Batter up!!

One of Dad's favorite foods is fried chicken.  I'm not a big fan of chicken however, since I arrived in California and learned this, I have spent many nights trying to achieve the perfect version of fried chicken for him. 
Mostly I've failed miserably!
 After trying many techniques, I realized the oil I use is crucial.  Years ago I had switched to Olive Oil for cooking,  and found that it just doesn't get hot enough to cook the chicken clear through before it burns the batter.  I tried mixing the olive oil with vegetable oil, and that still wasn't quite right.  This has been very disconcerting for me but I was determined to find just the right recipe.
In my youth, I was revered for my version of fried chicken.  I used a recipe that I developed as I learned to cook, however since then, I've developed allergies that require me to change many recipes so that I can eat them.  One of these is fried chicken.  Eggs are a no-no now, so no more double dredging after an egg wash.  I no longer cook with Crisco, so that makes a difference in the way the chicken cooks, and the flavor of the finished fried chicken.
I had changed my recipe to include the chicken,  pressed garlic, salt and pepper and flour.  My secret is to press garlic through a garlic press, mix the garlic in a little olive oil with kosher salt, and then rub it on the dried chicken parts before dredging it in seasoned flour.  When the chicken is fried, the crust is scattered with crispy bits of garlic that give it a little punch.  I've kept this a secret, so only you dear readers get that tasty tidbit.

I was watching America's test kitchen who professed that they had found the perfect batter for fried chicken. 
I was skeptical. 
I watched. 
I listened. 
I was interested.
I liked what I saw, so I worked on the recipe to develop the taste that pleased my family, and make me happy too.  Here is the tasty results:


Battered Fried Chicken


6 chicken thighs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp pepper
1 tsp paprika
3 cloves of garlic, pressed through a garlic press
1 cup water


whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, pepper and paprika in a large mixing bowl.  Add water and mix until blended well.  The mixture will be very thin, but should be.
wash and dry the chicken pieces.
rub the pressed garlic over each piece of chicken.  Chunks of garlic should stick to the dried chicken meat and skin.  let them rest for a few minutes while your oil gets hot.
I use my cast iron skillet when I make fried chicken.  I fill it with vegetable oil to about 1/3 full.  I turn the heat on medium high and let the oil get hot.  When it is about 365 degrees farenhreit, it is right.  You can tell by dropping a drop of batter in the hot oil, it will sizzle instantly.
Take each piece of chicken and dip it into the batter and take it right out again, then put skin side down in the hot oil.  3 pieces fit in nicely.  Let them cook until the batter is cooked and a golden brown on one side, then turn them over. 
It takes about 13-15 minutes per side. 
Pierce the chicken through the center with a fork to check for doneness, the juices should run clear with no pink.  When it is done, you should not feel any resistance in the meat when you stick the fork into it, even by the bone.  There is a difference in the way almost done and done feels.  You will be able to tell the difference with a little practice and attention to the internal pressure of your meat. 
When it is ready to take from the pan, drain each piece of chicken on a folded paper towel and then turn the piece of chicken over to drain on the other side.  Put the rest of the battered chicken in the hot oil, skin down after dipping, and cook each side until golden brown.  Drain the chicken on folded paper towels and serve. 
If you are not sure about the doneness of the chicken, you can pre-heat your oven to 250-300 degrees, put the cooked chicken on a baking sheet, and let the chicken cook for another 15 minutes in the oven.
The crispy outside should keep the chicken tender and moist even if it cooks a bit too long.

Lemon pudding cake anyone?

We have a Meyer's Lemon Tree in our yard, so I like to make these tasty little pudding cakes on a whim!

Meyer Lemon Pudding Cakes

2 eggs separated

3/4 cup sugar
3 1/2 Tblsp unsalted butter melted

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

5 Tblsp all purpose flour

5 Tblsp meyer lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

1 1/4 cup milk (whole or 2%)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Cream egg yolks and sugar.  Add flour, butter, lemon juice and lemon zest, and milk.  Blend well.

In another bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar till peaks form.  Fold into the other mixture.  It will be thin.

Spoon into small ramekins till 3/4 full.  Put ramekins into baking pan with sides.  Add hot water till up to 1" from bottom of ramekins. 

Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes, or until top is golden.  Cool 20-30 minutes, or chill in fridge till cold. 

Bon et au goût âpre!

oh... who needs a food mill!

So, since my husband is gone so much, I've been spending a lot of time watching the food network and cookingchannel tv.  I'm always looking for another way to cook things in a new and different way.  As a result of watching so many cooking shows, I've become a fan of Anne Burrell in Secrets of a Restaurant Chef.  She makes a simple marinara sauce from scratch that sounded pretty good so I wanted to try to make it, or something like it. 
I used 3 large cans (28 oz) of whole tomatoes.  I opened them and poured the juice and tomatoes into a large strainer over a large bowl.  I then coated the bottom of my le creuset dutch oven with olive oil which I heated over medium heat.  I thought... how hard can it be?
Ha Ha.

I used a wooden spoon and began to press the tomatoes into the strainer, scraped the bottom of the strainer to get all the good tomato into the bowl, leaving the skin, the seeds and the thick core behind.

You can see how long this might have taken by the thickness of the tomato on the bottom of the strainer!

Now this is supposed to be an easy process, however, without a food mill to do the work for me, this entire process of pressing 3 cans of tomatoes through the strainer took me almost 2 hours!  I ended up taking the pan off the heat so that I could finish and started the cooking after I had strained all my tomatoes. 

(Guess who ordered a food mill!) 

After straining all the tomatoes, I turned the heat back on and after the pan was hot I added 2 pieces of thick sliced bacon which I cut into lardons.   I cooked the bacon for a few minutes over medium heat in my dutch oven, rendering the fat and turning the lardons a glossy golden color.  After rendering the fat from the bacon, I added 2 whole diced sweet onions.  I added salt to the onions and stirring occasionally, cooked them a few minutes until they were translucent.  I then added 6 cloves of diced garlic and cooked the mixture for another 2-3 minutes, or until you begin to smell the garlic cooking. 

I then added the pureed tomatoes to the pot and added a can of water to the mixture, salting liberally.  Continuing over medium heat, cook the mixture for 2-3 hours, stirring frequently and tasting for the proper amount of salt. 

I have to say that this is one of the best red sauces I've ever made.  It was simple in it's complexity, and yet tasted full and rich with flavor.  I immediately made lasagna with it and then used it a few days later in my meat loaf.  Now I made a great meat loaf, but this time, Dad took one bite and said "this is really good meatloaf... it is very flavorful" 

I could have fallen off my chair.

Bon pain de viande!