cooking with your senses – try a new recipe every month
june – chicken breasts with pistachio and
zucchini/ pepper mustard cream
july – pisto manchego (zucchini, green
pepper & tomato medley) from kid-chefs in spain week
august – german salad ideas from advanced
kid-chefs week
june 2005 - chicken breasts with pistachio
and zucchini/ pepper mustard cream
makes 4 stuffed breasts
2 large boned chicken breasts, halved
1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons freshly grated asiago cheese, 1 tablespoon
unsalted butter, 1 medium zucchini, finely chopped, cup shallots,
finely chopped, 2 slices prosciutto, finely chopped, 2 tablespoons
chopped mixed fresh herbs, such as tarragon, basil, parsley
1 tablespoon finely chopped pistachios, 2 egg yolks, sprinkle
of freshly grated nutmeg and a turn or two of white pepper, ½
cup seasoned flour, seasoned with paprika, salt, and pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1 ½ – 2 cups fresh bread crumbs
olive oil for browning
the sauce: ½ cup whole grain mustard, juice of 2 oranges, wisp
of cayenne pepper, 1 ½ cups heavy (whipping) cream or chicken
stock stirred with 2 teaspoons cornstarch
to begin, one of you will take the job of pounding the chicken
breasts, while the other one makes the stuffing, then move on
to rolling the stuffed breasts in crumbs, browning in butter,
then making the sauce. or be completely egalitarian while both
of you tackle one job at a time, but do it in tandem. do you hear
the violins?
place the chicken breasts between two sheets of wax paper or
in a heavy zip lock bag (without the zip-locked though) and pound
gently with a meat mallet or a rolling pin in a pinch, till the
chicken is uniformly flattened to within 1/4 inch of it's life.
set aside. whoever is stuffing bound, reach for the cutting board,
and chop the zucchini, the shallot, the herbs, then the walnuts,
and finally the prosciutto. heat the tablespoon of butter in a
small saute pan over medium heat, being careful not to brown.
add the zucchini and the shallots, cooking till softened and the
excess liquid has been cooked off, about 7 minutes. let this cool
a bit, then in the same pan (why spend time washing pots tonight?)
mix in the prosciutto, herbs, egg yolks, and walnuts. season with
the nutmeg and pepper, the prosciutto will bring all the salt
the stuffing needs. divide this stuffing in four, and place 1/4
of it on each flattened breast. wrap the chicken around the stuffing.
dust these petite stuffed chicken breasts with the flour, dip
in the beaten eggs and roll wickedly in the breadcrumbs. heat
a medium size saute pan over medium heat, add 3 tablespoons of
the olive oil, and brown the chicken in this carefully, turning
to do so evenly. this will take 40-45 minutes. remove the chicken
to a small serving platter. lastly prepare the sauce. over medium
heat, add the orange juice to the pan juices and scrape up any
crumbed bits, follow this with the mustard, then the stock or
the cream depending on your mood and taste preference.
july 2005 - pisto manchego (zucchini, green
pepper & tomato medley) from kid-chefs in spain week
during our week of kid-chefs in spain, we made pisto manchego.
similar to ratatouille. it can be served warm to accompany a main
dish or cold as a starter or to accompany a salad. pisto can be
used as a filling for sandwiches, savory crepes, empanadillas
or little puffed pastry pies or even as a pasta sauce. pisto manchego
freezes well, so you can make a big batch and use as required.
this is an easy recipe for a traditional spanish dish which originally
came from castilla la mancha (hence its name, pisto manchego)
but is nowadays a favorite simple dish cooked and served all over
spain.
4 ripe tomatoes, 2 medium size onions, 2 green peppers, 1 red
pepper, 2 courgettes (zucchini), 3 cloves of garlic, olive oil,
sugar, salt and pepper
dip the tomatoes in boiling water to loosen the skin, then peel
them and cut them in to small pieces. peel and slice the onions
and garlic, clean and slice the peppers and courgettes. put the
olive oil into a frying pan, and gently fry the garlic and onions
for a couple of minutes. add the peppers and turn up the heat
a little. cook for five minutes, stirring all the time. add the
courgette, stir and cook for five more minutes and then add the
tomatoes. cover the pan, and leave to simmer for about 15 minutes.
add a teaspoon of sugar and salt and pepper to taste. turn up
the heat and stir well. if the pisto has too much liquid, let
it boil away but keep stirring so that none of the ingredients
stick to the bottom.
tips and ideas: use plum tomatoes if you can, or if tomatoes
are not prime use a little tomato puree before covering the pan
and letting is simmer. or, if you live in spain, use a couple
of spoons of tomato frito which you can buy in all supermarkets
or grocery shops. if you want an herb-y flavor to your pisto,
use fresh basil or oregano. for a delicious sandwich, slice a
chapatti or baguette loaf and put in a slice of spanish omelet
and a generous spoonful of pisto manchego. delicious cold or warm.
august 2005 - advanced kid-chefs' german salads
ideas only this month - let your imagination fill in the quantities
and have fun!
salad with blackberry and honey vinaigrette: salad composed of
lettuce and grated carrots. the dressing consisted of fresh blackberries,
white wine vinegar, honey, mustard, salt and pepper.
warm cabbage kielbasa: carrots, corn, kielbasa sausage, bacon,
brown sugar, honey and vinegar
horseradish coleslaw: apple, pears, jicama, bell peppers dressed
with horseradish, mayonnaise, honey, and apple cider vinegar
warm potato salad: potatoes, onions and hard boiled eggs dressed
with a honey mustard vinaigrette
lima bean, corn, tomato and cucumber salad: vegetables with bacon
and dressed with a warm butter, paprika, nutmeg, garlic glaze
warm acorn squash sautee: acorn squash baked with raisins, onions
and apples. dressing: ginger vinegar, mustard, butter, nutmeg,
cinnamon, salt and pepper
homemade spaetzle tossed with bacon, toasted walnuts and butter
peach and blueberry crisp: peaches and blueberries mixed with
sugar and flour with a crumb topping of: flour, oatmeal, melted
butter, sugar and cinnamon
