Test Kitchen #15: Beef & Chicken Kabobs

As the weather gets warmer we've been trying to come up with new ideas for summer cooking. We hadn't grilled anything in test kitchen before, so Dad suggested making kabobs. We've made kabobs in previous seasons, so we decided that the experimental part of this week would be the marinades we used on the meat and veggies.

We made one marinade recipe and "tested" two other pre-made bottle brands. The Peanut-Ginger Chicken recipe is available from allrecipes.com. I halved the marinade ingredients because I only had 1.5 pounds of chicken available and we were planning on making some beef kabobs too. I really liked the creamy and spicy flavor of this marinade and I think it would probably work great with the chicken stir-fried in a wok and served over rice. For the beef, we used an A-1 marinade and a herb and garlic flavor from Lawry's. Both had excellent flavor even if we could tell which was which after grilling.


Our only hiccup was I left the recipe at home and thought everything only needed to cook for 8-10 minutes total. This seemed reasonable since the pieces of meat were so small. After about 15 minutes, we took everything off the grill to find very rare beef and a few squishy pieces of chicken. So back on the grill they went until we were certain that there was no clucking or mooing left. Later that night at home, I checked the recipe to find a recommended 8-10 minutes per side. Yeah, that makes a little more sense! The meal was complemented by Mom's delicious macaroni salad and the Banana Split Cake for dessert.


(Test Kitchen will return June 16th as we will be temporarily interrupted by work and vacation.)

Chocolate Therapy

Once in a while I bake. It doesn't happen often because the exact measuring and chemistry needed to make baking a success usually trips me up in some fashion and the end result is less than stellar. When making a tomato sauce or inventing a casserole no one's really going to suffer if you decide to add a little more milk here or a little less garlic there. But accidentally mix in too much salt or get baking powder confused with baking soda and it's goodbye dessert, hello garbage disposal.

In regular cooking I also like to switch up some lower fat or calorie ingredients to lighten the dish. I'll swap butter for margarine or use reduced fat cheeses, but it's trickier to make these switches with baking unless the recipes were written that way from that start. That's why I stick to very simple dessert recipes where small substitutions can be made with out major consequences.


I found this recipe for a Double Chocolate Cheesecake on the Kraft foods web site. Their dessert center is really neat with an iTunes-esque interface that allows you to "flip" through the recipe cards. With a few tweaks to healthify the recipe, I made a sweet treat that Matt loved. I swapped in sugar free oreos for the crust and used 1/3 Less Fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese. The texture was thick and rich, just like a real New York Cheesecake. It all held together so well, you could eat small squares of it with your fingers like a brownie or a piece of fudge. I also halved the recipe so that all the ingredients would fit into an 8" x 8" pan instead of a 9"x 13". No need for 16 full servings of cheesecake for a family of two.


I passed the link onto Mom, the real baking enthusiaist in the family, who chose the Banana Split Cake for Tuesday's Test Kitchen dessert. I'm not a huge fan of pineapple, but the banana and pudding was good. Next time go with the sprinkle of chocolate shavings on top instead of the nuts.

Everything's better with a little chocolate!

Test Kitchen #14: Pancakes!

This week I wanted to try a couple of the pancake recipes that we did not get to make during our cooking class at the culinary school. Our group made the Blueberry Yogurt pancakes, but they were primarily worked on by the other two team members since Matt and I were busy with the crepes and waffles.

I like blueberry breakfast goods, but I don't care for whole pieces of hot fruit in the middle of my pancake. I want the blueberry flavor more equally distributed throughout the pancake. Plus, I thought it would be really fun to play with the recipe a little to make the pancakes much bluer. I thought by processing the berries up a little and stirring them into the batter that we could achieve a bluer pancake. I went a little overboard when I decided to also sub in blueberry yogurt. They were REALLY BLUE!

Mom's blueberry plates were very appropriate this week!

Strangely enough with all that extra blueberry content, it didn't really seem to dial up the blueberry flavor much. They were also very moist inside, which could have been from the yogurt and the extra water content in the frozen blueberries. The original recipe calls for fresh blueberries but when the market is charging $3.99 for 4 oz. of fresh berries and $3.99 for 12 oz. of frozen, your wallet makes the call for you. I will continue to tweak this recipe because I still love the idea of blue pancakes. Maybe strawberries next time for some pink pancakes!

I also brought along the recipe for the Dutch Style Pancake. I thought Dad would really dig this one because it's a little different and you can make it with sauteed fruit. We used apples, but the recipe also suggests pears, bananas or blueberries. The recipe we used in class is taken from a New York restaurant supposedly known for their brunch, Prune. What I like best about this 8" pancake is that it fluffs up to about and 1 1/2" thick and is great to share at your breakfast table. At Prune, you can order the entire thing for yourself and it is served with pears, maple syrup and a side of Canadian bacon. City dwellers might appreciate the walk home after this meal, because though delicious, after all those carbs and butter, we were ready for a nap!

The recipe below makes 3 large pancakes, but we only made two. If you need help with the calculations to revise this recipe for only two pancakes, I'll send you Dad's email address. Unless you already know how to measure 3/32 of a cup of sugar. Good Luck!


Dutch Style Apple Pancake
Makes 3 large 8" pancakes

Ingredients:
8.25 0z. all purpose flour
3/4 tablespoon baking powder
1/8 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
4 oz. butter, melted and cooled
2 apples, peeled and sliced thin

Preheat oven to 375°
1. Mix flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl.
2. Mix eggs and milk in a separate bowl.
3. Add wet ingredients into dry and whisk well.
4. Add melted butter.
5. Melt some butter into an 8" non-stick skillet.
(Be sure your skillet if safe for oven temps of at least 375° or more.)
6. Add apple slices to skillet, sauteing until soft with light brown edges.
7. Add 8 oz. of batter (about a third) to the skillet, evenly covering apples.
8. Leave on the heat for a few minutes until edges begin to set.
9. Bake in oven for about 15 minutes or until golden and firm to touch.
10. Remove from oven and flip pancake over so fruit is on the top side.
11. Slice into pie shaped pieces and serve.




Blueberry Yogurt Pancakes

1 cup flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 egg
1/2 cup of plain yogurt (or blueberry yogurt)
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons oil
3/4 cup Dole frozen blueberries (resealable bag)

1. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg into a bowl.
2. Whisk the egg, yogurt, and milk in a large bowl. Beat in oil.
3. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir until well combined.
4. In a food processor, pulse blueberries until fine. Add to batter and mix well. Batter may be a little lumpy, but extremely BLUE!
5. Heat griddle to approximately 350°. Pour batter on hot surface to form 4" rounds. Pancakes are ready to flip when bubbles begin to form in the center.

Why Not Salad Pizza?!

I know I'm not the only one who's ever heard of a salad pizza, but the concept was not easily accepted by Matt. What's not to like?! Underneath the healthier veggie layer lay a white pie made up of shredded mozzarella, dollops of ricotta, and smatterings of pesto. Also hidden amongst the leafy greens was some leftover turkey bacon, crumbled into pieces and a bunch of croutons.

First I prepared a Cesar salad with a Dole Light Cesar Salad kit, complete with croutons and dressing. I added some chopped tomato and turkey bacon. Then I baked the white pie on a pre-made pie crust (Thank you, Stop & Shop. I love these!) for ten minutes. When the pizza was done, I topped the entire crust with the salad and cut into quarters. It required a little balance to eat each slice without all the salad tumbling off but I think the taste of cold and warm elements together make for a nice combination.


Doesn't anyone remember the McDLT?! Keep the hot side hot and cool side cool?!
Am I dating myself?

All be it a slightly foreign idea for Matt who would have been just as happy with pizza and salad on the side, I thought it was a creative way to make a quick dinner. Just some pre-made helpful ingredients and some leftovers is sometimes all it takes to make a winner.

Test Kitchen #13: Lasagna Rollatini Florentini

This week a request came from Mom who was apparently craving some lasagna. Both Dad and I have made lasagna on numerous occasions so we decided on trying a rollatini as a different approach. This dish has been the star of many Olive Garden commercials recently, so it's always fun to try to take a a popular restaurant recipe and make it your own.

A slightly "healthified" version, we used whole wheat noodles, part skim ricotta and a good helping of fresh spinach leaves for the filling. The healthier ingredients were complemented by their less so partners in Italian sausage and whole milk mozzarella. While I'm glad to substitute some ingredients for healthier ones when I can, I have learned the hard way, that one should not make any entire recipe out of lower fat content elements. It almost never works out the way you hoped and taste always suffers. And as Dad would say, "You need some gusto!"

Ingredients:
1 box Healthy Harvest Whole Wheat Lasagna Noodles
1 pound package of sweet Italian sausage links
Tomato sauce (homemade or brand of your choice)

For Filling:
2 eggs
2 pound container of part skim ricotta cheese
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan/Romano cheese
1/2 bag of fresh spinach leaves
Small handful of fresh parsley
Salt & Pepper to taste

Cooking the Sausage:
1. Place sausage in a small skillet with a 1/4 " of water. Boil until all the water evaporates.
2. Continue cooking and rotate occasionally until browned on all sides.
3. Cut into 1/2" thick slices. Place in a small pot on warm with enough tomato sauce to cover all.

Filling:
1. In a food processor, grind up spinach and parsley until fine.
2. Place ricotta in the large bowl of the kitchen mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
3. Mix on low speed, adding in eggs, bread crumbs, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, grated Parmesan and spinach/parsley mixture. Blend until smooth. Add salt & pepper if needed, to taste.


Assembly:
1. Boil lasagna noodles according to box directions. When cooked, rinse immediately with cool water to prevent them from sticking together.
2. Place a small amount of sauce in the bottom of (2) 8" square baking pans or (1) large 9" x 13" pan. (With these quantities of ingredients we filled (1) 8" square and (1) 9"x 13".)
3. Using one noodle at a time, cut the first one in half and lay on a cutting board or work surface. (Leave unused noodles in the pot of water so that they don't dry out.)
4. Place one heaping tablespoon of the ricotta filling on one end of the noodle. Roll with your fingers to opposite end.
5. Place roll in baking pan, seam side down. Continue this process until all noodles are rolled or you run out of filling.
6. Place 1 slice of sausage on top of each roll. Cover all with tomato sauce.
7. Top with remaining mozzarella cheese.
8. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes.

The Verdict:
We made two pans of rollatini to be eaten later for dinner. I took home the 8" square pan and Dad had the larger of the two. I think my favorite part was the filling. Growing up I was never a big fan of ricotta cheese. It always seemed dry and pasty tasting. I can remember scraping most of the filling out of lasagnas and stuffed shells leaving the pasta, sauce and cheese behind as my dinner.

I've now discovered a smooth, creamy texture of ricotta can be achieved with two things; properly ingredients for seasoning and choosing the right brand. The flavors added from some blended Parmesan cheese and Italian bread crumbs is always a step in the right direction. I was really happy that we decided to use fresh spinach instead of frozen. The color was beautiful and the filling remained creamy and fluffy without taking on the excess water from a frozen box brand.

Perhaps the key to a great ricotta brand is staying local. Cutrefellos ricotta from the Stratford owned dairy is the brand we chose for this recipe. I'm also really partial to the Calabros brand. I'm not sure how they make theirs, but it's so creamy and smooth, I've been known to eat it straight from container.

Having now prepared lasagna this way, I think I like it better than the traditional sliced and stacked variety. It looks prettier and there's a great portion illusion you can trick yourself with. After all, four little rolls, all be it the same amount of food as one stacked slice, certainly fills the plate a little more completely.

Test Kitchen #12: El Dia de Las Tres Salsas

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Mexican and Spanish recipes are some of my personal favorites and I have tried many varieties over the years. In keeping with the goal of test kitchen, I found it difficult to come up with a Mexican themed recipe that I had never tried before. Then I remembered the Salsa Lovers Cook Book that Dad had brought me back from his trip to see my sister in Arizona. I'm a big fan of Salsa Verde and have never worked with tomatillos before, so this seemed like a test kitchen worthy project.

I had also seen ads for the new International Farmer's Market in Bridegport and thought this week might be a good time for a field trip. Farmer's markets are great because they have lower prices in comparison to their grocery chain brothers. The produce is always really fresh because it's from local farms and they often feature items great for ethnic cooking that are harder to find in the bigger stores.

So after some research in the Salsa book, we choose three recipes and made our grocery list. Tomatillos, tomatoes, jalapenos, fresh cilantro, fresh parsley, red pepper, yellow pepper, canned corn, lime juice, scallions and a few other items only cost us about $15 at the farmer’s market. (Oh, and tortillas chips for taste testing!) Sadly, one-stop shopping is not always a possibility with these smaller markets so we had to stop at the IGA for canned green chiles, and wine vinegar.

Black Bean & Corn Salsa

1 can (15 oz.) Black Beans, drained
1 small tomato, diced
1 tablespoon of oil
1 cup of whole kernel canned corn, drained
¼ teaspoon ground Cumin
½ cup fresh Cilantro, chopped
4 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons of lime juice

Combine all ingredients. Mix well and refrigerate until chilled.
Serve with chips or as a topping for chicken or pork.

Bright Salsa
4 Tomatoes, diced
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chiles
2 fresh jalapenos, seeded and diced
½ green bell pepper, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
½ yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh Parsley, chopped

Combine all ingredients. Serve warm or chilled.

Tomatillo Salsa (Salsa Verde)
½ pound tomatillos
¼ cup onion, diced
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon of oil (not olive)
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced

In a food processor, pulse tomatillos to produce small pieces. Heat oil in a small sauté pan. Add tomatillos to pan. Pulse onion, garlic and jalapenos in processor until diced. Add to pan. Sauté for about 3 minutes or until tomatillos are soft.

In the kitchen we made each recipe to the letter, but then added a few things here and there to suit our taste. (See the book link above for original recipes.) Both Mom and Matt obliged with taste testing when they got home from work. Mom and Dad’s clear favorite was the Bright Salsa, where Matt and I preferred the Black Bean. Matt just requested the cilantro to be toned down a little next time. I never realized how strong fresh cilantro can be. I love the aroma and flavor but I think some of it got stuck in Matt’s sinuses and made him a little sneezy.

Unfortunately the Salsa Verde was everyone's least favorite. Perhaps I should have done some more research about how to properly cook tomatillos, but it seemed kind of bland. Plus, unlike the other recipes, the book gave no suggestions about what to do with it afterward. Serve it warm? Chill it? We just weren’t sure. I think I was hoping for the creamier green sauce poured over Enchilads Suizas that I’ve had at Mexican restaurants. Maybe if I reheat it with some sour cream mixed it, I could create a sauce. In any case, that’s what test kitchen is for; learning something new everything week.

(This week I also learned not to turn my back on Dad when he’s pulsing the tomatoes in the food processor. That was a whole lotta orangey red puree in the bowl! Good thing we had extra tomatoes. So Dad, how many dishes did you sneak that stuff into, anyway?)

Test Kitchen #11: Schnitzel & Strudel

This week was Dad's birthday. Always one of the hardest people to buy a gift for, I had been keeping my ear to the ground listening for ideas for the past few months. When Dad mentioned a new All-Clad saute pan that caught his eye I filed it away in my memory banks. Conspiring with Mom, Christine and Matt, we all chipped for the gift. It was well-received when we presented it to him Monday, with Christine video-conferencing in live from Arizona.

The next day was test day and Dad had been wanting to try his hand at a schnitzel. The pounded-thin cutlet is traditionally made with veal, but we made it with pork to save our pennies. (A trick, Dad says, that many restaurants use since most people can't tell the difference between the two meats once they're breaded and fried.) Always trying to find ways to prepare meals healthier ways, we debated at length whether to fry or bake the cutlets. In the end, it was hard to resist not giving the new pan it's debut, so we fried them.

I'm not quite sure why schnitzel tastes so good, since it's basically a breaded cutlet. Maybe it's the crispy edges around the thin slices or the seasoning in the breading, but it was a real treat. Mom, in particular, seemed to enjoy it and she split the last of the cutlets with me and Matt. Honoring our German heritage, we served them with red cabbage and mashed potato. You barely need a recipe for this, but if you'd like a few guidelines, this is want we did.

Cutlets Trip To The Beach?

• Place the cutlets, one at a time, between two sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap. Pound each one until they are about an 1/8" thick.

• Dip each one in an egg wash, coat with breading, and lay on a baking sheet covered with a paper towel to rest for about ten minutes. (We added a little grated Parmesan to our breading mixture, but that's up to you. Be creative!)

• Heat a little butter or canola oil in a large pan. Cook each cutlet until brown on each side, approximately 2-3 per side, but may vary.

The new pan gets christened!

For dessert, we made two apple and raisin strudels. We've actually made strudel before, but Dad had heard about a technique for adding raisins he wanted to try. In a small bowl he combined about 3/4 cup of raisins with a splash of Grand Marnier and set it aside. After a while, the liquid reconstituted the raisins a little and plumped them back up. The raisins, combined with the apples, some brown sugar and cinnamon was then rolled into a puffed pastry dough and baked.

We were a little over zealous with our apple chopping and made more apple mixture than could fit in the pastry dough. Dad put the rest in a small sauce pan and cooked it slow on the stove to create a hot apple sauce to serve with the schnitzel for dinner.