Whole Wheat, Fig and Hazelnut Bread

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...At this time of year you can be sure of at least two things, the sun and any bread you chose to make will rise. While you can't control the sun, the bread is completely in your hands, and the heat of the summer kitchen will produce gorgeous high-rising loaves that you will be proud to serve. I've wanted to make this bread for a while now and the promise of a warm day and a block of time that would allow me to give it a try converged today. This is an interesting bread whose origins are unclear. A local bakery which makes a bread similar to this, insists it is Sicilian, but others attribute it to the tapas culture of Spain. This dry, firm bread has a near perfect crust and the mellowed tones of fennel and orange make it a wonderful base for sharp cheese and thinly sliced ham. It is also terrific with a simple schmear of cream cheese and plum jam. While the bread is not hard to make, it goes through 3 risings and that may impose problems for those of you working on tight kitchen schedules. This is a lovely bread that I hope you'll have time to try. Here is how it's made.

Sweet and Savory Cornmeal Cookies

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I suspect that cookies much like these are made anywhere that olives are grown and pressed for oil. While I can't say with any degree of authority that these are Portuguese cookies, I'm comfortable in asserting that olive oil was used to make at least some of the cookies that came out of the Portuguese kitchens of Provincetown back in the day when the fishing fleets were moored in the harbor. Cookies that are made with olive oil lack the tender crumb of those that are made with butter, but they have a lovely cake-like interior that makes them interesting. The cookie I'm featuring today has other savory elements as well, but a careful balance of sugar keeps them on the sweet side of the dessert spectrum. This is an adult cookie that is perfect to serve to those with adventuresome palates. I love to include them as an element of a special tea and they are a perfect accompaniment for dessert wines. The cookies are really easy to make and I know you will enjoy them. Here is how they are made.

Sweet and Savory Cornmeal Cookies...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh rosemary
1 cup confectioners' sugar + more as needed

Directions:
1) Adjust 2 oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2) Place flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
3) Place granulated sugar and oil in another bowl and whisk to combine. Add eggs and rosemary and whisk until smooth. Gently stir in flour mixture with a rubber spatula until a soft dough forms.
4) Working with 1 tablespoon of dough at a time, drop cookies 2-inches apart on lined baking pans.
5) Bake cookies until edges are a light golden brown and centers puff and split open, about 13 minutes, switching and rotating pans halfway through baking. Let cookies cool slightly on baking sheets. Place 1 cup confectioners' sugar in a bowl and roll warm cookies in sugar to coat. Dust with extra confectioners' sugar just before serving. Yield: 24 cookies.

If you have enjoyed your visit here, I hope you'll take a minute to...

      

One Year Ago Today: Cauliflower Gratin

Two Years Ago Today: Peanut Butter and Jelly Cake

Three Years Ago Today: Refrigerator Dill Pickles

Four Years Ago Today: Rhubarb and Red Berry Pie

A Cautionary Tale

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From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...One of these days I'll learn to follow my own advice. Last week, I had bad luck with a recipe that came from a well-respected publication. I was in a hurry, and while I carefully read the recipe, I bypassed the comments of readers who actually had made the bread. As a result, I ended up with focaccia that was worse than awful, it was a resolute failure. It did not rise and it stuck to the pan in which it baked. The comments, all of them, alluded to these problems, and had I bothered to read them, I could have saved myself a lot of aggravation. Now, it is not my intention to trash anyone, so I'm not going to name the source from which the recipe came. I just want to emphasize how important those comments can be to cooks who surf for recipes. The topping on this focaccia is what drew me to the recipe in the first place. I wanted to salvage something from this venture, so I decided to use it on top of some pizza dough I had purchased at the supermarket. This is an effortless preparation that makes a nice focaciia bread. I hope you'll try it next time you are pressed for time. Here's the recipe.

Rosemary and Onion Focaccia...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
1 batch white bread dough (purchased or homemade)
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1) Brush a large rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons oil. Stretch and press dough on sheet into a rectangle slightly smaller than the sheet. Brush dough with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let stand in a warm, draft-free area until dough has almost doubled in size, about 1 hour.
3) Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Remove plastic wrap and dimple dough with your fingertips. Scatter onion, rosemary, and oregano over dough; season with salt and pepper. Bake focaccia until golden brown, 10–15 minutes. Let cool to room temperature before slicing. Yield: 8 to 12 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Skillet-Baked Eggs with Asparagus and Fresh Herbs

Two Years Ago Today: Homemade Almond Paste

Three Years Ago Today: Smoked Salmon Quesadillas

Four Years Ago Today: Iced Watermelon Drinks

Roasted Lamb with Lemon, Garlic and Rosemary Potatoes

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...We are going to have a classic Easter dinner with friends next Saturday. I love these folks, but they've been at my table so often that I feel compelled to try something new, or at the very least, rework something old and give it a new life. I did some searching this week and was able to find a recipe for lamb that sounded really interesting. It was a Martha Stewart recipe, so I was reasonably confident that the recipe would work, but it was strongly flavored and I wanted to make sure it played nicely with the other dishes I planned to serve with dinner. Tonight we had a dress rehearsal. It work well enough that I'm happy to share the recipe with those of you who enjoy food with robust and gutsy flavors. I did vary a bit from the recipe.  I used very small potatoes that did not lend themselves to peeling or fussing of any sort, so they went into the roasting pan with their skins intact.  My omission caused no problems with the finished dish. There was one problem that I had to address when the roast came out of the oven. It did not brown and I found the color it did have off-putting. I added a teaspoon or so of Kitchen Bouquet to the scant pan drippings and used them to paint the surface of the meat. Voila! Only you and I know where that meat got its lovely brown color. Having completed had the test run, I'm going to change the vegetables I originally planned to serve with the lamb. The potatoes are so strongly flavored that I'm reverting to plain steamed asparagus or green bean bundles  as an accompaniment. I think they will provide better balance to the meal. I really liked this dish and I think you will too. Here's the recipe.

Roasted Marinated Lamb with Lemon, Garlic and Rosemary Potatoes...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite inspired by Martha Stewart

Ingredients:
Wide strips of zest and fresh juice from 2 lemons
1 head garlic, cloves smashed and peeled
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 pounds boneless leg of lamb roast, tied at 1-inch intervals
Coarse salt and ground pepper
4 pounds small Yukon gold potatoes, peeled

Directions:
1) Roughly chop strips of lemon zest. In a medium bowl, combine lemon zest and juice, garlic, and rosemary; whisk in oil. Pat lamb dry and season with salt and pepper. Place lamb in a 1-gallon resealable bag and pour in marinade. Seal bag, pressing to remove as much air as possible. Turn bag several times to coat lamb in marinade. Let sit at room temperature 1 hour (or refrigerate overnight), flipping bag halfway through.
2) Preheat oven to 450. (If lamb was marinated overnight, remove from refrigerator 1 hour prior to cooking.) Place potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water by 2 inches; season with salt. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes.
3) Remove lamb from marinade, letting excess marinade drip back into bag. Place lamb on a plate; season generously with salt and pepper. Pour marinade into a roasting pan; add potatoes. Cook 15 minutes. Push potatoes to edges of pan; place lamb in center. Roast 15 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 300 and cook until medium-rare (an instant-read thermometer should read 125 when inserted in thickest part of lamb), 1 to 1 1/4 hours, tossing potatoes halfway through.
4) Tent pan loosely with foil and let lamb rest 20 minutes before slicing. Toss potatoes with pan juices and serve alongside lamb. Yield: 8 servings.






One Year Ago Today: Milk Braised Pork Tenderloin with Baby Spinach and Strawberry Salad















Two Years Ago Today: Thai Honey Peanut Chicken













Three Years Ago Today: Horner's Corner Plum Bread














Four Years Ago Today: Tom Kah Gai, Thai Cooking School and Hill Tribe Elephants

The Empty Chair and Savory Brown Butter Soda Bread

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...We had an empty chair at our Thanksgiving table this year. Bad weather grounded the plane of a friend whose visit was much anticipated, and, I'm sure that disappointment is what caused me to slip into a reverie later in the evening. The trigger was that empty chair. I hadn't thought about it in decades, but for years my parents set an extra place at our Thanksgiving table. It was set it for Roger, a young soldier, who came into their lives just before Thanksgiving in 1944. A blizzard brought trains in the Chicago area to a halt and dashed Roger's plans to visit his parents before being shipped overseas. Roger had just turned 18 when my father, who adopted strays, found him in Union Station and brought him home to spend the holiday with us. We had a full house that year. Roger got the sofa and the other empty beds were taken by my grandmother and an old friend of my mother. Roger charmed my grandmother and that was not easy to do. As a matter of fact, my mother, who was not a believer, did a lot of praying when Maude came to visit. Maude, however, took Roger to her heart, and accepted as an article of faith, her responsibility to feed and entertain him. She even made her wartime version of soda bread for him. I'm told they genuinely enjoyed each others company. He spent the remainder of his leave with my family and then left for duty in the Mediterranean. He did not survive the Battle of Anzio. My parents were affected by his loss and for years thereafter they set a place for Roger at our Thanksgiving table. I had forgotten about that holiday all those years ago until the empty chair at my own table set memory in motion and reminded me, yet again, how blessed my life has been. As to the bread, I'd like to think my own need to feed and nurture comes from those early examples that were shown to me. This bread does not come from Maude but I know she would approve. I found the recipe in Bon Appetit magazine and it really is unusual. It's makes a savory oat bread that's flavored with rosemary and black pepper. When temperatures drop and snow begins to fall, I hope you'll keep this loaf in mind. It's a nice accompaniment to the hearty soups and stews of winter and if you serve it with lots of good butter while it is still warm, I think you'll be pleased. Here's how it is made.

Brown Butter Soda Bread...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine

Ingredients:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
3-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper plus additional for topping
1-3/4 cups buttermilk
1 egg white, beaten

Directions:
1) Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Stir butter in heavy small saucepan over medium heat until melted and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
2) Stir flour, oats, sugar, rosemary, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper in large bowl to blend. Pour buttermilk and melted browned butter over flour mixture; stir with fork until flour mixture is moistened.
3) Turn dough out onto floured work surface. Knead gently until dough comes together, about 7 turns. Divide in half. Shape each half into ball; flatten each into 6-inch round. Place rounds on ungreased baking sheet, spacing 5 inches apart. Brush tops with beaten egg white. Sprinkle lightly with ground black pepper. Using small sharp knife, cut 1/2-inch-deep X in top of each dough round.
4) Bake breads until deep golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool breads on rack at least 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Yield: 2 loaves.

One Year Ago Today: Spaghetti al Limone

Two Years Ago Today: Pumpkin Pancakes with Orange-Caramel Syrup

Three Years Ago Today: Lamb Shanks with Black Cherry Wine Sauce

Poulet au Vinaigre de Romarin

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...What's in a name? Sometimes quite a lot. There's not much appealing about a dish called Vinegar Chicken, but here's the thing. When properly cooked it can be delicious, and since this chicken is as interesting as it is delicious, I Frenchified the name to keep you on the page. I hope my ruse works and you'll give this recipe a try. The Silver Fox, at whose suggestion I'm sharing the recipe, is a tad unhappy right now. It's still quite early here, and in order to capture the vagaries of light in the Pacific Northwest, I decided to make and photograph the chicken early on. There has been some grousing. It seems my guy doesn't "love the smell of napalm vinegar in the morning". He's having his coffee on the deck despite steaming hoar frost and the morning chill. I'll just have to carry on. I like this recipe on many levels. It is, first and foremost, easy and inexpensive to make. It can be on the table in well under an hour, and if served with the proper side dishes, it makes a great entrée for company. You'll find the taste of vinegar here is muted, and while you know it's there, it won't overwhelm your palate. I flour the chicken before cooking to insulate the chicken from the high heat of the pan. It also gives the chicken great color. Years ago, I know restaurant chefs dredged chops and poultry in an instant blending flour to assure a gorgeous color and I've followed suit, although I use the less expensive all-purpose flour to coat my chicken. This dish can be on the table in 45 minutes or so. I love to serve it with the creamy polenta that you can find here.I do hope you'll give this a try. Here's the recipe.

Poulet au Vinaigre de Romarin...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, cut in 1/2-inch rounds
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
1-1/2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup canned low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 2 teaspoon water
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped fresh

Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large heavy skillet pan set over medium heat. When oil shimmers, add sausage and cook, stirring often, until sausage is lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
2) While sausage browns, season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off excess.
3) Remove sausage from pan and set aside. Add garlic and saute until light golden brown. Remove garlic from pan and set aside. Add chicken and cook over medium-high heat, turning once, until chicken is brown, about 6 to 8 minutes. Pour off fat. Return sausage and garlic to pan and scatter rosemary over all.
4) Pour in vinegar and bring to a boil. Boil until the vinegar is almost entirely evaporated, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover pan, and simmer for 15 minutes longer. Add cornstarch mixture and cook until thickened, turning chicken pieces to glaze. Transfer to a serving platter, sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately. Yield: 4 to 5 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Stracciatella - Roman Egg Drop Soup
















Two Years Ago Today: Bittersweet Chocolate Snowballs

Rosemary Aioli

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I love a really good sandwich and over the years I've learned that a little extra effort can take a good sandwich and make it great. The best of sandwiches start with good bread and a wonderfully flavorful spread to bind the bread and filling to each other. Good bread is no longer a problem as sources for it abound, but it's a different story when it comes to sandwich spreads. While there are good commercial spreads available, they make adequate, not great sandwiches. Years ago Julia Child and her contemporaries developed recipes for blender mayonnaise. That changed the way I made sandwiches. Those early recipes have long since been retired, but I still use the blender to make a highly flavored aioli that will make your socks go up and down. I use this particular spread for roast beef and roast pork sandwiches. It is also wonderful with leftover chicken. While this is an extremely easy recipe, when you are pressed for time rosemary and garlic can be added to commercial mayonnaise for somewhat comparable results. I hope you will try this. It will make your sandwiches truly exceptional. Here's the recipe .

Rosemary Aioli...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite

Ingredients:
Mayonnaise
1 large egg yolk
1-1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons white-wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
Pinch of black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Aioli Additions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt to taste

Directions:
1) To make mayonnaise: Place egg yolk, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in jar of an electric blender. Blend for 30 seconds. Combine olive and vegetable oil in a 1-cup measure. With motor running, slowly add 1/4 cup oil in a slow stream, blending until mixture is smooth and begins to thicken. With blender running, add remainder of oil in a steady stream.
2) To make aioli: Place 1 cup mayonnaise in a bowl. Add garlic, rosemary, pepper and salt. Mix well. Store in refrigerator. Yield: 1-1/4 cups.

Cook's Note: Tarragon can be substituted for rosemary if you prefer a tarragon flavored aioli.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Mexican Beer-Cheese Spread - One Perfect Bite
Pumpkin Butter - One Perfect Bite
Liptauer Cheese Spread - One Perfect Bite
Pimento Cheese Spread - Foodista
Orange and Chive Aioli - Fine Cooking
Garlic Lemon Aioli - Culinate

Lemon-Herb Slow-Cooked Chicken

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Those of you who read One Perfect Bite on a regular basis know that I have mixed feelings about crock-pot cooking. Actually, I should say slow-cooker cooking. Crock-Pot is a trademarked name that should only be used to describe slow-cookers made by Rival. Whatever you call it, the appliance was a godsend for busy women when it first arrived in American kitchens. It then fell out of vogue and was relegated to a decade of basement storage. There was a resurgence in it's popularity about six years ago and it once again claims counter space in our kitchens. Some problems with it's use have been overcome, others haven't. I speak now for myself, so please understand there are others of a different mind. I, then and now, have a problem with the texture of meat left for overly long periods of time in a slow-cooker. I'd like to be kind but the word mush is what comes to my mind. Years ago, meals made in the slow-cooker all tended to taste the same. That's to be expected when everything is seasoned in the same way and left to cook for hours. At the end of an eight hour stew it was really difficult to identify the kind of meat you were eating. Today there's a wealth of wonderful recipes for the slow-cooker but you still have to be careful. I've had some success in developing recipes, but because I'm lazy by nature I've become even more adept at identifying outstanding recipes created by others. Today's recipe is a "found" creation. It comes from the 17th Winning Taste Recipe Contest, now sponsored by Pilgrim's Pride Chicken, and was developed by Leslie Pew for that competition. If you decide to try this, make sure you cut the potatoes into 1/2-inch slices and please, please, please don't overcook the chicken. I cook it on HIGH power for 4 hours. Let the chicken sit for ten minutes before you slice it. While it's resting, strain and degrease the liquid in the pot. It can be reduced or thickened with a little cornstarch or flour and it makes a wonderful sauce for the chicken. I really like this recipe. As you can see it's beautiful to look at. Save for the limp skin you'd never know that it was made in a slow-cooker. If you are a devotee of slow cooking, you'll love this recipe. It's outstanding for its kind.

Lemon-Herb Slow-Cooked Chicken...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Leslie Pew and Pilgrim's Pride Chicken

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, about 4 to 5 pounds, giblets removed
1 onion, diced
1 head garlic, peeled, trimmed, cloves left whole
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 medium lemon, juiced and zest removed
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (about 3/4-ounce)
1/2 cup chopped fresh rosemary
1 onion, quartered
1 bay leaf
4 potatoes, thickly sliced
1 lemon, quartered
Fresh basil, rosemary or lemon slices, garnish, optional

Directions:
1) Rinse chicken and place in large bowl. Set aside.
2) Place onion, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice and zest, salt, pepper, basil and rosemary in bowl, stirring to combine. Pour half of basil-rosemary mixture over chicken, coating chicken inside and out. Place quartered onion and bay leaf inside chicken cavity. Tie legs together at end of drumsticks if desired and place in large slow cooker (crock pot), about six-quart size.
3) Toss potatoes and quartered lemon in remaining half of basil-rosemary mixture. Add to slow cooker with chicken. Cover and cook 4 to 6 hours on High or 6 to 8 hours on Low heat. Chicken is done when temperature reaches 180°F on meat thermometer. Remove chicken and vegetables to serving dish and garnish if desired with fresh basil, rosemary or lemon zest. Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Cook's Note: If desired, gravy may be made from broth accumulated while cooking chicken. Per each generous cup of broth, combine 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour and 2 tablespoons broth in saucepan. Cook, stirring until thick, then slowly add broth. Stir until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Variation: Chicken and vegetables may be roasted, uncovered in a 350 degree F oven if a browned, crispy skin is desired. For gravy, chicken broth, white wine, or water may need to be added to the liquid in the roasting pan. Thicken as directed above.

This is being linked to Recipes from Pilgrim's Kitchen and Crock Pot Wednesday at Dining with Debbie

Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary

This is the second in my series of recipes that utilize chicken drumsticks. Again, I'm using ingredients that are found in most homes. It helps to keep costs low. This dish was prepared for less than five dollars.

Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary

Ingredients:
8 large chicken drumsticks
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary (2 teaspoons dried may be substituted)
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
1) Using a knife, make two diagonal cut in each chicken drumstick. Pat dry. Season legs with salt and pepper.
2) Place butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. When hot add drumsticks and cook until all sides are brown. Add garlic, lemon zest and rosemary.
3) Combine flour, chicken broth, mustard and lemon juice in a small bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add to saute pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until drumsticks are tender, about 25 minutes. Transfer drumsticks to a serving platter. Season sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Pour sauce over drumsticks. Yield: 4 servings.