Independence

That word forever reminds me of the scene in Everything Is Illuminated, of Jonathan (Jonfen!) and Alexander (but please, everyone dubs him Alex) driving through a war torn Ukraine.

"What happened?"
"Independence."

Of course, here in America, we like to celebrate with fire - that which we cook with, and that which we blow things up with.

This Independence Day marked the first holiday in which Matthew and I have cooked for the extended family. It had it's bumps. Timing, communication, head counts. It was not the greatest cooking experience, but it most certainly was not the worst - and I guarantee you, my parents can attest to the worst (30 ingredient stir fry, anyone?)

It was, however, fun. I got to grill! How bad can that be!? Everyone seemed mostly pleased with the food. I know I enjoyed it. Then again, I had spent the better part of two days being sure it went mostly to plan. And it's not like I caught anyone on fire, even though I threatened multiple times to throw my future cousin in laws very tiny dog onto the grill (hehe. Hot dog. Hehe.)

What can I say though? It was a great night. And even if the fireworks had nothing on Richmond (hey grandma and grandpa! Hey dad and John!) they were still fun. Even if they completely terrorized the pooches.

And so, without further adieu, tonight's photographic portrait of freedom, fire, and fun.

faux au vin

Ahaha, get it? Faux? Cause it rhymes with coq?

Aaaaahhhh, I kill myself.

I have a feeling that this "faux au vin" will become the staple for chicken noodle soup in our house. Everything just smells fabulous. It's like a pot roast, but with chicken. I am so in love with all these smells right now, it's just ridiculous.

Also, it should be noted that we are skipping a night! Last night was our Mediteranean pot, and man it was GOOD. However, there were no pictures! Bummer! My camera batter was dead, and I was reminded, yet again, of why I need a backup battery for th D50. I am sure that we will make it again though, so be sure to look out for that post!

But, onto tonights dinner. Four of the one pots this week take place in Europe, and during our lolligagying, we thought it would be nice to stop in France. Considering the only French food I have ever had in my life (that I am aware of) is coq au vin, and hey - it's made using one pot! What a coincidence!

As a plus, these are some of my favourite pictures from the week thus far. The white wine and chicken stock just make everything so golden and lovely, it really feels very homey looking at these shots.

Browning your chicken.


Sauteing the arromatics.


White wine for deglazing.


Chicken in the pot.


Add chicken stock.

More vin!


Straight out of the oven.



Dished up with noodles.

Oh, man.

Faux au Vin
3 good sized chicken breasts
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into coins
3-4 stalks celery, chopped
1 bottle white wine
2-3 cups chicken stock
4-5 slices bacon
egg noodles
butter
salt and pepper


1) Start by cooking your bacon. I chop mine before cooking it so I don't ahve to mess with it afterwards. Move bacon to papertowel to drain, reserving 3 tablespoons bacon grease in your pot.

2) Clean your chicken breasts, cutting each one in half and sprinkling with salt and pepper. Heat drippings in pot, and put in your chicken, being sure not to overcrowd the pan. Cook until both sides are golden brown. Move to plate with bacon.

3) Melt butter in pot. Add chopped arromatics and saute until slightly transluscent. Pour about 3 cups of wine into the pot to deglaze the bottom. Arrange chicken on top of arromatics, and pour in chicken stock. Top it off with more wine, pouring until chicken is just covered. Put bacon top.

4) Place in oven at 300 degrees until chicken is falling apart. After about 3 hours in the oven, put a pot of water on to boil, and cook your egg noodles. When everything is done, fill a bowl halfway with egg noodles, and top it off with a ladle of delicious soup. Serve with crusty bread, and enjoy.


**While this isn't technically a one pot, it can be. You just have to cook your noodles way in advance, then throw them in at the end.

peppery peppers and pips

Here lies chapter two in our one pot wonders week! Tonight we visit the Southwest, so that means, hot, hot, and hotter. I made this dish with chicken, but ended up picking the chicken out of my own, because I liked it better with just the vegetables. Go figure.

One of the things I wanted to try and do with this week's menu was have a little traveling fun. When I was making the menu, I got almost to the end when I realized I hadn't chosen anything "American". Honestly, coming up with this meal took a lot longer than all the others, if only because I couldn't wrap my head around a specific regional food. I've never loved southern food, but what I did love, I couldn't imagine putting a pot together: corn bread, pulled pork, greens, black eyed peas... you can imagine how that would be. Maybe one day I'll figure that one out. Anyway, I finally remembered one of my favourite things to make anyway. A pot of rice, with a bunch of cooked vegetables thrown in. Why not spice it up, and call it southwestern? Sounded good to me.

Cut up chicken bits.


Seasoning the chicken.


Cooking the chicken.


Onions and jalapenos.


Diced yellow pepper.


Red ripe romas.


Sauted onions and jalapenos.


Add the peppers.



Can you tell I love garlic?


Add in some beans.


Chicken back in.


Rice uptop. Toss it well, folks!


Used up lemon wedge.


Big ol' pot of the southwest.


Plate.


At last, at the dinner table.

Required:
1 jalapeno, chopped
1 large onion, diced
chicken cut to bite sizes
4 roma tomatoes, cut up
2-4 garlic cloves, diced
1 bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch bits
1 can black beans, rinsed
2 cups cooked rice
1 lemon wedge

chili powder
crushed red pepper
paprika
salt and pepper
olive oil

1) Layer your chicken out into a single layer, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and chili powder. Meanwhile, heat your pot and drizzle in some olive oil. Once hot, throw in your chicken, and cook through. Remove from pot, and set aside.

2) Heat your pan back up, and add more oil. Throw in your onions and jalapenos, let cook till the onions become slightly translucent. Add in the bell pepper, cook till slightly soft. Add in tomatoes and garlic, and lower the heat a bit. Dump in your beans, and add the chicken back to the pot. Dump in your rice, and sprinkle with crushed red pepper, paprika, and any extra spicy goodness you want to add. Squeeze a wedge of lemon over the top.

3) Plate, and enjoy!

begin the week of one pot wonders

For starters, a shout-out to Paul, Matthew's entrepreneurial farmer friend in backwater North Carolina. He has bees! And watermelon! I am so jealous. Find his honey here, and go buy some!

This past week has been ridiculous. We are house shopping! We believe we have found "the one", and are meeting with a financial adviser on Wednesday. The whole ordeal is just insane. However, we have a really great real estate agent, whom I absolutely adore. We will hopefully have someone from the bank in the house this week or next to appraise it and everything. In the meantime, we're ridiculously giddy.

This week, however, should be a little more relaxed. Well, at least in the kitchen that is. I decided to plan a week of dinners that require exactly one pot each. Minimizing clean up sounds good to both of us, while also preparing some seriously good comfort food yummies.

Our week of One Pot Wonders will include:
Monday: Italian Pot - short cut pasta with onions, bacon, spinich in a white sauce, baked
Tuesday: Southwest Pot - rice with cubed chicken, beans, jalapenos, onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, and chili seasoning, baked
Wednesday: Mediterranean Pot - linguine tossed with olive oil, lemon, parsley, zucchini, olives, and roasted red peppers
Thursday: French Pot - chicken thighs, carrots, onions, celery, white wine, cook slow and low (basically a really simple coq au vin)
Friday: German Pot - egg noodles with beef tips, onions, and gravy
Saturday: Asian Pot - rice, cabbage, broccoli, orange juice and zest, bean sprouts, stir fried
Sunday: Free night

I. Am. So. Excited.

PS - Laura is coming over for dinner! Yes, that Laura, the Laura who said one of my favourite quotes which you can find on the bottom of this page. Go ahead, scroll down. I'll wait for you.

Yeah! THAT Laura!

Laura offered extreme moral support in the kitchen. That's why everything turned out so awesome.

Draining your pasta.

Chopped onion.


Chopped bacon.



Toss goodness in pot to brown.


Move goodies to paper towel to drain.


Oh, man. Delicious brown bottomed pan.


Building the white sauce.


Add spinach to wilt.


Add some herbs, too.


Toss a bit.


Throw in bacon and onion.


Dump in pasta.


Toss well, sprinkle with parm.


Baked bit of lovely.


Dig in!

Italian Pot, here's what we'll need:
your favourite short cut pasta
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 pieces of bacon
a big ol' bag of spinich
a few springs of basil, oregano, parsley. or dried.
olive oil

cream cheese
white wine
butter
milk
salt & pepper

1) Start by boiling your pasta. Go ahead and chop up your onion. Cut your strips of bacon into 1 inch pieces, move to a small bowl with the onion. While your pasta is boiling, rinse your spinich and set it aside.

2) Spoon about 1/4 a cup of pasta water and set it aside. Drain pasta and move to collander in the sink. Drizzle with a teeny bit of olive oil, it'll be sitting there a while.

3) Drizzle some olive oil in your pot while you have it out, and allow it to heat up. Throw your bacon in, and allow it to let off a little grease. Toss in your onions, and cook entil everything is golden and pretty. Skim off as much off the fat as you can when everything is cooked.

4) Scoop out onions and bacon, move to their origional bowl (which you washed, of course, because it had raw meat in it, right?). Put about 2 tabelspoons of butter into your pot, and allow it to melt. Add in a scoop of cream cheese, a bit of milk, and just a splash of wine. Pour in your pasta water. Whisk continuously to break up the cream cheese and allow it to relaaaax. Throw in salt and pepper to taste. I usually end up adding a little heap of flour at this point, just to make things nice and thick, but it is not neccesary.

5) Once your sauce has completed, throw in your spinich and herbs. After it wilts, add the pasta, bacon, and onions. Toss so everything is nice and coated. Sprinkle with a handful of parmesean, and throw in the oven until everything is nice and gooey. Turn on your broiler at the end for a few minutes so everything is brown and delicious.

6) Scoop it up, share with friends, and enjoy your incredible lack of cookware to clean at the end of the night!

roasting something wonderful

About an hour and a half ago, I was doing the same dance 2 year olds do when they have to potty.

That, I-am-so-anxious-that-I-cannot-possibly-be-expected-to-stand-still dance.

Why? Because tonight I harvested and roasted the first zucchini I have ever grown. Ever. From seed.

It's last moments on the vine.

And, let me tell you, it was delicious.

But I'm probably biased.

Less talk, more food porn.

Since I wanted to zucchini to be the star of dinner, I had to choose something to do with it that would not only enhance it's glory, but be filling and complimentary as well. I thought about sauteing it over pasta, or throwing it on the grill. But then I saw those new potatoes in the produce aisle, and I knew I wanted to roast this sucker.

Let's meet the players, yeah?

Vine ripe tomatoes, just because I love how they blister in an oven.


One medium sized red onion.


About a pound of new potatoes, red or yellow.


One gorgeously succulent zucchini, fresh from your garden.


Slice your zucchini...



...and layer everything onto your parchment covered sheet.


Mmmm... I think I have a new desktop image.


Drizzle everything with olive oil, sprinkle on the salt and pepper.


Isn't this little scoop adorable!?


Straight out of the oven.


Oh. My. Goodness.


Into my bowl.

Once out of the oven and plated, everything got a little dash of soul food seasoning. I buy this at my grocery; basically: salt, paprika, crushed red pepper. It just gave the party a little kick.

This was a pretty typical roast for us. The only difference was that instead of using one of my 9" x 13" Pyrex dish, I threw everything on a piece of parchment that was on a lipped baking sheet. Lemme tell you. BIG difference. In the Pyrex dish, all of the juices are let out, and since everything's piled on everything else, they just sat there so everyone got soggy and the party was over pretty quick. On the baking sheet however, everything is in one nice layer, so they release the juice, and that's it. It also helps that I didn't use a ton of veggies. Plus it's prettier, in my most humble opinion.

Zucchini was cut into about 1/4" to 1/2" slices, potatoes were cut into fourths (or halves, for the teenier ones), and I sliced the red onion into rings. I cut the tomatoes into eights (halved, then halved, then halved again), and everything got a nice long drizzle of olive oil, plus a generous sprinkle of kosher salt and black pepper.

Other ideas: serve roasted veggies over a delicious whole wheat pasta, or brown basmatti rice. Also, throw some garlic cloves in there, paper on, like I forgot to do. $10 says it makes the dish that much better.

God bless the zucchini.

how about a picnic?

Did you know that today is Mary Cassatt's birthday? I'd like to say we celebrated it with a picnic, but the picnic was really done without her in mind. Still, I think she would have enjoyed it.

Man, is it ever glorious outside.

Matthew had a half day today, so we thought it nice to do something spectacular. Since it's so beautiful out, and since we know some lovely places, we decided that the best idea was a picnic. This was our first picnic together! It's a little silly, and a little fun, and way dorky when we do something together and realize it's our first time at doing said thing (like 3 weeks ago when we danced together for the first time). I have a feeling that both activities will be ever present in our lives frm here on out.

It was also a great opportunity to wear the pink Jane Austin dress.

The picnic meal consisted of:
Limeade
Curried Chicken Salad on Pita
Sliced Cheddar with Triscuits
Red Skinned Potato Salad
Strawberries in Fresh Whipped Cream

Oh, it was divine.

It was also a great setting for some really fabulous photos. The lighting was so perfect, and everything around us just so vibrant and colourful. It was a fabulous few hours spent together.

Matthew all corn-ball with the picnic basket.



Sandwiches!



Delicious potato salad.



Matthew's set up.



Fabulously chilled limeade.



A full plate.... mmm.



Digging in.






Matthew enjoys some of those delicious strawberries.



Moi!



Ohmygoodness all those berries.



Matthew's fresh whipped cream.


Clean plate!

As you can see, it was just fantastic. Plates, cups, and basket courtesy of Michael's. No veggies from my own garden, but soon! So soon!

Mm. A afterthought. How about some recipes?

I will now confess that I did not make the potato salad - I bought it! If I had had more time, it would have been home made. Oh well. Next picnic, I promise! Here's one for the sandwiches, at least.


Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Foodness:
2 chicken breasts, cooked
1 half an onion, finely chopped
4 tablespoons mayonaise
2 tablespoons mustard
1 tabelspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon yellow curry powder (more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

mixed lettuces
sliced roma tomatoes
sprouts
pita pockets

Mix all ingredients for chicken salad in bowl. Cut pitas in half. Stuff with lettuces and sprouts. Top with heaping piles of chicken salad. Throw some tomato slices. Enjoy outside!

Today was lovely. How was yours?

oh hannah, oh

This years garden is sooooooooo much cooler than last years.

For starters, I'm growing some cool stuff. Like squash. Awesome!? And peas. Awesomer!

Everything is coming along really well, and everything looks so delicious that I just have to post pictures.

I mean, come on, what else is new.

I spent the weekend in Washington with my mom, hanging drapes, and giving a computer graveyard a face lift. I still seem to have a lot of allergens in my system, as I've been sniffly all day.

Also in Washington, and this is a must for anyone who ever goes there, was the herb farm of a very very dear friend of mine, who also happens to be a wicked cool lady (because how many of my friends aren't cool?) She has a great place near Goose Creek State Park that is just loaded with the greatest herbs you could ever imagine. In need of some delicious herbies, I picked up quite a bucketful. I am happy to say that they are looking rather nice so far, in their new home. They commuted quite well, which was the really important thing. Let's see if I can manage to not kill them!

A tally of new garden friends:
6 basils
1 rosemary
1 terragon
2 lamb's ears
3 johnny jump ups (which apparently have a LOT of other names)
1 chive
3 parsleys
1 very bushy oregano

I also got to shove my face in the most decadent plant I have ever met. Lord knows I would go and forget the name of it when I sit down to write. I can tell you that it had positively the softest little leaves I have ever felt in my entire life. They are so tiny! It's almost bonsai like, really. The leaves are little bitty circles covered in a soft white fuzz, and they smell, oh so lightly, of a silky lemon, almost vanilla kind of smell. They smell like fresh baked lemon cookies, really. And so so soft. I literally put my face right against the plant and just inhaled, rubbing my cheeks there. I have never felt anything so wonderful.

How about some garden eye candy?

How beautiful my squash are! I can't believe how big the leaves are. The blossoms smell absolutely divine, too.





Peas! I am most excited about these.




My upside down tomatoes. I am so in love with these guys, even if they don't bear fruit.




Even the tomato plants are beginning to show blossoms.




All of my wonderful new herbies.



Ah! Lettuce! I cannot wait for my first salad.

---

A million thanks to Dorita at Raindrop Ridge Farms for all my fabulous herbs that I am enjoying!