Another Good Cooking Seminar At Williams-Sonoma

21 Wednesday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Appetizers, Brunch, Classes, Cooking Classes, Dessert, Food Photos, Fruits, Local Farmers Markets, Local Harvests, Local Markets, Locavore, Mahi Mahi, Photos By: Bob Young, Salads, Special Events, What's For Dinner?

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food, ground mustard, mission figs, Williams Sonoma, yummy dessert

A good seminar with Chef Chad entitled Farm To Table. It was good to have Robin with me at this event too. In keeping with the theme, Chef Chad emphasized the use of local and fresh products from local farmer’s markets and vegetable stands. He did a good job in using these local products where ever possible. Black Mission Figs don’t grow in the Treasure Valley! Here are some photos of the dishes that Chef Chad showed us this evening. Cheers and enjoy! There are recipes available if you would like one. Just let me know.

Fig and Fromage Blanc Crostini

A great appetizer. The recipe says to use ciabatta, but Chef Chad changed it to sourdough which worked very well.

Baby Arugula Salad with Berries and Gorgonzola

Gorgonzola is not one of my favorite cheeses, but the combinations in the salad worked very well with the cheese. It was suggested to add some toasted nuts to the salad. Try adding fresh thyme and stone ground mustard to the vinaigrette. You can also make this into a main dish by adding marinated red onions and thinly sliced grilled steak.

Rolled Eggplant with Sausage and Mascarpone Reday for the oven to bake at 450 degrees for 4-7 minutes.

Rolled Eggplant with Sausage and Ricotta

Ready for the oven to bake at 450 degrees for 4-7 minutes.

Rolled Eggplant with Sausage and Ricotta

Sauteed Pluots with Mascarpone and Almonds

Ok. What are “pluots”? Good question. They are a cross between apricots and red plums. Also known in some places as Red Apricots. Slightly sweet. Slightly tart. A yummy dessert!

So as you can see, a delicious and wonderful seminar/class. We will not be able to make the September event, but will try to make the October class. Most of these recipes come from the Williams-Sonoma Cooking from the Farmers’ Market by Tasha DeSerio and Jodi Liano (Weldon Owen, Inc. 2010). Cheers and Bon Appetite!

Breakfast At Robin’s!

18 Sunday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Acme Bake Shop, Acme Bake Shop Breads, Bacon, Bread, Breakfast, Captain's Shack, Eggs, Food Photos, French Foods, Mushrooms, Photos By: Bob Young, Potato Bread, Sourdough Bread, What's For Dinner?

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breakfast, coconut syrup, mrs butterworth, potato bread, sauteed mushrooms

I think most of the readers here know how much I do like Acme Bake Shop breads! I just think they take great pride in producing an awesome product: Rye, Ciabatta, Baguettes, Sourdough and Potato to name a few. Here is breakfast that we fixed this morning using sourdough and potato bread with bacon and sauteed mushrooms, on the side. Enjoy!

Acme Bake Shop Sourdough and Potato Bread French Toast
Sauteed Mushrooms on the side
Crispy Falls Brand Bacon
Coffee

An awesome breakfast. Use a topping for the French Toast of your choice. Fruit, coconut syrup, Mrs Butterworth’s or powdered sugar. Have fun with this.

Chicken Marsala with Home Made Pasta

17 Saturday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Acme Bake Shop, Bread, Captain's Shack, Chianti, Chicken, Classic Sauces, Ethnic Foods, Herbs and Spices, Italian Food, Main Dish, Mushrooms, Photos By: Bob Young, Potato Bread, Recipe by: Robin and Bob Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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button mushrooms, chicken marsala recipe, olive garden chicken marsala recipe

This was a really good dinner. It took about an hour to make. The ingredients were as local as possible. Here is the photo of the dinner and a recipe. Enjoy!

Chicken Marsale with Home Made Pasta and Tomatoes and Parsley Acme Bake Shop Toasted Potato Bread 2001 Tiziano Chianto Reserva

Chicken Marsala
over
Home Made Pasta and Tomatoes and Parsley
Acme Bake Shop Toasted Potato Bread (Not pictured)
2001 Tiziano Chianto Reserva

Here is the recipe. Enjoy!

Olive Garden Chicken Marsala Recipe

Recipe Adapted By: Bob Young
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
4 Chicken Breasts, boneless & skinless
½ c Flour
Sea Salt to taste
Cracked Pepper to taste
3 T fresh Oregano, chopped
4 T Olive Oil
4 T Butter
3 c fresh Button Mushrooms, sliced
1¼ c Marsala wine

Directions:
1. Pound chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap until about ¼” thickness.
2. Combine flour, salt, pepper and oregano in a mixing bowl. Dredge chicken pieces in the flour, shaking off any excess.
3. Heat oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken breasts on medium heat for about 4 minutes on the first side, until lightly browned. Turn breasts over to cook other side, then add mushrooms to skillet. Cook breasts about 4 more minutes, until both sides are lightly browned. Continue to stir mushrooms. Add Marsala wine around chicken pieces.
4. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.
5. Transfer to serving plate. Serve over lightly buttered or olive oil pasta with some diced parsley. This will go well with a Chianti. We had a 2001 Tiziano Chianti Reserva that was ready to be served and went well with the dinner.

New Boise Farmer’s Market

17 Saturday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Acme Bake Shop, Acme Bake Shop Breads, Baking, Boise Farmers Market, Bread, Buy Idaho, Local Farmers Markets, Local Markets, Locavore, Photos By: Bob Young, Potato Bread, Sourdough Bread, What's For Dinner?

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Acme Bake Shop, food, fresh eggs, Goat Cheese, potato bread, sourdough bread

Yup, it’s Saturday and time to stop at the market. We needed some fresh vegetables and eggs. And I always stop at Rollingstone Chevre (see the link in the sidebar) and talk to Karen for a moment or two. My other routine is to stop in at Acme Bake Shop booth and get some their fresh baked sourdough. And Soraya said, “Bob. You must try this Potato Bread.” Now, Soraya has never misled us …. never. So I accepted her challenge and bought a loaf, and a loaf of sourdough also. Robin and I don’t normally eat white bread, but the Potato Bread is really good. Here are some photos of the bread this morning after I took it home and sliced it. Enjoy!

Acme Bake Shop Potato Bread

This is a new item, I think. It is a light potato bread that will make a great substitute for your “everyday” white, doughy, pasty white bread. This Potato Bread is definitely not that!

Acme Bake Shop Sourdough Bread

This is an amazing sourdough bread. It toasts wonderfully and has a unique sour taste that a sourdough must have. In my opinion, this is the best sourdough in Boise, right up there with the Acme Bake Shop Rye.

I did pick up some fresh vegetables. Turnips, garlic, beets, herbed goat cheese and fresh eggs. So it was not just a “bread run”, although my shopping bag looked that way. A good time at the market. I will hate to see it close later this fall.

Our Curry Hake Dinner Tonight

16 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Curry, Ethnic Foods, Food Photos, Green Beans, Hake, Indian Cooking, Local Harvests, Main Dish, Mushrooms, Photos By: Bob Young, Salad, Seafood, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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chantrell mushrooms, cinsault, coconut milk, costco, tomato salad

Our supply, bought from Costco, comes from Namibia, South Africa. We are going to make a Coconut Milk Curry Hake with Roasted Couscous and Green Beans

Coconut Milk Curry Hake
on a bed of
Roasted Quinoa with Chantrell Mushrooms and Raisins
Fresh Cucumber and Fresh Tomato Salad
Sauteed Green Beans with Garlic
2012 Sawtoth Winery Cinsault Rosé

Oh my! This was really good. Our supply of Hake was bought from Costco, comes from Namibia, South Africa. The mushrooms, green beans, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber were all from the New Boise Farmer’s Market.

Hake Dinner

16 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Hake, Healthy Eating, Herbs and Spices, Indian Cooking, Main Dish, Party Time, Quinoa and Grains, Recipes, Seafood, Special Dinners, What's For Dinner?

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food, hake, massachusetts division of marine fisheries, trash fish

That’s right – Hake. But what is it. I actually thought it was Oriental in nature. Wrong! Hake is a white fish that lives 200 – 300 meters below the surface of most oceans found here on Earth. Pacific Ocean, both the northern and southern oceans, Atlantic Ocean, both the northern and southern oceans, the Mediterrean and Black Seas. Off the coast of the USA, Argentina, Chile and South Africa to name a few. According to the Boston Globe in an article Sunday Super – Hake Goes From Trash Fish to Treasure, Hake has become a very popular seafood. In fact, it has been over-fished off the coast of Argentina. In the October 13, 2010 article, the Globe states that,

Hake, once called “trash fish,” because few people wanted it, may be the last bargain in the seafood case. “Yesterday’s trash fish may be tomorrow’s food fish,” says Mark Szymanski, assistant biologist at the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. Carl Fantasia of New Deal Fish Market in East Cambridge sees a lot of hake when he goes to buy fish at the wholesale houses. “I recommend it quite often to people who are looking for a white, flaky alternative to cod or halibut,” says Fantasia. Gavin Egbert, seafood coordinator for the North Atlantic Region for Whole Foods Markets, says that hake has not been ranked by the Blue Ocean Institute, a scientific organization that collects data. No one is really certain whether there are sufficient stocks of this locally caught, sweet, white fish so that you can buy it guilt free.

Our supply, bought from Costco, comes from Namibia, South Africa. We are going to make a Coconut Milk Curry Hake with Roasted Couscous and Green Beans tonight. Here is a recipe link printed by the Boston Globe for Hake Wrapped in Prosciutto. The photo here comes from that recipe. Enjoy this “new found” seafood. Cheers!

Chilean Wines At The Buzz

14 Wednesday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Carrots, Chicken, Chilean Food, Ethnic Foods, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Salads, Shrimp, Soup, Special Dinners, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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butter scotch, shrimp soup, the Buzz, wine club

In spite of all the troubles this past month or so for Cristi, this was an exceptional Wine Club Dinner. (And all for $15 per person!!) Cristi had some superb support – Paul Colwell from BRJ Distributors did a great job in matching the wines with the dinner. And Peggy Hands-Behrens did an awesome job in finding the menu ingredients and preparing this feast. Thank-You both for helping Cristi.
With that in mind ….. The wines that Paul choose went well with the dinner. Cristi’s Choice, not chosen by Paul, was a malbec from Bodega Elena from Mendoza. A good red from the 2011 vintage with an alcohol level of 14.5. A little hot, but good. I rated this red an [18] out of [20]. You can get a bottle for $11.00. Here is what else we had. Enjoy! Left-Click any of these photos to see enlarged.

Pan Con Palta

An avocado breakfast dish in Chili. I don’t particularly care for avocado, but Peggy did a great job with this.
2012 Arenal Artnot Carmenere
14.0% alc. One of the better wines of the evening. Went very well with the avocado and the olives. [19] $13.00
(Robin and I both liked this appetizer. She even made it for breakfast this morning using Acme Bake Shop Sourdough.)

Ensalada Chilena
(This was a great salad.)

2011 Tabali Sauvignon Blanc
13.5% alc. Hints of celery, cedar. The cilantro in the salad overpowered the wine. [17] $14.00

South American Shrimp Soup
(I really liked this soup!)

2011 Iyzaguerre Cab/Merlot Blend
13.5% alc. full bodied and went well with the soup. [19] $12.00

Pollo Arvejado

2011 Tabali Chardonnay
13.5% alc. butter scotch and lemon. Not my favorite. I don’t think it went with the chicken. [16] #15.00

Torta De Hojas
(A good and different dessert.)

2011 Tabali Cab/Syrah
14.5% alc. French oak. full bodied and a great ending to the evening

As you can see, this was a great dinner and some great wines to go with it. If I were to give this event a rating, it would easily be 4 1/2 Stars out of 5. It was that good and the “Step Up Help” did an awesome job. I can not emphasize that enough. Thank-You one and all. Here are some of the wines that were served tonight.

Joesph Geist brought this to share.

These were Cristie’s Choice.

These were some of the wines that were served with dinner.

Chicken Bombs

12 Monday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Captain's Shack, Chicken, Comfort Food, Main Dish, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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colby jack, gin and tonic, skinless chicken breasts

Don’t be afraid! They will not explode. To the left is a photo of the chicken rolled and on the grill. Not very hard to do, but it does take a little time and a little care. Look at the recipe below. A fun and very good way to prepare chicken. Almost like a Cordon Bleu, at least for the stuffing practice. But do try it. Adjust the recipe as necessary and remember that the recipe as listed is for 10. No problem in cutting it in half. One Chicken Bomb is probably plenty for one person. Serve this with a great Hendrick’s Gin, Gin and Tonic. Enjoy!

Chicken Bomb plated with Baked Corn

Chicken Bombs

Makes 10 Chicken Bombs

Ingredients:
5 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
5 jalapeño peppers
20 strips of bacon
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup grated colby jack or cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup BBQ sauce (I look for low sugar — always )

Directions:
Slice chicken breasts in half width wise (Each half will make 1 Chicken Bomb). Place between two pieces of wax paper and pound to 1/4 inch thickness. *A rolling pin also does the trick. Season each with salt a pepper.

Slice jalapeños in half, length wise and remove seeds, ribs, and the end with the stem. In a small bowl, mix your softened
cream cheese with your grated Colby jack.

Fill each jalapeño half with about 1 Tbs cheese mixture. (Sometimes I use more)

Place 1 jalapeño half at the end of each pounded breast piece. Roll over and together. *It doesn’t always close the way you think it should. No worries! The bacon will pull it all together.

Wrap each breast piece with 2 slices of bacon. I do 1 at a time (obviously), and just sort of wrap tightly and tuck the
ends of the bacon under the strips. It all comes together in the cooking process. I promise you do not need toothpicks!

Preheat your grill to 350 degrees. Cook over indirect heat for 20-25 minutes; turning every 4-5 minutes. Baste chicken with BBQ sauce each time you turn it. Giving it one final basting right before it’s done. Chicken is ready when it reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, pierce chicken with a fork. If juices run clear, it’s done!

The Chicken Bomb opened up to see the jalapeno stuffing.

This is not a hot – spicy – meal. I removed the ribs and the seeds to keep the heat low. If you want more heat, leave the ribs and seeds in. And I only used 1 piece of bacon per bomb. It held up very well. Cheers!

Sunday Night At “The Buzz” In Boise

12 Monday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Appetizers, Beans, Bistro, Comfort Food, Finger Foods, Friends, Photos By: Bob Young, Special Events, What's For Dinner?, Wine and Food

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fire storm, great friends, pot luck, two fires, vegetable platter

Great food and great friends gathered at The Buzz in Boise to convey our condolences to Cristi and her family for her loss. We were sitting outside and the fire storm from about 50 miles east of Boise and 25 miles north, presented an imposing image of the vastness of the fire. This morning on NPR I heard were the combined two fires was about 120,000 acres. Yuk!
As we gathered, we shared food as a means of bonding our friendships. Everyone who attended, was asked to bring some type of pot luck. And, if you desired, bring a wine. We took a 2010 Fujishin Family Cellars Viognier, a corn pie and grilled fresh herbed zucchini. (Photos are below) Others brought all kinds of wines, BBQ pork, beans, soup, vegetable platter, hot artichoke dip, brownies and different breads. It was a good gathering to show the extent of our friendship for Cristi and her family. Here are a few more photos. Left-Click any of the photos to see enlarged.

Grilled Herbed Zucchini Strips

Corn Pie

Plated pulled pork, homemade beans and corn pie.

Stuffed Peppers for Maggie, Stuffed Squash and Stuffed Tomatoes for Robin

08 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by Bob and Robin in Acme Bakery, Alley Gardens, Bread, Captain's Shack, Comfort Food, Dinner With Friends, Grilling, Heirloom Squash, Heirloom Tomatoes, Local Harvests, Local Markets, Main Dish, Photos By: Bob Young, Sourdough Bread, Vegetables, What's For Dinner?, Zebra Tomatoes

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food, garden tomatoes, stuffed heirloom squash, stuffed tomatoes, vegetarian

Mac and Marnie gave us two huge heirloom squash. I picked some tomatoes from out alley garden and sweet peppers are always great with a good stuffing. What a great couple of days working in the kitchen and coming up with a different stuffing blend and a heirloom Green Zebra Tomato Verde for the stuffing. The photo here is the squash getting ready to be put into the oven. I used an instant read thermometer to check the cooking process and took it out at 175 degrees F. This was very good, even if I do say so myself. The stuffed peppers were for Maggie and Trish whereas the stuffed tomatoes were for Robin. Here are some more photos. Left-Click to see the photos enlarged and don’t forget to Vote above. Enjoy!

Stuffed Heirloom Squash Cheese Bites Green Salad with Pomegranate Juice Dressing Acme Bake Shop Sourdough bread and Zucchini Rounds

Stuffed Heirloom Squash
Cheese Bites
Green Salad and Fresh Garden Tomatoes with Pomegranate Juice Dressing
Acme Bake Shop Sourdough Bread
Zucchini Rounds