culinary flights of fancy

Home Cooking Adventures in Berkeley Heights

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Taste Around Town in Berkeley Heights (August 10th-23rd)

Hi.  As most of you know, I write a regular weekly column for TapInto.net that is picked up by various towns around the area.  Much like here, the column focuses on new recipes.  However, I do like to visit restaurants and try different things.  As such, TapInto.net Berkeley Heights is hosting a Taste Around Berkeley Heights with lots of different specials at many of the restaurants around our town.

Restaurants range from fairly inexpensive to some of the pricier local choices.  So, if you are looking for a nice night out, this is a great time to sample our local fare.  The specials run for a couple of weeks and if you participate you even have a chance to win/earn prizes.  Here is the link with the details of the program as well as the specifics on the specials offered at each restaurant.  I hope everyone who is local takes advantage of the specials and supports our local restaurants…there are good deals to be enjoyed (and everyone needs a break from the kitchen every once in a while, right?).

Roasted Corn with Citrus Honey Cilantro and Queso Fresco

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A recipe from last Summer that might be just the thing to kick off Summer at your weekend BBQ. Happy Memorial Day!

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Roasted Corn with Citrus Honey Cilantro and Queso Fresco

This simple dish is a great side dish during a meal or eaten as an appetizer the same way you would at a street fair.  Loaded with flavor, this sweet and savory dish, should please children and adults alike!  Since Jersey corn is plentiful, inexpensive, and delicious, this is a great option to feed the family a budget friendly dish that tastes great.  It’s also a great little side dish for the upcoming long weekend.

Ingredients:

4 ears of Jersey Corn (husked, silks removed)

4 tablespoons room temperature unsalted butter

Zest of one lime

1 generous tablespoon honey

1 bunch fresh cilantro- chopped

1 teaspoon chili powder (ancho or chipotle is ideal)

6 Tablespoons queso fresco

2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil

Kosher Salt and Fresh Pepper

Instructions:

  • Preheat grill to 450 (or so) about 20 minutes if using a gas grill.
  • Gather all ingredients as the grill comes to temperature.
  • Remove…

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Roasted Chicken with Wilted Spinach, Corn Hash, and Ancho and Guajillo Chile Sauce/Salsa

Another Cinco De Mayo option…

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Every once in a while, I get a serious craving for Mexican or Tex-Mex food.  I spent a long time living in Texas and definitely developed a taste for that general cuisine.  Unfortunately, I have yet to come across a decent Mexican or Tex-Mex restaurant in Berkeley Heights or the surrounding areas.  So, sometimes my wife and I head into NYC and go to Toloache, our favorite Mexican restaurant in the area and my craving is curbed.  (Yes, google it and go immediately if you live in the area!)  At other times, I take matters into my own hands and attempt to create something unique and tasty.  This dish turned out very well.  I’m not sure just how unique it is, but it is certainly in the general ballpark of good Mexican and Tex-Mex.  It’s also a very versatile dish.  If you don’t have time to roast a chicken, try grilling a chicken breast.  If you don’t…

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Mexican Extravaganza: Charred and Fresh Tomato Salsa, Corn and Jalapeno Salsa, Guacamole, and Flour Tortilla Recipes

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Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Enjoy this post from last year as you decide what to make on this warm New Jersey spring day.  Up next, asparagus and ramps with Einkorn wheat.  Until then…enjoy!

I mentioned in the previous ‘duck breast’ post that we had a bit of Mexican extravaganza on Monday night. By that I mean that I made multiple salsas, guacamole, fresh chopped vegetables, a number of different meats, and homemade tortillas. I made a ground beef traditional ‘Tex-Mex’ taco meat as well as the duck breast and we added the salsas, guacamole, and various other toppings to create our own individualized tacos. In the previous post, I focused on the technique for cooking the duck breast. However I don’t believe I mentioned seasoning and that was really because I only used salt and didn’t even bother to oil the cast iron pan. The duck releases so much oil as it cooks that there’s really no need to do that.

Anyway, I LOVE this type of meal. I’ve mentioned previously that I lived in Texas for a good number of years and every once in a while I crave Mexican food. This is a great time of year to cook Mexican food…fresh fruits and vegetables are in full swing for a couple more weeks and with Mexican food you can use all those tomatoes, ears of corn, peaches, onions, peppers, and virtually anything else that you find at the farmer’s market or the grocery store. The window to enjoy the freshness of these summer treats is closing and closing quickly though. If you start to look at the markets, you’ll start to notice pumpkins, apples, and the like, signaling the arrival of fall fruits and vegetables. So, do this NOW.  More text and recipes for salsas, guacamole, and tortillas after the jump! Continue reading →


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Easter Celebration Menu: Fresh ham with Provencal Herbs and basted in French wine

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Try this for your Easter celebration on Sunday.  It’s very easy, feeds a crowd, and is unbelievably good.  I used a red wine here but a good French wine will work just as well.  I plan to make a Swiss chard gratin, salad, bread, and some other sort of vegetable dish to be determined.  I haven’t sorted out dessert yet either but will post the full menu once I figure it out.  Until then, check this recipe out and give it a try!  PS- this is a recipe from last summer.  I’m reposting it because this is the dish we landed on for Easter this year…my Italian Easter Pie idea was nixed (boo!).

I don’t have a lot of experience with fresh ham. This is actually only the second time I’ve cooked one, though it’s such a massive piece of meat, you can adapt all sorts of recipes for leftovers…

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Valentine’s Day Part 3 Continued, The Finish: Apple Galette with Honey, Lemon, and Thyme

Apple galette with honey, lemon, and thyme.

Apple galette with honey, lemon, and thyme.

The tart shell, per the recipe, can be made in a food processor. However, I prefer to do it by hand on the counter top.

The tart shell, per the recipe, can be made in a food processor. However, I prefer to do it by hand on the counter top.

Here is a very easy tart shell recipe that will give great results.  Beyond that, I took 4 red apples and sliced them very, very thinly.  I used a mandolin for this actually.  If you don’t have a mandolin, just slice the apple as thinly as possible going slowly so you don’t cut yourself.  Once done with the slicing, add some lemon juice to the apple slices and mix well to prevent them from browning.  About 30 minutes prior to assembling the tart, take about 1/2 Cup of honey and place it in a small saucepan.  Add a few sprigs of thyme and the zest of one lemon.  Place the pan on simmer (or the lowest setting you have) and allow the mixture to steep until you are ready to assemble the tart.

When ready, remove the thyme springs and then add all but two tablespoons to the sliced apples and toss the apples in the honey mixture.  Place the filling in the tart shell that’s been rolled out.  Place filling in the middle of the tart allowing about a two inch border.  Once the apples are in the middle, simply fold the crust up and around the apples.  Once done, brush the dough with a bit of olive oil. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes (mine took 35ish).  However start checking the tart at the 20 minute point and check it every 5-10 minutes after that until it’s well browned and done.  Once done, take the remaining couple tablespoons of the honey mix and lightly and carefully brush it over the top of the tart.  Allow tart to cool a bit before moving it to a platter to serve.  Reheat it in a low oven if you prefer to serve it warm.

I was going to do a main course for the Valentine’s Day menu but for a number of reasons, my wife and I decided to celebrate the holiday at home next week.  We are leaving town for the actual holiday.  However, I planned on serving all of this with a roasted leg of lamb.  I think any roast or steak would go very well with this general progression of dishes and certainly will be quite nice on a cold and likely snowy Valentine’s Day evening.  So enjoy the holiday and the long weekend! Next week…French onion soup is on the docket.


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Valentine’s Day Part 3, The Finish: Chocolate Cake with Brandied Cherries

Chocolate cake drizzled with brandied cherries. If you don't have brandied cherries, any liqueur would work well too.

Chocolate cake drizzled with brandied cherries. If you don’t have brandied cherries, any liqueur would work well too.

Chocolate cake soaked with brandied cherries.

Chocolate cake soaked with brandied cherries.

Good news, bad news…our Internet is wonky today and I’ve been on the line with Verizon off and on this morning trying to fix it.  So, the bad news is that I really can’t post an extensive recipe today.  The good news, however, is that I can post from my phone and I can provide pictures and some basic suggestions.  The even better news is that for this one, I used someone’s recipe for the cake and used my own recipe for the brandied cherries.  I believe most liquor stores now sell brandied cherries so they are generally available for purchase.  However if you don’t have time or the inclination to run to the liquor store, feel free to enjoy the cake on it’s own or drizzle another liqueur over the top.  There are cherry liqueurs that would work great as cherry and chocolate really work well together.  Baileys, cognac, brandy, and bourbon would all work too.  Really the possibilities are endless.  So go with what you like.  Here is the link to the cake…it’s very easy and quite good.

Once the cake is cooled, add the brandied cherries liquid over the top by the spoonful until the entire cake has soaked in some of the liquid.  Allow that to sit for a bit and then take a fine mesh strainer and place some powdered sugar in it and gently shake the strainer over the cake to finish.


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Valentine’s Day Menu Part 2: Roasted Beet and Blood Orange Salad with Pea Shoots

Roasted Beet Salad with Blood Oranges and Pea Shoots. Serve as a beautiful side dish to go with a nice roast or steak.

Roasted Beet Salad with Blood Oranges and Pea Shoots. Serve as a beautiful side dish to go with a nice roast or steak.

For a nice little salad or side dish, this beet and blood orange salad is great for Valentine’s Day for the color alone.  As a bonus, it’s both sweet and tangy with a bit of heat from red pepper flakes.  The pea shoots provide both a nice crunch as well as a burst of green color to finish the whole thing off.  They also hint of things to come as peas season will be here before you know it as spring creeps every closer.

This couldn’t really be easier which is, as always, a real bonus. It also is very simple and allows the three ingredients to really shine.  As such, use the best quality olive oil you have.  Now’s the time to break it out.  Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →


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Products Worth Mentioning: Black Garlic

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Black garlic is simply garlic that has been roasted, fermented, and aged in a controlled temperature and humidity level for a period of time, usually about a month.  It has a super interesting flavor with notes of sweet garlic, molasses, and perhaps even some vinegar notes.  I read about it a few months ago and decided to order it (on Amazon) over the holidays and made a flatbread with black garlic and mushrooms last week (recipe for some flatbreads to follow in the coming days).  Tara and I both agreed that we had never really had anything like it.  It, as I said above, has just a really interesting flavor.  You can read more about black garlic here.

Oh, I almost left out the best part of using black garlic:  it is very, very good for you.  If you are into food (and I assume you are since you are reading a food blog), you’ve probably noticed an increase in conversation about the benefits of fermented food and it’s link to helping improve and balance the bacterial world that resides in our guts.  Black garlic,since it is fermented, has a number of health benefits.

Interestingly, scientists are finding ever increasing evidence that these bacteria provide us with a huge number of important health and wellness benefits.  It’s one of the reasons you have been hearing more and more about yogurt with bacterial cultures left in tact, sauerkraut, and kimchi among others and how all of these fermented foods truly benefit a number of biological functions and environments within our body.  As an aside, I made yogurt, kimchi, and sauerkraut last year and all are easy to pull off.  Please experiment around.  I’ll try to post a couple of recipes on these myself but, for example, homemade sauerkraut consists of cabbage and salt at its most basic level and only requires time to ferment.  The end result is infinitely better (I mean way better) than the store bought variety and is so very good for you.  I digress…

Along with the flatbread last week, I am planning on making fresh ravioli with black garlic tonight.  Right now the plan is to use it with some marscarpone and something else with savory notes (as you can tell, I’m still working that out).  However, assuming it turns out well, I’ll post the recipe for the black garlic ravioli at some point next week.  In fact, I’m making a number of different pastas from scratch tonight so hopefully, with luck, they will turn out and you can expect those next week too.  I’m sort of excited about the pasta as I know a good number of readers here love pasta and I’m planning on making some unique flavor combinations that use a number of different flours, etc.

Further, I’ve been experimenting around with various types of flours in hopes of coming up with a better quality pizza crust (which can double as a flatbread crust) that can work for home cooks.  By experimenting and having some rather lackluster results at times (ask Tara), I think I’ve come up with a winner of a recipe using two different types of flour and a drastically reduced amount of yeast.  Also, I spoke to a chef in Florence about their pizza crust (which I loved) and he gave me a great tip/hint as well and I’ll share that too.  So, I will be posting another pizza night extravaganza suite of recipes similar to what I did a few months back but reflecting my new crust recipe and cooking technique…plus new topping ideas.

Until then…try the black garlic and other fermented foods.  You will love the taste and you will reap a good number of health benefits to boot!


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Roasted Pumpkin Stuffed with Quinoa, Kale, Toasted Walnuts, and Garlic

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Okay, okay, I know…I’m really late to the party with this one.  As I mentioned a while ago, I somehow managed to create a huge backlog of recipes and dishes and found that between vacations, holidays, and just the time it takes to mess around with recipe development in the kitchen, I just simply ran out of time to write everything up in a timely manner.  So, the bad news is that unless you purchased a pumpkin a while back and stored it in a cool spot that allows it to still be good and able to be used, you will likely have to adapt this recipe to other winter squashes.  The good news, however, is that there are plenty of great options still available at both farmer’s markets (yep, we have winter farmer’s markets still going…my wife and I really like the one in Ramsey, NJ though it’s a bit of a hike to get there) and grocery stores.  Anyway, feel free to use acorn squash or any other winter squash that can be hollowed out and stuffed.  Obviously the smaller the squash variety, the less time it will take to roast it.  Beyond that the process remains the same.

I haven’t cooked with quinoa a whole lot.  Despite it being very very healthy and now, quite popular, I just never jumped on the bandwagon.  However, I really liked this dish and think the nuttiness of the quinoa grain really added something to the overall flavor of the dish.  You cook the quinoa separately according to package directions, which is pretty easy and goes fairly quickly when compared to other whole grain preparations.  Here, I used a vegetable stock in lieu of water but you can do as you like.  If you prefer chicken stock, that would work well with this as well too.  Otherwise, this recipe is very simple but I think, as the picture conveys, it is a pretty impressive looking vegetable dish that can be enjoyed both simply as a family or for a dinner party.

Oh, one last thing…if you don’t have a pumpkin, next year you can find great roasting pumpkins at Vito’s in Berkeley Heights in mid to late fall.  Just ask them where their roasting pumpkins are and they will gladly show you some good ones. The good news about pumpkins as I alluded to above, they can keep for a number of months without any issues.  Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →