After each cooking class I'll post the most popular recipe.
Kids Cooking Class
August 3, 2010
This class had nine students and one assistant. We blended two spice blends and used three additional blends I had in the pantry which was a Moroccan blend called Ras el Hanout, used in a Indian Rice and Lentil Pilaf dish, a Thai blend for the Coconut Milk Corn on the Grill and a Zesty Italian for a Farmers Market salad of tomatoes, fresh herbs from my garden and a simple dressing using olive oil, vinegar and the Italian Spice Blend. The kids blended the Malaysian for the Chicken Satés and Chinese Five Spice which went into Chocolate Macaroons for dessert. It was between the Grilled Corn and Chicken Satés for their most favorite with the Chicken just nudging out the corn!
Malaysian Chicken Satés
4 stalks lemongrass, chopped
4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 shallots, coarsely chopped
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
5 tablespoons Malaysian Spice Blend
6 tablespoons vegetable oil (3 for cooking 3 for grill)
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
4 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken
2 English cucumbers, cut into 3/4” dice, placed in a serving bowl
Bamboo Skewers soaked in water for 15 minutes or metal skewers
Creamy Asian Peanut Sauce, recipe is provided below
1. Place chopped lemongrass (discard outside layer before chopping, use 4" or 5" from the thick end of each stock), garlic, shallots and ginger in a heavy mortar and pound with pestle to a coarse paste. Mix the Malaysian spice blend with 3 tablespoons of the oil and coconut milk, combine with the paste.
2. Cut each chicken breast in half, length wise (not across) then cut each half into long strips about ½" wide. Weave the chicken onto the skewers, leaving the bottom half of each skewer bare for a handle. Place chicken in a casserole dish large enough to lay flat, coat with marinade. Marinate in refrigerator, covered for 4 to 12 hours; the longer the better for a richer flavor.
3. Drain the chicken strips, discard the marinade.
4. Heat grill on high, when hot, brush clean grill grate with oil. Arrange the satés on the hot grill with an aluminum foil shield under the exposed ends of the skewers to keep them from burning if you're using bamboo. Lower heat to medium and grill until they are browned on the outside and cooked through, 2 minutes per side.
5. Serve with Asian peanut sauce and cucumbers.
Asian Peanut Sauce
2 tablespoons peanut or sesame oil
1 lemongrass stock, finely minced
4 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
4 shallots, finely minced
1 Tablespoon of Malaysian Spice Blend
½ cup of smooth peanut butter
1½ cups of coconut milk
½ cup chicken stock, or more as needed
1 tablespoon sugar, or more to taste
4 tablespoons soy sauce, or more to taste
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon ground pepper
Heat oil in a medium size saucepan over medium heat. Add lemongrass, garlic, ginger, shallots and Malaysian spice blend, cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes, stirring well. Whisk in the peanut butter, coconut milk, chicken stock, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce and pepper. Simmer until thick and richly flavored, about 5 minutes, stirring well. Sauce will hold covered and refrigerated for 24 hours, serve at room temperature.
Serves 10-12
Friends of Renee's Blending/Cooking Class
August 11, 2010
We blended and cooked with three spice blends; Spanish, Turkish and Herbs de Provence. Our appetizer was Spiced Popcorn Chickpeas using the Turkish blend, first course used the Spanish blend to marinate the Mini Pork Skewers with Grapes. The main course was a Spinach Salad with Roasted Beets and Fennel, braised Broccoli with Olives and Herbs de Provence Stuffed Chicken Breast. We were to full to have dessert which was going to be Warm Berry Compote over Shortcakes and Ice Cream. They really enjoyed making and eating the Herbs de Provence Stuffed Chicken Breasts.
Stuffed Chicken Breasts
4 skinless chicken breasts, split in half like a book, don’t cut through
Smoked Gouda cheese, sliced
Sun dried tomatoes in oil
Thin asparagus (optional)
3 eggs
3 cups panko bread crumbs (Japanese bread crumbs)
2 Tablespoons Herbs de Provence Blend plus Salt & Pepper
Mushroom Sauce
1 pound white or brown mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
1 tablespoon flour
½ cup White wine
1½ cups chicken broth
1.Gently pound chicken breasts between two sheets of deli/butcher paper or doubled plastic wrap, working from the middle out. Be careful not to tear meat. Depending on size of original breast the final product should measure approximately 6"x 8"x ¼".
2.Place a slice of smoked Gouda in the largest part of the pounded breast approximately 1" from edge, then a teaspoon of sun dried tomatoes, 3 pencil size asparagus if using and a pinch of Herbs de Provence spice blend on top. Roll up starting from the widest end, tucking in sides. Secure with 48” cotton kitchen string or turkey pins to close.
3. Combine panko bread crumbs with 2 tablespoons of Herbs de Provence spice blend and salt and pepper in a low bowl or pie pan. Lightly beat eggs in a separate low bowl or pie pan. With one hand, dip the chicken breasts into the egg bowl; with the clean hand dip the chicken roll in the bread crumbs bowl. (Use same hand to dip and other for crumbs throughout the entire coating process so only one hand is coated in bread crumbs!)Shake off excess and place on wire rack until all rolls are complete with crumbs. This will keep the crumbs from getting soggy.
4. Heat large frying pan you own or two if needed; add olive oil, sauté chicken rolls on all sides until lightly browned, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to warm platter, put in 300 degree oven until mushroom sauce is complete, up to 20 minutes.
5. To make the mushroom sauce. Sauté mushrooms and onions in butter over medium-high heat until soft, stir in flour, cook about 1 minute more, add white wine, reduce a few minutes, add chicken broth, reduce until broth has thickened, about 7 minutes.
6. Serve mushroom sauce over chicken. Enjoy!
Serves 4
The Louisiana Ladies Come to Town!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Every year 8 women from Lafayette, Louisiana visit their friend Renee here in Lake Tahoe. Renee had such a great time on August 11th blending and cooking with spices that she thought this food loving group of neighbors from back home would love it as well. We blended five spice blends, a new record in one hour! The Tahoe Blend was used in the Scallop & Crab Cakes on Baby Lettuce, the Scandinavian went perfect with the Cucumbers in Yogurt, the popular Moroccan (Ras el Hanout) was used again, this time with Chicken Braised in Pears and Apricots and the Chinese Five Spice went into apples which were braised and put over ice cream. An Indian spice blend called Panch Phora was used in a potato and green bean dish and was voted on to the web page of recipes. Enjoy!
Spicy Fried Potatoes
2 pounds all-purpose potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 ¼ inch cubes
1/3 cup of olive oil
2 tablespoons of Heart Rock Panch Phora Spice Blend
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon chili powder
2 medium onions, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 lb.blanched green beans
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 large handful cilantro leaves, chopped, to serve
1. Put the potato cubes in a saucepan of boiling, salted water. Bring back to the boil and cook for 7 minutes. Drain, refresh under cold water, and drain again. Pat dry with towel. Using the same water, blanch the green beans for a few minutes, shock in cold water to stop the cooking and retain their fresh color. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add Panch Phora, cook 1 min. or until seeds pop. Add remaining spices, cook 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Stir in onion, cook for 7 minutes, or until softened. Add garlic and potato cubes, stir to coat in the spices. Season with S & P. Stir often and fry the potatoes for 15 minutes or until cooked and golden brown. With 5 minutes left, stir in the green beans. To serve, sprinkle with lime juice and cilantro leaves. Serves 8- 10
Kids Cooking Class
Saturday, October 16
A fall chill was felt in the air and rain was threatening overhead. A perfect day to be in the kitchen with the kids. The class consisted of four children, four adults and my trusted sous chef Vicki who not only assists in cooking but also gives instruction on setting a proper table, food etiquette and table manners. We blended Zesty Italian which was used in the marinade for the chicken, Scandinavian went into the cold cucumber salad, and the Indian spice used in the spicy potatoes and green beans (see above for that recipe). For dessert we had a berry crumble that had cardamom and cinnamon in its ingredients. It was delicious. The kids loved the fried chickpeas that I made as a quick appetizer at the start of our cooking, using the Mexican spice blend. This in now a "go to" recipe for me, it should be for you too because it's so easy to make, everyone loves it and almost any spice blend can be used. Alton Brown featured something like it last month on the show The Best Thing I Ever Ate using black-eyed peas.
Spicy Fried Chickpeas
One 15 ounce can chickpeas
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons Heart Rock Spice -Mexican
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh garlic
Drain and rinse the chickpeas in a strainer. Dry on paper towels or clean dish towel making sure they are completely dry, you don't want them spitting hot oil when they get dropped into the pan. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, when hot add chickpeas. Cook them for 7 0r 8 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time. They'll turn several shades darker, but won't really get brown. Pour the chickpeas into the strainer to drain excess oil and then return them to the pan. Lower heat to medium, add spice blend and garlic. Stir for another minute until the garlic begins to just turn light brown, don't overcook the garlic because it will turn bitter. Serve warm. These little morsels can also top a green salad for a nice spicy crunch. Enjoy!
Renee's Other Louisiana Girlfriends (She has Many)!
January 13, 2011
These girls from Louisiana love to visit Lake Tahoe and their friend Renee. They also love to cook and aren't afraid to spice it up, after all said one of the girls "We're from Louisiana and we like it hot". We blended spices and cooked an Indian meal, something none of them had ever tried doing although several had dinned at an Indian restaurant. Naturally we blended "Curry" in addition to Garam Masala, Malaysian and Tandoori. From my pantry we used the ever popular Panch Phora, this time in a recipe with hot pineapple chunks! The recipe using the Tandoori and Garam Masala spice blends was voted on to this page for your enjoyment. It was very tender and flavorful since it was marinated in yogurt and spices overnight. Try to get in the habit of overnight marinating, it will always be better than just an hour or two.
TANDOORI CHICKEN WITH GARAM MASALA
Ingredients:
4 pounds chicken thighs or breasts, skin removed
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
½ cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
2 tablespoons chopped ginger
1 teaspoon finely chopped Serrano or jalapeno pepper, stem/ seeds removed
1 tablespoon paprika
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon of Heart Rock Tandoori Blend
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon Heart Rock Garam Masala Blend
½ cup plain yogurt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Preparation:
With a fork, prick holes in the chicken pieces. Cut diagonal slices 1-inch apart, and 1/2-inch deep into the larger pieces. Place the chicken in a non-reactive baking dish.
In a blender, combine the oil, onion, garlic, ginger, pepper, and process on high speed to a paste. Add the salt, Tandoori Spice Blend, cayenne pepper and garam masala, process until well blended. Add the yogurt and lemon juice, and process to a smooth sauce, scraping down the sides to combine all the ingredients. Pour the marinade over the chicken. Turn to coat evenly, rubbing the marinade into the holes and slits. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, refrigerate for at least 2 hours, (up to 24 hours, the longer the better).Remove the chicken from the marinade. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven on a wire rack placed in a jelly roll baking pan (line pan with foil for easy clean up)
40 minutes for breasts 50 minutes for thighs. Can also be grilled weather permitting!
Serves 6
