It's (not) All Greek

Since the first time I walked into a Greek restaurant in College Station, TX (of all places) and tasted hummus with fresh pita, I was in love with Greek food.  I may not know how to pronounce everything, but I'm willing to try it. 
Patatosalata Potato Salad from Tessa Kiros
Over the weekend, The Husband surprised my with a copy of Tessa Kiros' Food From Many Greek Kitchens.  He knew I was getting nervous.  The Tessa Kiros books requested from the library haven't come in yet and IHCC is starting w/ Tessa Kiros this week.  He handed me the book as we headed out the door on our way to Downtown Alive! in Lafayette.  I spent the 50ish minute drive looking through it in the car.

I Heart Cooking Clubs is now cooking with Tessa Kiros. It's "Welcome Week!"
Click below for more information.  
I really don't know how he got us there.  Every few minutes, I'd say, "Oh, look at this!."  "Man, that sounds good!"  "We need to try this!"  I think I've marked nearly every recipe.
 This one image from Food From Many Greek Kitchens has really stuck with me.
Growing up where the Mississippi throws herself into the Gulf, our waters are silty, churned up.  What lies beneath is always a mystery--mysteries that call to me, draw me in, but sometimes skeeve me out.  It blows my mind that water can be this clear.  My brain almost doesn't accept that this boat is not floating in air.
 When we left Downtown Alive, we were looking for a late supper.  The Husband wanted something Greek.  I can't imagine why.  
 Normally when we're in Lafayette and looking for Greek, we have our usual place.  Since we were downtown, we decided to try some place different--Athena.  We ordered the Athena Special Plate for 2.  Everything was excellent--from the salad, hummus, and lebna (yes, please), to the kibby, shawerma, and grape leaves...which we normally don't like.  Every time I tried another dish, I thought, "I could make a meal out of this alone."  Even the Lebanese Tea, made with orange blossoms instead of rose water, was a treat.
 After this Greek feast, I was anxious to start cooking from my new book.  But on our menu the next day (besides leftover Greek food for lunch since this plate for 2 serves 2 giants) was...The Husband's Chicken & Sausage Gumbo.
 I've seen my share of Cajun fusion...Cajun-Italian, Cajun-Mexican, Cajun-Asian.  Cajun-Greek?  Nuh-uh.
 So I decided to play a little trick.
 Not a lot of people know this.  In fact, it's not something I knew about until after leaving New Orleans for Lafayette.  Many Cajuns eat potato salad with their gumbo.  At first, I found the idea, well, ick.  But then I tried it, dipping a spoon of cold, creamy potato salad into my bowl of warm, spicy gumbo.  And I got it.  The hot-cold thing.  The creamy-spicy thing.  The way the potato salad thickens the gumbo (Cajun style gumbo tends to be thinner than the Creole style I grew up with).
 My trick was that Tessa Kiros has a recipe for Greek Potato Salad and I made it the night The Husband made his gumbo.  We didn't eat the salad with our gumbo since the flavors and textures are not "gumbo potato salad."  We enjoyed the snappy, bright flavors from the dressing, capers, and olives while our gumbo cooled enough to eat.
 Welcome to my Louisiana kitchen, Tessa Kiros!  Good to have you.This is one to make again. 
Notes: I followed the recipe (whaaat!) except for the anchovies; I'm anchovied out for now.

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Patatosalata: Potato Saladfrom Food From Many Greek Kitchens by Tessa Kiros This salad goes very well with all grilled fish dishes. you could also add a couple of hard-boiled eggs here. Use lemon juice instead of the vinegar if you prefer.
1 3/4 lb unpeeled potatoes
4 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
1/4 c kalamata olives2 tbsp capers
2-3 trimmed green onion including some green parts, sliced
1/4 c chopped Italian parsley
about 6 tbsp olive oil
about 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
freshly ground black pepper Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender but not too soft.  Drain, and leave to cool for 10 minutes or so before pulling the skins away.  Cut up into good chunks and put into a serving bowl.  Add the anchovy, olives, capers, onions, parsley, olive oil, and vinegar, and season with pepper.  Toss gently, trying not to break up the potatoes.  Taste for salt and serve warm or at room temperature.  Even nice served cold the next day.

IHCC Cheerio, Mate: Jamie Oliver Wrap Up

This is I Heart Cooking Clubs' last week with Jamie Oliver.  Next week launches six months with a new chef: Tessa Kiros.



Six months ago, I started flirting with Jamie Oliver.  Giving him a pinky toe test.  Reserved.  Not too much.


He surprised me with the first recipe: Garlic, Thyme, & Anchovy Baked Potatoes.  And again with 1-Minute Berry Ice Cream.


I decided we could spend more time together.  See where things went.  He brought me gifts--a chickpea salad and a chorizo omelet.


About halfway through this relationship, Jamie Oliver and I stopped seeing eye to eye.  We bickered in the kitchen.  Sometimes he wanted too much.  Baby carrots with their tops intact.  Unsalted crackers.  Sometimes I wanted too much.  Recipes that are more precise than "full whack." 


In some cases, I resented him for wasted ingredients and dishes I didn't waste my time posting about.  Maybe he resented me for refusing to trust him when I didn't puree chorizo.  I tried to make it up by staying with him another week and another and another.  He'd make it up to me with Stir Fried Corn or Homemade Granola.  Then he'd end up right back in the doghouse again.  Ours was what you'd call a roller coaster relationship. 


There were several valleys.  (But there were peaks too.)  If I had to give a grade: 76-78%.


This week I made Crunchy Garlic Chicken. 

Before getting to it, here are some of my fond memories.


My best time in the kitchen with JO was this Sweet Cherry Tomato & Sausage Bake.  I love the jammy roasted tomatoes and roasting the sausage is delicious too.  I found that we preferred using brats and doubling the herbs and garlic.  I've made it several times and look forward to next summer's cherry tomatoes.

Next would be Chicken and Leek Stroganoff.  While The Boy didn't care for it, I was smitten.  Definitely a high point.

Finishing off my top three would be this Potato and Chorizo (Andouille) Omelet w/ a Kinda Parsley Salad.  This was tasty and beautiful.  The salad on top was such a nice touch.

Runners up would be...


Summer Chickpea Salad.  I did have to alter this one based on personal taste, but it's a nice little salad packed with flavor.

Sweet Runner Bean Stew.  While I only made the bean part of this fish recipe, I was happy with it.

Banana-Berry Stuffed French Toast.  My first time with stuffed French toast.  This was easy, fun, and family-approved.

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The Crunchy Garlic Chicken this week...
Chosen because it was family-friendly.  The breading--lemon zest, garlic, parsley, and crackers smelled like a winner.  I had very high hopes.  In the end, it was okay--not great.  The family wasn't terribly impressed either.

One last thing.  I have to tell you about what else is on this plate.  Baked Sweet Potato Fries w/ Spicy Chipotle Dipping Sauce.  The recipe is from my friend Wendy @ Around My Family Table.  I make it as often as I can.  I love the seasoning on these fries and I double love the sauce.  The Boy wigs out over sweet potato fries (regular fries too).  But I make these anyway because The Husband and I can't get enough.  Here's the recipe.

Crunchy Garlic Chicken
from JamieOliver.com (click for printable)

2 skinless chicken breast fillets (about 8 ounces each)
3 cloves of garlic
2 lemons
15 Saltine crackers (preferably unsalted tops)
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
8 sprigs of fresh Italian parsley
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 large egg plus one egg white
Lemon wedges, for serving

To prepare your chicken

Cut each chicken breast into 2 equal pieces. Put a square of plastic wrap over each one and bash a few times with the bottom of a pan until they are more or less the same thickness.


Peel the garlic and zest the lemons. Put your crackers into a food processor with the oil, garlic, parsley sprigs, lemon zest, and the salt and pepper. Whiz until the mixture is very fine, then pour these crumbs onto a plate. (If using a blender, leave out the oil and chop the parsley roughly and the garlic finely. Add the garlic and parsley after the crackers are pretty much blitzed and mix in the oil once you’ve dumped the mixture onto a plate.)


Sprinkle the flour on to a second plate. Crack the egg into a small bowl, add the white, and beat with a fork. Lightly score the underside of the chicken breasts. Dip the chicken into the flour until both sides are completely coated, then dip into the egg and finally into the flavored crumbs. Push the crumbs on to the chicken breasts so they stick – you want the meat to be totally coated.


To cook your chicken


Preheat your oven to its highest temperature (475°F). Place your chicken on a nonstick sheet pan. Cook for 10 minutes, flip the chicken and cook for 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through, golden and crisp (no trace of pink at the center of the thickest part). You can check by making a small cut in a piece or two.


To serve your chicken


Either serve the chicken breasts whole, or cut them into strips and pile them on a plate. Beautiful and simple served with lemon wedges for squeezing over the top.

Dependable Me

A "Question of the Day" on a recipe forum I frequent was: "if a movie was made about your life, what would the title be?"

Being the type of person who can't come up with good responses on the fly, I didn't answer the question that day. 


My best replies are Seinfeldian.  Always in the car.  Alone.  Three to four days later.

But I have it.  My title.  No.  Not Jerk Store. 
Dependable Me.

I'm dependable.  Like a dog.  A loyal, there-when-you-need, ignore-me-when-you-don't faithful dog.  Don't we all feel that way now and then?

Sometimes I'm tired of being "the responsible one."  I've been called that and acted the part my entire life.  Tired of being typecast. It's gettin' pretty old.

Sometimes I don't want to be the "go to" girl.  I really want to be the "go away" girl.

Dependable can be so boring.  So steady.  So always.

I'm feeling pretty sucked dry lately (did ya notice?) and needed something I could depend on.

Cheesy, creamy vegetables never let me down.

Even more reliable & accessible--
I use frozen California-style mixed vegetables.  Easy, quick, and perfect for this fresh vegetable limbo time of year.

Add a classic cheese sauce that starts with a roux.
I can always depend on stirring roux to
make me happy.

Top it off with Parmesan and paprika.

Sitting down to this on my plate is like walking through the door finding my dog waiting for me in her usual spot.
You know, dependable.

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Vegetable au Gratin

3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
heaping 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 1/4 c milk, warmed
3/4-1 c shredded sharp cheddar
1 (16 oz) package California Style mixed vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots), thawed, cut apart pieces if large (optional)
Grated Parmesan cheese for topping
paprika for topping

Preheat oven to 350.
Melt butter.  Add flour, salt, and mustard.  Cook over low heat, stirring, until bubbly.  Slowly whisk in milk and bring to a boil.  Lower to a simmer and cook until smooth and thickened.  Turn off the heat and add the cheddar cheese.  Stir until cheese is melted.  Fold in the thawed vegetables.  Pour into a buttered 8" x 8" casserole dish.  Sprinkle the top with grated Parmesan then paprika.  Bake for about 30 minutes.  If you'd like, place under the broiler to brown the top. 


Linking up with:

Tuesdays at the Table @ All The Small Stuff
Tasty Tuesday @ Naptime Creations
Hearth and Soul vol 66 @ Mom's Sunday Cafe
Tuesdays Tasty Tidbits @ Permanent Posies
Let's Do Brunch @ The 21st Century Housewife
Family Time Tuesday @ Celebrating Family
What's Cooking Thursdays @ Feeding Four
Turning the Table Thursday @ Around My Family Table
Simply Delish @ KB & Whitesnakes Home
Potluck Friday @ EKat's Kitchen
Friday Food @ Mom Trends

And joining Dishing It Up (casserole month)

Chubby Bébé (& Garden Variety Wednesday #14)

As a toddler, I rivaled Al Capone with the racket I had going on.  Strawberry blond ringlets & chubby cheeks to boot.  Much more persuasive than a fedora and Gatling gun.  Breakfast with mom & dad before work.  Breakfast with grandma & grandpa after mom dropped me off with them.  Lunch with grandma & grandpa.  Grandma & grandpa hurried to feed me supper before I was picked up.  Supper with mom & dad when we got home.  Five squares a day!  For a while no one caught on.

My dad called me his "chubby bébé."  With good reason.

Oh.  Did I mention grandpa also loaded me with treats?  Fig Newtons were his year-round valentines.

Back then, it wasn't frowned on--showing love with food.  Grandpa didn't have all the experts telling him about the dangers of food as reward.  Or that he should give hugs, not cookies (grandpa did both, often at the same time).

Zoom in to today.  My own child.  I should know better.  But sometimes the best way I can show love is with a hug...and a cookie.

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Fig cookies today.  Using the fig preserves (I'm on a kick, what can I say?) my mother-in-law made with figs from her mother's property.  I'm in that limbo between summer and fall.  The summer garden is gone, but too early to start the fall one.  But I have lots of preserves.

Standard cookie making:
Cream butter, eggs, & sugar.
Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon.
Slowly add dry to wet.

Then mash up some fig preserves and mix into the dough.

Which will be thick.  Very thick.
"No way this will work" thick.
But it will.
It so will.

Bake until tops are browned.

They look like little drop biscuits--something else my grandpa loved to make for me.
Store these ugly little things in an airtight container.  The next day they will be chewy and packed full of fig preserve flavor. 

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Fig Cookies
from Cooking with Cajun Women by Nicole Denée Fontenot, recipe submitted by Claire Bonin

1 stick butter, softened
2 eggs
1 1/2 c sugar
3 c flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 c fig preserves, mashed by hand

Preheat oven to 375 F
Cream together butter, eggs, and sugar.  In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, and cinnamon.  Then add the mashed fig preserves.  Mix well.

Drop by rounded tablespoon on a greased and floured cookie sheet (I used a silpat).  Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until tops have browned.

Makes about 4 dozen.


FEATURED AT:







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This is the last Garden Variety Wednesday of the year.  I'm thinking about starting a potluck link-up in the fall.  I hope you will join in.

Thank you to everyone who participated in GVW!  You made Wednesdays anything but "garden variety."

GARDEN VARIETY WEDNESDAY # 14

<a href="http://msenplace.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v473/mm73/blog%20badge/garden1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" /></a>

* In your post, link back to Ms. enPlace or grab a Garden Variety Wednesday button and add it to your post.

* Link your post--not your home page.
* Since growing seasons differ so much even across the US, old/archived posts are welcome, but please edit with a link back or a button.
* Have fun visiting other blogs!

Share your recipes and ideas using fresh produce here!
Thanks for linking up.

1. Spinach Tomato Mozzarella Salad w Balsamic Drizzle	2. Mango Banana Pancakes	3. Mad Hatter Salad
4. Crawfish Stuffed Bell Peppers	5. KB and Whitesnake

(Cannot add links: Registration/trial expired)

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Linking up with:
Make a Food-"e"-Friend Monday #29 @ The Saturday Evening Pot
Tuesdays at the Table @ All The Small Stuff
Tasty Tuesday @ Naptime Creations
Hearth and Soul vol 65 @ Mom's Sunday Cafe
Tuesdays Tasty Tidbits @ Permanent Posies
Let's Do Brunch @ My Sweet & Savory
What's Cooking Thursdays @ Feeding Four
Turning the Table Thursday @ Around My Family Table
Thursday's Treasures @ Recipes For My Boys
Simply Delish @ KB & Whitesnakes Home
Potluck Friday @ EKat's Kitchen
Friday Food @ Mom Trends

Dippin', Dunkin', Slatherin'

Late one night, I sat at my grandma's kitchen table playing cards with my aunt.  Grandma always kept cards in the kitchen junk drawer.  Still does.  We were hungry but everyone was asleep.  My aunt grabbed a sleeve of saltines from the old "Premium" tin with the blue lid and handed it to me.  I opened the plastic and took one.  Started munching.  "Wait," she said.  "You can't eat them like that."


She reached into the fridge and brought out a stick of butter.  Real butter.  At that time, margarine was all the rage; that's what we had at home. 

Grandma & grandpa were butter when butter wasn't cool.


My aunt spread butter on top of a cracker and handed it to me.  "Yeah.  Now we're talkin'," she grinned. 

And that began my appreciation for the extras.  My belief that if x is good, than it can only be better topped with y. 


My own gluttonous algebraic theorem.


My favorite condiments are Creole mustard and hot sauce.
Why, yes, I do stumble through life as a cliché.
And it's mighty tasty.


What's a chip without dip?  Or salsa?  Pancakes without syrup or blueberry sauce?  Biscuits without preserves?


Sometimes I fry fish just for the homemade tartar sauce.  Make shrimp Po'boys just for the remoulade.  Grill chicken just for the avocado, tomato, & lime relish.  Plan taco night based on a hankerin' for some sour cream. Go ahead and judge.  I don't care.  I'll own it.
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It's condiment week at I Heart Cooking Clubs.  This chick is all about dippin', dunkin', slatherin'. 

Remember when IHCC was cooking with Giada?  The lemons?  In everything?  Even egg salad (Heather, I'm looking at you!).
Has anyone noticed Jamie Oliver's addiction to anchovies?  
Seeing as how our time cooking with JO is about up, I wanted to give a final nod to his fish fetish.

Jamie Oliver's "Mind Blowing Sauce" (Bagna càuda)

I wouldn't call this "mind blowing," but I'm not saying it blowed either.  We liked it.

But not leftover.  Little hint: makes a ton.

Jamie Oliver's Winter Crunch Salad w/ Mind Blowing Sauce
from Jamie at Home, also found at JamieOliver.com (click for printable)

for the sauce
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
300ml milk
10 anchovy fillets in oil
180ml good extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
2 or 3 tablespoons good white wine vinegar

for the vegetables
a few young carrots, peeled and finely sliced
a few small raw beetroots, peeled and finely sliced
a few sticks of celery, trimmed and thinly sliced, yellow leaves reserved
½ a small Romanesco or white cauliflower, broken into florets
a bulb of fennel, trimmed and finely sliced, herby tops reserved
a handful of small beetroot leaves, if available, washed
a bunch of radishes, trimmed and washed
½ a celeriac, peeled and finely sliced

Firstly, prepare all your veg, because once the sauce is done you’ll be ready to serve! To make your sauce, put the garlic cloves, milk and anchovies into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer slowly for 10 minutes, or until the garlic is soft and tender, keeping a close eye on the pan to make sure the milk doesn’t boil over. Don’t worry if it spits and looks a little lumpy – simply remove from the heat and whiz the sauce up with a hand blender. Gently blend in the extra virgin olive oil and the vinegar a little at a time – you’re in control of the consistency at this point. If you like it thick, like mayonnaise, keep blending. Now taste it and adjust the seasoning. Make sure there’s enough acidity from the vinegar to act like a dressing. It should be an incredible, pungent warm sauce.

There are two ways you can serve this – with both you need the sauce to be warm. Either pour the sauce into a bowl and place this on a plate, with the veg arranged around the bowl, or serve the veg in a big bowl and drizzle the sauce over the top. Sprinkle over the reserved herby fennel tops and celery leaves and finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.


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Reminder: next week (Sept. 14) will be the last Garden Variety Wednesday link-up.

In the works for October: A potluck link-up, along with some other changes.

couche couche

This is couche couche (koosh-koosh).  Or coush coush.  Or cush-cush.

Also called cornmeal mush. 
(Mmmm...hungry?)
Not to be confused with couscous.  Different animal.
Or maybe not.

In her book, The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook: The Global Migration of African Cuisine, Diane Spivey suggests that Cajun style couche couche probably developed from a "sweet couscous, prepared with milk and sugar, or molasses, raisins or dates, rosewater and spices" that had "been prepared since ancient times in many African countries." 

This very simple dish--a country dish, a poor (wo)man's dish--has given me fits.  Terrible times writing about it.  So many times I considered "to hell with it."  If you don't know me, "to hell with it" is my code for: now it's personal and you're going down.  I'm pushin' on no matter what.  (Sorry about that, readers.)

My high school creative writing teacher once told me "write what you know."  So I wrote a story about a girl who followed her Cajun great-grandfather along the bayou and helped him in his garden.  A girl who didn't mind picking caterpillars off the broccoli.  And didn't mind when we missed a few.  Who liked exploring swamps and catching tadpoles in ditches.  A girl who wanted hunting boots for her birthday.  And didn't mind that great-grandpa treated her like a grandson.  Until the other girls in school called her on it, mocking her clunky black rubber boots while they were buying their first pairs of high heels.

These things I know.

Couche couche, not so much.

But The Husband told me all about it.  All about this dreaded dish from his childhood.  There's always something about your culture that you just don't like.  For The Husband, couche couche is that thing.

His family subscribed to the Southern tradition of eating a big meal at noon.  The evening meal was often biscuits or couche couche.

My father-in-law made the couche couche.  An old time rural dish--one that The Husband speculates was his father's comfort food.  Out of all the things father-in-law cooked, it was the only meal my husband didn't like.  He describes it as "a bowl of mush," "flat," "no flavor."

Father-in-law could make a mean chili and grill the pants off pork steak and fresh green onion pork sausage.  And his coffee--I've never had better.  Couche couche, though, felt like a punishment for The Husband.  

Father-in-law's version wasn't traditional.  Traditionally, couche couche is made by both frying and steaming cornmeal.  It's served in a bowl with milk and cane syrup.  Or preserves.  Savory versions exist too, pairing couche couche with boudin or gratons (cracklins).  My father-in-law started his couche couche with cornbread he had made.  He crumbled the cornbread in a bowl of milk and topped it with cane syrup.

I got to thinking.  Since many people have eaten couche couche for so long, surely it couldn't be that bad.  Maybe The Husband just needed to try a classic version.

Cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar are whisked together.

Add milk and water.
Pour the mixture into a cast iron pan with heated oil waiting.

Cover and steam.
Cook through.

Popular to serve with milk and Steen's cane syrup.
We're wild about fig preserves right now.

So what'd we think?  Not as traumatic as The Husband remembered.  He liked the preserves with it.  The first bite, I wasn't so sure.  But it grew on me.  If you don't like oatmeal, grits, or other hot cereals because of the texture, this wouldn't be for you.  Texture is non-existent. 

I'm glad we tried it--glad we got better acquainted with a little piece of our culinary history.  I can see how this would have been popular.  Inexpensive, made with things on hand, and very filling.  But this wouldn't be the first dish I'd run to make; that's for sure!  


The recipe I used comes from the cookbook Nun Better: Tastes & Tales from Around a Cajun Table...a fundraiser for Saint Cecilia School in Broussard, LA.


Linking this with Cookbook Sundays
hosted by Melynda @ Mom's Sunday Cafe



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Coush-Coush
from Nun Better: Tastes & Tales from Around a Cajun Table

1 cup yellow or white cornmeal
4 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar (optional) *I used the sugar, adding more, to taste, while cooking
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

In a bowl, mix cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, & sugar.  Slowly add water and milk (mixture will be lumpy).

Heat oil in a skillet until hot.  Pour mixture into skillet and cover tightly with lid.  Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.  The mixture will start browning (forming a crust) on the bottom.  Uncover and stir. 

Cover and cook for an additional 15 minutes.  Stir again slowly.  By this time the lumps have broken up.  It may be eaten as a cereal with milk.

Notes from the recipe contributor:
I enjoy coush-coush with boudin and gratons (cracklins) or figs or any homemade preserves.

The most important ingredient in making this truly Cajun dish is the black iron skillet.  My mother always said, "to get the true taste of coush-coush you must use the black iron skillet."

This is my 200th post!

Joining in this week with:
Make a Food-"e"-Friend Monday @ The Saturday Evening Pot
Tuesdays at the Table @ All The Small Stuff
Tasty Tuesday @ Naptime Creations
Hearth and Soul vol 64 @ Mom's Sunday Cafe
Delectable Tuesday @ Home Sweet Farm
Let's Do Brunch @ The 21st Century Housewife
What's Cooking Thursdays @ Feeding Four
Turning the Table Thursday @ Around My Family Table
Simply Delish @ KB & Whitesnakes Home
Potluck Friday @ EKat's Kitchen
Fresh Food Friday @ la bella vita
Friday Food @ Mom Trends

Back to School w/ IHCC & Jamie Oliver

Besides getting to dive into the bodies of work of varied chefs, one of my favorite things about I Heart Cooking Clubs is the weekly themes.

Or, rather, that each theme is left to personal interpretation.

Or, let me just tell it straight, that we can play loose and easy with the themes and no one says boo about it. 

This week IHCC is going "Back to School."



Back to school.  Change.  New.

Shiny, perfect supplies.  That absolutely do not have anything to do with Justin Bieber.  Just so you know.
New teachers.  New friends.
Bigger shoes.  Shorter hair.
Ruling the school as one of the "big kids."
Waking up earlier.  Division.  Umm...wait.  Let's go back to that other stuff.

My pick for a Jamie Oliver Back to School dish was Chicken Korma.

Because it's change.  And it's new.  Curry isn't something we eat a lot of around here.  And by that I mean not at all.

In school, I looked forward to division.  The highest form of math in elementary school.  The type of math that had been kept a mystery for so long.  I wanted to like it.  Love it even.  But division and I didn't click.  I don't know...something about breaking things down.  The ugly feel of the word "dividing."  That obtrusive, bold bar separating dividend and divisor.  Much preferred multiplication.  Rolls off the tongue.  Results in products--very industrious.  Builds things up quickly.  Well, except that zero thing is a real bummer.

So...chicken korma...
Wanted to like it.  Even love it. 

I wanted to talk about my passion for curry, name-dropping coriander, turmeric, masala.  To be exotic.  Sophisticated.  Worldly.    

Are you familiar with lipstick on a pig?
Just call me sooie.

JO's Chicken Korma has received high praise from many across the food blogging community.  Much like the Sweet Potato and Chorizo Soup I made last week.  And like the soup, my family and I weren't into the chicken either.

While a beautiful dish, there was a flavor in it that bugged us.  Nagged us.  I expected explosions of flavor and textures, but that wasn't the case.  Especially in the bites lacking yogurt and almonds.

I know there are other styles of curry out there.  Maybe one of them is for me.

Chicken Korma
from Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution
1 3/4 lb chicken breasts
2 medium onions
1 fresh green chile (optional)
a thumb-sized piece of ginger
small bunch of cilantro
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas
peanut of vegetable oil
a pat of butter
1/2 cup Korma paste (make your own or use Patak's)
1 (14 oz) can coconut milk
small handful sliced almonds + extra
2 heaping Tbsp unsweetened coconut
salt & pepper
2 c natural yogurt
1 lemon

Cut the chicken into 1" pieces.  Peel, halve, & finely slice the onions.  Halve, seed, & finely slice the chile, if using.  Peel & chop the ginger.  Pick cilantro leaves & finely chop the stalks.  Drain the chickpeas.

Put a large pan on high heat & add a couple of glugs of oil.  Add the onions, chile, ginger, & cilantro stalks with butter.  Keep stirring it enough so it doesn't catch & burn but turns evenly golden.  Cook for around 10 minutes.  Add the curry paste, coconut milk, half the almonds, chickpeas, shredded coconut, & sliced chicken.  Half fill the empty can with water, pour into pan, & stir again.  Bring to a boil, then turn heat down & simmer for 30 minutes.  Check the curry regularly to make sure it's not drying out & add extra water if needed.  When the chicken is tender & cooked, taste & season with salt & pepper.

Serve with rice.  Add a few spoonfuls of yogurt dolloped on top & sprinkle over the rest of the almonds.  Finish with the cilantro leaves & serve with lemon wedges for squeezing over.