Herbed Potato Frittata

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a great recipe to have on hand when you are short of time or money. I serve frittatas for light suppers and brunch, so when I saw this one in Fine Cooking magazine, I knew I'd have to give it a try. Tonight was the night. The good news is the frittata is delicious and much of it can be prepared well ahead of serving. I did vary the recipe slightly. I blanched the potatoes to assure they'd cook in the allotted time and I added some Parmesan cheese to boost the flavor a bit. I also used bacon drippings to saute the potatoes and onions. While I peeled and diced potatoes, I suspect that frozen O'Brien potatoes could be used to save some time and make this dish even easier to prepare. I do hope you'll save this recipe to your files. It will come in handy on busy school nights, and if you are a long range planner, it would be a great addition to your holiday recipe collection. Here is how the frittata is made.

Ukranian Cabbage and Chicken Saute

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This recipe caught my eye as I scrolled through Pinterest. The Silver Fox loves sauteed cabbage, so I thought I'd give it a try. The dish can be prepared in about 15 minutes, but it will require another 30 minutes of cooking time. I must tell you this version of sauteed cabbage is much milder in flavor than the German and Central European versions which are made with bacon and fried onions. That is not to say you won't enjoy this. I've made a few inconsequential changes to the base recipe that I want to share with you. I've made this cabbage twice and the second time I prepared it I used butter for cooking and added an onion to the ingredient list to give the saute a bit more flavor. The recipe, which comes from the blog Cooktoria, is straight forward, and the only thing I found confusing was the instruction to cover the pan and cook the mixture until the liquid was nearly absorbed. Now, I don't know about you, but I can't get liquid to absorb or evaporate in a closed pan. So, the first time I made the cabbage it was more like a soup than a saute. No matter, I added a handful of cooked rice to each serving and it was delicious. However, the second time around I was a bit smarter and cooked the cabbage uncovered and we were much happier with the results. This is the type of dish that makes a great lunch on a day crammed with sports or heavy yard work. I serve it wit rye bread and a salad. A side of rice or mashed potatoes wold be another great way to bulk up the meal if it seems too light on its own. I liked this recipe and I think you will too. Here is how the dish is made.

Cajun Pork Stir-Fry

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...You don't come across many Cajun dishes that are cooked in a wok. This pork entree is not a fusion dish and, truth be told, the only thing about it that is Asian is the way it is cooked. In anticipation of your question, I'm clueless as to why a wok was chosen to cook the dish when a large frying pan would work just as well. Its Cajun roots are easier to defend. Its flavor is spicy enough to appeal to fire eaters, and if you like heat with your meat, you'll love this dish. In addition to pork and the usual Cajun spices, the stir-fry contains the "Trinity" combination of bell peppers, celery and onions, so, I think you'll agree the dish has definite Cajun credentials. While it is flavorful, I think it lacks the richness normally associated with Louisanna-style cooking. I suspect that can be attributed to its quick cooking. This is a good weeknight meal to serve your family when you are looking for something a little outside the norm. It is quick to prepare, and my only caution regards the amount of hot pepper in the recipe. Do proceed with caution. Here is how the dish is made.

Red Lentil Soup

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I like to make a huge pot of soup to use for meals or meal supplements during the holiday season. I must admit that in our house meals served in the week between Christmas and New Year are usually nothing more than glorified leftovers. We celebrate both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, so there are lots of odd bits left in the refrigerator. I've found that a bowl of soup can tie them together and make for a more substantial meal as we pick our way through the leavings. I like that soup to be hearty and a change of pace from the meat laden soups I usually serve. That is tricky when the lord of the manor is a committed carnivore who has a tendency to recoil, vampire style, at the sight of beans or lentils. Over the years, I've found a few meatless soups that he does not object to. This red lentil soup, which by the way stays red, is one of them. It is a light, yet spicy dish that is painless to make and is as tasty as it is good for you. If you're looking for a soup to serve during the holidays, you might want to give this one a try. It has some texture and the lemon helps offset the more standard chili flavors. Here is how it is made.

Meatballs - My Recipe Rotation - Albondigas

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I hope you appreciate whimsy. The origin of a Spanish tapa, a small snack that is served with drinks, is not really known. Legend has it that illness forced 13th century Castilian king Alfonso X - also known as Alfonso the Wise - to eat small snacks with the wine that had doctors had ordered to maintain his strength. After he recovered from the illness causing his weakness, he decreed that taverns serve food with beer or wine to keep the spirits from going too quickly to patrons heads. A more practical explanation is the use of a saucer or lid to keep dust or insects out of drink glasses. "Tapa" literally means lid and the first lid was probably a slab of bread or cheese placed over the glass in which wine or beer was served. A tapa can be anything from a potato fritter to a small portion of skewered meat, the only requirement is that it must be a small dish of something edible that is served with a drink. Tapa (one snack) or tapas (two or more snacks) should not be thought of as an appetizer or meal starter. If you start eating tapas, you do not stop until you are full. While many tapas can be served as a main course, the tapas portion is about 1/4 the size of an entree and it usually requires several of them to assuage hunger. Tapas are served in bars, not restaurants, and tapas bars are extremely popular in Spain. As family size has decreased, so, too, has the size of most Spanish homes, and space limitations have made it easier to socialize and entertain outside the home. Despite problems with the economy, the tapas culture in Spain is still vibrant and thriving. Albondigas appear on many tapas menus. You'll find these meatballs are a bit softer than their Italian cousins, but they are really good and the cinnamon scented sauce in which they braise is downright delicious. They have the added advantage of being relatively inexpensive and easy to make and I know you and your crew will love them. Here is how they are made.

Vive la France - My Recipe Rotation - French Chicken Stew

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I fortunately live in an area where fennel is plentiful and inexpensive. That makes it possible to prepare this dish without having to surrender a king's ransom. Truth be told, I like this riff on bouillabaisse so much that I would probably make it even if I had to pay an exorbitant prices for the fennel. The stew is easy to make and I know those of you who give it a try it will be smitten. Here's what I had to say when it first appeared on One Perfect Bite.

Comfort Food - My Recipe Rotation - Cantonese Fried Noodles

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I adore noodles, whether they are of the Asian or Italian variety, but there are certain of those dishes that have my name on them. This is one of them. These Cantonese noodles are mildly flavored and quick to prepare. They are easy on the stomach and perfect to serve at the end of a difficult day that has left you frazzled. Once you have mastered cooking with rice noodles, it is impossible to go wrong with this recipe. I don't have universal instructions for cooking with rice noodles, so it is important to read the instructions that come with the package you buy. The brands that are available to me are best if soaked in hot water until they soften. I finish them with a quick, and I do mean quick, toss in the wok that's just enough to heat them through. My early experiments with rice noodles were disastrous. I'd overcook them and they'd melt into the sauce and surrounding vegetables. I'm not always real quick to catch on, so it took a while to figure out what was happening. Once I nailed the procedure, these noodles became a regular, much loved, feature on my table. I first shared the recipe with you back in 2008. Here is what I had to say about them all those years ago.

Lower Calorie Rice + An Unusual Cabbage Fried Rice

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Scientists have found a method for cooking white rice that reduces the starch and calories it contains by 10 to 12 percent. White rice is made up of digestible and resistant starches. Resistant starch takes a long time to digest and it is not converted into simple sugars, so it has fewer calories. Cooking alters how much of each type of starch there is in a food. Researchers in Sri Lanka have found a cooking method that reduces calories in rice because it increases the amount of resistant starch that rice kernels contain. Their method is simple. They add oil to the rice pot. The oil interacts with the starches in rice and converts digestible to resistant starch. A prolonged period of refrigeration further changes its composition, making it healthier and lower in calories than is usually the case. Here is the recommended method for cooking healthier rice.

Leftover Ham Fried Rice

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Fifteen years ago, the Silver Fox and I, along with our youngest daughter who had just returned from a year in Asia, spent several months in a charming loft apartment. It was quite small, but with only three of us and a great deal of planning, it became a manageable, if not luxurious, space. We had sold the home in which we raised the children and were biding time until secondary pensions vested, and we could move on to Oregon. Our daughter, who, until that time, showed no interest in cooking, made her initial cooking forays in that closet-sized kitchen. Her specialty was fried rice. We ate a great deal of it while she honed her skills and I came to have great respect for this lowly dish. Years later in Yangzhou, a city near Shanghai, China I came across a version that replaced the one that she crafted in that loft. No one knows for sure how fried rice became associated with the city Marco Polo once called home, but it transmogrified and in different guises, this colorful rice is served throughout China today. Following the holidays, I adapt my recipe for Yangzhou rice to incorporate ham, which I have in abundance if it has been our main course for holiday meals. In China, fried rice is usually made with dried, reconstituted shrimp and fatback or pork belly. I've ease those ingredients out of my recipe but if you ever have the chance, do try rice that is made that way. These days we view fried rice as food for the masses, but it's interesting to note that it was first served in the emperor's court, though it was wrapped in egg crepes or lotus leaves for him. If you have neither of those at hand, not to worry. For most of us fried rice is, and will remain, a great way to use leftover rice and bits and bobs of previous meals. There are hundreds of ways to make this dish. Here's the recipe I use when I have leftover ham in the refrigerator.

Moroccan Chicken and Onion Tagine - Djej Besla

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I haven't shared many Moroccan recipes with you since we returned from our last adventure. While Moroccan food is delicious, our meals while in-country were repetitive, and in some cases, quite involved to make. Tagines were served daily, and while their contents varied, it was difficult to get precise recipes for them because they were usually eaten in the home of Moroccan families. Morocco is a fascinating country and it seemed foolish to spend undo amounts of time rummaging in kitchens, when there was so much else to learn. So, I surrendered to the limitations of the day, bought cookbooks when I could and mingled rather than mixed. I still haven't gotten to those cookbooks, so, today's recipe comes from Saveur magazine. As soon as I saw the recipe, I knew I had to give it a try. It is for an extremely simple chicken tagine that can be made without purchasing special ingredients that you'll never use again. The word tagine describes a dish and the vessel that it is made in. They are basically stews that can be made with small amounts of well-seasoned chicken, lamb or beef and extended with simple readily available vegetables. They are served with an assortment of small-plate dishes that are collectively called Moroccan salad. Tagine is usually served with couscous or bread, but only one of them will be served at the same meal. I've made a few changes to the Saveur recipe. I blanched the lemon slices to keep the sauce that forms as the tagine cooks from becoming bitter. I used six chicken thighs instead of the combination of legs and thighs suggested in the original recipe. I also used a tangine, the cooking vessel, to make my version of this tagine and baked it rather than let it simmer on a surface burner. It is nearly effortless to make and it truly is delicious. While this may be an acquired taste, I'm happy to report it had my socks going up and down. I do hope you'll give this recipe a try. Here is how the tagine is made.

Bob's in the Kitchen - The Easiest Ever Roast Chicken

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...We will be away for the weekend, but I wanted to fix a special Valentine's day dinner for Mary before we leave. We both love a juicy roast chicken with a crisp burnished skin. Mary has several recipes for roast chicken on the blog and she has been working on another for her cookbook. They are all delicious but I didn't want to use any of them for her special meal. I've seen her make roast chicken for over 50 years now, so I have a very good idea how to make a basic bird. My version of roast chicken is very easy to make and it looks wonderful on a serving platter, even if I say so myself. I served the chicken with roasted potatoes and asparagus that I cooked in the microwave. I also made a fudge pie that I'll post tomorrow. It was a nice meal. Here is my recipe.

Bob's in the Kitchen - Weeknight Slow-Cooker Chili

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I pulled out the slow-cooker to make this chili today. There was some chopping to do, but the recipe is simple and once you have the ingredients in the slow-cooker, it does all the work. As a matter of fact, it does several days worth of work. I'll probably use the leftovers for lunch, serving the chili over rice one day and in baked tortilla bowls that I can fill with taco salad the next. Anyone who can read can make this chili and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the results. You can find the recipe here.

Frugal Foodie Friday - Poutine

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect that many of you have never heard of poutine. It's the French Canadian equivalent of comfort food and it's a favorite of our neighbors to the north, where some refer to it as the "National Dish of Canada." Poutine, by the way, is from a Quebecois slang word that means "mess". While it sounds dreadful, and doesn't look much better, poutine, a dish which consists of French fries that are topped with cheese curds and gravy, has crossed the border and has developed a committed following here in the United States. The exact origin of poutine is unknown, but as best as anyone can tell, it started in Quebec in the 1950’s, when cheese curds and gravy were added to orders of carry-out fries. A version of the dish known as "disco fries" was made in New Jersey soon after that,  but it used shredded mozzarella cheese rather than the cheddar curds that identify the classic dish. The curds are finger-tipped sized chunks of cheddar that have a briny taste similar to that of cottage cheese. They are usually sold in a bags, and if you are fortunate enough to get them freshly packed, they will actually squeak when you bite into them. Your grocery store may carry them and they can also be ordered online. Poutine was once an embarrassment to the French-Canadian populations of Montreal and Quebec, where great value was placed on their reputations for high-end cuisine. They considered it to be a low-end rural food, but as homely cooking gained international recognition it became more acceptable, not unlike our mac n' cheese to which lobster and crab can now be added. While the correct "gravy" used to top the fries can be debated, it is most often shown as being dark and rich. I decided to use Emeril LaGasse's recipe because he used a roux to make his sauce and I suspected it would be delicious. It is, but it took much longer to develop color and thicken than his recipe suggested. I've included my times along with his in the recipe that appears below. He also blanched the potatoes before frying, which gave them a wonderful crust while allowing their interiors to remain soft as they cooked. I LOVE THIS DISH and were it not so high in calories I'd have it once a week. DO TRY THIS RECIPE. It makes a poutine that will have your socks going up and down. It is not expensive to make and it can be served as an appetizer or main course, depending on your sensibilities and the state of your waistline. Here is the recipe for this week's Frugal Foodie Friday feature.