Rotisserie Chicken Wednesday

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Make sure you read to the bottom of this recipe for the list of delicious add-ins.

Chicken Fried Rice
1 rotisserie chicken
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 onion, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced
4 cups cooked rice, brown or white
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
Soy sauce to taste
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
Chopped green onions for garnish

Skin and debone chicken and chop into 1/2-inch cubes; set aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil and stir-fry vegetables for 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender crisp. Add chicken and rice and continue to stir-fry for 3 minutes, turning often with a wooden spoon. Add remaining ingredients and stir well for 1 minute. Serve, garnished with chopped green onions. Serves 4.

Additional ingredients: a scrambled egg, 2 tablespoons fresh bacon bits, broccoli florets, finely sliced mushrooms, diced sweet peppers, cayenne pepper

Source: St. Petersburg Times files

Photo from www.ctmenusonline.com

Easy Weeknight Meals: Casseroles to Panini to Middle Eastern flair

Here are five dinner ideas to get you out of your rut. White Bean-Turkey Chili with Cornbread Dumplings will do that for you.

Monday: Leftover delight
Use up leftover rice in Cheesy Chile Rice, a meatless dish idea from the Food Network. To 2 cups of cooked rice, add 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 cup chopped scallions and a small can of drained, diced chiles. Then mix in 1 cup shredded Cheddar (I’d use pepper jack), salt and cayenne pepper if you’d like. Spritz a casserole dish with non-stick spray and sprinkle with Parmesan. Dump in the mixture and bake 20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Tuesday: Upscale sandwich
Go fancy with Salmon and Goat Cheese Panini, and if you don’t have a panini press call your hot sandwich grilled cheese and make it in a frying pan. You can also make panini on a George Foreman gill. Layer poached salmon, goat cheese, capers and slivers of red onion between slices of sturdy bread and grill on each side until goat cheese is gooey. A lightly dressed green salad is perfect on the side.

Wednesday: Rotisserie chicken
Prepare Middle Eastern Chicken Flatbread by spreading store-bought baba ghanoush on toasted pita or flatbread. Layer on shredded rotisserie chicken, sliced cucumbers, diced tomatoes and Romaine lettuce. Sprinkle red wine vinaigrette over all. Serve with a side of couscous studded with raisins.

Thursday: Turkey preview
Get a head start on your November turkey consumption with White Bean-Turkey Chili with Corn Bread Dumplings (recipe below), or clip and save for the day after Thanksgiving . Hunt through the pantry for a jar of salsa to save you one more purchase at the grocery store.

Friday: Bake it
Italian Shrimp Bake is an easy and satisfying end of the week meal. Put several large, peeled shrimp in gratin dishes or individual ramekins with basil-infused tomato sauce. Top with cubes of fresh mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes. Serve with green salad and crusty bread for dipping.

White Bean-Turkey Chili with Corn Bread Dumplings
1 pound cooked turkey
1 (16 ounces) jar chunky salsa
1 (15 ounces) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 (8.5 ounces) package corn bread mix
1 egg
Garnish:
1/4 cup shredded cheese
Sliced green onions
Chili powder for sprinkling

Chop turkey. In  Dutch oven, combine turkey, salsa, beans, chili powder and 2/3 cup water. Bring to boil.
Meanwhile, for dumplings, in a medium bowl mix together corn bread mix, egg and 1/4 cup water. Drop batter by large spoonfuls on boiling turkey chili.

Cover; reduce heat and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into a dumpling comes out clean. To serve, top chili with cheese, green onions and chili powder.

Serves 4.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens

New book writes the history of Columbia restaurant

The Columbia restaurant in Ybor City has been around more than 100 years. 100 years! Imagine that. Andy Huse, a Tampa Library archivist and all-around foodie, has written a book about the colorful restaurant's history. Huse will be speaking about the book at the St. Petersburg Times Festival of Reading on Saturday, Oct. 24, at the USF St. Petersburg campus. His talk is at 11 a.m. in Davis 105.

For a preview, read Times food critic Laura Reiley's interview with Huse.

Afterward, make the home version of the Columbia's famous 1905 salad.

1905 Salad 
½ head iceberg lettuce
2 ripe tomatoes, cut in eighths
½ cup Swiss cheese, cut in julienne strips
½ cup ham, cut in julienne strips (or turkey or shrimp)
¼ cup green Spanish olives, pitted
2 teaspoons grated Romano cheese
Salad dressing:
1/8 cup white wine vinegar
½ cup extra-virgin Spanish olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Toss together all salad ingredients in a bowl, except Romano Cheese.

Mix garlic, oregano, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl. Beat until smooth with a wire whisk. Add olive oil, gradually beating to form an emulsion. Stir in vinegar and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.

Add dressing to salad and toss well. Add Romano Cheese and toss one more time. Serves 4. 

Source: Columbia restaurant

Photo of Andy at the Columbia bar taken by Willie J. Allen Jr., St. Petersburg Times

Easy weeknight meals: From pasta to couscous

This week we celebrate starches. (Don't we always?) Ideas for what to serve with noodles, rice, potatoes and couscous.

Monday:  With noodles
Go meatless tonight with Mediterranean Spinach and Pasta. While 8 ounces of spaghetti or fettuccine are cooking, saute diced onion and chopped garlic in olive oil. Add red pepper flakes. Stir in 1 bag of baby spinach leaves and a can of undrained kidney beans. Let spinach wilt, add drained pasta and some grape tomatoes, a handful or two of feta cheese and fresh, chopped parsley. Heat through.

Tuesday: With rice
Pan-Seared Scallops and Scallion Rice is quick and easy for a weeknight. Start the rice first because the shellfish will take less than five minutes. Cook rice in vegetable broth and add chopped scallions toward the end. Sear the scallops in a bit of olive oil, basting with melted butter on each side as they cook. Squeeze lemon juice over scallops and serve with rice. Make a green veggie, too.

Wedesday:  With rotisserie chicken
Slice up the bird and serve it with Sauteed Broccoli Rabe. Broccoli rabe looks like skinny-stemmed broccoli but it’s actually a member of the turnip family. Strip off the little leaves (like you do broccoli) and saute the stocks in olive oil and garlic with a few shakes of red pepper flakes. Season with coarse salt and freshly ground pepper. Crusty bread on the side.

Thursday: With potatoes
Hash Browns and Ham Casserole (recipe below) gets a head start from frozen hash browns, but you’ll need to make your own sauce. C’mon, you can do it.

Friday: With couscous
Grill or saute fish fillets and serve with Zucchini-Mint Couscous. Prepare couscous according to package instructions and make the accompaniment by sauteing diced zucchini and minced garlic in hot olive oil. Add a few shakes of cumin, diced fresh tomatoes and a handful of chopped fresh mint. Spoon sauce over couscous.

Hash Browns and Ham Casserole
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cups diced ham
1 (24-ounce) package frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained well
1/2 cup buttered bread crumbs, optional
Over medium heat, melt butter in a large saucepan; add flour. Stir until smooth; add milk. Cook and stir until thick and bubbly; remove from heat and stir in cheese and mustard. Place half of the ham in a lightly greased casserole. Top ham with half of the hash brown potatoes and half of the cheese sauce mixture. Spoon spinach over the top. Repeat with the remaining ham, potatoes and sauce. Top with buttered bread crumbs if desired. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 to 55 minutes.

Serves 6 to 8.

Source: About.com

Easy weeknight meals: Fast scampi and a nutty-blue chicken salad

Out of dinner ideas? Here are five to get the juices flowing.

Monday:  What a scampi
We’ve made Shrimp Scampi Fettuccine before and it’s a dish worth repeating. Saute garlic, and minced shallots if you’ve got ’em, in a mixture of butter and olive oil. Don’t let the garlic go brown; keep stirring. Add peeled shrimp and a few good splashes of white wine (or chicken broth). Let shrimp cook through and serve over hot fettuccine. Green salad on the side.

Tuesday: Corny alternative
Saute corn kernels, fresh or frozen, and sliced jalapeno peppers for Spicy Corn & Jack Quesadillas. Mix the corn and jalapenos with grated Monterey Jack cheese and use as the filling for quesadillas. Serve with green salsa and sour cream.

Wednesday: Rotisserie Chicken
Nutty Blue Chicken Salad is what’s for dinner. Shred the bird and arrange meat over iceberg lettuce mix; add some crunchy veggies if you’d like. Sprinkle toasted walnuts and crumbled blue cheese over all; dress with balsamic vinaigrette.

Thursday: Going light
Sausage and Egg Flatbread (recipe below) from Cooking Light is, as you would expect, a light meal. The lemony dressing pairs well with the peppery arugula that garnishes this “pizza.”

Friday: Simply salmon
When you see salmon on sale, grab it. Saute fillets seasoned with salt and pepper in olive oil, about 4 minutes a side. Remove from skillet and add grape tomatoes, a bit of butter, fresh lemon juice and capers to pan. When tomatoes go soft, dump the chunky sauce over the salmon and serve. Five-minute couscous on the side.

Sausage and Egg Flatbread
1 (11-ounce) can refrigerated French bread
2 teaspoons cornmeal
2/3 cup chopped onion
1 (4-ounce) turkey Italian sausage, casing removed, crumbled
1/2 cup  shredded Fontina cheese
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 cups arugula
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Find lengthwise seam in dough. Beginning at seam, gently unroll dough into a rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough crosswise into 2 equal portions. Roll each portion into a 15- by 6-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Place each rectangle on a baking sheet sprinkled with 1 teaspoon cornmeal.

Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and turkey Italian sausage to pan; cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring to crumble.

Divide sausage mixture evenly between rectangles, spreading evenly down length of dough, leaving a 1/4-inch border on each; top evenly with 1/4 cup cheese.

Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven. Break 2 eggs onto each flatbread, packing evenly lengthwise; sprinkle evenly with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until eggs are set. Turn off oven; leave flatbreads in oven with oven door closed for 4 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Remove from oven.

Combine arugula, lemon juice and olive oil; toss. Arrange arugula mixture evenly over flatbreads. Cut each flatbread crosswise into 3 squares; serve immediately.

Makes 6 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 288 calories, 12g fat, 17g protein, 28g carbohydrates, 676mg sodium.
Source: Cooking Light, October

What they are saying about the death of Gourmet

Lots of chatter about Conde Nast killing Gourmet magazine as it closed in on 70 years as am American institution. Here is a collection of comments from other newspapers, magazine and the blogosphere:

"I can't talk about it now, it's too raw. I've got to pack up my office," editor Ruth Riechl to the Los Angeles Times'  Russ Parsons on Monday after she was told the magazine was closing.

“It will be a very different culinary world without Gourmet,” said Jacques Pépin, a dean of the French Culinary Institute in New York, author of numerous cookbooks, and a former contributor to the magazine. “When I came to the U.S. 50 years ago, there was Gourmet; that was it.” - www.bloomberg.com

"I haven't had a subscription or bought an issue in years. To me, in recent years it seemed to be speaking to a very particular sort of reader -- an upperclass-ish Upper East Side lady-who-lunches, maybe -- and was less about food than about that person's... idealized culinary lifestyle, I guess. Put another way, it was perhaps a little too New York for its own good, and I'm not at all shocked." -  John Rosevear on www.egullet.com.

“The demise of Gourmet has terrible implications for cookbook publishing,” said Pat Adrian, former editor-in-chief of the Good Cook cookbook club. “It signals that people don’t want to know the cultural background of the food or recipe they prepare.” - www.bloomberg.com

"This is a sad day for anyone who loved the magazine for its recipes, lush photographs and endlessly curious, immensely smart travel and food writing," New York Times food critic Sam Sifton.

"I've read both of those magazines for 15 years, but they're totally different magazines," says Lorraine Fina Stevenski of Clearwater, a recipe developer and gourmet home cook. "Gourmet isn't really for the average home cook. Ruth Reichl is a home cook, not really a chef, so I'm surprised she's let this magazine get away from her like this. But the recipes aren't really easy to do, and the stories are more geared toward what's going on around the world." St. Petersburg Times

Easy weeknight meals: old-fashioned meatloaf to fast shrimp and grits

Have you run out of ides for dinner? Here are some suggestions to get you through this week ... and maybe next depending on how much you cook!

Monday:  Old-fashioned
A reader who called last week said she didn’t have a good meatloaf recipe so I am offering my Alton-Inspired Meatloaf (recipe below) in the hope she’ll see it and others will try it. The Food Network celeb recommends sauteeing the aromatics before adding to the mix. Sometimes I do that, sometimes I don’t, but it does make a delicious difference. I always serve meatloaf with mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli. Always.

Tuesday: Veggie delight
Make a Quick Ratatouille by chopping a can of plum tomatoes and stewing them with diced zucchini, green, yellow or red pepper, eggplant, onion and dried Italian herbs. Add sliced kielbasa (optional, or add beans for vegetarian protein) and simmer until veggies are soft. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve with French bread. Leftovers are delicious over rice or pasta.

Wednesday: Rotisserie chicken
California Barbecue Chicken Salad starts with shredded meat from a barbecued rotisserie chicken. Mix it with corn — canned or thawed frozen — and chopped, ripe avocado and diced red onion. Serve over lettuce with ranch dressing and crushed tortillas chips.

Thursday: Southern night
Fast Shrimp and Grits starts with inspiration by Bobby FLay and 6 slices chopped bacon, fried, drained and set aside. Make cheese grits according to directions on box. While grits cook, saute 1 pound peeled shrimp in the bacon grease with a cup of sliced scallions, the juice of 1 lemon and a handful of chopped parsley; season with salt if you’d like. Add back bacon bits. Pour grits into a shallow serving dish and scoop shrimp over the top. Serve with corn bread. (Photo above taken by me ... our dinner last Wednesday!)

Friday: Gone fishing
Make Lemon-Herb Fish Packets for the grill using whatever fillets look best to you at the market. Put fish on a layer of slices of lemon and onion and sprinkle on lemon pepper and dried or fresh herbs of your choice, then wrap foil tight and grill for about 15 minutes. Skewer grape tomatoes and zucchini brushed with olive oil and grill those, too. Rice pilaf on the side.

Alton-Inspired Meatloaf
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup celery, finely diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground chuck (see note)
1/2 pound ground lamb
1/2 pound ground sirloin
2 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Saute onion, garlic and celery in olive oil until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool.

Mix cooled sauteed vegetables with remaining ingredients. Using your hands, incorporate thoroughly. Form into a loaf shape and place in the middle of a 9- by 13-inch baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees, then reduce to 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until meat thermometer registers 160 degrees.

Note: This is a basic meatloaf recipe made using suggestions from Alton Brown, host of Food Network’s Good Eats. Cooking it at a high temperature for 20 minutes gives the meat a crispier crust. The lamb provides a bolder flavor, but you can use all beef or a beef-pork combination.

Source: Janet K. Keeler, St. Petersburg Times

Gourmet magazine to fold

If you've been wondering which magazine Conde Nast would save, Bon Appetit or Gourmet, you have your answer today. Gourmet got the ax, along with Cookie, Elegant Bride and Modern Bride. I blogged way back in January that falling advertising dollars were threatening the magzine but it's still hard to believe that America's oldest food magazine is dead. No word one when the last issue is; the first one was January 1941.

It will be interesting to see where editor Ruth Reichl, a best-selling author in her own right and a powerful person in the food world, will land. Some say that the magazine got elitist under her direction. I went to the Gourmet Magazine Institute a few years ago and heard lots of complaints from long-time readers. Still, I think the magazine would have survived it the economics were better.

Over the years the magazine has included some great writing and writers - M.F.K. Fisher, Calvin Trillin and David Foster Wallace. Plus, it really revolutionized food photography. Those of us working in the field owe a lot to Gourmet.

 

 

Apply now to Thanksgiving cooking boot camp

Have you flubbed Thanksgiving dinner more times than you'd like to remember? If so, it’s time to apply for Wishbone U., the St. Petersburg Times' fifth annual Thanksgiving cooking boot camp for people who, well, haven’t had much luck preparing the big feast.

This year’s class is going back to basics, with a lesson on how to roast a turkey taking center stage. The instruction will include how the heck to know when the big bird is done and the final word on basting. (Yes!) In addition, students will master the art of making gravy, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce.

To gain admittance, you’ll have to plead your case by sending a brief note about why you need help. We’re suckers for a sad sack story, especially when it involves disapproving mothers-in-law and dry turkey. Tell us about your holiday cooking disasters and how we can help turn you around.

The 12 most desperate students will be selected to attend an afternoon hands-on class Oct. 25 at  Apron’s Cooking School at Publix Supermarket in the Shoppes of Citrus Park in Tampa. Apron’s resident chef Rich Norris will share his expertise and recipes. (The photo above is from the 2007 class.)

E-mail your entry, including your name, age, city of residence and daytime phone number, to features@sptimes.com. Put THANKSGIVING in the subject line.

Deadline is Oct. 15 and winners will be notified by Oct. 16. Nominations of bad cooks by concerned family and friends are encouraged, but they cannot be submitted anonymously.

Participants must be willing to be photographed during the class, because it’s not just their skills we want to improve. The experience — and recipes — will be shared in Taste on Nov. 18.

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Easy baked pasta dish for a busy night

Better Homes and Gardens has come out with another binder cookbook, this one even easier than the last. Step-by-step instructions accompany each recipe, which are all very doable. Baked Cavatelli caught my eye because, well, it used wagon wheels pasta which just couldn't be cuter. Lately, I've been looking for recipes that fit the casserole mold. So easy to throw together for a weeknight meal and the wolverines at my house love them. Well, they say that. They know which side of the bread is buttered.

Baked Cavatelli
2 1/3  cups dried cavatelli or wagon wheel macaroni (7 ounces)
12  ounces uncooked Italian sausage links, sliced 1/2 inch thick, or lean ground beef
3/4  cup chopped onion
2  cloves garlic, minced
1  26-ounce jar pasta sauce
1  cup shredded mozzarella cheese (4 ounces)
1/4  teaspoon black pepper

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; set aside.

In a large skillet cook the sausage, onion, and garlic until sausage is brown; remove from skillet. Drain.

In a large bowl stir together pasta sauce, 3/4 cup of the mozzarella cheese, and the pepper. Add the cooked pasta and the drained sausage mixture. Stir gently to combine. Spoon the mixture into a 2-quart casserole. (See note.)

Bake, covered, in a 375 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until nearly heated through. Uncover; sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Bake about 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted.

Makes 5 or 6 servings

Note: For individual portions, spoon the mixture into 5 or 6 individual (8- to 10-ounce) casseroles. Place the casseroles on a large baking sheet. Cover casseroles with foil and bake in a 375 degree F oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until nearly heated through. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese, and bake about 5 minutes more or until cheese is melted.

Source: photos and recipe, www.bhg.com