Barefoot Bloggers Wild Card

Please if you haven't yet (and are so inclined) click on the Crisco link and vote for my Caribbean Chicken with Roasted Jalapeno Mango Sauce!! $25,000 is on the line!

This week for Barefoot Bloggers an interesting feature has been introduced. (BTW for anyone who does not know, Barefoot Bloggers are a group of food bloggers that prepare a delicious recipe created by Ina Garten-The Barefoot Contessa-on two Thursdays of each month). The new feature is a wild card of sorts or as the Barefoot blogger hosts call it backtracking...we're allowed to choose an alternate Barefoot Blogger) recipe as a substitute for one of this month's selections.

I am sooooo relieved! This weeks selection was to have been Tuna Salad (selected by Kate of Warm Olives and Cool Cocktails). There are only two thing I can absolutely not eat and they are Tuna and mayonnaise. This tuna salad does not call for mayonnaise but nevertheless I am using the wild card. I decided to select a recipe that was prepared before I joined the Barefoot Bloggers group-in fact, it was the very first recipe that the group prepared: Herbed Baked Eggs from Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris Cookbook.

The results were positively divine! What an absolutely elegant and delicious way to serve eggs. I was out of parsley so I substituted fresh sage for the parsley; I'm certain that any herb combination would be wonderful. I would love to try substituting different cheeses-I was thinking of perhaps a Cotija cheese with bits of jalapeno tossed in for a Tex-Mex version.

Herbed Baked Eggs

1/4 teaspoon minced fresh garlic

1/4 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

1/4 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese

6 extra large eggs

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Toasted French bread or Brioche for serving

Preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and place the oven rack 6 inches below the heat.

Combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, parsley and Parmesan cheese and set aside. Carefully crack three eggs into each of two bowls without breaking the yolks. (It's important to have all the eggs ready to go before cooking).

Place 2 individual gratin dishes on a baking sheet. Place 1 tablespoon cream and 1/2 tablespoon of butter in each dish and place under the broiler for about 3 minutes until hot and bubbly. Quickly but carefully pour 3 eggs into each gratin dish and sprinkle with the herb mixture then sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place under the broiler for 5-6 minutes until the whites of the egg are almost cooked. (Rotate the baking sheet once if they aren't cooking evenly). The eggs will continue to cook once you take them out of the oven. Allow to set for 60 seconds and serve hot with toasted bread.

Caribbean Chicken with Roasted Jalapeno Mango Sauce

When I hear the expression "food of the Gods" the first thing that pops into my mind is mango. Mangoes with their luscious flavor and bright orange color are among my very favorite foods.

A spicy mango sauce made with a roasted jalapeno, citrus and Crisco-Puritan canola oil with Omega-3 DHA is the highlight of my Caribbean chicken dish that is a finalist in the Crisco Live Smart Cook Smarter contest! Please follow this link to see all the finalist recipes and if you would be so kind...cast a vote for my recipe (Caribbean Chicken with Roasted Jalapeno Mango Sauce-Veronica, Connecticut). Voting ends this Sunday.

My recipe, one of five finalists in the contest, is a family favorite...not too spicy and not too sweet. Don't let the jalapeno in there fool you-while it adds wonderful flavor it does not necessarily have to add a lot of heat. After roasting the pepper and carefully removing the skin, use a sharp knife and remove all the seeds and all the membranes. Of course if you like a lot of heat just go ahead and leave some seeds and membranes in there.

Here is the recipe...the photo below is the one taken by the Crisco folks-what a difference a food stylist makes!!

Caribbean Chicken with Roasted Jalapeno Mango Sauce
1 jalapeno pepper
1 cup diced mango
2 tablespoons orange juice
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons lime juice
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 shallot, peeled
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup plus 2 teaspoons Crisco Puritan Canola oil
1 lb. boneless chicken tenders
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup coconut
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 egg whites

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Place the jalapeño pepper on a small baking sheet and roast in the oven for 15 minutes. Place the roasted pepper in a small plastic bag for at least 5 minutes to loosen the skin. Carefully remove the skin from the pepper and remove seeds and stem. In a food processor or blender combine the pepper, diced mango, orange juice, 2 tablespoons of lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, shallot and 1 tablespoon of cilantro; process or blend until smooth. Add 1/4 cup of the Crisco Puritan Canola oil and process or blend until well combined; set aside

3. Place the chicken in a shallow dish add the remaining lime juice and stir to coat; let sit for 15 minutes. In the bowl of a food processor combine the remaining salt, oats, coconut, cayenne pepper and black pepper; pulse 5 or 6 times until combined. Spread oat mixture onto a small plate or a sheet of waxed paper. Whisk the egg whites in a shallow dish until foamy.

4. Remove the chicken from the lime juice and pat dry. Dip each chicken tender first in egg whites and then roll in the oat mixture to completely coat. Place the tenders on a baking sheet and drizzle the 2 teaspoons of Canola oil over each tender. Bake chicken tenders in the oven for 20 minutes. Let the chicken cool for 5 minutes before carefully transferring to a serving platter.
5. To serve, spoon a few tablespoons of sauce onto a serving plate, top with two chicken tenders and garnish with the remaining cilantro.

Yield: 4-6 servings
Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes

Butterscotch Glazed Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I have this bad habit of every few weeks deciding that I am going to commit to eating cereal and a banana every day for breakfast. I stock up on Total, bananas and good intentions. Sadly the good intentions only last about two days and then I go back to eating my usual combination of granola bars and fruit smoothies.

This "habit" doesn't seem so bad on the surface, but what ends up happening is I'm left with a slowly blackening bunch of bananas which more often than not ends up in the trash. My kids are not the biggest fans of bananas so they don't usually eat them...but I really, really hate to throw away food so the solution became obvious: banana bread. Now every few weeks I have a bowl or two of cereal with a sliced banana followed up later in the week with a tasty banana bread-maybe it's a pretty good habit after all.

It's teacher appreciation week and I volunteered to bake something for our high school teacher breakfast--so this week they are the recipients of my blackened bananas (that doesn't sound like a very nice gift). I feel very fortunate to live in a town with some incredible teachers and my little banana bread is just a small thank you for their big job that they do so well...thank you teachers (everywhere).

So I finished typing this post and grab my camera to upload my photos and guess what?? I never put the memory card in!! There should be a bell that goes off or a warning screen that comes up for careless photographers such as myself. Well trust me when I tell you it looked really pretty!

Butterscotch Glazed Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
5 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 medium very ripe bananas
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides an 8x4x2 1/2 inch loaf pan.

In a medium sized bowl sift together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.

In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and sugars, using an electric mixer, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time beating just until incorporated. Add the bananas and beat until combined; stir in the chocolate chips. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake bread in the 350 degree oven for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Gently remove from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack. When completely cooled top with the butterscotch glaze (recipe follows).

Butterscotch Glaze:

2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 cup sifted confectioner's sugar
1 tablespoon heavy cream

Bring the butter, sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat; boil for 1 minute. Whisk in the confectioner's sugar and the heavy cream. Spoon the glaze over the cooled bread.

The Comfort of Camembert

Everyone has that one food that when they are sad or just not feeling themselves they crave; for some it is chocolate-it's rich creaminess offering a sweet, soothing feeling. Others crave fried foods-with their greasy saltiness providing a warm comfort. Well for me that go-to food is cheese-melted, layered or just plain, cheese provides nourishing solace for me not matched by any other food (except maybe Twinkies).

The lovely folks at Ile de France were kind enough to send me a free sample of one of their delicious cheeses-and given my adoration of cheese I was thrilled. Long a fan of their Brie cheese, I had not previously tried any of their other varieties so I was pleased to see Camembert in the package. Camembert, while similar in texture to Brie, has a much stronger almost nutty flavor. It was the perfect addition to my Grilled Steak Sandwiches with Chive Sauce.

Grilled Steak and Camembert Sandwiches with Peppered Chive Sauce

2 New York Strip Steaks (about 6 ounces each and 1 1/2 inches thick)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 (6-inch) Ciabatta rolls

4 ounces Camembert cheese, rind removed

2 cups baby spinach leaves, stems removed

1 cup sliced grape tomatoes

1/2 cup Peppered Chive Sauce (recipe follows)

Preheat a gas grill to medium high flame.

Pat the steaks dry and season both sides with half of the kosher salt and half of the pepper. Lightly spray the grill rack with cooking spray. Cook the steaks in a closed grill for 8 minutes, turning occasionally, for medium rare doneness. Remove from the grill and transfer to a cutting board to rest.

Split open the Ciabatta rolls and spread the cheese onto the top half of each roll. Place rolls cheese side up on the grill rack and cook with the cover closed for 2 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the rolls are lightly toasted.

Layer the spinach and tomatoes on top of the cheese. Spread the Peppered Chive Sauce on the bottom half of each roll. Carve the steak into 1/2 inch thick slices, season with the remaining salt and pepper then fan over the sauce on each roll, evenly dividing. Close the rolls to serve.

Yield: 4 sandwiches

Peppered Chive Sauce

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon finely chopped chives

Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl; cover and chill until ready to use.

Extreme Bacon Cheese Pizza

I am not so old that I cannot remember fun and fabulous times on Spring Break in college. I can actually map out my life to date in a sort of "Spring Break" timeline:

• Let's start with college...fun times in Ft. Lauderdale (yeah I know, I'm old- Ft. Lauderdale for Spring Break is so 80's)
• Post graduation years...Spring Break morphed into summer weekends in the Hampton's in a house shared with 20 of my "closest friends".
• Early married life...Spring Break was romantic weeks or weekends just for two-enjoying Robert Cray at Jazz Fest in New Orleans comes to mind.
• The kids were young years...Spring breaks were spent usually in a place with costumed characters and eating at anyplace that served chicken nuggets.
• The kids are getting older years...I've come almost full circle, we just returned from Spring Break and it was spent going on college visits for my oldest son who is a Junior this year.

I am pretty sure that I am a college marketers dream come true; I sat at every power point presentation mesmerized...drawn in...wishing I could choose college all over again. Don't get me wrong I love my alma mater (Fordham) and would probably choose it again given the choice (and would be thrilled if my son got in and chose it), but man...the presentations we saw this week...each one out did the next. I had to keep reminding my son (and myself) that they were in fact sales presentations. Oh and it didn't hurt that at one campus it was "Spring Fling" and the campus was bustling with activity-of course my 17 year old liked that school the best.

Our return from "Spring Break" has given me a real hankering for college foods so the kids and I made Extreme Bacon Cheese Pizzas which got an A+ from everyone.

Extreme Bacon Cheese Pizzas

5 slices bacon

1 prepared pizza crust divided into 4 equal pieces

1 cup prepared sauce

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Arrange the bacon in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake the bacon in the preheated oven for 10 minutes; remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate to drain.

Stretch the dough pieces into 6x4 inch ovals and place on a baking pan lightly sprayed with cooking spray. Divide the sauce between each crust, spreading in an even layer.

Sprinkle each with the cheeses, evenly dividing. Crumble the bacon and divide between the pizzas arranging on top of the cheeses.

Raise the oven temperature to 425 degrees. Bake pizzas in the oven for 12 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and crusts are golden brown.

Barefoot Bloggers and a Night at the Diner

I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of Chinese food; I very rarely make anything remotely Asian in flavor. My husband on the other hand loves Chinese food so he was thrilled when he saw the plate of Chinese Chicken Salad that I placed before him.

Today is Barefoot Thursday, and for those not in the know it is a day which occurs two Thursdays a month and is a day when various food bloggers prepare a recipe from one of the Barefoot Contessa’s (a.k.a. Ina Garten) cookbooks. Today's recipe for Chinese Chicken Salad was selected by McKenzie of Kenzie's Kitchen.

This recipe could not have been easier and according to my husband, it couldn't have been more delicious. My kids unfortunately share my dislike of Chinese food would not touch it so last night became one of those nights I fondly refer to as "Diner Night"...a night when I am transformed into short order cook. I think I would do well working at a diner-I was able to get every one's dinners on the table (hot) at the same time-yeah, I know...amazing. For the kids it was Roasted Chicken Subs with Spinach and Jack cheese and for me it was a poached egg over roasted potatoes and asparagus (you'll notice I did incorporate ingredients from the salad into the other meals so that made it easier). Thanks in part to Jitterbuz.com here's how I think the whole dinner would sound in diner talk:

Three birds on bread-bring in Popeye and Jack it...One dead eye on a green raft...one chopstick bird salad with spears (OK that one's a reach...but they don't usually serve Chinese food at a diner). Moo juice all around.

Chinese Chicken Salad

Recipe by Ina Garten from Barefoot Contessa Parties!

4 split chicken breasts (bone-in skin-on)

Good olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 pound asparagus, ends removed, and cut in thirds diagonally

1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded

2 scallions (white and green parts), sliced diagonally

1 tablespoon white sesame seeds, toasted

For the dressing:

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup good apple cider vinegar

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 1/2 tablespoons dark sesame oil

1/2 tablespoon honey

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon peeled, grated fresh ginger

1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

1/4 cup smooth peanut butter

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breast on a sheet pan and rub with the skin with olive oil. sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the bones, discard the skin, and shred the chicken in large bite-sized pieces.

Blanch the asparagus in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes until crisp-tender. Plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain. Cut the peppers in strips about the size of the asparagus pieces. Combine the cut chicken, asparagus, and peppers in a large bowl.

Whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing and pour over the chicken and vegetables. Add the scallions and sesame seeds and season to taste. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Mediterranean Pearls

Pasta is a dinner staple in most homes and ours is no exception-but don't you get tired of the same old penne and spaghetti? My favorite find this week is in fact a pasta but not your typical Italian variety...this one originated in of all places Israel.

Favorite Food Find Friday's find is...Mediterranean (a.k.a. Israeli) couscous!

These little pearl shaped grains are similar looking to barley, but they are actually made from a wheat based dough which is shaped into little balls and toasted-as opposed to dried as pastas usually are.

The large grains make an impressive presentation as the base for chicken or seafood or tossed with caramelized onions and blue cheese for a tasty beef side dish. Today I've made a Mediterranean style salad that couldn't be easier...you need "1" of everything in it. You'll notice there's no added oil-I found it just doesn't need it, but if you're planning on chilling it before you serve it you may want to add a tablespoon or two of extra virgin olive just so the couscous doesn't clump together. Also I used a fresh mozzarella because one of my favorite supermarkets makes it fresh in the store and it's just fabulous, but you can substitute a feta or goat cheese if you prefer.

"One" Mediterranean Couscous Salad

1 (32 ounce) container chicken stock

1 cup Mediterranean (a.k.a. Israeli) Couscous

1 cup diced roasted red pepper

1 cup coarsely chopped arugula

1 cup diced fresh mozzarella cheese

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon pine nuts

1 lemon, thinly sliced then halved

Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a medium sized saucepan. Stir in the couscous, reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Drain couscous and transfer to a large bowl.

Stir the red pepper, arugula, mozzarella cheese, salt, pepper, garlic, pine nuts and lemon slices into the bowl with the couscous. Serve warm or chilled.

Yield: 4 servings