Wish Upon A Chef

I don't have alot of girlfriends and quite frankly, I find it hard to make friends within my own gender. Why is that, I wonder? Is it because we, as women, are happy with only having a few close girlfriends to share our secrets with and don't want to broaden the circle? Or maybe, we as {single} women, feel other women are competition within our pool of male friends? Or....dare I think it's because I'm really not a likable person? Surely not! Regardless of the reason, the few girlfriends whom I do have are near and dear to me because I realize how special the bond is.

My friend Angela is a lovely person, both inside and outside. She is of Greek decent and is blessed with beautiful olive skin and dark hair. She also has a baby-soft voice that makes me melt every time I hear it so I can't imagine what it does to the men! She's a thoughtful person - the kind who calls for no reason other than to just say hello. We met when we were both young(er), single and living the high life here in Charlotte. We partied. We shopped. We laughed. We took weekend trips to Hilton Head. It was during one of those trips that Angela and I found ourselves in a situation that would cause a rift in our friendship. That rift would go unaddressed for nearly 9 years while our lives took different directions and it was also something that forever troubled me. And even though that water had gone under the bridge so long ago and I felt the friendship was gone for good, when I relocated back to Charlotte Angela was the first person I called. She owns a staffing/recruiting agency and with her help I landed my current job which made my entire transition back to Charlotte so much easier.

A few weeks after my move, Angela and I met for dinner and drinks and we chatted about "safe" things like the weather, our love lives, our jobs, etc. And then THE DREADED SUBJECT came up. We didn't talk specifics or rehash the incident. Instead, we each apologized for letting something that now seems so trivial come between us and the air was cleared and our consciences were lightened!

Lovely Angela is coming to see my new house tonight and I'm serving a dinner of quiche, salad, and some delish chocolate chip cherry cookies that I made from Bon Appetit earlier in the week. We'll laugh. We'll gossip. We'll plan shopping trips and weekend getaways. It will be like old times only better because now we both know how special we truly are to each other!















Bacon, Spinach & Mushroom Quiche

Recipe By : Candy Wallace - APCA
Serving Size : 8
Categories : Quiche

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1/4 pound bacon -- cooked and crumbled
1 small onion -- cooked (I saute it in the rendered bacon fat!)
1 1/4 cups half and half or milk
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
dash pepper
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
dash cayenne pepper
dash nutmeg
dash Worcestershire sauce
dash Tabasco sauce
2 ounces fresh mushroom -- sliced & sauteed just a bit
3/4 cups Swiss cheese -- diced (I used smoked Swiss)
1/2 cup frozen spinach -- thawed
1 9 inch pie crust -- defrosted

Beat eggs with seasonings and add half & half or milk. Layer bacon, onion and mushrooms, cheese, spinach. Pour in egg mixture. Bake in 375F oven for 40 minutes.

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Cherry and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe By : Bon Appetit Magazine, July 2008
Categories : Cookies, Desserts

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 cup dried tart cherries
1/3 cup cherry liqueur (I used cherry brandy)
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/4 cup white chocolate chips

Bring cherries, cherry liqueur, and water to boil in small saucepan. Remove from heat and let soak for 15 minutes. Drain cherries; pat dry.

Preheat oven to 325. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk flour, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and both sugars until creamy. Add eggs and both extracts and beat to blend. Add flour mixture and beat on low just to blend. Stir in cherries and all chocolate chips. Scoop tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 1" apart.

Bake cookies until edges are light golden brown, about 11 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool.

...and creamed corn.

When I was younger, I had a bit of a bad temper. My friends would always joke that it was typical of a fiery redhead to be so temperamental, but in retrospect I think my frequent flare ups were mostly due to immaturity and the inability to understand that this too shall pass. I've always been taught to "kill people with kindness" but sometimes that philosophy is hard to follow. There once was a period in my life where I spent a good part of my time being constantly angry at someone and one day I woke up {metaphorically speaking} and decided that I would no longer waste my time and energy on such negative feelings and I attempted to control my anger and work on the kindness part. Through the years, my hair has gotten gray darker, I've learned not to sweat the small stuff, and my temper has mellowed just a bit. But only a bit......

Instead of stewing in anger and misery for days on end and cradling my grief, my modus operandi these days is to blow up like a 50 cent firecracker, walk off and be done with it while everyone in my path is dealing with the fallout. I yell. And I do it thoroughly. And then I move on. Such was the case this week when someone, who shall remain nameless {but if you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you'll know exactly who I'm referring to} and his new friend, stirred up a hornet's nest. I reacted in typical fashion by going straight for their jugular veins and showed no mercy until I'd said my peace. And then, I put a smile on my face, picked up the phone and invited my friend S. over for dinner.

My friend S. used to live in the general area of my hometown and we were talking about our favorite restaurants around town when S. happened to mention he liked a now defunct restaurant called Skoby's. They were best known for their 21 foot salad bar and their creamed corn, and when they decided to close their doors they were kind enough to publish the recipe for the corn in the local newspaper because they'd had so many requests for it. During its time, it was THE place to eat for a special occasion or if you were SOMEBODY you ate there on a regular basis. I only ate there once many years ago - I had gotten a nice promotion at work and my then-boyfriend took me there to celebrate.

I decided to pay no more mind to the foolishness that happened earlier in the day and bestow kindness upon my friend S. by designing a menu around the beloved creamed corn. I'm not sure if it was as good as he remembered but since he nearly licked the plate clean, I'm thinking I evoked some mighty fine memories!


* Exported from MasterCook *

Skoby's Corn

Recipe By :Skoby's Restaurant
Serving Size : 4
Categories : Vegetables and Side Dishes

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1/8 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups half and half
16 ounces whole kernel corn, frozen
2 tablespoons butter

Thaw corn. Melt butter in a small saute pan. Add flour and mix well to make a smooth consistency. Heat half and half in a 2-quart saucepan. Add pepper, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil; gradually whisk in the flour mixture. Stir continuously until a sauce consistency is achieved. Stir in corn until evenly distributed. Portion into individual ramekins or a casserole dish. Top with seasoned breadcrumbs and brown under the broiler.

My little casa is coming along quite nicely as far as unpacking, arranging and finding things is concerned and after sniffing alot of cleaning chemicals and nearly throwing my shoulder out of socket from scrubbing, I've finally deemed the kitchen open for business. Having never really cooked alot with a gas oven and stove, I wasn't sure how, if any, differently I would need to adjust my recipes and cooking times so I've been preparing a few test meals for myself this past week. I didn't want to suffer the horror and shame of inviting someone over for dinner and serving Entree' a la Flambe because I didn't know how to operate that thing in my kitchen called a stove (and to think I used to call myself a caterer!). So far, there doesn't seem to be much of a difference except maybe shorting the cooking/baking times by just a bit to account for the more intense, even heat that gas provides. So, after having passed the test, I decided to have my friend T. over as my first dinner guest.

I've had a hankering for chicken enchiladas for the last few days, so it was decided that the the menu would definitely have a Mexican flair with margaritas, chips, salsa and guacamole, chicken enchiladas, black beans, and chocolate flan for dessert.

The Martha Stewart side of me wanted to play bartender with homemade margaritas whizzing in my blender garnished with artfully carved lime wedges and multi-colored salts and sugars, but I'm getting older, folks, and I can't be bothered with trying to pretend that I'm somebody that I'm not. When I retired from the catering business, I swore I'd never be stressed over entertaining again. So, I did what I do best and left the rest to convenience. Pre-mixed margaritas and salsa and guacamole from the deli left me to focus on the parts of the meal that I wanted to have fun with.

Holy sombrero! Based on the looks of this nearly empty 2 liter bottle of pre-mixed margaritas that I found on my counter the next morning, it was some party! Was there a pinata involved somewhere????

My chicken enchiladas are muy bien, but I can't take full credit for the recipe. It is one of the many recipes that I use from my personal chef days and was created by Candy Wallace, who pioneered the whole personal chef concept. I love the sour cream based sauce and the fact that is incorporates my favorite combination of spices - cumin and coriander. Here are my little amigos before they went into the oven. Actually, I mocked these up for the photo because I felt silly having someone new over and snapping photos of his food from various angles. Might be misconstrued as a little weird, no?

I served these alongside a generous helping of Art Smith's recipe for black beans. Again, the combination of cumin and coriander makes it a no-brainer side dish for anything Mexican or Southwestern. Art Smith used to work as Oprah's personal chef and his cookbook, Back To The Table, has quite a few good recipes in it. He actually pairs these black beans with a pork roast.


There aren't many Mexican inspired desserts that I'm fond of, but this chocolate flan fits the bill for the finishing touch on a great dinner. I've actually blogged about this particular recipe before,but doesn't this make you want to have a mucho grande bite right now??

Enjoy the recipes mi amigas!!













Enchiladas de Pollo y Queso

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
5 tablespoons butter -- divided
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup large bell peppers -- chopped
2 cups cooked chicken -- chopped
4 ounces green chili peppers -- chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups Monterey jack cheese -- shredded
12 6 inch tortillas

Melt two tablespoons butter and cook onions and green pepper in it until softened. Remove to a bowl. Stir chopped chicken and green chilis into onion-pepper mixture. Melt remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Blend in flour, chili powder, cumin, & coriander. Whisk in chicken broth. Cook, stirring, until sauce boils. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup cheese. Stir 1/2 cup sauce into chicken mixture.
Spoon enough sauce into bottom of pan to cover. Spoon chicken mixture into center of tortilla. Roll up and arrange in 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan; repeat with all tortillas (heat tortillas in microwave for about 15 seconds to make them easier to roll). Pour remaining sauce over tortillas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered at 350degrees for about 25 minutes.

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Black Beans


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup Chicken Broth or canned low-sodium broth
3 Roma or plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped into 1/2-inch dice
3 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the cumin, oregano and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the broth and tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the black beans and cook until the flavors are combined, about 10 minutes more. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Source:
"from Tropical Pork Roast with Black Beans/Back to the Table"
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My dear readers, I'm so pleased to finally announce that after much stress, many delays and writing a really, really BIG check, I am once again a proud home owner!

My little house here in the Queen City is just perfect and now that my furniture has been collected from across three states and I'm starting to unpack boxes and get settled in, it makes the whole stressful ordeal worthwhile. As far as I'm concerned, I'm going to live and die in this house because I'm not too eager to have to go through the process of buying a new home again! Without boring you with the details and reliving the whole nightmare once again, let me just give you a word (or two) of advice.....if you haven't reviewed your credit report in a while, DO IT NOW! You are entitled to a free report once a year and it can be accessed at FreeCreditReport.com. You should review your report for any errors and mistakes and follow up on any reporting issues that you are concerned about.

Enough with the Public Service Announcements...on to the good stuff!

A few posts ago, I talked about how some good ole' home cooking was medicine for the soul and how I found myself turning to it during times of stress. There are some days when nothing sets the world back on track like a big plate of carbohydrates smothered in cream sauce and that's exactly what today's dish is all about. I actually prepared this a few weeks ago while I was still in my temporary living quarters and just haven't had a chance to share it with you - I've been a little busy folks....cut me some slack! :)
See the current state of my kitchen??

This dish pushes me to the boundaries of what I enjoy in a meal and what I mean by that is, I typically do not enjoy cream based sauces and I don't particularly care for mushrooms and this is full of both items. As I was flipping through my recipe repertoire one evening, I came across this and it screamed my name. Well, actually it just whispered my name but it was enough to get my attention. I used shiitake mushrooms in place of your regular, garden variety shrooms because I've found that my taste buds have matured enough to be convinced that shiitakes aren't all that bad. I think next time I'll add a bit of roasted red bell pepper or pimentos just to liven it up with a little color.

Be prepared - this recipe makes enough to feed an army, so save it for when you've had a really, really, really stressful day or when you feel like inviting the whole neighborhood over for dinner. Enjoy!

















* Exported from MasterCook *

Shrimp Tetrazzini

Serving Size : 6
Categories : Seafood

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1/2 Cup butter
1 Cup green onions -- thinly sliced
5 Tablespoons flour
2 1/2 Cups chicken broth
1/2 Cup clam juice
1/2 Cup dry white wine
1/2 Cup heavy cream
3 Teaspoons fresh oregano
1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese -- shredded
2 cloves garlic -- minced
1/2 Pound shiitake mushrooms -- sliced
8 Ounces spaghetti
4 Cups shrimp -- shelled & deveined
pepper -- to taste

Melt 1/4 cup of the butter in a pan; add onions, mushrooms and garlic and cook, stirring until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add shrimp and cook just until pink, about 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove shrimp and vegetables from the pan and set aside. Stir flour into pan and gradually blend in chicken broth, clam juice, wine, cream, and oregano. Cook, stirring for about 3 minutes after sauce begins to simmer. Stir in 1/4 cup of the cheese.

While sauce is cooking, bring to a boil a quantity of salted water; add the noodles and cook them until they are al dente; then drain.

Combine sauce, noodles, shrimp and vegetables, and season with pepper to taste. Pour into a large shallow casserole or individual casseroles. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake at 375F until bubbling, about 15 minutes for large casserole or 8 minutes for small ones. Broil top until lightly browned.

Source:
"adapted from personal chef recipe from Candy Wallace"