KFC and the $10 Challenge

KFC would like us to believe that you can’t make their fried chicken meal for less than $10.

I wanted to post about this awhile ago, after I first saw the ridiculous commercial, but I couldn’t find it on YouTube at the time. Grist writer Kurt Michael Friese sums it up well when he writes, “When it comes to food, America has been sold a bill of goods.” And how.

Friese takes KFC’s $10 challenge. He went to a local independent grocery store and bought hormone-free chicken. Though he typically buys chicken that is also organic, free-range, and local, the chicken he bought was a far better alternative to the chickens KFC serves up. The KFC meal was $10.58, which included Iowa state taxes. He made the same meal (chicken, four biscuits, mashed potatoes, and gravy) for $7.94. Using more organic ingredients ran $10.62. He includes the recipes he used in his article.

Friese does note that it takes more time than a fast food drive-through. But instead of watching Survivor: Season 57, wouldn’t our time be better spent making a tastier, healthier (and less-expensive meal) for our family? I can’t think of anything more satisfying than having a kitchen full of people, preparing a homemade family dinner.

Even KFC can’t put a price tag on that one.

Chaussons Aux Pommes (French Apple Turnovers)

Read the story behind this recipe in the Bon Appétit Cooking Life column, Paris in a Pastry. Author Molly Wizenberg, writer of Orangette, shows us how to channel our inner Parisian and take the American apple turnover to new level.

I attempted to make these a month ago, but I had difficulty locating the all-butter puff pastry. Margarine was easy enough to come by, but would the French make these with margarine? Quelle horreur! I finally found it at a Whole Foods in the refrigerated section. It was at the top of the shelf, and I almost missed it entirely because I was looking for a box like the Pillsbury brand. This one was made by Whole Foods and came in a clear plastic container with minimal writing on the label.

These weren’t just a success, they were a home run. I made them a couple of weeks ago, and Luis is still talking about them. The blend of apples Wizenberg recommends create a sweet filling with just the right amount of tart. With very little added sugar, and even less lemon juice, it’s really apples boiled down in their own juices—a celebration of apple. I plan to make more this weekend.

If you want to be extra fancy and call these by their French name, which translates to something like “slippers of apple,” (correct me if your French is better than mine, which is highly likely, since mine is awful) pronounce it shoh-sohn aw pom. Even if you get it wrong, it’s likely that no one will know enough French to correct you anyway, but maybe that just applies to those of us who live in Texas.

Also, the pastry shell should be nice and browned. I think I took mine out a minute or two too soon. Check out the link above to the original article for Wizenberg’s photo. I forgot to photograph mine until there was only one left, and the prettiest ones had already been eaten. Le sigh.

Chaussons Aux Pommes

Makes 8.

For the filling:

• 3/4 lb. Granny Smith apples
• 3/4 lb. Golden Delicious apples
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 tbsp. sugar
• 3/4 tsp. fresh lemon juice

For the pastry:

• 1 14- to 16-ounce package all-butter frozen puff pastry (1 or 2 sheets, depending on brand), thawed
• 1 egg, beaten to blend (for glaze)
• Superfine sugar (optional)

To make the filling:
Peel, core, and cut apples into 1-inch pieces (about four cups). Place apples in medium saucepan; add 1/4 cup water, three tablespoons sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Cover; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until apples are very tender, stirring frequently, about 12 minutes. Remove from heat. Gently mash apples with fork or potato masher until mixture is very soft but still chunky. Cool completely. Filling can be made two days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

Position one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 400°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

To prepare the pastries:
If using 14-ounce package (one sheet), roll out pastry on lightly floured surface to 15-inch square. If using 16-ounce package (two sheets), stack sheets together and roll out on lightly floured surface to 15-inch square. Cut pastry into nine 5-inch squares. Place one generous tablespoon filling in center of each of eight squares (reserve remaining square for another use). Lightly brush edges of one pastry with beaten egg. Fold half of pastry square over filling, forming triangle. Press and pinch pastry edges with fingertips to seal tightly. Lightly brush pastry with beaten egg. Sprinkle lightly with superfine sugar, if desired. Repeat with remaining squares.

Using thin, sharp knife, make three small slits on top of each triangle to allow steam to escape. Place triangles on prepared baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

Bake turnovers until beginning to color, about 15 minutes. Reverse baking sheets from top to bottom. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F; continue baking until turnovers are firm and golden, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Cool at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steamed Green Beans and Carrots with Lemon-Yogurt Vinaigrette

Sadly, no photo for this one! But this recipe deserves a post because it was perfect for fresh, steamed green beans and carrots. I found the most beautiful, plump green beans at the market last Saturday, and to my delight, a small amount of carrots in various shades of yellow and orange. They were so pretty, in fact, that I couldn’t bear to chop them up or purée them into a soup. This recipe keeps the veggies intact, and the lemon, parsley, and chives complement their flavor without overpowering.

Steamed Green Beans and Carrots with Lemon-Yogurt Vinaigrette

Serves four.

• 1 lb. fresh green beans, leave whole
• 1/2 cup red pepper, cut into julienne strips
• 1 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
• 3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. yogurt
• 1 tbsp. green onion (green top only), finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp. each, salt and black pepper
• 1/2 cup canola oil

Wash green beans and remove the stem end only, leave whole. Steam or blanch green beans for three minutes. Toss with red pepper.

Make vinaigrette in a small bowl by combining parsley, lemon juice, yogurt, and chives. Add oil in a steady stream, whisking constantly until vinaigrette is blended. Chill.

Toss green beans and red peppers with enough vinaigrette to coat vegetables, about 1/3 cup. Serve warm. Leftover vinaigrette can be used as a salad dressing. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Recipe adapted from seasoned.com.

Mark Bittman: What’s wrong with what we eat

In this entertaining talk, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman discusses what’s wrong with the way we eat now. 

No matter your view on global warming (despite what Bittman says, all scientists do not agree on global warming), the arguments about meat, fast food, and home-cooking are the main points, anyway.

I subscribe to Bittman’s stance on meat. We have hunters in the family who rib me about my dietary choices (currently the only meat I eat is seafood), but the funny thing is that I have no issues with hunting. At least the animal didn’t spend it’s life in a tiny pin, it was taken quickly, it wasn’t injected with hormones or antibiotics (to prevent the rampant disease that occurs in factory farms–hello bird flu and mad cow), and afterward, red dyes weren’t used to make the meat look fresh. Some pigs are fattened to the point that they can no longer stand on their feet. No, my concern is not with hunting, which mankind has done since the beginning, but rather with the amount of meat people eat in the U.S. and the methods used to produce that much meat, which are harmful to the planet, inhumane for the animals, and harmful to our health. Who wins in this scenario?

I don’t write this to preach to people, but there was a time when I didn’t know how my food got to the dinner table. I just never thought about it. But I can’t write a blog about food without discussing farms and factory farms. The ingredients are an integral part of the cooking process.

We spend over 60 percent of our grocery budget at the farmer’s market these days. We’ve slowly raised that amount the more we’ve learned about the food we eat, and I feel great that I’m supporting local farmers who are using organic methods to grow vegetables and raise livestock. Yes, the food is more expensive, but that is the true cost of food. If you eat meat less often, you have more money to buy quality. 

Okay, enough of the serious stuff. Yummy recipes to come…

Cinnamon Walnut Ice Cream

It seems I’m slacking a bit on this blog, though we’ve certainly been in the kitchen these last couple of weeks. But Saturday was Luis’ birthday, and my mother-in-law came into town. We had such a relaxing weekend that I couldn’t pull myself away to post.

On Friday we forced ourselves to stay awake for Spain…On the Road Again, and sadly, I have to say it wasn’t worth it. Too much conversation between the road-trippers and shots of driving around (Was Mercedes a sponsor?), not enough about the food and culture. In one scene, Mario and Gwyneth are standing before a painting, and the camera spends more time on Gwyneth than the art. We hear much of her interpretation, but little about the artist or the painting or the period in which it was painted. There was one recipe featured in the hour-long show. I have to say that I hadn’t heard of Spanish actress Claudia Bassols, but the camera loves her. She is probably the most interesting conversationalist on the program, and she speaks six languages. Other than that, we found the show awkward. There isn’t enough cooking for a foodie, and there isn’t enough of Spain for someone interested in the culture. As a fan of both Mario Batali and Mark Bittman, I was expecting this program to be something else, I suppose.

On Saturday, I took my mother-in-law to the Austin Farmer’s Market and then to Kerbey Lane for lunch. That afternoon, José: Made in Spain happened to be on TV. Ah, this is how to present Spanish food and culture. He took viewers to Andalucía to see field workers harvesting olives and making olive oil. José then went into the kitchen with a bottle of the “liquid gold” to show viewers how to make Chicken Wing Confit with Green Olive Puree, a Spanish twist on American chicken wings. After preparing a classic Andalucían soup, salmorejo, José takes us to a freiduria (a fried fish restaurant) near Seville. He introduces a variety of fried fish tapas. José’s excitement about Spain is infectous. It makes you want to book a flight to Spain, or at least console yourself by getting Spanish in the kitchen.

Later that evening, Luis, his mom, my parents, and I went to Hudson’s on the Bend for a fabulous dinner (as though Hudson’s is capable of anything but). Feeling inspired, my new goal is to master the art of making crème brûlée, and Luis wants to try his hand at bison steaks.

I have a backlog of recipes to post, but for today, we’ll look at a recipe for Cinnamon Walnut Ice Cream that we made a few weeks ago (Told you I’m behind!).
 

Cinnamon Walnut Ice Cream

• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/3 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup half and half
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• dash of salt

Throughly combine all ingredients. Pour into the freezer bowl of your ice cream maker, and follow the directions for your specific machine. We found that the ice cream wasn’t firm enough, so we place it in an airtight container and popped it into the freezer for 30-minute increments, stirring it up in between freezing times. We did this for about two hours total.

Spain…On the Road Again is on tonight!

Watch it, record it, DVR it. For Austinites, the first episode of Spain…On the Road Again airs tonight at 10 p.m. on PBS.

Gathering Pears

We have a pear tree that was bearing the weight of too many pears, so it was time to harvest.

Pears, from what I’ve read, don’t soften on the tree, so we individually wrapped the pears in newspaper to get them to fully ripen.

Now they sit in three boxes while we wait. They have to be checked every day because they’ll be hard as a rock and then go to mush in no time, which reminds me that I need to be a bit more vigilant about checking them.

What to do with so many pears? We’re thinking of canning sliced pears, pear butter, and ginger pears. There are some great recipes here, written by people who are even crazier about pears than I (se possibile).

To be continued…

Spain…On the Road Again

Batali and Bittman in Spain

I’ve heard a bit of buzz about a new program called Spain…On the Road Again. Here’s the gist: Gwyneth Paltrow, chef Mario Batali, New York Times food columnist Mark Bittman, and Spanish actress Claudia Bassols embark on a road trip in a fancy, schmancy car to give viewers a closer look at Spain’s cuisine and culture. The 13-part TV series premieres the week of September 20 on PBS. (In Austin, the first episode airs Friday, September 26 at 10 p.m. Yours truly will have to tape it, as 10 p.m. is quite late for those of us who need our eight hours.)

I am excited about this program. José Andrés kindled an interest in all things Spanish with his show, Made in Spain. I do have a love-hate relationship with holier-than-thou Gwyneth, but the love part of the love-hate thing compels me to watch her, even if she does say obnoxious things in the press and offers her opinion when no one was asking (that’s the hate part). Also, I want to see what she wears (the love part again). But she’s probably just doing this to show off her fluency in Spanish (hate her). It’s very complicated.

Anywho, the first episode, Tilting Windmills in Castilla la Mancha, starts with Mark and Mario at Madrid’s fish market, while Gwynnie and Claudia “lounge luxuriously eating churros and hot chocolate.” (Hate, hate, hate.) Then Gwyneth and Mario drive to Toledo for a cooking lesson with one of Castilla la Mancha’s top chefs, while Mark and Claudia travel the route of Don Quijote, tilting at windmills and learning how to make Manchego cheese. Apparently Mario tries bird sushi, which doesn’t agree with him.

Click the link to the episode for a short preview.

Zucchini Bread tastes nothing like zucchini

It seems like squash takes over the farmer’s market this time of year, and we’ve been looking for ways to use it up. Enter zucchini bread. So not healthy, but I so don’t care. Have you tasted this stuff? It doesn’t taste much like squash, but it’s so sugary and moist. The edges are crisp and golden. Deelish.

Allie, one of my favorite fashion blog writers, made zucchini bread awhile back, and wrote about it on one of her blogs, My Wardrobe Today. It inspired me to try it for myself. Food, fashion, it’s all good…

The recipe I used was from the Food Network, featured on Paula Deen’s show, Paula’s Home Cooking. I have not seen the show because we don’t have cable (gasp!) and just watch our PBS chefs. There are a lot of reasons we choose to not pay for 500 channels, mostly because of an incident in college when I found myself skipping class to watch an episode of E! True Hollywood Story about the TV show 90210. Sad, sad, sad.

Anyway, I found this recipe through a Google search. Also, the recipe says to bake for one hour, but I found that it took one hour and 20 minutes. Set your timer for an hour, and if it’s not done when the timer beeps, retest every five minutes or so.

Zucchini Bread

Makes two loaves.

• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1/3 cup water
• 2 cups grated zucchini
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini and lemon juice. Mix wet ingredients into dry, add nuts, and gently fold in. Pour even amounts into two greased loaf pans, for one hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in five mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.

Honey and Balsamic Glazed Salmon Spirals

Got your attention? It sure had ours when we watched Ming Tsai and Michael Chiarello create this masterpiece on Simply Ming last week. Honey and Balsamic Glazed Salmon Spirals with Sesame-Orange Spinach…sounds heavenly, no? The Sage and Rosemary Oven-Baked Potatoes are our own addition.

Ming’s show is based on the idea of east meets west, and every week he pairs two core ingredients that are used in each dish. He also calls on another chef to create a recipe using the core ingredients, inviting viewers into the envious kitchens of famed chefs such as Michael Chiarello, who created this dish.

The core ingredients for the salmon and spinach were balsamic vinegar and sesame oil. The best tips we learned on the program were not to overdo it on the sesame oil (a little goes a long way) and that salmon need not be served piping hot. It’s better to let it rest to really let the flavors meld together.

Honey and Balsamic Glazed Salmon Spiral with Sesame-Orange Spinach

Serves four.

• 1 center cut salmon filet, skin, belly, and pin bones removed (about 1 1/2 to 2 lbs.)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon gray salt
• 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard powder
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 20 ounces spinach
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons sliced garlic
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon mixed white and black sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash, rinse, and stem the spinach. Heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large 14-inch sauté pan over high heat. When hot and just beginning to smoke, add the sliced garlic and cook until golden brown, then add the orange zest and spinach. Cook the spinach, tossing frequently until fully wilted and tender. Remove from the heat, drizzle in the sesame oil, and check for seasoning. Divide the spinach, and quickly wipe out the pan with a paper towel. Spread about 1/3 of the total spinach on a plate. Cover the remaining 2/3 spinach with foil and reserve warm.

In a small bowl, mix together the honey and balsamic vinegar.

Using a sharp knife cut the salmon into 4 lengthwise strips (from collar to tail). Lay the strips of salmon out flat and season on all sides with salt, pepper, and the mustard powder. Line the top of each salmon strip with equal amounts of the plated spinach. Start from one end and roll the salmon up into a spiral, secure each with two wooden skewers. Place the sesame seed mixture onto a plate, and dip each side of the salmon spirals into the seeds.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in the 14-inch pan that was wiped out after the spinach. When hot, but not quite smoking, add the salmon spirals and brown for about 2 minutes. Turn the salmon over and allow to brown for about 1 minute on the other side. Brush about 1-2 tablespoons of the honey/balsamic mixture over the salmon and place in the oven for about 6-7 minutes. Remove the salmon from the oven and brush again with the honey/balsamic. Arrange the reserved, warm spinach on a large platter or each of 4 plates. Remove the skewers from the salmon and place on top of the warm spinach, spoon a bit more of the honey balsamic over the salmon, and drizzle little more sesame oil over the top. 

Sage and Rosemary Oven-Baked Potatoes

This is a very relaxed recipe we threw together after smelling the sage from our garden. Modify to suit your tastes.

• Yukon Gold potatoes
• Dried sage leaves
• Dried rosemary
• Lemon
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

In a pestle and mortar, mash together the herbs, lemon juice, and a good glug of olive oil. Brush potato wedges with the mixture, and place wedges on a greased baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and turn wedges; cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender inside and oh-so-crispy on the outside.

Mangia!