Monday, September 26, 2011

What To Get The Man Who Has Everything? French Dinner! That's What


Everyone has a few of those things, those things that make them truely happy. Prefect example: my friend and I went to Kent, CT on a mini-day-cation and we were both starving, drawn like flesh eating zombies to the alluring smell of dinner food into a small, cheap and delightful little resterant in the center of town. And on the menu was a hotdog, with Kraut, and fries. And have you ever had something that is just exactly what you wanted right then and there? Is there anything better? No.

Well one of these things, these perfect culinary delights, these exactly what I ordered foods for my Dad is Alsation Apple Tart from Lutece. He literally talked about this dessert for years until my very determined mother tracked it down a year or two ago. It was then made the crowning moment of an epic Prime Rib dinner a year ago on my Dad's birthday. See that blog post, and feel free to be jealous that I am not YOUR child.

Well this year we made it again, only it was paired with a Poulet Provencal masterfully crafted by my sister.

Yeah he's spoiled.....but he's a good Dad so I guess he deserves it.

Here is the recipe:
Alsatian Apple Tart

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Snap, Krackle and Fish?!

When you think of English cuisine, one can't help but to think of Fish and Chips. Like so many identifying indigenous food items, a region cannot help but be identified by it's junk food. Think Philadelphia and the Phili Cheese. So when I went into my big book of magazine clipping recipes, in search of something to do with my piece of Tilapia, I stumbled across this recipe to "lighten up" Fish and Chips. The cool thing about this recipe, which drew me to it initially, was that in order to keep the fish's signature crispiness without deep frying it, the fish is breaded in rice krispies. I know! Well I decided to go for it and I have to say two things:

1. It was flippin delicious!! No one was more surprised then me at the epic tastiness of this silly recipe but it was crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, and nice and light.

2. The people at Food Network Magazine must not test their recipes. This is the second time I have made a recipe according to their specs and had it come out not quite right.

First the fries went in at the temp and for the time requested and immediately turned to burned hotmess. Fearing the same result with the fish, the second it started to to brown I reduced the cooking temperature to 400 and it came out fantastic. I think the problem is the recipe says to preheat your oven to 450, convection is you can, but the recipe does not take into account the different cooking times resulting from using a convection versus regular oven. So maybe you could follow the directions verbatim if using a regular oven.

I think my conclusion here is this recipe is worth trying, just make sure you watch your food once it goes in and adjust accordingly

Ingredients
For the Chips
:
3 medium russet potatoes (1 1/4 pounds)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher salt
For the Fish:
Olive oil cooking spray
2 3/4 cups crispy rice cereal
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 large egg whites
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless Pollock (or other firm white fish), cut into 2-by-4-inch pieces
Tartar sauce and/or malt vinegar, for serving (optional)

Directions
Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F using the convection setting, if available. Place a baking sheet on one of the racks to preheat.

Prepare the chips: Cut the potatoes into 1/4-inch-thick sticks. Toss with the olive oil and cayenne in a bowl. Carefully remove the hot baking sheet from the oven, add the potatoes and spread in an even layer. Use a rubber spatula to scrape any oil from the bowl over the potatoes. Bake on the top oven rack, turning once, until browned and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes. Season with salt.

Meanwhile, make the fish: Set a wire rack on a baking sheet and coat with cooking spray. Lightly crush the cereal in a bowl with your fingers. Add 2 teaspoons salt, and black pepper to taste. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites and a pinch of salt until frothy.

Dip the fish in the egg whites, then roll in the cereal crumbs to coat. Place the fish pieces on the rack (position them on their sides so that the majority of the crust is exposed) and mist with cooking spray.

Bake the fish on the bottom oven rack until crisp and just cooked through, about 12 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper. Serve the fish and chips with tartar sauce and/or malt vinegar, if desired.

Per serving: Calories 442; Fat 15 g (Saturated 2 g); Cholesterol 63 mg; Sodium 1,015 mg; Carbohydrate 37 g; Fiber 2 g; Protein 37 g