Sunday, May 31, 2009

Puff Pancake

From La Fuji Mama
Makes approximately 12 servings (9x13-inch pan)

1/2 cup (1 cube) butter
1 cup flour
1 cup milk
6 large eggs
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
powdered sugar, for dusting when finished
strawberry/raspberry jam, to use as topping

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Melt butter in a 9x13-inch pan (I do this by putting the pan with the cube of butter in it in the oven while the oven is preheating).

3. In a blender, combine flour, milk, eggs, salt, sugar, and orange juice concentrate.

4. Pour over hot butter in pan. Bake for about 20 minutes until brown and puffy.

5. Sift powdered sugar over the top after removing from oven.

6. Dilute jam with a bit of warm water until obtaining a syrup-like consistency. Serve pancake warm with jam syrup drizzled over the top.

Fuji Mama's Sopa Pollo




Makes approximately 8 servings
From La Fuji Mama

1 Tbsp. oil
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
8 cups chicken broth
3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 can (4-oz./113 g) green chilis, diced
2 cups cooked long grain rice
juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
3 roma tomatoes, diced
2 avocados, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
sour cream, to taste
lime wedges, for garnish

1. In a large pot, saute the onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper, and cumin in the oil until the onion is soft and translucent.

2. Add in chicken broth, shredded chicken, and green chilis. Heat over medium-high heat until chicken is heated through. Remove from heat.

3. Stir in rice, lime juice, tomatoes, and cilantro.

4. Garnish with avocado, a dollop of sour cream, and a lime wedge.

Rainbow Potato Gratin

Adapted from Super Natural Cooking, by Heidi Swanson
Taken from La Fuji Mama, my foodie blogging hero
Serves 4-6

3 Tbsp. olive oil
4 small red potatoes, unpeeled and cut into wedges
1 large onion, sliced
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
4 carrots, cut into 2-inch long pieces (and cut in half lengthwise if thicker than your thumb)
4 green onions, trimmed and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
Fine-grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pear, unpeeled, cored, and cut into 6 wedges
1/2 cup panko (or bread crumbs)
2/3 cup fresh Parmesan cheese (grated or shaved)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and position a rack in the middle of the oven.

2. Heat olive oil in your largest ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. In a single layer, add the potatoes, onions, sweet potato, carrots, and green onions and toss to coat. Try not to overcrowd the pan, or the vegetables will steam and not brown. If you don't have a big enough pan, split the ingredients between two skillets. Saute over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes, shaking the pan a couple of times along the way. The vegetables should start to brown a bit and be tender but not mushy.

3. Remove from heat and sprinkle with a generous dose of salt and pepper. Stir in the pear wedges.

4. If you don't have an ovenproof skillet, transfer the ingredients to an ovenproof baking dish or casserole. Sprinkle with all the panko and half of the Parmesan cheese (don't stir).

5. Place uncovered in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes, tossing the vegetables with a metal spatula about halfway through. The potatoes and carrots should be golden, crispy, and caramelized where they touch the pan and soft and tender inside. When everything is caramelized and fragrant, remove from the oven and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. Serve.

40 Clove Garlic Chicken

From a Year of Crockpotting
Take from La Fuji Mama
6 servings

3-4 pounds chicken
1 large onion, sliced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. pepper
20-40 garlic cloves, peeled, but intact

1. Place onion slices on the bottom of the crockpot (mine is a 6-quart oval crockpot).

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix olive oil, salt, paprika, pepper, and garlic cloves. Add chicken and toss to coat. Pour into crockpot on top of the onion slices. Do not add water.

3. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-6. The longer you cook chicken-on-the bone, the more tender it will be. If you use drumsticks, the ones on the side will brown and may stick to the sides of the crockpot, burning a bit. To avoid this, you can rearrange them with tongs an hour before serving.

Potato Focaccia "Cupcakes"

Potato Focaccia Cupcakes
From La Fuji Mama

Adapted from The Wednesday Chef
Makes 12 cupcakes
1 medium Yukon Gold potato
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
1 tsp. active dry yeast
A pinch of sugar
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, plus more for salting water
2/3 cup warm water
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes (the kind packed in oil), drained and chopped
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Coarse sea salt

1. Wash the potato and place in a small saucepan along with enough water to cover the potato by an inch. Place the pot over high heat, covered, and bring to a boil. Add a handful of kosher salt to the water. Simmer until the potato is tender when pierced with a knife, around 20 minutes. Drain the potato and let it cool. Peel the potato and mash finely with a fork. Set aside.

2. Put the yeast in a large mixing bowl along with a pinch of sugar. Add the warm water in a thin stream over the yeast, using a fork to help dissolve the yeast entirely. Let the mixture stand for a few minutes.

3. Pour the flour into the yeast mixture and stir with a fork, then add the mashed potato, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and dried oregano. The dough will be relatively thick and shaggy. Use the fork to incorporate the potato into the flour. Add sun dried tomatoes and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and begin to knead the dough by hand. It will come together quite quickly. Knead against the bowl for a minute or so, until it is relatively smooth. Form the dough into a ball and let it rest, covered with a kitchen towel, in the bowl for an hour.

4. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners and spray over the top with cooking spray. Divide up the dough into 12 equal balls and gently tug and pat each ball into a cupcake liner so that it fits into the liner.

5. Sprinkle a small pinch of coarse sea salt over the top of each cupcake and then drizzle with 1/4 teaspoon of olive oil, and let rest for another hour.

6. While the focaccia is resting, preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the cupcake pans in the oven and bake for 17-20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Let cool on a rack.

Onion Herb Cheese Frosting
1 package (8-oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Mix everything together and let sit at least 2 hours in the fridge before using.

Spread generously over focaccia cupcakes.

Mama B's Tomatillo Salsa

This is another original recipe - as always, measurements are approximate!

1/2-1lb tomatillos, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 small purple onion, chopped
1 jar mild green chile's, chopped fine
1/4C cilantro, finely chopped
1/2 bag arugula, chopped fine
1/2 jar green olives, chopped fine
Rind of 1 lime
Juice of 1-2 limes
1tsp salt, more to taste
1-2Tbsp Tequila
Fresh ground pepper, to taste

Combine everything and let sit in refrigerator for at least 3 hours, best of left overnight.

This is a great salsa to use for my Margarita Enchiladas!