Clyde’s Chili Recipe; A. C. E Class “Cooking Basics 101” concludes on Sunday November 20: Christmas Bazaar on Saturday, November 19; Quick Weeknight Dinners Class in December

Post Date: 16 November 2016

Happy Thanksgiving.  I have been busy this week getting ready for Sunday’s Cooking Basics 101 class finale and for my table at a Christmas bazaar this coming Saturday (details below).  Yesterday I made to double batches of Spezzatino, an Italian Chicken Stew.  The recipe calls for a lot of canned goods, so in a whimsical mood I created the above Tower o’ Cans.

Chili

 

 

One of my students downloaded several recipes from Clyde’s Restaurant web site and sent them to me.  The first one in the packet was Chili, so I started with that one, with some modifications.  I used Chili Beans that were already in a chili sauce, then supplemented that sauce with 4 ounces of Kame Sweet Chili Sauce from Thailand.  Adding a bit of sweetness really made a unique and delicious flavor.

Cooking Basics 101 Concludes on November 20

Session 3 of this class meets this Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM at the Plum Center in Springfield.   After 2 weeks of no bake desserts, this Sunday we will be baking – a Lemon Olive Oil Pound Cake.  For the main course we will be making Salisbury Steaks using a third cooking technique – starting the dish on the stovetop then finishing in the oven.  We will then use the pan to make a sauce for the steaks.  For our salad we will be making a Tuscan Bean Salad.
 

Christmas Bazaar on Saturday November 19

As mentioned in my last post, I will have a table with my personal chef business, Chef du Jour, LLC, at the St. John’s Catholic Church Christmas Bazaar on Saturday, November 19^th, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM.  In addition to taking orders for Christmas desserts, I will be selling cups of Chicken Spezzatino, an Italian Chicken Stew, Cannoli with filling of homemade artisanal ricotta cheese, and Lemon Pound Cakes.  Spezzatino can also be ordered for delivery before Christmas. The address is 6420 Linway terrace, McLean, VA 22101.  The event will be held in the school gymnasium.

Quick Weeknight Dinners Class in December

This popular class will meet on Tuesday nights December 6, 13, and 20.  It will feature salads and main courses (and maybe a dessert or two) which are quick and easy to make while still being nutritious - great meal ideas to help you navigate the obstacle course of the holidays.

Reminder – Instagam

Follow me on Instagram at #senseichef.  I look forward to your comments on my posts, culinary and otherwise.

Upcoming Classes

Here are my classes for the rest of the fall term.  The winter catalogue will be out soon.

December 6, 13, 20 – Tuesday Evenings – Quick Weeknight Dinners – Plum Center

To register for this class, or any ACE cooking classes, please go to:

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/specialinterest.shtml and scroll down to the Culinary section

While there, be sure to check out the other culinary courses offered by ACE’s excellent chef instructors.

Till next time, keep cooking.

 

Contact Chef Kevin at: KJBrady@fcps.edu                                                           

 

 

 

Meatballs in the Oven; A. C. E Class “Cooking Basics 101” continues on Sunday November 13: Christmas Bazaar on Saturday, November 19.

Post Date: 10 November 2016

Meatballs in the Oven

I made a batch of Italian meatballs this week, but instead of cooking them on the stovetop in a skillet I baked them for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees.  It was a lot less labor intensive and cleanup was very easy, as I lined a rimmed baking sheet with a piece of aluminum foil, then placed a rack on top, and then the meatballs on the rack.  Drippings were caught by the foil, which I easily discarded.

To prepare the meatballs, I added eggs, Italian breadcrumbs, minced garlic, minced onion, grated Parmesan, salt, pepper, and dried parsley flakes to the ground beef.

Cooking Basics 101 Continues on November 13

Session 2 of this class meets this Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM at the Plum Center in Springfield.   This week we will be further practicing our knife skills when we make a Quick Vegetable Soup.  In the first session we cooked on the stove top; this week we will be using the oven.  For our vegetable we will be making Roasted Carrots with Lemon and Thyme, and for our main course we will have Baked Salmon with Mustard, Garlic, fresh Thyme, and Panko Breadcrumbs (pictured above).  For dessert we will again be doing a no bake one with Marscapone Cheese and Strawberries.

Christmas Bazaar on Saturday November 19

I will have a table with my personal chef business, Chef du Jour, LLC, at the St. John’s Catholic Church Christmas Bazaar on Saturday, November 19^th, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM.  In addition to taking orders for Christmas desserts, I will be selling cups of Chicken Spezzatino, an Italian Chicken Stew, Cannoli with filling of homemade artisanal ricotta cheese, and Lemon Pound Cakes.  The address is 6420 Linway terrace, McLean, VA 22101.  The event will be held in the school gymnasium.

Reminder – Instagam

Follow me on Instagram at #senseichef.  I look forward to your comments on my posts, culinary and otherwise.

Upcoming Classes

Here are my classes for the rest of the fall term.  The winter catalogue will be out soon.

December 6, 13, 20 – Tuesday Evenings – Quick Weeknight Dinners – Plum Center

To register for this class, or any ACE cooking classes, please go to:

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/specialinterest.shtml and scroll down to the Culinary section

While there, be sure to check out the other culinary courses offered by ACE’s excellent chef instructors.

Till next time, keep cooking.

 

Contact Chef Kevin at: KJBrady@fcps.edu                                                           

 

Drying Herbs; A.C.E. Class “What’s for Breakfast” concluded October 30; A. C. E Class “Cooking Basics 101” begins on Sunday November 6

Post Date: 4 November 2016

Drying Herbs

In a previous post I discussed drying some of my Basil and Oregano in the oven.  My good friend John Treacy then loaned me his jerky maker/dehydrator to try out.  He has made beef jerky, dried strawberries, and dried tomatoes, but never done herbs.  I will be trying it out soon, but I did notice some interesting this about temperatures.

When drying the basil and oregano in the oven, the instructions I downloaded from www.preservingyourhavest.com said to set your oven to its lowest temperature and leave the basil in for 2 – 4 hours and the oregano for 30 minutes, then check every 15. The lowest my oven goes is 170 degrees; the basil took about 1 hour 45 minutes; the oregano 45 minutes.  The lowest temperature the dehydrator goes is 95 degrees and its recommended time for basil is 20-24 hours and for oregano 15-18 hours.  I’ll see how it goes.

 

Bistro Lunch Concludes

 

 

We had 12 attendees for this class on Sunday afternoon, October 30.  The main course, pictured above, featured Bistro Steak with Lemon Basil Garlic Aioli, Baked Pommes Frites, and a quick Ratatouille.  We also made a warm Goat cheese and Pear Salad and a Strawberry Clafoutis for dessert.  Although we had a very ambitious menu with 6 separate items, the class managed their time well and had time to sit and enjoy the meal at the end.

 

Cooking Basics 101 Begins November 6

This 3 session class begins this Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM at the Plum Center in Springfield, and continues for the next 2 Sunday afternoons, November 13 and 20.  Each class will feature a salad, a main course with vegetable and a dessert.  For the first 2 weeks we will be making a no bake dessert, and in the last class we will bake a loaf cake.  Each week we will use a different cooking method for the main course – the first week will be stove top; the second in the oven; and in the third we will start on the stove top and finish in the oven.

 

In our first session this Sunday we will make a Caprese Salad, Pan Fried Chicken Italiano with Blanched asparagus, and a Blueberry Ricotta Parfait.

 

 

Reminder – Instagam

Follow me on Instagram at #senseichef.  I look forward to your comments on my posts, culinary and otherwise.

Upcoming Classes

Here are my classes for the rest of the fall term.  The winter catalogue will be out soon.

November 6, 13, 20 – Sunday Afternoons – Cooking Basics 101 – Plum Center

December 6, 13, 20 – Tuesday Evenings – Quick Weeknight Dinners – Plum Center

 

To register for this class, or any ACE cooking classes, please go to:

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/specialinterest.shtml and scroll down to the Culinary section

 

While there, be sure to check out the other culinary courses offered by ACE’s excellent chef instructors.

Till next time, keep cooking.

Contact Chef Kevin at: KJBrady@fcps.edu