Arroz con Pollo

For those of you that know me… You know that I don’t like rice. I know, I know…  how could I NOT like rice??? Well, let me clarify… If I can avoid white rice I will. I just don’t like the flavor. I think its a useless carb. Blasphemy!!! I know. 

Funny story about rice. My husband loves it. He pretty much expects it at every meal. I however, try to avoid it as much as possible or substitute it with brown or black rice, which in his book… isn’t rice. So it’s a constant battle in the kitchen. He wants white rice, I push for the brown or black. Sometimes I give in and I make up for my stubbornness with rice based dishes like this one. It’s my own little way of saying sorry for depriving him of his beloved white rice. ;)

I will say this… for someone that doesn’t like rice, this arroz con pollo was absolutely amazing. It was so good that I snuck in a few extra bites when he wasn’t looking. If you guys can do me a big favor? Please don’t tell him I said I like rice, because he’ll jump at the chance to tell me “Ha Ha, told you so.”

Shhhh….This will be our little secret.

Ingredients: 

8 bone in chicken thighs

Salt and pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 green bell pepper- cored, seeded, and diced

3 roasted red peppers, diced

3 garlic cloves

2 large roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

½ teaspoon of smoked paprika

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

1 cup basmati rice

1-¼ teaspoon of Goya seasoning

½ teaspoon of Spanish saffron

3 cups of chicken stock

1 teaspoon of Cholula hot sauce

Garnish- 

Freshly chopped parsley and cilantro

Method:

Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken thighs until golden brown- about 8 min per side. Remove from the skillet, and set aside. 

Drain about half of the oil from the pan return the pan to the heat. Add the diced onion, bell pepper, roasted red peppers, garlic, tomatoes, smoked paprika, and bay leaves. Cook and stir until the onion begins to brown- about 6 minutes. 

Stir in the tomato paste, continue to stir until caramelized- about 3 minutes.

Add the basmati rice, sazon, and saffron, and stir to coat the rice with the mixture. Pour in the chicken stock and re-season with salt and pepper. Add the Cholula, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, but maintain a simmer. Return the chicken thighs to the pan skin side up. Cook partially covered until the rice has absorbed all the liquid and the chicken is cooked through- about 25 minutes. 

Right before serving make the chicken skin crispy by placing the skillet under a hot broiler- keep an eye on it, depending on your oven this can be quick or a few minutes. Don’t leave the oven’s side during this process. You don’t want to ruin your dish at this point. I mean you’re practically DONE!!.

Sprinkle cilantro and parsley over the rice and serve. 

Buttermilk Cake Doughnuts

On Saturday we can slow down a bit. We don’t need to rush out of the house to make it on time to school or work. Since I feel I have been neglecting the family since I went back to work… I decided to make something special this Saturday morning. What can be more special then a batch of homemade cake doughnuts? 

The key to making these doughnuts at home early (but not too early) on a Saturday morning is prepping the dough the night before. That way the morning of, you can roll out the dough and fry up your delicious breakfast treat. 

Ingredients: 

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1-¼ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla

2/3 cup buttermilk

¼ cup melted butter

Vegetable oil for frying

Glaze- recipe below*

Toppings- Sprinkles 

Special Equipment: Fryer Thermometer

Method: 

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix to combine and set aside.

In another bowl combine the eggs, sugar, and vanilla.  Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined. In a third bowl, combine the buttermilk and the melted butter, whisk to combine.

Add the egg mixture and the milk mixture into the flour and beat on low. The dough will be too stiff to mix, finish mixing by hand to pull in all the left over flour in the bowl. Make a ball of dough and place in a large ziplock bag. 

Chill dough for a minimum of 2 hours. I like to make the dough the night before, that way I can make a fresh batch of doughnuts in the morning. There’s nothing worse than a bunch of hangry kids in the morning. So save yourself a step, and make the dough the night before. :)

Before you pull out the dough from the fridge and start to fry your doughnuts, make your donut glaze. This way, you’re ready for them once they cool off a bit. 

Chocolate Glaze: In a small saucepan melt 3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate and 3 tablespoons butter over low heat and keep warm to achieve a better glaze on the doughnuts. 

Powdered Sugar Icing: In a small bowl combine 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk and ¼ teaspoon vanilla. 

Once you’re ready to get going… roll out the dough on a well floured surface. You want to make sure that your dough is 1/2” thick. Use a 2” biscuit cutter to cut out the doughnuts. I like to use a smaller star cutter to cut out the donut hole. Cut out as many doughnuts as you can, then re-roll the scraps and repeat the process.

Using a thermometer, heat your oil to 365 degrees. Drop the doughnut into the heated oil and fry until golden brown about 2 - 3 minutes on each side. 

Allow doughnuts to drain on a cooling racker 1 - 2 minutes, then proceed to glaze and add sprinkles. 

Cherry Clafoutis

On my first day of school at Le Cordon Bleu we learned how to make two recipes. The first dish was fish provencal en papillote. The second was this cherry clafoutis that I’m going to share with you. 

I will admit, I had absolutely no idea how to even say clafoutis (cla-fou-tee); much less how to make one. 

Having never heard of a clafoutis, and it being my first day made me feel a little bit VERY intimidated of making food for a culinary instructor for the first time. Thinking back… my classmates were probably just as scared and intimidated as I was. 

After some quick introductions we jumped right into the demo. Watching our Chef whip up this dessert in less than 45 minutes  (prep and bake time) was mesmerizing. He made it look so easy; pit, mix, whip, pour, bake… wha-la! A beautiful dessert was pulled out of the oven after 30 minutes of baking. But now it was our turn, and watching a pro is very different than having me, a first time student in a commercial kitchen execute the dish with the exact precision and grace as a culinary pro.  Did I fumble? Yes. But the beauty of this dish is that it’s very forgiving, and you really can’t screw it up. Don’t believe me? Give it a try, I’m sure you’ll knock it out of the park. After-all, you’re not going to be graded on your end product, you my friend get to enjoy this delicious dish without the stress of passing class. 

Cherry Clafoutis-

Ingredients:

1 pound of cherries, pitted

½ cup of flour

½ cup of granulated sugar

Pinch of salt

1-½ cups of milk

½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

3 eggs, slightly beaten

For the baking dish:

2 tablespoons of butter

¼ cup of granulated sugar

Garnish: 

¼ cup of powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift flour into a large bowl, add the sugar and the pinch of salt.

Stir in the milk, vanilla, and eggs- whisk to combine. 

Butter and sugar your baking dish, spread the cherries evenly over the bottom of the baking dish and pour the batter over the mixture. 

Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until or until the center of the clafoutis is set and the edges have begun to brown. 

Once the clafoutis has cooled a bit, sprinkle the powdered sugar on top. 

Serve warm or at room temperature

Chocolate Chip Muffins

My daughter loves chocolate chip muffins for breakfast. I know there are healthier and better options I should be giving her, BUT when you’re trying to get out the door to make it to work on time, fighting over what she’ll eat for breakfast is the absolute last thing I want to do. 

In the past I would purchase muffins from the store,  and she would have them before heading off to school. However, after reading the amount of chemicals that are baked into the store bought muffins, I started making my own. Here’s the recipe I use. It’s not a healthy version, or a version that sneaks veggies into the batter. It’s a straight up muffin that makes my morning easier and gets me to work on time. 

Ingredients:

3 cups All-purpose flour

4 teaspoons Baking powder

½ teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon

2 Eggs

1 cup Sugar

1 cup Almond milk ( or regular milk)

½ cup Canola Oil

1 teaspoon Almond extract

1 and ½ cups Dark chocolate chips

¼ cup Demerara sugar for sprinkling on muffins (optional)

Directions:

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.

Spray your muffin tin with non-stick spray, or add muffin (cupcake) liners to the tin. Set aside until ready to use. 

In a large bowl combine;  flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated. 

In another bowl, combine the eggs and sugar and whisk until combined. Add the almond milk, canola oil, and almond extract. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and whisk by hand until combined. Be sure to scrape the sides of bowl to get any of the dry flour at the bottom of the bowl. 

Once all the flour has been incorporated fold in 1 and ¼ cups of chocolate chips. Reserve the last ¼ cup for the top of the muffins. 

Fill the prepared muffin tin until the muffin cups are three-quarters full. Top the muffin batter with the remaining chocolate chips. 

Sprinkle the Demerara sugar over the muffin tops. (optional)

Bake the muffins at 375 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden and the centers are set. 

Remove the muffins from the oven and cool for 5 - 10 minutes over a wire rack. 

The muffins are best the day of the bake, but will hold in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. For muffins that have been stored in the fridge. Warm the muffins in the microwave for 5 -10 seconds to soften and make the chocolate chips melty and gooey. 

Cereal Milk Ice Cream

Have you seen the new Chef’s Table on Netflix? I love that series; it always makes me hangry hungry. The latest season is dedicated to desserts and showcased Chef Christina Tosi from The Milk Bar. Having been to the Milk Bar in Las Vegas, I remember having the Cereal Milk soft serve and thinking… I wish this were ice cream. Not that it was bad, not by any means. The soft serve was absolutely delicious. I’m just more of an ice cream person. 

Many months went by and I forgot about the soft serve. That is, until I saw it pop up on Netflix a few days ago and was inspired to turn it into an ice cream.  (I know, I’m late to the game, but I’ve been catching up on shows while the girls are visiting their grandparents in CA.) 

So here we are. Cereal Milk Ice Cream made with love and lots of full fat milk. 

Ps. I was going to use Fruity Pebbles, but my nephew ate my box of cereal before I could get to making the ice cream. So Cocoa Krispies were the star of the show. 

Ingredients-

3 cups Frosted Flakes cereal

2 1/2 cups whole milk

1 cups half and half

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

4 egg yolks

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup Cocoa Krispies cereal for garnish

Special equipment: Ice cream maker

Instructions- 

Preheat the oven to 300° F. 

Spread the cereal on an ungreased baking sheet, and bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely.

Combine cooled Corn Flakes and whole milk in a bowl.

Steep for 20 minutes. Strain the mixture through a mesh sieve, pushing the soggy cornflakes against the sides with a spatula to get all the milk, set aside.

In a small pot over low heat, stir together milk, cream, sugar, and salt until the sugar dissolves.

In a separate bowl, whisk the yolks. Add a splash of the warm milk mixture into the yolks, whisk to mix. Pour the yolks into the pot with the milk, and put the whole thing over medium-low heat. 

Cook, stirring constantly, for about five minutes, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. You’ve just made a custard! You Go!  :) 

Strain the mixture through a mesh sieve into a plastic container.

 After your custard has chilled in the fridge for at least 4 hours, you’re ready to churn your ice cream. 

It took about 15 minutes to churn my custard into ice cream with my KitchenAid attachment. You know when its ready when you hear the churn attachment struggling to turn. 

Add a cup of cereal to the ice cream and fold in with a spatula to keep the cereal intact. (I used Cocoa Krispies, but you can use your cereal of choice.) 

Transfer your ice cream to a plastic container and allow it to set, or you can enjoy it straight out of the ice cream maker. No judgement. 

Scoop your ice cream into a cone, or cup and top with more cereal, or not… Its really up to you. 

French Toast Donuts

We’re back in action after a fun filled weekend in San Diego. This time around we stayed in the heart of downtown and enjoyed all the great eats the city has to offer. Our first stop was breakfast at The Donut Bar, a local favorite that has been named “The Best Donut” by USA Today. But I’m not here to talk about the donuts that we had, although they were amazing, I’m here to show you how to make the French Toast Donut (inspired by our visit to the Donut Bar). First off, let me tell you, it’s super easy. Don’t believe me? Let me ask you a simple question. Can you make French Toast? Yes? then you can rock this French Toast Donut. :-)

Ingredients

4 sugar coated donuts, with tops removed (bottoms are optional- but I find that if you keep the bottom part on it gives the donut better structure)

2 large eggs

2 tablespoons of milk

½ teaspoon of vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon of cinnamon

pinch of salt

4 tablespoons of butter separated into one tablespoon portions for cooking toast

*Powdered sugar, strawberries, and maple syrup for toppings

Method

Beat the egg, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt together in a large bowl.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of butter.
Dunk the donut in egg mixture soaking both sides. Place in hot pan with butter, and cook on both sides until golden. Repeat the process with the remaining donuts. 

Sprinkle the Donut French toast with powdered sugar, add some fresh strawberries, and drizzle with maple syrup.

See… Easy Peezy. The hardest part is getting out of bed to go purchase the donuts. 

Enjoy. 

Watermelon Vodka Sorbet

I’m always looking for a way to incorporate booze into my life. I may, or may not have a problem. For the time being, and for the sake of this post… let’s say I don’t. :P

Here’s a recipe that will help you use up that left over watermelon from that weekend party you had, or maybe you bought a watermelon specifically for this purpose. Either way… you’re in for a treat. :) 

P.S. It’s hot here in AZ. Please send sunblock and more vodka. We’re almost out. ;)

Ingredients

1 cup simple syrup
8 cups cubed seedless watermelon
1 tablespoon of fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 ounces vodka

Special Equipment-

Ice cream maker*  

Instructions

Blend the watermelon in a food processor until smooth.  Add in the lime juice, vodka, and simple syrup. Blend again just to make sure the ingredients are mixed. Pour into your ice cream maker and churn until slushy. You can have it as a slushy at this point, or package into a plastic container and freeze until solid. ( I had some empty Talenti Gelato containers that I repurposed). 

When ready to serve, scoop into a glass. For an added kick, pour a 1oz shot of vodka over the sorbet.

*not really a deal breaker if you don’t have an ice cream maker. You can pour the contents of the blender into a cookie sheet (might need more than one cookie sheet for the amount made) and freeze a thin layer of sorbet. When the sorbet has set, scrape with a fork, and make your own slushy.

Peach Crostata

For the dough- 

1 ½ cups plus of flour

2 tablespoons granulated sugar 

½ teaspoon of  salt 

6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces 

¼ cup ice water 

Peach Filling- 

5 peaches (2 pounds)—halved, pitted and sliced ½ inch thick 

2 tablespoons flour

¼ cup plus dark brown sugar 

½ teaspoon vanilla extract 

¼ teaspoon of cinnamon 

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons half and half milk

2 tablespoons Demerara sugar

Instructions- 

In a food processor, pulse the flour with the granulated sugar and salt until blended. Add the butter and pulse until it the coarse. Add the water and pulse until the dough begins to bind together. 

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and pat it into a disk about 6” wide. Place the disk in a ziplock, or wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 425°. 

In a medium bowl, toss the peaches with the brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, a pinch of salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons of flour. 

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to a 12-inch round. Transfer the dough to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Mound the peaches with their juices in the center of the dough, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Fold the edge of the dough up and over the peaches. 

Brush the dough with the half and half and sprinkle with the Demerara sugar. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the crust is golden and the peaches are bubbling. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving. 

Ceviche-

Need a quick and easy meal you can make ahead? I have just the thing for you. White fish ceviche can be made  a whole day ahead or 4 hours before serving. All you need is some white fish (shrimp works too) and lots of lime.  

Ingredients:

1 pound of fresh, skinless snapper, bass, halibut or other white fish, cut into cubes

1 ½ cup of fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon of lime zest

1 medium onion, diced

2 medium-large round tomatoes, chopped

2 jalapeños, diced

½ cup of fresh cilantro

salt

tostadas or tortilla chips

garnish- hot sauce, avocado slices, lime wedges

Process:

Combine the fish and lime juice in a bowl. You will need enough juice to cover all of the fish. When the fish is not entirely covered by the juice, it will result in uneven “cooking.” Cover and refrigerate the fish for 4 hours, or until all the fish no longer looks raw. 

When marinating is complete, drain the lime juice. 

Transfer the fish to a large bowl, add your flavorings: lime zest, onion, tomatoes, jalapeños. Mix to combine and season with salt. 

When ready to serve, top each tostada with ceviche. Add your avocado garnish, hot sauce and serve with an additional lime wedge. 

Kalamata Olive and Rosemary Focaccia

Want to make your own focaccia but don’t want to wait around for two days? I got a half-day recipe for you. It’s quicker than other focaccia recipes, and the result is amazing. This recipe takes patience. If you rush the process, you’ll end up with an inferior product. Patience is key grasshopper, excel in it and you will be rewarded. 

Sponge

2 1/2t (1 package) active dry yeast

2/3C warm water

1C all-purpose flour

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a large mixing bowl, stir it in and set aside until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and beat until smooth. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until puffy and bubbling, about 30 minutes.

Dough

Sponge

1/2C water

1/3C dry white wine

1/3C rosemary infused olive oil, plus about 2 tablespoons for drizzling

2T of chopped fresh rosemary, plus an additional 1 to 2 tablespoons for sprinkling

2 1/2C plus 2t all-purpose flour plus an additional 1 to 2 tablespoons, if needed

2t coarse salt, plus an additional 1t for sprinkling over the focaccia dough.

1/2C of Kalamata olives, drained and pitted

Add the water, wine and one-third cup olive oil, to the sponge, stir to combine.

Using a mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the water, wine, one-third cup olive oil and sponge. Add the rosemary, flour, and 2 teaspoons salt and mix until the dough comes together (it will be very soft). Change to the dough hook and knead for 6 to 8 minutes at medium speed. Add an additional 1 -2 T of flour if the dough seems to wet.  The dough should be soft, but not wet. Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled container, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and set aside until doubled, about 1 hour.

Once the dough has doubled, the dough should be soft and full of air bubbles and should stretch easily. Press it into a well-oiled jelly roll pan, dimple it well with your fingertips or knuckles, cover with a towel and let rise until puffy and doubled, about 45 minutes.

At least 30 minutes before you plan to bake, pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees with a baking stone inside on the lowest shelf. Once again, dimple the top of the dough with your fingertips or knuckles, press the kalamata olives into the dough, drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil so it pools in the little indentations and sprinkle with the remaining salt, and rosemary.

Place the pan directly on the stone and immediately reduce the temperature to 400 degrees. Place a shallow metal container of water on the floor of the oven to make steam.

Bake until the focaccia is golden (lift the bread to check underneath as well), 25 to 30 minutes. Immediately remove from the oven and cool briefly on a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.