and cook until slightly wilted, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook one minute longer. Add turkey, breaking it apart and cooking until it has lost its pink color. Add the chipotles, cumin, chili powder, and some salt and pepper. Stir and cook for about 1 minute. Add the tomatillo mixture and pearled barley, followed by chicken stock. Stir, bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add beans and cook 10 more minutes, or until barley becomes only slightly chewy. Remove lid, stir in cornmeal and tomato paste, and cook for about 5 more minutes. Serve topped with a bit of sour cream.
There are few places I enjoy more than a pub. Beer and I are on quite good terms, and I love the food that accompanies it. Thankfully, beer and food pairings are becoming more and more popular thanks to the emergence of good quality beer in the states (but that's another post). I recently ate lunch at Gage, a Chicago gastro-pub that offered a higher end spin on traditional brunch, lunch, and dinner pub fare.
Even at an off lunch hour, the place was downright packed. Not to mention the place is quite large (there is another bar in the basement that they open up for weekend nights). We sat in the bar (no wait), and were greeted with friendly and knowledgeable service. Gage runs specials every day including a fish, sandwich, soup, and entrée of the day. Em had fish and chips (made with the fish of the day, fresh cod) that probably rank as top 5 in best fried fish ever. Guinness batter and perfectly cooked, they were great. I had the sandwich of the day, roasted pork leg served with a cilantro aioli. Man was it good. Tender pork, a homemade sauce, and really good bread. I love pub food, and this hit the spot. The beer they have on tap is also quite nice, with a featured local beer on tap for each season. Nice.
The best part might have come with desert. Deconstructed coffee and doughnuts are something you do not usually see. Well, ok, I have never seen. A fresh drop doughnut rolled cinnamon sugar, a fried chocolate gonache (which was unsweetened), and a sweet coffee sauce poured over the top. Yes, it tasted as good as it sounds. We both decided to go back the next time we were in Chicago, and maybe even twice.
http://www.thegagechicago.com/
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