five hour bolognese sauce

Lately I have been very passionate about making the perfect bolognese sauce. After not eating meat for ten years, I am trying to make up for lost time in the meat department. This bolognese was amazing and everything I could have asked for on my first adventure with bolognese. 

Ingredients

1/2 pound pork

1/2 pound beef

1 tablespoon salt

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons olive oil 

1 cup onion (diced)

1 cup carrot (diced)

1 cup celery (diced)

2 cups milk

1 1/2 cup dry white wine

2 cups diced canned tomatoes 

Directions

1 hour before making, mix salt in with the meat. Sauté onions, carrots, and celery in oil and butter  for 10-15  minutes. Add meat and brown for at least 10 minutes. Pour in milk and cook for 1 hour stirring frequently, waiting till milk evaporates. Add wine and cook for another 45 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add tomatoes and cook for an additional 2 hours on low heat. Salt and Pepper to taste. 

crispy roast chicken with herbs

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
1/2 tablespoon salt
3-4 tablespoons butter
handful chives (chopped)
teaspoon fresh rosemary (chopped)
teaspoon fresh thyme (chopped)
pepper
fingerling potatoes (cut in half)

Directions
preheat the oven to 450
Place chicken outside of fridge for 30 minutes before cooking, pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. In a saucepan melt butter with chopped herbs. Let cool until the butter herb goodness solidifies. Set the chicken in a cast iron frying pan. Make incisions in the chicken, but try to not tear the skin. Using your fingers, work the butter into the chicken, making sure to get under the skin. Make sure to cover the entire bird with butter. Place the potatoes around the chicken and  roast for 30-40 min depending on the size. Insert a meat thermometer and wait till it gets to 170-175 degrees.

Bob + Sami's Kale Salad

Greetings from sunny Santa Monica, where the dollar store has organic produce on Wednesdays.  Like all food hipsters Sam and I have been eating a lot of kale recently and marinated kale is one of the easiest ways to turn plants into food.  This recipe is also infinitely flexible: after you tear up the kale and let it soak in olive oil and salt for an hour or so you can dump in whatever you’ve got laying around.  For the acid in our dressing we used lemon juice, but vinegar or limes or anything acidic will do.  We took a tour through the farmers market this morning and grabbed a few things that looked good—corn, apples, and some white and gold beets.  On the way home we bought a can of garbanzo beans and some almonds to give our salad a little more substance.  We hope you enjoy our riff on this marinated kale salad even though it hasn’t got any eponymous butter. 

For the salad—

Kale

Corn

Golden Beets

Apples

Almonds

Garbanzo Beans

For the dressing—

Olive Oil

Lemons

Shallots

Garlic

Salt and Pepper

Start by marinating the kale in olive oil and salt.  While that is resting throw the beets and the corn in the oven and make the dressing.  Add thinly sliced shallots or onions, mashed up garlic, and salt and pepper to the lemon juice.  After the corn is done I like to give it a little texture by stripping off the husks and burning it over the burner on the stove.  Julienne the beets and apples, then combine everything.  This salad will keep in the fridge for a few days so you can bring it to your Labor Day barbecue and watch the Yoga babes swoon. 

Oven-Fried Chicken

I am back from the mountains and now have all the time in the world to blog my favorite recipes. I only cooked three times this summer, and now feel like I need to make up for lost time. As much as I love fried chicken, I can't eat it every night. This chicken is a healthier version of fried chicken, and some people have even said it is better! This is an easy recipe that will definitely be a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup olive oil

2 lemons (juiced)

salt and pepper

8 bone-in chicken thighs (skin attached)

1 cup flour

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp old bay (optional)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried thyme

preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together milk, olive oil, lemon juice, and s+p. Add the chicken and mix. Leave the chicken to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Mix dry ingredients in shallow bowl. Take chicken pieces out of liquid and dredge in flour mixture. Lay on parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cook for 30-40 minutes turning after 15 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with coarse salt. 

eggs and bacon in cupcake tins

Nicole and I made these this morning for breakfast. They were tasty and a perfect addition to a brunch party. You can add many things to this recipe, or just keep it simple with eggs and bacon! If you are a pork eater then I recommend using the real deal bacon. I just haven't ventured that way yet...

Ingredients

butter

8 eggs

8 pieces turkey bacon

8 slices bread

gruyere cheese (grated)

sliced scallions

salt and pepper

Directions

1. preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter cupcake tins.

2. with a rolling pin, flatten pieces of bread. with a cup, cut out circular pieces of the bread.

3. cook bacon for 4-5 min, without making it crispy.

3. break eggs in a bowl and mix. add, scallions, cheese, and salt/pepper

4. lay the bread in the tins making sure to reach the top of the tins (may need to cut pieces in half). brush melted butter over bread.

5. put bacon down first, then egg mixture.

6. bake in oven for about 25 min.

beer can chicken

Beer can chicken is something that I have always been curious about. Then, when I saw it in cooks illustrated, I knew that I would have to make it. I made mine with a delicious glaze on top and it was so good. Just try and remember to not get tall can of beer (24 ounce) and stick with a 12 or 16 ounce beer. I was so excited at the liquor store that i got a 24 ounce beer and let me tell you.... the chicken just would not fit on that can. Make sure you give yourself a lot of time for this meal.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken

4 tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 can beer

glaze

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon water

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup orange marmalade

3 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons dijon mustard

1 teaspoon pepper

Directions

preheat oven to 325 degrees

1. separate skin from chicken with fingers. Combine salt, baking soda, and pepper. Sprinkle over chicken and give it a nice rub down. Let the chicken sit in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

2. Open beer, and drink 1/4 of it. In a roasting pan, spray can with cooking spray and stick chicken on top carefully. Chicken should be sitting upright. Stick in oven for 90 minutes.

3. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring all glaze ingredients except for the cornstarch and water to a boil, and cook for 5-7 minutes. In a small bowl combine water and cornstarch. Turn off heat and add the cornstarch mixture.

4. Remove chicken from oven after 90 minutes and turn oven to 500 degrees. Place 1 1/2 cup water in roasting pan and return to oven for an additional 25 minutes.

5. brush chicken with half the glaze and stick back into the oven for 5 more minutes. Remove from oven and brush the rest of the glaze on.

6. Serve it up and enjoy!

-Devin

chicken tetrazzini

Ingredients

olive oil

1 tablespoons butter

4 boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces.

salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 handfuls of mixed fresh mushrooms, cleaned and chopped

1 cup white wine

spaghetti1 1/2 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 cup basil torn

Directions

1. preheat oven to 400 degrees

2. cook spaghetti

3. season chicken with salt and pepper

4. heat a saucepan with a splash of olive oil and butter, add chicken and brown. Add garlic and mushrooms, sauté for 30 seconds stirring. Then add the wine and turn down the heat. Simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through. Add the cream, bring to a boil, then turn off heat.

5. add the drained pasta cream sauce and stir well. Toss in basil and 3/4 of the cheese. Transfer to an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake for 15 minutes.

-Devin