POT-AU-FEU

Today is my son 19th birthday, he asked me to make his favorite "Pot-Au-Feu" for dinner. I happily made it, since it is a pretty easy to make and you only need one pots or pans. So, less clean-up after cooking. And for dessert, he asked for Black Forest Gateau. Of course I made that too!

Serve 6-8 

Ingredients:

3 pounds beef shanks with marrowbone

2 pounds beef chuck 

3 pounds beef short ribs

4 celery stalks,  cut into large pieces

4 carrots, peel, cut into large pieces

4 small turnips, peel and cut in half

½ onion, peeled

2 leeks, cleaned and cut into large pieces

Bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay leave)

1 tsp whole peppercorn 

• Arrange the meat, halfed onion, and the bouquet garni  in a large pot, add water to cover the meat. Simmer gently, uncover for 3½ to 4½ hours until the meat are tender. Do not let the broth to become a boil, or you will not have a clear broth.

• Skim the fat and the foam that float to the surface from time to time, you might also need to add hot water during the cooking to make sure that there is enough broth to cover the meat. 
• Add the vegetable 1½ hours before the meat is being done. Taste and adjust seasoning. Discard the bouquet garni.  Transfer the meat, including the bone marrow and the vegetable into a large serving platter. 
• Serve the broth in a separate bowl.

I serve this delicious simple boil  meat with crusty bread, boil fingerling potatoes, mustard, sea salt, and cornichons. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

CHANUKA SAMEACH

Warm Wish for a Happy Hanukkah

As you celebrate the Festival of Lights may your home be bright with happiness and love

May your heart be warmed with the glow of Hanukkah candles 

and your New Year be happy and healthy

Shalom 

CHANUKA SAMEACH

Warm Wish for a Happy Hanukkah

As you celebrate the Festival of Lights may your home be bright with happiness and love

May your heart be warmed with the glow of Hanukkah candles 

and your New Year be happy and healthy

Shalom 

Pollo Adobo, Filipino Style

My Kitchen My World, The Philippines! 

Thanks Lauren!!!

Sometimes, amazingly simple recipe can be surprisingly good. I must admit how skeptical I was about this pollo adobo, the recipe only had a few humble ingredients that most likely you have them all in your kitchen. At the time I made this dish, I had skinless and boneless chicken in my refrigerator, still tasted good, personally think it will taste much better if using chicken with the skin and the bone still intact. 

Pollo Adobo

(Chicken In Adobo Style)

4 pieces boneless and skinless chicken breast

1½ tsp salt

1 tsp cracked black pepper

1 tbs chopped garlic

¾ cup white vinegar

3 tbs  vegetable oil

2 bay leaves

• Rub the chicken breast with salt, pepper, ½ tbs garlic, and ¼ vinegar. Tuck in the bay leaves. Let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator at least one hour.
• Heat 1 tbs oil in  a large skillet over medium heat, add the garlic, stir, add the chicken, and the remaining ½ cup vinegar. Cover the skillet, and cook the chicken until just about done. Transfer to a platter. 
• Preheat the grill to medium high,  brush the chicken with the remaining vegetable oil, grill on both side about one minute on each side, or until the chicken is completely cooked. 

I served this pollo adobo with simple jasmine rice, lemon, simple green salad, and my favorite condiment,  pickle shallots and jalapeno pepper.

Anne Whiteman's Birthday KUGEL

I wanted to impress my father in law who came to visit us couple weeks back by making this (What I thought was) traditional Jewish dish. Unfortunately he didn't like it, because it was not the regular kugel that he used to have. I guess this version  was little bit unconventional.

I didn't put any topping as in the original recipe. 

The result was delicious, I didn't understand  why nobody like it,

 except my sister and I?

Recipe Adapted From:
Arthur SCHWARTZ'S "Jewish Home Cooking" Yiddish Recipe Revisited.

Ingredients:
6 eggs
1½ cups 4-percents fat cottage-cheese (I substituted with low fat quark)
1 cup + 2 tbs sour cream (I substituted with crème fraîche)
¾ sugar
2¼ whole milk
¾ raisins
6 tbs butter (I didn't use any, except for greasing the ceramic baking dish)
2¼ vanilla extract
1 tsp grated orange zest
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 tbs salt
18 ounces wide egg noodles

Topping: (which I completely omitted)
1 cups coarsely crushed corn flakes
2 tbs butter, melted
2 tsp ground cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 350⁰F. Grease a 9"x13" baking dish.
• In a large bowl, mix the eggs, and the rest of the ingredients except the noodle until smooth. Set aside.
• Bring water to a boil over high heat. cook the noodle until just before they are fully cooked, about 5 minutes (depending on the package direction). Drain.
• Mix the noodle and  the eggs-cheese mixture, transfer to a baking dish. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until lightly browned.
• let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

You might want to consider similar recipe at Rosa's Yummy Yums,  Noodle Kugel, and Cathy of Noble Pig's for her  Unsexy Jewish Food  recipe. I have tried recipes from these two wonderful and talented ladies, I can assure you that their recipes are not just good looking, but also taste delicious.

FLAMMEKÜCHE (TARTE FLAMBÉE)

FRANCE, MY KITCHEN MY WORLD

What a great country to pick, Lauren

Thank you....

This Alsatian specialty  has become my family favorite over the years.  I am very sure soon, it will be yours as well. Give it a try, you'll know what I mean.

Recipe from: Country Cooking Of FRANCE

By: Anne Willan

Serve: 4- 6 

Pate À Pain:

1⅔ cups/200 gr flour, more as needed

½ tsp dry yeast

½ tsp salt

6 tbs/90 ml lukewarm water

1 egg

1 tbs olive oil

• Prepare the mixer with the dough hook attachment. Mix the flour and salt in a mixer bowl, make a well in the center, pour water into the well, sprinkle the yeast on top, and leave for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is dissolved. 
• Mix the egg, and oil with fork, add them to the water/well. Knead with the machine on a lowest setting, until the dough is very elastic. 
• Transfer to a large lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic warp. Let rest for 45 minutes to an hour.

If you have baking stone at home, it will make a whole lot different in taste. Baking stone is inexpensive and are available in more cooking store. If you bake a lot of bread, or make a lot of pizza during the week end, I think it is a good idea to invest one, it's priceless!

Topping:

1 tbs vegetable oil

1 cup/250 ml Crème Fraîche

2 onions, very thinly sliced (I only used 1 onion)

6-ounces/170 g piece lean smoked Bacon, cut into thin lardons

freshly ground black pepper

• Preheat the oven to 425⁰F/220⁰C. Brush a baking sheet with vegetable oil. 
• When the dough has risen, knead lightly to knock out the air. 
• Roll out then pâte à pain into a thin rectangle (12"x15"), transfer onto baking sheet. Spread the crème fraîche almost to the edge of the dough. Scatter with the onion, top with the Bacon lardons, and sprinkle with black pepper.
• Bake for 15 - 20 minutes.
• Transfer tart to a wooden board, cut into square. Serve immediately while it is hot.

Enjoy!

Oh, don't for get to visit  MKMW member  to see what French dishes they are preparing for this week.

Sri Lankan Crab Curry

I first introduced this addictive curry by a good friend of mine who is born in Sri Lanka, but raised in Australia. He is an exceptionally good cook, everything he makes is always a hit among us. This curry is one of the many dishes that we always looking forward every time we go to visit him.

Recipe adapted from : Encyclopedia of ASIAN FOOD

by: Charmaine Solomon

Serve: 4

2 mud crabs, or 4 blue swimmer, or spanner crabs

3 tbs oil

2 large onion, finely chopped

2 tablespoon finely chopped garlic

1 tablespoon finely grated ginger

Sprig of fresh curry leaves

½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds ( I only used 5 seeds, then crushed them into powder)*

1 stick cinnamon

2 teaspoons chili powder, to taste

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

2 14 fl oz canned coconut milk

2 cup drumstick leaves (optional)

3 tablespoons grated coconut

1 tablespoon ground rice

lime juice, to taste

Clean and cut the crabs yourself, if you wish! Me? are you kidding? I would ask the fish monger to do it for me, it creeps me out!

Fried the onion, garlic, and ginger until soft and the ginger releases its fragrant. Transfer to a food processor, add the grated coconut, process until you get a smooth paste.

Heat a large pot on a medium heat, add the remaining oil. Transfer the paste to the pot, add curry leaves, ground fenugreek, cinnamon, chili powder, and turmeric. Stir and fry for a minute. It will smell so good! Add crabs, and drumstick leaves (if using) to the pot, stir to coat them with the spices. Pour one canned coconut milk, add about 2 pints of water, stir again. Then simmer for 2o minutes. Stir from time to time.

Add the other canned of coconut milk, add salt to taste. Stir and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes (don't let it to become a boil, or the coconut milk will separate). Taste to see if need more salt. Serve with steam Basmati rice. Not too complicated, right?

Note on ingredients: I use Dungeness crab for this curry, didn't use any drumstick leaves (too lazy to make a trip to Indian store), and I use fresh/frozen grated coconut, I bought them from the Chinese grocery store. They normally have them in the freezer section.

*The original recipe use ½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds, I used only 5 seeds, because I am afraid that it will make my curry a little bit bitter. Too much fenugreek, it will turn any dish bitter.

My Kitchen My World, ETHIOPIA

I've always been fascinated by this country, the people, the culture, and of course the food. So when Lauren chose ETHIOPIA for MKMW to visit, I was really happy and excited to explore more about its culinary and culture. I will not write about them in this post, because there are so many resources on the webs that you can read.

If you never had Ethiopian food before, this is your opportunity to explore. Hopefully it will become one of your favorite ethnic food as well. As always, thanks to Lauren for choosing Ethiopia for this week challenge!

Pretend that this is a stack of injeras, okay?

Since it will take few days to make this Ethiopian flat bread, I took a short cut, buy mixing the Teff flour, a little bit of yeast and unbleached flour. Not perfect, but tasted good. If you interested to make this special bread the authentic way, this and especially this articles really help.

I serve Amhari-Atklit, Tigre-Alz'e (vegetable stew) and Doro Wat (Scipy Chicken Stew) with

(well, with not quite) injera.

Amhari - Atklit, Tigre - Alz'e is vegetable stew spiced with onion, garlic, ginger, and turmeric. Very simple and it is very delicious. I can just eat this vegetable stew with steam rice without anything else!

Check out my other recipe for Doro Wat using whole cut up chicken, instead of skinless and boneless chicken breast in this post. The ingredients are also slightly different. In this post I was using the berbere paste (recipe) instead of the Berbere powder mixture (recipe). Both will work quite well, I just like the paste better, and I happen to have it my refrigerator. I didn't include hard boil egg, since nobody will eat the egg and I feel ashamed if I have to waste it. In the photo above, the stew was a little bit on the drier side.

Once you have the berbere in your pantry, it is quite easy to make any meal from vegetarian to meat, fish or poultry dishes. Just saute some onion and garlic, add the berbere, either the paste or the powder, then whatever it is that you are going to cook. Simple and delicious!

BAECKAOFFA: Potees Boulangeres A L'Alsacienne

December  the "PotatoHoDown" event will be hosted by "Where is My Damn Answer". If you happen to make any potato dishes between this week and the 19th of December, why not submit your recipe here. This is a non stress event, publish monthly ( I am pretty sure that you will make any potato dish at least once a month, right) The event was created by Cathy of Noble Pig and Krysta of The Evil Chef Mom. 

So, submit any of your potato dish/dishes, don't forget to include the logo and a link to the rules and regs in your post. Better yet, why not join the Potato Ho's event (it's only once a month) for the delicious recipes and for the fun.

BAECKAOFFA/BACKOËFE is a potato-meat layer dish, traditionally baked in an earthenware specialty from Alsace. Please visit here for more information.

Recipe From: The Country Cooking Of FRANCE

Written by: Anne Willan

1½ pounds/675 G boneless pork loin, cut into cubed

1½ pounds/675 G boneless lamb shoulder, cut into cubed

1½ pounds/675 G boneless chuck, cut into cubed

2 tbs lard or vegetable oil

1 pound/450 G  onions, thinly sliced

4 pounds/1.8 kg baking potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

salt and pepper

2 cups/500 ml  water, more if needed

Marinate:

2 carrots, thinly sliced

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 large bouquet garni*

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 bottle/750 ml  dry white wine (I used Riesling)

1 tbs vegetable oil

• Put the meat in the large bowl, add the marinade. Cover the bowl with cling plastic wrap, and marinate for 12 - 24 hours.
• Take the meat out of the refrigerator, lift out the meat meat one by one with a kitchen thongs, place on a separate bowl, set aside. Strain the marinate-liquid and discard the vegetable. 
• Preheat the oven to 325⁰F/160⁰C
• Heat the lard or vegetable oil in a large flameproof casserole dish, add onion slices and cook until browned.
• Take the casserole dish from the heat, spread half of the potatoes over the onions, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Transfer the meat into the casserole dish, top with the remaining potatoes, pour the marinate-liquid, add enough water just to cover the meat-potatoes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Bake in the oven for 1 to 1¼ hours, or until the meat and potatoes are tender.

*Bouquet garni: mix of thyme, parsley, bay leave.