Three Cheese Scalloped Potatoes

 Wow, oh wow!  These potatoes are unbelievable.  I first made them as part of our Easter dinner this year, and they did not disappoint.  Even my friend Timm, who doesn’t care for blue cheese, had a second helping.  The recipe is perfect as written, so I didn’t make any modifications — a rare thing these days.

Scalloped Potatoes with Three Cheeses

• 3/4 cup (packed) grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
• 3/4 cup crumbled Danish blue cheese (about 4 ounces)
• 1/3 cup (packed) freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/4 ounces)
   
• 4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
   
• 3 cups whole milk

Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Mix cheddar cheese, blue cheese and Parmesan in small bowl.

Arrange half of potatoes in prepared baking dish, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Sprinkle onion over, then flour. Dot with 2 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle half of cheese mixture over. Top with remaining potatoes, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 2 tablespoons butter. Reserve remaining cheese.

Bring milk to simmer in medium saucepan. Pour milk over potatoes (milk will not cover potatoes completely). Cover baking dish tightly with foil. Bake 45 minutes. Uncover dish (liquids in dish may look curdled); sprinkle potatoes with reserved cheese mixture. Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender and cheese is deep golden brown, 30-45 minutes longer. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Cover and rewarm in 375°F oven about 20 minutes.) Remove from oven; let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Makes 12 servings (only 8 at my house)
Source: Rick Rodgers – Bon Appetit, November 1999

Mulled Apple Cider

I love unpasteurized, unfiltered apple cider.  There is a great apple orchard/stand in Utah where we used to buy it, but unfortunately we haven’t found anything like that where we live now.  We managed to get some decent cider at Trader Joe’s and used this recipe to help ring in the holidays.  It was the best mulled cider I’ve had yet!

Mulled Apple Cider with Orange and Ginger

• 8 cups unpasteurized apple cider
• A 3-inch cinnamon stick
• 10 whole cloves
• 1 navel orange, peeled and sliced crosswise
• A 2-inch piece of peeled fresh ginger, cut into 6 slices

In a large saucepan combine the cider, the cinnamon stick, the cloves, the orange and the ginger and simmer the mixture for 20 minutes. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a heat-proof pitcher and serve the mulled cider warm.

Source:  Gourmet, Oct. 1991

Sour Cream Pound Cake

 This cake was my dessert of choice for my birthday this year.  It is great topped with berries, lemon curd, whip cream, or a combination of the three.  I even love it plain.  The recipe fills a 10-inch bundt pan, but you could easily halve it and use a loaf pan.

Sour Cream Pound Cake

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 6 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Cut butter into 1-tablespoon pieces and place in bowl of standing mixer; let stand at room temperature 20 to 30 minutes to soften slightly. Using dinner fork, beat eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in liquid measuring cup until combined. Let egg mixture stand at room temperature until ready to use.
2. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter a 10-inch bundt pan; dust pan liberally with flour and knock out excess.
3. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, beat butter and salt at medium-high speed until shiny, smooth, and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping bottom and sides of bowl once with rubber spatula. Reduce speed to medium; with mixer running, gradually pour in sugar (this should take about 60 seconds). Once all sugar is added, increase speed to medium-high and beat until mixture is fluffy and almost white in color, 5 to 8 minutes, scraping bottom and sides of bowl once. With mixer running at medium speed, gradually add egg mixture in slow, steady stream; this should take 60 to 90 seconds. Scrape bottom and sides of bowl; beat mixture at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes (mixture may look slightly broken). Remove bowl from mixer; scrape bottom and sides.
4. In 3 additions, sift flour over butter/egg mixture; after each addition, fold gently with rubber spatula until combined.
5. Transfer batter to prepared bundt pan and smooth surface with rubber spatula. Bake until golden brown and wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 70 to 80 minutes. Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes; invert cake onto wire rack, then turn cake right side up. Cool cake on rack to room temperature. Slice and serve.

 

Source: adapted from Paula’s Home Cooking and Cooks Illustrated

Lemon Curd

 

This is one of my all-time favorite recipes.  Not only is it delectable, it’s one of the simplest ways I’ve found to make lemon curd.  I use it to top pound cake, toast, English muffins, pancakes, waffles, yogurt….the possibilities are endless.

Plain yogurt w/ lemon curd and berries

Lemon Curd

• 3 lemons
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 extra-large eggs
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.

Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.

Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10-15 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.

Yield: about 3 cups

Source: The Barefoot Contessa by Ina Garten

Smelly Sponges

 

I can’t stand using a stinky sponge to do dishes, let alone wipe off my kitchen surfaces.  What’s worse, I just learned that kitchen sponges are supposedly the #1 source of germs in the whole house!!  Ewww.

A little trick I use — put your kitchen sponge (or brush)  in the top rack of your dishwasher every time you run it.  It will come out clean and smelling like new.  Don’t have a dishwasher?  Wet your sponge, then microwave it for 2 minutes.  That’ll show those pesky bacteria.

Cranberry Relish

My sister-in-law introduced me to this new take on the classic cranberry sauce.  It’s now a staple at our holiday meals.

1 bag (12 oz) cranberries
Juice of one orange
1 cup sugar

Simply blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor until finely chopped.

Candied Yams

This is a family recipe I grew up having at Thanksgiving or Christmas, and sometimes both.  The medallions of sweet potatoes turn out sweet and a little chewy on the edges, hence the reference to candy.  The recipe name is a misnomer, because sweet potatoes are always used (yes, yams and sweet potatoes are two different things), but who cares what it’s called if it’s good, right?

Candied Yams

6 medium sweet potatoes
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup orange juice, from concentrate
chopped pecans, optional

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.*  Place whole sweet potatoes directly on oven rack and roast until cooked in the center.  Set them aside to cool.  When potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them into about 1/2 inch rounds and place on a sheet pan or large baking dish in a single layer.

2. Combine butter, brown sugar, and orange juice and pour over potatoes.  Top with pecans, if desired.

3. Reduce on to 250 degrees F.  Bake potatoes for 1 1/2 – 2 hours until the sauce has caramelized, and the potatoes are beginning to crack around the edges.

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After completing step 2, potatoes can be refrigerated for 1 or 2 days before baking.

*If you prefer, sweet potatoes can be boiled with skins on until cooked through instead.

The Precooked Chicken Conundrum

Many casseroles, chicken salads, and pasta dishes call for cooked, shredded chicken.  I used to simply boil my B/S chicken breasts until they were cooked through, but they turned out like white rubber blobs posing as chicken.  What’s worse, 9 out of 10 times they were overcooked.  Thankfully I have since discovered a better way.  May I share two great ways to precook your chicken to save you moisture, and flavor?

Method #1: Roasting (my personal favorite)

Preheat you oven to 350 degrees F.  Place 4 to 6 split chicken breasts (bone-in, skin-on) skin side up on a sheet pan.  Rub chicken with olive oil.  Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.  Roast for 35 to 40 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.  Set aside until cool enough to shred, chop, or whatever your heart’s desire.

Method #2: Boiling

In the case you only have boneless, skinless breasts on hand, boiling is the way to go.  In the past I never seemed to take them out before they overcooked, but this method helps ensure they’re nice and juicy.

Bring 1 part chicken broth and 2 parts water to a simmer in a pot.  Add chicken and simmer for 6 minutes, uncovered.  Remove from heat and cover pot.  Let stand until chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.  Transfer chicken to a plate and cool 10 minutes.

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Note: You can freeze your precooked, shredded chicken for about 3 to 4 weeks, which is a huge timesaver.  A few mintues in the microwave on the defrost setting, and you’re good to go.

Like Garlic?

My husband is a huge fan of garlic.  I enjoy it too, but mostly in the sauteed or roasted form.  This presents a problem when you want to add garlic flavor to a salad.  In my opinion raw garlic is too potent, even finely minced, to be added straight to a vinegarette.   The solution?  Rub your salad bowl with a clove of garlic before adding the greens and tossing with dressing.  You’ll get the garlic flavor you want without killing off the person next to you with your heinous breath.

Oh yeah, you can use a clove of garlic the same way if making bruscetta, simply rub the toasts lightly with a garlic clove before topping.

My Microplane

This is my favorite kitchen tool thus far.  A microplane.  It’s essentially a woodworking tool (a rasp) that worked its way into the kitchen.  If you don’t own one yet, I suggest you add it to your Christmas wish list.  It’s so darn handy — I use it for zesting citrus fruit, finely shaving chocolate, and grating ginger.  I cringe at the thought of trying to use a knife to mince anything as finely as you can using this baby.