Quick Yummy Lunch Stir Fry Chard with Farro

Today for lunch I made some Farro (well that was left over from the other night) and baby rainbow Swiss chard that I sauteed with shallots and garlic and then finished with Tamari and Siracha hot sauce. SOOOO GOOD! Oh it was so yummy I couldn't stop eating it. This is going to be my new quick stir fry recipe.

I'm sure you are asking what is Farro? From what I have been able to find out, its an old Italian grain, similar to whole wheat. it is also called Emmer Wheat. It cooks quickly (about 25 minutes) but uses a 3:1 ratio instead of rice or quinoa that uses a 2:1 ratio of liquid to grain. Although, I have seen recipes that call for a 2:1 ratio for the Farro. I made 3:1 and it is wonderful!

3 cups vegetable stock
1 cup farro
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced green pepper (use red or whatever color you have)
1 clove garlic smashed, but left whole
salt and pepper to taste
2 T olive oil

heat olive oil over medium high heat in a sauce pot with a tight fitting lid, add onion and green pepper, saute for a few minutes. Add garlic clove and saute for a minute more. Add Farro and stir for a few minutes. Add hot or room temp stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 20-25 minutes. Check for doneness. Farro should be tender, but a little toothy, NOT al dente. Remove from heat and cover and let sit for a few minutes if there is still some liquid to be absorbed. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove garlic clove.

Add ins:
a couple of handfuls of spinach, some artichoke hearts, roasted red pepper OR use it as a base for the stir fry, and season with soy sauce, sesame oil and scallions.

Cocktail Party Prep - before the snowstorm

I made my shopping list and prep list. This shouldn't be too bad. Well if I can get everything before the snow falls that is! The party is Friday night and hopefully I will have everything done in advance and all I have to do is show up and cook everything.

This is a hors d'oeuve buffet, so everything is self serve, no fancy passed items. It just wasnt that type of party. The main attraction for the buffet is spice rubbed tenderloin. I'm serving that with rosemary balsamic carmelized onions and traditional horseradish sauce on garlic crostini.

I'm making my favorite nuts from Ina Garten. Her cashews are to die for!
Here is the recipe:
20 oz salted cashews (I use raw ones, unsalted)
2 T chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 tsp. cayenne
2 tsp. dark brown sugar
2 tsp kosher salt (I use sea salt)
1 T melted butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place nuts on a baking sheet and toast for about 10 minutes until they are warm. While nuts are in the oven, combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
Take the warm nuts out of the oven and toss in the bowl with the mixture.

These store very well too. Make them for your holiday party and watch them disappear!

I'm also planning Christmas dinner for my family which should be so much fun this year. We are doing a Frontera Grill inspired meal. Guacamole, Ceviche, pulled beef tacos, roasted tomato salsa, tomatillo salsa, spicy mushroom tamales, achiote roasted vegetable tacos, black beans, rice, and for dessert: Mexican Wedding Cake cookies and Swirlz Cupcakes. My mouth is watering already!

Sore throat - need chicken soup STAT!

I just made chicken soup. Comfort food is the best when you really need it, like going to bed with a raging sore throat and waking up with it even worse!

1 cut up whole chicken into 8 pieces
1 gallon water
2 onions, skin on, large dice
3 carrots, large dice
3 ribs celery, large dice
1 small clove garlic, peeled and left whole
handful of fresh parsley stems
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon of whole peppercorns
fresh thyme stems or marjoram stems

Put everything in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for 45 minutes at least. Taste your stock. Pull out the chicken on a plate and let cool. Strain the stock. You can save the veggies and bones to make another batch if you like. Pull the meat off the bones and dice it up to spoonful size. Put stock back in the pot.

Put the veggies for the garnish in the simmering stock with the pasta. Add diced chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 25 minutes more. Add fresh parsley before serving.

Garnish:
1 cup of pasta of your choice - I used ziti, because it was open
2 carrots - medium dice
2 ribs celery - medium dice
salt
ground black pepper
chopped fresh parsley

Itchin to get in a kitchen

I'm really feeling the creative juices flow. I want to cook up some experimental food and need guinea pigs to taste it. On the list: savory biscotti, grilled shrimp with chermoula marinade, posole, green chile stew, vegi chili, pizzas. Oh i'm getting hungry just thinking about it all!

The good thing is i now have been cleared to run by my ortho. I fell 6 weeks ago and broke my collarbone, that put a monkey wrench in my fall cooking plans since i couldn't even lift a full pot of soup! When i was able to ditch the sling and lift a pot I made a stick to your ribs, lentil soup

Clean out the fridge lentil veg soup

1 16 oz bag of lentils, washed and drained
2 T olive oil or canola oil
8 cups of water, veg stock or chicken stock (your choice, I used chicken stock, homemade of course!)
1 14 oz can of tomatoes - fire roasted would have been great here too!
1 leek, washed and finely chopped
2 carrots - small dice
2 celery ribs - small dice
2 cloves garlic - just smashed and left whole
1 parsnip (like i said, cleaning out the fridge)
1 poblano pepper - small dice
1 yellow pepper - small dice
fresh baby spinach about 1/2 bag or 3 really big handfuls
salt and fresh ground pepper TT (to taste)
soy sauce - low sodium, preferably Tamari or Shoyu if you can find it.
Really good olive oil and smoked sea salt for serving

In a large soup pot, heat about 2T olive oil, and add leeks. saute for about a minute, add carrot, celery, parsnip and garlic. Cook for about 5-7 minutes on medium heat. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Don't go heavy on the salt, because you are going to add soy sauce later and finish with some salt, but you need some salt at this point to build flavor. If you have to stick to a low sodium diet, don't salt at this point and just add the salt at the end. You will get the most bang for the buck that way.

Add peppers and cook for a few minutes. Add rinsed lentils and stir, add tomatoes, stir. Add liquid. Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer.

Simmer for about 20-30 minutes, covered with a few holes for venting. Check volume of liquid frequently and add more if needed. I started with 6 cups and ended up adding the final 2 because i ran out of liquid. Add spinach. Add about 3T soy sauce to start, taste your soup and adjust seasoning as you like it.

For serving, a big bowl of soup - drizzel some really good olive oil on top and sprinkle some smoked sea salt on top too. serve with some crusty bread. Enjoy!

Ahh the joys of a commercial kitchen

I love working in a big kitchen. big ovens, sheet pans, mixers, and knives. All the tools you need to get the job done quickly.

Yesterday I made: spiced molasses cookies, cinnamon sugar cookies cut into little acorns and oak leaves dipped in chocolate, an apple and raisin strudel with caramel sauce, 2 salad dressings and some spiced nuts.

I am working with Tom Leavitt of White Oak Gourmet and we are catering St. Viator Day at St. Viator in Arlington Heights, IL. The dinner is for 55 people and the menu is going to be really tasty!

Cocktail Hour with passes Hors d'Oeuvres
Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette, Spicy Walnuts and Bleu Cheese
Choice of:
Roast Prime Rib of Beef with Fresh Horseradish Sauce
Pommes Dauphinoise and Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Salmon with Pommes Puree and Pommes Frites and Sauteed Spinach
Apple Cinnamon Ice Cream and Pumpkin Ice Cream with Spiced Molasses Cookies and Cinnamon Sugar Cookies

Enough blogging...off to work for me!