Last Class of the Year
Festive Family Dinner
Thursday December 7th
6:30 – 8:30, approximately
Menu
Artichoke Bruschetta
Tomato Bisque with Gruyere & French Ham Croutons
Italian Roasted Beef in Barolo Wine Sauce
Balsamic Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprouts & Pecans
Stuffed Shells with Homemade Ricotta
Cranberry-Orange Olive Oil Cake
$45.00
For reservations call Temecula Olive Oil, Seal Beach
(562) 296-5421
Sponsored by
Join us for our next cooking demo
Thursday, 6:30-8:30, approximately
Nov 9th & 16th
Menu
Smoked Trout Canapés
Spinach Bacon Salad with Pine Nuts & Croutons
Roast Duck Breast with Blackberry-Orange Sauce
Pumpkin Risotto with Pomegranate Arils & Shaved Parmesan
Haricot Vert (French style Green Beans) with Bacon & Pearl Onions
Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes
$45.00
For reservations call Temecula Olive Oil, Seal Beach
(562) 296-5421
Sponsored by
Rinse and pat dry the chicken. Trim any excess skin and fat.
Preheat oven to 375°.
Heat a large Dutch oven, add the butter and oil. Season the chicken with sea salt and pepper, place the chicken pieces skin side down in the pan and brown well on both sides. Don’t crowd the chicken in the pan, do this in 2 steps if needed.
Set aside and pour off most of the drippings leaving about 2 Tablespoons in the pan. Sauté the onions, carrots and celery, return the chicken to the
pan and add chicken broth, bay leaves, thyme, tomatoes, white beans and a little salt
and pepper. Cover and place into oven and cook 30 minutes.
Check to make sure that chicken is nearly cooked.
Add bread crumbs and return to the oven, uncovered. Cook until crumbs are
lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
Photo: Christina Peters
I love fall and winter and I love to cook hearty stews and warming soups. One of the most important ingredients is stock or broth for your dish and homemade is the best. Most of the time spent making stock is hands off, it needs to simmer for a good 4 hours so prep time in the kitchen can be limited to about 1/2 hour. Cut most of that time in half by making the stock in your pressure cooker but I like the results better just simmered slowly on the back of the stove. (Besides it makes your house smell wonderful!) I’ve included a list of descriptives for stock, broth, stew, soup etc. And my recipe for a perfect stock; stock is made with bones and broth is made with pieces of meat and vegetables and is a little less hearty than stock. Keep some stock in your freezer for quick meals during the winter season. Recipe below but here are some descriptives of soups, stews etc.
Bisque: a rich, thick usually smooth soup. Thickened either by pureeing or adding cream and usually made with some kind of seafood.
Chowder: a thick, chunky soup
Stock: clear savory liquid made from vegetables or meat on the bone
Broth: similar to stock but made with just meat or vegetables, not a hearty as stock
Gazpacho: a cold vegetable soup usually with tomatoes as main ingredient
Gumbo: thick broth with creole seasonings and chunks of meat & vegetables
Stew: thick soup with chunks of vegetables and/or meat
Soup: thinner than a stew with less chunks
Guides for making stocks
Use mild flavored vegetables, onions, celery, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes
No oily fish such as salmon
Beef bones with marrow will have more flavor
Use chicken feet for great taste and lots of natural gelatin
Do not season stock with salt until after it’s cooked
For making soups or stews
Any fresh or frozen veggie can be used. Do not defrost vegetable before using, just toss it into the stock.
Onion, peas, broccoli florets, celery, carrots, potatoes (will help to thicken soup also), corn, zucchini, peppers
Herbs
Basil, oregano, thyme, Italian parsley, crushed red peppers, Italian seasoning
Beans
Keep canned or frozen beans such as kidney, navy, white beans, pinto, black beans
Grains (pre-cook and freeze) Add at the end of cooking time
Farro, barley, rice, pasta, quinoa, beans
Place the chicken into a large stockpot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce to a simmer and skim any foam that rises to the surface. This should take about 15 minutes.
After removing any foam add the cider vinegar (for bone broth), vegetables and herbs, bring back to a boil, turn heat to a simmer and cook 2 – 2 ½ hrs.
Remove from the heat and let the stock sit for 10 to 15 minutes, remove large chicken pieces and strain remaining stock through a cheesecloth-lined strainer. Cool by placing the container of strained stock in an ice water bath in the sink and then refrigerate overnight.
The next day, remove the fat from the stock by skimming with a ladle. The stock will keep for 3 days in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer. Be sure to label and date before freezing.
To adapt the recipe for Turkey Stock, roast a turkey back, neck, 2 wings and 1 package of chicken feet (yes, chicken feet have tons of flavor!) in the same manner as above.
For a deep rich flavor you can brown all your chicken pieces and vegetables, if desired, before making stock.
*Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot Directions
Place all pieces into the pot along with herbs, vegetables etc. Add 10 cups of cool water, cover and cook on high for 1 hour in your electric cooker. Let pressure cooker release naturally, strain and cool as above.
Join us for our next cooking demo
Thurs. October 12th & 19th
6:30 – 8:30, approximately
Reservations required (see below)
Roasted Grape Focaccia with Goat Cheese
Pear Salad w/Cranberries & Caramelized Walnuts
Pork Tenderloin with Yukon Gold Potatoes, Apples & Shallots
Caramelized Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta
Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes
$45.00
For reservations call
Temecula Olive Oil
(562) 296-5421
Sponsored by
Photo: Hector Sanchez
A perfect summer salad that you can make ahead; it actually is better the next day! An easy ‘from the pantry’ salad, adjust ingredients to what you have on hand, what you find from the farmers market or your own garden, or even some of last nights grilled chicken or shrimp. Serves 6
Couscous
In a saucepan, add the stock, butter and couscous; bring to a boil, remove from heat stir in garlic and green onion, cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Remove garlic and fluff with a fork. Set aside to cool.
Vinaigrette
In a small bowl add vinegar, mustard and shallot, whisk together. Slowly whisk in the oil in a thin stream to emulsify. Add seasonings to taste. Can be refrigerated for 3 weeks, bring to room temperature before using.
Salad
In a large bowl, add all chopped ingredients and toss with a little of the dressing. Let stand for 5 minutes. Toss couscous and vegetables together adding a little more dressing as necessary, to taste.
Fudgy, chewy, mild or hot…..a delicious treat!
Preheat the oven to 375° and lightly grease a 9x13 pan.
Add all the ingredients to a large bowl in the order they are listed. Stir together and beat until the mixture is smooth.
Spoon into the prepared pan and bake 25-30 minutes, or until just barely beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, remove from oven and let cool.
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add oil; add onions, season with salt and pepper and sauté until lightly browned.
Add chiles, and cream, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer and cook 4 minutes.
Add cheese and potatoes, stirring occasionally, until just heated through. Remove from heat.
Wrap tortillas in plastic wrap or paper towel and heat in microwave on low until warm.
There are many ways to save your harvest and if you have more tomatoes than you know what to do with here are some ideas.
First and foremost is water bath canning, I love this because it means that I can store tomatoes on the shelf in my pantry for the year. Fairly easy to do but when it’s hot and humid out like it has been this summer FORGET IT!
As many of you already know, I like to freeze my tomatoes also so later when it’s cool I can make sauce or unfreeze and can them to make more room in the freezer for up and coming dinners. Freezing tomatoes is the fastest way to get things done, wash, and dry then freeze on a baking sheet until frozen solid, pop into a freezer bag and you are done for the day! You can remove one or four at a time, whatever you need and as they begin to defrost, which is almost right away, the skin will slip off easily.
My second favorite is to make Oven Roasted Tomatoes, although it does require having the oven on for some length of time. I love to dry my cherry tomatoes and then float them in a good olive oil and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 months. Chopped in a salad, in a bruschetta or top on a pizza, they pack a flavorful punch. Fill up your baking sheet and get started right away!
Add a baby green salad tossed lightly with olive oil & vinegar for a nice summer lunch or light dinner.
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or use with a non-stick tart pan.
Unfold one sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11-by-11-inch square or roll to the size of your tart pan adding ½” for the sides. I using the tart pan, fold up the pastry carefully and lay into the pan, unfold the pastry draping it over the sides of the pan. If using just the sheet pan, lay the pastry in the middle of the piece of parchment on the pan. Prick (called 'docking') the pastry with a fork leaving a 1/2" edge clear.
Spread a thin amount of mustard on the pricked part of the dough.
Sprinkle an even amount of the cheese on the mustard and top with slices of tomato. Fold a couple of inches of the dough over the filling, leaving a large part of the middle open, disregard if using the part pan. If the pastry is warm, chill for 15 minutes.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. Garnish with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
Celebrate the Irish with us in downtown Seal Beach !
Thur. March 2
(Additional class March 16th if March 2nd sells out,) BYOB
6:30 – 8:30, approximately
See below for reservations
Kerrygold Aged Cheddar Cheese Sandwich Fingers with Sun Dried Tomatoes
Irish Pub Salad
Beef & Guinness Stew
Potato Torte with Bacon & Cabbage
Guinness Chocolate Cake
For Seal Beach Reservations please call:
562-296-5421
Sponsored by
Photo: Wonky Wonderful
There is a simple trick that you can do ahead of time to make life a little easier cooking during the week. Buy chicken cutlets*, place them between 2 sheets of plastic or parchment paper and pound to ¼” thickness. Stack them with parchment paper between each breast, freeze on a sheet pan separately then wrap in plastic and place the entire stack into a freezer bag. Now you can remove 1 or 2 or 4 when you get home from work and proceed with any recipe. The chicken breast (you can do this with pork tenderloin as well), will defrost almost immediately and you’ll have dinner on the table in ½ hour.
Season the flour with sea salt and pepper and dredge the chicken in the flour shaking off the excess.
Heat the slow cooker to sauté if you can or use a skillet, add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan and lightly brown the chicken on both sides. Set aside.
If needed add a little more oil to the pan, just enough to coat the bottom and add the butter, when melted sauté the mushrooms until browned. Add the shallots and cook until translucent, add the garlic and stir briefly until it’s aromatic.
To finish on stove top:
Sprinkle the mushroom mixture with a little flour and cook, stirring until flour is incorporated and browned. Whisk in the chicken stock, Marsala wine and lemon juice, reduce until slightly thickened. Add the chicken back to the mixture and cook for about 2 minutes. Serve with chopped parsley and lemon zest over the chicken breasts.
*If you want to buy chicken breasts or cut from a whole chicken just butterfly them before pounding.
