chorizo cheddar jalapenos, melba sour cream, apple mango slaw

so here we go.  more chorizo goodness.  i didn't realize initially when making this batch of chorizo that it would be so freaking much.  but, alas, i have enough chorizo to last quite some time.  (tucked nicely away in the freezer.)


since having so much chorizo on hand, we decided to make some stuffed jalapeno poppers.  now, lets get one thing clear.  i really despise the word "poppers".  it just sounds like a cheap, stuffed and fried jalapeno.  something you get out of a bag that every other crappy sports bar carries.  i wanted to sort of elevate that.  i love spicy stuff.  and, well.. fried anything just melts my heart.  (ok, maybe that was a bad choice of words...)


first, we got some nice fresh jalapenos from our produce peeps.  then, peeled them with a peeler (the novelty of it all!).  when i made these before, we fire roasted the peppers to get the skin off and take the level of heat down a bit..and of course add some nice smoky flavor.  pressed for time and a lack of a grill, peeling seemed the best route.  considered blanching them, but again, pressed for time...


moving on!


broke out the ol' food processor and threw in some chorizo, white cheddar and roasted garlic.  pureed until nice and smooth.  threw that in the pastry bag.  piped chorizo cheese into peppers.

next, set up a mini breading station with flour, egg wash and toasted bread crumbs.  breaded in that order.  fried until golden brown and awesome.  


the apple mango slaw was easy accompaniment. fresh, cooling and fruity.  just julienned some granny smith and mango, tossed with lemon juice and olive oil.  salt, pepper and some chopped cilantro.  done.


final product:


chorizo cheddar stuffed jalapenos with melba sour cream and apple mango slaw.

chorizo stuffed chicken breast, apple cabbage gratin, peach melba

as promised, we did some fun stuff with the chorizo we made.  one of them was a chorizo stuffed chicken breast with the apple cabbage gratin and a peach melba sauce.


first, i formed the chorizo into small cigar sizes and wrapped in plastic wrap.  put that in the freezer. (makes the stuffing of the chicken breast easier).


next, cut holes in the chicken breast using a paring knife.  once the chorizo is frozen, unwrap and stuff into the chicken breast through the hole you cut. set aside.


now here's the fun part.


peach melba is a traditional british dessert.  i wanted to take those flavors and make it into a savory sauce to go with the stuffed chicken and gratin.


first i peeled and cut up the peaches.  then, put them in a pot with some white wine, sugar, vanilla bean, red onion, cinnamon sticks and cloves.  oh, and salt and pepper of course.  

i let that cook until most of the liquid was cooked down and very little left.  took out the cinnamon and cloves and pureed until very smooth.


here's what the final dish looked like.  chorizo stuffed chicken breast with granny smith apple and red cabbage gratin and peach melba sauce.

garden update.

this time of year is my favorite.  with new ingredients popping up, and the promise of a fresh new year to come.  oh, and the rain.  let's not forget the rain.


how long has it been?  2 weeks? 3?  either way, it always amazes me at how quickly plants grow.  we've had some casualties in the garden, but overall...i'm getting hungry.  and i can't wait for this stuff to be ready to eat!


our corn is doing really well with the exception of some tiny caterpillars that are finding the leaves to be delicious.  a couple of the plants are pretty torn up, but don't want to use any pesticide.  these things are almost peaking over the fence.

the other star in the garden right now is the zucchini.  this stuff is growing like crazy.  i have a fear it may take over shortly.

the beets are growing nicely, but being so close to the zucchini i think they may start to struggle soon.  

the carrots seem to be growing slowly, but i have faith in those little guys.

i forgot to get a pic of the watermelon plants, but they are doing well so far.  again, being so close to the zucchini... issues may arise.  


and lastly, the tomatoes.  my pics didn't turn out well. so, sorry.  only one of the 12 transplants survived the move.  it's doing well though and is probably 6" tall now.  only 2 other tomato plants have begun to really grow.  i did see a couple new sprouts, so fingers crossed that they make it.  i think its fair to say the tomatoes have had the most problems.  

apple and red cabbage gratin

i think it's safe to say that wikipedia is close to being my best friend.  


for those of  you who aren't familiar with a gratin, here is wikipedia's definition.  


i love making gratins.  although it's a tedious process, the results are totally worth it.  i wanted to make a gratin last week to go with a special, and this is what we came up with.


granny smith apple and red cabbage gratin.


the process is simple really.  slice apples, onions and red cabbage thin. if you have a mandoline, i recommend using it...if not... i recommend buying one!  it'll absolutely cut your prep time down considerably.  


where was i?


oh yeah.  the layering.


layering is probably the most time consuming part of making a gratin (unless you don't have a mandoline, then slicing will easily be the winner there...).  get a casserole dish or roasting pan..  spray it with pan spray.  (seriously.  it'll be a pain in the ass to clean if you don't.)  then... the process starts.


i started my layers with the apples.  do your best to get an even overlapping layer with no spaces showing.  it's not crucial, but it'll help your gratin hold together.

next, layer your red cabbage.

then...red onion!

make sure you season with salt and pepper.  pour some heavy cream (maybe 1/2 cup..depending on size of dish) over all of it.  and.... start over with your apples.  if you want to add some more depth to it, sprinkle in some blue cheese every other layer or so.  i used some shredded yellow cheddar.  normally i would have used stilton, but was afraid it wouldn't fit with the dish i had in mind.

ok.  now that you've got your layers all done, complete with seasoning and cream in every other layer or so... top it off with some shredded cheddar (or stilton.)  cover with foil.  throw that bad boy in the oven at 350 degress for an hour.  pull it out when your time is up, take off the foil and put it back in for about another half hour.

now... eat.

a weekend project... garden.

last weekend, i had the idea to make a garden in our back yard at home.  sick of paying too much for veggies at the grocery store, i took the matter into my own hands.


armed with the credit card and a car not suited for being used as a truck, i made the trek to home depot.


after picking up all the items needed for the project, i went back home and promptly procrastinated for a few hours.


finally finding the motivation, we started our weekend project at around 7pm sunday night.  


it went a LOT faster than i had anticipated.  this is the before shot.

we did a basic 10'x3' box, using the fence as one side.

then we filled it up with garden soil...after my awesome wife went BACK to home depot to get 20 more bags of garden soil... apparently i made a minor mathematical error. (ok, BIG error.  that's why she's the math major, not me.)  it was dark by the time we got done, but it was worth it.

we planted our seeds the following night, and transferred what we had started a few weeks earlier.  all in all: corn, tomato, carrot, beet, zucchini and watermelon.  oh, and the hot red chili plant and blueberry bush got new homes too.


a week later, we have tons of sprouts popping through the soil.  i think the beets look the coolest.

only about 60-90 days until we get to enjoy the fruits of our labor. (or veggies in this case)

chorizo...from scratch.

chorizo is popping up on menus all over the place.  


as stated in another post...i try to learn something new as frequently as possible.  so, i thought i'd try my hand at making a mexican style chorizo.  (there are two styles of chorizos. spanish chorizo comes in link form, and mexican chorizo is loose.)


first, i roasted some red onions, garlic and jalapenos in some ancho chili oil.  

after those cooled, i cranked up the ol' meat grinder and ground the pork and veggies together.  added some spices (smoked paprika, ancho chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, and clove) and got this..

i have big plans for this stuff this week.  just wait....

salmon ceviche.

mistakes happen.  i'm human.  

so last week, i accidentally ordered too much salmon to cure for brunch.  and viola! instant special!

i wanted to do a salmon ceviche.  but, having a mainly british themed menu, i don't normally have the traditional ingredients needed for ceviche.  so, improvise i did.

i didn't really take a lot of pictures of the process.  it was all sort of a last minute quick fix.  but i did get a couple.

i ended up doing a british style salmon ceviche with horseradish, mango, red onion and lime.  it turned out surprisingly awesome.  the horseradish gave it the needed heat you would normally get from a pepper in the mix.  the mango provided a nice sweet acidity to balance it out.  

think i'll have to keep this one in my playbook.

teaching. learning. and the general spreading of knowledge.

being a chef requires a lot of things.  


patience.  timing.  passion. palate. skill... just to name a few.


another aspect of being a chef is learning.  i try to do something new every week at the restaurant. something i've never done before.  maybe it's a flavor combination i've been thinking about or a cooking method i've been wanting to try.  maybe even a certain vegetable i've never worked with.  either way, i think it's important to keep learning.  


in this ever changing business, it's a matter of survival.  


teaching...  when i was in high school, i remember thinking i wanted to become an art teacher.  obviously that never happened.  but in a way, i do pretty much the same thing.  i instruct on different methods.  whether it be how to properly braise a lamb shank, or how to chiffonade basil.  and everything in between.  i try to instill inspiration. 


there comes a time when, in order to help teach, you must let your student go on their own.  let them make their mistakes.  and let them learn from them.  


last week, i let my sous chef make his own special for the weekend.  with minimal guidance, he made an awesome dish.  he made his teacher proud.  and i know if/when it is my time to move on to another venture, he'll continue to make his teacher proud and do an amazing job.


here are some pictures of his dish: horseradish crusted pork tenderloin, honey port braised cabbage, dijon mash.

for the record, the special sold out.  mad props scotty!

miscellaneous photos...and technical difficulties.

first of all.  let's be clear about this.  i'm not a tech savvy guru when it comes to computers or cell phones.  i know how to use them well enough.  but even the greatness of some can fall short at times.  


example.


a few weeks ago, i had accumulated quite a few photos on my phone of food that i had done and wanted to blog about.  putting it off long enough, i finally emailed photos to myself to get back on that blogging horse.  in my excitement and eagerness, once i sent the email, i promptly deleted pics off phone to open up space.  apparently...i shouldn't have done that.  email came, but no photos.  


oops.


so.  not an excuse for not blogging.  well..... kind of.  


here are a few of the pics that actually made it...and some other randoms from the last month.




chorizo chive tater tots.  mango ketchup.  awesome.

the first dish with the beet pickled eggs.  roasted beet.  fried shallot & parsley salad.  beet pickled eggs.  notice the pink in the eggs isn't all the way to the yolk. (now go look at the other pic...totally pink.)

had some fun with this one.  tamarind fried shrimp.  chickpea & tomato fritter.  apple chive slaw.  melba sour cream.  smoked paprika oil.

i think it's a pretty cool thing that i get to play with fire and knives and get paid for it.  cooking off some baby portobellos for the risotto.  

best smell in the world.  caramelizing onions.  yum.  

worst smell in the world.  chicken liver.  this is how it makes me feel.

short ribs browned and ready for the sauce before braising for 13 hours.

fresh outta the oven...

final product.  braised beef short rib.  potato turnip hash.  pickled red onions.

done.  

now that the last month has been caught up... time for new stuff.  and i'll try to not let another month pass between posts.

bone marrow stuffed mushrooms wrapped in bacon with beet pickled eggs, baby arugula and bacon horseradish vinaigrette.

see previous blog post about long descriptions. 


baby portobello mushrooms.  cleaned. roasted with extra virgin olive oil and salt and pepper.

bone marrow stuffing: toasted bread crumbs. caramelized shallots.  bone marrow.  parmesan. s+p.  parsley.

stuff the shrooms.

 after they are stuffed, put them in the fridge to cool.  don't want all that bone marrow melting away!

after cooled, wrap in bacon and cook at 500 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.

this was probably one of my favorite things to make lately.  the whole thing just looked and tasted amazing.  

bacon wrapped hazelnut cherry stuffed chicken breast with stilton cream sauce and chopped spinach salad

sometimes i say to myself, "self, what is the longest possible description of a dish i can come up with just to F*** with the people who have to serve it?"

i'm joking.  it just happens that way sometimes.

couple weeks ago i did this.

bacon wrapped hazelnut cherry stuffed chicken breast with stilton cream sauce and chopped spinach salad.

it's super easy and really good.  i mean, really good.

first, you need some boneless, skinless chicken breasts.  clean it.  butterfly it.

i suppose i should have taken pics of the stuffing making process, but didn't.  but all you need is toasted hazelnuts, dried cherries, and some balsamic vinegar.  throw it in your food processor and blend the crap out of it until its the desired consistency.  put it in some plastic wrap and freeze it.  once it's frozen, take off plastic wrap and cut a chunk however big you want for stuffing.  (the freezing makes it easier to work with).  put that chunk in the middle of your butterflied chicken breast like so.

 roll the chicken.

wrap it in bacon.

bake at 350 degrees until its just cooked. probably 15-20 minutes.  let cool.  refrigerate.  


for the stilton cream sauce, get some good stilton.  any blue cheese will work, but i've got a thing for stilton.  add some cream.  cracked black pepper. a little balsamic vinegar. don't really need to add salt as the cheese has enough.


for the chopped spinach salad... chop spinach.  add some lemon juice and zest.  red onions.  good extra virgin olive oil.  season it.


once that's all ready, and your chicken has cooled... get a saute pan hot.  put in some olive oil.  throw in your chicken.  the main goal here is to get that bacon nice and crispy and to reheat the chicken.  finish it off in the oven.


done.  


we sold out of this in about 2 hours.  

special request

it's not uncommon for people to send me emails asking for special things for a birthday, anniversary or just because.  i like to do my best to keep these people happy, and it gives me a chance to do something different.


a couple weeks ago, i received one such email.  but this one was different.  the sender requested a special "cake" for her sister's birthday.  the issue with that?  the sister didn't like cake.  so, sender supplied me a list of things the sister liked, and we started an awesome, awesome "cake".  top things on the like list: grilled cheese, french fries, spicy. what followed was a thing of beauty.

first, cut up some ciabatta.

then, fry it in some clarified butter.  don't forget to season it.

golden brown is ideal, but if you make it, obviously your own preferences will be key.

 get a deep cake pan or roasting pan.  sprinkle the bottom with white cheddar.  or any cheese you want will do.  for this, i used white cheddar.  then do a layer of the fried bread.

 next thing.  the sriracha ketchup.  sweet. spicy. tomato-y. awesome.

more cheese.

caramelized onions.  my favorite part.

lots of cheese.

top with another layer of fried bread.  and more cheese.

pop that baby in the oven.  if memory serves, it was 350 degrees for about half an hour.

you'll want to dig right in.  but.  (there's always a but) let it cool for a good 15 minutes.  or, i promise you, third degree cheese burns WILL ensue.  

after its cooled and you've sampled it, without burning your face off, let it cool for another 15-25 minutes.  then, flip it out onto a cutting board or something that will hold it.  its going to be heavy, so make sure it can handle the weight.

for the "icing", i made a white cheddar "fondant".  just white cheddar, heavy cream, and some flour to stabilize it.  awesomeness.

for the white cheddar fondant, i lined a half sheet tray with parchment, dumped the cheese mix on that, covered it with plastic wrap and gently rolled it out.  then ever so carefully...take of plastic wrap and flip fondant on top.  if you pray, do that.  if not (like me) there was a whole lot of finger crossing. 

 finally, some sriracha writing for the birthday girl.

unfortunately, we didn't get to sample the whole thing.  but i saw the faces of the folks eating it.  they were happy.  and it looked effing good.  so..mission accomplished.