Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

by Victoria Challancin

 

Easy, tasty, pretty--this recipe is a keeper.  And it seems to improve with age, if you happen to have any leftovers, that is.  Even though I have made this recipe many times in the past, I had forgotten about it until the purchase of these appealing haricots verts jogged my memory.  Making enough for 8 to 10 people, this recipe lends itself to dinner parties as well as picnics.  Leftovers make a welcome addition to a green salad as well.  

The Mexican cooks in my class last week liked the vinaigrette so much and thought the presentation so attractive that they wanted to make it with tomatoes, beans (or nopal cactus), and jícama to represent the colors of the Mexican flag to serve during the many fiestas we have here in San Miguel during the month of September.  A creative reinterpretation, yes?

Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

(Recipe by Kathleen Daelemans, Food Network)

Yield:  8 to 10 servings.

                        Mustard Vinaigrette:

                                    1 clove garlic, pressed

                                    1 shallot, minced

                                    1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

4 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and cracked black pepper

      Salad:

        1 pound green beans, trimmed, blanched to al dente

4 large carrots, peeled and shredded

4 small beets, peeled and shredded

For the Vinaigrette:  In a small bowl whisk together all ingredients.  Taste and adjust seasonings.

For the Salad:  Place vegetables in three separate small bowls.  Pour 1/3 of the dressing over each vegetable. Toss to combine.  Adjust seasonings, if necessary.  Let stand for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.  Serve on platter in separate mounds.                                                  

Enjoy!

Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Tri-Colored Vegetable Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.

The World's Easiest Shrimp Dish?

Garlicky Baked Shrimp

The World's Easiest Shrimp Dish?

by Victoria Challancin

The motto of the Real Simple's website is:  Life made easier, every day.  And recipes like this one certainly prove that point.  When I saw this recipe, I knew I would make it in my cooking class for Mexican cooks who are learning international cooking.

This dish is so easy and so delicious.  It would be great over angel hair pasta, rice, or even crostini as an hors d'oeuvre.  Five minutes of prep time and up to 18 in the oven...who could ask for anything simpler?  This is one of those terrific recipes that yields tasty results with a minimum of fuss.

Garlicky Baked Shrimp

(Recipe from RealSimple.com)

Serves 4

            1 pound peeled and deveined medium or large shrimp

            4 cloves garlic, sliced or pressed

            2 tablespoons white wine (I might have added 3 or 4...)

            Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

            1/4 cup softened butter

            1/4 cup Panko bread crumbs

            2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Heat oven to 425 degrees F.  In a baking dish, combine the shrimp, garlic, white wine, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.


In a small bowl, combine the butter, bread crumbs, and parsley.


Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the shrimp and bake until the shrimp are opaque throughout, 15 to 18 minutes.  Serve immediately.


Enjoy!

More tomatoes from a Paris street market

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.

Chicken with Olives and Pine Nuts

Chicken with Olives and Pine Nuts

by Victoria Challancin

You can't go wrong with Italian chef and cookbook author Lidia Bastianich's recipes.  Ever.  They never disappoint.  And this comforting recipe for a simple pan-sautéed chicken with olives and pine nuts really delivers--it is easy to prepare, enticing to look at, and utterly flavorful.

The recipe, according to Chef Lidia, hales from Le Marche region of Italy.  In the version found on her  website, the chef suggests using the big fat Ascoclane olives which come from the region, but also allows, as they are not easy to find in the United States, that other brine-cured Italian olives work fine.  I had to settle for Spanish ones, but they, too, were delicious in this dish. While I chose breasts and legs out of family preference, Lidia states that a whole cut-up bird or even just breast pieces can be used, though with the white-meat only version you might want to cut back on the oil and butter as breast meat cooks faster (10 minutes of browning and then 10 minutes with the olives).  The recipe originally appeared in the 2009 cookbook, Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy:  A Feast of 175 Regional Recipes.  

Serve with a salad and crusty bread for sopping up the tasty sauce.  If you want a fuller menu, try starting with the Creamy Tuscan Bean Soup I made last week. 

Lidia’s Chicken with Olives and Pine Nuts

Pollo con Olive e Pignoli

(Recipe by Lidia Bastianich)

Serves 6

3½ to 4 pounds assorted cut up chicken pieces

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

3 plump garlic cloves, peeled

2 bay leaves, preferably fresh

1 cup brine- cured green Italian olives or oil- cured black Italian olives

½ cup white wine

¼ cup toasted pine nuts

Rinse the chicken pieces, and pat dry with paper towels. Trim off excess skin and all visible fat. Cut drumsticks off the thighs; cut breast halves into two pieces each. Season the chicken all over with 

the salt. Put the olive oil and butter in the pan, and set over medium- low heat. When the butter is 

melted and hot, lay in the chicken pieces, skin side down, in a single layer; drop the garlic cloves 

and bay leaves in the spaces between them. Cover the pan, and let the chicken cook over gentle 

heat, browning slowly and releasing its fat and juices. After about 10 minutes, uncover the pan, 

turn the pieces, and move them around the pan to cook evenly, then replace the cover. Turn again 

in 10 minutes or so, and continue cooking covered. While the chicken is browning, pit the olives 

(if they still have pits in them). If you’re using small olives like Castelvetrano, use a pitter and keep 

them whole. If you have larger olives (such as Ascolane or Cerignola), smash them with the blade 

of a chef’s knife to remove the pits, and break them into coarse chunks.

After the chicken has cooked for 30 minutes, scatter the olives onto the pan bottom, around the 

chicken, and pour in the wine. Raise the heat so the liquid is bubbling, cover, and cook, gradually concentrating the 

juices, for about 5 minutes. Remove the lid, and cook uncovered, evaporating the pan juices, 

occasionally turning the chicken pieces and olives. If there is a lot of fat in the bottom of the pan, 

tilt the skillet and spoon off the fat from one side. Scatter the pine nuts around the chicken, and 

continue cooking uncovered, turning the chicken over gently until the pan juices thicken and coat 

the meat like a glaze.

Turn off the heat, and serve the chicken right from the skillet, or heap the pieces on a platter or in a 

shallow serving bowl. Spoon out any sauce and pine nuts left in the pan, and drizzle over the 

chicken.

Serves 6.

Enjoy!

Hydrangeas in a Paris market--I thought that after a week of hydrangea bashing, these lovely blooms deserved some positive notice

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.

Creamy Tuscan Bean Soup with Pancetta-Apple Garnish

Creamy Tuscan Bean Soup with Pancetta-Apple Garnish

by Victoria Challancin

I am a sucker for bean soups. When the weather turns cooler, I actively look for new ways to prepare them.  Practically every country embraces bean soup in some way as economical and substantial fare to warm up a cool day.  And the health benefits are impressive:  as one of the best sources of soluble fibers, beans are low in fat and high in protein, and rich in folic acid, copper, iron, and magnesium.  Not bad, this humble bean!

When I saw Deborah Mele's recipe on Italian Food Forever, I knew I had to try it.  I've made many bean soups in my life, but never one garnished with apple.  Apple?  As strange as it may sound, the combination of pancetta and apple (OK, I admit it, I had to use bacon as there was no pancetta to be found) works beautifully.  The apple gives it a hint of sweetness that works well with the bacon and the beans.

Mele suggests that cheesy garlic croutons or a dollop of pest would work well as a garnish, if you aren't inclined to try the pancetta-apple version.  But trust me, you should give it a whirl.  You won't be disappointed.

Creamy Tuscan Bean Soup

(Recipe by Deborah Mele of italianfoodforever.com)

Serves 6

1 pound dried cannellini beans

2 ounces finely diced prosciutto

1 medium onion, peeled & chopped

1 stalk of celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled & chopped

1 quart chicken broth

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Sea salt & black pepper

Prosciutto or Parmesan rind (optional)

Garnish:

1 apple, peeled and diced

4 ounces pancetta, diced (or bacon)

1 small onion, peeled & diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

To Serve:

Extra virgin olive oil

Soak the beans overnight in a bowl of clear water. The next day, drain and place in a 

saucepan, and add cold water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, and 

simmer for 15 minutes.  Let stand covered for about 20 minutes, then drain.

Return the beans to the saucepan along with the prosciutto, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, 

and prosciutto or parmesan rind if using. Pour in the chicken stock and then add water as needed 

to cover the beans by 2 inches. Slowly bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Continue 

to simmer uncovered, until the beans are almost tender, 20 minutes or longer, depending on the 

age of the beans. Add salt and pepper, to taste, and continue cooking until the beans are tender 

but not mushy, about 20 minutes longer. Remove from the heat and let the beans cool.

Once cooled, remove the rind, then place the bean mixture in a food processor or blender 

and process until very smooth. Return the soup to the pot and re-warm.

Cook the pancetta, onions, and apple in the olive oil in a frying pan until tender and lightly

 browned. Remove from the heat and add the parsley. Toss.

Serve the soup in individual bowls with a tablespoon or two of the garnish on top, and

 drizzle with a little of the olive oil. 

Enjoy!

Fresh tomatoes from a Paris market

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.

Chiles and Fruit--an Easy Snack

Photo by Zachary Popovsky

Chiles and Fruit--an Easy Snack!

by Victoria Challancin

In Mexico just about everything you can imagine is served with chile.  In addition to the savory dishes you might assume would contain chile, even candy and fruit benefit from a sprinkle--as any self-respecting school child knows.  On a recent trip to Los Angeles to visit my 21-year-old son, in fact, the one think he asked me to bring from Mexico was some tamarind and chile candy!

One of the recipes I tested for Marcela Valladolid in Season Two of Mexican Made Easy for Food Network was fruit popsicles to be served at her young son's birthday party episode.  To some of you it might seem strange that children would so love such a snack, but trust me, this is a beloved treat all over  Mexico.  And in these last days of summer, it seems to me a perfect offering on a hot day!

Galaxy Fruit Pops

(Recipe by Marcela Valladolid)

1 small seedless watermelon, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices

1 fresh pineapple, peeled, cut into 1/2 -inch thick slices

Chile powder or chile powder with lime, for sprinkling

Lime wedges, for serving

Using cookie cutters or a paring knife, cut the fruit into desired shapes.

Insert wooden sticks into the pieces of fruit.

To serve:  Sprinkle the ends of the fruit with chile powder.  Put the popos on a plate, with the wooden sticks facing up for handles or stick the pops into a halved watermelon.  Serve with lime wedges.

Enjoy!

Serrano Chiles

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

by Victoria Challancin

In the city of Celaya in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, a most wonderful artisanal sweet is produced:  cajeta, a caramel made from goat's milk, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  This popular treat comes in several flavors, such as vainilla (vanilla), envinada (with wine), and my favorite, quemada (burnt) which has a smoky burned milk flavor popular throughout Mexico.  I almost always use it as a substitute in any recipe that might call for a regular caramel.  The taste of the goat's milk is subtle, but definitely discernable--and utterly delicious.

When I stumbled across this molten cake recipe in Food and Wine magazine, I knew I would try it with cajeta.  And am I ever glad I did.  A sprinkle of sea salt gave it a modern twist (I mean, really, where don't you find salted caramel these days?) and a judicious tablespoon of powdered ancho chile would definitely take it over the top.

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

(Recipe from Food and Wine Magazine)

1 stick unsalted butter, plus melted butter for brushing

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

6 ounces dark chocolate, (70 per cent cacao), chopped

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

Pinch of salt

4 heaping teaspoons of cold, store-bought caramel sauce or cajeta

Flaky Maldon sea salt for sprinkling

Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Brush four 6-ounce ramekins with melted butter.  In a small bowl, whisk the cocoa powder with 1 tablespoon of the flour; dust the ramekins with the cocoa mixture, tapping out the excess.  Transfer the ramekins to a sturdy baking sheet.

In a medium saucepan, melt the 1 stick of butter with the chocolate over very low heat, stirring occasionally.  Let cool slightly.

In a bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the granulated sugar with the eggs and salt at medium-high speed until thick and pale yellow, 3 minutes.  Using a rubber spatula, fold in the melted chocolate until no streaks remain.  Fold in the 1/4 cup of flour.

Spoon two-thirds of the batter into the prepared ramekins, then spoon 1 heaping teaspoon of the caramel into each ramekin.  Sprinkle with sea salt and cover with the remaining chocolate batter.

Bake in the center of the oven for 16 minutes, until the tops are cracked but the centers are still slightly jiggly.  Transfer the ramekins to a rack and let cool for 5 to 8 minutes.  Run the tip of a small knife around each cake to loosen.  Invert a small plate over each cake and, using pot holders, invert again.  Carefully lift off the ramekins.  Dust the warm cakes with confectioners' sugar, if desired, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Molten Chocolate Cake with Goat's Milk Caramel Filling

©Victoria Challancin.  All Rights Reserved.