Archive for the 'Hal's Hint' Category

Roasted Squash Soup

Published by Hal on March 14, 2008 in Hal's Hint and recipes. 0 Comments

Roasting Squash

How’s that for a post header, huh? One of my favorite things to do is to roast vegetables in the oven. There’s just something about the deep, rich flavor of roasted anything that is incredibly satisfying. Around this time of year, you can find all kinds of delicious things to roast: potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, squash…

We bought an acorn squash a few weeks ago, not really sure what we going to do with it, but it was on sale. We’ve had it for a few weeks, so I knew that I needed to use it–but what for? Suddenly, I had this great idea to make a soup! We’ve also been eating a little less healthfully lately (notice that there haven’t been any posts on Wednesdays for the last several weeks?), so a soup seemed to be a good choice, rather than some deep fat fried thing.

But, of course, it’s that time of year, so I’ve been working late and haven’t had time really to cook. Thus, my sous chef has been helping me out:

Peeling Acorn Squash

She tells me this is my blog, even after I’ve implored her to write about some of her trials and tribulations, so that’s why she doesn’t really post here. But, she’s working just as hard as I am in the kitchen, and she deserves some credit. So, there you have it!

Anyway, we bought this squash, and we’re making soup. I was just thinking of pureeing the squash with some chicken stock, but I’m glad I looked up a recipe–there’s more too it than that, but it’s still relatively simple. Just get a few basic ingredients together, and you’ll have roasted squash soup in no time!

Roasted Squash Soup

Adapted from Michael Chiarello.

Ingredients

  • About 3 pounds of squash (such as butternut, acorn, pumpkin)
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon fennel seed
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/8 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 1/2 cup diced carrot
  • 1/2 cup diced celery
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Optional

  • 1/2 cup half-and-half
  • 1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
  • 2 tablespoons toasted pumpkin seeds

Squash Soup OverheadProcedure

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  2. Peel the squash and cut into 1-inch cubes.
  3. Melt the butter in a small sauce pan. When the butter has melted, combine with the next six ingredients (do not add the olive oil).
  4. Toss the butter-spice mixture with the squash and spread in a single layer in a shallow baking dish.
  5. Roast in the oven about 45 minutes to an hour, until the squash is soft and has begun to caramelize (turn brown around the edges).
  6. When the squash has finished roasting, allow it to cool. When it has cooled, use a blender to puree the squash. Set aside.
  7. Meanwhile, heat a medium-large saucepan over medium heat and add the olive oil.
  8. When the oil is hot, add the onion, celery, carrot and cinnamon stick. Stir continuously, allowing the vegetables to get soft, but not to brown–about 10 minutes.
  9. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for several minutes, then add the squash puree.
  10. Simmer for about 10 minutes, then discard the cinnamon stick and add the vinegar.
  11. Use a blender to homogenize the soup in batches. Once the soup has been through the blender, reheat it gently before serving.
  12. Add this point, add the half-and-half if you’re using it. Garnish with the cheese and seeds, if desired.

Yellow Tail RieslingSome observations: This soup is already really rich between the butter and the oil. You really don’t need the half-and-half–it’s creamy enough without out. Also, when you run the soup through the blender, fill the blender less than half way, leave the pour spout open, and cover the top loosely with a clean towel. This soup will expand to at least double while the blender is running and the soup is hot. Trust me! Finally, we served with with some white wine and it when perfectly–squash is a little on the sweet side, so go for a sweeter wine. We chose a Yellow Tail Riesling. Enjoy!

Sauerbraten

Published by Hal on January 29, 2008 in Hal's Hint and recipes. 2 Comments

Like I said a few nights ago, my wife has very German heritage, and we rather like German food. My wife’s family came over three or four generations ago, and brought some very German recipes over–last Christmas, one of her aunts even compiled some of them into a family cookbook. This particular one come from Stacie’s aunt Peg, whose note with the recipe reminds us that Stacie’s grandfather, Peg’s dad, loved this recipe.

I’ve not had the opportunity to make many of these family recipes, but I hope to be able to now that I’ve begun writing. I, too, have a book of family recipes that my aunts gave Stacie and me as a wedding present several years ago. We find, often times, that food is central to our family histories and certain dishes usually mean something incredibly special because of a particular memory or event associated with it. As I share these recipes, I’d love to hear of your family traditions and recipes.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of water
  • 2 cups of vinegar
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 10 whole cloves
  • 6 peppercorns
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 4 pound beef roast
  • 12-14 gingersnap cookies, crushed

Procedure

Combine the water, vinegar, onions, and spices/herbs in a big zip top bag. Shake to combine, then add the beef roast. Allow the roast to marinate for 2 to 5 days, turning daily.

After the roast has marinated, remove it from the bag. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Brown the roast in a shallow sauce pan, in a small amount of fat, over medium heat. If your roast has a layer of fat, place the roast fat side down first. If you are using a standard pan, do not move the roast for at least five minutes, otherwise it will stick and tear. After five minutes, turn and allow another side to brown.

Remove the roast from the pan and strain the marinade. Add the strained marinade to the pan, whisking up all the brown bits from the bottom. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes. Add the roast back to the pan, cover, and place in the oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until it reaches the desired done-ness (about 140 for medium, 150 for medium-well; the temperature will increase about 10-ish degrees as the roast sits). Allow the meat to rest for at least 15 minutes before proceeding.

After the meat has rested, remove the roast from the pan and place the gravy over medium heat. Bring the gravy up to a bowl, and whisk in the gingersnap cookies to thicken the gravy. If you desire, you can sweeten the gravy with some sugar, to taste.

Hal’s Hints: Really, don’t move the meat once you place it in the pan to get brown. Second, this recipe makes a ton of food–6 to 8 servings. I cut it in half–if you do that, I recommend you bake for 45 minutes to an hour depending on desired done-ness. I also used apple cider vinegar because of its sweetness. You can use what ever you like the taste of, but I would stay away from distilled (no flavor) and balsamic (strange flavor) for certain.

Next–do you see those black flecks in the sauce, in the picture? Those are bits of yummy goodness from the browning process. Use a regular (not non-stick) pan and a metal whisk to whisk them up when you first boil the marinade. I have a non-stick cook set, but I just bought a regular saucier over the weekend with just this purpose in mind and it’s quickly becoming my favorite pan in the kitchen!

Finally, I don’t keep ginger snaps on hand as a matter of course, so I thickened the gravy with some corn starch. Bring the gravy up to a boil as directed. Combine 1 tablespoon corn starch with 1 tablespoon water (twice as much for the normal recipe). Then, whisk into the gravy and reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer for five minutes, then serve

Recipes: Pork Curry in a Hurry

Published by Hal on January 8, 2008 in Hal's Hint and recipes. 5 Comments

This recipe is a tribute to my good friends, Robert and Mary Lee, and their Chicken Curry in a Hurry. They prepared it for me once, and I had the recipe, but I don’t any longer :) I do know that their chicken curry did not have the same base as mine, but that doesn’t mean it was any less tasty!

Ingredients:

  • Oil
  • 1 pound of pork, cubed (I had chops on hand)
  • 2 cups of green beans
  • 1 bell pepper, cut into strips and cut again to be bite-sized
  • 14 ounces of coconut milk
  • 4 teaspoons of red curry powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons of sugar
  • 2 tablespoons of lime juice

Directions:

  1. Start some rice and let it cook while you’re working on the pork curry.
  2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
  3. Add a tablespoon of oil and the pork; cook the pork until it is no longer pink inside.
  4. Remove the pork from the heat and set aside.
  5. Add a tablespoon of oil to the skillet and add the green beans; cook for about 3-5 minutes, until the beans are heated through.
  6. Add the bell pepper and cook for another 3 minutes or so, until the pepper is heated through, but still crisp.
  7. Add the coconut milk and curry, onion, and garlic powders. Stir to combine.
  8. Add the pork back to the skillet, and heat through.
  9. Just before serving, add the sugar and lime juice and stir to combine.
  10. Serve along side or on top of fresh rice.

This recipe was actually inspired by a recipe in the Better Homes and Gardens cook book, but I changed a lot of the ingredients to things I had on hand. If you want more color, you can use a red or yellow bell pepper–they are just so expensive this time of year, and I didn’t have this dish planned when I went shopping last night, so I opted for the green variety. If you can’t find coconut milk, or it’s too exotic for you, you could also substitute plain yogurt. I also really like the taste of curry, which is why there is a lot in the dish. You can tone it down to your tastes :)

Hal’s Hint: Don’t blindly follow the directions for cooking your rice! If you do, you might end up burning it. A good rule of thumb is 2-to-1 liquid to rice. Bring the liquid and the rice to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover. Check periodically; the rice is done when there are tubes, like in the picture, and you can no longer see liquid easily. When it’s done, turn off the heat and just let it hang out. Any liquid left in the bottom, which there shouldn’t be much, will absorb into the rice after about 5 or 10 minutes. To make your rice more flavorful, you can use stock instead of just plain water.

5 Easy Appetizers for New Years Eve

Published by Hal on December 30, 2007 in Hal's Hint, mixed drinks and recipes. 1 Comment

With New Years’ celebrations upon us, I thought it might be a good idea to give you a appetizers that look and taste gourmet, but are easy on the wallet and are easy to prepare.

1. Bacon-Wrapped Dates

Get a few packages of lean cut bacon and some containers of dates. Wrap a slice of bacon around each date and skewer with a tooth pick. Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, or until the bacon is cooked.

2. Prosciutto-Wrapped Apples and/or Melon

Wrap some prosciutto around wedges of apple or melon, such as honeydew (but only if you have access to good quality melon!). These are sure to be a hit!

3. Honey-Nut Brie

Place an 8-ounce wheel of brie on the center of foil lined baking sheet and score the top. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle some fresh thyme leaves over the top. Cover with the foil, and bake in an oven preheated to 400 degrees for 10 minutes. When the brie is melty, plate it and cover with 1/4 cup of toasted pecans and 2 tablespoons of honey. Serve with crusty bread.

4. Bagel or Pretzel Dip

Combine 8 ounces of cream cheese with 5 ounces of Old English Cheese. Add about 1 teaspoon (up to 2, if you like the flavor) of garlic powder. Serve with cut up bagels or soft pretzels.

5. Easy Bruschetta

Dice 6-8 roma tomatoes and add to bowl. Prepare a chiffonade of fresh basiland add it to the tomatoes. Add a dash of salt about about 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir to combine. Serve over toasted slices of French Bread.

BONUS COCKTAIL

Here is an easy, refreshing cocktail for your party. Fill a tall, thin glass with ice. Add one ounce of vodka, then fill with sparkling water. Squeeze a lime wedge into the drink and garnish with some curls of lime zest or a slice of lime.

Hal’s Hint: As you can see, these appetizers are really easy, the most difficult having only five ingredients. And, most only have 1 “gourmet” ingredient. Because of this, your guests will be amazed–but we know the secret, that these recipes cost nearly nothing. Another trick that will “Wow!” them is presentation. We eat first with our eyes, so having these dishes arranged artfully on a nice platter will be certain to whet your guests’ appetites. Be creative and festive–your guests will appreciate your effort!

Recipes: Sweet Petals Coffee Cake

Published by Hal on December 29, 2007 in Hal's Hint and recipes. 0 Comments

This recipe has been a favorite in my family for years and years. I think the source is an old Better Homes and Gardens or Woman’s Day magazine from around 1970. I’m going to another holiday party this evening and made this treat this morning. It takes nearly 3 hours from start to finish, but most of that time is rising and baking. Before everyone gets nervous about cooking with yeast, it’s not as hard as it sounds! The little buggers (quite literally) are hardy, so unless you make your yeast-bath really hot and kill them, you’ll be just fine.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup warm water
  • 3 tablespoons shortening
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3/4 cup scalded milk
  • 1 packet active dry yeast
  • 2 1/2 to 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup melted butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 3-4cups chopped nuts (I have used peanuts, walnuts, and pecans–any nut will probably taste fine)

Directions:

  1. Combine the water, shortening, salt, sugar, and scalded milk.
    Hal’s Hint: to scald milk, bring it just to a boil and remove it from the heat immediately.
  2. Allow the liquid mixture to cool to lukewarm.
    Hal’s Hint: to test the temperature, dip your finger into the liquid or flick some onto your wrist. If you can’t really feel the temperature or it feels slightly warm, it’s good to go.
  3. Stir the yeast into the mixture and let it sit for 10 minutes.
  4. Measure 2 1/2 cups of flour into a mixing bowl and pour the yeast mixture into the flour.
  5. Stir until the dough forms a ball.
    Hal’s Hint: the dough may be sticky at first–add more flour, about 3 tablespoons at a time, until the dough comes together into a ball. It’s much easier to add flour than it is to take it away
  6. Knead the dough about 20 times and cover.
  7. Allow the dough to rise for 60 minutes in a warm place (I put the dough in the microwave–not on, of course!).
  8. In the last 10 minutes of the first rise, melt the butter and combine the sugars, cinnamon, and nuts in a separate bowl.
  9. Tear pieces off the dough and roll them into strips about 1/2 inch in diameter and about 6 inches long.
  10. Dip the strips in the melted butter and roll them in the sugar/nut mixture.
  11. Coil the strips on a pan, making a round cake.
  12. Sprinkle some of the remaining sugar/nut mixture over the cake and place back into the warm place.
  13. Allow the cake to rise again for another 60 minutes.
  14. 15 minutes before the cake has finished rising, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
  15. Bake the cake in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
  16. Allow the cake to rest for 10 minutes. Ice with a mixture of 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1-2 teaspoons of milk, if desired.

My recipe notes that the dough making process can be shortened by using frozen sweet rolls. I’ve never done this, and don’t think it will cut out much of the time. Personally, I love the smell of yeast and rising bread, so I couldn’t imagine not making this totally from scratch.

I’m sure when you make this for your next family gathering, it will be a smash hit! It takes some time, but the end result is truly worth it. And, it’s an easy recipe that anyone can make, even the first time cook.

More pictures:

Review: Coq au Vin (a la Gastronomist)

Published by Hal on December 17, 2007 in Hal's Hint and recipe reviews. 0 Comments

I made this recipe tonight and thought I’d provide some thoughts about the end result (you can see my interpretation here, with a link to the original–I would link directly, but I don’t want to flood that blog with trackback-spam).

The aroma was amazing while the hen was cooking and we were really excited to taste it when it was finished. It wasn’t very hard at all–simple as placing some ingredients in a pan and letting the heat do it’s work. However, you’ve got to handle the bird quite a bit, so if that makes you the slightest bit squeamish, you might want to look at a different preparation method.

The first thing I had to do was make sure the chicken was defrosted. I’m not sure how, but after two days in the fridge, the birds still weren’t ice free. No worries; I had to rinse them anyway, so I just did so under cool water. The ice came right off (or so I thought).

I get really nervous, though, about overcooking meat. I don’t want it to dry out, so I have a tendency to pull things out of the oven before I’m supposed to. The Gastronomist says to leave the hens in for an hour, which actually didn’t work for me. I’m sure this was one of two things: the hens were probably not fully defrosted or the oven is not properly calibrated. This would have been solved by using an oven thermometer or a good instant read thermometer. Unfortunately, I broke our thermometer one day when I was grilling (Hal’s Hint: They make special probe thermometers for grilling–don’t use the same one you’d use for regular cooking). Regarding over-cooking the chicken, if you notice it browning a little faster than you’d like, place a foil tent over the meat until you’ve finished cooking. This will prevent over-caramelization while still promoting even, thorough cooking.

Once we got the doneness right, the chicken was incredible. Very moist and succulent–my wife could really taste the citrus! We had a little trouble eating, though–cornish hens are a little, well, little. So, next time I’ll probably try a bigger bird, or I’ll just use thighs and legs. And, I’ll bet this would have tasted so much better if I had included more aromatics in my birds–as it were, I was missing sage (I used it for the pumpkin risotto), lemons, and parsley. Next time, I’ll stop being such a man and actually follow directions! ;)

Overall, we were impressed. And, believe it or not, this isn’t terribly expensive–the most expensive part will be the bottle of wine. Between the hens and the aromatics (but not the wine, because we had some on hand), I spent about $9. Not too bad for a “gourmet” meal!

Enjoy, and let me (and the Gastronomist) know what you think!

Recipes: Bourbon Pork

Published by Hal on December 10, 2007 in Hal's Hint and recipes. 2 Comments

I love bourbon–it’s actually one of my favorite liquors. I’d love to style a restaurant with bourbon as the key ingredient. Keeping that in mind, I looked for a bourbon glaze that I could us with some pork chops we picked up from the grocery the other night. I found one here, that I modified slightly to fit my particular available ingredients.

Bourbon Pork

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup bourbon
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup onion, grated
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar (light or dark–I used light; the recipe above called for dark)
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 4-6 boneless pork chops, trimmed and cut into about 1 inch cubes
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • rice
  1. Combine the bourbon, garlic, onion, brown sugar, butter, and honey in a large bowl. Whisk together.
  2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
  3. Add the pork to the skillet and allow to brown (Hal’s Hint: Take the meat out of the fridge at least 10 minutes before you put it in the pan. Once it’s in the pan, LEAVE THE MEAT ALONE! Let it hang out for about 5 minutes before you attempt to turn it. If you don’t, the meat might stick and tear or won’t brown as quickly).
  4. Add the bourbon glaze and allow to come to a boil.
  5. Stir until the glaze is reduced by about half.
  6. Serve with cooked rice.

(Hal’s Hint: I like to add spices to my rice to make it more aromatic. I added a stick of cinnamon and three small bay leaves to this batch of rice, making it a little sweeter and full of flavor. Remove these before serving.)

Bring the glaze to a boil and reduce by half.Serve along side aromatic rice.Another view.

My thoughts: My wife really liked this. I thought it was a pretty good interpretation of a bourbon sauce dish you’d get at a Chinese-American restaurant, so I call this “Carryout at home.” However, it was too sweet for my tastes. My wife and I suspect this is because I used 1 cup of sweet stuff (1/4 cup of honey, plus 3/4 cup of brown sugar). I did this because I needed more liquid to carry the flavor of the bourbon and I didn’t want to grate another onion–I had grated one, plus the half of one from last night’s dinner. In hindsight, I probably could have done without, used water, or added something savory (like diluted soy sauce–1 tablespoon soy sauce to 3 tablespoons water).

Regardless, I thought it was tasty. It was just too sweet for me usually. I have another bourbon glaze I’d like to try, but it’s more like a barbecue sauce so I’ll need to wait until I have a brisket or some ribs. Plus, my wife doesn’t like barbecue sauce much, so I’ll need to a new guinea–I mean, taster :).