November 24th: chicken pot pie and chocolate toffee walnut cookies

Two to-die-for recipes!


For supper, from the keeper book: Chicken Pot Pie. I pulled this recipe out of the Ottawa Citizen a few years ago; it is from a local restaurant. Take a cheap cut of chicken, poach it, use that broth to cook the veggies, use the same broth to make a white sauce, mix it all up in a pie pan and top with - my favourite - puff pastry. Bake, relax, and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. I think even your picky eaters will like this one. My kid loooooves it. As does my husband. And moi.


Chicken Pot Pie


1 1/2 lbs (675 g) chicken pieces with skin and bones
1 tsp (5 mL) salt, divided
freshly ground black pepper
2 medium carrots, scrubbed and sliced
1 small onion, chopped
2 medium potatoes, diced
1/4 cup (50 mL) butter
4 tbsp (65 mL) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (50 mL) 35% cream
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp (15 mL) lemon juice
1/2 397-g pkg frozen puff pastry, defrosted


Place chicken pieces in a medium saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Skim and add 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt and a pinch of freshly ground black pepper. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, 30 minutes.


Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Strain chicken, reserving the broth. Measure the broth and add water, if necessary, to equal 1 1/2 cups (375 mL). Place the liquid in the saucepan, add vegetables and simmer, partially covered, until just tender. Strain, reserving the stock.


While vegetables are cooking, debone and skin the chicken. Cut the meat into bite-size pieces. Combine meat with cooked vegetables in a 9" (23 cm) pie plate or individual oven-proof dishes.


Melt butter gently in saucepan. Gradually stir in flour, blending well. Cook over medium heat 1 minute, stirring constantly. Slowly add cream and cook until mixture is smooth and thick. Add salt, pepper to taste, lemon juice and reserved stock. Blend well and pour sauce over the chicken mixture.


Roll out defrosted puff pastry to 1/4" (6 mm) thickness, then lay pastry over pie(s) and press to the dish(es). Cut a slit in the centre to allow steam to escape. Bake until filling is bubbling and crust is golden brown, about 25 minutes (less for small pies).


Serves 4.

I enjoy this photo because it appears I just piled the food on the glass stovetop.

For my Christmas cookie exchange - finally, a winner! - from epicurious: Chocolate Toffee Walnut Cookies. These are ridiculously awesome. The recipe suggests making 1/4 cup-sized cookies, which I think is over-indulgence (though probably an edible size!) so I made generous tablespoonful-sized cookies, which are plenty big and chewy and decadent enough. I used chocolate chips where it called for chopped chocolate, and Scor bars where it called for Heath. I managed to make 4 dozen cookies with one recipe, and note that the recipe only calls for 1/2 cup of flour. These are chocolate heaven. I will definitely be making these again.

July 18th: potato salad

Today I went out for supper, so nothing to report on cooking there, but I did lunch with two friends, and we each brought a dish to share. This was the best home-cooked lunch I've had at work, possibly ever. My contribution was my mom's recipe for potato salad, which, in my not-so-humble opinion is the best potato salad that exists. Here's the scoop:

Potato Salad

1 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 heaping tbsps flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup vinegar

Whisk all ingredients thoroughly and cook in the microwave or double boiler,* stirring frequently, until thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Thin with Hellman's mayonnaise.

*Until now, I've always made this in the microwave. Recently, our 10+ year old microwave went kaput and we haven't bothered to replace it. I didn't bother with the double boiler, just cooked this on the stove top. Frequent stirring is key.

I have no recommendations re: how many potatoes to cook. I cook as many as I want, then add some of the above dressing and some mayo until the consistency and taste are where I want them to be. A bit of salt and pepper is good. Green onions are a lovely addition to the salad. I like to go old school, boil up some eggs to slice up for the top and load on the paprika. 


HERE'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING: do not, I mean DO NOT mash the potatoes. Once they are cooked and cooled, chunk them up. All the stirring with the sauce will break them down a bit more, but we are not making baby food here! Then, enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. This is the best potato salad in the world.

April 9th: recipe for a perfect salad + lemon/oil salad dressing

"Recipe for a perfect salad" might be verging on hubris, but it is what I wrote at the top of a piece of scrap paper many years ago, under which I listed all the possible ingredients to put into a salad to make it a top-notch meal. The ingredients to any salad are, of course, subject to taste and availability. Since I often mention having a salad as part of supper, it is time I shared what I am talking about. Here are the basics to any of my salads, plus additions I would consider:


base:


salad greens
sweet pepper
red or green onion
carrot
baby cucumber
grape tomatoes
celery


other options, should they be available:


olives
broccoli, blanched
asparagus, blanched
sprouts
kohlrabi
sugar snap peas
raisins
dried cranberries
fresh berries in season
meat: Genoa salami is our favourite but tuna and chicken are close seconds


must-haves, if at all possible:


avocado
nuts, toasted: pine nuts are my favourite; almonds & walnuts a close second, pecans good also; in a pinch, seeds can sub in - sunflower seeds being great
cheese: Cheddar or goat cheese are standards for us


These last three ingredients are what take any salad from good to extraordinary. Seriously.


I've been thinking recently, but haven't tried out, adding in some of the following:


chickpeas
flaxseeds


To accompany a great salad, one must make a great salad dressing. I've gone back and forth between making and buying dressing over the years, but after our post-Christmas trip to Nova Scotia and watching Zach and Natascia make salad dressing everyday, I reasoned if two 19-year olds can make dressing everyday, it's time I stepped up and did the same. The good thing is, if you make enough, you don't actually have to make it everyday. Here's what I've landed on as my favourite salad dressing:


In a small liquid measuring cup, place:


1 garlic clove, pressed (this is the one and only time I use just one garlic clove for anything, though I might use 2 if they are small)
1 tsp each Dijon mustard and liquid honey
1/4 tsp salt


Squeeze in fresh lemon juice until mixture reaches 1/4 cup. Whisk thoroughly. While whisking, slowly pour in extra virgin olive oil until mixture reaches 1/2 cup. Taste and adjust if necessary.


We all know I love lemon, so I like the strong acidity of this dressing. If you don't, you can up the oil or replace the lemon juice with another acid (red wine vinegar, cider vinegar, etc.). Keeps well in the fridge for some time. I used some I'd forgotten about that I think was over a month old and it seemed fine to me.

September 1st: Chicken Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

I was hoping to figure out some kind of calendar app so I could type out my meal plan for the month. I haven't found anything to help me - maybe it's not possible.


In the meantime - last night! Wednesday night is Greg's night to cook. I go straight from work to the gym where I teach BodyFlow. By the time I get home, supper is usually done and quite often Greg and Olivia have already finished eating, except when O is in a slow poke mood.


Greg goes along with my fanatical meal planning and makes whatever I set out (most of the time!) with one caveat: it must be easy. This week was an easy, no cook meal requiring minimum prep: from September 2010's Today's Parent: Chicken Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette.


This recipe will not knock your socks off. It could be improved with the addition of onions, peppers, cucumber, and my all-time favourite--goat's cheese--rather than feta. However, if you ever buy rotisserie chicken "meal deals" at the grocery store, you might want to try this out as a healthier option. As an afterthought, I would recommend adding a baguette to the side.


Verdict: recipe gone to the recycling.


If you decide to make it, you can easily use a store-bought pre-cooked chicken. If you have time and want to control the salt level of your food, try making the chicken yourself. For this recipe I cooked a chicken the night before, using one of two all-time favourite roast chicken recipes, this one from May 2008's Chatelaine: Perfect Roast Chicken. It is unbelievable to me that they don't have this recipe online, but they don't, so I've typed it out for you below.


If you've never cooked a whole chicken, this is a fabulous recipe to start with. The only times I've ever screwed it up were when (a) my chicken was still partially frozen when I put it in the oven and (b) I didn't realize my oven sucks and I need to crank up the heat and then keep an eye on the food. With a decent oven and a fresh chicken, you really can't go wrong. Have fun!


Perfect Roast Chicken
1 large lemon
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1.75 kg whole chicken
pinches of coarse salt
2 tbsp (30 mL) butter, at room temperature


Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Place rack in shallow-sided roasting pan.* Lightly spray with oil and set aside.


Cut lemon into 4 wedges. Coarsely chop garlic. Remove neck and giblets from body cavity of chicken. Set aside and use for gravy, if you like.** Sprinkle garlic and salt over the inside of cavity. Stuff in lemon wedges.


Place chicken breast-side up on rack in roasting pan. Rub butter over skin. Sprinkle all over with salt. Tuck wings underneath bird.


Roast, uncovered, in centre of preheated oven, until a thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh reads 170°F (77°C) and leg moves easily, about 1 hr 15 min to 1 hr 45 min.


Remove cooked chicken to a cutting board. Loosely cover with foil and let stand 10 minutes before carving (to allow juices to redistribute).


*If you don't have a rack, I really don't think it matters. Ditto roasting pan.
**I've never done this. Someday I must remember to do so.