Monthly Archives: September 2011

What’s Cooking: True Bolognese

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For our last showcase from Emeril’s new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders (available for purchase here), $1.25 begged me to make the True Bolognese.  I consider it more than a little bit serendipidous that the last recipe we cooked in Emeril’s Cooking Party was my absolute favorite.  Truth be told, I wasn’t even 100% excited about making this dish because how special could bolognese really be?  But let me tell you something, it is worth buying the cookbook for this recipe.  We’re pretty hooked on Italian flavors right now and this definitely tasted like something we ate in a little Tuscan trattoria.

Not only is the True Bolognese relatively simple and easy to make, but the flavors come together really well.  One of my favorite parts about making it was that every step along the way it tasted delicious and it got better every time I sampled it (which was a lot!).  With ingredients like pancetta, white wine, and half and half, it’s decadent and satisfying.  Although the recipe called for some ground veal in addition to ground sirloin, I used only the sirloin for our version.  And since we had bowties in the house, we used those instead of the tagliatelle or pappardelle recommended in the recipe.  For those of you who already own Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders you HAVE to make this dish (if you haven’t already).

$1.25's Plate (he's a no-cheese-on-his-pasta guy)

Cupcake's Plate (I take the more-is-more approach to cheese)

Man, I really wish I’d brought the leftovers for lunch today!!
For full details on this recipe and many more, be on the look out for Emeril’s new book:

Full disclosure details available here.

And don’t forget that today is the last day to enter our giveaway!

What’s Cooking: Chicken and Black Beans with Chorizo

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As our feature of Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One-Pot Wonders comes to a close, we managed to save the best two dishes for last (in my opinion).  First up: Chicken and Black Beans with Chorizo.  This dish is SOOO flavorful.  We marinated the chicken overnight in a delicious blend of spices and some sherry.  The black beans are chock full of aromatic vegetables and a hearty helping of spicy chorizo.  For a weeknight, this one took a little too long to cook, so $1.25 and I didn’t sit down to eat until super late.  But most of the heavy lifting comes in the form of marinating and baking in the oven, so if you’re home with a little bit of time on your hands, you can pull this together pretty easily.  $1.25 was partial to the black bean/chorizo bottom layer and we’re already planning on using it for our pulled pork nachos!  Get your copy of the cookbook here for this recipe and all of our favorites from the past few weeks.

Don’t forget about our giveaway of the Zak dishes!  Only a little while longer to enter to win.

Come back tomorrow for the knock out final dish.  We can’t wait to eat it tonight and tell you all about it tomorrow!

For full disclosure information, click here.

Contests: Cookbook Winner and Emeril by zak! Table Art 7-Piece Serving Bowls Giveaway

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Congrats to commenter Michelann for scoring your own copy of Emeril’s newly released cookbook , Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders.

We’re closing in on the end of our three week experiment digging into Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders (if you didn’t win it is available here).  To celebrate the cookbook and this amazing journey, we’re giving away a set of Emeril by zak! Table Art serving dishes. While these dishes are perfect for entertaining and decorating, I tend to use them in my prep stage most.  When a recipe calls for a number of ingredients to be added throughout the recipe, I’ll prep them all first and drop them in individual bowls or on plates.  These bowls are perfect for that and, as they are dishwasher safe, cleanup is a breeze.

For even more ideas, check out what Emeril has in mind with the video below:

To win the Emeril by zak! Table Art serving dishes, all you’ve got to do is comment on any of our Emeril posts from now through Friday, September 30 (be sure to supply the proper email address in the comment form so we can reach you).  For each post you comment on, you’ll get another entry.  (One comment per post, PLEASE!)

Just like with our cookbook giveaway, we’ll be adding more Emeril posts through the end of the contest period to give you more posts to comment on and pick up even more chances to win.  Also, feel free to Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and/or subscribe to us here (see the upper right corner of the page).  After Friday, we’ll let the folks over at Random.org pick our winner since they did such a great job with picking our cookbook winner!

This contest is only open to U.S. residents.  Sorry to our international friends!  Full disclosure details available here.

What’s Cooking: Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe (and Ham)

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For this recipe from Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders, we pretty much stuck to the recipe but we made one crucial addition: ham.  Before sauteing the veggies, I dropped in a handful of ham to give it a little color.  Having the small chunks of ham in the soup was a really nice touch.  We also toyed with the idea of andouille, and I think we may try that next time just for a little extra heat.  But all in all we loved this dish and will definitely make it again soon.  The cookbook is on sale now, so grab a copy ASAP!

Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe and Ham:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups small-diced onion

1 cup small-diced celery

1 cup small-diced red bell pepper

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

8 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

2 pounds dried white beans (cannellini, baby lima, or great Northern), rinsed, picked over, soaked overnight, and drained

1 piece Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind, about 1 × 3 inches

1 bay leaf

4 cups water

1 ½ pounds broccoli rabe, tough stem ends trimmed, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 sprig fresh rosemary

Grated zest of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated (about 1 ½ cups)

Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

1. Heat the olive oil in an 8-quart soup pot or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and ¼ teaspoon of the black pepper and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic, dried Italian herbs, and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the stock, beans, Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and water and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat to simmer gently and cook, partially covered and stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender, 45 to 60 minutes.

2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer about 1 cup of the beans from the pot to a small bowl and mash them with the back of a spoon. Return the mashed beans to the soup and add the remaining 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to cook, uncovered, until the broth thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining black pepper, the broccoli rabe, and rosemary sprig and continue to cook until the broccoli rabe is just tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Remove the Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and rosemary sprig and discard them. Serve the soup in wide, shallow bowls, garnished with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Don’t forget that we’re giving away a copy of the cookbook!  Check out last week’s post for more information.  You’ve only got today left to enter!!

Full disclosure for our Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets participation available here.

What’s Cooking: Slow-Cooked Pulled Pork

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Our next selection from Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders is the Slow-Cooked Pulled Pork.  What a PERFECT game-day dish!  Saturday night we made a delicious spice rub and prepped the Boston butt roast.  Then on Sunday morning we popped it into the slow cooker on our way out the door to the Dome and it was ready for us when we got home.  We added a sweet slaw and some macaroni and cheese on the side to round things out.  Our group loved the sandwiches we made and I’m sure $1.25 is eager to make some pulled pork nachos with the leftovers!

Since we can’t give you the full recipe, I thought I’d give you a little note on technique.  The recipe calls for making slits in the pork butt and putting pieces of garlic in each one to add flavor.  In order to do that, you have to peel the garlic, but you can’t smash it to oblivion in the process.  Whereas normally I give the garlic a hard press and easily pop the pieces out of the skin, you have to be a little more gentle in your approach in order to keep the cloves whole.  So, I gently pressed the garlic with the side of a knife, just until I feel it give way a little bit.  Then I peeled the skin off, sometimes with a little more trouble than others.  Then I easily sliced each whole clove in half lengthwise in order to spot them all over the pork roast.  No need for one of those crazy garlic peelers, just a chef’s knife and a little patience.

Easy does it!!

Peel off the skin

All clean!

Prepping the roast

The yummy spice rub

After marinating overnight

8 hours later its ready to eat! Gotta love that slow cooker!

We opted to strain the cooking liquid and separate the fat. We poured the gravy back over the meat to keep things moist.

The finished product

Don’t forget that we’re giving away a copy of the cookbook!  Check out last week’s post for more information.  You’ve only got today and tomorrow left to enter!! 

Full disclosure for our Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets participation available here.

Contests: Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders Cookbook Giveaway

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As of now, we’ve highlighted 5 different recipes from Emeril’s forthcoming cookbook , Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders (available for preorder here).  To date, we haven’t been able to share all of the recipes we’ve cooked up, but here is your chance to get your hands on all of the recipes.  For free! 

That’s right, we’re giving away Sizzling Skillets!  All you’ve got to do is comment on any of our Emeril posts from now through Tuesday, September 27 (be sure to supply the proper email address in the comment form so we can reach you).  For each post you comment on, you’ll get another entry.  (One comment per post, PLEASE!)  Crazy bonus twist, we’ll be adding more Emeril posts through the end of the contest period to give you more posts to comment on and pick up even more chances to win.  After Tuesday, we’ll let the folks over at Random.org pick our winner.

Also, feel free to Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and/or subscribe to us here (see the upper right corner of the page).  It won’t give you any additional entries, because we’d hate to rope you into following us on one or more of these social media thingies if you aren’t really interested.  Of course, those are good ways to keep tabs on when our next Emeril’s giveaway will be (hint: soon)!

This contest is only open to U.S. residents.  Sorry to our international friends!  Full disclosure details available here.

What’s Cooking: Rabbit Ragout

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We’re now into week 2 of the Emeril’s Cooking Party (Missed our earlier stuff?  Here’s post 1, 2, 3 and 4).  If you’re late to the party, we’ve been given a sneak preview of Emeril’s new cookbook , Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders (available for preorder here), and we’ve been asked to blaze through 9 of them and show you how they turn out.   So far, everything has turned out pretty fantastic.  But that was when Cupcake was at the helm, what was going to happen when I picked a recipe and took over?

A bowl of Rabbit Ragout over linguine

This past summer we had the great pleasure of touring around Tuscany for quite a few days (technically one day longer than we were supposed to, but that story is for another time) without a plan.  No restaurants on our list, no hotel reservations, no trip-tik.  Just a car, some luggage and the freedom to do whatever we wanted.  Throughout our time in Tuscany, I noticed how hearty many of the dishes were, even in the warmer summer months.  Many dishes incorporated local game that had been stewed into tender morsals and served atop fresh pasta, including my favorite Pappardelle al Cinghiale. These menus made it see as if the entire region was devoted to comforting everyone with a filling meal and a terrific glass (or bottle) of wine.  While flipping through Sizzling Skillets, there was one recipe that immediately made me think of these amazing meals, Emeril’s Rabbit Ragout. Of course, since it called for something more exotic than chicken or beef, I knew I had to call Rare Cuts immediately.  We actually placed the rabbit order the same day we placed the duck order, and picked them up together.
Whole rabbit cut down to more manageable pieces
While I can’t share this recipe with you, I will say that it calls for instant flour, such as Wondra, to coat the rabbit before cooking.  I didn’t have any on hand and I certainly wasn’t heading back out to the store.  For an instant flour substitute to coat the rabbit, simply sift all-purpose flour three times.

dredging the rabbit in the sifted all-pourpose flour

One great thing about this recipe is it calls for most of a bottle of wine.  Emeril’s planned it so that you get a glass to drink while cooking!  While you should never cook with wine you wouldn’t drink, it was particularly important since we were going to drink while we cooked.

A gifted bottle of Cloudcrest was put to good use!

Minced carrots, onions and celery in our zak! flame dishes. Stay tuned for your chance to win your own set.

A few of the herbs and spices in the rabbit ragout

Ragout without the rabbit

Rabbit Ragout over linguine: ready to serve!

To complete the nod back to our Tuscan meals, we cracked a bottle of Dei Nobile di Montepulciano.  While not readily available in most grocery stores, you should be able to score a bottle with minimal effort. Certainly worth it in my eyes.
The recipe calls for pappardelle, but it seems like whole city of New Orleans was conspiring against us for this.  After trips to 4 separate grocery stores, we were left with linguine as the widest noodles available.  While I wish I could share more of the recipe, I will say that it is a great lazy afternoon meal to make.  Aside from the initial prep work, much of it simply involves waiting for the flavors to cook together.
For full details on this recipe and many more, be on the look out for Emeril’s new book:

Full disclosure details available here.

What’s Cooking: Wok-Seared Duck Salad

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Wok-Seared Duck Salad

Our next selection from Emeril’s new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders, is the Wok-Seared Duck Salad.  Unlike many of the recipes we’ve chosen so far, this one cooks very quickly.  You will need to set aside some time for chopping up the herbs and veggies, but if you have a few pairs of hands working on it, you can get this meal together for a weeknight dinner.  The Asian flavors are great and I loved being able to use so many fresh herbs.

2 tablespoons uncooked jasmine rice

1 tablespoon minced fresh red Thai bird chile

2 magret duck breasts (about 12 ounces each) or 1 ½ pounds other domestic duck breasts

1/3 cup minced shallot

1 ½ tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger

¼ cup fish sauce

¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice

¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 ½ teaspoons palm sugar or light brown sugar

½ cup fresh cilantro leaves

½ cup fresh mint leaves

½ cup fresh basil leaves

1 medium head of red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces

2 cups bean sprouts

1 cup julienned red bell pepper

1. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add the rice.  Toast the rice, shaking the wok constantly, until all the grains have turned
golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the rice to a mortar and set aside to cool. Once the rice has cooled, grind it using a pestle until it reaches a sandy consistency. Alternatively, grind the toasted rice in a clean spice grinder. Place the rice in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

2. Place the chile in the wok over medium-high heat and cook, shaking the wok, until lightly colored and fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds. Remove the chile from the pan and add to the bowl with the rice.

3. Using a paring knife, score the fatty side of the duck breasts by making shallow cuts in a diamond pattern; this allows the fat to render more easily. Place the duck breasts in the wok, fatty side down, and cook over medium heat until the skin is golden brown and slightly crisp, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the duck breasts to a cutting board, slice them into thin strips, and return the strips to the wok. Add the shallot and ginger and stir-fry over medium-high heat until the duck is just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer the duck from the wok to the bowl with the rice and chile and set aside.

4. In a small bowl, combine the fish sauce, lime juice, orange juice, and palm sugar and mix well. Pour the mixture over the duck and toss until well coated. Add the cilantro, mint, basil, lettuce, bean sprouts, and julienned red pepper and toss to combine.

5. Serve the salad immediately.

Still Life: Ingredients

Toasted Rice

Grinding the rice with our mortar and pestle (not the easiest thing to do!)

We couldn't find Thai "bird" chiles, but we used these little Thai chiles we found at the market.

Scoring the duck breasts before searing

Another peek at the finished product

A couple of observations on our part:

  1. We tracked down some ginormous duck breasts from Rare Cuts, but if you’re strapped for time you could very easily substitute chicken,
    beef, or pork and it would be delicious. (Shhh, don’t tell Emeril, but I think I would have liked this better with chicken… I’m not a big duck fan to begin with, though.  Since the duck fat renders in the wok, you would probably need to add a little bit of vegetable oil if you choose a different protein.)
  2. Skip the rice step.  We skeptically tried it and really didn’t like the texture it added to the duck.  We ended up straining the dressing before adding everything to the salad to remove the crunchy rice.  I actually think that some chopped peanuts would be delicious on top of the salad, but the rice really didn’t work for us.

Click here for full disclosure about our participation in this promotion.

What’s Cooking: Braised Meatball & Chickpea Pita with Yogurt Sauce

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We’re trying to make a wide variety of foods from Emeril’s new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders, so we chose our next dish both for the method of cooking (slow cooker) and the Mediterranean flavors. The Braised Meatball and Chickpea Pita is actually good “casual food” that would be great to have on hand for a day of watching football this fall (if you can convince your football watching buddies that pita, yogurt, and mint are manly enough for that kind of thing).

One thing that stood out for us was that without a slow cooker insert that can be used on the stove, you would need to use both a pan and the slow cooker.  Don’t be fooled into thinking that any old slow cooker insert can be used on the stove top.  I made that mistake once and let me tell you…it is not pretty.  Picture it if you will, I’m almost through cooking a slow cooker pot roast.  I find myself with a little too much juice, but I decide that I can reduce it down into a yummy gravy.  So I pull the ceramic insert out of my slow cooker and transfer it to the stove top and turn on the flame.  Just as things start coming up to a boil, I hear a loud POP and watch as the slow cooker insert promptly cracks into two pieces, threatening to spew my entire dinner all over the stove.  A few curses later, I learn (the very hard way) that was a terrible idea.  So unless you know for a fact that your slow cooker insert is stove top friendly, err on the side of caution and use two pots.  Of course, after that incident we had to pitch the former slow cooker insert so we upgraded to a version that lets me safely brown, braise, and boil on the open flame.

Browning the Meatballs on the Stove

The other thing  we noted about this dish is that it is actually an excellent way to sneak some vegetables into your dinner without offending any strict carnivores.  As you can see from the pictures, the meatballs have a surprising addition of spinach to them.  I really like veggies, so I’m happy with that, but even if you have a picky eater, I’m guessing they won’t protest this one.

This is one were we can’t share the whole recipe, but in general you will assemble the meatballs, brown them off on the stove, then add them to the slow cooker with some chickpeas.  Two hours later, make a delicious minty yogurt sauce, toast some pita, slice up some red onions and assemble your sandwiches.  We thought the meatballs and chickpeas would also be really yummy over rice if you wanted to go that route instead of sandwiches.

Helpful hint: use an ice cream scoop to portion out the meatballs

After two hours in the slow cooker

The yogurt sauce (you could probably half the recipe...we got a LOT)

Assemble your sandwiches and enjoy!

For full disclosure, click here.

What’s Cooking: Biscuit Topped Chicken Pot Pie

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Our next recipe from Emeril’s new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders, is the Biscuit Topped Chicken Pot Pie. This pot pie had enormous chunks of chicken, aromatic veggies, and a really tasty sauce holding it all together.  But instead of the traditional pie crust holding it all together, it’s made in a cast iron pot or skillet and topped with biscuits.

Since we’re participating in the pre-book-release Cooking Party, we’ve been asked not to share the full recipes we’re cooking (with the exception of a few select recipes), so you’ll have to preorder  your copy of the cookbook here.  But I will tell you that this dish is deliciously rich and definitely comforting.  $1.25 and I particularly loved the Tarragon Biscuits on top, which came together quickly and easily.  They turned out light, thanks to the use of some cake flour and buttermilk and they really rounded out the dish well.  The tarragon had a nice brightness to it that really complimented the pot pie filling in my mind (and mouth, yum!).

My only issue in making the meal was the fact that my pan wasn’t really big enough to hold everything, so I ended up switching to a cast iron Dutch oven halfway through the process.  The recipe called for a 12″ cast iron skillet, and even though I measured mine, it definitely didn’t cut it.  If you don’t have a TRUE 12″ cast iron skillet (and probably one with high sides) you’ll want to pick something bigger otherwise it won’t all fit.  You could certainly transfer everything to a baking dish before putting it in the oven, but that wouldn’t have really been honoring the “One Pot” theme, then would it?

Making the Tarragon Biscuits

The finished product waiting for us to dig in!

Full disclosure details available here.