C. is a good friend to have. He loves to cook and is willing to share the recipes to the delights he makes in the kitchen, which believe me are so many… Just thinking about it makes my mouth water….
Anywho, his last communication today was for two delights which I’ll just include below as he wrote them out:
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Chicken Vegetable Soup
Ingredients:
one whole chicken, cut up in pieces
2 or 3 big zucchini (zucchuz my father calls them)
2 big (or 4 small) parsnips
one celeriac (celery root)
8-10 stalks worth of fresh oregano leaves
3 stalks worth of fresh basil leaves
salt and pepper
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
one medium onion, chopped
(saute these together in a pan, separately)
Steps:
1.) Get a big pot, coat the bottom with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, let it get hot. Then, toss in the chicken pieces and brown them up. You want the skin to get browned and you want it to sizzle a bit. It’s good to wear an apron here (or use a cover) because the oil can splash. Make sure the chicken doesn’t stick/burn to the bottom by stirring it around. When enough of the pieces have a bit of brown on them, put in your water, making sure to cover about 4 inches or so
above the chicken.
2.) Cut up the parsnips into big chunks (like you would with a carrot). You don’t have to peel them. As for the celeriac, make sure you peel it by chopping off the root pieces on the side (no brown parts), but leave it whole. Once you’ve done this, you can add both the parsnips and celeriac to the soup. If the celeriac has celery shoots coming out of the top, you can cut them off and add them too. Keep in mind that some celeriac are BIG, but you don’t have to get a big one. They have a wonderful flavor and a beautiful scent.
3.) You’re going to let the soup cook for about 1.5-2 hours on relatively high heat (you gotta let it cook hard, as it’s soup). Don’t let the water go below the level of the chicken, but don’t add so much that it is more than an inch or two above it. As the chicken cooks, it will shrink and fall apart, so you shouldn’t really have to add water.
4.) While you’re doing this, saute your garlic/onion in some olive oil, then add it to the soup after you’re done. You don’t want the raw taste of onion to ruin the soup.
5.) Get your basil and oregano picked (if you have to take the leaves off) and add it to the soup. Adding the basil early gives your soup a bit of sweet flavor, which you want.
6.) Add salt and pepper, somewhat liberally (maybe 1 teaspoon salt, half that of pepper).
7.) When the soup is done, let it cool a bit, then take out the parsnips and chicken and celeriac and set them aside. Strain your soup into a pot. Then, take all the meat off your chicken pieces and add it back to the soup. You can cut the parsnips and celeriac into big bite-sized pieces (but not too small).
8.) Cut up your zucchini into discs. Add them to the soup. Shred about a quarter to a half cup of fresh romano cheese into the soup. Now, boil your soup again just until the zucchini is cooked.
9.) Add romano on top to serve.
*You can actually add other quick-cooking vegetables at the end too, like possibly tomato.
Chicken Merengue
Ingredients:
6-8 chicken thighs (or even a half chicken, cut up)
bottle of decent white wine (white Valpolicella is good; avoid chardonnay)
1 bouquet garni (I use, instead, a collection of fresh oregano (4-6
stalks), 3 stalks rosemary, and some fresh basil)
NO NEED TO TAKE OFF LEAVES!
1/2 cup marinated kalamata olives
pomi tomato puree (called strained tomato on the package)
salt and pepper
Steps:
1.) Leave your chicken pieces whole, marinate them in 1 cup of white wine and the herbs, for 2 hours.
2.) Heat up a pot with some olive oil on the bottom (enough to coat). Heat the pot on medium.
3.) Take out your chicken from the marinade and then add it to the pot, but keep the marinade on the side.
4.) Once the chicken browns (just a litttle bit), add the marinade back in, with all the herbs. Now add in another cup of wine.
5.) Let the wine/chicken/herbs simmer for about 5 minutes, just to burn away some of the alcohol.
6.) Add in your Pomi (a whole container, like 20-24 ounces I think). Add salt and pepper to taste (1/2 teaspoon each maybe).
7.) Now, bring it to a boil and let it simmer for about 30 minutes, until the chicken is tender.
8.) While it is simmering, chop your olives in half. You might have to take out the pits. It’s a pain in the ass, but oh well.
9.) When the 30 minutes are up, add in your olives, then cook for like 5 minutes, on low heat. Olives are strong, so you don’t want them to overflavor the sauce. Then you’re done.
10.) Serve with garlic bread. Optionally, you can make some penne rigati to go with it (you’ll have some sauce leftover).
PS: C.’s tips:
1. Get your olives from Halal foods on University/San Pablo. They’re $4 a pound and better than anywhere else!
2. Good garlic bread: pugliese bread (SemiFreddi is the only one with decent Italian bread), slice it, get a pan with butter and olive oil, toss in some chopped garlic, put it on low, then place the bread in it for a minute or so, just to heat it up and brown it. Then make sure you add romano on top.
3. You can get really fresh parsnips at Monterrey Market, as well as celeriac. Most chain stores won’t sell these root vegetables.
mple and you can make it as tangy as you please. It works wonders with pasta dishes like the yummy one AMTAF described below.
h entrees on a regular basis, you know that Salmon is stronger tasting than halibut (another personal fav.) or sea bass. That’s why Salmon marinade can stand to be a little strong.
Type of Dish: Appetizer
