As the leaves fall and the October page turns, here's a hope that you will keep on sharing what is working, simply, in your kitchen ... or what was served to you or delivered to your front porch ... or what gave you sustenance of any kind in the days just past.
Yeast of the Ridge has two recipe requests and one shopping request. "I was served a wonderful salad recently that contained Stonewall Kitchen's Maple Bacon Balsamic Dressing. I would love to know where it could be purchased locally, but maybe even more I would like a recipe that contains the flavors of maple, bacon and balsamic vinegar.
Second item. "Does anyone have a recipe for homemade crackers that is not too complicated?"
DECEPTIVELY SIMPLE
Linda Morris of Lookout Mountain opened the conversation this morning.
"I am responding to the request from someone wanting recipes of few ingredients. I, too, most of the time like these type of recipes as they somewhat seem easier and quicker to prepare. The 'extravagant' part in the title is a joke because the first time I served it, the remark was made that it was such an 'extravagant' dish. I had to laugh to myself because it was so quick and easy."
My Extravagant Chicken
Chicken breast
Sliced mushrooms
White wine
Olive oil
Sour cream
Dijon mustard
Saute chicken breast in olive oil; add mushrooms. When browned, add wine, and cover until wine cooks down. Remove chicken and mushrooms from skillet, and add sour cream mixed with mustard. Add chicken and mushrooms back to sauce. Heat thoroughly, and enjoy.
BAVARIAN-INSPIRED
Dan Cobb opened his missive from Soddy-Daisy thus. "When you asked for recipes with five or fewer ingredients, two came right to mind. They are so quick and easy that I prepare them frequently." The first is printed below; the second, you'll have to anticipate for next week.
Sauerlinks
1 can shredded sauerkraut, 16 ounces or more
1 pound bratwurst or Italian sausage links, skinned
3 potatoes, peeled and cut in half longways
1/2 teaspoon dill seed (optional)
Spread sauerkraut with juice in bottom of a baking dish. Line sausages and potatoes on top of kraut. Sprinkle with optional dill seed.
Cover, and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until potatoes are fork-tender.
MICROGREENS
Valerie Bowers chimed in with shopping and ingredient commentary.
"My new favorite place to buy microgreens is from Red Clay Farms ... an organic farm that comes to the Ooltewah Farmers Market at Ooltewah Nursery on Thursday afternoons, currently open from 3 to 6 p.m. These are the freshest microgreens I've ever been able to purchase, and they offer many varieties. To ensure you get what you want (i.e. sunflower, kale, mizuna, broccoli, etc.) email them at rshaffer1959@gmail.com a day or two before, and they'll have them set aside for you. Also check out their organic locally milled grains."
GLUTEN-FREE PASTA
"As for gluten-free pasta," she continued," I have two favorites depending on the dish in which I'm using them: I use Andean Dream macaroni and spaghetti - an organic quinoa and rice blend. I use it because it doesn't contain corn as many of the gluten-free pastas do (tastes much better), it's organic, and quinoa is a healthy grain that provides protein and fiber.
It's a good blank slate for flavorful sauces, pasta salads and macaroni and cheese.
"I also use Cappello's fettuccine and lasagna sheets. It's a heavier pasta made from almond flour that works well with pasta dishes that need a more substantial pasta. Almonds and eggs are its first two ingredients, so you know it provides good nutritional value as well.
"Whole Foods carries both. Andean Dream is dried pasta, while Cappello's is frozen. Andean Dream is also available at Vitacost.com for those who like to order healthy foods online.
"I think the biggest key to using GF pasta successfully (besides beginning with quality ingredients) is to cook it carefully. "It can go from pasta to starchy mush in the blink of an eye. Watch it, test a piece and remove from heat and water just a bit underdone (or 'al dente,' firm to the tooth) before using in a recipe."
NEW BLOGGER
The next source of good things is an ongoing one. Emily Cullum, who is from Signal Mountain, has just received her master's degree in social work, and in the middle of work as a counselor, she has gotten interested in healthy cooking. The logical and beneficial result: She started a blog.
You can find her at tasteabundanceblog.com, and I can report that it is as delightful as its author.
Ms. Cullum's first post was a chicken recipe that testified to her love of "quick recipes with minimal prep and cleanup. This lemon rosemary whole roasted chicken should be the poster child for that." She means it about the importance of taste; she uses two heads of garlic, not two cloves, in this recipe.
Lemon Rosemary Whole Roasted Chicken
The process is simple: Once your ingredients are gathered, chop the potatoes and add them to the bottom of the Dutch oven. Add the garlic and rosemary to the bottom as well. After stuffing the whole chicken with the rest of the ingredients, place it on top of the potatoes. Then, cover the chicken in butter and salt and pepper. Then, let the oven do the work. This is a great standalone meal, or you can make additional sides while the chicken is cooking.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 40 minutes
1 large golden/white potato
2 medium sweet potatoes
2 heads garlic
Fresh rosemary
1 lemon
1 whole chicken
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper
Gather all ingredients, as well as your Dutch oven (or cast-iron skillet), and heat the oven to 425 degrees.
Chop all potatoes in 4-inch chunks. Peel several garlic cloves (5 to 10 or to your liking). Place the chopped potatoes at the bottom of the Dutch oven, along with the peeled cloves of garlic as well as 3 to 4 sprigs of rosemary.
Season the potatoes in the Dutch oven with salt and pepper
Slice the lemon in half, slice the remaining garlic head in half, and have several more sprigs of rosemary on hand.
Remove your whole chicken from the package, and discard the giblets (all the stuff in the inside).
Where the giblets were removed from is where you will place the ingredients to flavor the chicken. Add 1 lemon half first, then half a garlic head, then the rosemary, next the other half of the garlic head and finish with the last lemon half. There really is not a method to this, but I've found this typically works to fit everything.
After the chicken is stuffed, spread the butter all over the chicken until it is evenly coated. Finish by seasoning generously with salt and pepper.
Next, place the stuffed chicken on top of the potatoes and other ingredients in the Dutch oven or skillet.
Place the Dutch oven or skillet in the oven without a lid or covering, and cook for 75 minutes. I usually end up cooking mine for 90 minutes but check it at 75 minutes. The internal temperature should be 165, and the juices should run clear.
Makes 4 servings.
Thanks to you all, and come back next Wednesday, please.
REQUESTS
* Maple, bacon and balsamic vinegar salad dressing
* Homemade crackers
TO REACH US
Fare Exchange is a longtime meeting place for people who love to cook and love to eat. We welcome both your recipes and your requests. Be sure to include precise instructions for every recipe you send.
Mailing address: Jane Henegar, 913 Mount Olive Road, Lookout Mountain, GA 30750
Email: chattfare@gmail.com
Jane Henegar