Sometimes things don't work out.

Once in a while things don't turn out like I hoped.  This fried chicken looked really good on paper and it was delicious on the inside but the outside got really dark.  The first batch was burnt actually so to make up for it, I made some tacos too. 

Fried Chicken By Marcus Samuelsson

INGREDIENTS

Serves 8

2 cups water

1 cup coarse kosher salt

6 cups cold ice water 

4 chicken thighs

4 chicken drumsticks

2 cups buttermilk

¾ cup coconut milk

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chicken shake*, plus additional for serving

2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ cup semolina flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon white pepper

Peanut oil for frying

For the chicken shake:
¼ cup berbere

¼ cup hot smoked paprika

2 tablespoons ground cumin

2 tablespoons white pepper

2 tablespoons celery salt

1 ½ teaspoons granulated garlic

1 ½ teaspoons coarse kosher salt

PREPARATION

In a medium saucepan over high heat, add 2 cups of water and the salt. Bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve all the salt. Remove from heat and pour into a larger pot/container.

Add the ice water into the pot to cool. Add the chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 ½ hours.

Prepare the chicken shake. In a small bowl, whisk together all the chicken shake ingredients. Makes about 1 cup that will keep for 6 months. Store in a jar out of the light.

In a 9×13-inch baking dish, whisk together buttermilk, coconut milk, garlic, and 1 tablespoon of chicken shake. Remove the chicken from the saltwater, dab on paper towels to remove excess liquid, then add into the buttermilk marinade. Roll to coat each piece. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Fill a large cast iron pan ⅔-full with peanut oil over medium-high heat. Heat to 360˚F.

While the oil is heating, coat the marinated chicken. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, semolina flour, cornstarch, and white pepper.

Remove the chicken from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off, then roll in the flour mixture, packing it on so the chicken is completely coated. Set coated chicken on a wire rack over a baking sheet. If the coating looks damp, roll it in the flour mixture again.

Working in batches, fry the chicken until it is brown and golden on both sides and reaches an internal temperature of 165˚F, about 10 minutes per batch. Adjust heat to keep the oil between 350-375˚F. Drain on a rack set over a baking sheet. Rest 8-10 minutes. Fry the chicken a second time, only for about 3 minutes, to really crisp up the skin. Drain on a rack.

Sprinkle with additional chicken shake.

Sometimes things don't work out.

Once in a while things don't turn out like I hoped.  This fried chicken looked really good on paper and it was delicious on the inside but the outside got really dark.  The first batch was burnt actually so to make up for it, I made some tacos too. 

Fried Chicken By Marcus Samuelsson

INGREDIENTS

Serves 8

2 cups water

1 cup coarse kosher salt

6 cups cold ice water 

4 chicken thighs

4 chicken drumsticks

2 cups buttermilk

¾ cup coconut milk

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon chicken shake*, plus additional for serving

2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ cup semolina flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon white pepper

Peanut oil for frying

For the chicken shake:
¼ cup berbere

¼ cup hot smoked paprika

2 tablespoons ground cumin

2 tablespoons white pepper

2 tablespoons celery salt

1 ½ teaspoons granulated garlic

1 ½ teaspoons coarse kosher salt

PREPARATION

In a medium saucepan over high heat, add 2 cups of water and the salt. Bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve all the salt. Remove from heat and pour into a larger pot/container.

Add the ice water into the pot to cool. Add the chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 ½ hours.

Prepare the chicken shake. In a small bowl, whisk together all the chicken shake ingredients. Makes about 1 cup that will keep for 6 months. Store in a jar out of the light.

In a 9×13-inch baking dish, whisk together buttermilk, coconut milk, garlic, and 1 tablespoon of chicken shake. Remove the chicken from the saltwater, dab on paper towels to remove excess liquid, then add into the buttermilk marinade. Roll to coat each piece. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Fill a large cast iron pan ⅔-full with peanut oil over medium-high heat. Heat to 360˚F.

While the oil is heating, coat the marinated chicken. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, semolina flour, cornstarch, and white pepper.

Remove the chicken from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off, then roll in the flour mixture, packing it on so the chicken is completely coated. Set coated chicken on a wire rack over a baking sheet. If the coating looks damp, roll it in the flour mixture again.

Working in batches, fry the chicken until it is brown and golden on both sides and reaches an internal temperature of 165˚F, about 10 minutes per batch. Adjust heat to keep the oil between 350-375˚F. Drain on a rack set over a baking sheet. Rest 8-10 minutes. Fry the chicken a second time, only for about 3 minutes, to really crisp up the skin. Drain on a rack.

Sprinkle with additional chicken shake.

Pulled Pork Chili with Cheesey Cornbread Dumplings

Slow-Cooker Pulled-Pork Chili With Cornbread Dumplings

Forget traditional chili. If it's wrong for chili to include pulled pork, cornbread, and beans, then I don't want to be right. [Photograph: Morgan Eisenberg]

YIELD: Serves 10 to 16 ACTIVE TIME: 1 hour TOTAL TIME: 8 hours

For a meal that's perfect for Football Sundays or chilly-evening dinners, make this chili right in your slow cooker. It's not your traditional beef-based recipe, but pulled pork shoulder and tender cornbread dumplings make this version stand out among the rest.

Purists may object, but this chili is so delicious it'll shut them up.

Pork shoulder melts and tenderizes in the slow cooker for optimal, juicy results.

Using both dried and fresh peppers creates a much more complex flavor than bottled chili powder.

A drier-than-normal cornbread batter cooks up into perfect dumplings in the moist heat of a slow cooker.

INGREDIENTS

For the Chili:

3 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless pork shoulder, cut into 8 large pieces

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 dried ancho chilies, stemmed and seeded

2 dried New Mexico chilies, stemmed and seeded

1 1/2 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken stock

3 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 large Spanish onion, diced

1 jalapeño, stemmed, seeded, and minced

8 medium cloves garlic, minced

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 (12-ounce) bottle light beer, such as lager

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch

2 (15-ounce) cans dark kidney beans, drained

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Hot sauce, such as Frank's RedHot, to taste

For the Cornbread and Garnish:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

1/2 cup whole milk

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Jalapeño slices, for garnish

Cilantro leaves, for garnish

For the Chili: Blot pork dry with paper towels. Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over high heat until shimmering. Add pork and cook until browned on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Turn pork and brown opposite side. Transfer pork to slow cooker.

In a clean pot, add dried ancho and New Mexico chilies and toast over high heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until chilies are softened and almost falling apart, about 15 minutes. Transfer to blender and add tomato paste, light brown sugar, cocoa powder, cumin, and Worcestershire sauce. Blend to a smooth paste. Scrape paste into slow cooker with pork.

Add onion, jalapeño, and garlic to slow cooker, arranging them on and around the pork. Pour crushed tomatoes on top.

In a medium bowl, whisk together beer and cornstarch. Pour into slow cooker. Gently stir in kidney beans. Cover and cook on low until pork is fall-apart tender, about 6 hours.

Beef Florentine Pie and Sourdough Apple Rolls

Beef Florentine Phyllo Pie

Recipe | serves 4 | 45 mins

For the beef layer:

 1 T oil

1 onion finely chopped

500g minced beef -17.637 oz

2 cloves of garlic crushed

1 can of tomatoes (400g)

1/2 cup fairly concentrated beef stock

1 t sugar

pinch of dried chilli flakes (optional)

For the spinach layer:

300g – 400g spinach (removed from stalks)-10.5- 14 oz

100g mature Cheddar (Gruyere)- 3.53 

30g Parmesan (grated)- 1oz

100g cream cheese (I used low fat) 3.5 oz

1 egg lightly beaten

butter to coat the phyllo layers (aprox 80g) 2.8 0z

For the phyllo layer:

6 – 8 sheets of phyllo depending on the sizer of your dish

To make the meat layer heat the oil in a wide non stick frying pan and fry the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beef and cook  (breaking up any clumps) until the liquid has cooked off and the meat starts to caramlise (go brown). Add the garlic and fry for another minute. Add the tin of peeled tomatoes, sugar, chilli and stock and allow this to cook over a medium heat until most of liquid has cooked off and the sauce has thickened.

To make the spinach layer: While you meat is cooking away, heat a pot filled with water and bring it to the boil. Add the spinach and allow this to cook until it has wiled (about 5 minutes). Drain, rinse under cold water and set aside. When its cool enough to handle, squeeze the spinach with your hands, making sure you get most of the water out.

In a separate bowl, add all the cheeses to the beaten egg. Roughly chop the drained and wrung out spinach and stir this through the cheese / egg  mixture.

In an appropriately sized baking dish spread the meat over the bottom layer and then cover with the spinach mixture.

To make the phyllo topping. Melt the butter in the microwave. Cut 3 pieces of phyllo to roughly the size of the dish. Bush each sheet lightly with butter (covering the surface area) and place over the pie filling buttered side up. Repeat until you have 3 flat layers on the pie. Now using about 6 – 8 pieces (the same size as before), brush with butter and then fold these (buttered side down now) – scrunching it up as you go to create a ruffled effect. Carry on on until you have covered the surface area of your pie with phyllo. Lightly brush over bits of the top phyllo, its not important to brush it all.

Bake in a pre heated over of 200C for 20 – 25 minutes until the phyllo has turned golden.

PS. you will see in the last picture that I have folded the phyllo a different way like a concertina, you can choose whatever you prefer.

*This post has been sponsored by Mediterranean Delicacies, the manufacturers of the phyllo pastry.

Apple Sourdough Bread Rolls

Makes 6 small bread rolls  I used white whole wheat flour.

110g sourdough starter (100% hydration)-3.88 oz
220g grated apple (2 medium size apples, peeled and finely grated)
300g flour (2/3 AP white + 1/3 wholemeal)-10.5822 oz
1 tbsp salt

In a large bowl mix together the sourdough starter, the grated apple and the flours. On a work surface knead the dough for 8 minutes. Add the salt and knead for two additional minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and leave it to rest at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight in a greased bowl covered with cling wrap. Remove the dough from the bowl and on a lightly flour dusted surface divide the dough into 6 equal pieces. To shape each piece, bring the four corners in the centre and pinch. Take the piece in your palm dusted with flour and twist the centre. Place each piece face down (pinch side down and smooth side up) on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Be sure to position the rolls on the baking paper so that they fit into the dimension of your baking/pizza stone. Let them rest for one hour and a half (covered with a clean tea towel). Preheat oven to 240°c with the baking/pizza stone and the dripping pan inside. Prepare 250ml hot water in a jug with a pouring spout. With a blade slash a cross on the top of each piece. Slide the baking paper directly on the baking stone and then cautiously pour the hot water in the dripping pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until nice and golden. Remove from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.

Steak, potato and strawberry spinach salad.

A friend was telling me about this salad so I tried it and since steak was on sale and I didn't feel like doing anything taking a lot of time, I did it.  This is what she told me:

Strawberry Spinach, that was a HUGE success. Before closing her restaurant to retire, the owner allowed her recipe to be published in the local newspaper. It was 

fresh spinach leaves,

 sliced strawberries, 

thinly sliced red onions (soaked in ice water to remove the 'bite' ~ I think that's where I learned that tip),

 toasted slivered almonds 

and a homemade poppy seed dressing. I still make that salad, mostly at Christmas, because it's so pretty.

I looked on line and found this Poppy Seed Dressing.

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/8 cup sugar

1 pinch salt

1/3 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

Strip steaks on the grill and potatoes in the Breville toaster oven.  Bread was store bought Challah. Dessert was pie and ice cream.

the recipe calls for kale but I didn't have any and didn't want to get some so I used the last of the leaf lettuce left over from yesterday's dinner.

Copycat Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana

BY LINDSAY FUNSTON

ETHAN CALABRESE

We cracked Olive Garden's most popular soup recipe.

TOTAL TIME: 1:15 PREP: 0:15 LEVEL: EASY SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. Hot Italian sausage, casings removed

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 large onion, chopped

kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

32 oz. low-sodium chicken broth

4 large russet potatoes, diced

1 bunch curly kale, leaves stripped and chopped

3/4 c. heavy cream

Grated Parmesan, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1 In a large pot over medium heat, cook sausage, breaking up with the back of a wooden spoon, until browned and no longer pink, 5 to 7 minutes.

2 Add garlic and onion and let cook until golden, 5 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper. Add chicken broth and potatoes and enough water to cover the potatoes and cook until potatoes are falling apart, about 1 hour.

3 Stir in kale and let cook until leaves are tender and bright green, 3 minutes, then stir in heavy cream.

4 Serve with Parm.

Mongolian Beef

Mongolian Beef

BY LINDSAY FUNSTON

Our version puts P.F. Chang's to shame.

TOTAL TIME: 0:25 PREP: 0:10 COOK: 0:15 LEVEL: EASY SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS

1/4 c. vegetable oil, plus 1 tbsp.

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp. minced fresh ginger

3/4 c. soy sauce

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 lb. flank steak, sliced against the grain

1/4 c. corn starch

4 scallions, sliced into quarters, plus 1 sliced scallion for garnish

Butter lettuce, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1 In a small saucepan over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil. Add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, 2 minutes. Add soy sauce, water, and brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until reduced by half, 10 to 12 minutes.

2 Meanwhile, heat 1/4 cup vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet.

3 In a large bowl, toss flank steak with corn starch until fully coated. Add steak to skillet and sear until crispy, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Drain fat.

4 Add sauce and scallion quarters to skillet and toss until combined, then simmer a few minutes more.

5 Serve steak in lettuce cups and garnish with chopped scallions.

Golded beets cooked in the micorwave.

Smoked Chicken with a Korean marinade and cherry clafoutis

Chicken was marinated with Korean Teriyaki sauce then smoked in the smoker for 1 1/2 hours.

Cherry Clafoutis MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN YIELDServes eight TIME1 hour 30 minutes /.recipe-time-yield

• Andrew Scrivani for the NY Times

This classic French dessert looks fancy, but it is a cinch to make. I use yogurt in my clafoutis, although it isn’t traditional (the French use cream). And I always enjoy leftovers for breakfast.

• 1 ½ pounds (about 5 cups) fresh ripe cherries, stemmed and pitted if desired

• 2 tablespoons kirsch

• 6 tablespoons sugar

• 3 large eggs

• 1 vanilla bean, scraped

• Pinch of salt

• ⅔ cup sifted unbleached all-purpose flour

• ¾ cup low-fat yogurt

• 2 tablespoons milk

• 2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar (optional)

Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

180 calories; 2 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams

polyunsaturated fat; 33 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 22 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 71

milligrams cholesterol; 81 milligrams sodium

1 Toss the cherries with the kirsch and 2 tablespoons of the sugar, and let sit for 30 minutes. Drain over a bowl.

2 Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 10- or 10 1/2-inch ceramic tart pan or clafouti dish. Fill the dish with the drained cherries.

3 In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the remaining sugar and the seeds from the vanilla bean. Add the salt and the liquid from the cherries, and combine well. Slowly beat in the flour, and whisk until smooth. Add the yogurt and milk, and combine well. Pour over the cherries, scraping out all of the batter with a rubber spatula.

4 Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes until the top is browned and the clafouti is firm and puffed. Press gently on the top in the middle to see if it’s firm. If not, return to the oven for five minutes.

5 Remove from the oven and cool on a rack. When the clafouti is warm or cool, sift on the powdered sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.