Grilled Chicken and Radish Picnic Baguette with Herbed Cream Cheese

September 22, 2013 by Rebecca Penovich | Leave a comment

This is a simple sandwich to share with a crowd.

One of the keys that makes it so tasty is taking the time to trim and marinate the chicken before grilling. As you probably have found, boneless, skinless chicken breasts can be boring, and worse, dry. On the grill, they can get tough as a deck of cards and cook unevenly.

Since I’m determined to try to get more chicken into our dinner rotation, I’ve been reading tutorials on how to get chicken breast right. (Yes, chicken tutorials. This is life-long learning at its pinnacle.)

The gauntlet thrown, it was time to tackle the chicken breast and find a way to keep it juicy and flavorful without drowning it in sauce.

What I learned:

1. It’s important to trim the breasts. Cut off the tenderloins and save for another use. These are the filet mignon of the chicken breast (if you will allow me that analogy) and really should be used in a stir fry or sauté where you can showcase their tenderness. Sure you can just open the package and toss the uber-plump breasts on the grill, slather with some sauce and they will be edible (maybe), but you want something good, right?

Your goal here is to get a piece of breast that has a consistent thickness. Since most commercially farmed breasts are so big, I often cut them in half after trimming. That gives me smaller pieces to deal with and I can better monitor how they are cooking. You are going to slice the breasts thinly for the sandwich so you don’t need to worry about serving a 1/2 portion of breast.

2. Pound the heck out them. I sandwich the breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap and use my trusty mallet.

You could use your rolling pin or the flat bottom of a heavy pan. Really whack those babies to get them an even thickness, ideally 1/2 inch thick. Kids love this task by the way, so go ahead and delegate it. Have them pound both sides.

3. Marinate the breasts for at least an hour (or longer.) You want to use a combination of oil and acid (vinegar or citrus juice) along with salt, pepper, herbs, spices or other aromatics. I find that fresh herbs in a marinade tend to char on the grill so I’ve used dry in this recipe. (Plus you will get fresh herby goodness in the cream cheese spread.)

Really Good Marinade

Ingredients

1/4 C. extra virgin olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes (more if you like spicy)
1/4 tsp. dried oregano or thyme
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. fennel powder (optional, I had ground fennel seeds for another recipe)

Directions

Whisk all together and taste. Correct the seasoning if you’d like more vinegar or less; more spice or less.
Pour over chicken breasts and marinate, covered, for one hour or more in the refrigerator.

Chicken resting off the grill.

4. Grill over high heat for 2-3 minutes per side. Watch them and feel them. When the breasts feel firm and resist the tongs, they are done. Let the breasts rest on your cutting board so they can absorb their juices. Do not overcook!

5. Slice thinly against the grain.

For the sandwich

1 good baguette (good toothsome bread is essential: it makes all the difference in a sandwich)
3 radishes, sliced thinly
2 shallots, sliced thinly (TIP: I sprinkled a little red vinegar over the shallots to slightly pickle them while I assembled the sandwich, this takes away some of that raw onion harshness)
8 grape tomatoes, sliced in half
Herbed cream cheese spread (I made my own with 3 T. cream cheese, 1 T. of mayonnaise, 1 T. chopped fresh parsley, 1 T. chopped fresh basil, pinch of salt and pepper)

Assembling the picnic sandwich.

Adding the shallot and tomato.

Assemble the sandwich:

Slice the baguette in half lengthwise and spread some of the cream cheese mixture on both halves.
Place the sliced chicken in a single layer on one half, topped with a single layer of pickled shallots.
On the other half of the baguette, assemble a layer of the radishes, topped by the grape tomatoes.
Sprinkle a little salt and fresh ground pepper over the chicken and shallot side (not too much)
Put both sides together and press down to adhere.

When ready to serve, cut your picnic sandwich into serving slices and hold them together with a short bamboo skewer.

Pack them into your picnic basket or cooler and enjoy the concert or the game!

For some helpful grilled chicken breast tutorials, check out:

Once Upon A Chef

Kalyn’s Kitchen

Food 52

Deliciously Local! Dinner Party with Relay Foods

September 11, 2013 by Rebecca Penovich | 3 Comments

Today has been a day of remembrances. I remembered where I was exactly on this day in 2001. I remembered that today was also the birthday of a good friend who died too young a couple of years ago. Facebook told me today was also the birthday of a good friend still alive. Google News told me today was the birthday of Mickey Hart (Blast from the past! My Proustian college memories were scented NOT of madeleines but of patchouli and clove cigarettes.)

This day 12 years ago hammered home that we, as humans and as a country, are vulnerable. That technology fails us and also connects us. That family and friends are always more important than political ideology. That there are heroes among us. That you should always keep your car gassed up. (Okay sorry, that was a joke. I was waxing too philosophical.)

I would like to dedicate this post to all of my friends and neighbors who I adore and love to break bread with. You are awesome.

This summer we held a big outdoor party featuring local foods from our region. Relay Foods spurred the idea when they reached out for hosts and hostesses in Maryland and Virginia to hold a house party and introduce neighbors and friends to their delivery/pickup service for a wide variety of regional food, including artisanal and specialty foods.

Based in Charlottesville, Virginia, Relay Foods collaborates with local farms, artisan food makers, and handmade brands. They gather vendors from all over the Shenandoah Valley, Maryland and beyond and deliver to urban locations (Baltimore, DC, Richmond, Northern VA.) Since I had ordered our organic, free-range turkey from them a few Thanksgivings ago, I was on their list for people to recruit.

As many of us in the neighborhood have CSA shares or shop at farmers markets weekly, I knew I’d be preaching to the choir. I didn’t have to do much to get people excited to come taste some new local foods. But this was an opportunity to introduce them to a service that would aggregate produce from several farms and also afford small producers of specialty meats, cheeses, desserts, breads, jams and other farm fresh products the opportunity to reach a larger market via Relay Foods’ digital hub and distribution system.

[Full disclosure: Relay Foods gave me $100 food certificate to spend online at their site for the party. I went beyond that and shopped on my own dime at their site and our local markets, including my favorite organic market, Roots Market in Olney. All of my opinions and recommendations are my own and neither Relay Foods nor Roots paid me to plug them or sponsor this post.]

Some of the farmers and artisans featured on the menu:

Sausage Craft: two guys in Richmond making handcrafted sausage the Tuscan way (wholesale only)

Perryhill Produce: Jonathan and Jillian, young farmers from Buckingham, VA.

Virginia Chutney Company: From Washington, VA, the hot peach chutney

Mountain View Farm: 250-acre dairy farm in Fairfield, VA making farmstead cheeses

Moorenko’s Ice Cream: Silver Spring-based artisan ice cream, fabulous flavors

Let’s Grow Local/Josie’s Homemade Foods–our own local Kensington girl (and god-sister to my son, Joe) making jams, chutneys, preserves. Not represented by Relay Foods (yet) but you can buy Josie’s jam and chutneys at Let’s Grow Local farm stands on University Blvd in Wheaton and in north Chevy Chase

Josie’s Homemade

I rounded out the menu with three vegetarian side dishes and several craft brews and wine, including a chardonnay I love from Barboursville Vineyards in Virginia.

Barboursville Vineyards is located on the Monticello Wine Trail outside of Charlottesville.

In crafting the menu I was inspired by this Crostini party post by Honestly YUM. So many interesting flavor combinations and a really beautiful appetizer.

Ricotta crostini party from Honestly YUM inspired the appetizers. Photo credit: Honestly YUM

Lovely guests helped prepare the crostini. Showing off their handiwork!

Lovely guests helped prepare the crostini. Displaying their handiwork!

Lovely local cheeses and black truffle salami.

MENU

___________________

Assorted ricotta and feta crostini with local fruit, vegetables, proscuitto, jams, corn chutney, preserves

Local cheeses with crackers and ginger, fig, and fruit preserves, black truffle salami

_____________________

Main:

Assorted local Italian sausages, grilled with Vidalia onions and red, yellow and green peppers

Little hoagie rolls

_____________________

Salads:

Orzo with grape tomatoes, pine nuts and black olives

Watermelon with feta and pea shoots

Potato salad with garlic, olive oil and capers

______________________

Moorenko’s Ice Cream Sampler:

Bittersweet Chocolate

Red Hot Chocolate

Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip

Coconut Almond

Fresh Ginger

White Chocolate Mint

Salted Caramel with Praline

I made homemade ricotta following the Smitten Kitchen technique using whole milk and heavy cream (recipe here) and a feta spread using domestic feta for the crostini (baguette slices brushed with olive oil, toasted in oven on both sides, rubbed with a garlic clove and lightly salted).

Art student, Sam, creates our Relay Food Deliciously Local Foods party menu.

On the Ricotta crostini:

cucumber slice, fresh chopped mint, fresh dill
sliced strawberry over Josie’s Homemade strawberry preserves with tarragon, drizzled with balsamic syrup
sliced purple and white radishes with sea salt
fresh blueberries over Josie’s Homemade blueberry preserve, drizzled with local Maryland honey
Virginia Chutney Company Hot Peach chutney

On the Feta crostini:

thinly sliced procuitto
sliced grape tomatoes and fresh basil
lemon zest and fresh oregano
Josie’s Homemade chipotle corn chutney

For the onions and peppers to go with the grilled sausages, I sliced them, drizzled them with olive oil, seasoned with salt, pepper, oregano, and thyme and put them in a small square foil tray covered with more foil and placed them on the grill while the sausages were cooking.

When the sausages are done, take the foil off of the the peppers and onions and mix the grilled meat and the veg together with their juices.

For the ice cream course, I wanted everyone to get a taste of all 7 flavors so we kept it casual and gave each guest 7 spoons and passed the pint containers up and down the table. That probably wasn’t hygenic even with all the separate spoons, but at that point getting out tasting 17 bowls/cups was too much and it was too hot and sweaty–we wanted to enjoy the night and eat ice cream.
It was a fun night but there was no way I could have done it without the help of every guest.

Seriously, I always bite off more than I can chew (figuratively) when I throw a big entertainment. But fortunately for me, we have a crew of fabulous friends who love to pitch in, cook, decorate, serve, bring chairs, bring wine, spark conversation, and help clean up!

So shout outs to all of you and in particular to:

–the lovely girls who painted the menu blackboard and helped decorate and hang lanterns after swim practice

–our favorite art student who did the the chalkboard art menu for us (still have it–saving it!)

–my good friends Peter K, Allison B, and Charlie R for the photography

–Alyson K for executing the myriad trays of crostini toppings, drizzles, and garnishes

–Allison B, for the wine, beer, and ice run

–Tim S, for heading the grill and grilling hot dogs, vegetables, and sausages with aplomb (hope you got some of that)

-Josie K for all the homemade farm stand preserves and for beautifully styling the cheese boards

-Amy F and Maddie F for stuffing the Relay Foods goody bags for everyone

-Craig L for coming early to help set up tables and chairs outside, then move them all inside because of rain, and then outside again when the sun came out–rock star!

-John P for underwriting all of the hospitality and for having the energy to do the dishes before bed, love ya babe

Land ahoy! The Yachtsmen in the Palisades Parade.

Pan-Seared Lamb Chops with Mint, Roasted Carrots, and Chez Panisse Bread Crumb Salsa

September 8, 2013March 28, 2014 by Rebecca Penovich | 2 Comments

This week these lovely lamb loin chops were on sale at our local grocery store for $9.99/pound. Usually when we are in the mood for lamb I buy a bone-in or boneless leg and roast it slowly or cut it up for an Indian curry. Rack of lamb and individual chops are expensive (up to $16.99/pound in our part of the country) and thus, I did not want to mess this recipe up!

I had this Bon Appétit recipe saved in my Epicurious recipe box online. It had garnered raves and 4 forks so it was time to try it. I was intrigued by the marinade which included both cumin and coriander in addition to the traditional mint and garlic.

Savory Mint Lamb Chops

Makes 4 servings

Recipe technique adapted slightly from Bon Appétit October 2006; originally published April 1991

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 (1- to 1 1/2-inch-thick) lamb loin chops (about 5 ounces each), trimmed

Directions

Place olive oil, chopped fresh mint, minced garlic, salt, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, and black pepper in small bowl; mix well.
Spread herb mixture over both sides of lamb chops. Let stand 10 minutes.

[Rebecca’s Note: I find that lamb benefits greatly from a longer marinating time. The flavors permeate the meat and enhance the lamb’s natural flavor. Let the chops sit in the marinade (turn occasionally) for at least an hour or overnight if you wish.]

The Bon Appétit recipe called for broiling the chops for 4 minutes per side but in my test the chops were a bit overdone (could have been my oven’s broiler temperature) and they lacked the crust you get when you sear meat.

The marinade was a keeper; even the overdone chops had a great flavor. I tested another batch of the chops with the same marinade and this time fired up my cast iron skillets.

Preheat oven to 400°.
Carefully blot the marinade from the chops with paper towels. You want a good sear on the chops and a wet chop will create steam.
Heat the cast iron pan over medium high heat and then add a teaspoon of olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan.

[My searing technique: heat up the dry cast iron over your flame for at least a minute or two to get it nice and hot, THEN add your bit of oil and let that heat up for another minute til a drop of water sizzles in the oil.]

Sear the chops over medium high heat for 2 and 1/2 minutes per side (4 chops fit in my pan so I use TWO pans for 8 chops); then place the skillet with chops in the hot oven for another 2-3 minutes.

Place cooked chops on your cutting board and let them rest for 5 minutes to absorb their juices.

This resulted in a perfectly tender, rare to medium-rare chop (a little bit of pink in the center.)

NOTE: Cooking times for lamb chops will vary according to their thickness; I always err on the side of rare because you can always put them back in (but you can’t un-cook them!)
I am a sucker for an herbaceous pesto, salsa or chimichurri and this one from the Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook (via the Alexandra Cooks blog) is spectacular with the lamb.

Bread Crumb Salsa

Source: Chez Panisse Café Cookbook

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
kosher salt
1 shallot, finely minced
1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped thyme (optional)
1 tablespoon capers, drained and minced
2 oil-packed anchovies, cleaned and chopped (I used 1 T. anchovy paste because that’s what I had; it worked fine)
kosher salt to taste

Directions

>Heat a medium skillet over high heat. Add the olive oil. When the oil starts looking hot, add the bread crumbs and a pinch of kosher salt and turn the heat down to medium.

[Rebecca’s Note: In all honesty, I burnt the crumbs while I was checking my email and thus left them out. The salsa was still fantastic. If you don’t want the bread or don’t have the time; go ahead and skip them this time.]

Meanwhile, place minced shallots in a small bowl and cover with the vinegar. Let stand for at least 15 minutes. [There is a reason Alice Waters does this; it mellows the shallots’ bite and subtly pickles them. Don’t skip this step; make a time allowance for it.]
In a separate bowl, stir together the oil, chopped herbs, minced capers and minced anchovies.
Before serving, add the toasted bread crumbs and macerated shallots to the bowl of oil and herbs. Stir to combine.

Roasted Carrots

This is my go-to recipe for cooked carrots. Roasting brings out the flavor and the method is hands-off so you can attend to other cooking matters (like searing expensive meat) and know your carrots are going to be just right.

Ingredients

6 large carrots, peeled (about a pound)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 T. chopped parsley
1 T. lemon zest

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°. In a baking dish, toss the carrots with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, until tender.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley and lemon zest.

Grilled Salmon, Asparagus, Lime Butter, Quinoa, Parsley, Mint

August 24, 2013October 20, 2013 by Rebecca Penovich | 3 Comments

Oh salmon and asparagus lovers, make this for dinner TO-NIGHT. It was insanely delicious and very easy.

As often as I crave salmon, I find that I don’t buy it or cook it enough. It’s not a favorite meal of my husband or son (even though the husband will eat it). It seems too finicky and expensive to do for group entertaining (although I love to serve it at smaller dinner parties.) So I often find myself passing it by in the grocery store, until one day, I just must have it and cook it for myself. My comfort food.

This recipe, adapted from Gourmet’s Ian Knauer is wonderful. The key is the lime butter sauce (I know, not healthy.) But oh so good. And a little goes a long way (unless you eat it by the spoonful as you are ‘testing’ as I did.)

I always buy salmon filet with the skin on. Go for wild-caught Pacific salmon if you can find it. If your store only has Atlantic farm-raised salmon, look for pink-fleshed, firm filets, and go ahead and be persnickety–go to the fish counter and ask the seafood guy or gal a few questions. Take a sniff. Fish should smell like the sea (a little bit briny) but not at all fishy.

I cut these salmon filets myself from one large piece of salmon. (That is why one is smaller than the other three.) You can have your fish guy cut it for you or get all center-cut pieces for more expense.

Ingredients

For the salmon:

4 (6-oz) pieces center-cut salmon fillet (about 1 inch thick) with skin
2 tsp olive oil
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons lime butter sauce

For the asparagus:

1 1/2 lb medium asparagus (24), trimmed
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt

For the Lime-Butter Sauce:

1 large garlic clove, chopped
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted

For the quinoa with mint and parsley:

1 C. uncooked quinoa
2 C. water or stock (as package requires)
1/4 C. chopped fresh mint
1/4 C. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 C. Lime-Butter Sauce
Pinch of kosher salt to taste

Directions

For the Salmon:

Preheat your grill (medium high heat for gas or about 350°). Make sure grill grates are clean and brush them with oil so fish does not stick.
Brush fillets lightly on both sides with extra virgin olive oil, then season both flesh and skin sides with salt and pepper.
Put salmon filets on hot grill, SKIN side down; grill with the lid closed without moving them until skin crisps and you can lift with a spatula, about 6-7 minutes (depending on how thick your filets are.)
Hint: once the albumen (the white stuff that is a protein in salmon) shows on the flesh surface that means it’s almost done.

Do NOT flip until you can easily loosen the salmon skin from the grill grate. (I usually don’t flip them at all because I find they fall apart. I want tender salmon and I don’t want it all to fall in the grate.)

For the Grilled Asparagus:

Lovely thin spears.

Prepare grill (to medium high heat, as for salmon above.)

Toss trimmed asparagus with olive oil and season with kosher salt.

Place asparagus perpendicular directly on the oiled grill rack (or alternatively place on a grill pan so they don’t go through the grate ) and grill until blistered and tender, 3 to 5 minutes, turning occasionally.

For the Lime-Butter Sauce:

This sauce, as simple as it is, was out of this world. It elevates the entire dish and you will want it on everything. It’s a bit like a citrusy hollandaise but without the egg yolks. Thank you, Ian Knauer, for this killer sauce.

Purée garlic clove with lime juice, salt, and pepper in a blender until smooth.

With motor running, add melted butter and blend until emulsified, about 30 seconds.

Lime butter sauce can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Stir before using.

For the Quinoa with Parsley and Mint:

I made the quinoa the night before, following the package directions.

Cook the quinoa in 2 and 1/4 to 2 and 1/2 cups fresh water, covered, until all of the water is absorbed. Add pinch of kosher salt to taste. (You can also cook the quinoa in chicken or vegetable stock if you desire a more robust taste.) At this point you can refrigerate the quinoa over night and reheat it before serving.

Scoop the cooked quinoa into a bowl and add the chopped mint and parsley. Toss.

Before plating with the grilled salmon and asparagus, add 1/4 C. of the warm Lime-Butter Sauce to the quinoa. Toss.

To serve:

Place a scoop of warm quinoa and herb mixture on plate. Top with grilled salmon filet. Serve with grilled asparagus on the side. Spoon Lime-Butter Sauce over the salmon and enjoy!

(Rebecca’s Note: Here’s a marriage hint. If you love under-done fish (I would call it “just-right”) and your husband loves over-done fish (he would call it “not raw”), remember that you can always finish it in the oven or on stove-top.

It can be hard to see things out there on the grill unless you have an outdoor kitchen with as much lighting as your regular kitchen. Restaurants routinely finish grilled or seared steaks in the oven (after bathing them in herb butter.) In this recipe you’ve got lime butter sauce going for you. If you bring your grilled salmon in from outside and it looks just right to you but too pink for your significant other, then put the filet in question in a heated, oiled cast iron pan (fish flesh down or up) and spoon some of the lime butter sauce on top. Get a sear on it, and let him decide when it’s done. In fact, if you want a good sear or char on your fish but want it tender on the inside, you might want to do this treatment on yours as well.)

Around the World in Six Bottles of Ros&#233

July 24, 2013 by Rebecca Penovich | Leave a comment

Lovely ros&#233s from France, Spain, and Italy (left to right.)

Lovely rosés from France, Spain, and Italy (left to right.)

We’ve been drinking a lot of rosé this summer. It has been so hot and humid, with 90° plus days. Stifling. That can put a damper on your outdoor enjoyment and definitely a damper on outdoor entertaining. But rosé can help. So can sitting by a pool.

With Joe and most of our neighbors’ children participating on the same swim team, we’ve had many swim meet nights battling the heat (and sudden thunderstorms), sharing our potluck food offerings under an umbrella table and tasting many different rosé wines from around the world.

Rosé is finally overcoming its bad rap in the States (a rap deserved because of the ‘pink’ and ‘white’ zinfandels marketed here). Americans have discovered what the French, Italians, and Spaniards already knew: rosé made with great grapes, served well-chilled with some light food on a sweltering evening is a great way to spend time with friends (even while sweating!)

Not all rosés are going to be loved by everyone. They can range from super-fruity, raspberry Kool-Aid to peppery, suck-the-saliva-right-out-of-your-mouth bone dry. And price is not an issue: 3 of our favorites came from Trader Joe’s in Virginia and were less than $8 a bottle. Here are our favorites from the summer that struck the right note and made us happy. (Not included: the one that I ended up pouring out on the ground at a casual picnic it was so undrinkable. And yes, it was one that I purchased for $12.99. Ouch.)

Since I am not a wine writer, I’ve taken the tasting notes from the winemakers’ own web sites. There are 3 here that are private label Trader Joe’s (under $7!) so the winemakers are unknown to us. For those I quote the descriptions from Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer.

Château Pey La Tour 2011

France

$9.99

Translated from the French: “Château Pey La Tour rosé is pale pink in appearance. The blend combines the aromatic freshness and structure of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc (red currants, black currants and blueberries) with typical Merlot finesse. Fruity and well-balanced, the wine is wonderfully refreshing on the finish.”

Frédéric Bonnaffous, Estates Director

Borsao 2011

Spain

$8.99

“Red luminescent colour with warm glows. Has a strong aroma of berries and sweets. Very young and fresh in the mouth, well balanced with its acidity, rich in floral nuances and spices.”

Rebecca’s Note: I really loved this one from Spain.

Bricco Dei Tati 2012

Italy

$9.99

“This is a young, fresh, lively Barbera with a persistent and attractive bouquet of black cherries and a bit of spice on the palate. It has few tannins which is typical of the Barbera varietal, and a medium finish. Delightfully approachable, it is great with medium to strong cheeses, barbecue and game.”

Light and airy horseradish spread on water crackers. Perfect with rose.

Light and airy cream cheese-horseradish spread on water crackers. Perfect with rosé.

Three more lovelies from Italy, Napa Valley, and France (left to right.)

Incanto Rose Vino Frizzante

Italy

$7.99 (Trader Joe’s)

Raboso is a grape variety typically produced in Veneto, the growing area surrounding Venice. Our winemakers produce this Raboso in a modern, pleasant style, vinifying it as a Rosato and refermenting it to a Frizzante effervescence that greatly enhances the appreciation of its fruity aromas. Serve well-chilled as an apertif or as a refreshing summer drink.

Rebecca’s Note: This one has a little fizz which is fun. The bottle did not list a vintage but I’m sure it must have been young (2012.)

Trader Joe’s Petit Reserve Rosé 2012

Napa Valley 2012

$5.99 (Trader Joe’s)

Trader Joe’s Petit Reserve Napa Valley Rosé comes to us from a very famous Napa Valley winery – they make super wines that tend to be quite expensive. Yet Trader Joe’s Petit Reserve Rosé is a mere $5.99* a bottle. Part of the arrangement is that we’re not allowed to tell you who they are. We’re okay with that kind of anonymity when it comes with a value like this and a wine that’s refreshing, crisp and dry, with fresh berry flavors and a hint of spice.

Quinson Côtes de Provence 2012

France

$5.99 (Trader Joe’s)

The Provençal know their rosé, and we know a good value in Côtes de Provencal Rosé when we taste one. Quinson Côtes de Provence Rosé is just that. Hailing from the area of southern France from Marseilles to Nice, Quinson Côtes de Provence Rosé is a fetchingly dry rosé with a characteristically light pink hue. Its nose of ripe red berries and spices leads to amply fruity flavors on the palate.

Cheers! Stay cool outside with friends and a well-chilled rose.

Cheers! Stay cool outside with friends and a well-chilled ros&#233.

Special cheers go out to Cork & Cakers, Chris and Adrienne Harrington, for introducing us to our new three favorite rosés!

Joe’s Lunchbox: Veggie Fried Rice

July 11, 2013 by Rebecca Penovich | 6 Comments

Veggie fried brown rice with green onion and scrambled egg.

Joe came home from his 5th-grade nutrition class saying that he’d like to eat less meat and more vegetables and grains. I said, that’s great! Let’s try some new recipes. I’d like to eat less meat, too!

So I’ve been making of lot of rice (brown and basmati), beans (pinto and black), and several permutations of this vegetable fried rice. Fried rice is a good way to use up leftover steamed rice and whatever else might be languishing in your vegetable bin (green onions, shallots, carrots, celery, mushrooms, broccoli, frozen peas, corn).

Rice cookers come in a vast array of price ranges. I bought mine (same make and model as pictured) at a thrift store for $6 but you can pay up to $199 for a fancy one with digital display.

I bought a rice cooker at the thrift store and we’ve been putting it to use, making rice at least once a week. Normally I’m not a fan of gadgets that are devoted to one single purpose. I already have too many gadgets. My good friend (whose husband comes from a large Filipino family and eats rice at every meal, including breakfast) swore she could not live without hers and now I am a convert.

It is so easy to cook rice this way if you are going to be cooking it once a week or more. The rice steams perfectly and the cooker turns itself off (into ‘warm’ mode) when it’s ready so it is very forgiving of your timeline. The rice comes out just right, every single time. (No more peeking under the lid to check if rice is done.)

Here’s the scenario: rush home from work or whatever your activity was pre-dinner, walk in the door, get out the rice cooker, pour a cup of rice in and at least a cup and half of water, push the button, then live your life, write your blog, check your email, feed the cat and/or dog, throw a load of laundry in, get the mail, pay a bill online, pick that random sock off the floor, and in 20 minutes or so, rice is done. Check.

Excellent Chinese cookbook by Nancie McDermott.

Nancie McDermott, author of Quick and Easy Chinese: 70 Everyday Recipes (Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2008) includes four recipes for fried rice. Once you have her method, you can adapt the recipes to include what you have on hand (or exclude what you don’t.) You’ll need some basic Asian pantry items (soy sauce, sesame oil) and if you’d like you can jazz it up with other Asian sauces, condiments, or chile pastes you might have.

I love going to our big Asian grocery store, so my exotic condiment shelves overflow.

Love spicy, garlicky Asian condiments.

Seriously though. You only need soy sauce and sesame oil (plus aromatics like garlic, ginger, onion) to make an outstanding fried rice.

Here is Nancie’s recipe for Ham-and-Egg Fried Rice which I have adapted by taking out the ham and adding more vegetables and aromatics. The excellent cooking instructions are hers with some adaptations from me.

Basic Veggie Fried Rice

Serves 4.

Ingredients

4 cups cooked rice, cold or at room temperature (Note from Rebecca: use up that leftover rice from your Chinese takeout order)

1 T. vegetable oil

1 T. sesame oil

1 T. chopped garlic

1 T. dark soy sauce

1/2 C. shredded carrot (I peel the outer layer of a large carrot and discard the dirty peel, then keep shaving the carrot into ribbons until I have 1/2 C. Then cut the ribbons in half to make them more bite-size.)

3 T. chopped green onion

3 well-beaten eggs

Directions

Break up the rice clumps into individual grains for easy stir-frying.

Heat a wok or large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oils and swirl to coat the pan. Add the garlic and green onions and cook, stirring often, for 15 seconds. Do not let the garlic burn. If you feel (see or smell it burning) turn the heat down!

Add the eggs and then tilt the pan to spread them out. Stir the eggs and aromatics together and scramble the eggs into soft lumps.

When the eggs have barely scrambled, add the rice all at once and toss.

Cook the rice, tossing often, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the soy sauce and stir.

Add the carrot ribbons and toss another 30 seconds until rice is hot and tender.

The key to a stir-fry is to have all your ingredients chopped up, measured, and ready to go.
The French term is mise en place.

Consider fried rice as your emergency back-up plan when you haven’t planned dinner or had time to shop. The most time-consuming part of it is the chopping, and if you take a tip from my (much more well-organized) sister, you will OF COURSE have little zip-lock baggies in your fridge with the dribs and drabs of chopped garlic, chopped onion or shallot, sliced cabbage, the 3 tablespoons of cooked corn too good to throw out, the one chicken breast your family didn’t eat at dinner 2 nights ago, etcetera.

Master the method and then go forth and experiment! Buy some crazy condiments at your Asian grocery store (which makes a fun field trip for children, by the way.)

Cheers!

Rebecca