Menu 18: Chicken Croquettes and Tarte Tatin

This will be the last menu for January folks.  Can you believe it – 1 month down, 11 more to go!  I can tell you this Steph has done a great job, we all got to try so many new things this past month, and if you take a peek at February, those are even better. So, this weeks choices are:

• Chicken croquettes – page 299
• Tarte Tatin – page 456

The best part of Chicken Croquettes is that you can use left over chicken (suggestion is to buy a roast chicken at your favorite market and then go to town in shredding/chopping it) and voila, another fast and easy recipe.  When I lived in Miami, these were one of my favorite things to get at my local cafeteria for breakfast every morning.  I still find them here in Tampa, but they are not as good, or at least I have not found “the ones” that knock my socks off.  Like anything else, there are tons of versions out there.  This one seems to be closely related to how the Spaniards do them for their famous Tapas.

Then we have the Tarte Tatain, the French classic to the upside down tart.  The best part of this dessert that you can make the pastry dough 1 day ahead and then simply put it together.  If you are unsure of the pastry, the book shows you the technique on page 520.  I highly recommend the Food Processor option, since in less than 10 minutes you will have the pastry all ready to go.  You can also use golden delicious apples instead of the granny smith type, they are both good choices for this tart.

So gang, let’s get to it and be Gutsy this week!

Menu 17: Spicy Shrimp Gratin and Key Lime Pie

First off let me welcome our new member to the Gutsy line up, which has already posted her first collaboration this past week.  Noor from Ya Salam Cooking has joined our mist – so make sure you stop by her blog and say hello.

Can you believe that January is almost coming to a close? This is the second to last menu for this month and oh does it sound good!

• Spicy Shrimp Gratin - page 273
• Key Lime Pie – page 429

Shrimp, glorious shrimp, I will totally go out on a limb and say that shrimp is the most eaten seafood in the world.  Don’t you agree?  And this dish looks pretty sassy.  Coated with a creamy cheese sauce and then broiled until golden makes my taste bud go into over drive.  Again, I’m convince that Gruyere must be the cheapest cheese in Europe because this book uses it for almost every single recipe – if you cannot find Gruyere in your side of the world, them may I suggest you replace it with good parmesan, Fontina or even Asiago cheese – all of them are a good substitute to the peppery Gruyere.

The Key lime pie recipe seems to be pretty straight forward too.  Some may not believe this by I hate pie (yep I said it) and the only goes I do eat (and I have to be in the mood for them) is Pecan Pie and Key Lime, so I’m picky, but when I saw one ingredient in the list, I totally shouted YES!  Condensed milk is the best thing for this pie and this tells me that Mrs. Blashford-Snell knows her pie.  I’m so not skipping this one this week.  If you cannot find key lines, know that it’s possible to turn a great Key lime with regular limes too.

So, are you ready to cook?

Let’s get Gutsy guys.

Menu 16: Hungarian Goulash Soup, Potato & Parmesan Cakes and Profiteroles

This is a gutsy menu this week.  Just take a look at the choices:

• Hungarian Goulash Soup - page 111
• Potato and Parmesan cakes - page 249
• Profiteroles - page 439

Most of you, who are watching a white wonderland (or nightmare) outside your window and battling freezing temperatures are going to probably appreciate this soup or is it stew?  While some may think that this Hungarian Goulash is neither a soup nor a stew, it’s somewhere in between.  Ask any Hungarian and they will tell you that is considered more of a soup than a stew.  Did I confuse you guys yet?

If cooked in the proper way goulash has a nice and evenly thick consistency, almost like a sauce. In Hungary goulash is eaten as a main dish.  And this thick, hearty dish was (and still is) a very popular dish among herdsmen in Hungary. Goulash was made in cast-iron kettle, hung above open fire, out in the puszta.  Herdsman means “gulyás” in Hungarian, so that’s where the dish’s name comes from. In fact it is such a popular dish, that it became very important to protect it as a treasure of Hungarian culture.

The second choice is the Potato and Parmesan Cakes.  And they look to be simple enough to make, especially if you have left over mash potatoes. Don’t like capers? You can top them with olives, or maybe roasted peppers? You can totally gutsy this recipe around.

Last but no least and super close to my heart is the Profiteroles.  Or Cream puff to those non fancy naming people.  These little bite size of heaven are one of my favorite desserts, my paternal grandmother taught me to make them and they hold a special place in my heart.  I cannot wait to make them.  The recipe uses a chocolate sauce and whipped cream as filling and topping.  You can also go the easy route and just filled them with an ice cream, or fresh berries, or caramel, how about Nutella? Oh, the possibilities!

So, ready to get gutsy?  GO!

Menu 15: Pizza Four Season, Ginger Cream Sauce

Did everyone have fun eating French inspired last week?  Well this week we are moving to Italia – “La bella Italia”. This week’s Menu choices are: 

• Pizza Four Season – page 99
• Pizza Dough – page 98
• Ginger Cream Sauce – page 447

Steph is really taking me back to my days in living in Europe with her choices.  First France, with last week’s menu and now “la bella Italia”.  And not with pasta, but the next best thing – Pizza!

And with one that has all of my favorite toppings too!

The book includes a recipe for the dough and upon giving it a once over; it’s pretty straightforward recipe, the trick here is in the cooking.  And what better way to give you tips than to point you to a fellow baker, Patricia of ButterYum and her post on 10 Secrets for making Pizzeria Quality Pizza at Home, I have tried her method and I got to tell you, we stopped ordering pizza and instead are now making at home.

The other thing is to point out that while the recipe in the book for the dough calls for using bread flour, you can use regular all-purpose and there will not be a big difference in the end product.  You don’t have to use the books recipe, if you have a go-to pizza dough recipe, go for it.. but it will be lovely if you share it too *wink*. Or you can totally be a lazy-moose and buy at your local supermarket bakery.

The second option in the menu is the Ginger Cream Sauce and this one I’m totally intrigue, mainly because it sounds like a nice comfort custard with an extra zing by using the ginger and five-spice powder as ingredients. I’m still on the fence if I’m going to do this one.

So are you ready to roll them up and get kneading? Maybe even trying your hand at some flying pie in the sky while your family sing along Dean Martin’s “That’s Amore”.. I mean who can say no to signing on top of your lungs “When the moon hits you eye like a big pizza pie. That’s amore …” or be creative and change it up to “That’s gutsy coookingg!!!”

Enough with the jokes, roll them up and get gutsy!

Menu 14: Croque Monsieur and Apple Charlotte

While this menu will be our first one posted in 2011, some of us will be planning it and making it this last week of 2010, so for some of you, by the time this is posted here, we are still going to be 3 days away from the New Year and some of you are still in travel or way to complicated to cook yet another thing.

But, our first menu choice for the month of January menu has been chosen by our gutsy cook: Stephanie of Fake Goods and let me tell you she had done well.  This week’s menu:

• Croque Monsieur – page 88
• Apple Charlotte – page 459

Both of these should not take time away from all that New Year planning, in fact the Croque Monsieur is a glorify grilled sandwich.  How easy is that?

And if you have never tried the Croque Monsieur, you are in for a treat.  Every time I visit Paris, this is always a must on my “must eat now!” list, they are so good and once more they are made with Gruyere (or Emmental) cheese so what is there not to like?  And if you feel even gutsier try the Croque Madame version, which tops the sandwich with a fried or poached egg, even better!  The version on the book is the “fancy” version because it uses “béchamel” sauce and it takes this plain grilled sandwich way over the top.

For those of you that have no idea what an Apple Charlotte is, basically it is made by lining a mold with buttered bread slices, filling this with cooked apples, baking it in an oven and unmolding the dessert once the bread as crisped up and the filling as warmed through.  You can make a smaller version of this dessert by using ramekins instead of the 9-inch spring form that the recipe calls to use.

So there you have it two simple choices and perfect for this hectic week.  So, put on that apron, take out your sauté pan and let’s get cracking!

Ready, set… get GUTSY!

NOTE: I did the Croque Monsieur today and realized there is a typo in the recipe!  Step 2 is missing the portion where you melt the butter FIRST before you mix in the flour!  It should read like this:

2. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Whisk in the flour and let bubble without browning for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk. Simmer, whisking often, until smooth and thick. Add the shredded cheese and mustard and stir until the cheese is melted.

Menu 13: French Onion Soup and Spinach, Pear and Endive Salad

We have come to the end of December.  Can you believe we have already completed a total of 29 dishes with 13 menus?  Wow, time sure flies!  I know that some has had their hands full and have not participated much this past two months – which is totally ok, life does happen and we work around that.

Having said that here is the last menu of 2010:

• French Onion Soup - page 112
• Spinach, Pear and Endive Salad - page 129

I think Raymond wanted us to relax this week, so these two options are pretty simple.  And I totally love the choices. I for one love French Onion Soup, which is my all time favorite soup and if you have never paired endive with pears, you are in for a treat.

There is not much I can say about Onion Soup.  Except to really go all out and use the best french bread and cheese to top this.  The recipe calls for Gruyere or Emmenthal cheese and both are great melting cheese – you can also try Fontina or even the Parmesan cheese will do well.  And if you don’t have brandy, you can use apple cider (unfiltered).  A splash of Cognac is good too.  Other tips? You can blend in a blender and served it as smooth soup.  Use vegetable stock instead of beef; to make this a vegetarian dish and if you want to lighten the whole thing up? Use chicken stock and white wine which makes a lighter-colored broth.

And the Endive salad?  Well, some of you may not like the bitter taste of the endive, but paired with the sweet pears and dressing, which has honey, will balance it out.  If you just cannot do endive, try going with the Frisee.  Or be bold and use a mixture of different salad greens.

If you are craving a dessert, you could choose any of the ones we had thus far, but you had not had a chance to make.  I’m giving the Vanilla Custards a try, since I missed them before.

How about you…Ready for the New Year?

Set, go and be Gutsy!

Menu 12: Pork Chops with Blue Cheese Stuffing, Warm Green Bean Salad, Potato Herb Galette

I can tell that Raymond got ambitious with this weeks menu, because this is what he wants you and your family to try this week:

• Pork Chops with Bleu Cheese Stuffing - page 337
• Warm Green Bean Salad - page 131
• Potato Herb Galette - page 241

Let’s begin with the pork chops with their apple, Roquefort, pecans and scallion stuffing, HELLO! Can you shout YUM!  Even for me that I’m anti-fruit-in-my-food person, I’m going all out on this one and making it as it.  Tom just informed me that apple and pork chops are like a “staple” – first for me! See even cooks like me have to learn a thing or two.

Reading the recipe, I do question the art of placing it in the broiler without searing it first in a saucepan, so maybe I may go that route, just to give it an extra caramelization all around.  A quick tip that I may give each of you: Brine your chops before hand, this will keep them moist, specially this type of cut, which tends to take longer during the cooking period because of it thickness and will dry out.

But the one that I’m curious about is the Potato Galette.  In my book galette means something with dough.  Not this galette.  This will become, after cooking one big potato pancake, but then Galette in France is the name they call a buckwheat flour pancake, which is filled with “stuff”, lots of good stuff.  This one is made entirely of potatoes and its cook until nice and crispy.  What I not to like?

I guess we will find out when we post this coming week right?

So, start your ovens and stoves guys…

Let’s get Gutsy!

Menu 11: Carrot and Orange Soup, Gruyere Tart and Arugula Salad with Parmesan

Alright folks we are at Menu eleven!  Its full of light, and cheese and greens! 

• Carrot and Orange Soup - page107
• Gruyere Tart - page 165
• Arugula Salad with Parmesan -page 118

That pretty much screams a light lunch to me!

I don’t think you can go wrong with a tart (but, then savory tarts are my favorite thing in the world) and if you don’t like arugula (I don’t care much for it) you can go with a different lettuce choice.  And carrot soup with orange? I had the juice…wonder how it will translate into soup?

Are we ready to get Gutsy!

Menu 10: Chicken a la King, Spinach Timbale and Kasha Pilaf

Did everyone have a great holiday break?  As you can see, I had a total holiday break, meaning that I totally put the Gutsy Cooks responsibilities on the shelf, and instead cooked everything else but the set menu – yes, bad, bad administrator I am.

But, I’m back and along with a new sense of Gutsy.  The December menu choices are coming compliments of Raymond, who has been very good about keeping the schedule up, I think he has been one of the cooks in the club that has done all of the menu thus far.  I think he needs like a special gold star!

Especially,his choices for the month, because he knows how to pick them for sure.  Just take a look at this week’s menu, which is making my mouth water and its a complete meal - perfect dinner if you ask me:

• Chicken a la King - page 304
• Spinach Timbales - page 144
• Kasha Pilaf - page 211

Chicken a la King, whose name suggest a French influence, but there are a lot of people trying to get credit for this one.  But, all I know is that it’s a creamy chicken dish, that has mushrooms (love them) and cream (love it even more).  You just cannot go wrong when you put those ingredients together.

And the Timbales have nothing to do with a type of kettledrum or Latin-American percussion. But, it does have everything to do with a dish that is baked in a mold, usually rice or even pasta combined with vegetables or meats/fish.  In our version it’s more like custard like, since it uses eggs and goat cheese.  Having had this dish before, I highly recommend that you try it; it’s a great appetizer or in this case, a vegetarian choice for a light meal, if you pair it with a salad (which the book does).

And last is the Kasha Pilaf.  Kasha is toasted buckwheat groats and is actually not a grain, but it looks, cooks and tastes like a grain. It comes in several forms, from whole to fine granulation. It is used for cereals, side dishes and main dishes. It is prepared similar to rice, but takes a little less time to cook.  I’m actually looking forward to making this one, I’m thinking the combination of raisins and walnuts in there is going to really make this easy dish shine, and a perfect compliment to the chicken a la king dish.  You should be able to find it in your local supermarket if not try a specialty store and if you just cannot find it, you can use quinoa in it’s place.

So, what do you say?

Ready? Set?…Get Gutsy!

Menu 7: Tabbouleh and Lamb Tagine with Couscous

And we are already in the second week of November.  Time is sure flying us by.  This week menu is one that I truly love… and unfortunately I’m going to miss doing due to traveling.  But, I’m sure that I will try to fit it in there next week.  Who can say no to Lamb?

• Lamb Tagine with Couscous - page 340
• Tabbouleh - page 125

Let me give you guys a quick tip… mix the Tabbouleh with the Couscous … you will not regret it.

So, come guys - Ready, Set..get Gutsy!

When I’m back I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s post.

Menu 6: Cod in Tomato Sauce and Spanish Vegetable Tortilla

And can you believe it that it’s November already?  But there you go, we are nine weeks away from 2011! Yikes, did the time fly for you guys as well?

November’s choices are coming to you via Jenn, who unfortunately is not cooking along with us this time, but wanted us to enjoy her original choices.  So are you ready for Menu 6? 

• Cod in Tomato Sauce - page 263
• Spanish Vegetable Tortilla - page 136

If you do not like cod, a great substitute for it is sea bass, which has the same consistency of the cod, you can also use other fish in the cod family - Haddcok, Hake, Ling, Whiting. If you have a fishmonger in your area I suggest you use it, since they will make sure you get the freshest fish available.  If you don’t and venture on your own remember these tips: The skin should be shiny and clear. Fillets or steaks are  more economical and more widely available.  Shoulder steaks have the finest flavor, so try to buy thick cuts from the shoulder or middle of the fish and check that the flesh is very white.  I know this is a long shot, but Cod is commonly trawled or netted, which can damage the delicate flesh, so try to buy line-caught fish.

The recipe calls for fish stock, and unless you want to make your own from scratch I highly recommend the following More Than Gourmet Classic Seafood Stock and another good one is the Fumet de Poisson Gold (Classic Fish Fumet Stock) I have found both in my local Fresh Market and Whole Foods, sometimes your local supermarket carries the Superior Touch brand which is very good as well.

And then you have the Spanish Tortilla, which making it is in art all by itself.  The trick here is having everything at room temperature when you are ready to compose it.  There are tons of videos out there in how to make the classic Spanish Tortilla and if you have never done one, I suggest you take a peek, just so you familiarized your self with the steps.  The most important tip I could give you is to cook the potatoes and onions until the potatoes are tender, the book mentions about 10-15 minutes, but past experience tells me they are going to take a bit more, so check them at the 15 minute mark with a fork, they need to be soft but at the same a bit “al dente” so when you cook them with the rest of the ingredients they hold their shape. And as always taste them and season them accordingly.  

In another note, we have a new Gutsy Cook which has joined our club - please welcome Jackie from Sofrito’s Kitchen I know she has introduce herself to some of you in your last GC post.

So are we ready to take November by storm?

Ready, Set.. get Gutsy!

Menu 5: Braised Oxtail and Polenta

So we had a good week last week, based on everyone input the tartlet and the vanilla custards redeem the TKB, after the empanadas fiasco.   I have the custards on my to do list, since all of you said it was totally worth it to do them.

This weeks choices are

• Braised Oxtail with Wine & Herbs - page 351 
• Polenta - page 214

I’m looking forward to this one.  While we still having temperatures in the high eighties here in Florida, I know some of you are heavy into fall and what is more perfect than an stew and this one promises to be a good. But, then I’m a huge fan of oxtail.  My latin background demands it - we eat that stuff every which way - in stews, in soups but its best braised slow and steady.. just like this recipe calls for it.

And of course next to a rich braised stew the best thing would be potatoes, but I wanted to tap into my Italian background as well and opted for Polenta, which is one of my favorite starch. Polenta is traditionally a slowly cooked dish. It sometimes takes an hour or longer, and constant stirring is necessary. The time and labor intensity of traditional preparation methods has led to a profusion of shortcuts.  Like this recipe, which calls for instant, which is just as good with the added benefit of no slaving over the stove.

Ready? Set… be Gutsy!

Menu 4: Wild Mushrooms Tartlets and Vanilla Custards

I’m hoping this weeks we can redeem ourselves, since most of us had a bit of trouble with last weeks choices. Empanadas - FAIL! Even thought we were all surprise by the filling combinations of tuna and tomatoes. But, if you want to try again, let me know and I can point you to a different dough recipe that seem to work better.

Marie posted one from Epicurious on her post and I have another version from this blog, who uses the authentic way to make Argentinian empanadas 

For now, this weeks choices are:

• Wild Mushroom Tartlets - page 54
• Vanilla Custards - page 401

A note on the tartlets.  The recipe calls for 6 tablespoons of chive hollandaise sauce, but does not give you the recipe for it.  You need to hunt it down and there are 2 versions of the hollandaise sauce in the book.  One in page 516 and the other in page 282.  It’s the basic hollandaise sauce, and when they mean chives, I’m taking they mean for you to add them to the hollandaise once its made, which is what I’m planning on doing.

The other tip is the Vanilla Custards, the recipe calls for baking time of 25 minutes.  Experience tells me they may need a bit more cooking time, so keep an eye out for it.  You may need to extend the cooking time depending on you oven temperature.  Trust your instinct!

Ready? Set.. be Gutsy!

Menu 3: Empanadas and White Bean Soup

And we are on a roll.  This weeks menu will be all about confort food.  

• Empanadas  - page 47
• White Bean Soup - page 108 

First up, the Empanadas, I love them, I grew up with them.. in Venezuela we ate them for breakfast, for afternoon snacks, even after a heavy night of dancing.  We had tons of filling for them - anything you can imagine, was put inside these little pockes.  While the Venezuela version was usually made with corn, and fried, these are made in the oven and baked (more healthy) and are filled with Tuna!  Don’t worry, they tend to be good with that unusual filling.

Then we have an italian dish with the white bean soup using none other than Cannellini beans.  The recipe calls for dry, and I’m wondering if we can get away with using good can ones and reducing the cooking time. We will see how much time I have over the weekend and decide then.

And besides, I may have some special visitors this weekend, so I may have help putting this together.

So guys, ready? Set.. Cook!

Menu 2: Ricotta and Arugula Roulade, Quindim

Guys, we had such a great first turn out for our inaugural post.  It was amazing seeing how each of you took the recipes and made them your own.  That is something that I love so much about savory cooking, the possibilities and variations are endless, and all it takes is some GUTS!

Remember to check out each other blog post and see how we all give it our little personal twist.

So, here we are Week 2 and the menu choices are:

• Ricotta and Arugula Roulade - page 161
• Quindim - page 389

I have not cooked them yet, but will probably do so over the weekend, my mother’s birthday is on Sunday and the Roulade is going to be perfect as an appetizer – I’m thinking of making two using the different variation of spinach and dry tomatoes. 

As far as the second option, the Quindim (pronounced keen-jean), I’m really looking forward to this one.  First because I love anything that has coconut in it and second because I had these sweet little gems when I use to travel to Brazil for business a couple of years ago. So when I saw them in the book, I was SCORE, I finally know how to make them!  

A bit of trivia: Quindim is a word of Bantu origin and is used as a term of endearment, similar to darling. It also refers to coy “girlish charms”.  It’s also the most traditional Brazilian dish and incidentally one of the most popular items annually at Brazil’s National Fair of Sweets - FENADOCE.

So there you have it, let’s see what your guts will tell you to do with these choices this week.

Ready? Set… Cook!

Menu 1: Potato Skins and Bake BBQ Wings

Here we are guys… ready or not lets go and cook up.  This weeks menu choices are:

• Potato Skins with Cheddar and Bacon  - page 38
• Bake BBQ Wings with Blue Cheese Dip - page 61

and they are yummy (I cheated and I’m ahead, so I can tell you the BBQ wings will be a total repeat in your kitchen).  When you post your experience, come back and leave your post link in the comment section so we can all go and salivate.