An oh so delicious way to use your leftover roasted chicken

I really love whole roasted chicken.  I love the way the house smells and the juicy deliciousness that comes with fresh out of the oven chicken.  One of the things I love to do with the chilled leftovers is to make a phenomenal chicken curry salad that appeals to the taste buds in so many ways.  From the tasty sweet spicy curry to the crunchy roasted cashews to the sweet plump golden raisins to the sweet and sour mango chutney...it all compliments the chicken chunks so perfectly.  It makes such a delicious sandwich or is equally fantastic just sitting on top of lettuce leaves.  In my opinion it's about the best way to utilize  leftover chicken.  It's a savory and sweet chicken salad that is sure to please those that have a fondness for curry. 

Curried Chicken and Cashew salad

Leftover roasted chicken - skin removed and cut into chunks (about two cups worth)
A store purchased rotisserie chicken works equally well

1 cup mayonnaise (I use healthier canola oil/cholesterol free mayo by best foods)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp mild curry powder

1/4 cup mango chutney
1 stalk celery diced
1/4 cup diced green onions - use the white and green parts
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 cup whole roasted salted cashews

In a large bowl combine all ingredients and mix well
Taste and add salt and pepper accordingly
Chill for two hours

Serve on your favorite toasted bread or without bread on a bed of lettuce


to clucking curry cuisine!

robert



A great way to cook carrots that isn't blah

Ok, so your preparing a relatively basic dinner...you have your main entree, the potatoes or rice but what about a vegetable.  You realize that your out of frozen vegetables and your fresh selection is down to zero because it's still winter.  Ahhh...but you have a whole bag of carrots sitting in your vegetable bin in the refrigerator.  I love making this dish because it really is simple, you don't need that many ingredients for this recipe and it is very good.  For those that don't especially love carrots...this dish may change your views on them.  Most of us have brown sugar and lemon juice and fresh or dried ginger in the kitchen. 
Give this a try when your next "I don't know which vegetable to fix" moment comes along.

Lemon Ginger Carrots

6 large carrots- sliced into 1/8 inch thick rounds

1 tsp fresh ginger finely grated or 1 tsp dried ginger

1 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice

Place your carrots into a steamer basket and steam covered on medium heat for 20 minutes

Remove from steamer and place into a sauce pan

Add in the ginger, the brown sugar and lemon juice

Heat over medium low heat for 10 minutes

Taste and add salt to taste

This recipe is very flexible...add more brown sugar or more ginger depending on which you like more

eh....what's up doc?

robert

A zesty Peruvian potato dish ready in a flash

so often I find I want to do something with Feta Cheese.  I buy one of those huge blocks at Sam's Club every few months.  Then I can get creative with using it. Like two days ago we had left over Penne Pasta with Turkey Italian Sausage and so I wanted to change the flavor, so I threw in some Feta before I reheated the dish. 

One of my favorite things to do with Feta is to make a quick and easy cheese sauce to go over boiled potatoes.  It's a Peruvian dish that my friend Eloisa used to make quite often when I lived in California.  It seems there are variations in preparing the sauce, but I stick with the way Eloisa taught me to make it...she is Peruvian after all.

Peruvian Potatoes and Cheese Sauce

3 yellow potatoes - boiled with skins left on

Two boiled eggs - yolks only

crumbled feta cheese - about 1/4 cup

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/4 cup milk

5 unsalted saltines

1 extra finely chopped Serrano chili* - seeds removed

Black Olives sliced lengthwise in half

*I use the Serrano chili because as I mentioned in my second blog entree

http://foodolicious.blogspot.com/2010/12/gallina-de-aji.html

the Peruvian Aji Chili is not easy to find.  If you have access use them!  They have a unique taste that complements the cheese sauce...Serrano's are close enough in taste to work though.

Cool the boiled potatoes and slice across the potato making 1/8 inch round slices

Place the potatoes in the refrigerator to chill

Place the remaining ingredients into a food processor - remember to only use the boiled egg yolks

Process till smooth 

Sauce should be on the thick side like the consistency of Catsup add more saltines or more milk to get to that thickness
There is no need to add salt, the feta is salty enough

Pour the sauce over the cold potatoes and top with a slice of olive

Zesty Peruvian flavors to you!

robert



I love copycat recipes when I come across em!

Oh there are things I miss about Southern California...smog and traffic are not two of em.  But one thing about growing up there...the food culture is off the charts when it comes to diversity.  I got exposed to everything from Ethiopian to Caribbean to Cuban to China Town Chinese and Olvera Street Mexican...when you leave that, there is an adjustment period.  I arrived in Albuquerque in 1999 and two weeks later was freaking out that there were few decent Chinese food restaurants and not one Jewish Deli!  Like I said, there was an adjustment period. Once I did, New Mexico in of itself, has amazing cuisine beginning with the most amazing green chile ...12 years later Albuquerque has broadened its culinary horizons so much more than when I first arrived there. 

On the "fast food" chart, I miss In n Out Burgers, Fat Burgers, Zankou Chicken and Pollo Loco.  I was still living in California when someone asked me if I wanted the secret marinade recipe for  Pollo Loco Chicken.  Skeptically I accepted the xerox copy and went home to try it out.  I was amazed how it was very similar.  I realized I didn't have those big hot grills like they do in the restaurant chain where you watch them turn over the golden yellowish orangish hued succulent pieces of chicken.  This is a great summer barbecue recipe, but you can attain similar results on your indoor grill...you just have to make sure its medium hot.  Some of you will just opt to go into the restaurant and order up a batch of Pollo Loco if you live in a state where they thrive...not here unfortunately...there is something to me about recreating a recipe that you would normally have to pay someone else to make...

Pollo Loco Recipe

1 can (6 oz) unsweetened pineapple juice

2 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 tbsp white vinegar

2 large garlic cloves - crushed and minced

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves crumbled

1/4 tsp mild red chili powder

1/8 tsp black pepper

8 drops yellow food coloring

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 whole chicken cut up

Combine all the marinade ingredients

Place chicken pieces in a shallow baking dish and add the marinade

Turn the chicken to make sure it is coated well

Cover with lid or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight turn the chicken at least once during the marinating period

To Cook:

Bring chicken to room temperature before cooking

Preheat barbecue coals or gas grill or indoor grill

Drain Chicken but reserve the marinade for basting

Grill chicken for 25 to 40 minutes depending on size of chicken

Turn every 10 minutes and baste upper side with lots of marinade

You know it's done when you pierce the chicken with a fork and the juices run clear

If you cook the chicken right it will be moist and juicy and the skin so crispy and flavorful

I serve it like they do, with fresh corn or flour tortillas and freshly made pinto beans and salsa

Chow down!

robert

What happened to the healthy theme of Foodolicious?

Yes I did claim that Foodolicious was going to be all about health and wholesomeness and I do preach about low fat and no fat yoghurt in place of sour cream and about bad fats and how to eliminate them in recipes like using canola oil in place of lard in tamales...ok I am guilty...sentence me to Culinary Court.  The truth is my partner and I live a very healthy lifestyle overall, but I will be the first to admit to being human and giving in to my cravings from time to time.  Aaron and I are both chocoholics and boy do we love fresh out of the oven toll house cookies...I try to not stock the ingredients needed to make them...this keeps us from having them all the time...we would too! 

But here is what happened... I was sitting here just after noon looking out the window at the pond that is finally thawing and suddenly I started craving my favorite cookie from my childhood.  I went over in my head whether I had all the ingredients...and within minutes was over the stove throwing together a batch.  It's a no bake cookie that my sister would make at times when she had to baby sit me when the parents went out to parties or dinner.  I loved it then...and it still satisfies my sweet tooth like no other cookie does for me...all about the childhood memories of the cookie and the comfort it provided I suppose.  So just after I had spooned the last cookie onto the silicone sheets, the doorbell rang and a fellow foodie and sweetaholic friend showed up...we stood in that kitchen enjoying the confections like there was no tomorrow.  We finally did stop after each having at least 9 cookies each...they are just so delicious and addicting.

So today I make a point about just being and giving in to cravings from time to time whether "healthy" nutritionally or not.  Yes we can get ourselves into trouble when we become a slave to the same bad eating habits day in and day out.  No one should do that...it catches up to you and I don't only mean by growing in girth.  But with today's complex world that we all live in,  isn't it nice to have something to retreat to now and again?...in my case it's my childhood cookie.  It takes me back to a gentler simpler time if only for the duration of the first couple of bites of my warm cookie...nothing harmful in that...besides there are three cups of nutritional rolled oats in the recipe...oats are a good thing...

No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 c unsalted butter

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa (powder or squares)

1/2 cup milk

2 cups sugar

1 tsp vanilla

3 cups rolled oats

mix the first 5 ingredients into a thick bottomed sauce pan and still with a wooden spoon

When the mixture reaches a rolling boil continue to cook and stir the whole time for 5 minutes

Add in rolled oats and remove from heat

Drop by teaspoonful onto wax paper or silicone sheets

Allow to cool

Eat...there is no way you can eat only one  ;-)

to the good childhood memories!

robert

A recipe for a dish that will impress your dinner guests...(only you will know it was easy to fix...)

I have raved before on my blog about Giada De Laurentiss and her cooking show recipes on Everyday Italian...there is just something about many of her recipes that are inspiring to attempt...so today I mention her recipe for Braciole.  It calls for flank steak...which is a tough cut of meat...but the technique used in the recipe makes for a tender delectable piece of meat...this dish is not only delicious but the presentation wins over your guests too and you will not have spent hours in the kitchen.  You might find it takes a bit of time initially, but once you master this dish....its a piece of cake.  Braciole is a winner...it's great served with a fresh vegetable and a robust red wine. 

Braciole

Ingredients

1/2 cup dried Italian-style bread crumbs

1 garlic clove, minced

2/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano

1/3 cup grated provolone

2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

4 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 (1 1/2-pound) flank steak

1 cup dry white wine

3 1/4 cups Simple Tomato Sauce, recipe follows, or store-bought marinara sauce

Directions

Stir the first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl to blend. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the oil. Season mixture with salt and pepper and set aside.

Lay the flank steak flat on the work surface. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture evenly over the steak to cover the top evenly. Starting at 1 short end, roll up the steak as for a jelly roll to enclose the filling completely. Using butcher's twine, tie the steak roll to secure. Sprinkle the braciole with salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add the braciole and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and bring to a boil. Stir in the marinara sauce. Cover partially with foil and bake until the meat is almost tender, turning the braciole and basting with the sauce every 30 minutes. After 1 hour, uncover and continue baking until the meat is tender, about 30 minutes longer. The total cooking time should be about 1 1/2 hours.

Remove the braciole from the sauce. Using a large sharp knife, cut the braciole crosswise and diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Transfer the slices to plates. Spoon the sauce over and serve.

Simple Tomato Sauce:

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes

4 to 6 basil leaves

2 dried bay leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, optional

In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add celery and carrot and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and taste for seasoning. If sauce tastes too acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, to round out the flavor.

Pour half the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.

If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and then pour 1 to 2 cup portions into plastic freezer bags. Freeze for up to 6 months.

Yield: 6 cups

gracias Giada!

robert

Does it have to be Le Creuset?

A decade ago I got my first Le Creuset piece as a gift.  It was a 5.5 quart oval French Oven.  Suddenly I was making every "one pot" recipe I could find.  I really liked the idea of starting a recipe on a stove top and then transferring the entire pot to the oven to finish.  Then I read all I could about why the french product line was so magical and so costly.  Turns out the process of the applied enamel to the cast iron is done in such a way that makes for even temperature distribution under the pot and allows for slow cooking and the cast iron holds heat for a long time...still I couldn't see spending so much...yes the bright colors were cool but still...

I started exploring other similar product lines such as Lodge and an even cheaper brand that Walmart carries called Tramontina.  I found an awesome green colored 6 quart round dutch oven for $35.  A Lodge brand round dutch oven rang in at $49. A Le Creuset 5 1/2 quart round dutch oven goes for between $250 to $300.  So the green color and the low price called to me and I purchased the Tramontina with the intension of testing the heck out of it.  It passed with flying colors and I had already had my Le Creuset for a few years...I knew how the brand performed.  The only negative thing I will say about Tramontina is that it is a bit heavier than Le Creuset.   For the money saved...I still opt for the bulky Tramontina. 

Then I realized I needed something just a bit bigger for some dishes I wanted to make.  Then I was at Ross in Santa Fe and found a 7 quart oval dutch oven by a brand called Gibson.  It was going for $45.  Le Creuset's 6 3/4 quart oval goes for between $275 - $350.  It is one of my favorite pots to cook in due to its size.  Whether I am cooking a whole chicken or just making some stock it really meets my needs. 

I really like to find ways to save money when it comes to the kitchen.  This one is a
no-brainer as far as I am concerned.  I will say one thing in Le Creuset's favor though, they have a program where if you damage your pot, you can contact them and at a very reasonable price (much much less than what you paid initially) they will replace the pot and pay for shipping too!  So...don't drop your off brand pots on the floor...only Le Creuset!  ;-)

Look at that extra wad of cash in your pocket!

robert