Last night, on the verge of almost being able to clear out my pantry of old cans, condiments and canoodles, I started listing random ingredients into some of the most popular online recipe websites to see what I could concoct with my sad and spare collection of leftovers. I had a tin of tongol tuna, some capers, half a jar of mayo, a tin of anchovies, a jar of roasted red peppers, a jar of dried oysters, ginseng, wolfberries, etc. etc.
Almost immediately, I found an obscure Italian recipe for something called "tonnato" sauce. Don't let that confuse you with "tomato" sauce because it doesn't contain one ion of the red fruit. It's based on tinned tuna packed in olive oil, mayo and anchovies and I knew I would love it.
The actual recipe for tonnato is paired with herb roasted veal or turkey cutlets, but since I am getting over a cold, the thought of protein upon protein wasn't too appealing. Instead, I substituted some portobello tortellini that were getting dry and yellow around the edges after having sat for too long on the bottom shelf of my refrigerator (note to self: fresh pasta needs to be eaten a day or two after purchase or make. Always.).
In a big bowl, I mixed half a jar of mayo, the juice of one lemon, one big heaping tablespoon of capers, fresh black ground pepper, one minced anchovy fillet, a tin of tongol tuna flakes, a 1/8-1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil. I used my handy dandy hand blender and pureed until most of the mixture was smooth, and I also left some tasty big bits of capers because I love the tangy pop.
Serve sauce chilled over warm tortellinis with a tiny handful of chopped flat leaf parsley and pair it with very dry white wine like a Sauvignon Blanc or South American/New Zealand Chardonnay. Oh my lord.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Dark Etoile's Oven Fried Chicken
Rinse and pat dry 6-8 free-range organic chicken pieces with skin ON & bone IN (wings, drumsticks, thighs, breast-cut in quarters)
Soak the chicken in mixture of 1% fat buttermilk, extra virgin olive oil, sriracha hot sauce, minced garlic, whole grain Dijon mustard, sliced red onions, fresh ground sea salt and black pepper. The marinade usually takes around 2-4 hours for flavor to hold. Any longer, and you'll miss out on the natural chicken flavor.
While the chicken is marinating in that toothsome milky goo, take some panko, flour, grated parmesan cheese, oregano, paprika, and cayenne pepper and mix gently in a tray. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
Take chicken pieces and let drip somewhat dry of extra marinade. Then, one by one, coat lightly with panko mix. Set the coated chicken parts on a raised rack sitting in a baking tray. Make sure pieces are not sitting on top of each other or it will affect browning and crispness.
If you sliced your onions in rings, you can also dip them in the coating and place them anywhere on the pan where there's room.....you guessed it, SEASONED ONION RINGS. My opinion is that you should never waste onions where they can be eaten!
Place thin pats of butter strategically on top of chicken pieces throughout the tray. Shove everything into the oven and bake on middle rack for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, pull tray out and remove onion rings. Eat immediately. If the chicken is nice and brown, turn it over to the other side and shove it back in the oven for another 10 minutes.
Once done, your chicken should be crisp, juicy and SUPER flavorful....if you still prefer Popeye's or KFC after tasting this dish, you're probably hopeless.
Soak the chicken in mixture of 1% fat buttermilk, extra virgin olive oil, sriracha hot sauce, minced garlic, whole grain Dijon mustard, sliced red onions, fresh ground sea salt and black pepper. The marinade usually takes around 2-4 hours for flavor to hold. Any longer, and you'll miss out on the natural chicken flavor.
While the chicken is marinating in that toothsome milky goo, take some panko, flour, grated parmesan cheese, oregano, paprika, and cayenne pepper and mix gently in a tray. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
Take chicken pieces and let drip somewhat dry of extra marinade. Then, one by one, coat lightly with panko mix. Set the coated chicken parts on a raised rack sitting in a baking tray. Make sure pieces are not sitting on top of each other or it will affect browning and crispness.
If you sliced your onions in rings, you can also dip them in the coating and place them anywhere on the pan where there's room.....you guessed it, SEASONED ONION RINGS. My opinion is that you should never waste onions where they can be eaten!
Place thin pats of butter strategically on top of chicken pieces throughout the tray. Shove everything into the oven and bake on middle rack for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, pull tray out and remove onion rings. Eat immediately. If the chicken is nice and brown, turn it over to the other side and shove it back in the oven for another 10 minutes.
Once done, your chicken should be crisp, juicy and SUPER flavorful....if you still prefer Popeye's or KFC after tasting this dish, you're probably hopeless.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
The Sequel
Wow, here I am again two years later. I almost forgot I had this blog. Let me bring everyone up to speed: I've skipped back over the pond and have developed a fondness for San Francisco that can only result from my many years of misery here. To keep us in the present, I shall provide a brief account of the recent past:
1. Came back to SF in July 2005, and got myself a nice comfortable day job whilst trying to figure out what the hell I'm doing with my life.
2. My relationship went down a serious route, took a detour, and we ended up diving off a cliff. No one survived. Bummed around a while, contemplated relocating, but decided to stick to SF this time. Something inside tells me fortune is found out West, where the Sierra Mountains and the Pacific Ocean meet, where hills are streets and wind is friend and not foe.
3. Started a part-time gig as a consultant for my friends' non profit and am working OT like a madwoman, but this is something that I love, and propelled me finally to apply for a business license. I'd like to think of it as "a license to kill" all the idiocy in my proximity.
Now that you're sufficiently up to snuff with my goods:
Tuesday, February 6, 2007, 10:24pm
Jeez Louise, my oven-fried chicken smells fantastic! I got this basic recipe and tinkered with it a little. When it called for breadcrumbs, I used panko. Where it stated Tabasco, I poured Sriracha. Mmmm-mm! All for little ol' me. One of the great joys in my life these days is creating immaculate meals or trying new recipes. From all the years of pasta in red sauce, simple salads and stir-fried vegetables, I've developed a new found interest in complication, which reeled in enough determination to follow through on things. Honestly, you can't give up on a roast even if you realized you forgot to include pivotal ingredients after it's been shoved into the oven...you make up for it somewhere else: create a sauce, add stronger side dishes, whatever suits your fancy to make it great again.
Also, nothing gives me greater pleasure than to dine at fine (and when I say "fine" I use that in the looses of terms) establishments and understanding the process, details and knowing deep down that I could probably turn out something similar if not better. Tee hee.
So, what to expect from this blog now?
1. More lists. I like writing them, and I like reading them. So there.
2. More about cooking.
3. More art/film/music reviews. Damn I hate myself. I've become THAT girl.
4. Great insight, less retardation.
5. And anything else I damn please.
6. Pics.
1. Came back to SF in July 2005, and got myself a nice comfortable day job whilst trying to figure out what the hell I'm doing with my life.
2. My relationship went down a serious route, took a detour, and we ended up diving off a cliff. No one survived. Bummed around a while, contemplated relocating, but decided to stick to SF this time. Something inside tells me fortune is found out West, where the Sierra Mountains and the Pacific Ocean meet, where hills are streets and wind is friend and not foe.
3. Started a part-time gig as a consultant for my friends' non profit and am working OT like a madwoman, but this is something that I love, and propelled me finally to apply for a business license. I'd like to think of it as "a license to kill" all the idiocy in my proximity.
Now that you're sufficiently up to snuff with my goods:
Tuesday, February 6, 2007, 10:24pm
Jeez Louise, my oven-fried chicken smells fantastic! I got this basic recipe and tinkered with it a little. When it called for breadcrumbs, I used panko. Where it stated Tabasco, I poured Sriracha. Mmmm-mm! All for little ol' me. One of the great joys in my life these days is creating immaculate meals or trying new recipes. From all the years of pasta in red sauce, simple salads and stir-fried vegetables, I've developed a new found interest in complication, which reeled in enough determination to follow through on things. Honestly, you can't give up on a roast even if you realized you forgot to include pivotal ingredients after it's been shoved into the oven...you make up for it somewhere else: create a sauce, add stronger side dishes, whatever suits your fancy to make it great again.
Also, nothing gives me greater pleasure than to dine at fine (and when I say "fine" I use that in the looses of terms) establishments and understanding the process, details and knowing deep down that I could probably turn out something similar if not better. Tee hee.
So, what to expect from this blog now?
1. More lists. I like writing them, and I like reading them. So there.
2. More about cooking.
3. More art/film/music reviews. Damn I hate myself. I've become THAT girl.
4. Great insight, less retardation.
5. And anything else I damn please.
6. Pics.
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