Spinach & Goat Cheese Turnovers

I have been sitting on this cookbook review for a long, long time now. The nice people over at Sterling Publishing sent me a copy of The Green Market Baking Book by Laura C. Martin, and asked if I would like to cook something out of it, or do a review of the book itself. I read a summary and quickly said yes. Well that was a couple months ago, and I am just now getting around to this post.

It wasn't for lack of interest, that is for sure. Things like school and work, vacations and appointments, weddings and funerals, cake orders and homework got in the way. The cookbook is wonderful, separated into seasons, providing a guide of produce that is ripe for the picking for that season, and corresponding recipes to use that produce. It has a lovely little canning guide in the back, for when you get a little too grabby at the farmers market and buy 20 pounds of peaches. It has beautiful illustrations and most importantly, delicious recipes. It is not necessarily a 'healthy' cookbook, but it is geared towards using fresh food in your baking, and finding natural ways to use natural sweeteners such as honey and maple syrup.

Since one of my goals this summer is to get my butt to the farmer's market more often, I think this book will come in handy when looking for things to do with my bounty. There were quite a few recipes that I was wanting to try right off the bat, but I could not resist spinach and goat cheese wrapped in crispy filo dough. I am glad I picked it first, they were a delicious little treat, and would make a great appetizer, or a main course when paired with a nice green salad.

Completely out of character, I followed the instructions exactly from the book, and the results were great. Me being me, however, I couldn't just leave it at that. I had to make my own version. I nixed the spinach, and instead made some turnovers with brussels sprouts, shallots, bacon, thyme, lemon, and goat cheese. I won't say which version I liked better, they were both outstanding, you can decide for yourself. You can find the recipe for my version here at Honest Cooking.

Spinach & Goat Cheese Turnovers
recipe by Laura C Martin from The Green Market Baking Book

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 green onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large bunches spinach, stemmed and chopped
2 ounces softened goat cheese
1/3 cup pine nuts
3 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon lemon zest
salt and pepper to taste
4 frozen phyllo sheets, thawed
1/2 cup, 1 stick, unsalted butter, melted

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes. Turn the heat to high, and add the spinach. Saute until spinach has wilted, about 5 minutes. Drain the spinach mixture by pressing it with a wooden spoon to get rid of as much excess moisture as possible.

Transfer spinach mixture to a bowl and let cool. Add the goat cheese, pine nuts, parmesan, herbs, and zest. Mix to combine, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place one phyllo sheet on your work surface. Cut the phyllo lengthwise into 3 equal strips. Brush one of the strips with melted butter and place 1 heading tablespoon of filling at one end of the strip. Starting with the corned, fold the dough over the filling to form a triangle. Repeat folding the triangle over itself the entire length of the strip. Brush top with butter and place on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pastry and filling.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 F and bake for about 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Serve hot, or at room temperature.

Sometimes You Just Need a Salad.

Sometimes, after all the noodles and rice and pork and chicken, you just need some green. Lonely Planet told us it would be in our best interest to stay away from salad greens and other potentially washed-with-tap-water uncooked food while on vacation in Cambodia and Thailand. Not wanting to risk the effects of a stomach bug while 30 meters underwater, I figure it was best to play it safe and not risk it.

By the time I got home, all I was craving was an obnoxiously huge salad. Like the kind they serve at restaurants as your entree, and when they set it in front of you, you think there is no way you are ever going to eat it all, but you do anyway, cause you know, it's mostly lettuce right? Right? What was I talking about again?

Oh yeah, so I made this salad, and it hit the spot. Roasted red beets, creamy refreshing avocado, tangy goat cheese, pistachios, fresh spring greens, all topped with an orange-mustard vinaigrette. It was almost my perfect salad. I had an apple out and ready to cut, but my salad was growing to gargantuan proportions so I left it out. I wish I had cut it into matchsticks and put it in to add another more crunchy/crisp element since the salad was pretty creamy all around.

The funny thing is, is that if you knew the teenager version of me, you would be astounded at me now proclaiming my craving for a salad. I wouldn't touch lettuce up until sophomore/junior year of college (and that wasn't that long ago folks). Ah, how times and tastes have changed. I sure am glad they did, because this, ladies and gentlemen, is pretty close to salad perfection in my opinion.

Roasted Beet and Avocado Salad with Orange-Balsamic Vinaigrette
makes one gigantic salad

Two things about this salad. First, the measurements are not important here. Pile the toppings on until your stomach says enough, and mix the dressing according to how your taste buds like it. Second, most people roast beets whole, then peel and chop. This is all fine a dandy, but I prefer mine in nice crispy and caramelized bite sized pieces. I accomplish this by taking the outer skin off by cutting the beet in half, then slicing the skin off with a sharp knife. Think about peeling sweet potatoes, or ginger, or a pineapple for that matter, same principle, just on a smaller scale. Cube, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper, then cook for maximum roasted surface area.
2-3 red beets, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 avocado diced into 1/2 inch pieces
1/4 cup shelled pistachios
1 oz crumbled goat cheese
1/2 apple, cored and cut into thin matchsticks
big handful of mixed greens, or whatever kind of lettuce you like
1/4 cup olive oil + extra for tossing with beets
juice of one orange
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Toss diced beets with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 15-25 minutes, until caramelized and cooked through.

Meanwhile, in a seal-able container (such as a Ziploc or mason jar), mix olive oil, vinegar, orange juice, mustard, and salt and pepper. Close tightly and shake the crap out of it until the dressing has emulsified.

Plate your greens, and top with, in no particular order, the beets, avocado, apple, goat cheese, pistachios, and drizzle on your dressing. Go ahead and eat the whole damn thing, cause its mostly lettuce right? Just humor me and say "right Bria". Thank you.

Hello Fall...or Winter?

We seem to have skipped fall completely here in Chicago and other parts of the Midwest. It has been about 20 degrees under the normal high temperatures, but looking on the bright side, at least it hasn't snowed yet like is has up in the northern regions.

I wanted to kick off fall with a big meal that would fill us up and warm the apartment. I accomplished both of those goals, and also made my boyfriend and his friends very happy campers, with very happy tummies.

We feasted on a whole roasted chicken with lemon, thyme, bacon, and garlic, mashed potatoes, pear and goat cheese salad, roasted root vegetables, and popovers. This was all finished off with a warm plum and raspberry tart.

I think of this as my dry run for the thanksgiving feast myself and some of my friends are going to have here in Chicago the weekend before the actual holiday. Everything went really smoothly, and even mistakes that were made turned out to be good things.

The day after this meal, in my food coma hangover, I realized that I roasted the chicken upside down. The funny thing is that I have seen so many birds roasted on television shows and in person that I can't believe I was confused when the recipe told me to 'tuck the wings underneath the bird'. I thought to myself, 'but the wings are already underneath the bird...'.

It turns out that this was a great mistake. The breasts were impossibly tender and juicy and I think that may have been because they basically braised in their own juices, bacon drippings, and lemon juice for about 2 hours. I think I may just flip my turkey upside down come Thanksgiving, but next time it will be on purpose.

Pear and Goat Cheese Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

This is a VERY simple salad, but a classic and tasty combination of tart cheese and mellow fruit. Just be sure to use a high quality balsamic vinegar for the dressing.

1 package of baby spring greens

1 pear, diced and tossed with lemon juice to prevent browning

4 ounces crumbled goat cheese

3/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Combine olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper in a tightly sealed container and shake vigorously until oil and vinegar is combined and emulsified. Toss greens, pears, goat cheese with just enough dressing to coat.

Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken

Recipe from Ina Garten - on foodnetwork.com

my notes in green

1 5-6 pound roasting chicken - I used a slightly larger one - about 8.5 pounds - so I would have plenty of leftovers, although I think the boys devoured much more of it than I anticipated

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 large bunch fresh thyme

4 lemons

3 heads garlic, cut in half crosswise

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 lb bacon - don't use lean bacon here, the point of it is to basically self-baste the chicken with the bacon fat

1 cup white wine

1/2 cup chicken stock

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Remove chicken giblets - if you are lucky they are in a nice little packet, if you aren't so lucky, you may have to pick them out one by one. I threw these into the freezer for a later date, you can make gravy and stock with these goodies. Rinse the chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan and liberally salt and pepper the inside cavity - I do not have a large roasting pan yet, so I used my 13 inch All-Clad french skillet and it worked great, it was just a bit harder to get it in and out of my oven.

Stuff the chicken with most of the thyme - I saved some for the roasted veggies - 1 lemon, halved, and two halves of the garlic. Now Ina calls for tying the legs together with kitchen twine and tucking the wing tips under the body. Since I roasted my bird upside down I did not need to do either of these things. If you want to go more conventional and roast your chicken right side up, by all means get the kitchen twine out and tuck those wings.

Quarter the remaining lemons and scatter them along with the rest of the garlic around the chicken in the bottom of the pan. Lay the bacon slices on top of the entire chicken - again I am sure this would be more effective had I roasted the chicken right side up, with the bacon fat flavoring the breast meat and keeping them moist. Next time I will either roast the chicken upside down again but omit the bacon, or roast it right side up with the bacon but definitely not a combination of the two.

Roast the chicken for 1 hour. Remove the bacon and set aside.

Roast for an additional 30 minutes or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh, or the breast temperature reaches 165 degrees - mine was bigger and took about an hour and 50 minutes total roasting time.

Remove to a platter, cover with foil, and let rest for up to 30 minutes.

For the gravy, remove all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the bottom of the pan. Add the wine and chicken stock and bring to a boil. reduce it to a simmer, and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes - I added a bit of cornstarch to help thicken it up since it was pretty runny.

Mashed Potatoes with Bacon

4-5 pounds Yukon gold potatoes

2 bay leaves

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup heavy cream

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Reserved bacon from roast chicken - roughly chopped

Peel and quarter potatoes and place in large pot of salted cold water with bay leaves. Bring to a boil then cook until fork tender, about 30 minutes. Heat the butter and cream over low heat in a small saucepan. Drain the potatoes and put back into the pot with the cream and the butter. Mash with a potato masher or a large fork until creamy and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with chopped bacon.

YUM. And we aren't even done yet. Since this post is starting to become a novel, I will leave the other sides (the roasted veggies and popovers) and the dessert for the next post so I don't lose readers due to sheer boredom. Maybe it will have turned back into fall by then, who knows.

A Tale of Two Pizzas

My first foray into grilled pizzas had it's ups and downs. After watching Micheal Chiarello easily slide his perfect pizza doughs on and off the grill grates, I thought 'I can do that, it doesn't look that hard'. Maybe someday I will learn that Mr. Chiarello tends to get me into trouble in the kitchen. (see the great gnocchi battle of 2008) Okay it wasn't all bad, and I think the next go around will be perfection, I just need to work out a few kinks.

The first dough to go onto the grill bubbled like crazy, and then once it was turned over the bubbles were so big, well, lets say they 'charred' (that's the grill-masters' way of saying it burned, without actually admitting fault). Everything seems to turn out better on the second try. They say you should always throw away your first crepe, your first pancake, but I didn't think I could spare an entire pizza dough the same way. So, I kept the 'charred' dough and went ahead. The second crust was beautiful, which is why I only took pictures of that one. Editing is GREAT.

Toppings are endless, and the method I used for making these allowed me to prepare all the topping ahead of time, and then just rewarm on the grill. One of the topping combinations was amazing, one of them not so much, but here is what I learned about making pizzas on the grill:

1. Do not use too high of heat, you will get crazy bubbles and burned edges. (if you are using charcoal I would recommend spreading one single layer of coals all over the bottom grate, and set your dampers so that you are over a medium heat)

2. Do not oil your dough too much, the heat will smoke the oil, turning your dough gray. This is NOT pretty. It won't ruin your pizza, but it will not enhance the flavor either.

3. Do not use a cheese that only tastes good when it is brown and bubbly. If you want brown and bubbly cheese, you may want to invest in a pizza stone so you can get your grill heat VERY high and not burn your dough (or finish it under your broiler). Hard cheeses and fresh mozzarella are good choices. Fontina....not so much (it kind of looked like snot, but more on that later).

4. Do grill toppings separately, this just adds to the deliciousness of the pizza.

5. Do not overload your pizzas with toppings, they will get very hard to maneuver, as the crust can be very fragile.

6. Use toppings that just need to be warmed briefly, in other words cook all your raw toppings ahead of time.

7. Use a sturdy dough recipe, one that calls for high gluten bread flour, or a similar additive.

8. Have fun with your flavor combinations, and don't be afraid to mess it up...maybe make some extra dough just in case though.

Pizza Dough

From Smitten Kitchen

My notes in green

Smitten kitchen is one of my favorite food blogs, and I often turn to it to get great recipes, especially for the basics (bread dough, pasta, pizza etc.). If you haven't checked her out yet, do it, she has awesome recipes and great photography. This dough worked really well, as it wasn't too delicate to throw around on the grill.

1 1/2 cups flour - I used my typical All-Purpose with added Vital Wheat Gluten combination

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water

1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix all dry ingredients, including the yeast, in a large mixing bowl. You can also start this in the food processor with the dough blade if you wish. Add the water and olive oil and mix until it starts to form a ball. Turn the shaggy mess out onto a floured surface, and knead until everything combines into a nice clean ball, just a minute or two.

Lightly oil the mixing bowl -a cooking spray such as Pam works well for this- and place the dough in, turning it around a few times so all sides of the dough are oiled as well. Cover with plastic wrap, and let it rise for and hour or two, or until it has doubled in size.

Dump it out onto a well floured surface and gently press the air out of the dough. Fold the piece into a basic ball shape and let it sit under plastic wrap for another 20 minutes.

At this point, the dough is ready to be rolled out and grilled up. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out until it is about 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick.

Goat Cheese, Zucchini, and Prosciutto Pizza

1-2 medium zucchini or summer squash, sliced very thinly on a mandolin

1 package of prosciutto, cut into thin strips

1 4 oz. package of goat cheese

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon fresh minced thyme

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Pepita Pesto, Mushroom, and Fontina Pizza

About 3/4 cup peptia pesto (you can use any pesto, homemade or jarred)

1 package button mushrooms, sliced thinly

3/4 cup shredded fontina cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

While the dough was on its final 20-minute rise, I fired up the my trusty Weber. I tossed the zucchini and squash with some olive oil and salt and pepper, and grilled over high heat until just cooked through. This only takes a few minutes if the slices are very thin.

I also sauteed the prosciutto and the mushrooms separately until crisped and cooked through.

Mix the lemon juice, thyme, and goat cheese in a small bowl and set aside.

Lightly oil the pizza dough on one side, and moving gently and quickly, place the dough oiled-side down on the hot grates, and immediately oil the top side. It will probably start to bubble up and as soon as it starts to set, you can move it around a bit so that it doesn't burn in any spot.

Flip the dough over once the first side is nice and brown. This should only take 3-4 minutes on each side until the dough is fully cooked. (I obviously made 2 doughs, so I repeated this process)

I brought the doughs inside to where all my ingredients were ready and waiting to be assembled.

On the first pizza, I spread the goat cheese mixture thinly all over the crust, laid on the grilled zucchini strips and the prosciutto, and sprinkled the top with Parmesan cheese.

Onto the second pizza went the pesto, then the mushrooms, the fontina, and lastly the Parmesan.

Each of these pizzas went back onto the covered grill over low heat until all the ingredients were heated up and the cheese was melted, about 10 minutes.

The goat cheese pizza was divine. It was salty, fresh, and creamy. I would make it again as-is in a heartbeat. The pesto/mushroom pizza I would make again, but with many changes. I would add another component, something a bit sweet to offset the bitter pesto. I would also finish it under the broiler to get the cheese all brown and bubbly, instead of greasy and gooey like it turned out.

There were many lessons learned about pizzas making, and now that it is turning into autumn, I am looking forward to testing out my new skills with the coming fall produce.

Happy first day of Fall, may your week be filled with changing leaves, pumpkins, and cinnamon-flavored everything.